Read the Revolution

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

Featured Books

A Bard of Wolfe's Army

Read an excerpt from the book, A Bard of Wolfe’s Army: James Thompson, Gentleman Volunteer, 1733-1830, edited by Earl John Chapman and Ian Macpherson McCulloch.

Feeding Washington's Army

Read an excerpt from Ricardo A. Herrera's book, Feeding Washington's Army: Surviving the Valley Forge Winter of 1778.

Flora MacDonald: "Pretty Young Rebel"

Read an excerpt from Flora Fraser's new book, Flora MacDonald: “Pretty Young Rebel”: Her Life and Story.

Thomas Paine and the Dangerous Word

Read an excerpt from Thomas Paine and the Dangerous Word, written by Sarah Jane Marsh and illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham.

Indigenous Continent

Read an excerpt from Pekka Hämäläinen's book, Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America.

Book cover for Feeding Washington's Army by Ricardo A. Herrera featuring an image of Harrington Fitzgerald's painting Valley Forge Winter.

Flora Macdonald Pretty Young Rebel book cover by Flora Fraser

Cover for Thomas Paine and the Dangerous Word by Sarah Jane Marsh.

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.

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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

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Biography & Memoir

Turncoat

Posted: January 22, 2020

Read an excerpt from Stephen Brumwell's Turncoat: Benedict Arnold and the Crisis of American Liberty.

History

Frontier Rebels

Posted: January 08, 2020

Read an excerpt from Patrick Spero's book, Frontier Rebels: The Fight for Independence in the American West, 1765-1776.

Image 090220 Museum Of American Revolution Guidebook Cover

History

Museum of the American Revolution Official Guidebook

Posted: December 18, 2019

Read two excerpts from the Museum of the American Revolution's Official Guidebook published in 2019.

Biography & Memoir

British Soldiers, American War

Posted: December 11, 2019

Read an excerpt from Don Hagist's book, British Soldiers, American War: Voices of the American Revolution.

History

Among His Troops

Posted: November 27, 2019

Read an excerpt from the Museum of the American Revolution's Among His Troops Coffee Table Catalog.

History

The Will of the People

Posted: November 13, 2019

Read an excerpt from T.H. Breen's book, The Will of the People: The Revolutionary Birth of America.

History

Battle of Paoli

Posted: October 23, 2019

Read an excerpt from Thomas J. McGuire's book, Battle of Paoli.

Biography & Memoir

A Fool's Errand

Posted: October 09, 2019

This excerpt of Lonnie Bunch intertwines his personal experiences with the long road that led to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

History

The Disaffected

Posted: September 25, 2019

Read an excerpt from Aaron Sullivan's book, The Disaffected: Britain’s Occupation of Philadelphia during the American Revolution.

History

With Zeal and With Bayonets Only

Posted: September 11, 2019

Read an excerpt from Matthew H. Spring’s With Zeal and With Bayonets Only: The British Army on Campaign in North America, 1775-1783.

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