A New History of the American South

Edited by W. Fitzhugh Brundage; Associate Editors Laura F. Edwards and Jon. F. Senbach
May 2023

For at least two centuries, the South's economy, politics, religion, race relations, fiction, music, foodways and more have figured prominently in nearly all facets of American life. In A New History of the American South, W. Fitzhugh Brundage joins a stellar group of accomplished historians in gracefully weaving a new narrative of southern history from its ancient past to the present. This groundbreaking work draws on both well-established and new currents in scholarship, among them global and Atlantic world history, histories of African diaspora, and environmental history. The volume also considers the experiences of all people of the South: Black, white, Indigenous, female, male, poor, and elite. Together, the essays compose a seamless, cogent, and engaging work that can be read cover to cover or sampled at leisure. Read more about A New History of the American South.

Printing and Misprinting: A Companion to Mistakes and In-House Corrections in Renaissance Europe (1450-1650)

Edited by Geri Della Rocca de Candal, Anthony Grafton, and Paolo Sachet
May 2023

'To err is human'. As a material and mechanical process, early printing made no exception to this general rule. Against the conventional wisdom of a technological triumph spreading freedom and knowledge, the history of the book is largely a story of errors and adjustments. Various mistakes normally crept in while texts were transferred from manuscript to printing formes and different emendation strategies were adopted when errors were spotted. In this regard, the 'Gutenberg galaxy' provides an unrivalled example of how scholars, publishers, authors and readers reacted to failure: they increasingly aimed at impeccability in both style and content, developed time and money-efficient ways to cope with mistakes, and ultimately came to link formal accuracy with authoritative and reliable information. Most of these features shaped the publishing industry until the present day, in spite of mounting issues related to false news and approximation in the digital age. Read more about Printing and Misprinting.

Seven Crashes: The Economic Crises That Shaped Globalization

By Harold James
May 2023

A leading economic historian presents a new history of financial crises, showing how some led to greater globalization while others kept nations apart.
 
The eminent economic historian Harold James presents a new perspective on financial crises, dividing them into “good” crises, which ultimately expand markets and globalization, and “bad” crises, which result in a smaller, less prosperous world. Examining seven turning points in financial history — from the depression of the 1840s through the Great Depression of the 1930s to the Covid-19 crisis — James shows how crashes prompted by a lack of supply, like the oil shortages of the 1970s, lead to greater globalization as markets expand and producers innovate to increase supply. By contrast, crises triggered by a lack of demand — such as the Global Financial Crisis of 2007–2008 — result in less globalization as markets contract, austerity measures are imposed, and skepticism of government grows. Read more about Seven Crashes.