books ever written about the American Revolution.--New York Times Book Review

"During the nearly two decades since its publication, this book has set the pace, furnished benchmarks, and afforded targets for many subsequent studies. If ever a work of history merited the appellation 'modern classic, ' this is surely one.--William and Mary Quarterly

"[A] brilliant and sweeping interpretation of political culture in the Revolutionary generation.--New England Quarterly

"This is an admirable, thoughtful, and penetrating study of one of the most important chapters in American history.--Wesley Frank Craven