Discusses the life and times of the African American author who gained recognition for his book, "Roots."

Capturing the essence of the origin and evolution of the so-called "degeneracy debates, " over whether the flora and fauna of America (including Native Americans) were naturally weaker and feebler than species elsewhere in the world, this book chronicles Thomas Jefferson's efforts to counter French conceptions of American degeneracy, culminating in his sending of a stuffed moose to Buffon.

"Once it was one of the most famous events in early American history. Today, it has been nearly forgotten. In an obscure, two-hundred-year-old museum in a little village in western Massachusetts, there lies what once was the most revered but now totally forgotten relic from the history of early New England-the massive, tomahawk-scarred door that came to symbolize the notorious Deerfield Massacre. This impregnable barricade-known to early Americans...

The First World War, now a century ago, still shapes the world in which we live. This volume brings together essays by distinguished historians, covering the war's causes and consequences; strategy and tactics; and its political and human legacies.

Banner explores what historians do and why they do it, taking readers from Thucydides to the origin of the French Revolution to the Civil War and beyond. The author shows why historical knowledge is unlikely ever to be unchanging, why history as a branch of knowledge is always a search for meaning and a constant source of argument, and why history is so essential to individuals' awareness of their location in the world and to every group and nation's...

Abstract:

"With an epic career that spanned two-thirds of the twentieth century, C. Vann Woodward (1908-1999) was a historian of singular importance. A brilliant writer, his work captivated both academic and public audiences. He also figured prominently in the major intellectual conflicts between left and right during the last half of the twentieth century, although his unwavering commitment to free speech and racial integration that affirmed his liberalism...

"A searingly smart and bitingly hilarious retelling of American history that corrects the record and showcases the perspectives and experiences of Black Americans. America's backstory is a whitewashed mythology implanted in our collective memory. It is the story of the pilgrims on the Mayflower building a new nation. It is George Washington's cherry tree and Abraham Lincoln's log cabin. It is the fantastic tale of slaves that spontaneously teleported...

"Civil War Witnesses and Their Books" offers an analysis of books written by individuals who experienced the American Civil War. It follows a similar volume-Civil War Writing: New Perspectives on Iconic Texts (LSU Press, 2019)-which also examined some of the most important writings about the conflict from its participants. The eight contributors to this volume selected books, eleven in all, that have proved influential over a significant period. Some...