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nobody999's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
Not unsympathetic discussion of an outlying, overlooked, and perhaps forgotten aspect of American history and culture.
Picked it up because these were groups I had some varying knowledge of, but never enough. Owen and Fourier, for example, get fleeting mentions in European history, and the Shakers or Oneida are occasionally noticed by people who live in Upstate New York, but the whole Burnt Over district phenomenon is fully a suppressed memory.
This is ably written and easy to get through. Easily one of the top books I have read this year. The conclusion is ROCK SOLID.
Picked it up because these were groups I had some varying knowledge of, but never enough. Owen and Fourier, for example, get fleeting mentions in European history, and the Shakers or Oneida are occasionally noticed by people who live in Upstate New York, but the whole Burnt Over district phenomenon is fully a suppressed memory.
This is ably written and easy to get through. Easily one of the top books I have read this year. The conclusion is ROCK SOLID.
teensyslews's review against another edition
Each section too long; author's distaste of these movements overwhelms the story.
lecoben's review against another edition
5.0
Always entertaining, this brilliantly written book by Chris Jennings aptly characterizes the groups of 19th century Americans that attempted to actualize their often bizarre and always elusive visions of the ideal society. Jennings is sympathetic in his depictions, often scouring for the roots of why utopian movements gained such popularity in mid-19th century America. And he accurately suggests why these ideas seem so particularly outlandish to the 21st century American:
"As social fluidity coagulates and individuals cease to imagine their own circumstances changing very much, they are less likely to imagine a dramatically improved future for society in general. The future, as an organizing principle for both hope and critique, ceases to exert much pull on the present. The forms of human association come to seem more or less fixated, subject only to incremental improvement or decay"
As wacky as some of the ideas described in this book are, it is difficult not to admire and be inspired by the persistence and unrelenting optimism of these Americans who strove for a more just and equitable society during a century of economic and social injustice.
"As social fluidity coagulates and individuals cease to imagine their own circumstances changing very much, they are less likely to imagine a dramatically improved future for society in general. The future, as an organizing principle for both hope and critique, ceases to exert much pull on the present. The forms of human association come to seem more or less fixated, subject only to incremental improvement or decay"
As wacky as some of the ideas described in this book are, it is difficult not to admire and be inspired by the persistence and unrelenting optimism of these Americans who strove for a more just and equitable society during a century of economic and social injustice.
crystabrittany's review against another edition
4.0
Fantastic. I started it for research and found myself so engaged I forgot I was reading it for "work."
The author writes about these folks in a way that is both loving/understanding and "wow, really?" It's the perfect blend. It was exactly how I felt as I read their utopian ideas. Both "I would join you" and "what were you thinking?"
It's been at least a month since I finished the book and I keep thinking about it.
The author writes about these folks in a way that is both loving/understanding and "wow, really?" It's the perfect blend. It was exactly how I felt as I read their utopian ideas. Both "I would join you" and "what were you thinking?"
It's been at least a month since I finished the book and I keep thinking about it.
eupomene's review against another edition
3.0
Engaging, though not easy, read on a fascinating subject. Jennings focuses on five different utopian communities that reached their height during the 19th century, and also endeavors to explain what was going on at the time to make this sort of communism so popular. He sets out the roots of each group (namely the Shakers, Robert Owens' New Harmony, the Fourierist Phalanxes, Icaria, and the Oneida Community), showing how they differ and yet, at times, coalesce. The range of ideas is mind-boggling (some are quite odd, others eyebrow raising), yet each group shares the forward thinking hope that life on earth can and should be made perfect.
Of them all, only the Shakers remain, and barely.
If you are interested in American history, American thought, and how both religion and secularism can end up in the same place - this is worth the read.
I received my copy through the Goodreads giveaways for an honest review.
Of them all, only the Shakers remain, and barely.
If you are interested in American history, American thought, and how both religion and secularism can end up in the same place - this is worth the read.
I received my copy through the Goodreads giveaways for an honest review.
eely225's review against another edition
4.0
4.5. Rounded down because of occasional tone issues on the part of the author and its occasional tendency to drag.
Really though this was all I could have hoped for. If there is one genre of book I always enjoy, it's "survey of defunct religious organizations along a common theme." The story of America's public romance with millenarian Utopianism in the nineteenth century is a compelling one, compellingly told by the author. It's also broken into five major sections for its five communities, so you can easily read the book in chunks.
The big thing I think the book accomplishes is the mitigation of the reader's cynicism. Growing up, every brief telling of New Harmony came with the implicit message that the experiment was foolish, impossible, and short-lived. I never heard, however, what that experiment accomplished or why the mainstream alternative was so eminently preferable. The book is not hagiography; it clearly evidences why these communities sowed the seeds of their own dissolution. But it also asks whether we are so much better than they, whether aiming for perfection is really more foolish than treating it as an impossibility.
Really though this was all I could have hoped for. If there is one genre of book I always enjoy, it's "survey of defunct religious organizations along a common theme." The story of America's public romance with millenarian Utopianism in the nineteenth century is a compelling one, compellingly told by the author. It's also broken into five major sections for its five communities, so you can easily read the book in chunks.
The big thing I think the book accomplishes is the mitigation of the reader's cynicism. Growing up, every brief telling of New Harmony came with the implicit message that the experiment was foolish, impossible, and short-lived. I never heard, however, what that experiment accomplished or why the mainstream alternative was so eminently preferable. The book is not hagiography; it clearly evidences why these communities sowed the seeds of their own dissolution. But it also asks whether we are so much better than they, whether aiming for perfection is really more foolish than treating it as an impossibility.
dangerousnerd's review against another edition
4.0
Is it bad that, after reading about all these failed utopian efforts, I want to go out and start my own?
Jennings does an excellent job of narrating the histories of the 5 major utopian experiments in the US (Shakers, Owenites, The Fourierisr Phalanxes, Icaria, and Oneida) with surprising wit and charm. I only wish he had delved in deeper about their theologies.
Jennings does an excellent job of narrating the histories of the 5 major utopian experiments in the US (Shakers, Owenites, The Fourierisr Phalanxes, Icaria, and Oneida) with surprising wit and charm. I only wish he had delved in deeper about their theologies.
matthew_p's review against another edition
2.0
More a story of five loosely overlapping utopias than "the story" of American Utopianism, still an informative and interesting read. Do yourself a favor, though, and just read the last eight pages, which makes a good argument for why our current focus on dystopian thinking may be robbing us of a positive future vision to work toward.
veewatson's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. Almost a four star book but I found it a bit condescending with little empathy to his historical subjects. I believe we can be critical of historical figures but a good history needs to inhabit the world they are exploring with some understanding. A lot of the book was dry and some of it was incredibly interesting. Utopianism is a great segway into larger American themes, ideas that shaped the United States in its formation. Overall, I didn't regret reading this book but I wish I was a bit more nuanced and less toned with mild arrogance of the present regarding the past.
Writing: C
Story/Hypothesis: A-
Research and Accuracy: B
Writing: C
Story/Hypothesis: A-
Research and Accuracy: B
theconorhilton's review against another edition
4.0
A detailed, and fascinating, account of a variety of utopian communities and ideas in the United States. Loads of interesting tidbits (including a few surprising Mormon shoutouts), scattered throughout and the book is clear and engaging. Each chapter could be read in isolation if you had specific interests, but the book is definitely enriched by engaging with it in its entirety.