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A review by house_of_hannah
Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced
3.5
This was definitely different from what I usually read since it's non-fiction. It's essentially a recount of the American Revolution, but with a major focus on what France did to aid America. As an American I definitely learned about the Revolution in school, but who helped us was just mentioned rather than actually talked about, so I actually learned a lot of new, interesting information.
I didn't find this book to be as humorous as most people. It's more of a dry, honest humor that is sharing brutal truths rather than straight up comedy. I did enjoy the writing though, but there were times where it felt like the author was just listing facts rather than creating a more interesting narrative. Also, instead of going in chronological order of events, we were constantly going back and forth in time, so keeping what year we were in straight was a little difficult.
My favorite parts of the book were the beginning and the ending. Here the author talks more about their trip to the hisorical sites, and the people she talked to there. I found these interactions to be the most interesting, and made me want to visit these places as well.
I think this book did a great job at showing us a side of all the memorable figures that usually isn't portrayed, and definitely isn't what comes to mind when you hear their names. I learned about some people that I had never heard of before that played key roles in America winning the war. I feel better educated, and even though this book felt really slow, I am still glad I finished it.
I didn't find this book to be as humorous as most people. It's more of a dry, honest humor that is sharing brutal truths rather than straight up comedy. I did enjoy the writing though, but there were times where it felt like the author was just listing facts rather than creating a more interesting narrative. Also, instead of going in chronological order of events, we were constantly going back and forth in time, so keeping what year we were in straight was a little difficult.
My favorite parts of the book were the beginning and the ending. Here the author talks more about their trip to the hisorical sites, and the people she talked to there. I found these interactions to be the most interesting, and made me want to visit these places as well.
I think this book did a great job at showing us a side of all the memorable figures that usually isn't portrayed, and definitely isn't what comes to mind when you hear their names. I learned about some people that I had never heard of before that played key roles in America winning the war. I feel better educated, and even though this book felt really slow, I am still glad I finished it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, and War
Moderate: Blood