There are separate pages on this site for art, my writings on Alexander Hamilton; Writing, copywriting, and publishing; and Fearless Foreign Foods. For book recommendations for kids, see this page; for music and toys for kids, see this page.

History, including nation studies

On Alexander Hamilton, see this page.

  • Timeline 1900-2021: Events Worldwide, US Politics & Culture, Economics, Science & Technology, Books, Visual Arts, Architecture, Film & TV, Music. More here.
Timeline 1900-2021, cover
 
  • Central Park: The Early Years (print and Kindle):  focuses on the first few decades of the Park, particularly why Central Park was created and what events and choices in its early history created the Park’s unique character. I’ve relied heavily on primary sources such as the annual reports of the Board of Commissioners of Central Park and early guidebooks, and have collected hundreds of images of the Park in its early days. The book is printed in full color throughout.
Dianne L. Durante, Central Park: The Early Years, 2017. Images are chromolithograph cards by Louis Prang, 1864 (more info and larger images in the book).
  • The Statue of Liberty: Timeless Art, Political Hot Topic (Kindle) – A look at the Statue of Liberty as a timeless work of art and as a political statement by those who conceived it and by their contemporaries in the late 19th century. Includes archival illustrations, close-up views of Liberty, quotes from sculptor Bartholdi and his contemporaries, and tips on photographing outdoor sculptures in New York.
  • Internationalism (Key Concepts in American History series) (hardcover) – A work-for-hire high-school history text on American foreign policy from World War II to ca. 2000.
Yemen
Yemen
  • Yemen, In Brief  (Kindle) – History & culture of Yemen; a survey written in 2000, after the attack on the USS Cole in Aden harbor, and published on Kindle with a brief update covering the past 15 years, plus 17 photos and maps.
  • Similar studies on Afghanistan, Iran, Bosnia, Serbia, Yugoslavia, Haiti, and Somalia are waiting patiently for me to reformat them. Email me (DuranteDianne@gmail.com) if you want them sooner rather than later.
  • On Studying History” – An essay written when I was homeschooling my daughter, with 2 important points to remember as you wade through the ages.
  • The Presidential Biographies project has its own page, here.

Science & technology

Forgotten Delights: The Producers
Forgotten Delights: The Producers
  • A Checklist for Healthy Skeptics” (The Freeman) – “We in the United States are becoming terrified of our own technology. Nuclear energy will zap us into early graves. Alar and DDT will give us cancer. The greenhouse effect will melt the polar ice-caps and Manhattan will be submerged. Wouldn’t it be better to live ‘in harmony with nature,’ that is, without all our high-tech devices but in peace and health and security? – Or would it, perhaps, be better to ask first how much truth there is in the media hype that bombards us with such dire predictions every day?”
  • Nuclear Power: How It Works and Why It’s Better Than Other Fuels” – Pretty self-explanatory title!
  • National Health Care: Prescription for a Fool’s Paradise” (with Salvatore J. Durante)

Business