David McCullough, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian, has improved upon his best-selling history, 1776, with 1776: The Illustrated Edition. An interactive version that includes relevant period artwork and facsimiles of historic maps, documents, broadsides, newspapers and correspondence, this beautifully designed edition adds a visual grace note to McCullough’s eloquent, moving text. The narrative is abridged from the original book, but it is no less informative the full impact of the trials of Gen. George Washington and America’s fledgling rebel army is brought startlingly to life with the addition of famous images such as Washington Crossing the Delaware and portraits of key personages like Gen. Nathanael Greene, Alexander Hamilton and Gen. Henry Knox.
Tucked throughout the book are vellum envelopes filled with removable reproductions of historical documents, most notably Washington’s letters to his wife and colleagues and recollections of the war from Continental Army soldiers. McCullough has wonderfully re-created the times that try men’s souls, not only from the American perspective, but from the viewpoint of the British commanders and Loyalists. This is a robust and insightful look into the hard-won freedom of our nation.
