Recommend Some History Books

Baron Von Humongous · Retired Number Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Posts: 32979

Any books, though maybe vary things up from time to time (not all Civil War and WWII stuff, though they're welcome). Basically, let's build a good reading list together during a pandemic.
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Cutheon · Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2020 1:23 pm Post subject:

My last 4:
The Thirty Years War: Europe's Tragedy by Peter Wilson
Heart of Europe: A History of the Holy Roman Empire by Peter Wilson
The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Power Wars: Inside Obama's Post-9/11 Presidency by Charlie Savage

ribeye · Franchise Player Joined: 10 Nov 2001 Posts: 12630

in keeping with Doris Kearns Goodwin, No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II.

BadGuy · Star Player Joined: 13 May 2008 Posts: 3621

A Short History on Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

loslakersss · Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2020 2:48 pm Post subject:

In The Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson - about the American ambassador and his family’s experience in Germany during Hitler’s rise to power. Absolutely fascinating read on how willfully ignorant humans can be when things aren’t affecting them directly.

The Devil in The White a City (also by Larson) - about the Chicago fair in 1893 as well as the HH Holmes murders.

Columbine by Dave Cullen - a detailed look at what happened, what led to the events, and into the lives of not only the shooters and their families but the victims, their families, and the community.

A Bookshop in Berlin by Francoise Frenkel - a polish woman’s account of escaping Germany during Hitler’s rise and then trying to escape nazi occupied a France.

greenfrog · Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2020 3:52 pm Post subject:

Guns, Germs, and Steel

Baron Von Humongous · Retired Number Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Posts: 32979

vanexelent · Retired Number Joined: 17 May 2005 Posts: 30081

Here's 2 old ones that I enjoyed and 2 recent ones that are non-fiction, but not necessarily history books.

Post War - Tony Judt

The Great Deluge - Douglas Brinkley (hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Coast)

Bleeding Out - Thomas Abt

Tightrope - Nicholas Kristof

vanexelent · Retired Number Joined: 17 May 2005 Posts: 30081

Two fiction books that have stood out for me, in the past few years, are:

West of Sunset - Stewart O'Nann

Ohio - Stephen Markley

NMLaker · Starting Rotation Joined: 15 Apr 2001 Posts: 523

These Truths

Simple Justice

adkindo · Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2020 8:40 pm Post subject:

The Devil Is Here in These Hills - James Green

The Battle of Blair Mountain - Robert Shogan

Matewan before the Massacre - Rebecca Bailey

Thunder in the Mountains - Lon Savage

The Feud - Dean King

Aeneas Hunter · Retired Number Joined: 12 Jul 2005 Posts: 31763

The Silk Roads: This is a history of the world told from the perspective of Central Asia. It's 4000 years of history in about 400 pages. It will change the way you look at the modern world.

Almost a Miracle: The best history of the American Revolution I've read.

A People's History of the United States: The seminal populist retelling of American history.

Pretty much anything by Walter Lord, but The Past That Would Not Die is a good pick. It's about the integration of the University of Mississippi.
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Buck32 · Star Player Joined: 30 Apr 2001 Posts: 7325

"Napoleon: A Life" by Andrew Roberts - Very good, objective single-volume biography of the little Corsican.

"The Guns of August" by Barbara Tuchman - A classic account of the events leading to and the first month of WWI.

"Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era" by James M. McPherson - Solid single-volume history of the Civil War, with extensive account of the socio-economic situation before and during the war.

Any book by David McCullough, but my particular favorites are "The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870–1914" and "The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge"

"Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman" by Robert K. Massie

"Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947" by Christopher Clark
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golden armor · Starting Rotation Joined: 24 Jun 2005 Posts: 845

"The Autobiography of Malcolm X"

Also, mentioned earlier, but, I'll second - "The People's History of the United States"

Baron Von Humongous · Retired Number Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Posts: 32979

MOAR recommendations!

The Inheritance of Rome by Christopher Wickham.
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Baron Von Humongous · Retired Number Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Posts: 32979

fiendishoc · Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2020 5:13 am Post subject:

"The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War", by David Halberstam (his last book)

Buck32 · Star Player Joined: 30 Apr 2001 Posts: 7325

easybreeze · Star Player Joined: 06 Jun 2005 Posts: 2381

The Great Game: Peter Kopkirk - Afghanistan has been battling invaders for hundreds of years without success. Britain and Russia in a battle to be the first.

Jesse James: TJ. Stiles - Last Rebel of the civil war. (photos throughout book)

The Grand Inquisitors Manual: Jonathan Kirsch - History of terror in the name of God.

Panama Fever: Matthew Parker - the epic building of the Panama canal.