A narrative history of Hawaii profiles its former existence as a royal kingdom, recounting the wars fought by European powers for control of its position, its adoption of Christianity, and its annexation by the United States. The most recent state to join the union, Hawaii is the only one to have once been a royal kingdom. After its "discovery" by Captain Cook in the late 18th Century, Hawaii was fought over by European powers determined to take...

Sarah Vowell thinks of Hawaii as the most American state. She argues that it's "breathtaking in its beauty, sometimes hideously developed, overwhelmingly religious, impoverished (except for pockets of staggering wealth), crass and spiritual all at once." In Unfamiliar Fishes, she will explore the exceptional history of Hawaii with her personal reporting and trademark smart-aleckiness to find out the odd and emblematic history of Hawaii, and...

Traces the history of Alaska through the Russian exploration and settlement to the American purchase of the territory by William Seward in 1867, discussing key personalities and events during this period.

This work chronicles America's drive for empire at the dawn of the twentieth-century, culminating in the conquest of a fledging Asian republic. At the center of the story stands the dynamic Theodore Roosevelt, who pressures a reluctant President McKinley into war against Spain. The clash vaults America to world power and thrusts the nation into a war in the Philippines. On the eve of a new century, an up-and-coming Theodore Roosevelt set out to transform...