Lies My Teacher Told Me, 2nd Edition

By: Dr. James Loewen

Narrated by: L. J. Ganser

"Every teacher, every student of history, every citizen should read this book. It is both a refreshing antidote to what has passed for history in our educational system and a one-volume education in itself." (Howard Zinn)

A new edition of the national best seller and American Book Award winner, with a new preface by the author

Since its first publication in 1995, Lies My Teacher Told Me has become one of the most important - and successful - history books of our time. Having sold nearly two million copies, the book also won an American Book Award and the Oliver Cromwell Cox Award for Distinguished Anti-Racist Scholarship and was heralded on the front page of the New York Times in the summer of 2006.

For this new edition, Loewen has added a new preface that shows how inadequate history courses in high school help produce adult Americans who think Donald Trump can solve their problems, and calls out academic historians for abandoning the concept of truth in a misguided effort to be "objective". What started out as a survey of the 12 leading American history textbooks has ended up being what the San Francisco Chronicle calls "an extremely convincing plea for truth in education".

In Lies My Teacher Told Me, James W. Loewen brings history alive in all its complexity and ambiguity. Beginning with pre-Columbian history and ranging over characters and events as diverse as Reconstruction, Helen Keller, the first Thanksgiving, the My Lai massacre, 9/11, and the Iraq War, Loewen offers an eye-opening critique of existing textbooks, and a wonderful retelling of American history as it should - and could - be taught to American students.

©2018 James W. Loewen (P)2019 Recorded Books

This is an absolute "must read!"

Riveting, interesting, insightful and even more relevant today. The fact that this powerful book was originally written in the 80s is heartbreaking. Nothing in the way we approach history changed between the 80s and when this edition was published in 2007, and nothing has changed since then.

That said it is definitely worth listening to and reading Loewen's deep analysis to come away with an understanding of why and what we should do about it.

I recommend this book highly to any and all people. wow!

A More Accurate Lens on American History

This book should be required reading for all Americans. I enjoyed the reader’s performance, too. A truly excellent guide for re-evaluating how Americans are taught our country’s history and a thoughtful revelation of truth from a historian’s perspective.

Wonderful

A must read!! All students should read this, it’s very informative. You won’t learn this in school at all.

An excellent critique on American text books

Americans have long been mired by textbooks that at best can be described as soda pop history. This book takes a hard look at that text and provides many of the historical facts left out. It also provides reasons why textbooks are as they are. I recommend this book to anyone who plans to take part in American society. One should challenge their nation to be better and consistently improve. To understand the past allows you to challenge the present to develop the future.

A great read on until history once again

This is another great volume and I’ll be letting my daughter read this one as well

Excellent study and critique

A must read specifically in this age of misinformation. Should be required in all HS curriculum.

I sure learned about America!

I loved that there is so much more to every story that we know about and we’re taught in our high school history classes.

As a normal white American male (I think I probably fit the definition of a “casual history buff” anyway), I was shocked by history/the truth/the REAL story about our Presidents, revered historical figures and explorers of of early America. It’s sure not what I learned anyway!

The discussion the author has with us during the time we spend together in the book really opened my mind and MADE me make regular challenges with myself about how I would react to history both past and present.

Yes, I’m sure paying a lot more attention to who says what and how they back up what they say! Time to question things, research history with further historical non fiction reading (oh darn 🤣, one of my favorite genres)

This was my first EVER Audible book and I loved it! I’m reading three other books and could have this in the background of my walks and when throwing tennis balls for my Golden Retreiver (I do a lot of both!).

4.5 rounded up to 5 because this should be required reading/listening for any American who thinks history is “boring”.

~Marty

MUST READ!!

What an “eye- opener”! I wish more people would make time to read and consider what this author is pointing out about our history as a nation and how it affects our lives today. Ill be sharing this title with everyone I know.

History matters

This book answers why and how history matters, and how history books in classrooms textbooks get it wrong. How we could and should care and do better. Great book .

Great book for the learner 

For people who like to learn, and think critically, this is a great book as food for thought. I found it enlightening on several American history things.  he also gave many good ideas for modifying the teaching of American history. I highly recommend this book.