The Americans: The Colonial Experience

“What made the Americans Americans? This is the question posed by Daniel J. Boorstin in a thoughtful, readable and often provocative book.” —Wesley Frank Craven, The New York Times

“This is an ambitious book, well-documented throughout, with many stimulating ideas. . . . Mr. Boorstin is searching for the the grandiose motives, probing the words and actions of the colonists for contemporary meaning.”  —Hebert Mitgang, The New York Times

“Mr. Boorstin’s focus in this impressive essay in intellectual history is the interplay between ideas and institution.  Using this as his perspective, he offers a fresh and arresting reading of the colonial mind.”  —Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.

“A superb panorama of life in America from the first settlements on through the white hot days of the Revolution.” – Bruce Lancaster, Saturday Review