Oh, to be a citizen of the Roman Empire, where murder technically wasn't illegal.
John
Two queens in medieval France fight, strategize, and outmaneuver each other in an attempt to claim everything for themselves and their children. Brunhild and Fredegund battled 1500 years ago, but they'd be quite at home on House of Cards or Succession today.
Sarah
Also affectionately known (by me) as the Human Skin Book Book. Rosenbloom is half of the duo that discovered a reliable way to test whether a book's cover is bound in animal or human leather and that testing journey takes her around the world. This delightful book (you read that right, delightful) is a studied and nuanced look at the history of bookbinding, the ways that cultural norms around death and dead bodies have changed, the true power of human mythmaking, and the scientific developments that have allowed us to test those myths.
Meaghan
A deep dive into the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin, and its impact almost 40 years later. It's an important story, but better than that, it's an incredibly well-written book, with great storytelling pulling together the research and context.
Sarah
A plaque. A press release. A mislabeled photograph. Like a paleontologist drawing a beast from a jaw bone, Herrera tells a story greed, imperialism, and complicity from a few fragments of information. The El Bordo Mine Fire is just one almost forgotten tragedy but, like Rukeyser's Book of the Dead, the bright, poetic light Herrera shines on it with A Silent Fury, casts a shadow on our biggest questions.
Josh
In Belle Epoch France, Dr. Samuel Jean Pozzi was known as Le Medecin de l’Amour – the love doctor. Devastatingly handsome, dynamic and brilliant, Dr. Pozzi was an eminent gynecologist and surgical innovator. His portrait was painted by John Singer Sargent in 1881 and this picture inspired Julian Barnes to explore this captivating doctor’s life and the many well-known figures he knew – Proust, Bernhardt, Wilde – first names not necessary.
Nathan
Imagine keeping a secret when everyone could be an informant, and every room could be bugged. A page turner and a nail-biter if there ever was one.
John
Jason Reynold's "Stamped Jr" is a great resource for kids and adults who want to talk to kids about the systemic racism rooted in our country's history. Reynolds weaves together historical moments (some that students may have studied in other contexts, others totally new) in a way that connects them to a larger picture and to today. His playful asides make it feel far from textbook reading; perfect for at-home study. Highly recommend the audiobook from Libro.fm - you'll really feel like you're hanging out with Jason Reynolds in your living room!
Leila
Author in Chief is for every American history aficionado. Imagine spending 10 years to collect the facts and details behind many presidential publications which Craig Fehrman has done. He recounts untold stories and fits them into a fascinating retelling of presidential lives and publications.
Megan
Award-winning author Eric Larson, author of the bestselling The Devil in the White City and Dead Wake among others, tells the fascinating story of the first year of the Battle of Britain and how Winston Churchill rose to the occasion, stood firm and convinced the world the British would stay calm and carry on.
Nathan
