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Author: Akhil Reed Amar. Title: America’s Constitution: a Biography.  New York: Random House, 2005.  KF4541 .A87 2005

From the publisher:  “In America’s Constitution, one of this era’s most accomplished constitutional-law scholars, Akhil Reed Amar, gives a panoramic account of one of the world’s great political texts. Incisive, entertaining, and occasionally controversial, this “biography” of America’s framing document explains not only what the Constitution says but also why the Constitution says it.” “From his unique perspective, Amar gives us unconventional wisdom about the Constitution and its significance throughout the nation’s history. For one thing, we see that the Constitution has been far more democratic than is conventionally understood. Even though the document was drafted by white landholders, a remarkably large number of citizens (by the standards of 1787) were allowed to vote up or down on it, and the document’s later amendments eventually extended the vote to virtually all Americans. We also learn that the Founders’ Constitution was far more slavocratic than many would acknowledge: the “three fifths” clause gave the South extra political clout for every slave it owned or acquired. As a result, slaveholding Virginians held the presidency all but four of the Republic’s first thirty-six years, and proslavery forces eventually came to dominate much of the federal government prior to Lincoln’s election.” America’s Constitution is an indispensable work, bound to become a standard reference for any student of history and all citizens of the United States.