We the People of AbeBooks, do ordain and establish this Blog Post of 10 Books, 10 Facts and 1 Video about the American Constitution on this 222nd anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States.
10 Books about the U.S. Constitution
- The United States Constitution: What It Says, What It Means: A Hip Pocket Guide
Affordable, readable, and indispensable,The United States Constitution: What it Says, What it Means allows you to put the most important document in American history in your back pocket. In conjunction with Justice Learning and The Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands and with an introduction written by Caroline Kennedy and an afterword written by David Eisenhower, this pocket guide appeals to the broadest possible audience. Each Article and each Amendment is followed by a clear and concise explanation, in plain English - an excellent way for students and citizens of all ages to read and completely comprehend the building block of American democracy. - The People’s Guide to the United States Constitution by Dave Kluge
American’s feel strongly that everyone should be familiar with the Constitution. Through a simple presentation focused on basic principles The People’s Guide is written to make it easy to explore this thrilling document and come to one’s own understanding. It includes a brief historical context, definitions of essential terms and concepts for the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights and Amendments all in one simple spin-free read. What would it be like to live in a country where everyone had read and understood the Constitution? By survey, people believe there would be more respect, it would be easier to get along and make things better–and they would like to read the Constitution, if it was more accessible. The People’s Guide to the United States Constitution answers that need. - We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Catrow
A long time ago some smart guys wrote the Preamble to the Constitution. You have probably read it before, but do you know what it means? And did it ever make you laugh? Now it will! Perfect for inspiring discussion in classrooms and around kitchen tables, this fun-filled and cheerfully illustrated look at the Preamble citizens of all ages. - Novus Ordo Seclorum: The Intellectual Origins of the Constitution by Forrest McDonald
‘A witty and energetic study of the ideas and passions of the Framers.’ - New York Times Book Review’An important, comprehensive statement about the most fundamental period in American history. It deals authoritatively with topics no student of American can afford to ignore.’ - Harvey Mansfield, author of the Spirit of Liberalism - The Summer of 1787: The Men Who Invented the Constitution by David O. Stewart
The successful creation of the Constitution is a suspense story. The Summer of 1787 takes us into the sweltering room in which delegates struggled for four months to produce the flawed but enduring document that would define the nation — then and now. The room was crowded with colorful and passionate characters, some known — Alexander Hamilton, Gouverneur Morris, Edmund Randolph — and others largely forgotten. At different points during that sultry summer, more than half of the delegates threatened to walk out, and some actually did, but Washington’s quiet leadership and the delegates’ inspired compromises held the Convention together. - James Madison and the Struggle for the Bill of Rights by Richard Labunski
Today we hold the Constitution in such high regard that we can hardly imagine how hotly contested was its adoption. Now Richard Labunski offers a dramatic account of a time when the entire American experiment hung in the balance, only to be saved by the most unlikely of heroes–the diminutive and exceedingly shy James Madison. - An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States by Charles Austen Beard
This famous study — one of the most influential in the area of American economic history — brought a halt to Americans’ uncritical reverence for their country’s revolutionary past. Questioning the Founding Fathers’ motivations in drafting the Constitution, it viewed the results as a product of economic self-interest. Perhaps the most controversial books of its time. - Decision in Philadelphia: The Constitutional Convention of 1787 by Christopher Collier
Fifty-five men met in Philadelphia in 1787 to write a document that would create a country and change a world. Here is a remarkable rendering of that fateful time, told with humanity and humor. “The best popular history of the Constitutional Convention available.”–Library Journal - A Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution by Carol Berkin
When a group of men traveled to Philadelphia in the summer of 1787 to save a nation in danger of collapse, they had no great expectations for the meeting that would make history. But all the ideas, arguments, and compromises led to a great thing: a constitution and a government were born that have surpassed the founders’ greatest hopes. Revisiting all the original documents and using her deep knowledge of eighteenth-century history and politics, Carol Berkin takes a fresh look at the men who framed the Constitution, the issues they faced, and the times they lived in. Berkin transports the reader into the hearts and minds of the founders, exposing their fears and their limited expectations
of success. - America’s Constitution: A Biography by Akhil Reed Amar
In America’s Constitution, one of this era’s most accomplished constitutional law scholars, Akhil Reed Amar, gives the first comprehensive account of one of the world’s great political texts. Incisive, entertaining, and occasionally controversial, this “biography” of America’s framing document explains not only what the Constitution says but also why the Constitution says it. We all know this much: the Constitution is neither immutable nor perfect. Amar shows us how the story of this one relatively compact document reflects the story of America more generally.
10 Facts on the Constitution (from the National Constitution Center)
- The U.S. Constitution was written in the same Pennsylvania State House where the Declaration of Independence was signed and where George Washington received his commission as Commander of the Continental Army. Now called Independence Hall, the building still stands today on Independence Mall in Philadelphia, directly across from the National Constitution Center.
- Written in 1787, the Constitution was signed on September 17th. But it wasn’t until 1788 that it was ratified by the necessary nine states.
- The U.S. Constitution was prepared in secret, behind locked doors that were guarded by sentries.
- Some of the original framers and many delegates in the state ratifying conventions were very troubled that the original Constitution lacked a description of individual rights. In 1791, Americans added a list of rights to the Constitution. The first ten amendments became known as The Bill of Rights
- Of the 55 delegates attending the Constitutional Convention, 39 signed and 3 delegates dissented. Two of America’s “founding fathers” didn’t sign the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson was representing his country in France and John Adams was doing the same in Great Britain.
- Established on November 26, 1789, the first national “Thanksgiving Day” was originally created by George Washington as a way of “giving thanks” for the Constitution.
- Of the written national constitutions, the U.S. Constitution is the oldest and shortest.
- At 81, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania was the oldest delegate at the Constitutional Convention and at 26, Jonathon Dayton of New Jersey was the youngest.
- The original Constitution is on display at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, it was moved to Fort Knox for safekeeping.
- More than 11,000 amendments have been introduced in Congress. Thirty three have gone to the states to be ratified and twenty seven have received the necessary approval from the states to actually become amendments to the Constitution.
And now for the video… A Schoolhouse Rock classic
