Harford County Public Library: History and Current Events: April 2026

Recent Releases

Boston, 1776: A Rogue Tour of Revolution City
by J. D. Dickey

Relive the chaos, courage, and color of the American Revolution's capital city while meeting those who led the fight in the nation's War of Independence. Features nine immersive walking tours on seven period-style maps-- plus 45 historical images Welcome to Revolution City--where the air smells of tar, booze, gunpowder . . . and rebellion.

The Price of Mercy: Unfair Trials, a Violent System, and a Public Defender's Search for...
by Emily Galvin Almanza

Co-founder and executive director of Partners for Justice and former public defender Emily Galvin Almanza presents a thought-provoking and incisive examination of the failures of the American criminal justice system and offers solutions for reform.

Those Who Are about to Die: A Day in the Life of a Roman Gladiator
by Harry Sidebottom

What did a gladiator feel when he stepped out onto the sand of the Colosseum, his life in the balance? What ran through the minds of the masses there to witness his likely execution? And how did this bloodthirsty ritual come to exist in the first place? In Those Who Are About to Die, Harry Sidebottom pulls us into the arena, and into the homes and forums of ancient Rome, taking the reader on an eye-opening, twenty-four-hour tour through Roman life at the height of the gladiatorial games, from the first century BC to the second century AD.

Kennedy's Coup: A White House Plot, a Saigon Murder, and America's Descent Into Vietnam
by Jack Cheevers

In his richly detailed latest, political reporter Jack Cheevers (Act of War) utilizes previously unavailable government documents to chronicle the Kennedy administration's role in the 1963 ousting and assassination of South Vietnam president Ngo Dinh Diem.

Mafia: A Global History
by Ryan Gingeras

Historian Ryan Gingeras' (The Last Days of the Ottoman Empire) sweeping account surveys the origins and exploits of organized crime syndicates throughout the world, including the Mafia, yakuza, triad, and more.

The Death of Trotsky: The True Story of the Plot to Kill Stalin's Greatest Enemy
by Josh Ireland

Writer and editor Josh Ireland's fast-paced and compelling history details Soviet espionage efforts during World War II, focusing on the 1940 assassination of Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky.

American Struggle: Democracy, Dissent, and the Pursuit of a More Perfect Union...
by Jon Meacham (editor)

This collection covers a wide spectrum of history, from 1619 to the twenty-first century, with primary-source documents that take us back to critical moments in which Americans fought over the meaning and the direction of the national experiment.

A Kingdom and a Village: A One-Thousand-Year History of Moscow
by Simon Morrison

An erudite and entertaining history of Moscow, a city defined by its survival and reinvention, and whose rich history offers crucial insight into contemporary global politics.

We the Women: The Hidden Heroes Who Shaped America
by Norah O'Donnell with Kate Andersen Brower

Over a decades-long, distinguished career ... journalist Norah O'Donnell has made it her mission to shed light on untold women's stories. Now, in honor of America's 250th birthday, O'Donnell focuses that passion on the American heroines who helped change the course of history.

The Blood Countess: Murder, Betrayal, and the Making of a Monster
by Shelley Puhak

Writer and poet Shelley Puhak's (The Dark Queens) nuanced and demythologizing latest examines the life and exploits of 16th-century Hungarian noblewoman Elizabeth Báthory, whose conviction of (and imprisonment for) torturing and murdering 80 girls and women was the result of a smear campaign.

El Paso: Five Families and One Hundred Years of Blood, Migration, Race, and Memory
by Jazmine Ulloa

In her richly detailed debut, New York Times reporter Jazmine Ulloa spotlights the border town of El Paso, Texas, known as "the new Ellis Island," revealing over a century of its history through the experiences of five families who have shaped the area.

Citizenship: Notes on an American Myth
by Daisy Hernández

In this one-of-a-kind book, Daisy Hernández fiercely interrogates one of the most complicated subjects of contemporary life and politics: citizenship.

Contact your librarian for more great books!