A fiery polemic written to convince the colonists to throw off the shackles of the British Crown. Anyone familiar with the events of the French and Indian War and the early Revolution (and some experience with older English) should have no trouble following the argument here - Paine lays out historical, Biblical, and "common sense" arguments for the dissolution of absolute monarchy in a clear and straightforward manner.

Paine also lays out some ideas for what his ideal republican government would look like - which is an interesting section of the pamphlet that you really never hear that much about. For someone whose works are often quoted by small-government folks, his ideal republic sounds pretty dang similar to what we have now - although he favored a unicameral legislature and a "rotating" presidency - where each colony would get a chance to nominate a President and then that colony couldn't have another President until all the others had a shot.

This is a quick read and a great way to get a sense of what was happening "on the ground" while the Continental Congress was working out the Articles of Confederation (although clearly a biased one).