I’ve been reading Independence: The Struggle to Set America Free by John Ferling for a few weeks now. For me, nonfiction goes much slower than fiction and that has its advantages and disadvantages.

The book focuses on the years leading up to the Declaration of Independence. The author is a historian known for his expertise in the American Revolutionary era and several previous books have shown that he knows how to tell the story well. Concentration of this relatively short period of a few years allows the author to tell the story in some detail and explain well both the English desire to control a part of their empire and the change as the colonists and Continental Congress progressed from just wanting their rights as Englishmen to the realization that independence was neccessary.

Of course, not everyone made that jump, and those that did, moved a very different rates. I very much enjoyed reading about the interactions of the members who moved from their uncertain prospects to the founding a successful republic and highly recommend this book for those who would like more insight into this era.