Russell Shorto

Russel Shorto in 2010.

Russell Shorto (born February 8, 1959) is an American author, historian and journalist, best known for his book on the Dutch origins of New York City, The Island at the Center of the World. Shorto's research for this book relied greatly on the work of the New Netherland Project (now known as the New Netherland Research Center) and the New Netherland Institute. Shorto is the New Netherland Research Center's 2013 Senior Scholar.

His most recent work, published in October 2013, is Amsterdam: A History of the World's Most Liberal City, which tells the story of the city from its origins, through its Golden Age, to the present day in which Shorto is a proud resident of his adopted home.

Born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania on February 8, 1959, Shorto is a 1981 graduate of George Washington University. He is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine and is the Director of The John Adams Institute in Amsterdam, where he has lived since November 2007.

On September 8, 2009 Shorto received a Dutch knighthood in the Order of Orange-Nassau for strengthening the relationship between the Netherlands and the United States through his publications and as Director of the John Adams Institute.

Bibliography

Books

• Amsterdam: A History of the World's Most Liberal City ISBN 978-1-408-70348-9 (New York, Doubleday, October 2013).
• Descartes' Bones: A Skeletal History of the Conflict Between Faith and Reaon ISBN 978-0-385-51753-9 (New York, Random House, October 14, 2008). book's website
• The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony that Shaped America ISBN 0-385-50349-0 (New York, Doubleday, 2004). book's website
• Saints and Madmen: How Pioneering Psychiatrists Are Creating a New Science of the Soul ISBN 0-8050-5902-4 (New York, Henry Holt & Company, 1999).
• Gospel Truth: The New Image of Jesus Emerging from Science and History, and Why It Matters ISBN 1-57322-056-6 (New York, Riverhead Books, 1997).

Articles

• "The Way Greeks Live Now", The New York Times Magazine, February 13, 2012
• "The Dutch Way: Bicycles and Fresh Bread", The New York Times Sunday Review, July 30, 2011
• "The Kinder, Gentler Extremist", The New York Times Magazine, April 29, 2011
• "The Nanny and Her Sister", NRC Handelsblad, April 24, 2011
• "The Irish Affliction", The New York Times Magazine, February 9, 2011
• "The Integrationist", The New York Times Magazine, May 28, 2010
• "Making Haste from Babylon" (book review), The New York Times Book Review, May 21, 2010
• "How Christian Were the Founders?", The New York Times Magazine, February 11, 2010
• "Going Dutch", The New York Times Magazine, May 3, 2009
• "The Invention of Air" (book review) The New York Times Book Review, January 23, 2009
• "The Legacy of Decartes' Bones", NRC Handelsblad, December 23, 2008
• "Descartes' Bones", The Huffington Post, October 31, 2008
• "No Babies?", The New York Times Magazine, June 29, 2008
• "Keeping the Faith", The New York Times Magazine, April 8, 2007
• "Contra-Contraception", The New York Times Magazine, May 7, 2006
• "This Very, Very Old House", The New York Times Magazine, March 5, 2006
• "All Political Ideas Are Local", The New York Times Magazine, October 2, 2005
• "What's Their Real Problem with Gay Marriage? (It's the Gay Part)", The New York Times Magazine, June 19, 2005
• Shangri-La-Di-Da", GQ, May 1, 2005
• "Genetic Family Values", The New York Times Magazine, December 12, 2004
• "Faith at Work", The New York Times Magazine, October 21, 2004
• "The Industry Standard", The New York Times Magazine, October 3, 2004
• "The Future of the Past",The New York Times, September 12, 2004
• "My Life on Darts", GQ, March 1, 2004
• "Al Franken, Seriously", The New York Times Magazine, March 21, 2004
• "The Streets Where History Lives",The New York Times, February 9, 2004
• "A Short-Order Revolutionary", January 11, 2004
• "The Un-Pilgrims",The New York Times, November 27, 2003
• "Most Wanted", The New York Times Magazine, August 25, 2002
• "McLaughlin? Is That a Jewish Name?", The New York Times Magazine, March 24, 2002

External links

Reviews

• "Relics of the Modern Mind", review of Descartes' Bones, by Lisa Jardine in Nature
• "Body of Knowledge", review of Descartes' Bones, by Gary Rosen in The New York Times, November 2, 2008

Interviews

• "Faith, Reason, and Descartes", on NPR
• "How Descartes Lost His Skull", on Bloomberg News
• "Descartes’ Bones", on the Leonard Lopate Show

Videos

• "Descartes' Bones", 4-minute intro about Descartes' Bones
• "Descartes' Bones", 40-min author talk at Authors@Google

Other

• Home Page
• Dutch Pronunciation guide to Island at the Center of the World