The Summer Reading Challenge may be coming to a close, but that doesn’t mean we have to stop unearthing stories about the past. Sift through our collection for nonfiction and fiction reads that dig into ancient civilizations, uncover lesser-known stories, and highlight advancements in discovery and preservation. You don’t have to travel far to excavate your next great read!
NONFICTION
Archaeology from Space: How the Future Shapes Our Past by Sarah H. Parcak (also available on Hoopla) – Archaeologist Sarah H. Parcak introduces readers to the relatively new field of satellite archaeology, discussing its current technologies, recent findings—including unknown settlements, tombs, palaces, and more—and potential for the future of discovery and preservation.
Dinosaurs at the Dinner Party: How an Eccentric Group of Victorians Discovered Prehistoric Creatures and Accidentally Upended the World by Edward Dolnick (also available on Hoopla) – The true story of how the discovery of a dinosaur footprint and bones changed everything we knew about the world and the 19th-century paleontologists who helped us better understand our place in it.
The Other Ancient Civilisations: Decoding Archaeology’s Less Celebrated Cultures by Raven Todd DaSilva – The Other Ancient Civilisations skips well-known archaeological sites like the Pyramids and Pompeii to explore twenty lesser-known ancient empires and sites including the Olmec, Nubians, Scythians, and more.
Women in the Valley of the Kings: The Untold Story of Women Egyptologists in the Gilded Age by Kathleen Sheppard – Before men like Howard Carter discovered the tomb of King Tut, there were women laying the groundwork for exploration in Ancient Egypt. Sheppard highlights Egyptologists like Maggie Benson, Nettie Gourlay, and Emma Andrews who paved the way for future archaeologists, both men and women alike.
Additionally, we recommend checking out:
- The Age of Melt: What Glaciers, Ice Mummies, and Ancient Artifacts Teach Us About Climate, Culture, and a Future Without Ice by Lisa Baril
- A Little History of Archaeology by Brian M. Fagan
- The Buried City: Unearthing the Real Pompeii by Gabriel Zuchtriegel (also available on Hoopla)
- Custodians of Wonder: Ancient Customs, Profound Traditions, and the Last People Keeping Them Alive by Eliot Stein
- Dinner with King Tut: How Rogue Archaeologists Are Recreating the Sights, Sounds, Smells, and Tastes of Lost Civilizations by Sam Kean
- Fiber Craft Heritage: Easy-to-Learn Textile Techniques from the Stone Age to Today, with 52 Try-It Projects by Doris Fischer (also available on Hoopla)
- In the Waves: My Quest to Solve the Mystery of the Civil War Submarine by Rachel Lance
- Monacan Millennium: A Collaborative Archaeology and History of a Virginia Indian People by Jeffrey L. Hantman
- Motherland: A Journey Through 500,000 Years of African Culture and Identity by Luke Pepera (also available on Hoopla)
- Native American Archaeology in the Parks: A Guide to Heritage Sites in Our National Parks and Monuments by Kenneth L. Feder
- The Story of Birds: A New History from Their Dinosaur Origins to Today by Stephen Brusatte
FICTION
The Bone Thief by Vanessa Lillie – When a Native teenage girl and newly-discovered skeletal remains go missing, Syd gets the call. As a Bureau of Indian Affairs archaeologist, she’s tasked with taking on both cases. The deeper she digs, the more she realizes these incidents might be part of a darker, generations-long tradition tied to the local and exclusive Founders Society.
The Last Gifts of the Universe: A Novel by August Riley (also available on Hoopla) – When interplanetary archivist Scout discovers a long-lost note from an alien who witnessed the end of the world, they, along with their brother and cat, must find a way to prevent another catastrophic incident and save what’s left of the universe.
Raiders of the Lost Heart by Jo Segura – An enemies-to-lovers tale about two former grad school rivals forced to work together on an archaeological dig in the Mexican jungle. In search of her ancestor’s remains, Dr. Socorro “Corrie” Mejía is on—what should be—the expedition of a lifetime. But when artifact smugglers threaten to derail their dig, she and the obnoxiously handsome Dr. Ford Matthews must work together to salvage their findings.
The Stolen Queen: A Novel by Fiona Davis – Charlotte Cross, now an associate curator of Egyptian Art, must confront memories from a past archaeological dig when a valuable artifact goes missing during the Met Gala. Together, she and Annie Jenkins, the assistant to demanding Vogue editor Diana Vreeland, are taken on a dangerous journey back to Egypt, where they must find the missing antiquity.
Other archaeology-inspired reads:
- The Antiquity Affair by Lee Kelly (also available on Hoopla)
- A Rare Find by Joanna Lowell
- Artifacts by Natalie Lemle
- Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg
- Excavations: A Novel by Kate Myers (also available on Hoopla)
- The Museum Detective: A Novel by Maha Khan Phillips
- Nora Kelly series by Douglas Preston (also available on Hoopla)
- The Paleontologist by Luke Dumas (also available on Hoopla)
- Ruins by Lily Brooks-Dalton
- The Salvage: A Novel by Anbara Salam
- Summer’s End by Juneau Black
- Time’s Agent by Brenda Peynado (also available on Hoopla)