Journey back Inside The Blanket Fort as we dive into the new and back-list books SIU Press is shining a spotlight on in July as part of the theme “Our American Story.”
With this selection of books, we explore the individual and collective stories that have built our nation, from biographies of famous figures to the histories of the groups who came together to form the America of today. Illinois is a wonderful example of the diversity that has built our nation, and we see that exemplified in some regional history titles in addition to those addressing our nation’s history as a whole.
In Puerto Ricans in Illinois, authors Maura I. Toro-Morn and Ivis García offer readers an opportunity to learn about the history of Puerto Rico, the migration of Puerto Ricans to Illinois, and the cultural, economic, and political contributions of the Puerto Rican women, men, and families that call Illinois home.
Germans in Illinois, an engaging history of one of the largest ethnic groups in the state, explores the influence and experiences of German immigrants and their descendants from their arrival in the middle of the nineteenth century to their heritage identity today. Coauthors Miranda E. Wilkerson and Heather Richmond examine the primary reasons that Germans came to Illinois and describe how they adapted to life and distinguished themselves through a variety of occupations and community roles. Exploring the complex and ever-evolving German American identity in the growing diversity of Illinois’s linguistic and ethnic landscape, this book contextualizes their experiences and corrects widely held assumptions about assimilation and cultural identity.
In Gettysburg: The Living and the Dead, writer Kent Gramm and photographer Chris Heisey tell the famous battle’s story through the eyes of those who lived and died there, including Confederates and Yankees, soldiers and civilians, male and female, young and old. Visitors to the battlefield after 1863, both well-known and obscure, provide the voices of the living.
A look at these books and more this week on Inside The Blanket Fort.
