{"product_id":"a-nation-rising-untold-tales-of-flawed-founders-fallen-heroes-and-forgotten-fighters-from-americas-hidden-history-isbn-9780061118203","title":"A Nation Rising: Untold Tales of Flawed Founders, Fallen Heroes, and Forgotten Fighters from America’s Hidden History","description":"\u003cp\u003e“History in Davis’s hands is loud, coarse, painful, funny, irreverent—and memorable.” \u003cbr\u003e— \u003cem\u003eSan Francisco Chronicle\u003c\/em\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFollowing on his \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestsellers \u003cem\u003eAmerica’s Hidden History\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eDon’t Know Much About History\u003c\/em\u003e, Ken Davis explores the next chapter in the country’s hidden history: the gritty first half of the 19th century, among the most tumultuous in the nation’s short life.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cblockquote\u003e\u003cp\u003eFollowing his \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestseller \u003cem\u003eAmerica's Hidden History\u003c\/em\u003e, Kenneth C. Davis explores the gritty first half of the nineteenth century—among the most tumultuous periods in this nation's short life.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the dramatic period that spans roughly from 1800 through 1850, the United States emerged from its inauspicious beginning as a tiny newborn nation, struggling for survival and political cohesion on the Atlantic seaboard, to a near-empire that spanned the continent. It was a time in which the \"dream of our founders\" spread in ways that few men of that Revolutionary Generation could possibly have imagined. And it was an era that ultimately led to the great, tragic conflagration that followed—the American Civil War. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe narratives that form \u003cem\u003eA Nation Rising\u003c\/em\u003e each exemplify the \"hidden history\" of America, exploring a vastly more complex path to nationhood than the tidily packaged national myth of a destiny made manifest by visionary political leaders and fearless pioneers. Instead, Davis (whose writing \u003cem\u003ePeople\u003c\/em\u003e magazine compared to \"returning to the classroom of the best teacher you ever had\") explores many historical episodes that reverberate to this day, including\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAaron Burr's 1807 trial, showcasing the political intrigue of the early Republic and becoming one of our nation's first media circuses\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ean 1813 Indian uprising and an ensuing massacre that exposes the powerful conflicts at the heart of America's expansion\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ea mutiny aboard the slave ship Creole and the ways in which the institution of slavery both destroyed lives and warped our nation's founding \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ethe \"Dade Massacre\" and the start of the second Seminole War, a long, deadly conflict between Indian tribes, their African American allies, and the emergent U.S. Army\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ethe bloody \"Bible Riots\" in Philadelphia, demonstrating how deadly anti-immigrant sentiment could be\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ethe story of Jessie Benton Frémont and Lt. John C. Frémont, a remarkable couple who together helped open the West, bring California into the Union, and gave literal shape to the nation today\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe issues raised in these intertwined stories—ambition, power, territorial expansion, slavery, intolerance, civil rights, freedom of the press—continue to make headlines. The resulting book is not only riveting storytelling in its own right, but a stirring reminder of the ways in which our history continues to shape our present.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003ePraise for America’s Hidden History:  “American history in the vibrant narrative tradition of David McCullough.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRon Powers, author of Flags of Our Fathers\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Paul Revere didn’t shout out, ‘The British Are Coming’ as he galloped through the night on his famous ride. What did he actually say? Read Kenneth Davis’s ‘Hidden History’ and you’ll find out. You’ll learn lots more, too, in this engaging book.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJoy Hakim, author of A History of US\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Davis’ engaging treatment is spicy but judicious . . . the book is far superior to standard high-school treatments, and a valuable reference for students young and old.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePraise for DON’T KNOW MUCH ABOUT HISTORY: “[P]uts the zest back in history.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWashington Post Book World\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“With his special gift for revealing the significance of neglected historical characters, Kenneth Davis creates a multi-layered, haunting narrative.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRay Raphael, author of Founders\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Davis is a fine writer who uses a fast-moving narrative to tell these stories well... This is an informative and enjoyable work.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Smithsonian","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44889145901285,"sku":"NP9780061118203","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780061118203.jpg?v=1730230615","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/a-nation-rising-untold-tales-of-flawed-founders-fallen-heroes-and-forgotten-fighters-from-americas-hidden-history-isbn-9780061118203","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}