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Bruce Watson (writer)

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Bruce Watson
BornBruce Edward Watson
(1953-08-17) August 17, 1953 (age 71)
Peoria, Illinois
OccupationWriter
GenreNonfiction
SubjectAmerican culture and history
Website
www.theattic.space

Bruce Edward Watson (born August 17, 1953) is an American writer who specializes in American culture and history. He has written six books as well as feature articles, humorous essays, and book reviews for Smithsonian Magazine,[1] American Heritage,[2] and other publications. Watson publishes a blog called The Attic that highlights true stories "for a kinder, cooler America."[3][4][5]

Biography

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Watson was born on August 17, 1953, in Peoria, Illinois, and grew up in Orange County, California. He studied creative writing at Pomona College from 1971 to 1973. He received a B.A. in journalism in 1976 from the University of California, Berkeley, an elementary education credential from California State University San Francisco in 1981, a M.Ed. in elementary education, specializing in math, science, and instructional technology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1990, and a M.A. in American history from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1995. He has taught at Deerfield Academy, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Bard College, and Hampshire College.[6]

Since January 20, 2017, Watson has published a blog, The Attic. Watson conceived the site as a non-political response to the intensely partisan politics. “I was tired of all the anger,” he said. “It seemed like it was driving so much of the coverage and content in magazines and newspapers. At the same time, it felt like something was really being lost with our history. You have to know your country, know the past to move past all the anger.”[7]

Watson received The Bread and Roses Hall of Fame award in 2017.[8]

Works

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Title Publisher Date of Publication Notes
The Man Who Changed How Boys and Toys Were Made[9][10][11][12] Viking 2002
Bread and Roses: Mills, Migrants, and The Struggle for the American Dream[13] Viking 2005 New York Public Library's 25 Books to Remember in 2005.[14]
Sacco and Vanzetti: The Men, The Murders, and The Judgment of Mankind[15][16][17] Viking 2007 Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award nominee, True Fact/Crime category[18] The Washington Post, Top 10 Books of the Year[citation needed]
Freedom Summer: The Savage Season That Made Mississippi Burn and Made America a Democracy[19][20][21][22][23][24][25] Viking 2010 The San Francisco Chronicle Top 100 Books of the Year[26]
Jon Stewart: Beyond the Moments of Zen New World City 2012
Stephen Colbert: Beyond Truthiness New World City 2014
Light: A Radiant History from Creation to the Quantum Age[27][28] Bloomsbury 2016 Los Angeles Times Book Prize nominee[29][30]
Hearth and Soul: A History of the Jones Library at One Hundred[31] Levellers Press 2019

References

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  1. ^ "Articles by Bruce Watson". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  2. ^ "Bruce Watson". American Heritage. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  3. ^ Watson, Bruce. "the attic". The Attic. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  4. ^ Davis, Richie (October 17, 2017). "Out of the attic come tales of our traditions". Greenfield Recorder. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  5. ^ Watson, Bruce (December 10, 2017). "A columnist ahead of his time: Bruce Watson says goodbye to the Bulletin after 28 years". Amherst Bulletin. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  6. ^ "Bruce Edward Watson". Academia.edu. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  7. ^ Pfarrer, Steve (February 6, 2020). "Stories Worth Revisiting". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  8. ^ LaBella, Mike. "A celebration of human rights at Bread & Roses Festival". Eagle-Tribune. Archived from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2020-06-04.
  9. ^ Moonan, Wendy (December 13, 2002). "ANTIQUES; A Perfect Toy For a Nation Of Inventors". New York Times. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  10. ^ Yardley, Jonathan (November 14, 2002). "The Erector Set's Inventor, Working Hard at Play". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  11. ^ Adams, Susan. "Boy Toy". Forbes. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  12. ^ Coopee, Todd. "The Man Who Changed How Boys and Toys Were Made". Toy Tales. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
  13. ^ Dixler, Elsa (August 28, 2005). "'Bread and Roses': The Fruits of Labor". New York Times. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  14. ^ "'Freedom Summer' due for release next month". Meridian Star. Archived from the original on 2019-12-25. Retrieved 2020-06-04.
  15. ^ Grimes, William (August 15, 2007). "Prejudice and Politics: Sacco, Vanzetti and Fear". New York Times. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  16. ^ "Bruce Watson presents new book on Sacco & Vanzetti at the Boston Public Library". Sacco and Vanzetti Commemoration Society. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  17. ^ Rehm, Diane. "Bruce Watson: "Sacco & Vanzetti" (Viking)". Diane Rehm. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  18. ^ "Mystery Writers of America Best Fact Crime". The Edgars. Archived from the original on 2015-01-22. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  19. ^ "FREEDOM SUMMER: The Savage Season that Made Mississippi Burn and Made America a Democracy". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  20. ^ Garner, Dwight (July 18, 2010). "Mississippi Invaded by Idealism". New York Times. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  21. ^ "Freedom Summer: The Savage Season That Made Mississippi Burn and Made America a Democracy". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  22. ^ Wynn, Ron. "Freedom Summer: Bruce Watson". BookPage. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  23. ^ Lewis, David Levering. "'Freedom Summer,' by Bruce Watson". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  24. ^ "'Freedom Summer' due for release next month". The Meridian Star. May 16, 2010. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  25. ^ "Journey into Light". The Mountain Enterprise. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  26. ^ "Best of 2010 - 100 recommended books". Page FE2. The San Francisco Chronicle. December 19, 2010.
  27. ^ "Light: A Radiant History". Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  28. ^ Lightman, Alan (February 19, 2016). "Mysteries of light through the ages". Washington Post. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  29. ^ "Festival of Books 2017". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  30. ^ "Los Angeles Book Prize Finalists..." Los Angeles Times. February 22, 2017. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  31. ^ Watson, Bruce (2019). Hearth and Soul: A History of the Jones Library at One Hundred. Levellers Press. ISBN 978-1-945473-87-6.
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