Yikes. I blinked and somehow nearly a month passed since my last newsletter, AND it's Hanukkah/Christmas/New Year time already. And no one needs me to mention that the horrors in the news continue unabated. Everything feels so heavy. Hug a loved one this season, help a neighbor, defend what's right.

But in the meantime (maybe as a pleasant distraction?), I need you to leave me a voicemail! I'm putting together my year-end listener episode. I first did this two years ago and LOVED it, but last year I didn't get enough responses to make an episode. Let's fix that this year.

All you have to do is go right here, hit "start recording," and leave me a short message telling me who you are and the best history book you read this year. I'll include it in the episode!

To answer your questions:

• No, it does not need to be a book published this year.
• Yes, you can tell us about more than one book, just keep your message short!
• No, it doesn't matter if you hate your voice (welcome to my whole life). Everyone else thinks it sounds totally fine and normal!

Other questions? Hit reply and let me know. Otherwise, go make a recording! Let's make an incredible history reading list to carry us into the new year.

New Episodes

I've released three excellent new episodes since my last email. Have you missed any of them? Check them out here:

• Episode 76: Karin Wulf Keeps Her Brain Humming Along. Karin is the current director and librarian of the John Carter Brown Library, as well as a professor at Brown University. Her new book, Lineage: Genealogy and the Politics of Connection in British America, 1680-1820, came out this summer. We talked about what it was like to research a book whose sources were scattered in many different archives, and how she keeps her research and writing alive even in the midst of a very busy schedule. Plus, we got geeky about pens for a minute.
• Episode 77: Marc James Carpenter Calls A Lie A Lie. Marc and I (no relation) both grew up in the Pacific Northwest, where our history education left out most of the violence by white settlers against the region’s Indigenous people. That absence inspired research for Marc, now an associate professor at the University of Jamestown in North Dakota. His first book is The War on Illahee: Genocide, Complicity, and Cover-Ups in the Pioneer Northwest. I was delighted to have him on the show to talk more about how he dealt with layers of deceptive source material and how a dash of humor is a vital ingredient in dark histories.
• Episode 78: Edward Watts Looks to the Ancient Past for Writing Advice. This episode, like the book that led to it, was a surprise and pleasure! Ed is a professor of history at the University of California San Diego and the author of seven books, including his latest, The Romans: A 2,000-Year History. I was excited to talk with Ed about how he tackled such a vast subject. But above all, I really wanted to dig into his style and talk about what goes in to making such a huge history so enjoyable to read.

Ad-Free Episodes for Patreon Subscribers

One last thing: In case you missed the announcement, Patreon subscribers at any level (as low as $2/month) can get access to ad-free versions of new podcast episodes (I'll slowly work on adding the back catalog in the new year, too). Plus, I occasionally include fun extras for supporters, like bonus audio from the Edward Watts episode. I am not kidding when I say that the financial support of Patreon supporters is huge in keeping this podcast going, and I'm so grateful for it. If you love the show and can spare a couple extra bucks, please consider joining us on Patreon.