One of the books I received as a Christmas gift from my daughter was

this book I just finished reading that I recommend very highly to any American.

Once I started reading, I couldn't drop it until I finished it.

I lived in the Midwest of America for over half a century, and this book clearly helped

me find out the origin of the Midwest of America.

I could identify with the spirit of every pioneer described in the book.

Clearly, the book reenergized this old man with more energy and ambition 

in the middle of gloomy and dark Pandemic in which

as a life long medical practitioner, I feel like I'm in the middle of all these dead bodies,

over 300,000, scattered around me.

Oh my goodness, my favorite writer/historian David McCullough!!!

Absolutely worthy to read whatever he writes- I already have three books of his including ‘The Johnstown Flood’, buddy.

Indeed, one of few things I immediately started when I got back to the ‘civilized(?)’ world from South Carolina to Washington DC (though it was still a backwater of Baltimore) in 1978 was to register to Smithsonian Institute activity including the lecture series.

Through one of the lecture series, I heard the lecture by David McCullough for the first time and I became a worshiper to him through these many decades.

Of course, the PBS was his main base, then - I am sure you all remember ‘American Experience’ he hosted through more than a decade, 12 years? - so that his PBS program was one of few TV programs I enjoyed enormously together with David Attenborough's Nature program (thank goodness, we didn’t have MF Tramp then so that I didn’t bother to watch even evening national news!). Indeed, his warm voice is still ringing in my ears through ‘The Civil War by Ken Burns’ I enjoyed most.   

So I am sure you enjoyed more than any especially with your unique base at Midwest.

BB Lee

Thank you, Professor, for your comment.

You are indeed a great professor, so well-versed in so many

important things in life, besides medicine.

I learned American history by reading David McCullough's books,

and this book certainly enlightened me quite a bit.

I'm sure you will enjoy it as well.

You make me feel humbled, buddy!  Perhaps, I do have more 'intense(?)' curiosity than the average and insisted to dig up till I get satisfied, that's all! Indeed, it is quite exciting to learn something new, always.

When I got the job at Georgetown U in 1978, I had to move in to one of the dorm rooms at Nursing Dormitory building to save the money till the rest of family, remained at Columbia, SC for the children to continue to go to school, to join back after the school term/curriculum is over. 

So, every weekend, all alone, I dedicated (?) entire time to roaming through Smithsonians from 9:00 am till the evening including the evening lecture courses and believe me I learned a lot, a lot, to make me feel soembarrassed. The problem I had at that time was I really didn't want to miss weekly lecture/audiovisual presentation by National Geographic Society held at DAR Constitution Hall every Thursday so that I infrequently had to skip the dinner only to rush to enjoy their slide shows but in empty stomach- now those are the days, all gone!!-.

BB

P.S. Since we do NOT have a bookstore nearby, I no longer have a unique pleasure to spend the evening hours at my favorite book stores to choose/read through new books casually before I buy them. No more, so sad! So, I added 'The Pioneers: The Heroic Story of the Settlers Who Brought the American Ideal West' on the list to order with other items through Amazon later since I received a half dozen DVDs as Xmas presents to spend a good many evenings.