Book Review: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the American Revolution

Before I read the book, “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the American Revolution,” I would have called myself close to an idiot in regards to knowing about what happened in the Revolution. The birth of our nation has not been a topic of extreme interest for me until recently. Of course, I learned about the war for America’s independence in history classes, but it did not really capture my attention until visiting Yorktown last summer. This last 4th of July, the History Channel ran a special on the Revolution, and it was then that I wanted to know more.

“The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the American Revolution” gives the history of America from when Columbus first landed in the West Indies to the adoption of the Constitution in 1789. It goes into great detail about the causes and events leading up to the Revolution, the major battles and campaigns (lesser known ones as well), how it ended, and the birth of the independent American nation. The book goes one step further in discussing the problems with the ineffective Articles of Confederation and then the construction of the Constitution.

The Good: This book does a better job of explaining the American Revolution and goes into much greater detail than the 13-part documentary, The Revolution, from the History Channel. It discusses the causes much better, including descriptions of the wars that took place in the colonies leading up to the Revolution, like the French and Indian War. The book does a great job of actually explaining how the British colonies developed and why many people choose to remain Loyalists during the War.

What I liked most about the book was that it described the major battles and campaigns of the war and the lesser known guerilla warfare that happened in the wilderness during that time. It introduces the reader to important players in the war and gives understandable definitions of terms that are not well-known today. The indexes include all these terms and names as well as a list of Revolutionary War sites to visit and where they are located.

The Bad: The only real criticism I had of the book was that it ended with the adoption of the Constitution and didn’t go any further. Many points of conflict remained between the British and Americans that led up to the War of 1812. While the book had several maps, I found myself wanting more of them included in it to understand the different campaigns.

The Ugly: None to mention

Conclusion: This book is highly recommended for those just starting to learn about the American Revolution. It refrains from intimidating language often found in other scholarly works that scares off readers. It does a good job of making the point that winning the Revolution was not guaranteed. At many points, the war hung by a thread and the American victory could even be called miraculous. Overall, the book shows just how radical the American Revolution really was and continues to be.