Good history books

[Garet Jax]

Hello all,

I am interested in reading history books from different parts of the world. I would like to concentrate on British, American and Roman history initially. Are there good books that are intended to be read and not studied?

 

[Farang]

People's History of the United States

 

[So]

The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

 

[SirStev0]

Originally posted by: Farang
People's History of the United States

first thing that came to mind.

 

[So]

Also, anything by Barbara Tuchman(n?) is good.

 

[RossGr]

That covers a lot of ground. Try Shellby Foote 3 volume history of the Civil War.
Omans Pennisular War . Steven Ambrose is another author to look for (Band of Brothers). Believe it or not Karem Abdul Jabbar (Yes the B ball player) has written (co - written) an execellent WWII history of the battalion of Black Tankers.

 

[xanis]

Check out some of Steven E. Ambrose's books, especially the D-Day one. They're pretty awesome.

 

[jammur21]

Guns, Germs, and Steel

 

[Caesar]

Link

 

[drinkmorejava]

lol, Princeton AP European History Review

 

[Farbio]

Originally posted by: drinkmorejava
lol, Princeton AP European History Review

lol, thanks


try historybookclub.com - membership place but i've been w/ them for awhile and always enjoyed everything i've gotten from there

 

[Estrella]

A History of the Modern World by R.R. Palmer!!!

the best ever!!!!!

 

[elmro]

Maier, Pauline, Merritt Roe Smith, Alexander Keyssar, and Daniel Kevles. Inventing America: A History of the United States. Vol. 1. New York, NY: W.W. Norton, 2002. ISBN: 0393974359.

This is the main text of the MIT open courseware course "American History thru 1865".

An $85 textbook that you can get for about $5 on Amazon's Used Book Marketplace.

Woo!

 

[K1052]

Originally posted by: Farang
People's History of the United States

While I found it an interesting counterpoint to much of the overly patriotic drivel that passes for history literature, his extraordinarily deep cynicism makes me dismiss him as the flip side of that coin.

 

[Flyback]

Originally posted by: K1052

Originally posted by: Farang
People's History of the United States

While I found it an interesting counterpoint to much of the overly patriotic drivel that passes for history literature, his extraordinarily deep cynicism makes me dismiss him as the flip side of that coin.

You mean truthful?

 

[K1052]

Originally posted by: Flyback

Originally posted by: K1052

Originally posted by: Farang
People's History of the United States

While I found it an interesting counterpoint to much of the overly patriotic drivel that passes for history literature, his extraordinarily deep cynicism makes me dismiss him as the flip side of that coin.

You mean truthful?

No, I'm referring to interpretation and presentation.

He goes to the opposite extreme.

 

[GregGreen]

Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 by Tony Judt

 

[xSauronx]

12 Caesars. another forum member mentioned in another thread some time ago and i picked it up. its a great read

 

[Flyback]

Originally posted by: K1052
No, I'm referring to interpretation and presentation.

He goes to the opposite extreme.

I disagree. He doesn't go to an extreme, he just knocks down the circle-jerk patriotic grandstanding BS that has long passed for history, showing some ugly truths that are glossed over or ignored. The book puts forth some damning things that need to be learned and questioned. (I don't think any reasonable person would advocate it as the sole learning instrument for American history, though.) Because of the tone of his work, it came together in a collection that, on its own, gives a black eye.

I don't think you should "dismiss him" for that, but YMMV.

 

[txrandom]

I asked my European and World history teacher from high school:

Sorry, I did not get back to you until now. One fun read is a book called Fall From Grace which is about scandals in US politics. This book may be out of print.

Some suggested books on ancient Greece and Rome are:
The Legacy of Greece: A New Appraisal by M.I. Finley (1981)
The Roman Revolution by R. Syme (1939)
The Slave Systems of Greeks and Romans, by W.L. Westermann (1955)
The Social History of Rome by B. Alfoldy (1985)
Bread and Circuses by P. Veyne (1992).

If you wanted to read a historical novel, I would suggest Last Man Standing which is set in World War I and is available at Barnes and Noble. If you prefer World War II, I would recommend Winds of War and War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: Xanis
Check out some of Steven E. Ambrose's books, especially the D-Day one. They're pretty awesome.

I second Stephen Ambrose. Band of Brothers is as good as the mini-series. He even makes the trans-continental railroad interesting.

 

[AAman]

well...if you want a book that puts you in the action, Black Hawk Down is amazing..now what is that book about the Spartans everyone keeps recommending (I know they aren't Romans )

 

[DaWhim]

From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life 1500 to the Present by Jacques Barzun

excellent book

 

[NikolaeVarius]

Stephen Ambrose is a Must

A Brief history of time

 

[K1052]

Originally posted by: Flyback

Originally posted by: K1052
No, I'm referring to interpretation and presentation.

He goes to the opposite extreme.

I disagree. He doesn't go to an extreme, he just knocks down the circle-jerk patriotic grandstanding BS that has long passed for history, showing some ugly truths that are glossed over or ignored. The book puts forth some damning things that need to be learned and questioned. (I don't think any reasonable person would advocate it as the sole learning instrument for American history, though.) Because of the tone of his work, it came together in a collection that, on its own, gives a black eye.

I don't think you should "dismiss him" for that, but YMMV.

I already addressed that point. As I said, his extreme cynicism and obvious leftward bent troubled me. There are people out there who read this and make the same mistake as those who read far more flowery versions of US history.