History Rocks
Lately, I have been reading the book 1776 by David McCullough. To be honest, for a history book, it is quite absorbing and I have been having trouble putting it down, even to go to bed to catch up on much needed sleep during the week. It just goes to show how the facts of history can be as interesting as any fiction in the hands of a capable author. I appreciate
catarzyna for having recommended his writings to me.
The subject of the founding of our country held some interest for me when I was first introduced to it in grade school. I well remember the "Schoolhouse Rock!" song on saturday mornings about the Revolutionary War. It went "the shot heard 'round the world was the start of the revolution..." As I got older, the topic lost its appeal. The founding fathers seemed like stodgy old men in powdered wigs only of interest to academics and political theorists. Exploring Monticello last year made me realize how much I had underestimated the founders of our country and how much I still could learn about their time. The patriots of the revolution held a diverse set of beliefs that certainly presage the philosophical divisions through out own times. They were hardly perfect men, to be sure, but that serves to humanize them from the status of icons that they have been held at. The more I learn, the more fascinated I become and McCullough vividly depicts the time and the people in his book. Even if you don't like history much, I heartily recommend the book 1776 which rises far above the level of being a dry textbook.