R. Mark Melville
@rmarkmel.bsky.social
Assistant editor of Utah Historical Quarterly. Holiday enthusiast, casual trail runner, cat dad. Views are my own. 🏳️🌈
"I'm grateful that my friend likes pies, but turkey is my dish.
I hope that turkey has ten legs—is that too much to wish?"
—The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't, 1972
I hope that turkey has ten legs—is that too much to wish?"
—The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't, 1972
November 27, 2025 at 3:48 PM
"I'm grateful that my friend likes pies, but turkey is my dish.
I hope that turkey has ten legs—is that too much to wish?"
—The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't, 1972
I hope that turkey has ten legs—is that too much to wish?"
—The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't, 1972
"This Land Is Their Land" (2019): Largely derivative of other scholars' work, sometimes sloppily so. 5/10.
November 12, 2025 at 6:03 PM
"This Land Is Their Land" (2019): Largely derivative of other scholars' work, sometimes sloppily so. 5/10.
"Mayflower" (2006) from @penguinbooksusa.bsky.social: Not written by a professional historian, but tells the Pilgrim story, with all its triumphs and horrors, in an accessible style. 7/10.
November 12, 2025 at 6:03 PM
"Mayflower" (2006) from @penguinbooksusa.bsky.social: Not written by a professional historian, but tells the Pilgrim story, with all its triumphs and horrors, in an accessible style. 7/10.
"Pumpkin: The Curious History of an American Icon" (2012) from @uwapress.uw.edu: Who would have known that a silly little vegetable has such an interesting story? 8/10.
November 12, 2025 at 6:03 PM
"Pumpkin: The Curious History of an American Icon" (2012) from @uwapress.uw.edu: Who would have known that a silly little vegetable has such an interesting story? 8/10.
"The Turkey: An American Story" (2006) from @illinoispress.bsky.social : An environmental, culinary, economic, agricultural, and cultural history. 9/10.
November 12, 2025 at 6:03 PM
"The Turkey: An American Story" (2006) from @illinoispress.bsky.social : An environmental, culinary, economic, agricultural, and cultural history. 9/10.
"Thanksgiving: The Biography of an American Holiday" (2009): This book literally changed my life, and I'm not even exaggerating. Not only did it change the way I think about Thanksgiving, it's a significant reason I now consider myself a cultural historian. 10/10.
November 12, 2025 at 6:03 PM
"Thanksgiving: The Biography of an American Holiday" (2009): This book literally changed my life, and I'm not even exaggerating. Not only did it change the way I think about Thanksgiving, it's a significant reason I now consider myself a cultural historian. 10/10.