HWS News
29 July 2026 Jenkins P’11 Chronicles a Defining Summer in American History
John A. Jenkins P'11 draws on newly available archives and firsthand accounts in his latest book, Summer of '71.
For Hobart and William Smith parent John A. Jenkins P'11, history is most compelling when it reveals the moments that quietly reshape the future.
In his new book, Summer of '71: Five Months That Changed America, released June 30 by Citadel, an imprint of Kensington Publishing, Jenkins revisits a pivotal five-month stretch in American history that he argues fundamentally altered the nation's political, legal and cultural landscape. Through newly available archival materials, oral histories and White House recordings, he offers a fresh look at the people and events that continue to influence public life more than five decades later.
Rather than presenting a traditional political history, Jenkins tells the story through the experiences of the individuals who lived it. The book follows figures including Daniel Ellsberg, New York Times reporter Neil Sheehan, attorney Sarah Weddington, National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger and activist Angela Davis as they navigated one of the most consequential periods of the 20th century.
For Jenkins, Summer of '71 is about more than documenting history, it's about helping readers better understand the present. As he told The Boston Globe, "I think it's very important to have that political history nailed down. But the most important thing is, I want them to have some hope. Ultimately, democracy endures. We have been here before. We have survived it, and we will do so again."
The narrative spans May through September 1971, a period marked by the publication of the Pentagon Papers, the Supreme Court's decision to hear Roe v. Wade, mounting opposition to the Vietnam War, the Attica prison uprising and an expansion of executive power under President Richard Nixon. Together, Jenkins argues, these events laid the foundation for many of the political and social debates that continue to shape the United States today.
Summer of '71 has already drawn praise from reviewers for its timely examination of one of the nation's most consequential periods. Daily Kos called the book "both a fascinating, brilliantly researched read in its own right, and a critical lens through which to view today's political discord." The San Francisco Book Review described it as an "absorbing history book" that "brilliantly encapsulates a frenzied period in U.S. history," while the Washington Independent Review of Books praised Jenkins for unearthing "unforgettable stories and striking parallels with the crises we now face."
An award-winning journalist, author and publisher, Jenkins brings decades of experience covering politics, law and public policy to the project. He is a four-time recipient of the American Bar Association's Gavel Award Certificate of Merit and has written for publications including The New York Times Magazine, GQ and The Washington Monthly. He previously served as President and Publisher of CQ Press and founded Law Street Media, a news organization focused on law and public policy.
Published 55 years after the events it chronicles, Summer of '71 combines meticulous research with compelling storytelling to illuminate a transformative chapter in American history.
Jenkins, whose daughter Christina graduated from Hobart and William Smith in 2011 with a degree in writing and rhetoric, remains connected to HWS through his family's HWS legacy while continuing to examine the historical events that have shaped the modern world.
