A Country of Vast Designs: James K. Polk, the Mexican War and the Conquest of the American Continent | 
“The touching episode reflected an underlying reality of American politics: However intensely the battles are fought and however copiously the animosities flow, all parties are expected to accept the political outcomes in good grace and refrain from the kinds of personal enmities that could undermine the delicate balance of democracy.”
My 3 year old is owning this USA map puzzle this morning. I read A Country of Vast Designs, about Polk's westward expansionism, when I flew back to Nevada for a friend's wedding in 2012. One of our least-well-known Presidents, Polk changed the face of North America, and American politics and culture, for*eh*ver.
