Popularizing the Past by Nick Witham review
Popularizing the Past: Historians, Publishers, and Readers in Postwar America by Nick Witham explores the industry of popular history from Daniel Boorstin to Howard Zinn.
Literature
Writing Wrongs
The anti-Russian poetry of Frances Browne, the ‘Blind Poetess of Ulster’.
The Liberation of Lilith
Remembered as Adam’s first wife, a child-killing demon and a feminist hero, who was Lilith?
The Wing of Friendship
Charles Dickens’ most enduring friendship was with his sister-in-law, who has been remembered as his housekeeper.
William Shakespeare’s First Folio
The stage has a short memory, print a long one: 400 years since its first publication, Shakespeare’s First Folio is the reason we remember him.
Literary Heroine
One of Croatia’s most-read authors, Marija Jurić Zagorka spent her life in defiance of convention.
Vile Verse and Desperate Doggerel
Was the worst poet in history a hidden visionary?
Are you Experienced?
Not a queen or a saint, witch or idealised lady-love, the Wife of Bath is a much-married working woman and an enthusiastic traveller.
Clean Sheets
The smooth whiteness of paper belies the mess and hard labour that went into its production.
Words and Deeds
Controversy surrounding the ‘Satanic Verses’ is centuries old.