A Young People's History of the United States, Volume 1: Columbus to the Spanish-American War

Gr 610This adaptation of Zinn's successful "A People's History of the United States" (New Pr., 2003) reflects the adult title's perspective, which is highly critical of "traditional" American history and the powerful "elites," viewed by Zinn as manipulators who grant ordinary Americans just enough rights and material success to avoid real revolution that would threaten their power and wealth. Thus, readers learn that the American Revolution was fought so that the top tier of colonists could seize the British power and wealth, that the Constitution "served the interests of a wealthy elite," and that the Civil War was not a struggle to end slavery but rather a way for the United States government "to keep control of the enormous territory, resources, and market of the South." These books suffer from two major flaws. First, the coverage is very broad, but Zinn's massive text has been greatly abridged, resulting in a shortage of background information to help students understand how specific events relate to the larger picture. Second, it abandons objectivity by scrutinizing America's injustices without giving credit to its many successes. Joy Hakim's "Freedom: A History of US" (Oxford Univ., 2002) covers many of the same oppressed groups and populist themes, but is more successful in giving young people both the necessary background and a more balanced presentation of how competing interests influenced our nation's development."Mary Mueller, Rolla Junior High School, MO" Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.