Thomas Paine

Common Sense Thomas Paine

Publisher Marketing: ... inspired people in the Thirteen Colonies to declare and fight for independence from Great Britain in the summer of 1776. In clear, simple language it explained the advantages of and the need for immediate independence. It was published anonymously on January 10, 1776, at the beginning of the American Revolution and became an immediate sensation. It was sold and distributed widely and read aloud at taverns and meeting places. Washington had it read to all his troops, which at the time had surrounded the British army in Boston. In proportion to the population of the colonies at that time (2.5 million), it had the largest sale and circulation of any book published in American history. -From Wikipedia Visit our website and see our many books at UncleSamBooks.com Review Citations: Ingram Advance 09/01/2005 pg. 97 (EAN 9780143036258, Paperback) Library Journal 10/01/2005 pg. 122 (EAN 9780143036258, Paperback) Wilson Public Library Catalog 01/01/1998 pg. 138 (EAN 9780899665429, Library Binding) Wilson Public Library Catalog 01/01/1998 pg. 138 (EAN 9780879759186, Paperback) Kliatt 07/01/2002 pg. 58 (EAN 9781584721147, Analog Audio Cassette) Wilson Public Library Catalog 01/01/1998 pg. 138 (EAN 9780140390162, Paperback) Contributor Bio:  Paine, Thomas English-born Thomas Paine left behind hearth and home for adventures on the high seas at nineteen. Upon returning to shore, he became a tax officer, and it was this job that inspired him to write The Case of the Officers of Excise in 1772. Paine then immigrated to Philadelphia, and in 1776 he published Common Sense, a defense of American independence from England. After returning to Europe, Paine wrote his famous Rights of Man as a response to criticism of the French Revolution. He was subsequently labeled as an outlaw, leading him to flee to France where he joined the National Convention. However, in 1793 Paine was imprisoned, and during this time he wrote the first part of The Age of Reason, an anti-church text which would go on to be his most famous work. After his release, Paine returned to America where he passed away in 1809.