James W. Loewen (1942–2021)

James W. Loewen and Nate Powell’s Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbooks Got Wrong adapts Loewen’s earlier texts about the poor presentation of American history in textbooks found throughout America’s public schools. Powell – best known for working with John Lewis in his three-volume graphic memoir, March – illustrated and adapted the book following a conversation with Loewen and states that it should be read as a companion to Loewen’s other texts (p. 263). They follow the most significant myths in U.S. history, from Christopher Columbus to the First Thanksgiving, Native American history to the Civil War and abolition, social class and government power to the recent past. Critical to their arguments are the simple yet regularly overlooked theses that “ideas actually matter” (p. 135), “events of one period might cause events later in history” (p. 202), progress narratives primarily serve to get textbooks adopted by schools rather than to effectively convey history (p. 239), and history textbook writers take into account social mores far more than any other subject (p. 247). All of this serves to turn students off to the study of history and misrepresent documented facts in order to serve those in power. Loewen and Powell want their readers to appreciate history and see it as a living field worthy of serious investigation. This book is a critical text for anyone teaching history and for those who found themselves disappointed with their textbooks.… (más)

This graphic non-fiction work seems meant to provide an introduction to many stories in the history of the United States that have been elided, ignored, or mistold by American high school history textbooks. Since it's only pointing out omissions and giving a very light gloss on what students could be taught, it's really only enough to start one's interest in these historical events and people—it would have benefited from the bibliographies and "further readings" that are apparently present in the original book by James W. Loewen, which this adapts (and which I haven't read). Without having read the original, I really appreciated the visual element of the storytelling here.… (más)

A book still worth reading. Loewen does not hold back. It is a detailed critique of history textbooks in the American school system. I found this book interesting as it made me reflect on my own personal experiences taking history courses and the content teachers pushed. There were some items I was aware of but many I did not even know about. History is very broad and my high school teachers did not cover the recent past as it is labeled. I responded to this in college by taking alternative history courses such as ones that covered the Middle East or Women's Studies to cover some gaps. I do not think I needed to wait until college to explore this content and hope future textbooks take on a different flavor. I did a lot of highlighting in this particular book as there are so many good quotes.… (más)