Ecstatic Nation: Confidence, Crisis, And Compromise, 1848-1877 (American History) - Softcover

Wineapple, Brenda

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0061234583 ISBN 13: 9780061234583

Publisher: Harper Perennial, 2020

Synopsis

A New York Times Notable Book of 2013 A Kirkus Best Book of 2013 A Bookpage Best Book of 2013Dazzling in scope, Ecstatic Nation illuminates one of the most dramatic and momentous chapters in America's past, when the country dreamed big, craved new lands and new freedom, and was bitterly divided over its great moral wrong: slavery.â ¨ â ¨With a canvas of extraordinary characters, such as P. T. Barnum, Walt Whitman, Frederick Douglass, and L. C. Q. Lamar, Ecstatic Nation brilliantly balances cultural and political history: It's a riveting account of the sectional conflict that preceded the Civil War, and it astutely chronicles the complex aftermath of that war and Reconstruction, including the promise that women would share in a new definition of American citizenship. It takes us from photographic surveys of the Sierra Nevadas to the discovery of gold in the South Dakota hills, and it signals the painful, thrilling birth of modern America.An epic tale by award-winning author Brenda Wineapple, Ecstatic Nation lyrically and with true originality captures the optimism, the failures, and the tragic exuberance of a renewed Republic.

About this title

Product Description:

For America, the mid-nineteenth century was an era of vast expectation and expansion: the country dreamed big, craved new lands, developed new technologies, and after too long a delay, finally confronted its greatest moral failure: slavery. Award-winning historian and literary critic Brenda Wineapple explores these feverish, ecstatic, conflicted years when Americans began to live within new and ever-widening borders, both spiritual and geographic; fought a devastating war over parallel ideals of freedom and justice; and transformed their country, at tragic cost, from a confederation into one nation, indivisible. A masterful synthesis of political, cultural, and intellectual history, breathtaking in sweep and scope, Ecstatic Nation is a spellbinding tale of America its glory and greed, its aspirations and humiliations in this exhilarating and momentous period."

Review:

""Ecstatic Nation" is historical writing of the highest order. . . . With vivid portrayals of the principals of the period, Wineapple sets out the conflicts and causes that shaped the nation. . . . An indispensable guide to the forces that created our own time."--"The Boston Globe"

""Ecstatic Nation" is a brilliant portrait of American society in the mid-nineteenth century. . . . Wineapple's deep research, deft character studies, and rich and nuanced storytelling bring this transformative period alive. A must-read for all lovers of American history."--Annette Gordon-Reed, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "The Hemingses of Monticello"

"Entertaining."--"Elle"

""Ecstatic Nation" powerfully portrays life in the decades surrounding the Civil War, connecting history with modern-day debate. . . . A fresh and riveting account of America at war with itself. . . . Wide in scope and deep in detail."--"The Los Angeles Times"

"Extremely satisfying. . . . The narrative of "Ecstatic Nation", so irresistible and perfectly-orchestrated, catches dozens of wonderful portraits in its net. . . . A triumph."--Open Letters Monthly

""Ecstatic Nation" is varied, original and engaging from cover to cover. All in all, this is a magnificent read for history lovers."--Daniel Walker Howe, "The Wall Street Journal"

This is a marvelous book. With narrative grace and surehanded scholarship, Brenda Wineapple has written a compelling account of an epochal (and too little understood) age. From the death of John Quincy Adams through the Civil War to the tragedy of Reconstruction, Wineapple tells the American story brilliantly. --Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "American Lion""

"Ecstatic Nation" is historical writing of the highest order. . . . With vivid portrayals of the principals of the period, Wineapple sets out the conflicts and causes that shaped the nation. . . . An indispensable guide to the forces that created our own time. --"The Boston Globe""

Wineapple is a beautiful writer, at once lyrical and measured. . . . In providing a sense of the possibilities and tragedies or the era, of its passions and disappointments, Wineapple has given us a memorable book. --"The Christian Science Monitor""

Brenda Wineapple portrays the years of sectional conflict, Civil War, and Reconstruction on a broad canvas that has room for Emily Dickinson and Ulysses S. Grant, Jefferson Davis and Walt Whitman. Blending cultural and political history, "Ecstatic Nation" offers new perspectives on this transformative era. --James McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "Battle Cry of Freedom""

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Publication date: 2020
• ISBN 10: 0061234583
• ISBN 13: 9780061234583
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 736