Don’t miss the best new history from the past month, hand-picked by our editors! Don’t miss this month’s history picks — which include a captivating biography of a World War II–era scholar, a gripping anthology from a Pulitzer Prize–winning author, and more!

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	‘If there is a soul in American history, it emerges — indeed, explodes — from these pages’ (David W. Blight) WHY IT’S READWORTHY: The latest from a Pulitzer Prize–winning, #1 New York Times bestselling historian A powerful anthology that highlights pivotal moments in the nation’s complex pursuit of a more perfect union “This is the one book everyone should read to celebrate our 250th birthday” (Walter Isaacson) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers What really caused the downfall of Easter Island? WHY IT’S READWORTHY: In this “bold and convincing” account (Kirkus Reviews), an archaeology scholar challenges long-held assumptions about the island’s ecological collapse “Pitts has gone deeper than any other writer in cutting through the miasma of misperceptions that shrouds the island” (The New York Times) A must-read for fans of revisionist histories Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers As Black Americans fought in Vietnam, a battle for their equality raged at home WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Includes stories about the first Black officer captured by the North Vietnamese, a pianist who worked to rescue biracial orphans in Vietnam, and more A Pulitzer Prize finalist delivers “history written with heart, precision, and unflinching honesty” (New York Times bestselling author Mitchell Zuckoff) “With this book, Wil Haygood has become the preeminent chronicler of the Black experience in America” (Pulitzer Prize–winning author Richard Rhodes) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers The centuries-long history of scientists forced to fight for their revolutionary ideas WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Learn about the researchers who faced ridicule, threats, firing, and even prison — from the father of germ theory to modern-day Nobel laureates Pulitzer Prize–winning author Siddhartha Mukherjee promises, “You will never look at science the same way again” “Thoroughly absorbing and insightful” (New York Times bestselling author Bill Bryson) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Meet the little-known women who shaped American history WHY IT’S READWORTHY: With stories about the earliest female soldiers, the first woman admitted to a medical school, and many more With praise from Walter Isaacson, Ken Burns, Doris Kearns Goodwin, and other luminaries Cowritten by an Emmy Award–winning journalist and a #1 New York Times bestselling author Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Follow the decade-long hunt that ended in Leon Trotsky’s brutal assassination WHY IT’S READWORTHY: “Takes a well-worn story and transforms it into a tale as gripping as the best novels of espionage” (Kirkus Reviews starred review) Years before the Soviet revolutionary was attacked with an ice pick, Joseph Stalin began arranging for the murder of his bitterest rival Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2026 by Literary Hub and Parade Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers How a deadly standoff in 1992 gave rise to today’s most dangerous conspiracy theories WHY IT’S READWORTHY: When federal agents surrounded the Idaho cabin of survivalist Randy Weaver, the ensuing siege would transform American politics and society forever “Vivid, frightening, and fascinating… This book blew me away and opened my eyes” (Walter Isaacson) A former New Yorker staffer delivers an account “reminiscent of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood” (The New York Times Book Review) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers ‘A great gift to readers, rescuing a fascinating character from the mist of history’ (Jonathan Eig) WHY IT’S READWORTHY: As World War II erupted, Reed Peggram — a young American scholar in Paris — found romance, fled with his lover, and escaped the Nazis’ grasp Inspired by a collection of Peggram’s letters, an award-winning historian shares his untold story “Whitmire’s deeply researched account is proof that history can sometimes be more surprising than fiction” (Matthew F. Delmont, author of Half American) Learn more... MEDIA MENTIONS: GET EBOOK ON: Amazon Other formats and retailers Can American democracy endure in the 21st century? WHY IT’S READWORTHY: Explores how the United States’ fight for freedom differed from other democratic movements — and why the revolution remains unfinished From a leading legal analyst and law professor hailed as “a thoughtful contrarian” (Kirkus Reviews) “A must-read on the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence” (Nadine Strossen) Learn more...