The United States is celebrating its 250th birthday this summer, giving Americans a chance to reflect on the nation’s past and imagine its future.
Who better to help us make sense of this moment than Jill Lepore? The Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, longtime staff writer at The New Yorker and author of “We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution” joined the “Book Review” podcast to recommend some reading for the occasion. She also revisits the politics and drama of America’s previous birthdays, and discusses how a dystopian novel may be the most relevant read about the country right now.
After that, Elisabeth Egan, an editor at The Book Review, lays out some of the summer’s most anticipated beach reads.
Books Discussed on This Episode:
“<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/14/books/review/we-the-people-jill-lepore.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution</a>,” by Jill Lepore
“The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State,” by Jill Lepore (forthcoming)
“<a href="https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/maier-scripture.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">American Scripture</a>,” by Pauline Maier
“Bicentennial,” by Mark Stein
“<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/04/books/review/gliff-ali-smith.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Gliff</a>,” by Ali Smith
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/05/books/review/yesteryear-caro-claire-burke.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“Yesteryear,”</a> by Caro Claire Burke
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/11/books/review/belle-burden-strangers-memoir-of-marriage.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage,”</a> by Belle Burden
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/01/books/review/whistler-ann-patchett.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“Whistler,”</a> by Ann Patchett
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/04/books/review/the-things-we-never-say-elizabeth-strout.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“The Things We Never Say,”</a> by Elizabeth Strout
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/24/books/review/summer-beach-reads.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“Man Overboard!,”</a> by Kathleen Rooney
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/07/books/review/american-fantasy-emma-straub.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“American Fantasy,</a>” by Emma Straub
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/08/books/review/a-marriage-at-sea-sophie-elmhirst.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“A Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession, and Shipwreck”</a>: Sophie Elmhirst
“The Shampoo Effect,” by Jenny Jackson
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/12/books/best-elin-hilderbrand-books.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The “Nantucket” book series</a>, by Elin Hilderbrand
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/05/podcasts/tbr-summer-books-roundup.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“Cool Machine,”</a> by Colson Whitehead
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/10/podcasts/patrick-radden-keefe-london.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth,”</a> by Patrick Radden Keefe
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/18/books/review/theo-baker-how-to-rule-the-world.html?eafs_enabled=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">“How to Rule the World: An Education in Power at Stanford University,”</a> by Theo Baker
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