Want to win a copy of this book? Find out how at the end of this review. Due to a separated shoulder and unhealthy addiction to Angry Birds I've had to put off my review of the text version of America the Story of Us. Well, I've finally beaten my addiction and can render my opinion on this book. Back in April, the History Channel broadcasted an epic six-part documentary detailing the history of the United States from Christopher Columbus' voyage through colonial times to the present. A few months later, they released a companion book and I have to say that while the documentary was a game-changer, the book fell a bit short. The Good

• High quality binding, cover, and pages. This book feels like a quality textbook that you'll be able to keep for the rest of your life and pass on to your kids.
• Excellent layout and graphics. There are over 330 color illustrations in this book, some of which will be instantly recognizable from your old history textbooks. However, it's 2010 so those photos have been retouched to bring them into the HD age.
• Innovative infographics, such as a full two-page spread comparing Union soldiers and Confederate soldiers on page 128-129, including pictures and charts. There's another two-page spread on Page 316-317 that has a map of the U.S. with the locations of country's World War II manufacturing sites. These are just a couple of the examples of innovative infographics that I've never seen in a textbook before.
• Highlights on every other page that allow you to skim through the book while still being able to get the gist of each chapter.

The Bad

• This is a companion book to the documentary and it definitely feels like it. There are sections of the book that I wish the author had elaborated on but didn't because it was covered in the documentary.
• Remember my comment about the book being like a textbook? Unfortunately, it applies to the writing as well. If there is a section of the book that doesn't interest you, the writing isn't going to draw you in. Thankfully, there will probably be a highlight on the page so you can skim it.
• The book is available on the Kindle, but with all of the graphics removed. Considering that the strength of this book is its graphics and layout it makes the Kindle edition virtually worthless.

Overall, I enjoyed America the Story of Us, but it's supposed to be taken as a full multimedia experience. If you own the documentary, then you'll probably enjoy following along in the book. If you haven't seen the documentary, there are enough illustrations to allow this book to take its place on your coffee table. I recommend you get this book, but not unless you buy the documentary to go along with it. How would you like a free copy of America the Story of Us? Simply follow EiH on Twitter, 'like' EiH on Facebook, or subscribe to EiH via email, then leave a comment below explaining what you love about America. The winner will be chosen at random. You have until Saturday, November 6 at 11:59 PM Eastern to enter. Good luck!