In her latest book, Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America (Viking, 2023), Boston College historian Heather Cox Richardson, author of the popular daily newsletter “Letters from an American,” explains how America, once a beacon of democracy, now teeters on the brink of autocracy—and how it can turn back. Richardson crafts a compelling and original narrative, explaining how, over the decades, a small group of wealthy people have made war on American ideals. By weaponizing language and promoting false history they have led the country into authoritarianism—creating a disaffected population and then promising to recreate an imagined past where those people could feel important again. She argues that taking our country back starts by remembering the elements of the nation’s true history that marginalized Americans have always upheld. Read more in BC News. | Boston Globe Q&A  |  CBS Mornings | Washington Post book review | WBUR On Point | Boston Globe Books