Kevin Blok's Reviews > 1776

** spoiler alert ** The book, 1776 by David McCullough describes arguably the most important year in the history of the United States of America. A large portion of this novel examines this important time period in a lens that is in George Washington’s point of view. Whether it is leading the minutemen on the battlefield against the British, or his life as a wealthy Virginia planter, McCullough helps paint the picture as if the reader is living in that time period observing George Washington and the events that happened around him first-hand. In addition, McCullough vividly describes the characters in the story to help add to this intense realism. He portrays Washington as a devout, natural-born leader. He carefully deliberates his next move in battle as if it is a game of chess. McCullough does an exceptional job of describing King George III, a man whom many Americans dislike, in a way in which is more objective and unbiased. He describes him as being more of a leader that genuinely cared about the colonies. McCullough, by describing the characters like this, leaves it up to the readers to decide on which side of the fight is right, and which side is wrong. After reading this book, I thoroughly enjoyed it. However, it is important to note that being interested in this particular topic and coming in with background knowledge is key. If not, this book to most will seem rather dry and uninteresting. This book really helps describe how our country took an immense amount of time, effort, and hardship in order to form into what it is today. I felt myself connected with some of the soldiers in the war because they lived quite ordinary lives before the war began, similar to how I live an ordinary life now. This book left me becoming more appreciative of what has been given to me, and most importantly, it made me appreciate my country even more.