I came across this book because I am a Chicago tour guide, had a request to lead a pilgrimage that included Wisconsin, and needed to learn more about the state–its characters, places, growth pains, dramas, and anecdotes.  I was looking for narratives that would help me understand Wisconsin.  I wanted local details and specifics.

What the book gave me were generalities, factoids that could have been easily googled, and vague opinions without evidence.  Granted, the intent was to write a short introduction, but the writing felt like a high school sophomore trying to get a report turned in rather than someone who truly loves and knows the state of Wisconsin–and is on fire with curiosity about it.

Much of the author’s material could have been written about any midwestern state.  For example, “As Wisconsin modernized, its social fabric underwent significant change,  The economic prosperity of the post-war years led to the rise of a growing middle class, with greater access to consumer goods, education, and healthcare.  New technologies, such as television, reshaped entertainment and communication, and the rise of mass media brought people closer together, exposing them to new ideas, cultures, and social movements.”

There is nothing wrong with that quote, except that you could plug in the name of any state in the country and said the same things.  The book was full of examples like this.  

A more helpful introduction to Wisconsin was Mark D. Van Ells’s “Wisconsin” in the On-The-Road Histories.