U.S. History For Dummies

by Steve Wiegand

People, places, and dates with a dash of fun — history will never be the same!

Don't know much about American history? Don't worry! With this friendly reference, you can bone up on all those facts you missed in history class — and have a good time in the bargain. From the Revolution to the Civil War, from the Great Depression to the Cold War, this is history the way it ought to be — fresh, memorable, and fun.
--back cover

Genres: History, Nonfiction, American History, Reference, American, College, School

384 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

weird to say, but this book helped me pass the mtel to become a history teacher!

[Liam Cross]

I didn't read this book. I read a different book that was also 464 pages long. I didn't want that book on my Goodreads acct but I wanted the stats to count towards my reading challenge.

[Levi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This turned out to be a concise but wonderfully educational book on the history of the United States of America. Effective in that it shed light on the history of my country, much of which I have been absurdly unaware of. I think any American would greatly benefit, if they haven't already done so, in reading through our countries history to gain a better understanding of where we came from and who we are.

This book also turned out to be strangely comforting during these seemingly tumultuous times. It's nice to know that we have had a history of foolish leaders and our country has survived. We have had a history of doing some really ugly things, but also some really beautiful things.

It was also eye opening to see how much horror the majority (i.e. white America) has unleashed on those in the minority (i.e. everyone else). By learning from the past we can avoid future atrocities and blunders. The sad thing is that so many of our population can't be bothered. Let's hope and pray that changes.

I'm happy to report that, while still a "dummy," my ignorance has been reduced through the reading of this book.

Hooray books!

[Andrej Karpathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice reference that paints the broad strokes of the U.S. history. I appreciated the author's approach to the topics - the book does not try to be overly academic and instead has a conversational tone to it. I always found the existence of the U.S. somewhat magical and the book shines some light on how that came about. A big open question that remains in my mind is why the U.S. became such a superpower relative to the other countries. Either way, good read!

[Memo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not an American citizen, but I was actually interested to know a little bit more of the history of the USA.

This books describes main events that shaped the actual structure of the country (Some key segments of history are omitted or barely described, mainly because the author relies on another book describing more about that topic, i.e. immigration on the 20th century, first presidents of the USA, etc).

It is a book that helps when you need a reference about what happened at certain important date in the nation's life. However, it is not intended to replace scholar books about the subject, because sometimes the author makes comments or suggests ideas that could be interpreted differently by people who attended formal history lessons.

[Stacy Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Dummies series. Seriously, it's a great quick and dirty review of all the important things we need to know to understand the various things we need to know. Profound huh? What do you expect? I'm a self-proclaimed Dummy :)

[Marithe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good review, but too biased for a history book. I do like all the dummies books because they are on the light side.

[Yura Gavrilovich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book, but a little bit too long for me. I was interested in short overview of key historical moment of the USA, so ended up skipping a lot of material.

[Anna Seibert · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I have feeling I really learnt a lot, but sometimes I had more questions than answers. In general well written and funny, just sometimes I wished there were more explanations.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made American history interesting, personal, and clear. I was able to read chapters at a time. Even though I was studying for a teaching exam, I found that I was enjoying it.

Normally, I would find the broad scope of history books a little dull. I prefer a more close-up, personal approach like historical fiction. This book kept me turning the pages. I loved how atmospheric it was. I read and understood this country through the ages, and what it felt like to be American in each time period.

There were also so many cool quotes and personal details about historical figures from US history. Those little touches made it easy for someone like me, who normally reads fiction, to stay interested. This was a great book.

🤓

[Alainza · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a non-American, my knowledge of US History was mostly limited to the events where France was involved. Having moved in the US a few years ago, I wanted to know better my new country: this book is really great in the sense it covers all US History with the perfect level of details, i.e. not too many details (nobody can find the time to read a 1000 pages book) but still deep enough to teach the reader a lot.
The additional boxed texts also help locate well known characters in time and historical context.

[Rflutist · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great, concise one volume history of the U.S. I cram read it within a weekend but if I had my choice, I would have taken several days to read it, instead. It provides the basic facts and will fill in some of the gaps if you don't recall some of your high school history classes. I now want to learn some in depth history on Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, and Thomas Jefferson after reading this book, and suppose that is an excellent takeaway from the reading.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dont laugh! This book helped me fill in some gaps in my knowledge of U.S. History. Although I feet I had a solid knowledge of the subject, this book gave me a better knowledge of the chronology of important events in U.S. History. I also have a better understanding of who were the major players in various time periods. Reading this book was a smooth and painless experience.

[Alex Kartelias · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book for the most part. Reminded me about all those painstaking times in high school and I almost wish I read this book a while ago. But the one thing this brought to me was a deeper appreciation for America amidst its imperfections. Definetly inspires me to read more book on American history.

[B.]

Of course I will be reading this. I love "for dummies" books and whenever there is a topic or subject that interests me, I see if there is a "for dummies" book on it. It is a great book to introduce you to the subject matter.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone real historian would not like the format of this book but the brief accounts on most of what is considered significant in U.S. history were just what I was looking for. In fact, I bought the book to keep as a handy reference and I have ordered from the library the World History for Dummies.

[Brent · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the introduction the author warns me that his "biases may sneak in from time to time". He also warns that "U.S. history Hasn't always been bright and shining"..."but this book has a generally optimistic tone". I agree with his fist statement.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book...it broke it all down...so if you don't know your History (you are dumb...JK) this is a good book to read to play catch up :)

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've forgotten most of the history I learned in high school. I like to learn and re-learn so I often pick this up often.

[Blain · Rating 3 out of 5]

I nice little overview of American History. I usually read this book to brush up on history. An easy read, though a little more depth could have been used in some sections.

[Megan]

LOL...this is my current 'bathroom' book. Written in the normal 'Dummies' form so a great book to pick up when you wanna soak in the tub....

[Tidar Rachmadi]

This was my very first for dummies collection, a good one, but it gives nothing new. I am sure that you guys have read US history in any books anywhere.

[Kerry]

Jumps around a lot and difficult to read on a kindle :/

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just a little historical overview. Not 100% accurate.

[Madeline · Rating 4 out of 5]

very fun and easy read for school.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable trip though the major points of US history, providing a decent overview without too much detail or analysis - exactly what I was looking for!

[Sara Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was exactly what I was looking for except for the liberal bias.

[Csparrenberger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not had a history class for 45 years. This was a great refresher. I especially enjoyed the last 50 years of coverage. Highly recommended.

[Craig Little · Rating 2 out of 5]

A decent overview, but it glosses over far too many seismic events in very brief paragraphs, and Mr. Wiegand's bias is a little bit too obvious in more modern issues.

[Juicy_Groot · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good choice if you just want a quick,not boring history book to flip through.