1776

I know I said that I was going to read The World's Banker this weekend. Well, I didn't. Instead I read 1776, the current no. 1 bestseller in hardcover non-fiction. My reaction: It's really good. Largely a profile of George Washington, the book covers his trials and tributions during that crucial year. Things I learned that I didn't know before:

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*There was significant opposition among members of the British Parliament for fighting the American rebels, with many warning that it would produce nothing but disaster and sorrow for Britain. I believe roughly one-third were in opposition to the war.

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*The abilities of George Washington as a commander were doubted very much by some of his top commanders following the disasters of the New York campaign, which began with a defeat at Brooklyn and concluded with the surrender of Fort Washington. Washington was thought to have been indecisive -- which he was -- and there was even some lobbying for him to be replaced.

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*Contrary to what is written in most history books the Hessian soldiers at Trenton on the morning of Dec. 26 were not drunk from Christmas celebration.

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*With approximately 25,000 Americans dead the Revolutionary War was the second-costliest conflict in U.S. as a percentage of the population next to the Civil War.

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Next book on deck: Rogue Regime: Kim Jong Il and the Looming Threat of North Korea. Then I'll get back to The World's Banker. Also looming: The World is Flat and Maximum City.