1001 People Who Made America

by Alan Axelrod

Who are the pivotal figures in American history—the men and women who have helped shape who we are as a people and how we look at ourselves as Americans? In this companion to his popular 1001 Events That Made America, Alan Axelrod suggests we can answer this question only after we look with an open mind into all the areas of our collective past.

1001 People Who Made America does just that, highlighting the famous as well as the infamous, the virtuous as well as the notorious, from the nation's earliest days to the present. Serving up history in lively, accessible bits, the book presents a who's who of American politics, arts, science, business, religion, and pop culture, along with concise explanations of each figure's historical significance. Featured personalities range from Jesse James to Al Capone, Harriet Beecher Stowe to Betty Friedan, George Washington to George W. Bush, Harriet Tubman to Martin Luther King, Jr., Stephen Foster to Elvis, John L. Sullivan to Muhammad Ali, Edwin Booth to Marlon Brando, Washington Irving to Thomas Pynchon, Jacob Aster to Bill Gates.

Axelrod's writing is packed with information and insight, giving readers a deeper understanding of what it means to be an American. The appealing design and easy-to-read format invite browsing and make this book a great gift for history buffs and all thoughtful Americans.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Reference, American History, Ebooks

352 pages, Hardcover

First published February 27, 2007

About the author

Alan Axelrod, Ph.D., is a prolific author of history, business and management books. As of October 2018, he had written more than 150 books, as noted in an online introduction by Lynn Ware Peek before an interview with Axelrod on the National Public Radio station KPCW. Axelrod resides in Atlanta, Georgia.

Reviews

[Regina Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book is not great, but gives an option to find people one would never know about, then moving on to a larger scale research.

[Carla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well... by no means a complete list. Obviously based on one persons opinion. There was a good mix of people from all walks of life across many different genres (athletes, government, military, entertainers, literary persons, etc) Luckily the descriptions were kept to a minimum. I dare say the introduction may have been the part I liked the most though.

[Molly Shrago · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting list but it would be fun to see an updated version. Since the book came out 10 years ago many of the people in the book have died. It would also be nice to see a little more editing as I found many of the dates in the book to be incorrect. Overall it was a fun read.

[Dan]

very informative

[George Khoury · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice outdated conversation starter that's full of mini paragraph bios of 1001 notable Americans. It's a great book to get one's curiosity going, but not a great reference book.

[Amber · Rating 1 out of 5]

Book is not great, but gives an option to find people one would never know about, then moving on to a larger scale research. Hardly complete or as thorough as it could be some of the people listed I don't think should be in the book O.J Simpson, Martha Stewart, Madonna just to name a few. Sure there famous but did they really help "make" America. What about Walter Cronkite, Buzz Aldrin, Andrea Dworkin, Charlotte Forten, Faye Wattleton or Betsy Ross didn't even make it in the book.

[Brodie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hardly complete or as thorough as it could be, but very enjoyable anyway.