Description: Publishing for the 250th anniversary of the United States, When the Declaration of Independence Was News focuses on the nation's founding document at the moment of its creation in 1776, before anyone knew what the legacy of the Declaration would be or if the United States would win the war against Great Britain. It explores how the Declaration was communicated to people in the new nation and around the Atlantic world and reveals the stories of the many people involved in the process of declaring independence, from printers to soldiers to diplomats to translators.
Review Quotes: "As the United States celebrates its 250th birthday, When the Declaration of Independence Was News offers the perfect opportunity to reconsider our origins. Emily Sneff reminds us that the nation's beginning was contested, debated, and squabbled over from the start. Thoughtfully written, full of colorful personalities, and teeming with groundbreaking scholarly research, Sneff achieves something rare-she brings new life to an old story. A must-read for anyone interested in the Founding Era." -- LINDSAY CHERVINSKY, The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon and author of Making the Presidency: John Adams and the Precedents That Forged the Republic
"How did it feel to experience the Declaration's epic rollout in real time? Moving through diverse audiences and navigating dense archives, Emily Sneff reimagines the pivotal moment in a clear and compelling narrative. She shows how early Americans encountered and interacted with new ideas of liberty, identity, and rights. Declaring independence, as Sneff illustrates, was a complex cultural process that defined the emerging nation's realm of political participation." -- SARA GEORGINI, author of Household Gods: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family"In Emily Sneff's fascinating history, readers will find themselves transported back in time to 1776, when Congress voting on the Declaration of Independence was a current event and the future of the new United States of America was both unknown and unsure. Sneff's timely, lively book will change the way you think about the history of the American Revolution and its most famous founding document." -- ZARA ANISHANSLIN, University of Delaware"Fresh and often eye-opening ... Sneff brings to light swathes of novel material and illuminates long-studied topics where one might think nothing new could be said." -- Davd Armitage, Times Literary Supplement