William Rorabaugh does a good job of shedding light on a part of our history that many people are completely unaware of. His choice to write the book from the perspective of social history provides a refreshing view of the times compared to the usual historical perspective. Rorabaugh uses many anecdotes to immerse his reader in first-hand accounts during the same period he is writing about. Where he ultimately falls short is in his stats. He admits that finding a single source that can provide accurate data from the early 1800s is nearly impossible, and proceeds to do his best to provide the most accurate statistics he can accumulate. How much Americans drank in the early 1800s is difficult to quantify, but one thing is certain; they certainly drank their fair share