Tucson Festival of Books

Peter Cozzens


Peter Cozzens is the author of "Deadwood" and 18 other acclaimed books on the American Civil War, Indigenous history, and the American West. Cozzens is the recipient of the American Foreign Service Association's highest honor, the William R. Rivkin Award, given annually for exemplary moral courage, integrity, and creative dissent. His "The Earth is Weeping: The Epic Story of the Indian Wars of the America West" was selected by Smithsonian as one of the greatest military books ever written.

Visit website

Awards: WWA Spur Award; Caroline Bancroft History Prize; winner Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize

Communities: Military Veteran


Scheduled events:
Celluloid West
The West, in both truth and fiction, has inspired endless cinematic iterations. Three experts of film and story discuss the best and worst of the celluloid West.

UA Library/Special Collections (Seats 110)  View this venue on the Festival map
Sat, Mar 14, 10:00 am - 10:55 am
History / Biography
Signing area: Sales & Signing Area - Integrated Learning Center (following presentation)  View this venue on the Festival map

Panelists: Mark Archuleta, Peter Cozzens, Kirk Ellis
Moderator: Stuart Rosebrook
Sponsors: Session made possible courtesy of University of Arizona Libraries, University of Arizona Press, Lucy Masterman
When Fact Becomes Legend
Megan Kate Nelson, author of “The Westerners,” Peter Cozzens, author of “Deadwood,” and Paul Andrew Hutton, author of “The Undiscovered Country,” discuss the myth and the reality of the American West.

Integrated Learning Center Room 120 (Seats 300, Wheelchair accessible)  View this venue on the Festival map
Sun, Mar 15, 2:30 pm - 3:25 pm
History / Biography
Signing area: Sales & Signing Area - Integrated Learning Center (following presentation)  View this venue on the Festival map

Panelists: Peter Cozzens, Paul Hutton, Megan Kate Nelson
Moderator: Bruce Dinges
Sponsors: Session made possible courtesy of Hudson Group, Marshall Foundation, Betty G. Bengtson

Books:
Deadwood
Gold, Guns, and Greed in the American West
History / Biography
Random House
August 2025
ISBN 9780593537855
Hardcover, 432 pages
Buy now

The Earth is Weeping
The Epic Story of the Indian Wars for the American West
History / Biography
Alfred A. Knopf
January 2017
ISBN 9780307948182
Paperback, 544 pages