Building a House Divided: Slavery, Westward Expansion, and the Roots of the Civil War by Stephen G. Hyslop (review).

The article discusses "Building a House Divided: Slavery, Westward Expansion, and the Roots of the Civil War," authored by Stephen G. Hyslop, which argues that the Civil War was an inevitable outcome of decisions made by early American statesmen. Hyslop focuses on four slaveowners—Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk, and Stephen Douglas—who sought to balance free and slave states but ultimately contributed to the conflict over slavery as the nation expanded. The work critiques traditional historiography by connecting the Revolutionary, Early Republic, and Antebellum periods, while also providing a fresh perspective on familiar historical events. Despite some criticisms regarding the treatment of certain figures and arguments, the book is presented as a valuable resource for understanding the role of slavery in the context of the Civil War. [Extracted from the article]