FROM THE PAGE: An excerpt from Donovan X. Ramsey’s When Crack Was King

The crack epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s is arguably the least examined crisis in American history. Beginning with the myths inspired by Reagan’s war on drugs, journalist Donovan X. Ramsey’s exacting analysis in When Crack Was King traces the path from the last triumphs of the Civil Rights Movement to the devastating realities we

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FROM THE PAGE: An excerpt from Jacob Mikanowski’s Goodbye, Eastern Europe

Goodbye, Eastern Europe is a crucial, elucidative read, a sweeping epic chronicling a thousand years that illuminates the remarkable cultural significance and richness of a place perpetually lost to the margins of history.   Part I Faiths 1 Pagans and Christians A great forest, bristling with dangers and the occasional gleam of treasure: that is

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FROM THE PAGE: An excerpt from Tahir Hamut Izgil’s Waiting to Be Arrested at Night

Waiting to Be Arrested at Night is a poet’s account of one of the world’s most urgent humanitarian crises, and a harrowing tale of a family’s escape from genocide.   One A Phone Call from Beijing I keep returning to the first day of 2013. That evening, I received an unexpected call from Ilham Tohti,

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FROM THE PAGE: An excerpt from Victor Luckerson’s Built from the Fire

Built from the Fire is a multigenerational saga of a family and a community in Tulsa’s Greenwood district, known as “Black Wall Street,” that in one century survived the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, urban renewal, and gentrification.   Prologue Jim Goodwin remembers the symphony of the old Greenwood well. The blues mingling with smoke as

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A letter to educators from Tomiko Brown-Nagin, author of Civil Rights Queen

Dear Educators: Constance Baker Motley and the turbulent but hopeful era in which she lived and worked captivates students. Over email, at book fairs, and in university classrooms nationwide, students have approached me to explain how Civil Rights Queen, my book about Motley’s life and times, stimulated, provoked, and moved them. Motley’s admirers come from

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Celebrating Women’s History Month

In honor of Women’s History Month in March, Penguin Random House Education is highlighting stories about women’s history, from the history of women in the United States to women in world history. We are sharing books about the history of Black women, Afghan women, and disabled women, with topics ranging from the history of reproductive

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Celebrating Black History Month

In honor of Black History Month, Penguin Random House Education is highlighting stories about the history of Black America from the Colonial Era to the Civil Rights Movement to the Present, with topics ranging from women’s history and cultural history to music, art, and film and community. The list includes essential stories, non-fiction, and history.

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Books on the History, Politics, and People of Iran

Following the death of Mahsa Amini, young women have taken to the streets to lead anti-government protests. These demonstrations have been met with police violence, prompting a UN investigation into human rights abuses. These books explore the history and politics of Iran with a particular focus on Iranian women’s experiences.

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Do You Teach U.S. History?

You can search for books across this discipline through our course lists on our website, including a wide range of history from the Colonial American era, the American Revolution, the Civil War and Reconstruction to America in the 20th Century, the Civil Rights Movement, and America in the 21st Century. Here is a small selection

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Books for LGBTQIA+ History Month

For LGBTQIA+ History Month we’re celebrating the shared history of individuals within the community and the importance of the activists who have fought for their rights and the rights of others. We acknowledge the varying and diverse experiences within the LGBTQIA+ community that have shaped history and have led the way for those celebrating their

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Books About Land and Water Conflicts, and Colonialism

Here is a grouping of titles that explore land and water conflicts. From a travelogue and a storytelling of the past and present along the the Río Magdalena to the ordinary people in El Salvador who rallied together to prevent the poisoning of the country’s main water source to Ingrid Rojas Contreras’ intimate family history

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FROM THE PAGE: An Excerpt from Linda Villarosa’s Under the Skin

Under the Skin is a landmark book that tells the full story of racial health disparities in America, revealing the toll racism takes on individuals and the health of the nation. Linda Villarosa lays bare the forces in the American health-care system and in American society that cause Black people to “live sicker and die

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