The Americans: The Colonial Experience

The Americans: The Colonial Experience by Daniel J. Boorstin is the first volume of The Americans, a trilogy exploring the development of American society and identity. Covering the colonial period from the earliest settlements to the American Revolution, it examines how conditions in the New World transformed European customs and ideas.

Boorstin connects the histories of different colonial communities with religion, education, medicine, law, language and printing. He pays particular attention to everyday needs and the practical solutions through which new institutions and ways of thinking emerged.

At the heart of the book lies the question of how settlers gradually became Americans. The author traces the interplay between inherited traditions and new experiences, uncovering the roots of characteristics that would influence the country’s later development.

Written for a general audience, this work will appeal to readers interested in American history, cultural history and the history of ideas.