A Year in the Life of the American Revolutionary War; 1776 by David McCullough

David McCullough’s book “1776” is the history class I never received. George Washington is such an icon in American history that all we hear is a lot of hagiography. In this book we see the real Washington, he is once again human, struggling with doubts and unsure of his ability. As he did in John Adams, McCullough brings the main characters to life and you feel like you almost know them.

Instead of dealing with those characters we think of when we think “1776″, Jefferson, Madison, Franklin, and the rest of the congress, this book shows how the nation was truly birthed and how close it came to being still-born. General George Washington and his subordinates did not have the experience, the money, or the manpower to take on the British Empire. The Continental Army’s sufferings, battles, defeats, and victories are the focus while the political and social atmosphere in both America and England are the backdrop.

McCullough breathes life into unfamiliar stories such as the American siege of Boston which drove the British army out of Boston and the subsequent British campaign which not only drove the Continental Army from New York City but also led to the unnecessary loss of 2,500 men who were taken prisoner when the British overran Fort Washington. (Which if my calculations are correct was well over 1/3 of the entire army’s manpower). The year and the story climaxes, though, with Washington’s daring Christmas Eve crossing of the Delaware River and the American victory in the Battle of Trenton.

McCullough’s love for his subject is evident in the book and is especially evident in his reading of the audio-book. I enjoyed this book as much as I did John Adams and will now have to get the McCullough’s Truman.