New Book from Howard Zinn

A People's History of American Empire

Adapted from the bestselling grassroots history of the United States, the story of America in the world, told in comics form.

Since its landmark publication in 1980, A People’s History of the United States has had six new editions, sold more than 1.7 million copies, become required classroom reading throughout the country, and been turned into an acclaimed play. More than a successful book, A People’s History triggered a revolution in the way history is told, displacing the official versions with their emphasis on great men in high places to chronicle events as they were lived, from the bottom up.

Now Howard Zinn, historian Paul Buhle, and cartoonist Mike Konopacki have collaborated to retell, in vibrant comics form, a most immediate and relevant chapter of A People’s History: the centuries-long story of America’s actions in the world. Narrated by Zinn, this version opens with the events of 9/11 and then jumps back to explore the cycles of U.S. expansionism from Wounded Knee to Iraq, stopping along the way at World War I, Central America, Vietnam, and the Iranian revolution. The book also follows the story of Zinn, the son of poor Jewish immigrants, from his childhood in the Brooklyn slums to his role as one of America’s leading historians.

Shifting from world-shattering events to one family’s small revolutions, A People’s History of American Empire presents the classic ground-level history of America in a dazzling new form.

“At the heart of this wide-ranging comics indictment of American Empire are the terrific human stories of those who have resisted — including wonderful autobiographical episodes from author Howard Zinn’s own courageous and inspiring life.”-Joe Sacco, author of Safe Area Gorazde

See the Boston Globe review:

“No ordinary comic book”
March 27, 2008
http://www.boston.com/ae/celebrity/articles/2008/03/27/no_ordinary_comic…

And from The Huffington Post:

“Why Are We Always on the Wrong Side? (A Comic Book Offers Answers)”
May 7, 2008
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-miller/why-are-we-always-on-the_b_10…

Author Biographies:

Howard Zinn, author of numerous acclaimed histories, taught history at Spelman College and Boston University, and has received the Lannan Literary Award, among many others. A People’s History of the United States was a finalist for the 1980 National Book Award. He lives in Massachusetts.

Mike Konopacki has collaborated on five collections of cartoons, and his work is regularly syndicated. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

Paul Buhle is a senior lecturer in history at Brown University and the editor of the Encyclopedia of the American Left, among other books. He lives in Providence, Rhode Island.