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The Twentieth Century: A People's History

Howard Zinn

4.15 · Rating details · 1,085 ratings · 75 reviews

Containing just the twentieth-century chapters from Howard Zinn's bestselling A People's History of the United States, this revised and updated edition includes two new chapters -- covering Clinton's presidency, the 2000 Election, and the "war on terrorism."

Highlighting not just the usual terms of presidential administrations and congressional activities, this book provide ...more

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Paperback, 512 pages

Published February 4th 2003 by Harper Perennial (first published 1984)

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Feb 27, 2013 Steffan rated it it was amazing

Yes, I read this book because of the reference to it in Good Will Hunting. And yes, it knocked me on my ass. How do you like dem apples?

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Feb 14, 2012 Mike rated it it was ok

Shelves: history, us-history

Professor Zinn and I have vastly different political beliefs but I'm going to discuss his book and not his politics right up until the end. This is an abridgement of Zinn's A People's History of the United States that only covers the 20th Century. Apparently, according to Zinn, the 20th Century didn't begin until the 1960s and then everyone protested a lot of things. Zinn makes the point of describing the "people" from the title by saying 1% of Americans control 45% of the wealth, the "people" a Professor Zinn and I have vastly different political beliefs but I'm going to discuss his book and not his politics right up until the end. This is an abridgement of Zinn's A People's History of the United States that only covers the 20th Century. Apparently, according to Zinn, the 20th Century didn't begin until the 1960s and then everyone protested a lot of things. Zinn makes the point of describing the "people" from the title by saying 1% of Americans control 45% of the wealth, the "people" are the other 99%. Zinn then goes on the talk about civil rights protestors, anti-war protestors, prison protestors, Indian protestors, and on and on, so in reality, the "people" are the 1% of the population who protest. The other 98% are forgotten about, I assume because they have jobs and don't have time to protest. [return][return]Zinn also misuses data to make his points, for example, comparing incomes between two groups but only converting one into 2004 dollars. He also assumes meanings to events that are not really there. For instance, in discussing the 1992 election, he states that 19% of voters were unhappy with the choices given by the two major parties and protested against the choices they were given by voting for Ross Perot. As unlikely as it seems, I would be willing to bet the a fair number of people who voted for Perot did so because they wanted to vote for him and not as a protest against the other candidates. These are just a few examples of issues I had with this book. I say book, but it was actually an audio book, so I should probably say CDs. The reason I mention that is I said at the start that I was not going to discuss Zinn's politics until the end, which would be now. [return][return]While I agree with some of what Zinn said I still had a hard time finishing the book (CD) and actually I didn't finish it. I made it to the last CD when Zinn started talking about poor oppressed Mumia Abu-Jamal and how he was sentenced to death because the government wanted to shut him up, no mention of the crime he committed or of the cop he killed. At that point I hit the eject button and if the CDs hadn't belonged to the library, I would have chucked them out the window onto 95. Damn Communist Bastard. ...more

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Mar 04, 2008 Chris rated it it was amazing

Again, this was another book that changed my views of the world. Its the history of our bad deeds of the US and its people. But understanding that going in, it'll show you the silent side of our history without making you hate our country. Very dense, but still a must read.

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Oct 19, 2011 Rachel rated it really liked it

Shelves: history, america, nonfiction, important, boston-university

Although I don't agree with everything Professor Zinn says, this is an extremely compelling read and presents a different point of view than I imagine most kids get in American schools (I attended extremely liberal schools in an extremely liberal state, so not a lot of this history was new to me).

However, the part of the book where Professor Zinn suggests we all destroy infrastructure and go live in utopian communes is, in my opinion, an extremely naive idea for a professor of history to have. Although I don't agree with everything Professor Zinn says, this is an extremely compelling read and presents a different point of view than I imagine most kids get in American schools (I attended extremely liberal schools in an extremely liberal state, so not a lot of this history was new to me).

However, the part of the book where Professor Zinn suggests we all destroy infrastructure and go live in utopian communes is, in my opinion, an extremely naive idea for a professor of history to have. I'm not extremely pro-capitalism or anti-socialism, but he completely ignores the history of human nature, and of people's attempts to live in such communes, when he suggests that we'd all be able to work a few hours a day, for the good of the community, and be able to spend the rest of the day off in our own intellectual pursuits. I've seen the commune system at work in China, North Korea, and the USSR, and it has NEVER worked out. For tiny divergent groups, it's probably fine; I don't ever see it working on a large scale.

However, besides this rather crazy tangent of his, I really liked this book. There needs to be more histories that chart the existence and lives of the unrepresented; if history is written by the winners, we need to hear from the people who didn't win much more often than we ever do. My favorite part of this book was a quote, not by Zinn himself, that articulated something I've been feeling since we started the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; but I've never been able to say it so eloquently:

"We are not hated because we practice democracy, value freedom, or uphold human rights. We are hated because our government denies these things to people in Third World countries whose resources are coveted by our multinational corporations. That hatred we have sown has come back to haunt us in the form of terrorism. Instead of sending our sons and daughters around the world to kill Arabs so we can have the oil under their sand, we should send them to rebuild their infrastructure, supply clean water, and feed starving children.

In short, we should do good instead of evil. Who would try to stop us? Who would hate us? Who would want to bomb us? That is the truth the American people need to hear."

--Former U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Robert Bowman, in Howard Zinn’s "A People’s History of the United States" ...more

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Jun 25, 2014 Derek rated it it was amazing

Required reading to have any intelligent conversation about the country.

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Mar 02, 2018 Jessica Harn rated it it was amazing

Such an important rewriting of American history through the people's movements and early socialist thinking. Should be required reading

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Sep 24, 2012 Triet Lieu rated it liked it

I have read many books concerning the development of new political ideologies during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. I know that the Industrial Revolution culminated from advances in transportation, which improved trade by allowing for the quicker distribution of manufactured products and the growth of cities; advances in technology, Eli Whitney's interchangeable parts and Ransom Olds's asembly line revolutionized industry; discovery of new sources of energy such as coal and oil to power I have read many books concerning the development of new political ideologies during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. I know that the Industrial Revolution culminated from advances in transportation, which improved trade by allowing for the quicker distribution of manufactured products and the growth of cities; advances in technology, Eli Whitney's interchangeable parts and Ransom Olds's asembly line revolutionized industry; discovery of new sources of energy such as coal and oil to power the growing markets and factories. I also know that cultural changes swept through the Industrial Revolution: former barons and landlords became capitalist factory owners; workers migrated form their farms to the cities in search of employment; civil unions and socialism growthed their ill will as the incomes of the upper class multiplied while those of labor workers rose just by a few percentages. I know how these changes led to social, cultural, eocnomic transformations in both the United States and abroad. I understand why Howard Zinn wrote this book and how he would answer some of the questions which I have formulated in my brain after reading this work of twentieth century analysis.

I gave this book three stars because I find most of the information to be redundant. Without even needing to research the author, I knew that he was a socialist, not that I frown on such an philosophy which is seen as a less extreme system of communism. The author supports minority groups which fight for their right to the pursuit of happiness, economic stabilility, and govenrment protection. But, I have grown pas t the point in which I blame society for my troubles. It is true that I did not attend the best schools in my neighborhood and that I did not receive equal levels of enocuragement as children born to more successful parents. But look at where I am now! Success does not arise from challenging unfair social conditions, for me, it has always been about utilizing my resources effectively and directing my potential and interests to favorable endeavors. It would be bigotry for me to lower my rating of Zinn's Twentiweth Century because our contrasting beliefs, but I will not change our apraisal of his work. ...more

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Sep 22, 2011 Kristal Cooper rated it really liked it

This is a nice treatment of all the history you don't learn in textbooks - from the perspective of the minority groups that caused the change or were affected by it. I knew most of the information about the Black Rights movement and Native American struggles because I've read books about them and visited associated historic sites, but the rest was quite new to me. American suffragettes, gays/lesbians, war objectors, and prisoners are just some of the groups that should be covered better in schoo ...more

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Jul 16, 2013 Monica rated it it was ok

Shelves: audible, non-fiction

This book was incredibly biased, without identifying itself as so. The author, at one point, refers to Bill O'Reilly as "as popular TV personality", and implied that his statements reflected the mood of the entire country.

There were some interesting points, but the author ignores so many contributing factors that it's almost impossible to read. When talking about prisoner's rights, for instance, he only talks about protesters that are arrested, he doesn't acknowledge the fact that a lot of the ...more

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Jan 12, 2009 Molly rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, non-fiction, u-s-history

This man is my hero, and opened up my eyes to the idea of balanced history. You have to accept the bad and shameful parts of our past if you really want to say that you love this country. That's something I still struggle with, but reading Zinn never fails to remind me of all the strides we've made, and how it was the small and seemingly insignificant people that brought about those changes.

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Apr 21, 2010 Linda Stewart is currently reading it

I've read bits and pieces of Zinn's book only in the last few years. Why wasn't he included in my history courses?

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Jul 25, 2011 Nick rated it it was ok

This is like the liberal answer to reader's digest, not a history book.

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Nov 22, 2018 Sarah Rigg rated it really liked it

This took me over 2 months to finish. It's not a hugely long book, but it covers so much territory that it was hard to read and digest more than 8 or 10 pages at a time. Zinn is unabashedly biased and spins a socialist take on the historical events of the 20th century. I didn't buy into all his opinions and spin on events, but it did make me think a lot about how, no matter who is in power, the working person is basically shafted. Zinn has a background in civil rights and protest, and his writin ...more

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Aug 10, 2019 Byunghwan Son rated it really liked it

In a nutshell, the twenties century was really the idea that 'there has always been the oppression of the state on the people(s) both within and outside the country but the people persisted' was repeating itself many times. I am not sure if I agree entirely with the optimism, albeit cautious, that it's getting better and the people will eventually prevail. At least in the current context. I'd love to see what Dr. Zinn would've commented on the democratic backsliding unfolding around the world, h ...more

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Feb 17, 2020 Ramesh rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 1-2020, politics-and-history

My second reading was as powerful as the first. There is page after page of history not taught, probably not even approved to be taught in our schools and way too much to include here. What bothers me the most is that it's somehow subversive or un-American to learn our history from all points of view.

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May 27, 2018 Michael Anderson rated it it was amazing

I found this book fascinating, particularly America’s brush with socialism, the differences in the ways conservatives and progressives handled the threat, and the seeming current growth of conditions that may cause a repeat of history. I never learned any of this in school, sad to say.

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Aug 22, 2018 Jaclyn rated it it was amazing

In the classic (read: indecipherable) Jaclyn rating scale, I learned a ton and found his writing, for the most part, compelling. It also made me really, really mad, so that'll usually get you a 5. I'll probably go back and read the full People's History having now read this excerpt.

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Sep 17, 2017 Erik rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

an eye opening book and a prescient author. encourages patriotism in the people and potential of our country if critical of its leadership.

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Dec 19, 2017 acuriouslibrarian rated it it was amazing

This should be required reading for all high school students.

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May 27, 2018 Maggie Cox rated it it was amazing

one of the most important books ive read. american history is just greed - imperialism and capitalism, driven by simple and poisonous greed. i love the call to action in the 3rd to last chapter

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Dec 17, 2019 Alice rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook, non-fiction, history

As Zinn states, this is a book only about the people's perspective of US history. In such it is quite biased but since we have history books for the "other" side, it's not a problem.

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Apr 09, 2020 Sean Queen rated it liked it

I really enjoyed the perspective, yet it seemed disjointed at times because it was not linear within the chapters.

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May 12, 2020 Jackie rated it liked it

Uneven but also probably a little on me since this is a hard time to read Zinn!!

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Jun 16, 2020 Lexi rated it it was amazing

The audiobook, read by Matt Damon with some additions by the author, is riveting. At times despairing, it also brings hope, highlighting the wins, the small steps toward a better America.

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Jul 30, 2020 Katie rated it liked it

3.5 stars

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Apr 18, 2020 Joseph Elliott rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: politics-history-world-war-two

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Aug 31, 2015 Androo rated it it was ok

Being excerpted from a larger work necessarily means that this review is inherently not the most fair, however I believe "it was ok" is an accurate statement for this work. It is also the case that the American political climate has changed rapidly in the past decade (as it is wont to do), so this book is no longer as up-to-date in its projections or as accurate in its big-picture analyses.

While Zinn makes some progress in drawing attention to the history of people who are usually categorically Being excerpted from a larger work necessarily means that this review is inherently not the most fair, however I believe "it was ok" is an accurate statement for this work. It is also the case that the American political climate has changed rapidly in the past decade (as it is wont to do), so this book is no longer as up-to-date in its projections or as accurate in its big-picture analyses.

While Zinn makes some progress in drawing attention to the history of people who are usually categorically ignored in our public education history classes (e.g., the American inconsistency to condemn other countries' acts against their peoples while ignoring the poor living conditions that Native American reservations experience), other works, like Loewen's Lies My Teacher Told Me accomplish the same in fewer pages.

Some of Zinn's arguments are unfair, though I shy away from what some other conservative reviewers below have called "tripe." Zinn does not claim that the oppressed are virtuous and that those in power are inherently evil, though he does point out that some relationships (crime with poverty, terrorism with war, etc.) could be more acutely addressed through the U.S. becoming a humanitarian superpower rather than a militaristic one -- an argument that some on the conservative side of the spectrum mislabel as communism. These arguments, though perhaps overly optimistic, are not poorly constructed. The unfair arguments rather come from omitting the opposing side.

For instance, Zinn argues in this excerpt that voter apathy is primarily the result of the U.S.'s two-party system wherein a majority of the population does not believe that any candidate actually represents them. However, he fails to address that when the U.S. had a viable third-party candidate in Ross Perot that the turnout was still low (55% in 1992, 49% in 1996).

While Zinn passed away in 2010, he openly told reporters that he would vote for Obama in 2008. I am curious as to how he would respond to some of the progressive policies that have come to fruition under Obama's administration, though I suspect that he would most likely (and with some overzealous fervor) that Obama was ultimately a failure. I got the impression here that Zinn moves the goal posts often in determining what 'progress' and 'success' mean.

In short, if you want an optimistic take on what America could be and a brutal look at some of the unfair things we have done to our own citizens and others around the world, I'd suggest reading the entire book instead of just the excerpt. It's only fair. And while you may need to recognize that Zinn puts forth some biased interpretations (which you should really be doing with any historian), I'd argue that most observations are more true that the "undeniable string of progress" that American history is presented as traditionally. If, however, you believe America does not need to apologize for anything at all, it may be best to avoid Zinn altogether and read a less contentious historian. ...more

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Dec 31, 2014 Jamie rated it really liked it

If you are going to read this particular book or it's predecessor by Professor Zinn, I highly recommend accepting these two things before you begin.

Understanding #1:
If you believe the United States handled itself with nobility in all things and without error during the last 115 years, you will be sadly disappointed with the author's research and reporting. If you are so firmly entrenched in your political and historical beliefs you cannot hear other opinions without rushing to anger, this book If you are going to read this particular book or it's predecessor by Professor Zinn, I highly recommend accepting these two things before you begin.

Understanding #1:
If you believe the United States handled itself with nobility in all things and without error during the last 115 years, you will be sadly disappointed with the author's research and reporting. If you are so firmly entrenched in your political and historical beliefs you cannot hear other opinions without rushing to anger, this book is not for you.

This book should be read by people who want to learn about lesser-known stories of activism, dissent, and struggle for belief systems which are sometimes overlooked as the march of time goes on. It should be read with an open mind, while also having an open browser window to research the people and the time periods being discussed to learn more about these snippets.

Understanding #2:
The author's goal is not the demean the United States and tear down the tree of liberty limb by limb. He instead chooses to shine a mirror on our nation's decisions and to discuss if our history is forgetting or overlooking important minority voices, egregious errors, or painful struggles in order to make us seem more infallible.

In his conclusion, Zinn explains the book's goal is to supplement the current, popular historical record, which tends to paint certain period of history with a more "rose colored" brush. By discussing the stories of citizens who were not always on the winning side of history, we can learn about the more difficult decisions we made as a country, good or bad, and how we can avoid mistakes in the future.

Zinn doesn't hate America. He hates war, poverty, discrimination, and greed. But I didn't walk away from this feeling he was an unpatriotic socialist. There isn't a more patriotic effort than that of a citizen who wants to discuss the actions of the nation in order to find a way to not repeat mistakes and be a better, more ethically focused democracy.

I listened to this audio book read by Matt Damon and Howard Zinn, who both do a very good job at reading the book. The nature of the topic makes the audio feel long because it is difficult to hear at times. However, I feel more knowledgeable because of the experience, more thoughtful about many preconceived notions I had, and grateful for the different perspective from the typical historical record. I would recommend this book for college classes especially because it could cause great debates and extended research. ...more

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Apr 29, 2014 Bryan rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: communist hippies who want to block out real history

Shelves: politics, history, tripe

What complete garbage!

Here is a quick synopsis:
While the North Vietnamese and Việt Cộng were altruistic and wanted nothing but rainbows and butterflies, Americans are bad evil ogres (but only if they are white, male, Christian and heterosexual) who brutally kill any time they can so they can get rice and oil a little cheaper.

Jimmy Carter was one of our best presidents; Reagan one of the worst. Wealth=wickedness; poverty=virtue. All white people are racist, all males are sexist, Christians are in ...more

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Jul 21, 2016 Ian Allan rated it did not like it

It's crappy.

I did the audio version. Never got into it and finally quit on it after completing 5 of the 7 discs. My son wisely bailed after two CDs. A neighbor started reading this book on paper and quickly quit.

I like the overall idea. Let's get out and look at how native americans, blacks and women were discriminated against, and how government policies were involved. But it's not done in a good way. It's not compelling or memorable. Not enough new ground is broken, and it comes across as too ...more

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About Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn

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Howard Zinn was a historian, playwright, and social activist. He was a shipyard worker and a bombardier with the U.S. Army Air Force in Europe during the Second World War before he went to college under the GI Bill and received his Ph.D. from Columbia University.

Zinn taught at Spelman College and Boston University, and was a visiting professor at the University of Paris and the University of Bolo ...more