History
These nonfiction history books - ranging in topic from the very particular (London fog) to the sweeping general (world history) - are all written in a compelling narrative style that reads “like a story.” Scroll down to the bottom for links to works by other recommended narrative-history authors. (Updated June 2020)
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Imperfect Union
NPR’s Steve Inskeep presents a well-researched examination of how a husband and wife team in the 1800s were influential in westward expansion, women’s suffrage, and the abolitionist movement.
Format: Downloadable Audiobook
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Enemy of All Mankind
A page-turning account of an English pirate attack on a Moghul treasure ship in 1695, and how this notorious event had far-reaching repercussions on global economics and politics.
Format: eBook
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The Other Madisons
The author recounts researching her family’s genealogy, tracing back to President James Madison and his slave Coreen. The result is a personal history and exploration of the devastating exclusion of Blacks from the historical record.
Format: Downloadable Audiobook
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Salmon
Considered a master of the microhistory genre, Kurlansky examines the natural and cultural history of salmon over a span of 500 years, demonstrating how their condition (and alarming decline) is intertwined with the planet’s health.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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The Splendid and the Vile
In this detailed but gripping narrative, Larson looks at World War II through the perspective of Winston Churchill’s leadership, with a focus on vivid details from his personal and family life.
Format: Downloadable Audiobook
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America for Americans
Lee calls into question the popular narrative of the U.S. as a nation that has always welcomed immigrants, revealing instead how hostility towards the “other” has often been the rule in our nation’s history.
Format: Downloadable Audiobook
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These Truths
A sweeping, elegant examination of whether the U.S. has stayed true to the principles of the Declaration of Independence, revealing our nation’s numerous contradictions. Includes portraits of lesser-known figures, including women and people of color.
Format: eBook
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Cuba Libre!
Drawing on oral interviews and archival records, Perrottet provides a fascinating and balanced chronicle of the Cuban Revolution and its worldwide impact; he also examines the post-revolutionary fates of its key figures.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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The Better Angels
A group biography highlighting the achievements of five extraordinary women - Harriet Tubman, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Clara Barton, Julia Ward Howe, and Sarah Josepha Hale.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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