"One of the half dozen most important books ever written about the American Revolution." — New York Times Book Review
"During the nearly two decades since its publication, this book has set the pace, furnished benchmarks, and afforded targets for many subsequent studies. If ever a work of history merited the appellation 'modern classic,' this is surely one." — William and Mary Quarterly
"[A] brilliant and sweeping interpretation of political culture in the Revolutionary generation." — New England Quarterly
"This is an admirable, thoughtful, and penetrating study of one of the most important chapters in American history." — Wesley Frank Craven