The Library of Virginia will hold two free book talks this summer focusing on lesser-known stories from the Revolutionary era, part of its programming to mark America’s 250th anniversary.

On Thursday, June 12, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., author and journalist Andrew Lawler will discuss his new book, “A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis that Spurred the American Revolution.” The talk will explore the overlooked history of Lord Dunmore, Virginia’s royal governor, who is often depicted as a villain for opposing patriots and burning Norfolk in 1775. Lawler’s book sheds light on how these events connect to modern issues such as race, gun control, immigration and urban-rural divides. This event coincides with the 250th anniversary of Dunmore’s abandonment of the Governor’s Palace in Williamsburg.

Registration is required on the Library of Virginia’s website, lva.virginia.gov.

Lawler, based in Asheville, N.C., also is the author of “The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke” and “Under Jerusalem: The Buried History of the World’s Most Contested City.” He has written for the New York Times, Washington Post, National Geographic, and Smithsonian magazine.

The second talk will feature Richmond author Alan Pell Crawford discussing his book, “This Fierce People: The Untold Story of America’s Revolutionary War in the South,” on Wednesday, July 9, from noon to 1 p.m.

  

Crawford’s work highlights the southern battles of the Revolutionary War, showing how the campaign there directly led to the British surrender at Yorktown. He challenges the common perception the war was mainly fought in the North and argues the southern conflict was America’s first civil war, involving loyalists and patriots.

Registration is required at lva.virginia.gov.

Both events will include book signings.