These four tapes provide an accessible yet detailed guide to three of America"s formative political documents. All of the material can be understood and appreciated by an intelligent grade-schooler, and no one will fail to come away from the listening better informed about the history and the intellectual and conceptual underpinnings of the American republic. The material isn"t merely of historical and political interest; there"s rich literary pleasure to be had in listening to the rhythms of the greatest American Enlightenment prose. Craig Deitschmann"s precise narration is ideal for most of the expository material, and his performance is augmented by actors providing the voices of Paine, Jefferson, John Locke, and numerous minor players. Although the accents are occasionally a little overtheatrical, they lend a sense of immediacy to relevant historical episodes such as the Boston Tea Party. Both the history and philosophy are explained well, especially when the analysis gets intricate. Particularly effective, for example, is the clarification of what Jefferson meant by the words usurpation and tyranny in the Declaration of Independence. That these are not even roughly synonymous, but have entirely distinct senses, is crucial to the meaning of the Declaration. But seeing this requires you to understand the distinction between alienable and inalienable rights, and that in turn requires a significant detour into Locke"s theory of revolution. All of this is explained with patience and admirable clarity. There"s exciting history presented on these tapes. The radical antimonarchist Jefferson thought the presidency should be a single, unrepeatable four-year term. He was horrified by much of what the Constitutional Convention decided to put in the Constitution and never more than by his nemesis Alexander Hamilton"s argument that the president should be elected for life. The best thing about this audio collection is that it gives you a vivid sense of how these 200-year-old debates have shaped the way we live--and think about government--now. What a different place the United States might have been if Jefferson and Patrick Henry had been present in Philadelphia to oppose the Federalism of Hamilton and Madison! (Running time: six hours, four cassettes) --Richard Farr