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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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

The Divided Ground

Posted: November 18, 2014

Read this excerpt from Alan Taylor that tells of an important ally in the American Revolution: the Oneida Nation, a nation of the Iroquois Confederacy.

History

The Expanding Blaze

Posted: March 14, 2018

This excerpt from Jonathan Israel investigates radical ideas of self-government, liberty, and republicanism that challenged the Old World institutions.

Image 111320 Rtr First American Brands Cover

Biography & Memoir

The First American

Posted: September 23, 2014

Read an excerpt from H. W. Brands about about Ben Franklin presenting the first draft for the Articles of Confederation to the Continental Congress.

History

The First Congress

Posted: July 06, 2016

Read this excerpt from Fergus Bordewich that covers the debates over Alexander Hamilton’s financial plan to the simple question of how we address the president.

History

The Ghost Ship of Brooklyn

Posted: September 13, 2017

This excerpt from Robert Watson weaves together details of the horrifying conditions experienced aboard the HMS Jersey during the American Revolutionary.