On Juneteenth

By Annette Gordon-Reed

On Juneteenth

The Pulitzer winner untangles the complicated racial history of her home state of Texas.

The Triumph of the Amateurs: The Rise, Ruin, and Banishment of Professional Rowing in the Gilded Age

A detail-rich — if somewhat flat — look at a brief era when scullers were superstars.

The Age of Acrimony: How Americans Fought to Fix Their Democracy, 1865-1915

Recalling a turbulent time in U.S. history that bears an uncanny resemblance to today.

How the West Stole Democracy from the Arabs

Long-ago broken promises and abandoned agreements reverberate yet today.

The Bookseller of Florence: The Story of the Manuscripts That Illuminated the Renaissance

The fascinating account of a 15th-century bibliophile who revered hand-lettered tomes.

In Search of a Kingdom: Francis Drake, Elizabeth I, and the Perilous Birth of the British Empire

A page-turning account of a privateer rich in both contradictions and gold.

Economy Hall: The Hidden History of a Free Black Brotherhood

How an antebellum Creole aid society helped shape New Orleans.

The Barbizon: The Hotel That Set Women Free

This otherwise informative history is hamstrung by its fixation on Sylvia Plath’s notorious suicide.