Break It Up is a history of the United States told with an emphasis on the forces tending to dis-unite us. That is, it relates the incidents –– nearly continuous since before the Revolution –– when some portion of the population considered seceding from the Union. For instance, the area west of the Appalachians pursued secession in the late 18th century because they had greater economic and social ties to the Spanish Mississippi than to the eastern federal government, and New England pondered it just as the South did before the Civil War.
The revisionist approach provides a fascinating and challenging view of our history. The book is chock full of fascinating incidents, some of which I was aware of but were presented differently, others which I hadn't heard of. However, Kreitner covers most of them superficially. I was frequently frustrated when he glossed quickly past an inherently dramatic episode. Perhaps he tried to cover too much ground? In addition to draining the narrative excitement, it made it hard to differentiate between serious incidents and fringe conspiracies. I was also disappointed that the last chapter shifted to our political polarization (with a notably pessimistic liberal slant) rather than geographical secession.
I learned about a few events that I'd like to follow up on, such as the Haverhill petition (1842), when a town in Massachusetts requested that Congress dissolve the Union. John Quincy Adams came across as a particularly interesting character.
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