Macro Choices of Microhistories

Submitted by Durham Tech Library on
the president's kitchen cabinet:: the story of african americans who have fed our first families, from the washingtons to the obamas by adrian miller audiobook
Inseparable: The Original Siamese Twins and their Rendezvous with American History by Yunte Huang
Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments: intimate histories of riotous black girls, troublesome women, and queer radicals by saidiya hartman
fordlandia: the rise and fall of henry ford’s forgotten jungle city by greg grandin
invisible: the forgotton story of the black woman lawyer who took down america's most powerful mobster by stephen l carter
Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy by David Zucchino
moby-duck: the true story of 28,800 bath toys lost at sea and of the beachcombers, oceanographers, environmentalists, and fools, including the author, who went in search of them by donovan hohn
a furious sky: the five-hundred-year history of america's hurricanes by eric jay dolin
color: a natural history of the palette by victoria finlay
Fish and chips: a history by Panikos Panayi
genetics in the madhouse: the unknown history of human heredity by theodore m porter
living with whales: documents and oral histories of native new england whaling history by nancy shoemaker
lycra: how a fiber shaped america by kaori o'connor
rabid: a cultural history of the world's most diabolical virus by bill wasik and monica murphy
teeth: the story of beauty inequality and the struggle for oral health in america by mary otto
the ascent of money: a financial history of the world by niall ferguson
the temple of perfection: a history of the gym by eric chaline
The triumph of seeds: how grains, nuts, kernels, pulses, and pips, conquered the plant kingdom and shaped human history by thor hanson
The true history of chocolate: by sophie d coe and michael d coe
Walls: a history of civilization in blood and brick by david frye
white trash: the 400 year untold history of class in america by nancy isenberg
at home: a short history of private life by bill bryson

Dig deep while reading narrow by completing a microhistory for the Read Great Things 2021 Challenge.

The most important question: What the heck is a microhistory?

A microhistory is a narrowly-focused, in-depth examination of a certain subject or individual over time. Some microhistories focus on illuminating the life and impact of a lesser-known group, event, or individual. Others dig deep into a subject or object to trace its historical, social, and/or other (economic, cultural, psychological, medical, etc.) impacts. A microhistory isn't necessarily a short book-- it can dig deep on a narrow topic over many pages. 

A HUGE THANK YOU to Courtney Bippley (who loves microhistories) for compiling book lists of lots of things we have available. Click through to see some of the books (ebooks included!) that you can get through Durham Tech and for some reading lists from around the internet of additional options.

Click on the link in the caption to go to the book (if digital) or the record, where you can put it on hold or just learn more about it. 

Some microhistories on people, places, or events: 

Some microhistories on places and things: 

We have many more microhistories available in our collection, including some about food, food fraud, historical figureheads, sport walking, NC accents, water, milk, paper, STIs and public health, and small towns, but feel free to explore the following lists about microhistories to find your [narrow] topic of choice: 

Want to check one of these books out? You can either request it yourself through the catalog or contact us and we can get it for you and schedule a time for you to come get it. Dogwood Digital books can be checked out through the Libby app or can be read in your browser. Ebook Central ebooks can be read in Adobe Digital Editions or in your browser. 

Happy reading! And remember that any of these books fit into our favorite category-- A book suggested by a Durham Tech Library staff member or on the Library blog!

Looking for more Read Great Things 2021 category suggestions? Check out our short book list from January, our outer space books from February, and our self-care books from March. 

Category
Book Lists