Tom Shachtman
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Since I always wanted to be a writer, I consider myself fortunate to have had my work published and produced in many forms—40 histories, novels, and books for children, plus filmed documentaries and TV dramas, poetry, plays, songs, newspaper columns, magazine articles, even a comic book.
My newest book (January 2020) is THE FOUNDING FORTUNES: HOW THE WEALTHY PAID FOR AND PROFITED FROM AMERICA’S REVOLUTION. This completes a trilogy of books on the Revolutionary Era; the earlier ones are GENTLEMEN SCIENTISTS AND REVOLUTIONARIES, and HOW THE FRENCH SAVED AMERICA.
My book ABSOLUTE ZERO AND THE CONQUEST OF COLD, about 400 years of research into low temperatures, became the basis for a two-hour documentary special for BBC and PBS. The program and my script for it won the American Institute of Physics’ science writing award for 2009. The book itself was praised by The New York Times Book Review as written “with passion and clarity,” by the Library Journal as “truly wonderful,” and by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as “an absolute delight.”
Many of my other books have also received welcome critical praise. Library Journal wrote of RUMSPRINGA: TO BE OR NOT TO BE AMISH that is provided “a near-unprecedented glimpse into the inner lives of Amish society.” The Economist called AROUND THE BLOCK “a near-classic,” The New Yorker “A grand idea, splendidly executed,” and The Washington Post Book World “thoughtful, interesting … a good and useful book.” THE INARTICULATE SOCIETY was judged as “perceptive and disturbing” by The Washington Post, and by The Wall Street Journal as “a provocative examination of the American way with words.” Business Week labeled SKYSCRAPER DREAMS “fascinating history … the stuff of grand comedy,” and The New York Times cited it for “superb reporting on the industry’s wheeling and dealing.” “Fascinating … illuminating … stunning detail,” the Chicago Tribune wrote of THE GILDED LEAF (written with Patrick Reynolds).
I’ve also written books for children, including three novels, BEACHMASTER, WAVEBENDER and DRIFTWHISTLER, now published in several languages. My non-fiction children’s books include THE PRESIDENT BUILDS A HOUSE, about the work of Habitat for Humanity and, with my wife Harriet Shelare, VIDEO POWER.
My collaborations with criminologist Robert K. Ressler, the man who coined the term serial killers and knew more about them than anyone else, include WHOEVER FIGHTS MONSTERS and I HAVE LIVED IN THE MONSTER, both multi-million-copy best-sellers overseas.
My articles have appeared in The New York Times, Newsday, Smithsonian, and the Hoover Digest, as well as on the websites of The Daily Beast, Huffington Post, History News Network, and the Journal of the American Revolution. My occasional column for THE LAKEVILLE JOURNAL (CT), “The Long View,’ provides historical context to current events.
I am a lifetime member of the Writers Guild of America, a longtime member of The Authors Guild, and a former president of the board and current trustee of The Writers Room in New York City, an urban writers’ colony. I’ve also served as a trustee of the Connecticut Humanities Council, and of The Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area.
My newest book (January 2020) is THE FOUNDING FORTUNES: HOW THE WEALTHY PAID FOR AND PROFITED FROM AMERICA’S REVOLUTION. This completes a trilogy of books on the Revolutionary Era; the earlier ones are GENTLEMEN SCIENTISTS AND REVOLUTIONARIES, and HOW THE FRENCH SAVED AMERICA.
My book ABSOLUTE ZERO AND THE CONQUEST OF COLD, about 400 years of research into low temperatures, became the basis for a two-hour documentary special for BBC and PBS. The program and my script for it won the American Institute of Physics’ science writing award for 2009. The book itself was praised by The New York Times Book Review as written “with passion and clarity,” by the Library Journal as “truly wonderful,” and by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as “an absolute delight.”
Many of my other books have also received welcome critical praise. Library Journal wrote of RUMSPRINGA: TO BE OR NOT TO BE AMISH that is provided “a near-unprecedented glimpse into the inner lives of Amish society.” The Economist called AROUND THE BLOCK “a near-classic,” The New Yorker “A grand idea, splendidly executed,” and The Washington Post Book World “thoughtful, interesting … a good and useful book.” THE INARTICULATE SOCIETY was judged as “perceptive and disturbing” by The Washington Post, and by The Wall Street Journal as “a provocative examination of the American way with words.” Business Week labeled SKYSCRAPER DREAMS “fascinating history … the stuff of grand comedy,” and The New York Times cited it for “superb reporting on the industry’s wheeling and dealing.” “Fascinating … illuminating … stunning detail,” the Chicago Tribune wrote of THE GILDED LEAF (written with Patrick Reynolds).
I’ve also written books for children, including three novels, BEACHMASTER, WAVEBENDER and DRIFTWHISTLER, now published in several languages. My non-fiction children’s books include THE PRESIDENT BUILDS A HOUSE, about the work of Habitat for Humanity and, with my wife Harriet Shelare, VIDEO POWER.
My collaborations with criminologist Robert K. Ressler, the man who coined the term serial killers and knew more about them than anyone else, include WHOEVER FIGHTS MONSTERS and I HAVE LIVED IN THE MONSTER, both multi-million-copy best-sellers overseas.
My articles have appeared in The New York Times, Newsday, Smithsonian, and the Hoover Digest, as well as on the websites of The Daily Beast, Huffington Post, History News Network, and the Journal of the American Revolution. My occasional column for THE LAKEVILLE JOURNAL (CT), “The Long View,’ provides historical context to current events.
I am a lifetime member of the Writers Guild of America, a longtime member of The Authors Guild, and a former president of the board and current trustee of The Writers Room in New York City, an urban writers’ colony. I’ve also served as a trustee of the Connecticut Humanities Council, and of The Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area.
Books By Tom Shachtman
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