MY FELLOW AMERICANS: The Most Important Speeches of American Presidents from George Washington to George W. Bush

Don't know much about American history? This multimedia collection of the great words of American presidents is for you. While this guide covers the entire American presidency, it is understandably weighted heavily toward the last 75 years. The early speeches—Washington's inaugural words, Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, Woodrow Wilson's WWI speech—are read credibly by actors. But this valuable collection really picks up steam with FDR, when the presidents themselves do the speaking. (Most of the recent presidents, with the exception of Jimmy Carter, have more than one speech included.) There will be those who may wish other speeches were added, but it's hard to quibble with those included: John F. Kennedy's words during the Cuban missile crisis, Lyndon B. Johnson's speech upon assuming the presidency, Ronald Reagan's speech calling on Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall. With introductions given for each speech—former Clinton aide Stephanopoulos narrates the CDs—this collection is no less than a primer on U.S. history and the ways issues of government, race and democracy have been viewed during the past 225 years. And there are some surprising moments as well: Richard Nixon's speech to his staff explaining his resignation from the presidency after Watergate shows an emotional side of Nixon rarely seen by the public. 100 b&w illus. (Nov.)