Books like Lies My Teacher Told Me

Americans have lost touch with their history, and in Lies My Teacher Told Me Professor James Loewen shows why. After surveying eighteen leading high school American history texts, he has concluded that not one does a decent job of making history interesting or memorable. Marred by an embarrassing combination of blind patriotism, mindless optimism, sheer misinformation, and outright lies, these books omit almost all the ambiguity, passion, conflict, and drama from our past. In this revised edition, packed with updated material, Loewen explores how historical myths continue to be perpetuated in today's climate and adds an eye-opening chapter on the lies surrounding 9/11 and the Iraq War. From the truth about Columbus's historic voyages to an honest evaluation of our national leaders, Loewen revives our history, restoring the vitality and relevance it truly possesses. Thought provoking, nonpartisan, and often shocking, Loewen unveils the real America in this iconoclastic classic beloved by high school teachers, history buffs, and enlightened citizens across the country.

Liked Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen? Here's what readers who loved it picked up next.

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn (1980) · 4.07★
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond (1997) · 4★
Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools by Jonathan Kozol (1991) · 4.23★
Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich (2001) · 3.6★
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed by Jared Diamond (2004) · 3.92★
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann (2005) · 4.01★
Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser (2001) · 3.73★
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction by Jon Stewart (2004) · 4.02★
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt (2005) · 3.93★
The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by Naomi Klein (2006) · 4.22★
Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire (1968) · 4.25★
1776 by David McCullough (2005) · 4.06★