An expansive history of Native America and winner of the National Book Award, now adapted for younger readers. This is an essential resource for teachers and students to combat the erasure of Native peoples from US history, telling a fuller and truer account of America.
“Eloquent and comprehensive.... In the book’s sweeping synthesis, standard flashpoints of U.S. history take on new meaning.” —Kathleen DuVal, Wall Street Journal
Weaving five centuries of Native and non‑Native histories, from Spanish colonial exploration to the rise of Native American self-determination in the late twentieth century and its evolution in the twenty-first century, Blackhawk ‘rediscovers’ America, guiding readers to a new understanding of our nation’s past and, hopefully, our collective future. The book shows how:
- European colonization in the 1600s was never a predetermined success;
- the first shots of the American Revolution were prompted by Indian affairs in the interior;
- California Indians targeted by federally funded militias were among the first casualties of the Civil War;
- twentieth-century reservation activists refashioned American law and policy;
- Native history is alive; it is not a relic of the past as it is often presented in history books and lessons.
The most enduring feature of U.S. history is the presence of Native Americans, yet most histories focus on Europeans and their descendants. Adapted by Rebecca Stefoff, Blackhawk’s The Rediscovery of America for Young People fills a pressing need in the teaching of American history. The book acknowledges the enduring power, agency, and survival of Indigenous peoples, revealing anew the varied meanings of America.
Includes maps, period photos, and other visuals.
Praise for The Rediscovery of America (2023):
Winner of the National Book Award for Nonfiction 2023
A Publishers Weekly Top 10 Best Book of 2023
New York Times, 100 Notable Books of 2023
New Yorker, The Best Books of 2023
New York Times Book Review, Editors’ Choice
Esquire, The 20 Best Books of 2023
Finalist, 2023 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in History
The For Young People series adapts celebrated nonfiction books for middle and high school readers and includes critically acclaimed and bestselling histories by Ronald Takaki, Howard Zinn, Jared Diamond, Charles C. Mann, and others.
November17
Tue. Nov 17, 2026 6:00pm - 7:00pm EST
Margaret Liebman Berger Forum (2nd Fl)
The New York Public...
November18
Wednesday. Nov 18, 2026 6:00pm - 7:00pm EST
Margaret Liebman Berger Forum (2nd Fl)
The New York...
NED BLACKHAWK (Western Shoshone) is the Howard R. Lamar Professor of History and American Studies at Yale University, where he is the faculty coordinator for the Yale Group for the Study of Native America. His 2023 book, The Rediscovery of America, which centers Indigenous people across a sweep of 500 years of United States history, was critically acclaimed and won the 2023 National Book Award, the 2024 Anisfield-Wolf Award, and the 2024 Mark Lynton History Prize. He is also the author of Violence over the Land: Indians and Empires in the Early American West. He lives in New Haven, CT.
Rebecca Stefoff has devoted her career to writing nonfiction books for young readers. Her publications include histories, literary biographies, an encyclopedia of maps, and numerous books on science and environmental issues. She has also adapted a number of landmark works in history and science, include Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, Jared Diamond's The Third Chimpanzee, Charles C. Mann's bestselling 1493, Jill Jonnes's Eiffel's Tower, and Ronald Takaki's A Different Mirror for Young People: A History of Multicultural America.
