Hello from Anita!
For the soaring idealism, incredible sacrifices and unimaginable bravery of the 59 signers of our DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, with dreams so big they committed treason against the strongest empire of their day.
Today we honor them.
After the parades and fireworks, celebrate our country’s improbable beginnings by immersing yourself in some great books and movies. I was surprised to only find a handful of films which are listed below. There are historical inaccuracies in all of them, but it will help conjure up the excitement and uncertainty of the times.
I am thankful for every one of those men and women who were willing to relinquish everything to give us our Constitutional Republic. Let’s strive to keep it!
The Patriot starring Mel Gibson.
From a 5 Star Review
“The Patriot is particularly relevant today -when many in our culture have forgotten or have not bothered to learn why the United States is unique, and how its foundation changed the world for the better.
The Patriot walks a fine line, managing to celebrate the struggle and triumph of American independence, without celebrating war itself. Indeed the film depicts the founding of America (and Martin's personal struggle) as hard-won and strewn with sacrifice and loss.”
JOHN ADAMS a seven part HBO Miniseries now airing on Prime Video Max.
5.0 out of 5 stars A "must see" for every red-blooded American.
John Adams: a no-nonsense, ornery, lawful, brilliant yet fallible, passionate founder of our country. This is the story of the unbridled defiance, the shrewd intellect and the angry pounding fist that tore the American colonies from British rule and gave birth to one of the greatest experiments in the history of the world - the United States of America. Stunning and haunting, this is John Adams like you've never seen him.
Myth and poetry have been stripped away to reveal the far-more-fascinating, truly-human story of one of the greatest men who has ever lived.
“AMC travels back in time for "TURN: Washington's Spies," a Revolutionary War-era drama based on the same-named Alexander Rose novel. The series goes beyond the battlefront to a conflict involving everyday men and women, taking place in a cryptic world of double agents, covert operations and code-breaking.
It revolves around Abe Woodhull, a young farmer torn between loyalty to his Tory background and respect for those who fight for the Patriot cause. Living on British-occupied Long Island, Abe joins a group of his childhood friends to form what becomes known as the Culper Ring, a spy network charged with sniffing out British military strategy. Under the direction of Gen. Washington, Abe and his fellow agents help turn the war to the Continentals' favor, and their daring efforts ultimately serve as the foundation for modern espionage.”
There are over 9000 books about George Washington alone, plus thousands more about our Founders, influential women, the battles and history of republics prior to ours.
Some of the most popular titles are listed below:
FOUNDING BROTHERS: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph Ellis
In this landmark work of history, the National Book Award—winning author of American Sphinx explores how a group of greatly gifted but deeply flawed individuals–Hamilton, Burr, Jefferson, Franklin, Washington, Adams, and Madison–confronted the overwhelming challenges before them to set the course for our nation.
1776 by David McCullough
In this masterful book, David McCullough tells the intensely human story of those who marched with General George Washington in the year of the Declaration of Independence—when the whole American cause was riding on their success, without which all hope for independence would have been dashed and the noble ideals of the Declaration would have amounted to little more than words on paper.
WASHINGTON: A LIFE by Ron Chernow
Winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Biography
Celebrated biographer Ron Chernow provides a richly nuanced portrait of the father of our nation and the first president of the United States. With a breadth and depth matched by no other one volume biography of George Washington, this crisply paced narrative carries the reader through his adventurous early years, his heroic exploits with the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, his presiding over the Constitutional Convention, and his magnificent performance as America's first president. In this groundbreaking work, based on massive research, Chernow shatters forever the stereotype of George Washington as a stolid, unemotional figure and brings to vivid life a dashing, passionate man of fiery opinions and many moods.
RISE TO REBELLION by Jeff Shaara
More than a powerful portrait of the people and purpose of the revolution, Rise to Rebellion is a vivid account of history’s most pivotal events. The Boston Tea Party, the battles of Concord and Bunker Hill—all are recreated with the kind of breathtaking detail only a master like Jeff Shaara can muster. His most impressive achievement, Rise to Rebellion reveals with new immediacy how philosophers became fighters, ideas their ammunition, and how a scattered group of colonies became the United States of America.
WASHINGTON'S SPIES: THE STORY OF AMERICA'S FIRST SPY RING By Alexander Rose
Based on remarkable new research, acclaimed historian Alexander Rose brings to life the true story of the spy ring that helped America win the Revolutionary War. For the first time, Rose takes us beyond the battlefront and deep into the shadowy underworld of double agents and triple crosses, covert operations and code breaking, and unmasks the courageous, flawed men who inhabited this wilderness of mirrors—including the spymaster at the heart of it all.
VALIANT AMBITION: GEORGE WASHINGTON, BENEDICT ARNOLD AND THE FATE OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION By Nathaniel Philbrick
"May be one of the greatest what-if books of the age—a volume that turns one of America’s best-known narratives on its head.”—Boston Globe
These prize winning novels should keep all of y’all busy and in the mood for our big 250 year anniversary celebration in 2026!
What are your favorites?
Please send this list out to every red blooded American you know!
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An excellent author like Ron Chernow needs to write a book about Dr. Benjamin Rush, also a signer and often called the 2nd Hippocrates. RFK Jr. is doing great BUT it's not fast or hard enough IMHO. We as a world, need to stop doing harm to our people, animals and plants with a medical system that does more and more harm everyday! Isn't that an oath to DO NO HARM that doctors take when graduating from medical and other doctor schools?
my favorite independence stories would include Atlas Shrugged, Animal Farm, 1984, V for Vendetta, and The Matrix.