A People's History of the United States : 1492-Present

One question begs to be asked about this book. Based upon some of the comments for this work, and its abridged edition, can its sales be weighted by teachers making it a required reading?

Despite this question, I can recommend it to anyone interested in American history.


A History of the United States for the Rest of Us   August 6, 1998
35 out of 43 found this review helpful

What some of the readers below don't seem to get is that this book is not INTENDED to be a balanced look at American history. There IS no balanced look at history. Every historian brings his own biases and preconceptions to the table. Zinn makes this point early on in the book; and, to his immense credit, doesn't EVER claim to be fair or impartial or balanced. This is a history from the point of view of the rest of us: the native population, the slaves, the railroad workers, the child laborers, women, factory workers, soldiers, and everyone else whose voice has not been represented or even heard through previous histories.

Most histories are written from the point of view of the dominant affluent culture. It would naturally be difficult for the dominant culture to express the idea that their success is built on other people's misery; nobody likes looking bad in their own eyes. However, facts are facts: Millions of natives WERE systematically driven off their lan! d and killed, millions of africans WERE kept in the most degrading forms of slavery, thousands of workers WERE beaten and killed for daring to act for a better life, etc. These WERE the conditions of life for the other side. Closing our eyes does not help.


Zinn speaks for previously quiet   August 4, 1998
moviesguru@aol.com (The "Best" country in the world)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

It makes me laugh when people say that Zinn's history lacks credibility. People like that think exactly how the all-powerful U.S. government wants you to think. Just because they cut it out of your high school textbook doesn't mean it's not true.


Open Mind to read "Other Side"   August 2, 1998
Uwe von Traum (New York)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

No matter one's political leanings, this entertaining and informative book details the side of history we weren't taught - or is it indoctinated? - in high school. The only thing preventing me from giving this much needed kick-in the-rear book by Howard Zinn a five star rating is the fact that he presumes that only Women, children, social misfits and non-Europeans (ie. minorities) are the ones to wear the - excuse me - "White" hats; or, in other words, these people were exploited and victimized by us Mainstream White folks, namely heterosexual males of Western European stock, unabashed perpetrators of evil. If one were to take Mr. Zinn's word for everything about history he or she would be as wrong as the naive acceptance of that garbage spoon-fed to many of us back in high school. On the other hand, a book like Mr. Zinn's is much needed to give balance to a history. Let's give him five stars for guts.

Though brilliant and articulate in most respects,! and well-researched in presenting the flip side, A People's History of the USA fails to acknowledge that not all White heterosexual males are the villains in history.


"Freedom Has Nothing to Fear From the Truth"   July 15, 1998
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

What the unhappy reviewers below forget to mention is that Zinn never promises a "balanced" treatment. We all know Carnegie supplied cheap steal. We all know that Columbus was a great sailor. All Zinn does is tell us the things we weren't told when we were growing up. The only legitimate criticism one can make is in relation to the facts. If Zinn is wrong on the facts, then let's criticize. If not, then what are we afraid of? Does it matter that Columbus committed genocide? Does it matter that Andrew Jackson was a ruthless killer of Indians? Does it matter that Truman's top military advisors (and Winston Churchill) believed Japan was defeated before the dropping of the atomic bombs? These are simple "yes/no" questions. People who need to feel "pride" based on the actions of others, long dead, may not feel comfortable answering those questions. But they need to be answered so that the atrocities of the past are not so easily repeated.