Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It

by John Ferling

Overview

Amid a great collection of scholarship and narrative history on the Revolutionary War and the American struggle for independence, there is a gaping hole; one that John Ferling's latest book, Whirlwind, will fill. Books chronicling the Revolution have largely ranged from multivolume tomes that appeal to scholars and the most serious general readers to microhistories that necessarily gloss over swaths of Independence-era history with only cursory treatment.

Written in Ferling's engaging and narrative-driven style that made books like Independence and The Ascent of George Washington critical and commercial successes, Whirlwind is a fast-paced and scrupulously told one-volume history of this epochal time. Balancing social and political concerns of the period and perspectives of the average American revolutionary with a careful examination of the war itself, Ferling has crafted the ideal book for armchair military history buffs, a book about the causes of the American Revolution, the war that won it, and the meaning of the Revolution overall. Combining careful scholarship, arresting detail, and illustrative storytelling, Whirlwind is a unique and compelling addition to any collection of books on the American Revolution.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620401729
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	05/05/2015
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	738,145
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.40(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

John Ferling is professor emeritus of history at the University of West Georgia. He is the author of many books on American Revolutionary history, including The Ascent of George Washington; Almost a Miracle, an acclaimed military history of the War of Independence; and the award-winning A Leap in the Dark. His most recent book on American history is Jefferson and Hamilton: The Rivalry That Forged a Nation. He and his wife, Carol, live near Atlanta, Georgia.

Editorial Reviews

03/23/2015
Ferling (Jefferson and Hamilton) enhances an impressive list of publications on the American Revolution with a fast-paced survey that echoes Carl Beard and 1930s historiography in its assertion that the revolution’s roots were economic. However, Ferling is not a single-issue determinist, paying ample attention to the argument that American colonists believed revolt “could usher in a better world.” For the sake of that world, they fought an all-out war, one they almost lost and in which “about one in sixteen free American males of military age died.” Furling handles the conflict’s ups and downs with a professorial ease, complemented by mastery of a broad spectrum of primary and secondary sources. He smoothly and clearly covers the battles from Bunker Hill to Yorktown, and presents the development of an ideology of revolution that engaged increasing numbers of the “politically impotent.” Given the improvised nature of the rebels’ war effort, Ferling suggests that rather than the Americans winning, the British lost through strategic overextension and ineffective command. He also excels at detailing the hammering out of governmental institutions from a kaleidoscope of provincial assemblies, town meetings, and church pulpits. The result was a “new-model experimental polity” that remains a work in progress. (May)

Publishers Weekly

A nuanced study of the American Revolution . . . accomplished scholar [John] Ferling employs his extensive knowledge . . . A first-rate historian's masterful touch conveys the profound changes to colonists' 'hearts and minds.'” —starred review, finalist for 2015 Book Prize, "Best Books of 2015", Kirkus Reviews

“[A]n objective history . . . Ferling has created another accessible yet scholarly work on the American Revolution.” —Library Journal

“Ferling handles the conflict's ups and downs with a professorial ease, complemented by mastery of a broad spectrum of primary and secondary sources . . . He also excels at detailing the hammering out of governmental institutions from a kaleidoscope of provincial assemblies, town meetings, and church pulpits.” —Publishers Weekly

"Ferling’s vivid descriptions will compel you to read this treasure repeatedly." —San Francisco Book Review

"[Ferling] seamlessly integrates the root causes of the American Revolution, the war that won it, and its larger meaning." —HistoryBookClub.com

From the Publisher

03/15/2015
The latest work from presidential biographer Ferling (emeritus, history, Univ. of West Georgia; Jefferson and Hamilton; John Adams) argues that the American Revolution (1765–83), or rather the specific timing of it, was caused largely by economic factors. Ferling further states that severing ties with Great Britain allowed colonists greater control over their own destinies, and freed them to create the ideal society they desired. Beginning with the later stages of the French and Indian War, the author explains the thought patterns leading up to the idea of separation from the mother country. Throughout the work, one gets a sense of growing momentum as the conflict takes shape. The author makes a distinction between the struggle's military side and the actual revolution, meaning governmental and societal change. The result is an objective history that emphasizes the political and military events of the era. VERDICT Ferling has created another accessible yet scholarly work on the American Revolution. While its primary appeal is to history buffs, academics looking for an introductory survey history should also find this work useful.—Matthew Wayman, Pennsylvania State Univ. Lib., Schuylkill Haven

Library Journal

★ 2015-01-07
From servants to citizens: a nuanced study of the American Revolution focused on how the war changed the way Americans saw themselves.Having written abundantly about the Revolutionary War, accomplished scholar Ferling (Emeritus, History/Univ. of West Georgia; Jefferson and Hamilton: The Rivalry that Forged a Nation, 2013, etc.) employs his extensive knowledge to relay a tremendously complicated and multilayered story of the gradual embracing of ideas of independence by the once-loyal colonists. Economic incentives drove the colonists to question the relationship with the mother country. They were offended by having to pay for Britain's chronic warfare, furnish soldiers and then endure England's "coldhearted indifference" to matters of the colonists' "vital interests." Attempts by Britain to enforce imperial trade laws—by the end of the Seven Years' War in 1763, one-third of England's trade was with the colonists—only led to more alarm that Britain was scheming to take away liberties. Little by little, the colonists began to react, and Ferling takes note of certain important early firebrands, e.g.—Virginia's Patrick Henry, Boston's Samuel Adams, John Dickinson and his "Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania." Others, such as Benjamin Franklin, emissary to London, played both sides until they were sure which way the wind was blowing. Ferling effectively shows how the colonists' sense of themselves changed from the very bottom up. From deep in the provincial hamlets, they were organizing, training their militias and accepting more egalitarian proclivities and self-governing practices, such as freedom from the Anglican yoke. Hostilities against Britain provoked a "rooted hatred" for the mother country and a "growing sense of identity as Americans," although the outcome was in no way certain. In fact, for many years, it looked quite bleak. Ferling impressively demonstrates how the military reality eventually galvanized the fledgling country. A first-rate historian's masterful touch conveys the profound changes to colonists' "hearts and minds."

Kirkus Reviews

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