2018-2019 Faculty Books

Over the last year, faculty in the department released new books covering subjects ranging the globe and spanning time. Summer is the perfect time to catch up on reading these new releases. Learn more about the books below.

Anthony Cardoza, professor of history, has written extensively on modern Italy. His most recent book is A History of Modern Italy: Transformation and Continuity, 1796 to the Present, published by Oxford University Press. In this book, Dr. Cardoza examines Italy’s formation into a nation from the nineteenth century into the twenty-first century. He places this into the broader context of global history. This book makes a great addition to a European history course!

Lewis Erenberg spans the Atlantic Ocean with his examination of the fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in his latest book The Rumble in the Jungle: Muhammad Ali & George Foreman on the Global Stage. Dr. Erenberg shows how international events including the American Civil Rights movement and African liberation efforts can reach a turning point in a boxing match. Dr. Erenberg is one of the History Department’s emeritus faculty Members. The University of Chicago published his book. 

Timothy Gilfoyle’s newly edited book returns readers to the United States. After several years of work, The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Urban History hit bookshelves this spring. Dr. Gilfoyle oversaw the process of turning 92 articles from individual scholars into one cohesive work. Dr. Gilfoyle is a Professor of History and associate editor of the Journal of Urban History. 

Harold L. Platt, professor emeritus, provides a gripping example of environmental history in his latest book Sinking Chicago: Climate Change and the Remaking of a Flood-Prone Environment. Chicago sits on a prairie wetland, which many residents since 1945 have forgotten. Dr. Platt examines how Chicago remade the environment and how environmentalists won against policymakers who ignored the consequences of climate change. This book can provide readers with possible solutions to future environmental problems. 

Let the People See: The Story of Emmett Till by Dr. Elliott Gorn turns readers toward the horrific killing of Emmett Till in 1955. The story held the nation’s attention when Emmett died and Mamie Till-Mobley insisted on an open casket funeral to show the world what racism caused. Dr. Gorn provides new insights to the events of the 1950s but also explores the way this case lived on with new evidence and the FBI’s reopening of the case in 2005. For those interested in Chicago’s history, many of the events described in this book took place within the city. Dr. Gorn is the Joseph A. Gagliano Chair in American Urban History. 

Barabara Rosenwein has an intriguing volume packed full of information and artifacts. She co-authored The Middle Ages in 50 Objects with Dr. Elina Gertsman. This book examines material culture from European, Byzantine, and Islamic worlds under the four categories of The Holy and the Faithful, The Sinful and the Spectral, Daily Life and Its Fictions, and Death and Its Aftermath. One reviewer called it “a splendid visual feast.” Dr. Rosenwein is Professor Emerita who taught at Loyola for over thirty years.