Read the Revolution

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

Featured Books

Black Jacks

Read an excerpt from W. Jeffrey Bolster's book, Black Jacks: African American Seamen in the Age of Sail.

Liberty's Daughters

Read an excerpt from Mary Beth Norton's groundbreaking book, Liberty's Daughters: The Revolutionary Experience of American Women, 1750-1800.

Summer Reading List: 2023 Young Readers Edition

See our summer reading list of Revolutionary books that will encourage young readers to explore the past and the people who shaped it.

A Gentleman of Color

Read an excerpt from Julie Winch's groundbreaking book, A Gentleman of Color: The Life of James Forten.

The Grimkes

Read an excerpt from Kerri K. Greenidge's book, The Grimkes: The Legacy of Slavery in an American Family.

Cover of W. Jeffrey Bolster's book Black Jacks.

Image 091520 1776x2652 Libertysdaughters

A collection of books featured in the Museum's 2023 summer reading list for young readers.

The Grimkes by Kerri Greenidge Book book cover.

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 31–40 of 183 items

Sort by:

History

If These Stones Could Talk

Posted: February 24, 2021

Read an excerpt from Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills's recent book, If These Stones Could Talk: African American Presence in the Hopewell Valley, Sourland Mountain and Surrounding Regions of New Jersey.

History

The Dawn of Detroit

Posted: February 10, 2021

Read an excerpt from Tiya Miles' recent book, The Dawn of Detroit: A Chronicle of Slavery and Freedom in the City of the Straits.

History

Finding Charity's Folk

Posted: January 27, 2021

Read two excerpts from Jessica Millward's book, Finding Charity's Folk: Enslaved and Free Black Women in Maryland.

Image 010721 Rtr186 1774 Long Year Revolution Norton Cover

History

1774: The Long Year of Revolution

Posted: January 13, 2021

Read an excerpt from Mary Beth Norton's book, 1774: The Long Year of Revolution.

History

Occupied America

Posted: December 23, 2020

Read an excerpt from Donald F. Johnson's book, Occupied America: British Military Rule and the Experience of Revolution.

History

A Sweet Taste of History

Posted: November 25, 2020

Read an excerpt from Chef Walter Staib's cookbook, A Sweet Taste of History: More than 100 Elegant Dessert Recipes from America's Earliest Days.

Image 110920 Rtr182 Contest Liberty Sculley Cover

History

Contest for Liberty

Posted: November 11, 2020

Read an excerpt from Seanegan P. Sculley's book, Contest for Liberty: Military Leadership in the Continental Army, 1775-1783.

Image 102620 Rtr181 Right To Vote Keyssar

History

The Right to Vote

Posted: October 28, 2020

Read an excerpt from Alexander Keyssar's book, The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States.

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.

4 of 19 pages