The Declaration Now—and Then
The Declaration of Independence in Historical Context: American State Papers, Petitions, Proclamations & Letters of the Delegates to the First National Congresses Edited by Barry Alan Shain. Yale University Press, 2015. Paperback, 750 pages, $125. Reviewed by...
Divine Light and Darkness
Dark Gospel: Figure of Descent By Christine Perrin. Eighth Day Books, 2026. Paperback, 91 pages, $22.00. Reviewed by Sarah Reardon. When in my early teenage years I first heard of the Christian doctrine of the “Harrowing of Hell,” I was shocked. The essence of that...
Out of Pathos and into Mathos: All the King’s Men at 80
All the King’s Men By Robert Penn Warren. Harcourt Brace and Company, 1946. Reviewed by Will Fletcher. There is a strong temptation to render Robert Penn Warren’s 1946 masterpiece All the King’s Men in a purely political valence. It all accords upon a first look: a...
“The Truths We Keep Coming Back and Back to”: A Critical Sampling of Gloria Whelan’s Short Fiction
Playing with Shadows By Gloria Whelan. University of Illinois Press, 1988. Paperback, 160 pages, $12.95. Reviewed by James E. Person Jr. “You are undoubtedly the best writer of short stories ever to inhabit Michigan!” wrote Russell Kirk to his friend Gloria Whelan...
Every Line Read Is a Gain
The Unforgivable and Other Writings By Cristina Campo. Translated from the Italian by Alex Andriesse. Introduction by Kathryn Davis. New York Review Books Classics, 2024. Paperback, 288 pages, $18.95. Reviewed by Fr. Joseph Hudson. There is an image near the...
TFAS Woodhouse Public Policy Fellows Explore The Roots of American Order at Piety Hill
TFAS Woodhouse Public Policy Fellows Explore The Roots of American Order at Piety Hill From October 15–18, the Russell Kirk Center welcomed twenty Woodhouse Public Policy Fellows from The Fund for American Studies (TFAS) for a thought-provoking seminar on Russell...
Confronting our Current Digital Malaise
The One and the Ninety-Nine: Forging Identity in the Age of Social Contagion By Luke Burgis. St. Martin’s Press, 2026. Hardcover, 288 pages, $30. Reviewed by Gene Callahan. Luke Burgis has written an interesting book exploring the tension between belonging and...
A Secular Confession
Nothing Left: Confessions of a Democratic Operative By Evan Barker. Simon and Schuster, 2026. Hardcover, 288 pages, $29. Reviewed by John C. “Chuck” Chalberg. The journey from left to right is a staple of American political memoirs. But few journeys have been as...
Ames, Hamilton, Marshall: Russell Kirk’s Other Founding Federalists
By Michael Lucchese. A Russell Kirk Center Special Series Throughout the semiquincentennial year celebrating America’s independence, The University Bookman will invite a range of writers and speakers to contribute to a series drawing upon Russell Kirk’s work on the...
Going West, Berlin Style
Cold War City: A History of West Berlin By David E. Barclay. Princeton University Press, 2026. Hardcover, 680 pages, $39.95. Reviewed by Nadya Williams. It is perhaps fitting that after spending the first decade of my life in the Soviet Union, I first learned...
@BethanyBlankley A prior Wilbur Fellow at @kirkcenter, Bethany is a syndicated journalist covering a wide range of issues in national politics. Join us on 11.19 at @PressClubDC in D.C. to celebrate Bethany’s fellowship award and other recipients including @VolokhC: https://buff.ly/AQdOQuA
And join us for the annual Gerald Russello Memorial Lecture in NYC on December 2