Book Review
Tales from a Revolution: Bacon’s Rebellion and the Transformation of Early America. By James Rice. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
The author of the book is a Professor of History at SUNY Plattsburgh. James Rice wrote “Tales from a Revolution: Bacon’s Rebellion and the Transformation of Early America”, the first scholarly book published about Bacon’s Rebellion since 1957. The book was based solely on this revolt that was led by Nathaniel Bacon in 1676 in Virginia. The rebellion was against the Indian policies in the colony. It developed into a big rebellion that sought to exterminate the colony’s Indian allies. The war also held the attention of Britain.
The book is subdivided into two parts. Part one covers the rebellion in Virginia while part two coves the aftermath of the rebellion. In the book, James Rice gives a colorful and detailed account of the cause of the rebellion. He also explains in-depth the role of Piscataway, the English planters, slave traders, officials such as Susquehannocks, colonial officials, thieves, observers, and workers in the rebellion. The book gives fine details including those of Governor Berkeley, Monges, a Susquehannock warrior, William Byrd, a tobacco planter, and Nathaniel Bacon, the leader of the rebellion. The detailing enables the readers to understand the characters fully. Monges was powerful and charismatic. Bacon was slender and dark and grew up in a well-known family. He was also rush, ambitious, and arrogant.

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