America in the Gilded Age: Third Edition

I found America In The Gilded Age by Sean Dennis Cashman an enjoyable and entertaining book when I used it for my American History 1876-1900 college course. Cashman presents this time period from roughly 1865 to the very early twentieth century in a readable and well balanced way that is not at all boring. A lot of people view this time period in American history as the most boring period of time to study. This period of time is my personal favorite to read about. A lot was going on during these years. That's an understatement. Everything from the end of the Civil War, Reconstruction, Indian affairs, the rise of big business, labor unions, monopolies, populism, progressivism, the agrarian revolt, the debate over currency, key inventions, weak presidents, immigration, imperialism - this book explains it all very well. Lots of drawings and period photographs appear throughout the book to enhance the reading experience. Cashman keeps everything lively and relatively simple. Or at least as lively and simple as one can make this material. He doesn't get too carried away and technical with details on specific topics. Instead, he kind of sums everything up and condenses it into a simple and readable form. All in all, a good book to read at your leisure or to use for a college course covering this time period. I still read this book from time to time. Highly recommended.

This is the best single volume covering these important yet forgotten years of American history that I've encountered so far. I'm sorry some reviewers found it boring but history, even significant history, is not always made up of superficial, entertaining, titilating, or shocking events. There's something unflatteringly 21st Century American about opinions like that. You shouldn't have a say about any aspect of modern American history unless you understand how it became what it is. There is far too much superficial judgmentalism about American history these days, too much eagerness to dismiss decades of complexity as mere expressions of greed, imperialism, racism, and sexism. To put it bluntly, the past is being rewritten by ignorant and angry moderns with political axes to grind. It's like watching Nazis scornfully rewrite Jewish history so that not even a semblance of decency or honor is left to them. Reviews of this type, given the effort that went into this book and the obvious intelligence behind it, make me wonder if a few students who maybe got low grades one semester aren't vengefully getting a few cheap shots in.

...and I enjoyed it. This was one of 8 required books in my college U.S. History 1865-present class. Yes, there are a lot of facts. There are a lot of facts I did not know and I am grateful they were in there. I think Cashman did a good job covering the time period. And to the people that said this book was boring, bad, whatever.....get used to it. If your going to take college courses in history, you need to have an open mind. Without that, you'll never succeed in college and beyond.

American in the Gilded Age is a very thorough overview of a fascinating time period in American history. Cashman manages to cover all of the key events, changes, and people during this time period, but his treatment tends to become uneven toward the end. The Progressive Movement did not begin with Theodore Roosevelt, but rather boosted him to national prominence, but Cashman almost glosses over this period with just a few pages. However, don't let this detract from the overall strength of this book in capturing the sociological changes the US experienced during this time. Cashman's prose is not hard to follow and his organization of the topics is first rate, however, this is not a casual read like "Victorian America." I recommend both America in the Gilded Age and Victorian America as overviews of the roughly the same timeframe with different approaches.

I happen to know S. Dennis Cashman personally, so forgive me if I sound biased...to the respondent who said the book represented a 'pathetic attempt at writing'...Mr. Cashman is one of the most brilliant men I have ever known, and one of the finest writers. His thoroughness and understanding of a necessarily dry subject should be applauded for its completeness and accuracy. An essential tool for any student of American history.