The revolutionary pamphlet that helped light the fire of American Independence in an elegant hardback gift edition, proudly printed in America and beautifully stamped in celebration of America 250 Thomas Paine arrived in America from England in 1774. A friend of Benjamin Franklin, he was a writer of poetry and tracts condemning the slave trade. In 1775, as hostilities between Britain and the colonies intensified, Paine wrote Common Sense to encourage the colonies to break the British exploitative hold and fight for independence. The little booklet of 50 pages was published January 10, 1776 and sold a half-million copies, approximately equal to 75 million copies today. The America250(TM)¿ word mark and logo are trademarks owned by the United States Semiquincentennial Commission and any use of such marks by Applewood Books is under license.