Ryan Splenda's Reviews > 1776

This was my first experience with David McCullough. Being a history major, it was only a matter of time before I got my hands on one of his books, and I must say, I was not disappointed. McCullough tells the story of one of the most important and difficult years in the history of the world, frankly. How a rag-tag bunch of soldiers with little to no experience was able to hang in there with the world's greatest military at that time is nothing short of a miracle.

What makes this book effective is that it only focuses on one year of the American Revolution. Also, McCullough does a decent job of equally representing both the Americans and British. However, one reading this book should know that it mainly focuses on the military aspects of the year 1776. I was expecting a little more insight and information regarding the Continental Congress and the British Parliament, but it is clear that this is a book mainly concerned with the military aspects of the Americans and British. Once can actually make the argument that it can be read as another biography of George Washington, but this also makes sense given his massive role in the American Revolution.

McCullough painstakingly goes through every single major event that occurred in this tumultuous year with great detail. He does a good job of making it a story as opposed to a series of facts one would read in a textbook. I highly recommend this piece of work to any history buff or anyone who enjoys good writing. The conclusion I was able to reach is this: the existence of our country is a miracle given the troubles and turmoil that everyone faced in that important year of 1776.