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The Blessings of Liberty
- A Concise History of the Constitution of the United States
- Narrated by: Larry Wayne
- Length: 24 hrs and 13 mins
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The Blessings of Liberty
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Publisher's summary
This concise, accessible text provides students with a history of American constitutional development in the context of political, economic, and social change. Constitutional historian Michael Benedict stresses the role that the American people have played over time in defining the powers of government and the rights of individuals and minorities. He covers important trends and events in US constitutional history, encompassing key Supreme Court and lower-court cases.
The volume begins by discussing the English and colonial origins of American constitutionalism. Following an analysis of the American Revolution's meaning to constitutional history, the text traces the Constitution's evolution from the Early Republic to the present day.
This third edition is updated to include the election of 2000, the Tea Party and the rise of popular constitutionalism, and the rise of judicial supremacy as seen in cases such as Citizens United, the Affordable Care Act, and gay marriage.
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What listeners say about The Blessings of Liberty
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Charlie T.
- 08-21-20
Indepth and Insiteful.
Very well written and read. I now have better understanding of our constitution. Highly recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 10-25-18
great listing of Supreme Court cases
the story provides a good historical summary of all the key Supreme Court cases affecting both the Constitution and our politics. The Story Goes a little off the rails in some really fictitious one sided crap about President Trump but other than that it was fairly factual
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- PR
- 08-07-19
Could have been shorter with no harm to the story
You have probably seen many pictures where the photographer stands so far back from the subject you get to see not only the entire subject but much of the land the subject is on along with a vast amount of the background. The subject can get lost in a tedious amount of unnecessary detail.
I enjoy history. I have a law degree. Constitutional law was among my favorite classes. We studied many of the cases discussed in the book. The author really knows his stuff. I went to the same university as he did. It is first rate institution.
But just like looking at a photograph of a subject who gets lost in the minutia of background detail, I felt this book meandered over too much unnecessary material. There were times I was so bored I wanted to just stop. In my opinion, he could have kept all the material but just moved about 40% into footnotes. It was my interest in Constitutional law that kept me going. If the reader does not have that interest, I don’t think he or she will enjoy the book.
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