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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 231–240 of 252 items
The Widow Washington: The Life of Martha Washington by Martha Saxton Book Cover

The Widow Washington

Posted: March 23, 2022
Read an excerpt from Martha Saxton's book, The Widow Washington: The Life of Mary Washington.
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 Rtr The Will Of The People

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.
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Book cover for Akhil Reed Amar's The Words That Made Us with black font on parchment colored background.

The Words That Made Us

Posted: September 13, 2023
Read an excerpt from Akhil Reed Amar's book, The Words That Made Us: America's Constitutional Conversation, 1760-1840.
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These Truths by Jill Lepore book cover

These Truths

Posted: June 28, 2023
Read an excerpt from Jill Lepore's book, These Truths: A History of the United States.
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They Were Good Soldiers Book Cover

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

Thomas Paine and the Dangerous Word

Posted: December 28, 2022
Read an excerpt from Thomas Paine and the Dangerous Word, written by Sarah Jane Marsh and illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham.
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This image shows the book cover of Treacherous Beauty: Peggy Shippen, The Woman Behind Benedict Arnold’s Plot to Betray America by Mark Jacob and Stephen Case. The top of the cover shows a Revolutionary War battle. Treacherous is written in blue font and Beauty is written in red. There is a black and white circular portrait of Peggy in the middle of the image.

Treacherous Beauty

Posted: March 24, 2015
Read an excerpt from a biography by Mark Jacob and Stephen H. Case highlighting the life of Peggy Shippen, the wife of the treasonous Benedict Arnold.
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Image 101320 Rtr163 Brumwell Turncoat Cover

Turncoat

Posted: January 22, 2020
Read an excerpt from Stephen Brumwell's Turncoat: Benedict Arnold and the Crisis of American Liberty.
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Journal of the American Revolution Book Cover

Turning Point

Posted: December 17, 2013
This excerpt from Todd Andrlik features an article by Thomas Fleming revealing a turning point for General George Washington during the American Revolution
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Until Justice Be Done by Kate Masur teal book cover with white text.

Until Justice Be Done

Posted: July 26, 2023
Read an excerpt from Kate Masur's book, Until Justice Be Done: America's First Civil Rights Movement, from the Revolution to Reconstruction.
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