Abstract

American history is not often truthfully told. Dispelling the myths that have bolstered national myth making, Paul Atwood attempts to show Americans that their history is one of constant wars of aggression and imperial expansion.

From the declaration of Independence to present day, War and Empire takes a panoramic view of US military history, explaining US actions in every major war, from early combat with aboriginal nations, imperialist conflicts with Spain, to the war on terror. The book shows that, far from being dragged reluctantly into foreign entanglements, America's leaders have always picked its battles in order to increase their influence and power, with little regard for the American soldiers and 'enemy' civilians killed or made to suffer in the process.

This book is an eye-opening introduction to the American way of life for undergraduate students of American history, politics and international relations.
Masterful ... gives us a panoramic view of American expansion, beginning with the first invasions of the continent and continuing to the present wars in the Middle East'
Howard Zinn, Professor Emeritus, Boston University, author of A People's History of the United States
'In this myth-busting book, Paul Atwood offers an impassioned and provocative challenge to all that Americans think they know about how the United States became a great power'
Andrew J. Bacevich, author of The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism
'A clear-headed and compelling account of the development of the American empire, an invaluable corrective to standard myth-making accounts'
Marilyn Young, professor of History at New York University, author of Bombing Civilians: A Twentieth Century History (NY, the New press, 2009) and The Vietnam Wars 1945-1990 (NY, Harper, 1991).