This optimistic, meandering look at the peculiarly American phrase "pursuit of happiness" is strong on research but weak on analysis. What did Thomas Jefferson mean in the Declaration of Independence when he listed "the Pursuit of Happiness" among the "unalienable rights" of all men, and what has the phrase meant to Americans since? Veteran journalist Cannon (Boy Genius
) explores the term's origins and uses, particularly in times of war. Beginning with the observation that Americans after 9/11 and during World War II showed their stuff as patriots by doing things like attending baseball games and eating pie, he proposes that the pursuit of happiness is "the best working definition of freedom that has ever been devised." Much of American history, Cannon argues, is best seen as a fight to allow more people at home and abroad to enjoy the right to chase personal dreams. He sets forth this thesis with long quotations from American presidents and investigations of such topics as Jefferson; the Civil War; Franklin D. Roosevelt; American generosity; and the current U.S. intervention in Iraq. Cannon's vision is cheery, his style friendly and informative. But numerous digressions blur the book's focus, and the author takes a generally shallow approach. Like a civic booster talking up his town, Cannon never subjects official pronouncements about "freedom" and "pursuit of happiness" to critical scrutiny. The result is a dull centrism that winds up as an apology for the present war in Iraq. The book has some good storytelling, but treads too softly to satisfy serious inquirers about Jefferson's phrase. (Dec.)
