Mir Tamim Ansary

Introduces Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, explaining the historical events behind it, how it became a holiday, and how it is observed.

Introduces Labor Day, explaining the historical events behind it, how it became a holiday, and how it is observed.

Introduces Presidents' Day, explaining the historical events behind it, how it became a holiday, and how it is observed.

With storytelling brio and evenhanded sympathy to all sides of the story, Ansary clarifies how the Muslim world views the history of the world and what they therefore make of our own version of events. Until about 1800, the West and the Islamic realm were like two adjacent, parallel universes, each assuming itself to be the center of the world while ignoring the other. As Europeans colonized the globe, the two world histories intersected, and the...

Introduces Veterans Day, explaining the historical events behind it, how it became a holiday, and how it is observed.