Product Description
"More than any other public figure of the eighteenth century,Tom Paine strikes our times like a trumpet blast from a distantworld." So begins John Keane's magnificent and award-winning (theFraunces Tavern Book Award) biography of one of democracy's greatestchampions. Among friends and enemies alike, Paine earned a reputationas a notorious pamphleteer, one of the greatest political figures ofhis day, and the author of three best-selling books, Common Sense, TheRights of Man, and The Age of Reason. Setting his compelling narrativeagainst a vivid social backdrop of prerevolutionary America and theFrench Revolution, John Keane melds together the public and theshadowy private sides of Paine's life in a remarkable piece ofscholarship. This is the definitive biography of a man whose life andwork profoundly shaped the modern age. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

A rollercoaster of a life
The greatest contribution of Thomas Paine, who certainly makes for a compelling biography, was his ability to distill pro-American Revolution sentiments to the middle and lower classes of the Colonies.Indeed, his book "Common Sense" and the follow-up, "The Rights of Man," were runaway best-sellers in there time.But, unfortunately for Paine, who came from humble beginnings, he would often find himself poverty stricken as well as the target of a merciless and unfair press.He became a downright pariah after his third great work: "the Age of Reason," in which he basically argued that organized religion was a perversion of a more rational belief in a benign creator, otherwise known as "Deism."

Paine, whose intellect often went in very different directions, found himself in the middle of two revolutions: the American and the French.Paine was late in realizing that the French revolution was aptly described as a "Reign of Terror," and was lucky to return to America with his head intact.To the very end, Paine had his great admirers and his bitter detractors (especially after he attacked George Washingtion in a nasty editorial, written only because Washington seemed to abandon Paine when the latter was imprisoned in France and awaited execution).

Overall, John Keane does a rather nice job detailing the life of this controversial man.My problem with the book is that I believe Keane too frequently injects his personal opinion into the narrative.Also, like many (if not most) biographers, I think Keane overexagerates the importance of his subject.True, Paine's "Common Sense" and "The Rights of Man," were the most accessible and popular books written on that subject, but virtually all of the so-called "Founding Fathers" were writing similar things.Paine's thoughts were hardly original.Even in his radical "Age of Reason," he wasn't "ahead of his time" as Keane repeats, but rather his accomplishment was to crystallize sentiments about religion that many others had already expressed.That being said, "Tom Paine" is certainly a worthwhile read if you're interested in biographies of important historical figures during this time period.

Solid overview of an important figure
This is an enjoyable read.Excellent detail, especially about Paine's religious views and his time in France during the Revolution there.Paine nearly lost his head in France, and there were many who would have gladly done the same after he returned to the United States in the early 19th Century.But his impact on his times was quite profound.It is necessary to understand Tom Paine if one wishes to get at the origins and course of the American and French Revolutions.This book is a good means to that important end.

One of the great visionaries of civic democratic society, and quite a character at that
This is the kind of biography that makes reading history worthwhile. The writing style is intelligent and clear, marshalling innumerable facts and interesting anecdotes.It gives us the full scope of Paine's remarkable life - a man who was one of the intellectual midwives at the birth of the era of democratic revolution.

He fought for free political expression as a citizen of three countries in the throes of revolutionary change: born in England where he fought against monarchy, moved to America where he became a writer of inspirational tracts for independence, and finally, made citizen of France during the violence of the Revolution where he argued, at great risk to himself, to spare the life of King Louis XVI.If his positions seem contradictory they actually reflect a philosophy of consistant political moderation.

Secondly, this biography is a story about the struggle to realize ideas against great odds.Everywhere he went he was fortunate to escape death at the hands of his murderous foes.In spite of these threats, Paine fought tirelessly for his ideals.

Thirdly, the author gives contempory meaning to Paine's goals.Paine was against religious literalism because he saw the adherence to strict doctrine as an obstacle to extablishing a civic society in which people could live together harmoniously.
This position was a cause of much suffering for Paine at the end of his life as his anti-traditional ideas incited deep personal hatred.Without needing to conclude whether he was misguided or not, suffice to say, the difficulty he tried to tackle remains with us today...in the headlines.And I don't think we've come all that far in solving the problem he recognized.That he saw its importance at the inception of modern civic society makes him a visionary of the highest importance worthy of our respect whether we agree with the totality of his ideas or not.

Keane's Good Friend Tom Paine
An interesting biography, heavily- if not well- researched.Partisan, but Keane does manage a bit of perspective. The main problems come with the background.There is both too much - I for one could do without the often inaccurate disquisitions on eighteenth-century England - and too much WRONG. Keane seems to think that Britain and America were at war in 1787, and that Adam Smith visited Paris at that time (p.284-5).Hobbes is both more and less than a 'philosopher of counterrrevolution.'
Furthermore, it seems a man only had to bump into Paine for Keane to count him a 'close friend'.What was the extent of Paine's friendship with Goldsmith (this is interesting) and with Burke (very important)?
I get the impression that Keane did all his research for the book and had no grounding in the subject before.But it's an engrossing read for all that.

A book for all times
As I read this book, I couldn't help but think, where is the Tom Paine of our time?The insights that Tom Paine had are needed today more than ever. ... Read more

Product Description
Since its publication in 1976, Tom Paine and Revolutionary America has been recognized as a classic study of the career of the foremost political pamphleteer of the Age of Revolution, and a model of how to integrate the political, intellectual, and social history of the struggle for American independence.Foner skillfully brings together an account of Paine's remarkable career with a careful examination of the social worlds within which he operated, in Great Britain, France, and especially the United States. He explores Paine's political and social ideas and the way he popularized them by pioneering a new form of political writing, using simple, direct language and addressing himself to a reading public far broader than previous writers had commanded. He shows which of Paine's views remained essentially fixed throughout his career, while directing attention to the ways his stance on social questions evolved under the pressure of events. This enduring work makes clear the tremendous impact Paine's writing exerted on the American Revolution, and suggests why he failed to have a similar impact during his career in revolutionary France. It also offers new insights into the nature and internal tensions of the republican outlook that helped to shape the Revolution.In a new preface, Foner discusses the origins of this book and the influences of the 1960s and 1970s on its writing. He also looks at how Paine has been adopted by scholars and politicians of many stripes, and has even been called the patron saint of the Internet. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Tom Paine and Revolutionary America
Foner, Eric. Tom Paine and Revolutionary America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. Pp. xx, 326

While Foner's book, Tom Paine and Revolutionary America, came out in 1976, it remains as relevant and widely used today as it was when it was first published.Clearly, Foner's depiction of Paine strikes a chord with several other historians since many undergraduate text books and other scholarly texts have the book listed in there works citied.Acclaimed books such as Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States (1980) as well as A Leap in the Dark (2003) by John Ferling have both turned to Foner's book in reference to Thomas Paine and radical ideologies during the American Revolution.Furthermore, in Eric Foner's newer college level text, Give Me Liberty!, (2006)his use of and importance placed on Paine has remained unchanged as a key and leading figure in the development of radical American ideologies.The book is an excellent source for any student of Thomas Paine or radical participation during the Revolution, while it remains slightly out of reach of the average Sunday reader.Foner's forth book clearly demonstrates his talent as a historian and sheds new light into the American Revolution.

In depth study of Tom Paine
Tom Paine's Common Sense was one of the most influential writings of the American Revolution.Eric Foner covers this period of Paine's career in 30 pages.The rest of this tome is dedicated to the founding of new political systems in Pennsylvania and controversies surrounding the establishment of the Bank of North America.Although these topics are of interest to scholars, they were of limited interest to this more casual reader.I found much of the book tedious and difficult to wade through.It would probably be great for those with a thirst for rarely documented parts of early American history.Probably this would not be a good choice for those with a more casual interest in this period.

Tom Paine Who?
While the book provided considerable insite into other Radical revolutionary leaders it provided little, other than the writings of Paine, on Paine himeself. I was hoping for some insite into his reasons and thought process which developed into the concepts he outlined in his writings. In this I was disapointed. However I would recommend this book for the missing history it provided, history missing from school curricuium. An omission I feel is damaging to educating in this country

TOM PAINE-INTERNATIONALIST REVOLUTIONARY DEMOCRAT
If Leon Trotskywas considered by many, like George Bernard Shaw, to be the "prince of pamphleteers" for his efforts on behalf of the Russian Revolution and socialism then Tom Paine can rightly be regarded as the "prince of pamphleteers"for his efforts on behalf ofthe American and French Revolutions (and its offshoot- the pro-revolutionary English radical movement of the 1790's) and plebian democracy.Mr. Foner centers his biography of Tom Paine on the meaning of his key works Common Sense, The Rights of Man and the Age of Reason and the influence they had on the plebian masses in the Age of Revolution. These are Paine's classic arguments for plebian democracy the expansion of the capitalist market and popular deism. . This, in itself, makes the book worthwhile reading. Make no mistake, Paine is no socialist but as an agent of the plebian democratic movement- when and where it counted- we can claim him for our own.

Mr. Foner also gives a rather detailedpicture of Pennsylvania prior to and during Tom Paine's entrance on the political scene there to help set framework for the impact of his propaganda, especially Common Sense, on the developing American national liberation struggle against England. Tom Paine, like many important revolutionaries in their time, had an impact on more than one revolutionary movement and therefore justly earned for himself an honored place in plebian democratic history much to the chagrin of some later historians of these movements. In an age when sales of printed matter were small his tracts sold in the hundreds of thousands and those purchases were not merely for the coffee table at a time when money was dear. That alone helps defines the impact of his work.

Tom Paine, like other revolutionary leaders, has suffered through the ups and downs of reputation depending on the times. His Age of Reason, a consummate tract in defense of popular deism, led to a steep decline in his reputation for most of the 19th century, an age in America of religious piety. Even the revolutionary abolitionist John Brown was driven by a relgious fervor. He has fared better lately, in an age that is much more secular and which is not shocked by deist conclusions. Paine also comes in handy as an ally when democratic rights are, like now, under full-scale attack in the name ofthe `war on terrorism'. Let me say this-if a closet-Tory likeFounding Father John Adams can look pretty damn good in comparison to today's bourgeois politicians then Tom Paine can rightly take his place as a Founder in our pantheon of revolutionary heroes.

Paine: One of America's first Public Intellectuals
Paine was a latecomer to pre-revolutionary America, arriving in November, 1774. But he had already been somewhat involved in struggles against oppressive conditions in Great Britain, where he had become acquainted with Benjamin Franklin. Having paid his way to America (not arriving as an indentured servant), Paine quickly became a key figure in revolutionary Philadelphia through his writings for a newspaper, his position being secured by a letter from Franklin, and through the publication of "Common Sense," perhaps the most influential and widely read pamphlet of the times. The author makes clear that Paine did not accept the commonly held view that the balanced government of Great Britain involving monarchy, nobility, and commoners was the ideal form. In "Common Sense," he denounced the entire idea of hereditary monarchy and advocated for republican government with near universal voting rights, of course, only among free, white men. In his scheme, the main element of government should be a unicameral legislature, eschewing the notion of conflicting class interests. He made clear that there were no valid reasons to not seek independence.


Philadelphia had been dominated by the merchant elite in the time before Paine's arrival, but the impending conflict with Great Britain began to unleash new social forces. A considerable portion of the book is devoted to exploring the conflicting interests of merchants, farmers, artisans, and laborers in Philadelphia and the colonies. The formation of a local militia was especially upsetting to the status quo, as the militiamen, originating from the lower orders of society, demanded recognition for their sacrifice. The issuance of paper money by colonial governments to finance the war resulted in rampant inflation. Inflated, free-market pricing versus traditional "just" prices became a controversial issue, which was intertwined with claims of producers withholding or monopolizing products. Attempts to control prices met with little success.Debtors were less concerned with that inflation (except for higher prices) than were merchants and master craftsmen who advocated for private banking based on tight credit. The author notes that Paine, while a republican, was an advocate for free commerce. He backed the Philadelphia merchant, Robert Morris, in establishing a bank in Philadelphia in the early 1780s. That controversy foretold the many banking controversies that have occurred throughout American history.


The author follows Paine as he returned to Great Britain and revolutionary France in 1787. The "Rights of Man" and a sequel became as influential in Great Britain among artisans in the early 1790s as had his earlier pamphlet in America. He had to escape to France to avoid prosecution for denouncing the crown and advocating taxing the nobility and ending their state pensions. Paine was celebrated by one faction in revolutionary France and was elected to the new National Convention, even though he spoke little French. His failure to support the execution of Louis XVI landed him in prison for a year when the Jacobins seized power from more moderate forces. Paine's tract on deism "The Age of Reason," begun while incarcerated, was, in part, an attack on Christianity and its reliance on "revelations and miracles." But as the author says, "In America, far more critics of society spoke the language of revivalist Protestantism and Christian perfectionism than of deist rationalism." Paine's arguments were far better received in France with a secular, anti-clerical tradition.


Paine returned to American in 1802, but his anti-religious views did not sit well with clergy and devout followers. Many of his former friends, including Jefferson, would have nothing to do with him. He died nearly alone in 1809. This book is hardly a conventional biography of Paine. Its intent is to understand the social and political environment in which Paine was able to exert influence. Much of what Paine had to say was not necessarily original, but he had a direct manner of writing that made his views accessible to all social layers. The author also notes that Paine's radicalism did not have the class element that was a part of the radical critique of the industrial revolution in later years. In Paine's view commerce was a unifying social force, not one that created capitalists and a working class at profound odds. Paine is a somewhat obscure and forgotten man. His peripatetic nature, his limited years in the colonies, and his not holding any significant political office - all serve to relegate Paine to a secondary role, at least in perception. But the author contends that Paine had substantial influence in American thought, even if subtle and not well recognized.
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Customer Reviews (10)

a hard look at the life of a great man
A poor and mostly self educated man
Tom Paine was a strange literary figure out of the American Revolutionary era.
He wrote several very popular books and essays that gave energy
to the struggle against England. He also tried to carry his ideas to Europe
and as a result had his health ruined by a stay in a French prison
and just survived with his neck intact from the terror period of that revolution.
He came home to America to find the winds of change had
cursed his name yet again.
He was a drunkard and used the drunken rage to fuel his
writing at times, but his set of books and essays
survives and puts him in the category of great political writers
of history. There is little doubt the "Common Sense"
was an influence on the fathers of the United States
in the formative era.
This novel seems to be an honest effort to put the man into prospective
and seems well researched as well.
Tom Paine sought to be treated fairly:
to make a world where all man had a fair chance.

citizen tom paine
Written very wellandenjoyableto read. A must read for those interested in hisory.

CITIZEN TOM PAINE-REVOLUTIONARY HERO
Howard Fast, as a part of a series on the American revolution, has written an interesting historical novel based on the exploits of the famous English-born American Revolutionary hero, Tom Paine. Thomas Paine is probably most well-known for his pamphlet COMMON SENSE which did much to galvanize the lower classes in American to support, even if haphazardly, the fight for independence. In fact, the part of the book concerning the distribution of the pamphlet is its most interesting part. If you like drama, history and an engaging, if sullen and unkempt,character this book is for you.

If Leon Trotskywas considered by many to be the "prince of pamphleteers" for his efforts on behalf of the Russian Revolution and socialism then Tom Paine can rightly be regarded as the "prince of pamphleteers"for his efforts on behalf ofthe American and French Revolutions (and its offshoot- the pro-revolutionary English radical movement of the 1790's) and plebian democracy.

Tom Paine, like many important revolutionaries in their time, had an impact on more than one revolutionary movement and therefore justly earned for himselfan honored place in plebian democratic history much to the chagrin of some later historians of these movements. In an age when sales of printed matter were small his tracts sold in the hundreds of thousands and those purchases were not merely for the coffee table at a time when money was dear. That alone helps defines the impact of his work.

Tom Paine, like other revolutionary leaders, has suffered through the ups and downs of reputation depending on the times. His Age of Reason, theconsummate tract in defense of 18th century popular deism, led to a steep decline in his reputation for most of the 19th century, an age in America of religious piety. Even the revolutionary abolitionist John Brown was driven by a religious furor. Paine has fared better lately, in an age that is much more secular and which is not shocked by deist conclusions. Paine also comes in handy as an ally when democratic rights are, like now, under full-scale attack in the name ofthe `war on terrorism'. Let me conclude by saying this, if a closet-Tory likeFounding Father John Adams can look pretty damn good in comparison to today's bourgeois politicians then Tom Paine can rightly take his place as a Founder in the pantheon of revolutionary heroes.

Stirring, tragic historical novel
For those who need a refresher, Paine was the American revolutionary who helped transform a disorderly and often frightened collection of rebellious colonists into a nation with his series of pamphlets, beginning with the famous Common Sense.

When we first meet Paine, he is a frustrated loser on the verge of middle age, unable to break free of the class system that traps him in menial jobs in London. He forces his way into the office of Benjamin Franklin, the minister from the "colonies," who kindly recommends that he emigrate to America. When Paine, who tells Franklin that he "writes a little," comes to Philadelphia, he haltingly finds his true talent at last: as a propagandist. As the colonies hurtle towards revolution, it is Paine who roars the truth in his little pamphlets, giving courage and meaning to the efforts of the rebels.

For the first time in his life, this shambling, lonely, often drunk man is truly alive. Encouraging, exhorting, burning with anger and determination, Paine plays his vital role without thought of personal gain or a plan for the future. Before reading this novel, I hadn't realized how powerful the Tory forces were in America, especially in Philadelphia, nor how many folks simply sat on the sidelines during the war, wishing the whole mess would just go away. At the war's lowest point, Congress hightails it out of Philadelphia (then the capital) and begins talk of sacking George Washington.

Paine took personal responsibility for saving Philadelphia (the capital) from a Tory takeover, an action that may well have saved the country--but at the cost of making powerful enemies. Paine's passion and sacrifice for the cause sets the stage for the tragic second act of the book. Now a throughly committed revolutionary, Paine doesn't know what to do with himself after the American Revolution comes to an end.

He is once again a wanderer, but now he has a reputation to uphold. The only real satisfaction he can find is as a revolutionist, on the run from the authorities. He returns to England and tries to spark an uprising there. Eventually, disillusionment sets in. Paine learns that his desire to change the world is not enough.

Paine then becomes caught up in the French Revolution and is lucky to escape with his head. Falsely accused of atheism for some of his writings in France, Paine lives out his remaining years in America, despised by the very country he helped to create.

While not a jolly tale, Citizen Tom Paine is a compelling, gripping read. Fast himself was a radical, but this novel is no propaganda piece for radical politics. Instead, Fast examines with clear eyes and a compassionate heart the tragedy that befalls a creative man who can't be content with the temporizing and sorry realities of everyday life. This is a timeless story of idealism, its triumphs, and its limitations.

Don't Know Much About History?
Let's play word association. Thomas Paine. Did you say Common Sense? So did I. In fact, that's about all I knew of Paine before picking up Howard Fast's piece of historical fiction about the revolutionary. It's not surprising that this should be what Paine is best remembered for. The "small book" appears to have been a bigger hit than the Da Vinci Code and was read by people across the intellectual spectrum. Paine became known to American soldiers and militiamen as "Common Sense". Paine was perhaps America's first motivational speaker.

There is more to Paine than Common Sense, however, and Howard Fast does a marvelous job leading us up to the point that Paine writes his masterpiece and beyond to his eventual demise and ridicule until his death. Along the way, Paine wrote a series of "Crisis" papers that picked up where Common Sense left off and re-inspired discouraged fighters. It is to Paine that we owe the line "these are the times that try men's souls." Paine later tried to become a revolution mercenary, trying his hand (unsuccessfully) in England and (arguably more successfully) in France. He was so well received in France that he became a deputy to the National Assembly.

A better historian -- or high school student -- would probably already know all of this about Paine. If you fall into that category, Citizen Tom Paine may be a waste of time. But if your knowledge of this gruff, intelligent, less-than-handsome revolutionary is as shallow as mine was, Citizen Tom Paine is a worthwhile read that has become a classic piece of historical fiction. ... Read more

Product Description
If a 50-foot-tall stainless-steel tree falls in Central Park, will anybody believe it? Sited among the park's famous American elms, Roxy Paine's Bluff, a 50-foot-tall stainless-steel tree, stood last spring as a gleaming, perennial fake surrounded by a man-made natural setting that changed with the seasons. For Paine, the process of constructing the tree is most significant--the difficulty of painstakingly creating an object that closely resembles an organic one, and the impossibility of quantifying nature by breaking it down into component parts. Through photographic chapters and schematic diagrams that individually illustrate the tree's large branches, small branch systems, fungus, assembly, and installation, this volume acts as a how-to manual, illustrating the process Paine undertook to make Bluff. A Public Art Fund project, Bluff was on view from March through May of last year as part of the 2002 Whitney Biennial.

Edited by Anne Wehr.
Essays by Tim Griffin, Margaret Mittelbach and Gregory Crewdson.
Introduction by Susan K Fredman and Tom Eccles.

Hardcover, 9.5 x 11 in. 112 pages, 70 color, 20 b/w illustrations ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Eloquent and lush
This is a fabulous book about a fabulous artist.Roxy Paine works in varied media, and one of his most recent projects is a series of tree-sized steel sculptures of trees, which are then planted (usually among the real things) internationally.This book includes a lengthy conversation with the artist about his entire body of work, photos of the construction of a specific steel tree, and articles about the history of Central Park, New York--where the tree, named "Bluff", was installed for a season.The book is hardcover.The jacket is an image of bark and when you slide it up, the cover and coverpages shimmer in silver (like stainless steel).

I love this artist.The interview offers detailed insight into his process and motives that would benefit any creative mind. ... Read more

Product Description
Whitey O’Thraight, the Ship’s Armorer on the first interstellar vessel launched by his home planet Vespucci, finds himself stranded on a strange planet with just one other survivor. Captured by the local Baron, they are freed by a group of monks who are much more than they initially appear to be.Their new benefactors and friends have something special in mind for the two survivors, but going along with these plans might mean the destruction of Vespucci as they knew it. ****** Another breath-taking adventure by the author ofthe award winning "Pallas" and "The Probability Broach." ****** ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

You will not be able to put it down
Tom Paine Maru is one of those books that once you get started you won`t want to put it down until you are finished.
The basic story is about two men from a barbarous authoritarian culture come into contact with a starship from earth. The two men
are quite different. One is of the nobility and one is a peasent/servent. Their society has been cut off from earth for hundreds
of years, and they experience major culture shock. Earth culture, and the culture aboard the starship is very different from
anything they have ever experienced. A free society where individual rights and individual freedom has become almost the
cultural religion.
The peasent suddenly discovers he is a free man and the other discovers that not only does his nobility mean nothing in this new
culture, they are openly hostile to the very concept of it. He is a free man, but basicly has become a bum without any useful
skills in a high tech society where everyone is equal and expected to pull their own load.
Both have major problems adapting, but from different ends of the spectrum.
A good read with much food for thought long after the book is finished.

Space Opera As It Should Be!
I purchased a copy of this when it was only available in digital form, and am convinced that it is one of the great space operas of our time. Note, I did not say science fiction - I said SPACE OPERA - this story is larger than life, grand, and speaks to great themes that most science fiction is too timid (or pessimistic) to address any more. Not only that, it presents a coherent ethical and social view of the universe that is far more hopeful and compelling than anything we see from the average writer these days.

If you enjoyed the original Star Wars, or remember Robert Heinlein with fondness, this is a book you simply will not be able to put down. Read this book, and enjoy a universe in which governments are treated as the vile, parasitic cancers that they truly are.

A must read for everyone!
Regardless of whether you're a Blue state koolaide drinker or a Red state iconoclast this book is more than just science fiction. It lays bare the useless and destructive nature of politics in general and government in particular. Thought provoking and argument starting from cover to cover.

A darn fine read indeed!

Lots of Fun
This is not great literature, but it us lots of fun. The point of the story is to showcase someone from a "conventional", feudal background who is thrown into one of Smith's no-holds-barred ultra-libertarian societies. A pleasant conceit.

Remember feeling good about a book?
Remember watching Star Trek for the first time? Or Star Wars?

Back before infinite special-effects budgets, when actual actors brushed dirt off their clothes when they fell down.

I wanted to join Star Fleet, even if it meant wearing a red shirt. I wanted to fly the Millennium Falcon, even if it meant being on the edge of broke or running scared once in a while. Still do.

This is how _Tom Paine Maru_ feels to me. Real people, doing stuff I can see myself doing in their place.

Not just see myself doing, the world (multiverse?) Smith has put together is one I would jump into with both feet without hesitation if the opportunity came up. ... Read more

Product Description
PERHAPS the sentiments contained in the following pages, are not YET sufficiently fashionable to procure them general favor; a long habit of not thinking a thing WRONG, gives it a superficial appearance of being RIGHT, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defence of custom. But the tumult soon subsides. Time makes more converts than reason.

As a long and violent abuse of power, is generally the Means of calling the right of it in question (and in Matters too which might never have been thought of, had not the Sufferers been aggravated into the inquiry) and as the King of England hath undertaken in his OWN RIGHT, to support the Parliament in what he calls THEIRS, and as the good people of this country are grievously oppressed by the combination, they have an undoubted privilege to inquire into the pretensions of both, and equally to reject the usurpations of either.

In the following sheets, the author hath studiously avoided every thing which is personal among ourselves. Compliments as well as censure to individuals make no part thereof. The wise, and the worthy, need not the triumph of a pamphlet; and those whose sentiments are injudicious, or unfriendly, will cease of themselves unless too much pains are bestowed upon their conversion.

The cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind. Many circumstances have, and will arise, which are not local, but universal, and through which the principles of all Lovers of Mankind are affected, and in the Event of which, their Affections are interested. The laying of a Country desolate with Fire and Sword, declaring War against the natural rights of all Mankind, and extirpating the Defenders thereof from the Face of the Earth, is the Concern of every Man to whom Nature hath given the Power of feeling; of which Class, regardless of Party Censure, is THE AUTHOR




Download Common Sense Now! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

Gosh, he breathes life into this.
Gosh, this is really lively work.Which in this instance should be read as a synonym for "labored."If you'd like a roadmap, or blueprint, or whatever figure of speech pleases you, of everything wrong with a ritzy diploma mill like Columbia's MFA program in creative writing, pick this up.Plus I'd second the other reviewer's observation about Mr. Paine's bain de soleil look and add that he looks like someone left him sitting a little too close to the stove for too long.

No more self-tanning lotion for you
I'm going to have to make it a rule not to look at the author's photo before i start a book.Tom Paine's airbrushed face is on the jacket, and oh boy, he looks like he fell asleep in a tanning booth.That, combined with the Abercrombie & Fitch styling predisposed me not to like this book.

But the writing did not help either!The first story is about a wealthy man caught in a hurricane while sailing.His boat sinks and he is rescued by a group of Haitians floating their way to the US in very dire conditions.These poor people believe that by rescuing an American they will have no trouble being accepted in the country.But the way things turn out is very different.

The second story is what really did me in.A burly Marine general, on the day of his retirement, decides to "come out" by undressing to his female underwear during his farewell banquet.

There was something so contrived and forced in that story that i couldn't take it any more.Like the critic who got up in the middle of a play said, "I don't need to eat the whole omelette in order to tell you that the eggs were rotten".

WRITER'S CRAMP
After picking up this book at the state library ... I wished I hadn't.Paine is a confused writer to say the least and his short stories refelect that.His stories could have been condensed down to a half a dozen pages, but add up to 20+ of verbiage simply reflecting a writer who likes to hear himself write.O'Henry Mr. Paine is not. If you have never felt you wasted your time reading a book .... then read 'Scar Vegas'.

You have got to be kidding!
I bought this book based upon the (at that time) glowing reviews on Amazon.I found the stories boring (when comprehensible), moralistic and wholly uninteresting. Perhaps I failed to comprehend some oblique deeper mmeaning here--but I doubt it. It was literally a struggle to finish the book. I would definitely skip this one. The worst book I have read in a long time.

Predictable
Author Tom Paine delivers 10 short stories in his collection, "Scar Vegas". While the premise of many of the stories appear clever and promising, they too often end with the familiar and cliché. Mr. Paine clearly is a talented writer, and this first experience with his work would not stop me from reading what may follow.

The author deals with many serious issues with social and moral implications. The issues themselves are not in general that unique, so he has raised the bar for his task of writing new and insightful commentary. He has chosen, in the case of the opening story, a troubling facet that continues to hamper our species reaching closer to a humanity that is appropriate. Again a familiar theme, which he then compounds with additional familiarity by telling his tale through an episode in recent history, that is just too easy. The ending will be clear very shortly after you begin. Indeed with the first tale, the story may lie revealed after reading the description on the book's jacket.

The author also makes editorials of many of the stories. The edge these stories would need to make the reader feel uncomfortable, or perhaps become introspective, is made harder by the tone that approaches preaching. If a statement about war is the goal of a story, unless you happen to adhere to this author's opinions, it becomes difficult to concentrate on how he demonstrates his skills as a writer, when as a person he intrudes in his fiction. War can be commented upon without ever mentioning a specific nation or a specific conflict. War is unconditionally horrid. It can stand on its own and be criticized and judged, it need not be identified in meticulous detail to make its point. The conduct of war can certainly be more extreme in certain notorious historical examples. I truly think the author is capable of making his point without relying on events from the news, and his personal views that consistently shadow his words. ... Read more

Product Description
The story of the self-educated craftsman who earned a place in history as the voice of the American Revolution. ... Read more

Product Description
WHEN Thomas Paine sailed from America for France, in April, 1787, he was perhaps as happy a man as any in the world. His most intimate friend, Jefferson, was Minister at Paris, and his friend Lafayette was the idol of France. His fame had preceded him, and he at once became, in Paris, the centre of the same circle of savants and philosophers that had surrounded Franklin. His main reason for proceeding at once to Paris was that he might submit to the Academy of Sciences his invention of an iron bridge, and with its favorable verdict he came to England, in September. He at once went to his aged mother at Thetford, leaving with a publisher (Ridgway), his " Prospects on the Rubicon." He next made arrangements to patent his bridge, and to construct at Rotherham the large model of it exhibited on Paddington Green, London. He was welcomed in England by leading statesmen, such as Lansdowne and Fox, and above all by Edmund Burke, who for some time had him as a guest at Beaconsfield, and drove him about in various parts of the country. He had not the slightest revolutionary purpose, either as regarded England or France. Towards Louis XVI. he felt only gratitude for the services he had rendered America, and towards George III. he felt no animosity whatever. His four months' sojourn in Paris had convinced him that there was approaching a reform of that country after the American model, except that the Crown would be preserved, a compromise he approved, provided the throne should not be hereditary. Events in France travelled more swiftly than he had anticipated, and Paine was summoned by Lafayette, Condorcet, and others, as an adviser in the formation of a new constitution.

Such was the situation immediately preceding the political and literary duel between Paine and Burke, which in the event turned out a tremendous war between Royalism and Republicanism in Europe. Paine was, both in France and in England, the inspirer of moderate counsels. Samuel Rogers relates that in early life he dined at a friend's house in London with Thomas Paine, when one of the toasts given was the " memory of Joshua,"-in allusion to the Hebrew leader's conquest of the kings of Canaan, and execution of them. Paine observed that he would not treat kings like Joshua. " I 'm of the Scotch parson's opinion," he said, "when he prayed against Louis XIV.-`Lord, shake him over the mouth of hell, but don't let him drop! ' " Paine then gave as his toast, " The Republic of the World,"-which Samuel Rogers, aged twenty-nine, noted as a sublime idea. This was Paine's faith and hope, and with it he confronted the revolutionary storms which presently burst over France and England.


Download Rights Of Man Now! ... Read more

Product Description
Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Hesperides Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Choppy
The book is a choppy read.There are instances where the read flows like water from a Florida spring.However, it can be dry as Texas during a drought.To give it justice you must be a persistant reader.

Popular in Brooklyn
I had to read this book for school and it was pretty good.The only reason it is popular in Brooklyn is that you can't find this book anywhere else and since over 75 people had to read it for school, and our teacher suggested getting it here, everyone bought it. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

THOMAS PAIN MARU
I ENJOYED THE BOOK. I WISH I COULD FIND THE OTHER BOOKS WHICH ARE PART OF "THE BRIGHT SUITE" SERIES.

Don't support censorship
This Del Rey edition of "Tom Paine Maru" was deliberately butcherer by cutting all philosophical and political content at the hands of Del Rey's editors.

Don't support such censorship. I read the Del Rey edition and later found an uncensored version on the web. L. Neil is right they butchered what he wrote

Times were tough...
Corporal Whitey O'Thraight came from a harsh planet, a planet that sent him, and the rest of the crew, to look for a better planet.But the Asperance's first voyage is its last when just a few hours after landing most of his people are killed by the savages (who are living in their version of the Middle Ages).It seems he has the choice between being burned at the stake or just tortured.
But then he is freed by the crew of the Tom Paine Maru.And then things get dangerous.
A great book, kind of a sequel to The Venus Belt. It can stand alone, all you have to do is read enough of it to get the basic background.Set in The Probability Broach universe, so lots of surprises and a interesting setting.

You will renew your enjoyment of L. Neil Smith
While set in the Other world of Freedoms and Personal Rights. It will catch you up on the families you first meet in the "The Probability Broach". It will open your mind if you would allow it to, making youlook around and say why are we not more like that. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Don't confuse Play and Novel
Don't confuse "Citizen Tom Paine: A Play in Two Acts" and another book by same author, "Citizen Tom Paine."The novel, first published 1943, reprinted 1983, was used to derive his 1986 play.Regrettably, Amazon once listed them here as the same book, and some sellers are still listing the novel here under the ISBN for the play.So BEWARE.
The image shown is the cover of the play with with Richard Thomas as Paine in the 1985 Williamstown season.The play is about 100 pages with an afterword by Howard Fast.
Tom Paine is portrayed as a, or the, major player in helping bring Americans to the cause of liberty against England, and as a powerful but misunderstood player on the world stage. ... Read more