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A Resistance History of the United States
Not yet published
Expected 2 Jun 26A bold new understanding of how resistance has shaped American history--told through episodes from America's past that illustrate resistance principles we can use to change our world today.
The United States was shaped by resistance--but not in the way we've been taught. The Revolution did not secure liberty; it opened the door to either liberty or oppression, where only white men enjoyed all of the benefits and protections of citizenship.
In A Resistance History of the United States, public historian Tad Stoermer shows how from the very beginning, that tension--between the ideals of resistance and the realities of power--has defined America more than the Enlightenment ideals enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Utililizing powerful storytelling to focus on key--and often lesser-known--moments in American history, this book reveals the truth of how resistance movements from Colonial times have opposed the powers that be. Stoermer covers an impressive roster of pivotal movements, including:
• Bacon's Rebellion/Metacomet's War (1676)
• Witch Trials (1692)
• The Black Loyalists (1783)
• The Underground Railroad (1850)
Through these and many more examples, Stoermer dismantles the mythologies that pass for American history--exposing the curated nostalgia, moral evasions, and institutional silences that have long protected abusive power. What emerges is an essential look at how we can take lessons from the past to understand, and effectively respond to, the injustices we face today.
The United States was shaped by resistance--but not in the way we've been taught. The Revolution did not secure liberty; it opened the door to either liberty or oppression, where only white men enjoyed all of the benefits and protections of citizenship.
In A Resistance History of the United States, public historian Tad Stoermer shows how from the very beginning, that tension--between the ideals of resistance and the realities of power--has defined America more than the Enlightenment ideals enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Utililizing powerful storytelling to focus on key--and often lesser-known--moments in American history, this book reveals the truth of how resistance movements from Colonial times have opposed the powers that be. Stoermer covers an impressive roster of pivotal movements, including:
• Bacon's Rebellion/Metacomet's War (1676)
• Witch Trials (1692)
• The Black Loyalists (1783)
• The Underground Railroad (1850)
Through these and many more examples, Stoermer dismantles the mythologies that pass for American history--exposing the curated nostalgia, moral evasions, and institutional silences that have long protected abusive power. What emerges is an essential look at how we can take lessons from the past to understand, and effectively respond to, the injustices we face today.
368 pages, Paperback
Expected publication June 2, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Did Not Finish
April 2, 2026DNF. This felt more like an academic paper than anything else. I didn't get far. 🤷♀️
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Just when you thought you knew enough American history that you could converse at cocktail parties or to argue astutely, albeit politely, around the Thanksgiving dinner table along comes a book like this. I’ve got news for you. I thought I knew some American history until I read this, and now I must count myself truly ignorant and start relearning things in order to make the history—the Resistance History—matter in today’s context. Otherwise, it just won’t matter much at all.
First about the author. Tad Stoermer is a widely recognized public historian and lecturer in Colonial History, having earned his PhD from the University of Virginia. He also earned fellowships from Harvard, Brown, Yale, and Monticello. He teaches Public History at Johns Hopkins, and is also a Visiting Scholar at the University of Southern Denmark, where he and his family spend some of their time besides Cape Cod. Prior to his writing and academic pursuits, Professor Stoermer was an Army Reconnaissance Scout, and worked in the Democratic political arena.
To those of you who will have the privilege of reading this book when it comes out, please trust me when I tell you that the history you thought you knew well, that your kids perhaps, are getting taught in detail in school—perhaps in college—well, they’re not. And certainly not in any useful detail.
History was, and was always meant to be, a tool for us to use for our benefit in whatever time we’re in and that is what Tad Stoermer has done to great effect with A Resistance History of the United States.
Starting with the first “power plays” between the Pilgrims of Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts and the indigenous tribes that greeted them in the 1620s, headed by the Wampanoag tribe and their sachem Metacomet (aka King Phillip, familiarly to the English) Stoermer begins with the largest war of the 17th century that resulted in the near erasure of the indigenous tribes from New England by the end of that century.
And you thought the Pilgrims came over on the Mayflower just for freedom of religion. King Phillip’s War, as it became known, lasted nearly three years from 1675 to 1678, and ended with Metacomet’s killing in Rhode Island. Thousands of indigenous tribes’ members were vanquished from New England as a result of the war, and many died by disease, and in combat against the British. This pattern of engagement would continue for the next 150 years.
And this is just the beginning of a long, bigoted history of oppression dressed up as patriotic and religious mythology that most of us grew up with from kindergarten through high school. Perhaps even further in college history classes.
This pattern continues in time and geography down to the Jamestown Settlement of Virginia where Nathaniel Bacon was cooking up a grievance filled power grab of his own. Bacon had his own issues with indigenous tribes in his area, and was quite bigoted as one might imagine, The Governor of the colony, a much more temperate man named William Berkeley would have nothing to do with vanquishing the tribes as Bacon demanded, and a rebellion ensued. The rebellion resulted in Bacon’s execution, and Berkeley’s recall to England.
One of the great and connecting themes of this Resistance History is that for every Colonial American lesson, there is at least one useful tool for modern “resisters” to use today in the battle against oppressive powers that will, without hesitation, use that power to build further to define itself however it wishes, using the most monstrous narratives that civilized society would otherwise find repugnant.
Don’t be alarmed at this bit of time travel! There are great lessons to be taken from over 350 years of rebellious behavior, good and bad, that deserve attention whether one is just reading for strictly educational purposes or, as many who victims of the American slave trade at the hands of mythical luminaries like James Madison, George Washington, and others who had a hand in the drafting of our republic’s original Constitution.
The Underground Railroad, for example was a brilliant and long lasting instrument used to get thousands of slaves to Canada using one the best intelligence networks ever devised. Historians today don’t have all the details on how the network operated.
Going back in time to the Salem Witch Trials of the 1960s where oppressive power was beaten with the truth of the declared innocence of the accused women, who carried that truth to the gallows with them in order to defeat the oppression of the powerful men who sat in judgment of them.
From the use of slaves and indentured servants in the American Revolution, the constitutional compromises that left slavery in place until after the Civil War (Hint: Lincoln favored leaving it alone to preserve the republic) the lessons are detailed, and filled with blueprints of how historically successful resistance movements operated, as well as unsuccessful movements failed. Included are the characteristics of the people that make up both, with detailed examples throughout time.
Tad Stoermer’s A Resistance History of the United States is a master class of methodology in detail, and not just another history easily obtained anywhere. It is powerfully useful, and demands the reader follow the evidence toward the logical—not always comfortable—conclusion.
I highly recommend A Resistance History of the United States to the student of history, as well as any serious student on the current goings on in the world, obtain this book as soon as it becomes available, and derive the important lessons that will be taken from it, and used if willing.
First about the author. Tad Stoermer is a widely recognized public historian and lecturer in Colonial History, having earned his PhD from the University of Virginia. He also earned fellowships from Harvard, Brown, Yale, and Monticello. He teaches Public History at Johns Hopkins, and is also a Visiting Scholar at the University of Southern Denmark, where he and his family spend some of their time besides Cape Cod. Prior to his writing and academic pursuits, Professor Stoermer was an Army Reconnaissance Scout, and worked in the Democratic political arena.
To those of you who will have the privilege of reading this book when it comes out, please trust me when I tell you that the history you thought you knew well, that your kids perhaps, are getting taught in detail in school—perhaps in college—well, they’re not. And certainly not in any useful detail.
History was, and was always meant to be, a tool for us to use for our benefit in whatever time we’re in and that is what Tad Stoermer has done to great effect with A Resistance History of the United States.
Starting with the first “power plays” between the Pilgrims of Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts and the indigenous tribes that greeted them in the 1620s, headed by the Wampanoag tribe and their sachem Metacomet (aka King Phillip, familiarly to the English) Stoermer begins with the largest war of the 17th century that resulted in the near erasure of the indigenous tribes from New England by the end of that century.
And you thought the Pilgrims came over on the Mayflower just for freedom of religion. King Phillip’s War, as it became known, lasted nearly three years from 1675 to 1678, and ended with Metacomet’s killing in Rhode Island. Thousands of indigenous tribes’ members were vanquished from New England as a result of the war, and many died by disease, and in combat against the British. This pattern of engagement would continue for the next 150 years.
And this is just the beginning of a long, bigoted history of oppression dressed up as patriotic and religious mythology that most of us grew up with from kindergarten through high school. Perhaps even further in college history classes.
This pattern continues in time and geography down to the Jamestown Settlement of Virginia where Nathaniel Bacon was cooking up a grievance filled power grab of his own. Bacon had his own issues with indigenous tribes in his area, and was quite bigoted as one might imagine, The Governor of the colony, a much more temperate man named William Berkeley would have nothing to do with vanquishing the tribes as Bacon demanded, and a rebellion ensued. The rebellion resulted in Bacon’s execution, and Berkeley’s recall to England.
One of the great and connecting themes of this Resistance History is that for every Colonial American lesson, there is at least one useful tool for modern “resisters” to use today in the battle against oppressive powers that will, without hesitation, use that power to build further to define itself however it wishes, using the most monstrous narratives that civilized society would otherwise find repugnant.
Don’t be alarmed at this bit of time travel! There are great lessons to be taken from over 350 years of rebellious behavior, good and bad, that deserve attention whether one is just reading for strictly educational purposes or, as many who victims of the American slave trade at the hands of mythical luminaries like James Madison, George Washington, and others who had a hand in the drafting of our republic’s original Constitution.
The Underground Railroad, for example was a brilliant and long lasting instrument used to get thousands of slaves to Canada using one the best intelligence networks ever devised. Historians today don’t have all the details on how the network operated.
Going back in time to the Salem Witch Trials of the 1960s where oppressive power was beaten with the truth of the declared innocence of the accused women, who carried that truth to the gallows with them in order to defeat the oppression of the powerful men who sat in judgment of them.
From the use of slaves and indentured servants in the American Revolution, the constitutional compromises that left slavery in place until after the Civil War (Hint: Lincoln favored leaving it alone to preserve the republic) the lessons are detailed, and filled with blueprints of how historically successful resistance movements operated, as well as unsuccessful movements failed. Included are the characteristics of the people that make up both, with detailed examples throughout time.
Tad Stoermer’s A Resistance History of the United States is a master class of methodology in detail, and not just another history easily obtained anywhere. It is powerfully useful, and demands the reader follow the evidence toward the logical—not always comfortable—conclusion.
I highly recommend A Resistance History of the United States to the student of history, as well as any serious student on the current goings on in the world, obtain this book as soon as it becomes available, and derive the important lessons that will be taken from it, and used if willing.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you NetGalley and Duckworth & Pushkin Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
This was an interesting read, but I needed time to sit with it. It's not overly academic, but it definitely makes you think. This book reframes U.S. history through the lens of resistance instead of the usual patriotic "we were always destined for greatness" narrative. What really stood out was how Stoermer centers people and movements that usually get pushed to the footnotes: Bacon's Rebellion, Metacomet's War, the Salem Witch Trials, Black Loyalists, the Underground Railroad, and more. Each chapter tells the story in a vivid way that shows not just what happened, but how those strategies and sacrifices still show up in today's struggles. I appreciated that the book doesn't give you a feel-good ending. It dismantles the comforting myths we've been told and shows how resistance has always forced power to bend, usually at enormous personal cost. That honesty hit hard. As a correction to the version of history most of us were taught, and as a way to think about activism today, it's smart, bracing, and absolutely worth your time.
This was an interesting read, but I needed time to sit with it. It's not overly academic, but it definitely makes you think. This book reframes U.S. history through the lens of resistance instead of the usual patriotic "we were always destined for greatness" narrative. What really stood out was how Stoermer centers people and movements that usually get pushed to the footnotes: Bacon's Rebellion, Metacomet's War, the Salem Witch Trials, Black Loyalists, the Underground Railroad, and more. Each chapter tells the story in a vivid way that shows not just what happened, but how those strategies and sacrifices still show up in today's struggles. I appreciated that the book doesn't give you a feel-good ending. It dismantles the comforting myths we've been told and shows how resistance has always forced power to bend, usually at enormous personal cost. That honesty hit hard. As a correction to the version of history most of us were taught, and as a way to think about activism today, it's smart, bracing, and absolutely worth your time.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I find Stoermer's TikTok videos so captivating, so when I saw his new nonfiction book on Resistance History available on NetGalley I knew I really wanted to read it. As I was reading, I imagined the author narrating it to me and it actually was quite fascinating.
Resistance has always been a part of history where any sort of power is present. It was interesting to read about the different events Stoermer chose to highlight. He relayed what happened in each case and showed how to recognize patterns of how the resistance started, what countered it, and what the outcome was. I thought it was a great glimpse into lesser talked about resistance movements and the reason why most of them failed.
Stoermer does a great job relaying the facts. It does get presented in a more academic narrative so I did have to read a section at a time. That structure is not my type of narrative that I typical like to read but I do think it worked for this topic and I definitely came out with more knowledge on the subject than I had going in.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Steerforth & Pushkin for the advanced reader copy. The above review is 100% my own honest opinion.
Resistance has always been a part of history where any sort of power is present. It was interesting to read about the different events Stoermer chose to highlight. He relayed what happened in each case and showed how to recognize patterns of how the resistance started, what countered it, and what the outcome was. I thought it was a great glimpse into lesser talked about resistance movements and the reason why most of them failed.
Stoermer does a great job relaying the facts. It does get presented in a more academic narrative so I did have to read a section at a time. That structure is not my type of narrative that I typical like to read but I do think it worked for this topic and I definitely came out with more knowledge on the subject than I had going in.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Steerforth & Pushkin for the advanced reader copy. The above review is 100% my own honest opinion.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This is a must-read book for anyone who wants to gain a greater understanding of the history of the United States. Tad Stoermer reviews several key events in US history that came to pass because to well-planned resistance activities. He also encourages the reader to dig deeper into historical events surrounding the pre-Civil War history of the the US and how a mythology has grown up around them, making it feel impossible to challenge politicians when they are doing wrong. This book serves as a call to action as well as an unmythologized look at what the US was and is, and how lasting change can come about.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
A Resistance History of the United States is a good nonfiction book discussing resistance in America. While some reviews point out that it reads like an academic paper, I don't think this is a bad thing. When dealing with this level of information, it is going to sound a bit academic, in my opinion. The writing is clear and the author does a good job explaining everything in detail. I learned new details about a couple acts of resistance that I had not previous known. Stories of resistance are so important to share, and I think Tad Stoermer makes learning about them more accessible through their book.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
4.25 stars
This was an excellent look at some of the ways in which resistance against corrupt, abusive authorities has shaped the United States of America. It also talks a great deal about what resistance really means. The writing was great, but it did feel very academic and dry. Even with the dry writing, I still found it to be highly interesting. It was packed full of information and facts and felt very well researched. My only real issue with this was how leading it felt. I felt like the author was pulling me towards an opinion instead of just presenting their argument and letting me arrive at the proper conclusion.
This was an excellent look at some of the ways in which resistance against corrupt, abusive authorities has shaped the United States of America. It also talks a great deal about what resistance really means. The writing was great, but it did feel very academic and dry. Even with the dry writing, I still found it to be highly interesting. It was packed full of information and facts and felt very well researched. My only real issue with this was how leading it felt. I felt like the author was pulling me towards an opinion instead of just presenting their argument and letting me arrive at the proper conclusion.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
"American resistance to abusive authority achieved the greatest advances for liberty in the nation's history. Not through patience. Not through working within the system. Not through trust that the arc of history bends towards justice on its own. Through people who recognize that those holding power were abusing it, understood where and when permitted channels had failed, and forced change against institutions designed to prevent it. Every significant expansion of rights in American history came from resistance forcing authority to answer."
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thanks to NetGalley and Steerforth for the eARC; all opinions are my own.
This is a really intriguing perspective on US history. I loved Stoermer's knowledge and research. This is a pretty heady book, so may not be a straight-read-through for every reader. This may be better/equally enjoyed reading a chapter here and there. Don't get me wrong - the whole book is interesting and worth a ready, but it's a lot of info to digest.
I really appreciated the new angle on events I've heard of before.
This is a really intriguing perspective on US history. I loved Stoermer's knowledge and research. This is a pretty heady book, so may not be a straight-read-through for every reader. This may be better/equally enjoyed reading a chapter here and there. Don't get me wrong - the whole book is interesting and worth a ready, but it's a lot of info to digest.
I really appreciated the new angle on events I've heard of before.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This was a compelling, comprehensive, informative book telling the resistance history of the United States from its pre-revolutionary days through to Reconstruction. It does so by not just reciting what happened, but explaining how and why resistance worked, where it faltered, and what we can learn from it. This book serves both as a reminder and a call to action, especially in the times we are living in at present.
Did Not Finish
March 7, 2026Thank you Netgalley for the arc!
Unfortunately, this is a DNF for me at 15%.
I'm super sad that I didn't like this one, and who knows? Maybe it gets better later on.
I feel like the concept is solid, I was on board to read about resistance movements throughout US history, but the execution left a lot to be desired.
It kind of reads like a school essay, and I don't really feel anything behind the writing. Sort of a monotonous read, and felt like reading one long Wikipedia article, I'm sorry.
Unfortunately, this is a DNF for me at 15%.
I'm super sad that I didn't like this one, and who knows? Maybe it gets better later on.
I feel like the concept is solid, I was on board to read about resistance movements throughout US history, but the execution left a lot to be desired.
It kind of reads like a school essay, and I don't really feel anything behind the writing. Sort of a monotonous read, and felt like reading one long Wikipedia article, I'm sorry.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a free ARC in exchange for an honest review! I'm very grateful!!
This book was incredibly informative, and I learned so much from it. The details, message, and writing were extremely well thought out. It seemed very fitting for this point in time, and I'm very glad I read it.
It was a bit boring at times, but that's expected and didn't detract a lot.
This book was incredibly informative, and I learned so much from it. The details, message, and writing were extremely well thought out. It seemed very fitting for this point in time, and I'm very glad I read it.
It was a bit boring at times, but that's expected and didn't detract a lot.
Read
February 11, 2026“In a system sustained by state-sponsored lies, the most fundamental act of resistance is the refusal to validate the falsehood. The simple, steadfast, and public assertion of truth, even at immense personal cost, is a direct assault on the legitimacy of abusive authority.”
A really interesting and accessible examination of resistance throughout history, feels very timely.
A really interesting and accessible examination of resistance throughout history, feels very timely.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I love anything to do with resistance, so was absolutely sat for this. Was very interesting to read about the Underground Railroad in particular
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews