Read the Revolution

A curated collection of thought-provoking books about the American Revolution.

Featured Books

The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered

Read an excerpt from Laura Auricchio's book The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered.

One Minute A Free Woman

Read an excerpt from Emilie Piper and David Levinson's book, One Minute A Free Woman: Elizabeth Freeman and the Struggle for Freedom.

Memory Wars

Read an excerpt from A. Lynn Smith's book, Memory Wars: Settlers and Natives Remember Washington’s Sullivan Expedition of 1779.

The Bill of Obligations

Read an excerpt from Richard Haass's book, The Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens.

The Contagion of Liberty

Read an excerpt from Andrew M. Wehrman's book, The Contagion of Liberty: The Politics of Smallpox in the American Revolution.

This image shows the book cover for One Minute A Free Woman with the title in large navy blue serif font over script writing on beige paper.

This image shows the book cover for the book Memory Wars with a red background textured with Native American symbols and the book title and author name in white font to the left side.

This image shows the book cover for The Bill of Obligations with black text on a cream background and an American flag sown back together with a needle and thread in the center.

This image shows the book cover for The Contagion of Liberty featuring the book title large in blue and white font over a brown beige background on the top half with an engraving of a crowd of people getting vaccinated against smallpox.

About

Curated by Museum staff since 2013, Read the Revolution features excerpts from thought-provoking books about the American Revolution. Read the Revolution was created with thanks to a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom. Subscribe to get the biweekly Read the Revolution featured excerpts emailed right to your inbox for free.

Subscribe Now

Speaker Series

Inspired by the Read the Revolution featured excerpts, the Read the Revolution Speaker Series brings celebrated authors and historians to the Museum for lively, facilitated discussions of their work. Each Read the Revolution Speaker Series program, hosted by Museum President & CEO Dr. R. Scott Stephenson, includes a special talk and audience Q&A.

About the Series

All Books

Filter By:

Showing 61–70 of 205 items

Sort by:

Image 091820 Rtr179 Hemingses Monticello Annette Gordon Reed Screen Shot 2020 09 18 At 1131 56 Am

History

The Hemingses of Monticello

Posted: September 23, 2020

Read an excerpt from Annette Gordon-Reed's Pulitzer Prize-winning The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family.

Image 090920 Rtr178 Ideological Origins American Revolution Bailyn

History

The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution

Posted: September 09, 2020

Read an excerpt from Bernard Bailyn's The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution.

History

Revolutionary Backlash

Posted: August 26, 2020

Read an excerpt from Rosemarie Zagarri's Revolutionary Backlash: Women and Politics in the Early American Republic.

History

Remarkable Women of New England

Posted: August 18, 2020

This excerpt from Carole Owens explores women’s various roles and responsibilities between 1754 and 1787, including those of laborers and business owners.

History

They Were Good Soldiers

Posted: July 22, 2020

In these excerpts from John Rees, Black veterans share details of their service, emancipation, and freedom in the midst of revolutionary ferment.

History

Our Sister Republics

Posted: June 24, 2020

Caitlin Fitz investigates South Americans who visited the United States to inspire support and gather supplies for their revolutions back home.

History

Reading List: The Role of Cities in the American Revolution

Posted: June 17, 2020

Check out nine suggested readings from our collection of Read the Revolution book excerpts addressing the role of cities in the American Revolution.

History

Memories of War

Posted: May 27, 2020

In this excerpt, historian Thomas A. Chambers explores how people visited and commemorated battlefields between independence and the Civil War.

History

Learning to Stand and Speak

Posted: May 13, 2020

Read an excerpt of historian Mary Kelley's book Learning to Stand and Speak: Women, Education, and Public Life in America's Republic.

History

Sex Among the Rabble

Posted: April 22, 2020

Read an excerpt from Clare A. Lyons' book, Sex Among the Rabble: An Intimate History of Gender & Power in the Age Revolution, Philadelphia, 1730-1830.

7 of 21 pages