Patriots

Working with contemporary letters and public statements, Langguth, who heads the journalism department at the University of Southern California, produces a closely knit and continuously interesting drama of the American Revolution by following the principal and secondary actors, from Prime Minister George Grenville and his plan to raise revenues by a stamp tax in the colonies to General Washington's farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern. Figures whose names are familiar but whose deeds are vaguely known are brought into sharp focus. We know, for instance, that Benedict Arnold is our most infamous traitor, but not necessarily what drove him to do whatever it was he did, precisely. Washington definitely crossed the Delaware, but what did he do when he reached the other side? Read this rousing history and find out. Illustrations. BOMC main selection. (February 29)