Submitted by AutoModerator t3_yk3arn in history
Zoilist_PaperClip t1_iusdjo2 wrote
Best history book(s) you’ve read?
dropbear123 t1_iusibiw wrote
No particular organisation, I just went through Goodreads and picked out my favourites from my read list.
Tommy: The British Soldier on the Western Front 1914-1918 by Richard Holmes
The Wages of Destruction: The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy by Adam Tooze (not the easiest read, lots of economic termoninolgy and statistics)
The Coming of the Third Reich (The History of the Third Reich, #1) Richard Evans
Peter the Great: His Life and World by Robert K. Massie
The White War: Life and Death on the Italian Front 1915 - 1919 by Mark Thompson
The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century by Ian Mortimer
The Crusades: The War for the Holy Land by Thomas Asbridge
Afgantsy: The Russians In Afghanistan, 1979-1989 by Rodric Braithwaite
Savage Continent: Europe in the Aftermath of World War II by Keith Lowe
The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914 by Margaret MacMillan
The German War: A Nation Under Arms by Nicholas Stargardt (WWII)
A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre
Ring of Steel: Germany and Austria-Hungary in World War I by Alexander Watson
July Crisis: The World's Descent into War, Summer 1914 by T.G Otte (advanced, little background context provided and pretty much 500 pages from the assassination of Franz Ferdinand to just before Britain declares war in early August)
The Vanquished: Why the First World War Failed to End, 1917-1923 by Robert Gerwarth
The Fortress: The Great Siege of Przemysl by Alexander Watson
Statesman of Europe: A Life of Sir Edward Grey by T.G Otte (probably need a bit of knowledge of the late Victorian and Edwardian domestic and international politics though)
The Northumbrians: North-East England and its People - A New History by Dan Jackson
Blood and Iron: The Rise and Fall of the German Empire 1871–1918 by Katja Hoyer
jimnantzstie t1_ivcjgsk wrote
I just read The War that Ended Peace about a month ago.
Was absolutely fantastic.
Stalins_Moustachio t1_iuse1rh wrote
Afghanistan: Afghanistan by Jonatahn A. Lee. The books provides a great overview of Afghanistan's rich history from the 15th century to the modern day.
Intelligence: The Secret World: A History of Intelligence by Christopher Andrews. It's a fantastic book that documents the history of intelligence and spy operations throughout human history! Definitely a must read.
China: The Story of China by Michael Wood traces key milestones and developments in China from the Middle Kingdom up until today. It provides an excellent overview of China's history without being dull or dreary.
Iran: America and Iran: A History, 1720 to the Present whose name is self-explanatory. I enjoyed this one as it overcomes the common, but wrong, perception many have that Washington's historic relationship of interaction with Tehran started only after the Islamic Revolution.
African history: I really recommend Martin Meredith. Specifically his books The Fortunes of Africa: A 5000-Year History of Wealth, Greed, and Endeavor and The Fate of Africa: A History of the Continent Since Independence. Toby Green's A Fistfull of Shells similarily takes the reader across West Africa's rich history, from the 15th crntury to the modern day. Also check out David Van Reybrouk's Congo: The Epic History of a People.
Andalusia + Medieval: I cannot recommend Dr. Brian Catlos enough. He is an excellent source on the topic. Definitely check out his books, specifically, Kingdoms of Faith: A New History of Islamic Spain and Infidel Kings and Unholy Warriors: Faith, Power, and Violence in the Age of Crusade and Jihad.
Latin America: Maria Arana's Bolivar: American Liberator is an excellent book on the life of one Latin America's most influential 19th century figures, Simon Bolivar. The book further explores the Bolivarian revolution, its root causes and ultimately Bolivar's downfall.
Ottomans: David Fromkin's A Peace to End All Peace, and The Last Muslim Conquest: The Ottoman Empire and Its Wars in Europe by Gàbor Àgoston. The latter provides an in depth and rich look at the Ottoman Empire's socio-economic and military history from the Empire's rise to the Siege of Vienna and beyond. Why I really loved this book was the author's tying in of pertinent events within the Ottoman Empire to those on Europe, such as the rise of the Hapsburgs. Àgoston also does a great job examining key details within the Empire, such as frontier management, intelligence, diplomacy and military structure!
Arab World: Tim Mackintosh-Smith's Arabs: A 3,000-Year History of Peoples, Tribes and Empires, and Albert Hourani's A History of the Arab Peoples. Al Jabarti's chronicle Napoleon in Egypt transports the reader to Egypt in the 19th century, and does an excellent job at conveying the Egyptian perspective of Napleon's expedition.
Central Asia: Adeeb Khaled's Central Asia: A New History. The book does an excellent job of explaining the complex history and geopolitics of a region I don't think gets enough attention.
Native American: Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown, Empire of the Summer Moon by S. C. Gwynne and The Earth is Weeping by Peter Cozzens. National Geographic also had a fantastic visual history book called The Old West by Stephen G. Hyslop. Also check out Blood and Thunder by Hampton Sides.
WW2: Robert Paxton's Vichy France: Old Guard and New Order details the often-overlooked Vichy French government's actions and role in WW2, both within France and the wider Axis. John Gooch's Mussolini's War: Fascist Italy from Triumph to Collapse does an excellent job of looking at the rise of fascism in Italy, and its ultimate demise. The book is really well written, and definitely keeps the reader engaged.
Carthage: Richard Miles' Carthage Must Be Destroyed: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Civilization. The book is very well written and takes the reader through the origins of Carthage's founding to the peak of it's mercantile empire, and ultimately the Punic wars and the city's destruction. I found it refreshing to read about Carthage from a non-Roman perspective. Definitely check it out!
Visual History: DK Publishing's book on the US Civil War. The mix of visual and text reading really helps things settle in. Also check out their books on WW1, WW2, The History of the World Map by Map and WW2 Map by Map.
elmonoenano t1_iuuvyel wrote
The Fire is Upon Us by Nick Buccola. This was an interesting book that came out a really opportune time. It explains a lot of the racism within the Republican voting public and how the GOP has harnessed it.
False Cause by Adam Domby. I liked this b/c it explained some of the political mechanisms used to develop the Lost Cause Narrative and why it was important to local political powers to have that narrative.
Until Justice Done by Kate Masur. I thought it was interesting to see how the South used federal power in the antebellum period to run roughshod over state's rights arguments from the Northern states, exactly the opposite of their later claims after the war.
Postwar by Tony Judt. I don't think there's anything better for understanding the late 20th Century.
The Walter Stahr biographies of Seward, Stanton, and the new one about Chase. These men did so much to shape the modern world and the modern American government system and they really don't get enough credit or focus. Stahr's biographies are fascinating.
Stalins_Moustachio t1_iuse4g0 wrote
Forgot to add, Horrible Histories!!!
Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments