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20th Century US Conflicts: The Rise of a Superpower

Home » Programs » Book A Program » Reading and Discussion » Reading and Discussion Series List » 20th Century US Conflicts: The Rise of a Superpower

The wars in which America has participated since the dawn of the 20th century have defined its place in the world. The Spanish-American War and its related conflict in the Philippines marked the debut of the United States as a world power. How have successive wars increased that power – or called it into question?

This series is funded under a National Endowment for the Humanities We The People project grant, which explores significant events and themes in American history and culture, and advances knowledge of the principles that define America.

Books in this Series

David Kennedy, The American People in World War II: Freedom From Fear
G.J.A. O’Toole, The Spanish War: An American Epic
Neil Sheehan, A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam
Robert H. Zieger, America’s Great War: World War I and the American Experience
William Stueck, Rethinking the Korean War: A New Diplomatic and Strategic History
Studs Terkel, The Good War: An Oral History of World War II

How to Book this Series

Please browse the list of available facilitators below. Then contact your chosen facilitator to discuss the timing and other details of the series. Finally, select the “Book this Series” button and fill out our online Reading & Discussion Request Form.

Book this Series

Available Facilitators

Woman leading a book discussion group with a book open on her lap

Alan Berolzheimer

By Vermont Humanities | February 16, 2018

Travel radius: statewide

Posted in Facilitator

Tags: 20C Conflicts, 20C Presidents Before, 20C Presidents Post, African American Harlem, African American South, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Blue Collar America, Earth Tones, Farms Gardens, Forces of Nature, Founding Fathers, Futures, Hard Look America, Immigrants, Legacy of Race, Making Sense Civil War, March, Memorable Memoirs, Mexican Americans, Most Costly Journey, Native America, New England Uncovered, Our Civil War Legacy, Outsiders, Path to War, Seminal Statements, Slavery Civil War, Understanding Africa, When Cultures Meet, World War II Innocence

Woman leading a book discussion group with a book open on her lap

Gina Logan

By Vermont Humanities | February 19, 2018

Travel radius: statewide

Posted in Facilitator, Reading and Discussion

Tags: 20C Conflicts, 20C Presidents Before, African American Harlem, African American Memoirs, African American South, American Stories, BIG Books, Canadian Diversity, China Transform, DCF Winners, Eight Great Greek, Experience My World, From Page to Screen, Futures, Gastronomy, Genius Mark Twain, Healthcare Humanity, How They Lived, Immigrants, Justice, Lincoln Bicentennial, March, Masters Short Story, Mysterious Lens, Native America, Native American Literature, Never-Setting Sun, Our Civil War Legacy, Outsiders, Pilgrimage, Poems to Share, Portraits of the Artists, Reintroducing Greece, Retellings, Revenge, Rise of English Novel, Rise of Nazism, Romantic Ideal, Seminal Statements, Seven Deadly Sins, Slavery Civil War, Soldiering On, Ties That Bind, Understanding Africa, War and Humanity, When Cultures Meet, Womens Literature, World War II Innocence

Woman leading a book discussion group with a book open on her lap

Geraldine Pittman de Batlle

By Vermont Humanities | February 19, 2018

Travel radius: statewide

Posted in Facilitator, Reading and Discussion

Tags: 20C Conflicts, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, BIG Books, Booker Prize, Eight Great Greek, From Page to Screen, Masters Short Story, Our Civil War Legacy, Revenge, Rise of English Novel, Rise of Nazism, Shakespeare Mix

Woman leading a book discussion group with a book open on her lap

Mark Stoler

By Vermont Humanities | February 19, 2018

Travel radius: statewide

Posted in Facilitator, Reading and Discussion

Tags: 20C Conflicts, 20C Presidents Before, 20C Presidents Post, Forces of Nature, Hard Look America, Lincoln Bicentennial, Making Sense Civil War, Our Civil War Legacy, Path to War, Reintroducing Greece, Rise of Nazism, Seminal Statements, Soldiering On, War and Humanity, World War II Innocence

Woman leading a book discussion group with a book open on her lap

John R. Turner

By Vermont Humanities | February 19, 2018

Travel radius: statewide

Posted in Facilitator, Reading and Discussion

Tags: 20C Conflicts, 20C Presidents Before, 20C Presidents Post, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, BIG Books, China Transform, Eight Great Greek, Experience My World, Founding Fathers, Gastronomy, Genius Mark Twain, Influential First Ladies, Lincoln Bicentennial, Making Sense Civil War, Masters Short Story, Memorable Memoirs, New England Uncovered, Our Civil War Legacy, Outsiders, Pilgrimage, Portraits of the Artists, Reintroducing Greece, Retellings, Revenge, Rise of English Novel, Rise of Nazism, Robert Frost, Romantic Ideal, Seminal Statements, Seven Deadly Sins, Shakespeare Mix, Soldiering On, Understanding Africa, War and Humanity, What a Character

Woman leading a book discussion group with a book open on her lap

Lesley Wright

By Vermont Humanities | February 19, 2018

Travel radius: statewide

Posted in Facilitator, Reading and Discussion

Tags: 20C Conflicts, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, American Stories, BIG Books, Booker Prize, Canadian Diversity, China Transform, DCF Winners, Dogged Resolve, Earth Tones, Eight Great Greek, Experience My World, Farms Gardens, Founding Fathers, From Page to Screen, Gastronomy, Genius Mark Twain, Get Real, Healthcare Humanity, How They Lived, Immigrants, Influential First Ladies, Justice, Lincoln Bicentennial, Masters Short Story, Memorable Memoirs, Native America, Native American Literature, Never-Setting Sun, New England Uncovered, Our Civil War Legacy, Outsiders, Pilgrimage, Portraits of the Artists, Reintroducing Greece, Retellings, Revenge, Robert Frost, Romantic Ideal, Seven Deadly Sins, Shakespeare Mix, Slavery Civil War, Soldiering On, Sustainability, Ties That Bind, Understanding Africa, Vermont Reads, War and Humanity, What a Character, When Cultures Meet, Womens Literature, World War II Innocence

Questions?

Please contact Richelle Franzoni at (802) 262-1355 or rfranzoni@vermonthumanities.org.

Vermont Humanities*** May 25, 2018

Poet Sarah Audsley joined us at the Taconic Mountains Ramble State Park for Words in the Woods.

Humanities Camps are filled with reading and writing projects, field trips, and outdoor activities.

We won a 2020 Schwartz Prize for best public humanities programming in the U.S. for Vermont Reads 2019: “March: Book One.”

We supported Historic New England’s “More than a Market” project that explored the experiences of new Americans through food markets.

Our free public events help bring the power of the humanities to communities across Vermont.