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Read the Revolution

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

Featured Books

The Overflowing of Friendship

Read an excerpt from Richard Godbeer's book, The Overflowing of Friendship: Love Between Men and the Creation of the American Republic.

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Prisoners of Congress

Read an excerpt from Norman E. Donoghue II's book, Prisoners of Congress: Philadelphia’s Quakers in Exile, 1777-1778.

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Freedom's Prophet

Read an excerpt from Richard S. Newman's book, Freedom’s Prophet: Bishop Richard Allen, the AME Church, and the Black Founding Fathers.

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Give Me a Fast Ship

Read an excerpt from Tim McGrath's book, Give Me a Fast Ship: The Continental Navy and America's Revolution at Sea.

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The Cutting-Off Way

Read an excerpt from Wayne E. Lee's new book, The Cutting-Off Way: Indigenous Warfare in Eastern North America, 1500–1800.

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    Image 100223 Rtr251 Overflowing Of Friendship Godbeer Cover
    Cover for Norman Donoghue's book Prisoner's of Congress which features a blue illustration of the top of Independence Hall atop the book title in blue over a beige background.
    Book cover for Freedom's Prophet by Richard Newman featuring a large scale portrait of Bishop Richard Allen.
    Book cover for Tim McGrath's book Give Me a Fast Ship featuring the title in black text over a goldish brown background with stars and a painting of naval ships.
    Book cover for Wayne Lee's The Cutting-Off Way.

    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

    Showing 131–140 of 252 items
    Past And Prologue by Michael Hattem
    History

    Past and Prologue

    Posted: November 24, 2021
    Read an excerpt from Michael Hattem's book, Past and Prologue: Politics and Memory in the American Revolution.
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    Patriot Pirates Book Cover
    History

    Patriot Pirates

    Posted: May 25, 2016
    This excerpt from Robert Patton presents the story of America's seaborne insurgency against British merchant ships and Navy.
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    Paul Revere's Ride book cover
    History

    Paul Revere's Ride

    Posted: April 07, 2015
    This excerpt from David Hackett Fischer delves into Paul Revere's history as well as the tumultuous world he lived in, and highlights that fateful day.
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    Philadelphia: A 300-Year History book cover
    History

    Philadelphia

    Posted: May 12, 2015
    This excerpt from a multitude of authors shows how the events of 1776 led an uneasy population to shore up their defenses and eventually flee.
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    This image depicts the cover of Plain Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution by Richard Beeman. The title of the book is written in the middle with a red background. The top of the book covers shows a black illustrated eagle with a white background. The bottom image is of the Founding Fathers and is in color.
    History

    Plain, Honest Men

    Posted: July 28, 2021
    Read an excerpt from Richard Beeman's book, Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution.
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    This image depicts the cover of Power and Liberty: Constitutionalism in the American Revolution by Gordon S. Wood. The top of the cover is an image of the Founding Fathers, most of them standing and pointing at one another, in the midst of conversation. The bottom half of the cover is the title of the book, which is written in blue and red colors.
    History

    Power and Liberty

    Posted: October 20, 2021
    Read an excerpt from Gordon S. Wood's new book, Power and Liberty: Constitutionalism in the American Revolution.
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    Cover for Norman Donoghue's book Prisoner's of Congress which features a blue illustration of the top of Independence Hall atop the book title in blue over a beige background.
    History

    Prisoners of Congress

    Posted: October 25, 2023
    Read an excerpt from Norman E. Donoghue II's book, Prisoners of Congress: Philadelphia’s Quakers in Exile, 1777-1778.
    Read More
    Conference On Collecting The Revolutionary War
    Reading List

    Reading List: Authors Featured at 2022 Conference on Collecting the Revolutionary War

    Posted: April 06, 2022
    Read a selection of excerpts from books written by 2022 Conference on Collecting the American Revolution presenters.
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    200th Edition Museum Staff Picks Reading List includes Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow; Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar; American Revolutions: A Continental History 1750-1804 by Alan Taylor; and The Shoemaker and the Tea Party by Alfred F. Young; and Spies in the Continental Capital by John A. Nagy. The book covers are shown two on top and two on the bottom of the image.
    Reading List

    Reading List: Read the Revolution 200th Edition Staff Picks

    Posted: August 11, 2021
    To celebrate the our 200th edition of Read the Revolution, Museum staff picked their favorite books about the American Revolution.
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    Reading List Cities Book Cover
    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.
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