I was given this book as a joke by my (formally) right-wing brother many years ago, and ended up enjoying it more than he expected/hoped. It's not the first or only popular American history I'd recommend, but a great counterpoint to other histories biased in the other direction. If you read Woods with some Parenti or Kazin you end up with a pretty nuanced and expansive panoply to decide your views from. One other recommendation: Paul Johnson's History of the American People -- also not an ideal starting point but I've often said if you pair it with Howard Zinn you've got the making of a really interesting conversation.
I was given this book as a joke by my (formally) right-wing brother many years ago, and ended up enjoying it more than he expected/hoped. It's not the first or only popular American history I'd recommend, but a great counterpoint to other histories biased in the other direction. If you read Woods with some Parenti or Kazin you end up with a pretty nuanced and expansive panoply to decide your views from. One other recommendation: Paul Johnson's History of the American People -- also not an ideal starting point but I've often said if you pair it with Howard Zinn you've got the making of a really interesting conversation.