Gone but not forgotten

I don't claim to understand the book market, but I am surprised to see that a book getting such glowing reviews as The Glory and The Dream is out of print. It could be that the more recent Grand Expectations has supplanted it in the market. It could be that publishers don't think that people want a 1400 page history. The author is William Manchester who remains popular in other subjects. I managed to find a copy for a whopping twenty five cents (thanks Friends of the Arlington Public Library!) but I imagine most used bookstores have a copy, and Amazon has them for $12 or so.

Grand Expectations is part of the uniformly excellent Oxford History of the United States. The series is incomplete and the original editor C Vann Woodward died before it could be completed. David Kennedy is now editing the series and the latest book is Restless Giant, a history of the US from Watergate to the 2000 election. I picked that up at Powell's and I am most excited to read it. I was thinking the other day that it would be so great if H.W. Brands could write a book in this series and it turns out he will. He will be tackling the late 19th century, which is a challenge as it doesn't have the big events of some other eras. Having read (or heard via book on tape) three of his other works, I am thrilled to see what he writes.