{"product_id":"declaring-independence-why-1776-matters","title":"Declaring Independence: Why 1776 Matters","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eDeclaring Independence\u003c\/em\u003e is a brilliant illumination of the self-evident truths that inspired America's revolutionary war against the tyrannical British monarchy. On the eve of our 250th anniversary, if we are to reclaim our founding ideals of democratic self-government and rule by law, we should begin by poring over every studied page of Edward J. Larson's anniversary gift to America.--J. Michael Luttig, former U.S. Court of Appeals Judge\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAt a time when the guardrails of our democracy are being tested, it is vitally important to understand the foundations of American government. Edward J. Larson has written a magnificent book that explains how pivotal 1776 was for liberty, equality, and democracy. This beautifully written history is stunning in its lessons for today.--Erwin Chemerinsky, author of No Democracy Lasts Forever\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTimely and timeless.--Susan Dunn, author of Jefferson's Second Revolution\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA profound account of a pivotal year, 1776, with special emphasis on the generative state constitutions and state declarations of rights that took shape that year. If you want to understand America--all of it, deeply, widely, then, now, and in between--read Larson.--Akhil Reed Amar, author of Born Equal\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tEdward J. Larson's eloquent and illuminating \n\u003cem\u003eDeclaring Independence\u003c\/em\u003e ranks as the indispensable history to read as Americans prepare for our 250th anniversary as a nation.--Douglas Brinkley, author of Silent Spring Revolution\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBrief Description\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"At the beginning of 1776, virtually no one in the colonies was advocating independence: Americans based their grievances against Parliament on their rights as British subjects. By the end of 1776, independence was on every patriot's lips. The many tyrannies of a king had made an independent republic necessary. In Declaring Independence, Edward J. Larson gives us a compact, insightful history of that pivotal year. He traces a narrative arc that runs from the inspiring appeals of Paine's Common Sense in January; through the soaring ideals of midsummer, when the Continental Congress grounded independence in the self-evident truths of human equality and individual rights, and the states wove revolutionary principles of republican government and the rule of law into their new constitutions; to Paine's urgent pleas of December, when 'the times that try men's souls' required Americans not 'to shrink from the service of their country.' Dramatic military clashes also punctuate the year: the British evacuation of Boston forced by the brilliant maneuvers of Washington's Army; the Battle of Long Island, a costly defeat that opened New York to British occupation; and the desperate year-end victory of a threadbare American army at Trenton. Combined, these ideals and the sacrifices remind us why, on this anniversary and at this political moment, 1776 matters to all of us.\"--\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the beginning of 1776, virtually no one in the colonies was advocating independence: Americans based their grievances against Parliament on their rights as British subjects. By the end of 1776, independence was on every patriot's lips. The many tyrannies of a king had made an independent republic necessary. In \u003cem\u003eDeclaring Independence\u003c\/em\u003e, Edward J. Larson gives us a compact, insightful history of that pivotal year. He traces a narrative arc that runs from the inspiring appeals of Paine's \u003cem\u003eCommon Sense\u003c\/em\u003e in January; through the soaring ideals of midsummer, when the Continental Congress grounded independence in the self-evident truths of human equality and individual rights, and the states wove revolutionary principles of republican government and the rule of law into their new constitutions; to Paine's urgent pleas of December, when \"the times that try men's souls\" required Americans not \"to shrink from the service of their country.\" Dramatic military clashes also punctuate the year: the British evacuation of Boston forced by the brilliant maneuvers of Washington's Army; the Battle of Long Island, a costly defeat that opened New York to British occupation; and the desperate year-end victory of a threadbare American army at Trenton.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCombined, these ideals and the sacrifices remind us why, on this anniversary and at this political moment, 1776 matters to all of us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/span\u003e 07\/01\/2025 pg. 11 (EAN 9781324078975, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 11\/15\/2025 (EAN 9781324078975, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eContributor Bio:\u003c\/strong\u003eLarson, Edward J\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eEdward J. Larson\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of many acclaimed works of history, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning account of the Scopes trial, \n\u003cem\u003eSummer for the Gods\u003c\/em\u003e, and the recent study of liberty and slavery at the founding, \n\u003cem\u003eAmerican Inheritance\u003c\/em\u003e. A chaired professor of history and law at Pepperdine University, Larson lives with his family near Los Angeles.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"W. W. Norton \u0026 Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496103313686,"sku":"9781324078975","price":35.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9781324078975.jpg?v=1783053217","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/declaring-independence-why-1776-matters","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}