Allman, T.D. In France Profound: The Long History of a House, a Mountain Town, and a People. Atlantic Monthly. Aug. 2024. 512p. ISBN 9780802127846. $30. HIST

Allman, longlisted for the National Book Award for Finding Florida, offers a deep dive into the ancient mountain village of Lauzerte, France. Using his 800-year-old house as a focal point, he surveys the past history of the town and its present and also comments on his modern life.

Friss, Evan. The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore. Viking. Aug. 2024. 352p. ISBN 9780593299920. $30. HIST

Friss writes a deeply researched book about U.S. bookstores, ranging from the 18th century to modern times and from indies to department-store chains. Each chapter focuses on a different bookshop and explores not just its own individual creation but the culture it supported.

Gordon, Linda. Seven Social Movements That Changed America. Liveright: Norton. Aug. 2024. 512p. ISBN 9781631493713. $35. HIST

Two-time winner of the Bancroft Prize, Gordon considers the ways social movements shape the nation as they arise, make change, hold power, and fall. She begins in the 1900s and ends in the 1970s, considering, among others, the civil rights, women’s liberation, and farmworkers movements.

Talaga, Tanya. The Knowing: The Enduring Legacy of Residential Schools. HarperCollins. Aug. 2024. 320p. ISBN 9781443467506. $29.99. HIST

Award-winning and best-selling Anishinaabe author Talaga (Seven Fallen Feathers) investigates the reverberating legacy of the residential school system in Canada. Inspired by her great grandmother’s experiences, she details the crimes of the system—enacted by church and state—and gives voice to her family and thousands of others.

VanDeMark, Brian. Kent State: An American Tragedy. Norton. Aug. 2024. 416p. ISBN 9781324066255. $35. HIST

VanDeMark offers a full consideration of the events of May 4, 1970, when National Guardsmen opened fire on Kent State University students protesting the Vietnam War. The work highlights new research findings and interviews, including those of Guardsmen, in a book the publisher is positioning as the definitive account.

Wineapple, Brenda. Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and the Trial That Riveted a Nation. Random. Aug. 2024. 544p. ISBN 9780593229927. $35. HIST

A finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and a NYT “100 Notable Books” author, Wineapple delves into the history of the 1925 Scopes case, exploring how the “trial of the century” limned religion, censorship, teaching, and science as two giants in legal circles argued about the future of the nation.