Author presentation: Russell Shorto’s “Revolution Song: A Story of American Freedom”

Russell Shorto, Johnstown native and acclaimed author, will come to Johnstown for a public forum and book reading for his newly-released non-fiction book, Revolution Song: A Story of American Freedom. Shorto’s work has been praised as “first-rate intellectual history” (Wall Street Journal), “literary alchemy” (Chicago Tribune) and simply “astonishing” (New York Times).

In Revolution Song, Russell Shorto takes us back to the founding of the American nation, drawing on diaries, letters and autobiographies to flesh out six lives that cast the era in a fresh new light. They include an African man who freed himself and his family from slavery, a rebellious young woman who abandoned her abusive husband to chart her own course and a certain Mr. Washington, who was admired for his social graces but harshly criticized for his often-disastrous military strategy.

Through these lives we understand that the revolution was fought over the meaning of individual freedom, a philosophical idea that became a force for violent change. A powerful narrative and a brilliant defense of American values, Revolution Song makes the compelling case that the American Revolution is still being fought today and that its ideals are worth defending.

This event, which JAHA is co-sponsoring with The Tribune-Democrat, is free and open to the public. Books will be available for sale.