Recommend me some good historical reading

[knowledgeORbust]

Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States was good. Zinn's voice highlights all of the injustices and abuses of power throughout US history to better highlight how/why things are the way they are today. It's essentially all the history you learn in middle-high school, only better, because it's the real the real thing. I saw it recommended on 2+2 and was glad I picked it up.

[flow void]

1776 is very good. I actually enjoyed McCullough's biography of John Adams even more.

Joseph Ellis's "Founding Brothers" is great. His book about Jefferson, American Sphinx, is on my list to read.

[Phat Mack]

A general American History that I enjoyed:

Freedom Just Around the Corner : A New American History: 1585-1828 by Walter McDougall was a good read with an interesting perspective.

War and Peace in the Middle East: A Concise History by Avi Shlaim is, I believe, a well written and balanced account.

A History of Card Games by David Parlett is probably an example of what you said you didn't want: a narrow subject. But hey, this is a poker board and it's a fascinating book! [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[Zeno]

Anthologies can be an excellent introduction to history so I'll recommend Readings in the Classical Historians by Michael Grant. You will get the flavor of a large number of history writers and a large variety of themes.

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer is worthy of reading.

Since I've recommend the follow book a few times in other forums, I'll mention it here also as an excellent read about recent History, and so much more, that becomes more and more relavent every day: Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45 , by Barbara W. Tuchman. First-rate read.

-Zeno

[Jeff W]

Seutonius, Thucydides, Livy, Julius Ceasar, Plutarch, etc... original sources from Greek and Roman historians.

[rothko]

paging Rick Nebiolo.

this guy will tell you everything you need to know about historical reading.

[dylan's alias]

This may not be the broad overview you are looking for, but The Great Influenza amazon is an excellent book. The science is presented in a very understandable way. It gives a nice overview of some of the history of medicine (specifically infectious disease) and how everything changed as a result of the influenza epidemic. The thing you might find most interesting is how local politics, individual choices and most importantly, WW1 impacted a "natural" phenomenon. To me, this is the most interesting thing about history. Too often, it seems like history just happens, moved by forces bigger than one individual. Even the individuals who clearly shape history often become larger than life. The small stories which don't get told are often more interesting (and frequently as important) as the giant events which make it into textbooks.

[4_2_it]

Not exactly history, but Teddy Roosevelt's autobiography will give you a good flavor for the US post Civil War through 1910 or so.

Yes, I am a hudge Teddy fan boy.

[Taso]

[ QUOTE ]
Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States was good. Zinn's voice highlights all of the injustices and abuses of power throughout US history to better highlight how/why things are the way they are today. It's essentially all the history you learn in middle-high school, only better, because it's the real the real thing. I saw it recommended on 2+2 and was glad I picked it up.

[/ QUOTE ]


I've been reading this for a while now and "insofar" it seems as if Zinn criticizes government abuses, yet dissaproves of any non-socialist policies, which is sort of contradictory.

I will say that he is a very good writer, and if I may, I'll qoute a passage that I liked;

[ QUOTE ]
"And to bind that loyalty with something more powerful even than material advantage, the ruling group found, in the 1760s and 1770s, a wonderfully useful device. That device was the language of liberty and equality, which could unite just enough whites to fight a Revolution against England, without ending either slavery or inequality."

[/ QUOTE ]

[Jay Riall]

I ordered 1776 to start me off. Thanks for all the suggestions, keep them coming. If anyone has read a good, broadish book about the Roman Empire let me know, I find it fascinating.