Holly Jacksonis an associate professor of English at the University of Massachusetts, Boston.Her writing has appeared inThe New York Times, The Washington Post,andThe Boston Globe,as well as a number of scholarly venues. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
“In this electric debut, Jackson . . . eschews presidents and
generals to construct a mesmerizing story of people who committed
themselves to a vision of the United States based on ‘collectivity,
equality, and freedom.’ . . . This is essential reading for
anyone interested in how the U.S. became what it is
today.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Jackson adeptly interweaves all these stories, connecting one
radical thinker to another to show the sweep of progressive thought
in the nineteenth century that continues to echo today. Abundantly
detailing political movements and the characters who led them, this
history appeals to a broad spectrum of readers.”—Booklist (starred
review)
“Magnificent . . . This incisive and well-written overview of
Americans who protested wrongs in their society deserves a wide
readership. Many fine academic studies have covered the subjects
here, but this account, written for a general audience, is
authoritative and fast-paced and vividly portrays a crucial
period.”—BookPage
“The author’s account moves swiftly and interestingly. . . .
Jackson’s book merits attention as a study in what she calls
‘slow-release radicalism,’ with seeming failures that eventually
turned into successes. A useful survey of American activism and its
lasting repercussions.”—Kirkus Reviews
“A forcefully argued and lyrical account . . . Readers interested
in the history of social and radical movements, along with
antebellum history, will find much to enjoy.”—Library Journal
“By recovering the passionate lives and words of idealistic
radicals and reformers, Holly Jackson reveals the better angels of
nineteenth-century America. Telling a powerful story in lucid
prose, she reminds us of what people of courage and conviction can
achieve against long odds and powerful foes.”—Alan Taylor, Pulitzer
Prize–winning author of American Revolutions: A Continental
History, 1750–1804
“American Radicals is a brilliant and timely firecracker
of a book. Following the lives and activism of a diverse and
fascinating cast of characters—men and women, black and white, all
of them fearless—Holly Jackson has crafted a tale as dynamic and
lively as America itself.”—Karen Abbott, author of The Ghosts
of Eden Park and Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy
“A masterful history and a profound meditation on the limits of
protest, American Radicals is immensely useful for
today’s activists.”—Micah White, author of The End of Protest:
A New Playbook for Revolution
“Teeming with colorful and long-forgotten characters, Holly
Jackson’s dazzling new history—at once wide-ranging and
fine-grained—recovers anew the restless and improbable spirit of
reform that animated America in the nineteenth
century. American Radicals is a timely and powerful
reminder that America has always been a work in
progress—and that voices of protest echo with purpose
and urgency across the generations. Amid the din of
our daunting times, here is a history lined with hope.”—Brian
Matthew Jordan, finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize in History
for Marching Home: Union Veterans and Their Unending Civil
War
“American Radicals is a wise and vivid history of
the women and men who imagined a nation that would live up the
ideals of untrammeled personal liberty and direct democracy and
then dared to build movements and communities dedicated to that
purpose. This is a book that will educate and thrill
progressives of all ages.”—Michael Kazin, author of War
Against War: The American Fight for Peace, 1914–1918 and
professor of history at Georgetown University
“Jackson gives readers stories that are inspiring,
infuriating, hilarious, frustrating, and meaningful for our
complicated present. An outstanding book that any modern
radical should read.”—Erik Loomis, associate professor of history
at the University of Rhode Island and author of A History of
America in Ten Strikes
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