Rating: 
Summary: Superficial revisionist history, 1990s style
Review: 'The American Century' has been about the house for about a month, now. It is the quintessential 'coffee-table book'. For one thing, it is almost as large as the coffee table; for another, it is profusely illustrated, and contains no article longer than a page and a half. With so much material to draw upon, one might expect some depth somewhere; all that meets the eye are leftist polemics. The author, alas, commits the cardinal sin of the revisionist historian - he lets his prejudices get in the way of his reporting. He judges the events and people of the past hundred and twenty years by the standards of a modern ultraliberal, and is forever tut-tutting and waving his finger at the appalling lack of Social Conscience that prevailed until a week ago last Tuesday. He even has the gall to fling bricks at Paul Johnson, who is a better historian accidentally than most are on purpose. Well, everyone to his own taste, as the old woman said when she kissed the pig. If you want a big picture book to leaf through on dull evenings, 'The American Century' may be just the thing. If you want unbiased history, with some details in it that you never heard before, leave it alone.
Rating: 
Summary: An excellent summary of the last 100 years.
Review: An American Century is one of those books that will continue to enlighten you no matter how many times you pick it up to read. This is a coffee table book that will entertain your guests, and you don't have to be there. Anyone who has the slightesr interest in the history of this country will find this book fascinating.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent book that should be read
Review: Don't let the "coffee book table" size or look of the book fool you; "The American Century" is a very well written and very well thought out book. Its central thesis: Through political, economic, and social changes, the promise of American democracy (along with freedom, equality, and justice) slowly became a reality for all Americans.Some criticisms leveled at this book are quite off the mark. One reader slammed Evans for imposing his own views and opinions on the past and thus committing a "cardinal sin." Ridiculous. No history is free of judgement or opinions. Whether it is in an overt statement or how the facts are presented, history is never impartial or neutral. Another criticism is that the book is a product of leftist revisionism. Perhaps, but a closer reading reveals otherwise. Evans, for instance, claimed that Ronald Reagan was "no racist" despite the fact he opened his 1980 campaign in the Deep South in the town where the three civil rights workers were murdered. He was also quite easy on Richard Nixon, describing his handling of the Alger Hiss case as "fair" and dismissing any notions that Watergate was part of some Oliver Stone-esqe conspiracy that somehow involved JFK's assassination. The pictures alone make this book a good buy. I would recommend this book to anyone who has a solid grounding in American history but would like to get a different perspective.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent book that should be read
Review: Don't let the "coffee book table" size or look of the book fool you; "The American Century" is a very well written and very well thought out book. Its central thesis: Through political, economic, and social changes, the promise of American democracy (along with freedom, equality, and justice) slowly became a reality for all Americans. Some criticisms leveled at this book are quite off the mark. One reader slammed Evans for imposing his own views and opinions on the past and thus committing a "cardinal sin." Ridiculous. No history is free of judgement or opinions. Whether it is in an overt statement or how the facts are presented, history is never impartial or neutral. Another criticism is that the book is a product of leftist revisionism. Perhaps, but a closer reading reveals otherwise. Evans, for instance, claimed that Ronald Reagan was "no racist" despite the fact he opened his 1980 campaign in the Deep South in the town where the three civil rights workers were murdered. He was also quite easy on Richard Nixon, describing his handling of the Alger Hiss case as "fair" and dismissing any notions that Watergate was part of some Oliver Stone-esqe conspiracy that somehow involved JFK's assassination. The pictures alone make this book a good buy. I would recommend this book to anyone who has a solid grounding in American history but would like to get a different perspective.
Rating: 
Summary: Sharp, entertaining and worth the time
Review: Evans did his homework here, and should be quite proud of a work that should have a place in every home. The coffee table book that was credited to Peter Jennings of ABC News may have gotten the fanfare, but this true work of popular scholarship will outlive the hoopla.
Rating:
Summary: Sharp, entertaining and worth the time
Review: Evans did his homework here, and should be quite proud of a work that should have a place in every home. The coffee table book that was credited to Peter Jennings of ABC News may have gotten the fanfare, but this true work of popular scholarship will outlive the hoopla.
Rating: 
Summary: History with an Agenda
Review: Generally well written prose, Evan's "The American Century" is rife with examples of his left-leaning tendencies. Throughout the book, every Democrat is described in noble and glowing terms. Errors made by the liberals are explained away as casual mistakes or honest misunderstandings. Democrats are universally portrayed as virtuous and well-meaning. Conversely, all Republicans/conservatives are shown to be mean-spirited and their policies are donation driven and designed to hurt the "average" American. I understand that every historian writes with a particular bias, but the totality of it here makes the work unreadable to less idealogically-driven readers.
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary scholarship, elegance of style.
Review: Harold Evans has produced a tour de force. This is a tribute to America from a loving immigrant--a man who has gained international fame as an editor and writer, first in his native Britain and later in the United States. Evans has produced a superb history of 20th century America, but his book starts in the last century so as to give us a perspective on what was to follow. The research is prodigious; the selection of photographs is stunning; the writing is elegant and unintrusive. This is a book meant to be savored page by page--and to be handed down as a heirloom.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding highlights summary of the century
Review: I am not an historian. Found this to be a provocative highlight of major events. Some events are reported with background and facts with which I was not familiar. Wish I had an easy way of verification of who is right or wrong factually. In any event, an interesting publication...
Rating:
Summary: A provocative look at USA in its second Century.
Review: I like Historical Reference texts and this is quite different - in its analysis of the major events of 1889 through 1989 the second century of the USA. The book makes it quite clear that the "good old days" of the late nineteenth century and the first half of this century were filled with social upheaval and injustice as well as great happenings in the development of the Republic. This book was put together from Harold Evan's perspective as an immigrant to the USA and a person who understands how the Constitution creates a tapestry that weaves all the ethnic cultures - and their unique issues and problems - into our national culture. This is an excellent book.
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