The American Record: Images of the Nation's Past

This is not a book of one historian's view on past events, it is a collection of mostly firsthand accounts written by people who were experiencing the event at the time. The editors write a brief introduction to each chapter to fit it into the "big picture" and then allows the writer to tell his/her story. This approach was a much better way to hold my interest than it would have been to read one person droning on and on in the same writing style from front cover to back cover. The material stays fresh and interesting, and the firsthand accounts of events as they happened really hit home.