Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Now Exploring "A Place to Which We Belong"


This anthology of nearly fifty short essays by Wisconsin writers explores a personal sense of place. Wonderfully wide-ranging yet united by a common theme, the chapters include both intimate contemplations of lakes or gardens and big-picture overviews of science, politics, and land use. Whether outdoor writers, journalists, storytellers, farmers, social commentators, spiritual leaders, scientists, or conservation activists, the contributors ask, What gives us a sense of place? What make a place worthy of protection and respect?  What binds us to places that somehow touch our minds, hearts, and souls?

Wisconsin Writers on Wisconsin Landscapes
edited by Dennis Boyer and Justin Isherwood 
University of Wisconsin Press, 1998

Book Notes Wild
Nature Writing and Natural Histories
The Nature Pages

Tuesday, April 17, 2018

Reading the History: Lincoln's Final Hours


Kathryn Canavan takes a magnifying glass to the last moments of the president's life and to the impact his assassination had on a country still reeling from a bloody civil war. With vivid, thoroughly researched prose and a reporter's eye for detail, this fast-paced account not only furnishes a glimpse into John Wilkes Booth's personal and political motivations but also illuminates the stories of ordinary people whose lives were changed forever by the assassination.

Lincoln's Final Hours
Conspiracy, Terror, and the Assassination of America's Greatest President
by Kathryn Canavan

Out of the Past
Book List
History and American West Titles

Saturday, April 7, 2018

Reading the History: Rethinking the Civil War Era.


Arguably, no event since the American Revolution has had a greater impact on US history than the Civil War. This devastating and formative conflict occupies a permanent place in the nation's psyche and continues to shape race relations, economic development, and regional politics. Naturally, an event of such significance has attracted much attention from historians, and tens of thousands of books have been published on the subject. Despite this breadth of study, new perspectives and tools are opening up fresh avenues of inquiry into this seminal era.

In this timely and thoughtful book, Paul D. Escott surveys the current state of Civil War studies and explores the latest developments in research and interpretation.

Directions for Research 
by Paul D. Escott 
The University Press of Kentucky, 2018

Out of the Past
Book List
History and American West Titles