At the beginning of this book, we learn that Cora was transported by the Orphan Train in the late 1800’s to Kansas, where she is one of the lucky ones, chosen by a family that actually want a daughter, not just a servant. She thinks she is lucky again, when she meets and marries Alan Read More
Author: Julie Crain Miguel
Last Call, The Rise and Fall of Prohibition by Daniel Okrent
I thought I knew enough about Prohibition, which lasted from 1920 to 1933. I’d heard of Carry Nation, bathtub gin, and bootlegging. But this book is a detailed look not just at the time period between the passage of the Eighteenth and Twenty-First Amendments, but also what led up the passage of each. Okrent also Read More
In God We Trust, by Jean Shepard
You may not recognize the title of the book, but you should recognize the move it inspired – “A Christmas Story”. You will find some of the scenes in the movie in this book, a few verbatim, along with various other stories that would not necessarily be appropriate for a family movie. The story is Read More
The Alienist, by Caleb Carr
If you enjoy gritty police procedural mysteries, then you would appreciate this book. An “alienist” is what we would refer to today as a psychologist, in this case a police psychologist. Set in New York City in 1896, the description of the city is very detailed, and important to the plot. I’ve visited NYC, but Read More
Food in the United States, 1820’s – 1890, by Susan Williams
While this is not the typical book you might think about reading to learn more about your ancestors, it can potentially tell you a lot about what they may have been eating, how it was prepared, and even how it might have been served. In addition to utilizing other books about the history of food Read More
The Assassination of Jesse James, by Ron Hansen
The full title of this book is The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and the book does indeed discuss both men. It has also been made into a movie, which I have not seen (I almost always prefer the book!). Jesse James looms large in popular culture, even to this day, Read More
Daughter of Fortune, by Isabel Allende
Although only about a third of this book takes place in the United States, it is still worthwhile to read, especially if you had an ancestor who lived in California during or just after the Gold Rush. The first part of the story follows the title character, Eliza Sommers, through her childhood and youth in Read More
1812 The War that Forged a Nation, by Walter R. Borneman
We’ve all heard of the war of 1812, but outside of the fact that the capital was burned by the British, we probably don’t know very much about it. This book discusses the issues that led up to the War, the political implications and realities, and also describes the strategy and outcome of the battles. Read More
All That She Carried, by Tiya Miles
/ A short description of this book is that it analyzes an heirloom. That is very far from doing it justice, however. The object in question has been dubbed “Ashley’s sack”, and it is owned by Middleton Place Foundation, which is a former plantation turned into a National Historic Landmark and museum. The sack is Read More
Ragtime, by E. L. Doctorow
The story begins in New Rochelle, New York, around 1910, but some of the characters in the book travel the world. The upper-middleclass family (Father owns a small manufacturing company) whose lives are described in the book are never named. They are referred to as Father, Mother, the Little Boy, and Mother’s Younger Brother. They Read More