A People's History of the United States
1492-present
by Howard Zinn, Kathy Emery, Ellen Reeves, Matt Damon · first published 1980
52% recommend43% neutral5% critical
Why HN recommends it
History told from the view of workers, the poor, and the marginalized, covering labor struggles, slavery, and expansion left out of school textbooks. Suits readers wanting a counter to the standard national story.
Common criticism: Some say its strongly biased viewpoint and selective sources need outside context
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History of the United States is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of -- and in the words of -- America's women, factory workers, African Americans, Native Americans, working poor, and immigrant laborers.
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Mentions per year
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A People's History of the United States (Zinn) [http://www.amazon.com/Peoples-History-United-States-Present/...] There's so much history that isn't taught in school (politically covered up) and Zinn presents many of these little-known history…
on “Ask HN: Summer Reading Recommendations?” ↗i play a game where i have duplicate copies of some books to give to anyone interested who has yet to have heard of one here's a incomprehensive list in alphabetical order: a people's history of the united states; howard zinn a rebours; joris-karl huysmans alcestis; euripides apology; plato belaya staya; anna akhmatova die verwandlung; franz kafka elements; euclid epic of gilgamesh; unknown ficciones;…
on “Ask HN: What book have you given as a gift?” ↗…Righteous Mind* by Jonathan Haidt - *Thinking, Fast and Slow* by Daniel Kahneman Non-Fiction (Social) - *The Art of Not Being Governed* by James C. Scott - *The Unwinding* by George Packer - *People's History of the United States* by Howard Zinn Fiction - *East of Eden* by John Steinbeck - *Sometimes a Great Notion* by Ken Kesey - *The Brothers Karamazov* by Fyodor Dostoyevsky edit: formatting
on “Ask HN: What books changed the way you think about almost everything?” ↗…http://www.writing.upenn.edu/~afilreis/50s/schwarz-cover.htm... My best friend in college was a Russian Jew whose family immigrated to US during the Cold War, and he kept that book on his coffee table. It's the Yin to Howard Zinn's Yang - A People's History of the United States - which even though it's not philosophy is worth reading too. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Peoples_History_of_the_United...
on “Ask HN: Best Philosophical Books?” ↗…and transparency and you're lying to yourself thinking that they did. Our press has constantly manipulated us. Lies and secrets are just getting easier to expose. I suggest you read the following: - A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present by Howard Zinn - Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky
on “Leaked report shows high civilian death toll from CIA drone strikes” ↗…Hobbes, Machiavelli, Clausewitz and Rousseau. If you are really a glutton for punishment go on to Hegel, Marx and Nietzsche. If you are wanting a slightly more americanized version; Howard Zinn's "A People's history of the United States" is a good and fairly accessible book. A couple of Wiki pages that might point you toward other resources http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck Just…
on “TPP Leak Confirms the Worst: US Still Trying to Trade Away Internet Freedoms” ↗Read Howard Zinn's, 'A People's History of the United States', then get back to me.
on “Hiroshima (1946)” ↗…nuanced view than the one that you've laid out. For a few suggestions: On historical critiques of the US-centric perspective: The Jakarta Method, Vincent Bevins The Darker Nations, Vijay Prashad A People's History of the United States, Howard Zinn Economic works: Competing Economic Theories, Richard Wolff Seventeen Contradictions and the End of Capitalism, David Harvey There are more authors (Kliman, Moseley, Shaikh, etc.), but…
I really turned a corner when I read Chomsky's "Manufacturing Consent" and Zinn's "People's History of the United States".
on “Americans' Trust in Media Dips to Second Lowest on Record” ↗If you're not American, I can see why you wouldn't understand the cultural context that the article, and my response above, presumes intimate knowledge of. If you're curious, you could read Zinn's A People's History of the United States which is a pretty good primer.
on “How SBF(FTX) used his status as the right kind of "White Boy" to con the world.” ↗…an ideological martyr and encourages seeking it. If you disagree with an ideology, then dissect it intellectually and reveal the full history of why it is suboptimal. 2 books worth reading: 1. "The People's History of the United States" by Howard Zinn 2. Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias (A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies) 1552 by Bartolomé de las Casas. If you thought the slave trade in the British…
on “Protest song vanishes from Spotify, Apple Music ahead of government ban” ↗…Charles - Life And Times Of Little Richard, The Wilson, Colin - Outsider, The Wolf, Christa - Quest For Christa T, The Wright, Richard - Black Boy Yokoo, Tadanori - Tadanori Yokoo Zinn, Howard - A People’s History Of The United States
on “David Bowie’s Top 100 Books (2013)” ↗A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn
on “Ask HN: Which non-technology book has influenced you the most and why?” ↗A People's History of the United States
on “Ask HN: Books you wish you had read earlier?” ↗1. People's History of the United States: Highlights from the 20th century - Howard Zinn 2. Snow Crash - Neil Stephenson 3. jPod - Douglas Coupland 4. the world is flat 2.0
on “Ask YC: Road trip. Which audio books would you recommend?” ↗