American Conversations, Volume 1: From Colonization Through Reconstruction

Presents primary source readings in American history to help students identify with the nation’s past.

American Conversations is a two-volume anthology of original primary sources in United States history. It features texts by famous and obscure Americans, seeking to reflect the voices of Native Americans, African Americans, women, and workers out of the backwaters onto the historical mainstream by devoting attention to these “forgotten” Americans. At the same time, the text acquaints students with leading figures and core texts. This juxtaposition offers a richer understanding of American history.

The people and texts presented will resonate powerfully with the contemporary American conversation. Whatever today’s topic–race relations, the battle of the sexes, protest or piety, or unum vs. pluribus–readers will find its roots in these pages.

A better teaching and learning experience
This program will provide a better teaching and learning experience–for you and your students. Here’s how:

• Personalize Learning- MySearchLab delivers proven results in helping students succeed, provides engaging experiences that personalize learning, and comes from a trusted partner with educational expertise and a deep commitment to helping students and instructors achieve their goals.
• Improve Critical Thinking- Suggested answers and discussion topics are provided in the appendix.
• Engage Students- Images are used as an indispensable tool for illuminating the past. To sharpen the reader’s eye, American Conversations includes three chapters devoted exclusively to visual texts. Additionally, substantive head notes accompany the longer passages.
• Support Instructors- MySearchLaband Class Preparation are available.

For volume 2 of this text, search ISBN-10: 0131582615

Note: MySearchLab does not come automatically packaged with this text. To purchase MySearchLab, please visit: www.mysearchlab.com or you can purchase a ValuePack of the text + MySearchLab (at no additional cost): ValuePack ISBN-10: 0205721648 / ValuePack ISBN-13: 9780205721641.

“The 3 greatest strengths of the book are: 1) the variety of topics and selections included, 2) the inclusion of both best-sellers and little-known publications, 3) the introductions are generally thoughtful and well-written.”

    -Carol Sue Humphrey, Oklahoma Baptist University

“I am thoroughly impressed with the narrative from start to finish. The author sets a very high bar with the first chapter and he continues through the last...It emphasizes depth over breadth, it contains documents rarely used in similar readers, and the chapter introductions contextual the documents better than most others.”

    -Jeffrey G. Strickland, Montclair State University

“The biographical information about each source is thorough and the use of recent secondary literature is very good.”

    -Rebecca Hill, Borough of Manhattan Community College

“The book has strong analysis of the documents and loads of information about the writers and various topics...Most of the chapters contain penetrating questions weaved into the analysis of each introduction. The questions will help the students with the readings. The author has provided analysis that will help the students on their way to answering the questions, but not gone so far as to give the reader the answers in the intros.”

    -Robert O’Brien, Lonestar College-CyFair

“The greatest strengths of this work are the use of longer excerpts from fewer texts...the vivid, informed and engaging introductory essays, and the constant “cross-fertilization” and layering of the sources. I love the way the editor models historical analysis. He provides the necessary contexts for understanding these documents as well as a very helpful and current bibliography.  I don’t see how students could complain about already knowing the subject matter when they are challenged to think so differently about the practice of history.”

    -Linda K. Salvucci, Trinity University