The idea of daily readings about American history might sound a little scary... if you're like me, you sat through more than one dry history class in your school days. Thankfully, The American Patriot's Almanac is about as far from dry as you can get.
William J. Bennett and John T. E. Cribb have put together a fascinating collection of snipets from American history, from our country's birth to more recent happenings. For each day of the year there's a short story as well as the American History Parade (a short list of important events that happened on that day). Besides this, there are longer sections between each chapter, covering everything from Flag Etiquette to Fifty Great All-American Movies.
Over the last few years, there's been a lot of talk about what our country's done wrong. And yes, we've made mistakes. But I like this paragraph, taken from the introduction:
Patriotism doesn't mean obnoxious boasting. It's not about bragging that our country is the best in the world, but it does involve taking pride in our country's achievements, sticking up for its principles, supporting its efforts, and cheering it on at times. It means offering respect to our nation and its institutions.
Whether you read The American Patriot's Almanac on your own or with your family, I think you'll find it uplifting, interesting, inspiring and entertaining. What better way to start off the new year?
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