More Perfect Union a

This is one of my favorite books. It was a momentous occasion in the history of the world and almost everybody there knew it was. And this book is written from first-hand notes from the meetings, so it is accurate. But what tops it all off is the way it is written. It is fast-moving and exciting. It reads like a novel. Awesome.

A More Perfect Union by William Peters (March 1987) was a truly outstanding book. The author's intent was to provide the reader a genuine feeling of what went on in the closed-door sessions of the Constitutional Convention back in the summer of 1787. Based largely on James Madison's voluminous notes, Peters deftly elucidates the critical debates and coalitions that formed around them. For example, one compelling passage shows just how close we came to tying voting rights to property ownership - a sure recipe for the death of the new nation.This book is great drama and reads like a novel. As the nation outgrew the Articles of Confederation and struggled to move ahead, this incredible group of bright minds hammered out a new and imperfect form of government. In hindsight the reader can see the irony. By creating a system of government in which ambition is truly checked by ambition - the Framers did, in fact, create near perfection. Precisely because the power of our government is fragmented, the US has flourished for 226 years. No one governmental body or person can completely quash the constitutional rights of all. Therefore, our citizens are free to think, compete, argue, protest and pursue their interests.This is history made real. An entertaining and informative read!