Taylor, Alan

Recommended only for readers of Jeffersonian history and those curious about the history of the University of Virginia and College of William & Mary.

This well-documented and thoroughly researched but also accessibly written book is recommended to readers interested in colonial and postcolonial American history, especially those who enjoyed Taylor's similarly impressive American Colonies. [See Prepub Alert, 3/21/16.]

This is an accessible narrative of great scholarship that, similar to Maya Jasanoff's Liberty's Exiles, takes a new and distinct look at a topic of persistent attention. Writing with an understanding of his subject that is stunning to behold, Taylor again shows why he is the dean of early American history. A great work for early American history buffs and anyone interested in the evolution of slavery in America.

Readers should turn first to Taylor's The Divided Ground: Indians, Settlers, and the Northern Borderland of the American Revolution to see how the borderlands were shaped by conflict before the War of 1812. As this war's bicentennial approaches, Jon Latimer's 1812: War with Americais another good choice.