Modern American History Reading List

by J-Snyd

Hi all, I’m trained as a medievalist and historian of technology, but in Spring I’m going to be teaching American History 1877-Present. Can anyone help me put together a reading list? I want to focus a lot on race, labor, technology and industrialization, imperialism, and religious movements in addition to the broad outline.

So far I’ll be reading the norton textbook, Jill Lepore, These Truths Howard Zinn, A People’s History Daniel Immerwahr, How to Hide an Empire

Your help is much appreciated!

Kugelfang52
  • Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction race- A Nation Under Our Feet
  • The West- West from Appomattox, Legacy of Conquest, and Nature's Metropolis
  • Progressives- A Fierce Discontent
  • Immigration & Labor History- Eight Hours for What We Will and The Good Immigrants
  • WWI & 20s- Wilsonian Moment and The Deluge
  • Depression- Fear Itself
  • WWII- A New Deal for the World
  • Cold War- We Now Know and Cold War and the Color Line
  • Civil Rights- Defying Dixie
  • Later Cold War- Reclaiming American Virtue

If you want overviews, I like Down to Earth as an environmental view of US history and American Umpire for a very different (and contentious) perspective on America's role in the world. I disagree with the latter's general premise that the US isn't an empire, but think there is something beneficial in the framing of US influence on global politics.