Sit back and watch videos from The Book Studio's exclusive interviews with today's most exciting authors. The interviews are filmed each month in our studios, with host Bethanne Patrick.
Featured Interview
A Conversation with Kenneth C. Davis
Submitted by Bethanne on Mon, 08/09/2010 - 7:14am
"What more important story is there than people killing other people in the name of religion?"
When Kenneth C. Davis, author of the celebrated "Don't Know Much" books (including "Don't Know Much About History," the 20th-anniversary volume of which will be released later this year), says this during our interview, he isn't talking about any of the occasions that might normally come to mind when you hear "people killing other people in the name of religion." He's talking about the massacre of French Huguenot (Protestant) sailors by a Spanish military commander that took place in Florida 40 years before the Mayflower and its Puritan passengers ever reached American soil.
You've most likely never heard about this incident, and that's why Davis is writing about "America's Hidden History." He recently released "A Nation Rising: Untold Tales of Flawed Founders, Fallen Heroes, and Forgotten Fighters from America's Hidden History," the second volume in the series that details 1800-1850.
Of course, "hidden" is a relative term. It's not as if historians have never known about the incidents Davis writes about in his books. However, it's not as if history textbooks have ever brought everything properly to our attention. Academic and educational trends come and go, emphasizing certain events, figures, and ideas at the expense of others. Davis does everyone a service by writing dynamically and creatively about forgotten things that remain interesting and important.
I hope you enjoy this dynamic (if it's not creative, I blame myself) conversation. I know I did!
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For an alphabetical listing of all our authors, please visit Authors A to Z.
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