General History

As a member of the renowned Flying Doctors Service, Dr. Anne Spoerry treated hundreds of thousands of people across rural Kenya over the span of fifty years, earning herself the cherished nickname "Mama Daktari"--"Mother Doctor." Yet few knew that what...

Longlisted for the 2016 National Book Award for Nonfiction One of America's great miscarriages of justice, the Supreme Court's infamous 1927 Buck v. Bell ruling made government sterilization of "undesirable" citizens the law of the land In 1927, the...

After the office of the Memphis Free Speech newspaper was destroyed and a price put on her head, Ida B. Wells became an exile from Memphis, Tennessee in 1892. She went to New York City where she wrote and started speaking to large groups of people about...

Although many kids say the pledge of allegiance at the beginning of the day, they sometimes don't show a lot of sincerity while doing it because they don't fully understand what the flag means to America.I'm Your Flag So Please Treat Me Right! is a story...

As the inaugural volume in the Docalogue series, this book models a new form for the discussion of documentary film. James Baldwin's writing is intensely relevant to contemporary politics and culture, and Peck's strategies for representing him and...

Despite African Americans' lack of political, social and economic equality in the United States, the students of Howard University answered the call to service in both world wars. Howard supported its men and women in the quest to serve their nation. The...

The faith journeys of a major mentor to the civil rights movement Teacher. Minister. Theologian. Writer. Mystic. Activist. No single label can capture the multiplicity of Howard Thurman's life, but his influence is evident in the most significant aspects...

An acclaimed music scholar presents an accessible introduction to the art of listening to jazz In How to Listen to Jazz, award-winning music scholar Ted Gioia presents a lively introduction to one of America's premier art forms. He tells us what to...

An absorbing chronicle of the role of race in US history, by the foremost historian of race and labor The Obama era produced countless articles arguing that America's race problems were over. The election of Donald Trump has proved those hasty...

Wednesday 22 January 1879 was one of the most dramatic days in the long and distinguished history of the British Army. At noon a massive Zulu host attacked the 24th Regiment in its encampment at the foot of the mountain of Isandlwana, a distinctive...

Allene Carter's father-in-law was a decorated veteran. Yet it was not until the Carter family received a call from the White House that she discovered he was a heroic force in the Rhineland campaign. President Clinton awarded the Medal of Honor to...

A moving chronicle of who belongs in America. Like so many American factory towns, Lewiston, Maine, thrived until its mill jobs disappeared and the young began leaving. But then the story unexpectedly veered: over the course of fifteen years, the city...