Regional or cultural histories seem to be more in vogue now more than ever before. They have undoubtedly grown in popularity as the historical field encompasses new and varied ways of interpreting our shared past. Within this broad range of historiography, a select few have become must-reads for budding academic historians or simply those enthralled with the genre or a particular geographic area. David Hackett Fischer’s Albion’s Seed on the English and British cultural roots of colonial society, Ned C. Landsman’s Crossroads of Empire on the mid-Atlantic region during the colonial era, Grady McWhiney’s Cracker Culture about the Old South, Tamar Herzog’s Defining Nations relating to Spanish colonies in the Americas, and Robert Utley’s plethora of scholarship on the American West all showcase some of the best work on regional and cultural history. Jon K. Lauck’s recent work The Good Country: A History of the American Midwest 1800-1900 may just as well deserve a spot with the esteemed authors above.
