In the novel 1776 by David McCullough, the author describes the first year of the Revolutionary War in astonishing detail.  Beginning with the Battles of Lexington and Concord in the spring of 1775, McCullough uses statistics as well as personal accounts of battles and events to support his main thesis that the Americans were consistently outmanned, overpowered, and poorly armed when compared with their British rivals.  McCullough tracked the Revolutionary Army from the aforementioned battles to Bunker Hill, the Siege of Boston, the Battle of Brooklyn, the Battle of Manhattan, and finally the Battles of Trenton and Princeton.  Using recurring historical figures and their stories, McCullough allows the men and women of the Revolution to obtain names and backstories and puts the story of the great American struggle into more intimate terms.  This book would be an incredible read for a high school student.  Its vocabulary and syntax are challenging yet not a bog of Gordian language, and its recurring characters and intricate details are far more than enough to engage the reader in an active reading process. 1776 is a must-read for anyone intrigued by and interested in American History.