mckenzierichardson's review against another edition
4.0
I received a copy of this book through Goodreads in exchange for an honest review.
An interesting, casual history of the influences of alcohol on American history.
This book has a unique mix of personal and historical information regarding the role of alcohol and alcoholism. The writing is well done with a bit of humor thrown in. Cheever takes well known stories such as the voyage of the Mayflower and Johnny Appleseed and uncovers the crucial role of alcohol and how it changed history.
Equal parts documenting the views of alcohol during various time periods and warning against the negative side of alcohol, this is a great read packed with information.
An interesting, casual history of the influences of alcohol on American history.
This book has a unique mix of personal and historical information regarding the role of alcohol and alcoholism. The writing is well done with a bit of humor thrown in. Cheever takes well known stories such as the voyage of the Mayflower and Johnny Appleseed and uncovers the crucial role of alcohol and how it changed history.
Equal parts documenting the views of alcohol during various time periods and warning against the negative side of alcohol, this is a great read packed with information.
merricatct's review against another edition
2.0
In her conclusion, the author draws a distinction between this book and "objective" historians like McCullough, etc; her thought is that being objective is in itself a subjective decision, since the subjectivity of the period is part of the history. But I'm a reader who likes objective history ... one of my biggest reading turn-offs is when the historian inserts themselves into the work, or their "history" is actually part memoir. Drinking in America isn't *that* bad, but this is definitely a personal subject for the author, and there's no lack of her dropping in her own anecdotes or examples from her family's experiences. It helps that her father is John Cheever, but still.
It also doesn't help that there are a lot of interesting theories here, but I just don't know how many of them are true, or true to the extent that we're supposed to believe they are. The final conclusion of several of the chapters seems to be "there isn't a historical record to back this up, but we know that people in (insert time/place) drank a lot, so therefore drinking resulted in (insert historical event or trend)." There are also some outright errors or omissions, which make me even more hesitant to buy into the author's conclusions.
Not a bad history, and certainly a quick and engaging read, but I'd say this is a good starting point from which to read further, rather than being a good reference on its own.
It also doesn't help that there are a lot of interesting theories here, but I just don't know how many of them are true, or true to the extent that we're supposed to believe they are. The final conclusion of several of the chapters seems to be "there isn't a historical record to back this up, but we know that people in (insert time/place) drank a lot, so therefore drinking resulted in (insert historical event or trend)." There are also some outright errors or omissions, which make me even more hesitant to buy into the author's conclusions.
Not a bad history, and certainly a quick and engaging read, but I'd say this is a good starting point from which to read further, rather than being a good reference on its own.
myrto229's review against another edition
3.0
This was vaguely interesting, but overall it wasn't a page-turner. I enjoyed the chapter on the pilgrims vs the Puritans, which was a very different lens through which to view the early European settlers on this continent. I also liked the chapter on the impact of alcohol on various US presidencies. But better books have been written on Prohibition and Johnny Appleseed. So, overall it was OK.
innae's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting look at the history of the United States. I did not realize alcoholism was so prevalent in our leaders (past and recent). I enjoyed the second half of the book better, in the first half I felt she interjected ALCOHOLISM preachiness where it didn't really fit - it made more sense as a conclusion, and in the chapter actually on AA.
karingforbooks's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
2.0
I understand everybody has a bias, but I shouldn’t feel like I’m being preached at when all I want is a history. But Cheever preaches about the ills of alcohol the whole way, picking the events and swings to support her. It was a sermon with occasional interesting historical tidbits.
mair_mcc's review against another edition
3.0
While the information was interesting, it was a little dry for my taste. It also tended to be quite repetitive and had a clear bias. Some very fun tidbits though!
jenniemayfield's review against another edition
2.0
I tried really hard to like this book but it was a slog. I'm not much for non fiction and while I was excited to read it because of all the fun facts, they weren't enough to keep me interested. So if you can do non fiction and like history then this is for you, this just wasn't my thing.
myshatatiana18's review against another edition
3.0
This book is an excellent overview of an underrepresented part of US history, namely, our drinking problem. It shows how crucial drinking was in shaping certain events from the Mayflower landing to the Kennedy assassination. It also discusses our complicated attitudes towards drinking and how they've evolved or regressed.
My main issue with this book is admittedly my own expectations going in. The book is organized by major events or people and I was expecting something a bit more sweeping in scale. This is entirely on me but it did hinder my enjoyment in a few instances.
My main issue with this book is admittedly my own expectations going in. The book is organized by major events or people and I was expecting something a bit more sweeping in scale. This is entirely on me but it did hinder my enjoyment in a few instances.
swirls's review
2.0
I read most of this book while mildly tipsy, which was for the best because it's repetitive and a sloppily structured. Written by the daughter of an alcoholic novelist, this thematic history is heavily influenced by her own family life with random references to her own tragic upbringing scattered throughout. But it's also peppered with interesting anecdotes about famous drunks of American history, starting with the pilgrims and ending with Nixon, and it was engaging enough for me to actually finish. Some chapters were far more interesting than others, with the first chapter on the Pilgrims the highlight of the entire work. However, she is far from dispassionate and I don't entirely trust the quality of research done here. To appreciate this, don't look for a well-structured history, but consider it an academic alcoholic's thoughts on the history of alcoholism in America.
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