A young nation shook off the colonial chains of its European mother country, but in doing so it created financial and political upheaval internally as well as looking weak on the world stage so 55 men from across the nation gathered in a last-ditch attempt to save their nation. Decision in Philadelphia: The Constitutional Convention of 1787 by Christopher Collier and James Lincoln Collier is a history of the meeting in a hot Philadelphia summer of the men who completed the American Revolution.

The Colliers telling of the Constitutional Convention began with how the meeting came about and the major figures that has helped bring it out and would attend. The Colliers followed the proceedings of the Convention through topic and not day-to-day retelling, thus allowing them to show how the Constitution was created through the various conflicts between the delegates first between “big” and “small” states (based on population) and then the section conflict between North and South especially in connecting slavery and economic issues. Throughout the book the authors reminded their readers to remember the men at the Convention were not looking at things from a 20th Century perspective—the book was published in advance of the 200th Anniversary of the Convention—but from the events of their lives in the latter half of the 18th Century as well as their prejudices, but also how in the Convention the participants changed their way of thinking of political philosophy. Yet the authors while praising the work the men of the Convention did were not above criticism of the final document that they elaborated on in the final chapter.

Decision in Philadelphia is a good look into how the Constitution of the United States was created, the brothers Collier together produced a well-written history of the document that founded the American government. ( )

Big v Small States
Slave v. No Slave
States Righters v. Nationalists ( )

Excellent portrayal of the origin of the Constitution.

I preferred the title over 'Miracle in Philadelphia' as more reflective as what actually occured. A good overview of the Convention, and how the Constitution was actually written (as opposed to how many would like to believe it was written). ( )

Overall this book was ok, but the narrative jumped around in time so as to present each major topic (North vs South, small states versus large state) in a chapter by itself. This was effective in some ways, but rather distracting at times. ( )