Celebrate Independence Day by reading about the great thirteen colonies that became the United States of America. Here are our picks. We hope you’ll tell us yours.
- Connecticut – Chicken Man (New South Books), which won the National Jewish Book Award, was written and illustrated by Bridgeport native Michelle Edwards.
- Delaware – Philip Gerard grew up in Newark and got his B.A. from the University of Delaware but he spent many summers of his youth camping on Hatteras Island in NC where he would later set his books Hatteras Light and The Dark of the Island.
- Georgia – Named one of the “Books All Georgians Should Read” in 2015 by the Georgia Center for the Book, The Cherokee Rose by Tiya Miles covers a little-known aspect of America’s past—slaveholding by Southern Creeks and Cherokees.
- Maryland – A Taste of Maryland History: A Guide to Historic Eateries and Their Recipes by Debbie Nunley and Karen Jane Elliott, because there’s no better way to know a place than through their cuisine.
- Massachusetts – Sybil Haydel Morial, author of Witness to Change: From Jim Crow to Political Empowerment, was the first African American to teach in the Newton, MA public school system, one of many firsts Morial would later write about in her memoir.
- New Hampshire – In So You Think You Know Gettysburg? Volume 2 by James and Suzanne Gindlesperger you can read about the monument to New Hampshire’s Berdan Sharpshooters, “arguably the best known regiment in the army. Standards were so high for acceptance into Colonel Hiram Berdan’s group that most states could raise only a few companies. Those who became part of the elite unit had to demonstrate extreme shooting proficiency by scoring ten consecutive hits within a circle ten inches in diameter. This had to be done from a distance of two hundred yards from a kneeling or standing position. Many of Berdan’s men could hit the center of the target with all ten shots.”
- New Jersey – Fall Line (NewSouth Books) is a novel set in 1955 about a forgotten crossroads that is about to be covered by a man-made lake. This heartbreaking tale was written by New Jersey resident Joe Samuel Starnes.
- New York – Chasing Moonlight: The True Story of Field of Dreams‘ Doc Graham by Brett Friedlander and Robert Reising tells the story of the real-life Moonlight Graham who became famous for playing a half-inning with the New York Giants.
- North Carolina – In honor of Independence Day we have to talk about Touring North Carolina’s Revolutionary War Sites by Daniel W. Barefoot. (We also highly recommend North Carolina Waterfalls by Kevin Adams and North Carolina Craft Beer & Breweries by Erik Lars Myers and Sarah H. Ficke which you can read about on Buzzfeed.)
- Pennsylvania – Sixteen years after The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break, Steven Sherrill is bringing us a sequel. In The Minotaur Takes His Own Sweet Time, the Minotaur works at a living history village in the rustbelt of central Pennsylvania. The publication date is September 6th but you can read the book that started it all.
- Rhode Island – Blackbeard and Other Pirates of the Atlantic Coast by Nancy Roberts tells the story of Rhode Island’s Thomas Tew and the tale of how the rakish “Calico Jack” Rackham’s chance meeting with a spirited redheaded girl in Providence, RI would give the world the legendary and beautiful pirate Anne Bonny.
- South Carolina – Literary Dogs & Their South Carolina Writers (Hub City Press) edited by John Lane and Betsy Wakefield Teter is our pick for SC because all dog people should read this collection about the joy and lessens a dog can give to a writer.
- Virginia – Last but not least, Blue Ridge Roadways: A Virginia Field Guide to Cultural Sites by M. Anna Fariello is the perfect resource for your long weekend travel plans.
You can find more information on all of these titles at our website, www.blairpub.com.
John F. Blair, Publisher 