Share your favorite and current history reads
Surprisingly good for pop history
>>23576642This looks good too bad Anna’s archive is the only repository that has the whole thing for free. Also I keep seeing that Borstin guy everywhere writing prefaces.
Current reading, I've learned a lot already. I didn't expect Neo-Confucianism to have such an impact on Japan
it's for school
>>23578694I asked for Canadian history in the last thread. Maybe this time someone can make me a list. Especially early Canadian history.
>>23578711I'm really ignorant before the 20th century. sorry bud
>@hughhewitt I usually ask first time guests on my AM program (1) if Alger Hiss was a Soviet spy (yes, he was) and (2) if they have read "The Looming Tower" You've read The Looming Tower, right anon?
>>23578775i thought chambers was the spy and hiss was just a dupe
Apparently, much of this is straight-up lies
>Knight and his King: Stibor of Stiborice and Sigismund of Luxembourg. A probe into the life of a medieval Hungarian nobleman with special regard to the territory of SlovakiaSuch a good read, mixes high politics of Sigismund in Hungary and beyond with everyday matters. I'll share couple of things which resonated the most with me so far:>king's coronation and funeralSoil from each comitatus would be piled up, creating a sort of a mound which the newly crowned king then climbs and shouts from while waving his sword around.At the front of a king's funeral, two knights would lead the procession: one dressed in the deceased king's tourney armour while the other wore his battlefield armour. Both got donated to monasteries after the burial.>free movement of peasantsSigismund had to ratify the right of peasant's free movement over again since there were many breaches. Nobles would steal peasants from one another - there was this instance of entire village getting forcefully dismantled and moved. A certain noble took revenge on city-dwellers who helped his peasants to migrate to another fief with better conditions by ambushing them and cutting their hands and feet.>confirmation/ratification of land ownershipUpon buying/receiving land you had to get a royal confirmation within a year (otherwise the king could confiscate it anytime). The process was expensive and dangerous for everyone involved. The person appointed by the king who was supposed to set the boundaries and confirm the land ownership often faced ambushes or kidnapping since land disputes were very common.>feuds amongst nobilityThey ranged from your typical burning of villages/killing your rival's peasants to attacking your rival's clients/patrons since they were easier targets. They even resorted to petty shit like cutting trees in front of a rival noble's residence/house or cutting off bull ears, etc.Not sure how available this is in English, but there is a translation. You can also get it in Hungarian.
>>23578891Also the sheer mix of people at every level in Hungarian society. Sigismund's court even employed a knight from England. There were people from all over even in the employ of lower nobility. You had Hungarian, Polish, German, Czech, Slovak castellans, mayors, etc. Kinda amazing how they all worked together.
>Turning 89 this yearCaro bros, is he ever completing Book #5?
The Struggle for Europe - Chester Wilmot
>>23578980He kind of fucked up by leaving by far the most documented part of LBJ's life, his actual presidency, for last. Just sifting through everything involved with the Civil Rights Bill I imagine will be tough enough, add on to that the Great Society, the election with Goldwater, AND Vietnam and that would be a tall order for someone at the height of their writing powers, let alone someone who will try to cover in them in the same or greater amount of detail as other more obscure moments in LBJ's history that no one remembers. I imagine it will have to be 1000 pages of text at the very least.I guess what kind of does help is that there's no chance he covers in any detail the last 4 years of LBJ's life after the presidency, just like he didn't with Robert Moses after he lost power. Caro's not really in the business of writing true cradle to grave bios
>>23580284That said what I'm still holding out even more than Caro is for is the third volume of Nicholas Boyle's Goethe bio, by far the best in English, and it's been fucking 24 years since the second volume. These crotchety English people do tend to somehow live a long time though so I haven't given up hope yet
Kevin Gutzman’s The Jeffersonians>The Jeffersonians is a complete chronicle of the men, known as The Virginia Dynasty, who served as president from 1801 to 1825 and implemented the foreign policy, domestic, and constitutional agenda of the radical wing of the American Revolution, setting guideposts for later American liberals to follow.>The three close political allies were tightly related: Jefferson and Madison were the closest of friends, and Monroe was Jefferson’s former law student. Their achievements were many, including the founding of the opposition Republican Party in the 1790s; the Louisiana Purchase; and the call upon Congress in 1806 to use its constitutional power to ban slave imports beginning on January 1, 1808.
The name of the book on the 30 years war that gets referred to a lot? i think the author is modern
>>23580814Which Thirty Years War? CV Wedgwood is the mid-century author who wrote the classic book on it, Peter Wilson is the newer one
>>23576642just done reading this one it follows 8 random people(a widowed farmer lady, a young woman about to be married off, a Thracian slave girl, a Olympic stadion sprinter, a wealthy merchant from Alexandria, a lyre player, an architect and a Macedonian diplomat) as they go about their lives for a year, with actual historical figures like Ptolemy II, Antigonus II and Antiochus II and the Punic War being background events if mentioned at all, the book focuses mostly on how the common people lived and how ceremonies like the Olympic games, smaller local games and religious festivals, weddings, etc... worked it was interesting, I rate it comfy/10
anyone here a history student?>tfw you don't feel like you could possibly offer an original piece of work for a thesis
>>23581726yeah. Starting MA in the fall
>>23578728Someone has to know more…
>>23582448Chronicles of CanadaMakers of CanadaCanada and its ProvincesThe most definitive histories of Canada before WW1.
>>23582448give me 2 years, then i'll make a /chart/
>>23582486why do people on /lit/ recc stuff that is deliberately antiquated. none of that shit is in print, it's over 100 years old. this is what he really wantshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Centenary_Series
>>23582614These look gay.
>>23583306
>>23578728>Pierre BertonGreat writer.
>>23578711>>23582448There are sections of this book that specially talk about early Canadian history and colonization, mostly about the French in Quebec. It wasn’t my favorite book but that’s the best I can give you.
>>23578891>>23578920That sounds like such a fascinating book. It’s exactly the type I’ve been wanting to read. I’ve been dying for good books on the medieval period of Hungary and Slovakia. I couldn’t find any translations in English after some quick googling, but I might even try to learn Czech just to read this (I know a little Slovak). If you know of any English translations, please let me know anon.Also, can you please recommend any books on these topics that you know have English translations? I would appreciate it so much.
Wait, so some people just got lucky?
hehLuckily this was the only time in history in which the average Russian life was a miserable affair Nothing bad ever happened before or since
>>23583696More or less
>>23576642Best historiography books?
How do you guys distinguish between pop history books and more scholarly ones? Are pop history books worth reading at all?
>>23583869Actual pop history is when it’s written “like a novel”. They’ll do excessive scene setting and draw inferences that aren’t necessarily in the evidence. They want to “tell a good story”. Frankly I find this sort of thing patronizing and a very inefficient way to get information. Anyway how to distinguish pop from non-pop? You know it when you see it.
>>23583869There's no hard line between pop history and "proper" scholarly history. It's more of a spectrum. Many of the classic history works written in the mid-20th century could be considered pop history for their writing style, but still get referenced in scholarly discussions decades later. "The Guns of August" is an example that comes to mind.Personally, I would say that the "purest" pop history is just anything barely more informative than a list article or content farm, with content like "1000 Bad Days in History" or stuff like that. A well-written book based on the author's research with markers of pop history style could still be considered somewhat scholarly, even if it's more of a survey work that won't necessarily go into much depth.
pretty decent WWII history I just finished.
Is it bad to like pop history? The only serious TM history books at the local library are collection of dense essays by academics that compare and contrast different interpretations of the same history. Are primary sources a better read?
>>23584122I don't think its bad as long as you realize they are purposely riddled with inaccuracies in order to have a more compelling narrative.
>>23584122There's a middle ground, older synthetic scholarly histories like Ostrogorsky's history of the Byzantine state or major thematic works that that cover a lot of ground like Burckhardt's Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy. Or even something like Forsyth's Critical History of Early Rome, which is very forensic but covers a lot of territory and still synthetically and synoptically rather than being a bunch of publish-or-perish essays written just to pad out a CV. Nothing wrong with pop history if you enjoy it and it fills out your picture of an epoch or some of its aspects, that's also a good reason to read biographies in my opinion. But it's important to dive a little deeper if you want real knowledge. The specific studies are mostly for things you're interested in and genuinely want to know. The benefit of reading something highly up to date and critical like Forsyth or a chapter in a Cambridge History of _____ is mainly when you really want to know that shit meticulously. For example when you know all the basic narrative history of Republican Rome but you get annoyed at the superficiality of commentators, who are making mistakes or sloppy overstatements that even you are starting to notice, like just reporting on semi-mythical figures as if they're straightforwardly historical. Then you go "fuck this I want to know the real scoop" and read the meticulous article.Primary sources are also vital especially once you have the overview knowledge anyway. It's not like it takes a 200 IQ to read Herodotus or Suetonius.
>>23584136I think after I read a good portion of narrative and theoretical histories I’m gonna dive into biographies and primary sources.Also I asked around and it appears my historical worldview is that of intellectual history. Is that school of thought legit?
>>23584157Also is there any books that talk about anarchist history?>inb4 Fredy PerlmanThe fuck outta here with that noise
>>23584225Ranciere's Proletarian Nights and Ranciere in general might interest you. There was a book I saw a few years back that was some kind of application of Deleuze/Guattari's rhizome idea to the history of a contested border between two major powers, something about how the border becomes its own unique space that is defined by neither of the two states trying to control it, and so on. I think the overall moral of the story was anarchist. >>23584157Yes definitely, although there are subvarieties depending on your inclinations. Most historians tend toward "social history of ideas" which is influenced by Marxism, and related sociological styles of history writing, and tends sometimes toward reductionism. Historians of science also break up into different groups, with many of them being reductionists as well (sociology of scientific knowledge), while historians of philosophy tend to go more toward philosophy than history. But look at something like the Cambridge School for example. There's also cultural history which sometimes bleeds into intellectual history, for example the famous book The Cheese and the Worms which is a microhistory of a random miller named Menocchio tried for heresy.
>>23583462You can't go wrong with Engel Pál's The Realm of St Stephen. There are pdfs of it on libgen and anna's archive. You could also check out Dvořáková's academia.edu page as there are couple of studies in English. It ain't a lot but it's all I can give you from the top of my head right now.
>>23584232> There's also cultural history which sometimes bleeds into intellectual history, for example the famous book The Cheese and the Worms which is a microhistory of a random miller named Menocchio tried for heresy.Wouldn’t that technically be a biography?
>>23584122>Is it bad to like pop history? Facts are facts. Interpretations are Interpretations As long as you are able to spot the difference, pop history could provide a quick and easy overview. As long as they cite sources obvs. If the book aint got sources cited burn it.
>>23583865Anyone feel like answering this?
I am reading Inside the Third Reich by Albert Speer. Thought? Do you have books recommendation in the form of memoir?
>>23584357>Wouldn’t that technically be a biography?I wouldnt say that.A book about the inquisition trials is a history bookA book about one instance of an inquisition trial is a microhistory book The miller is a means to illuminate aspects of that part of history but illumination of him is not the goal itself
>>23578786>Anna’s archiveHiss was a spy, Venona confirmed it
>>23584764Oh, gotcha. Thanks.
>>23584743Inside The Anon's Mom Pussy by Me&Myself and I
>>23584348Thanks anon, I got Pál’s book on my list and I’ll look into Daniela’s book. I also see that her books are mostly in Slovak not Czech? If so I just need to commit to learning the language at this rate.
I thought this was a good book. It was a nice introduction to modern Italian history and the creation of “Italian.”
Say Nothing bros...we won
>>23586917Ive actually got that on my reading list. Looking forward to it.
Can anyone recommend me a good book on the Visigothic kingdom of Iberia and Iberia in general in between the fall of Rome and the Muslim conquest?
>>23587097It's great. His other books are really good too, but Say Nothing is on another level
>>23584743Try the Berlin Diaries by William Shirer.
>>23584108Reddit.
>>23578775Is The Looming Tower better than Ghost Wars?
Can someone recommend me a book on the Mexican-American War?Some of the recent publications such as "A Wicked War" and "The Dead March" seem biased based on some reviews I read. Of those I looked at, I am considering "The Mexican War, 1846-1848", 1992, by K. Jack Bauer.
The New Killing Fields: Massacre and the Politics of InterventionIt's a collection of essays by two editors (one of whom has the worst essay in the book regarding the "language of murder," or something dumb like that). Their stance is that the UN and specifically the US should be more willing to intervene and stop mass killings and genocide. Specific essays focus on Rwanda, the Yugoslav Wars, and the Indonesian occupation/annexation of East Timor, with a brief essay about justice following the Cambodian genocide. Overall, even if it's not really convincing in its argument, it's pretty fascinating to read. Most of the essays are okay, readable, but there are a few standouts; there's a great essay about the Siege of Sarajevo and what set it apart in the West's mind compared to Rwanda and even Kosovo. Another good short one covers the background of the Rwandan genocide, and another one right after is about the role radio played in the genocide. The East Timor essays were interesting too, though that may have had to do with me knowing absolutely nothing about the conflict prior. I'd recommend it. There are a lot of good first person accounts/analysis. That they don't really make a strong case for the editor's stated goal is secondary.
Thieves of State: Why Corruption Threatens Global SecurityThis is what I'm reading now. Seems so far like it's mostly just about corruption in Afghanistan during the American occupation. The argument the author makes is that the blatant and obvious corruption hamstrung efforts to make the state stable or popular. The author was a journalist that quit in 2002 to live in Kandahar, Afghanistan. She became an expert on both sides of trying to combat corruption in the Afghan government and was deeply involved with the American military effort to do the same (which itself was hamstrung by all other sorts of imperatives). Amazing book so far. She spells out exactly how corruption worked in the Afghan government and translated it into a model that she will (later in the book) apply to other corrupt governments (including Ukraine, I think). The thrust of her argument is easy to accept prima facie though so far "threatening global security" seems like a bit of a stretch without becoming a more vague indirect argument about state stability and international security.
Any book rec for ancient civ in mesopotamia? I found "Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World's First Empire" from Eckart Frahm so far. Also took a look at the books of Irving finkel for a more specific subject.
>R.F. Foster's Modern Ireland: 1600-1972 looks at how key events in Irish history contributed to the creation of the 'Irish Nation'.
"¿Que pasa con Estados Unidos?" (What's wrong with the United States?) by Salvador Borrego.This book explains how the US elite collaborates with communism, against the sentiment of the US people.Salvador Borrego is a Mexican writer, author of "World Defeat", in which he explains the implications of Germany's defeat in the II War.
>>23576642I'm reading these....
>>23590571part 2
>>23589203I don’t like how these people shift responsibility to us, like we even know what we’re doing.
Is there a book about the history of fandom? I'm tagging my backlog in Hydrus and realize the majority of fiction that I love was made by anonymous people online. The regular pattern of production and consumption for other established mediums, film, television, music, comics, literature, does not compare well.
>>23583869Basically, does it have soures? Any serious work worth your time will cite their sources, they will have a biography. If they lack both of these or do a 'recommended reading' without a biography you are reading pop history. The kind of people who can't be bothered doing such a thing despite supposedly writing a book are not worth your time to read.
>>23578711>>23582448it's incredibly, incredibly boring stuff I'm not sure why you would be interested, speaking as someone who had to spend time in school learning it. When stuff like the Red River Rebellion is a highlight you know you are in for a snooze fest. Habitant stuff is even worse. The really exciting stories are probably the frontier/pioneer stuff and the fur trade and Hudson's Bay Company.Honestly the best stuff is probably about the aboriginals but there is so little out there besides the bemoaning the white devil stuff and pretty much nothing from early early since, well, they weren't exactly known for writing things down and passing down history via oral tradition isn't the best when most of your people end up dying out
>>23576642Makes for pretty good reading if you're interested in how Napoleon's smaller allies operated in the time period, and his letters give a very personal account of the Russian campaign of 1812. Definitely recommend.>>23578682How is it? Recently finished How Far From Austerlitz from him and was very pleased with his writing style. Been on the lookout for that one for a few weeks now but it seems like it's pretty hard to come by, especially if you're looking for a hardcover copy.
>>23590960It’s because I’m currently studying American history (I am American myself) and want to know about my brothers in the great white north (Take Off). I’m just really curious. I have a friend who lives in Toronto, a friend in Nova Scotia, and one in Vancouver though I don’t talk to him much and I’m just really fascinated. Apologies.
>>23590975no need to apologize. American stuff was definitely more exciting. More war and conflict, more battles, more fighting. Canadian history was just a bunch of treaties. I'm sure if you met a diehard Quebecois they could tell you some stuff about French Canada. Maybe look into John Cabot, Jacques Cartier, or de Champlain for some early history (this is like 14th-15th century stuff). The cool thing I guess is this takes place long before the Thirteen Colonies were established. French were already there for a long time.
Anyone have any thoughts on Ernst Breisach's 'Historiography'? I'm looking for a broad survey on how historical theory and writing has evolved over time until the 20th/21st century. 500 pages seems like a reasonable enough length to cover most schools of thought without getting too 'comprehensive'. Open to other recs as well; preferably something available in PDF or EPUB
>>23591064I actually just got that the other day. I was the anon here >>23583865Asking for other historiography recommendations
>>23590990I could do that
>>23590857Yeah it's retarded. A few of the essays have this sneering snivelling holier-than-thou thing going too. Should've intervened in the Yugoslav Wars earlier, Rwanda earlier. They greatly overestimate our competence and capabilities, as if the greatest hits of UN intervention in Srebrenica and Rwanda could be overcome if we just mounted full scale invasions of the countries instead. I wonder if they'd be willing to pick up a gun and fight for it.
>>23591155To be fair, though, people are unwilling to understand or willfully ignorant (because then they’d have to change their views) of how much race and ethnicity play into these international conflicts. Some could be avoided if that were the case.
>>23591164It's funny you mention that lol. When people explain the conflict between the Hutu and the Tutsi they rarely let on that it's been going on for hundreds of years, or that the Tutsi and Hutu have a relatively mutually distinct physiognomy. It's much more common to get the line or at least a heavy implication that they're totally made up distinctions drummed up by the Belgians.
Since i received no replies last thread I am once again asking for books on the huguenots/french wars of religion
>>23591182Anthropology has a lot to answer to history, is all I will say…
>>23590990>Maybe look into John Cabot, Jacques Cartier, or de Champlain for some early history (this is like 14th-15th century stuff)It’s no wonder the Quebecois feel much closer to Europe than anyone else in North America. The ‘sturm und drang’ of continental European feudalism was still intact back home when they landed here.
>>23589282Nobody really?
>>23589282Ancient Iraq - Roux
>>23591661The english penguin book or the french one?
>>23591714Lol what? Whatever language you prefer big boy
>>23591717French version is pocket and have no illustrations apparently, maybe no reprint since the first edition... Translation should be decent enough for an historical book of 32 years old. I guess you read the english version?
Got my answer here: "he published in English Ancient Iraq, a book covering the political, cultural, and socioeconomic history of Mesopotamia.[3][4] In 1985 he published a fuller French work, La Mésopotamie, but the English book's third edition, of 1992, has further enhancements." So english version it is
>>23591734I recommended you a book with an English title. I’ll leave it at that
Oera LindaShahmensahMein Kompf
>>23576642I'm reading a book about Dyatlov Pass incident and it's good so far.
>>23591064Someone answer this man’s post I want to talk about historiography!
Have any of you read this? Is it good? I've never read a biography of Whitman before.
>>23580824Decided to pick one of these up Monday. Which version will it be?
>>23592081If you are already familiar with some of his poetry than yes its great.
>>23578775Great book, working through Lawrence Wright's other works.
>>23583696Couldn't help but check the author's Early Life section on Wikipe->His parents were both Eastern European Jewish immigrantsAh, there it is.
>>23578775>implying it wasn't an inside job
>>23592506Seconding Going Clear. THE definitive work on Scientology.
Any Tuchman chads here?
>>23592549Except the paperback cover is far superior.
>>23592572>Tuchman chadswhat is this book about and why is it good? I am wary of any woman author on most subjects especially corcening war
>>23592572I liked her book about the hundred year's war/black death, the bibliography of that book gave me some good recommendations.
>>23592746So Barbara Tuchman wrote The Guns of August in 1962, a captivating narrative of the background to the outbreak of World War I. She explains the personalities of the involved nations' leaders and their war cabinets' pre-war plans, leading into a detailed and engaging hour-by-hour account of the chain of events over August 1-4 that formed the rapid outbreak of the greatest war the world had ever seen. It then becomes a pretty nice military history talking about the early battles. It was a huge bestseller and won the Pulitzer. Notably, JFK kept a copy of it on his desk during the Cuban Missile Crisis and wanted every officer in the Army to read it as well, to avoid someone having to write The Missiles of October in the post-apocalyptic rubble. >God, if I was Commander in Chief I would have made it an order. I'd do that a lot, order people to read entire books. If there was a button on the internet where instead of replying to someone's comment, I could instead make them go read this whole book then come back to me when you've read that whole book so now I know you know at least the little that I know about the subject. It's like what's the point of talking to someone about any topic of history or politics if you don't know if they have any reason to know what they're talking about? Anyway, she has a charming writing style and a gift for conveying through-lines in historical narrative.
Currently reading this
>>23592746>>23592842Oh yeah, forgot to even say what The March of Folly is about. How foolish. It's about four major government follows in history: accepting the Trojan horse, the Renaissance popes spurring the Protestant Reformation, Britain's policies that let the American colonies to revolt, and the US getting stuck in the Vietnam quagmire, with a few others. "Folly" is basically a policy that is taken by a group, not an individual, that is contrary to self-interest, was not the only policy available, and kept being pursued despite forebodings. I am summarizing the Wikipedia summary, just read it, it's good. Helps with seeing all the big fuckups today.
>>23592842>>23592865I see. So her interests are less in wars themselves but how those in charge behave and act. I guess I could give her a chance
>>23576642Anyone read Trotsky’s History of the Russian Revolution?
>>23592490I'll pick it up then. Thank you.
>>23592430Anyone want to nudge me in the right direction?
Anyone got books on the history of the Klan? Interested in all iterations, but particularaly the first and second, also prefrably as unbiased as possible (to the extent it is possible for such a topic).
>>23592971at best you're gonna get replies from people who have only read excerpts. nobody actuallt reads this book cover to cover
>>23592971>>23594761I havent read it but i can already guess its 300 page book about the kike seething about Stalin another shabbos kike taking the soviet throne before him.
Any suggestions for books on political maneuvering in Ancient Rome? Heck, books on historical instances of political maneuvering in general would be great as well.
Starting to read this. Anyone know what I’m in for?
>>23576642I've been localhistorymaxxing like a motherfucker lately. Fairly interesting book, but what makes it worth it are all the book lists published from sales inventories and estates of colonists as far back as the 1640's
>>23586902I recommend this over The Force of Destiny, other big book on Italian History book. Destiny is reasonable (a bit Lefty but what can you do) but is much more interested in post war political wrangling. It's description of the 20th century reads a bit like a corporate history.
Niebuhr's German is filtering me lads
I'm looking for books on the following subjects :- Indian history- Seljuk empire- Umayyad caliphate- Sub-saharan history- South American history- Russian history- Chinese history (specific subjects)
>>23596439>- Indian historyDoniger and/or Majumdar>- Russian historyRiasanovsky>- Chinese history (specific subjects)Gernet, Feng You-lan
I would love some books about the French enlightenment or just literary life in France, but written by a Frenchman with a French perspective. I recently read When The World Spoke French by Marc Fumaroli and thought it was interesting.
How do you anons take notes when reading books on history or otherwise?I read history and archeology books to actually keep up with academic research to then inform my posts and writeups, and I find it to be a struggle to track specific bits of info from different academic papers, books, etc.- Do you use physical bookmarks for physical books (if so, which that won't damage the pages/book?) and like the highlight or comment tool for PDFs? (How are pdf annotations even saved anyways, is it saved to the pdf file or inside the program/application? Can they be exported/imported?). - Do you keep a separate notes document? If so, per book, or for whole topics, or what?- Something else?Also happy to give book suggestions on Mesoamerican (Aztec, Maya etc) history and archeology>>23583696>>23583762>>23592513Guns, Germs, and Steels is shit and both gets a lot of specific factual details wrong, as well as make big picture mistakes in concept and scope. Everybody from academic historians and archeologists, to tradcons and /pol/, and progressives and SJWs etc hate it. As it applies to the specific topics and fields I'm informed on, it makes a lot of very basic and severe errors about the colonization of the Americas that shows Diamond didn't give a fuck and bother to really research the events in question, and whose severity is so bad that it completely undermines and destroys his own points.Obviously "geographic environments and resources impacts how societies develop" is a true statement but anything beyond that and the book runs into issues. >>23583865>>23584713>>23591097"When Montezuma Met Cortes" by Matthew Restall is a really interesting comparison of different accounts and retellings (and their various biases and contradictions) of their meeting and the Cortes expedition/the Fall of the Aztec in general, and also acts as a historiography of how it's been retold and presented and details have been distorted over time.I don't agree with absolutely every conclusion Restall makes but it and his prior work "7 Myths of the Spanish Conquest", are pretty much mandatory reading for a non-dogshit understanding of the topic just to get an idea of how the different primary sources conflict with each other and skew details, "When Montezuma..." also is one of a few books to actually explore the political dynamics and motivations of different Mesoamerican kings and officials like Xicomecoatl, Ixtlilxochitl II, Xicotencatl II, etc rather then solely focusing on the Spanish figures involved, which is one of my favorite topics: See pastebin.com/h18M28BR and the links in arch.b4k.co/v/thread/640670498/#640679139 and desuarchive.org/his/thread/16781148/#16781964>>23596439By South America do you actually mean South America (IE only stuff below Panama), or Latin America in general?
>>23576642Any good books about French-Algerian War?
>>23596446Thank you, already read some Gernet.>>23596547South America in general>>23596673A Savage War of Peace by Alistair Horne is all I've got.
>>23596547Is that you, precolombuiananon?!It must have been years since I've seen one of your posts>How do you anons take notes when reading books on history or otherwise?I don't really note take but if I see a good passage, I'll copy paste it on a note document and look at it occasionally until it's burned into my mind For my thesis, I gathered up a bunch of relevant quotations to the argument and put in page and source, it was a great way to preform the argument in citations and quick access to relevant sources for any given topic
>>23596547Do you think environmental history is a legitimate field of study?Also thanks for the recommendation on that Aztec book, should fit in neatly with my immense study of early America.
>>23596137I want to find some Cleveland/Akron/Youngstown specific history books some day.
>>23596110I actually read about that period not long ago, tell me how it is.
>>23596898I just started it and realized that it’s very much a pop history book. It still might be valuable and interesting as the author is a historian. However, she’s very much focused on the interpersonal level, which is to be expected. Unfortunately, there is only a further reading section and no bibliography. However, I got this at a thrift store and it’s a not for sale pre-release proof copy. It’s missing maps and illustrations and shit so maybe the proper edition has those.
>>23597141Oh I’ll probably pass on it then
>>23597220Yeah, I probably wouldn’t recommend it. If I finish it and have different thoughts, I’ll make a post.
Recommending this book, especially if you enjoyed Shirer's Third Reich. This has a similar vibe.
a sociological analysis of the samurai class of pre-modern japan
>>23576642Sorry, I don't read fiction.
>>23598009Meds
>>23576642
>>23598384>he thinks history is "real"Cute.
Book on Republic of Venice that goes hard, anything like that? I read Carlyle's life of Frederick, and it was kino. Is there something like that for Republic of Venice
The Soviet-Japanese War of 1945 was the most interesting part of WWII. It's a crime that there's so few English works covering it.
>>23589027Bauer's book is great.
>>23599531It's the real reason why Japan surrendered.
Hellenika is about ancient Greece since the death of Alexander the Great. Mostly about Greek cities, famous people, poetry, paintings and such.
>>23599566No it isn't; the firebombing was.Japan was getting ready to surrender by the time of the Yalta Conference. Neither the nukes nor the Soviet invasion ultimately had any affect on Japan's decision to surrender.
>>23599440No answer to this yet, will I have to write this myself?
Will see if any of them is good.
>>23599593>this is what Amerilards actually believe
>>23599593If firebombing was working so well, why did your president beg like a bitch for Stalin's involvement, going so far as to give him disputed Sachalin and Kuril Islands?
>>23599648It's what happened.Americans generally believe the nukes are what caused the surrender, but that isn't true, either.>>23599669Because he was retarded. Objectively.They took the strength of the Kwantung Army and it's auxiliaries on paper rather than evaluating them for what they were worth, and didn't read the room insofar as Japan's willingness to fight.Read ANY of the books on the matter.
>>23599648>>23599669>>23599688To elaborate, even a Welshman, Charles Stephenson, agrees. The Yalta Conference was a complete waste; the United States gained nothing from it, since the Soviets intervened far too late to have an actual impact on Japanese surrender.You're confidently regurgitating myths and pop history without having actually read any worthwhile secondary, let alone primary, sources, presumably just to try and piss of those dastardly Americans, when the view isn't even one largely held by them.Do better.
>>23599688>>23599704Except it did. It was a final blow delivered by the Soviets and it was important for the Americans, since they were preparing invasion for the mainland Japan that would've costed them a lot of American lives, they estimated that Soviets' intervention would've saved them 200 000 American lives. It saved more.
>>23599648>>23599669>>23599688>>23599704For a primary source, here's the United States Strategic Bombing Survey stating verbatim,>On 20 June the Emperor, on his own initiative, called the six members of the Supreme War Direction Council to a conference and said it was necessary to have a plan to close the war at once, as well as a plan to defend the home islands. The timing of the Potsdam Conference interfered with a plan to send Prince Konoye to Moscow as a special emissary with instructions from the cabinet to negotiate for peace on terms less than unconditional surrender, but with private instructions from the Emperor to secure peace at any price.https://archive.org/details/summaryreportpac00unit/page/26/mode/2upI got the Potsdam Conference mixed up with Yalta due to being sleepy, but my point still stands. By June 1945 Japan was willing to throw in the towel.inb4>That's what the Americans believe!!That's what the Japanese showed the Americans, and most Americans believe that the nukes forced Japan's surrender, not the strategic bombing.>>23599743Except it didn't; I have shown primary and secondary sources confirming that is the case. You have shown nothing and talked out of your asshole. You're on /lit/; you should read books.
>>23599749Japan toyed with the idea of the surrender earlier, it's just that the negotiations were taking long because Japan didn't want an unconditional surrender and wanted to keep the position of emperor. And that's exactly what happened on 2nd September 1945, they signed a conditional surrender, regardless of propaganda. Soviet invasion was the straw that broke the camel's back and influenced Japanese decision because they were afraid of the two front war with US and USSR and the Soviets taking over more of their territories, they were afraid, along with Americans, that the Soviets might even capture a part of mainland Japan and it would end up more like Germany after WWII, with different occupation zones. That's why they surrendered to Americans faster than they would if USSR haven't entered the war. Also, I'm not talking out of my ass, I've cited numbers from Michael Dobbs' book, Six months in 1945. Also, it's embarrassing for your angry armchair historian reputation that you mixed up Yalta conference with Potsdam conference.
>>23599834>Japan didn't want an unconditional surrender"but with private instructions from the Emperor to secure peace at any price." That was in June. Peace at any price is the same as unconditional surrender.>Soviet invasion was the straw that broke the camel's backI've established it wasn't. You continuing to lie and say it was wont sway anyone undecided.You have a naive view of warfare overall and a completely uninformed view of the Pacific War in particular. I'm done with you.
>>23599850If the peace at any price is the same as unconditional surrender, then how come Hirohito saved his post? It's almost as if the surrender was CONDITIONAL and you fell for cheap propaganda. Just as the same as with your riduculous firebombing theory, you pulled it out of your ass.
>>23599749Of course bomber command is going to take credit for ending the war. The document you have selected isn’t very important. Anyway saying the bombs had no impact on the surrender is “doth protesting too much”. Doesn’t pass the smell test
>>23599905>The document you have selected isn’t very important.Japan being ready to surrender unconditionally in June is in fact the opposite of not very important; it is decisive.>Anyway saying the bombs had no impact on the surrender is “doth protesting too much”. Doesn’t pass the smell testIt's just the truth. History isn't some game where you win by lying about the people you don't like; it's a record of events that happened. Factually, neither the invasion nor the nukes had any significant impact on surrender. How you personally feel in the present about certain countries doesn't matter at all.With the time you two little idiots have spent regurgitating worthless dribble, you could have actually read the first chapters of Charles Stephenson's "Stalin's War on Japan." It's evident you haven't read it, and a near certainty you haven't read any books pertaining to the Soviet invasion anyway.How's about you stop wasting all of our time and actually read a book?
>>23576642Has anyone read this? Histories of castles and fortresses seems right up my alley
These are some the decent history books I’ve read recently: > The Civilisation of the Renaissance in Italy > Cellini’s Autobiography > Rubicon> The Campaigns of Alexander Any recommendations for swashbuckling bios/autobios?
>>23599988"Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China" I wish I could find something like this about Mao
>>23596439>- Seljuk empireThere's a decent amount on the Seljuks in Asia Minor in English.Claude Cahen Pre Ottoman Turkey is an overall history, and Vryonis' Decline of Hellenism is one of the most interesting history books I've ever read and touches on the Seljuks. For the rest of the empire, the relevant Cambridge History of Iran volume is old but good. Also Empire of the Steppes is brief on the Seljuks but good overall. ACS Peacock is the most recent general history I know of but I haven't read it, it's just on my list.Not a scholar just interested in Greek and Turkish history. If anyone has any other reccs I'd like to hear them.
>>23600330Also if anyone has any Greek language reccs about the Seljuks and later medieval Anatolia specifically I'd like to hear them since I'm learning Greek, so what better way to progress than read about a subject I'm interested in?
>>23591064I read this a few years back. Pretty good, very comprehensive.
>>23590571>>23590578Oldhead WNs talk way too much about their personal drama desu. I sometimes go on old forums since the history interests me and it's just "X was hitting on Y's wife" "Z is too easy on the Jews let's split and make a new movement" interspersed with racial slurs.
>>23578711The History and Culture of the Indian People
Books on medieval Spain, specifically after the Muslim conquest to the beginning of the Hapsburg monarchy? Just read Don Quijote (yeah ik it falls way outside the period) and in the mood for some more Spainkino.
>>23599948I’ve read lots on this subject. You’re the first to think you’ve found a smoking gun. No one is convinced
>>23599948I’m open minded but you aren’t being very generous. Frankly you’re kind of an asshole. Oh you read one book and now you’re an expert. Great, can you do anything other than telling us to fuck off and go read the book? Here’s your argument >Tokyo fire bombing happens in march>now it’s June and Japan wants to surrender >now it’s august and the soviets invade and the bombs drop and then they surrender but the bombs had nothing to do with itWhy would you expect to get any other kind of reception, especially with your tone of superiority? You haven’t told the story very cogently or convincingly.
>>23600480>>23599948And where is the Byrnes note in your narrative? I guess that doesn’t matter either? Just some firebombing between march and July and that’s it? I understand why you’re telling us to read the book, because you aren’t quite able to explicate it’s contents convincingly. I’m happy to read it btw, I’ve added it to my list, but you’re going to have to meet people halfway if you want an actual discussion that goes beyond “fuck you, I’m smarter, go read the book.”
Has anyone read Pity the Nation by Robert Fisk? What are some good books on the Middle East?
>>23600487>but you’re going to have to meet people halfway if you want an actual discussion that goes beyond “fuck you, I’m smarter, go read the book.”I DON'T want an actual discussion. Fuck you, I'm smarter, go read the book.
>>23584743Speer was a careerist who would throw his mother under the bus to get ahead.
>>23588764Shirer literally rewrote his own diary from being favourable to Hitler pre-war then against after.
>>23600369it solely has to do with women having rights, which flies over the head of the average WN considering a lot of pagan WNs tend to hold matriarchal views on gender relations. this is extremely apparent in the newest batch of them. they often do this to "own the Christtards" in a backhanded way.
>>23600635Sure. Just realize there is no reason to post at all if you don’t care whether you convince people. If you don’t care if we are convinced you would keep it to yourself. But you don’t, so that tells it all.
>>23599541Alright, thanks.
>>23583865I thought the beginning of this book was dismissive and a bit of a slog but by the end I was fascinated. I'm not 100% convinced of its thesis but it definitely gets the noggin joggin.
>>23601556here is the gist>More complex societies are more costly to maintain than simpler ones… As societies increase in complexity, more networks are created among individuals, more hierarchical controls are created to regulate these networks, more information is processed, there is more centralisation of information flow, there is increasing need to support specialists not directly involved in resource production, and the like… The result is that as a society evolves toward greater complexity, the support costs levied on each individual will also rise, so that the population as a whole must allocate increasing portions of its energy budget to maintaining organisational institutions.>It is suggested that the increased costs of sociopolitical evolution frequently reach a point of diminishing marginal returns. This is to say that the benefit/investment ratio of sociopolitical complexity follows the marginal product curve… After a certain point, increased investments in complexity fail to yield proportionately increasing returns. Marginal returns decline and marginal costs rise. Complexity as a strategy becomes increasingly costly, and yields decreasing marginal benefits.
>>23601569So whats he trying to say? We should just all be hunter/gatherer societies?
>>23601595No no no, it's not that kind of book, descriptive not prescriptive. He's positing a theory as to why complex societies collapse.
>>23600759Wow, no fucking shit? In other news, the sky is blue and water is wet.I wanted to talk about the Soviet-Japanese War itself, and didn't expect two morons to adamantly recycle an age old blatantly false horseshit myth, and after having dealt with genuine retards stating untruths as facts multiple times throughout the day, my patience had run thin with people like you. I initially cared because you were either lying or knew nothing of a subject you were speaking with authority on; now I don't care anymore. The world is just full of little dipshits like you at the height of the Dunning-Kruger effect and it's something I unfortunately just have to accept.At the end of the day I cited two reliable and accredited sources backing the truthful assessment of the situation; between the two of you, zero sources were cited backing your myth. It doesn't matter that I was impolite due to a completely human exhaustion of dealing with mental dwarfs; I have facts based evidence, you have nothing but your ignorance based confidence.
>>23576642Not sure it counts as a pure history book but if it doesn’t it’s close enough. I’m reading it right now and I always try to shill Edmund Wilson when I get the chance. He is a great engaging writer who can make even boring topics exciting. He’s like the Dean of some Ivy League literature department at a bar who has an everymans tone. The book traces the influence of class consciousness and the evolution of communism, especially in regards to the written word. It starts with Vico, the French Revolution, Michelet, Renan, Taine, Antatole France, Babeuf, and runs on down to Marx, Trotsky, and Lenin
Just picked this up, what am I in for?
>>23601603Oh ok. What other historiographical books do you know?
>>23601656Lol
>>23601656>pseud who thinks he’s an expert after reading one book gets flustered when no one agrees with his hot takesman such cases
>>23601687This and his collected criticism are absolute treasure troops of 20th century writing.
>>23602037I found him pretty recently, like within the last year, and since then his two Library of America books are amongst the books I’ve opened most often. Axel’s Castle, and The Wound and the Bow are top notch. He was an impressive figure in literature and it’s a shame how he’s been neglected. I can’t speak highly enough of his. American Gore has been on my list for a while and im debating to get as my next book after To the Finland Station or if I’ll burn myself out with too much Wilson
>>23602162>American Gore*Patriotic Gore. Brainfart
>>23590296I hate how Spanish pluralizes acronyms. Cool language otherwise.
>>23602017>one book>Cited twoYou can't even read a 4chan post, let alone a book.I've read numerous books on the matter. Another one is 'Great Mistakes of the War' by Hanson Baldwin.That's three books I've cited unanimously and confidently coming to the conclusion based on primary source documents, numbers and common sense that the Soviet invasion did nothing to affect Japan's surrender, while the two of you have been unable to cite a single book that it did; not a one between the both of you.If you had any self-awareness you would feel embarrassed.
>>23601693Lowkey Buddhist cosmology
>>23599988>Any recommendations for swashbuckling bios/autobios?No luck guys??
>>23602186They should stop doing that
>>23602575Your claims are exaggerated, give it a rest
>>23599749So your smoking gun is some internal memo from bombing command to Washington where it says >”air supremacy could have exerted sufficient pressure” to effect unconditional surrenderAnd>”in all probability” they would have surrendered anywayAgain this is written by the people who did the bombing, so they’re rooting their own horns. This is the primary document we are supposed to read and go “a-ha!”, forget everything we ever knew about the war or read in other books! Only YOU have this secret magical document that … doesn’t mean shit. No one is convinced because you are unable to assign proper significance to evidence. And now you are recommending to go read a book from 1950 written by a journalist, yeah I’m sure all the answers are in *there*. But yeah it was just the firebombing. Not the nukes, not the soviets, not Byrnes. Fuck the timeline, don’t use your head, don’t read other books. Whatever man, the only dunning-Krueger here is you
>>23603112And just do everyone remembers history is what ACTUALLY happened not what MIGHT have happened
>>23602169>European is so mindbroken he blurts out “America” like he has Tourette’s syndrome
>>23576642Do you guys like Rick Atkinson’s books? I’ve been listening to him talk about history on YouTube, seems like an alright guy.https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLr40fFkNNADGbdXbzDnRtM4panXIxk7hT
>>23603196Well it is about figures during the American Civil War so the brain fart is understandable
>>23599440>Carlylean take on VeniceRuskin albeit from an art-history POV
>>23600385>Muslim Spain and Portugal: A Political History of al-Andalus by Hugh KennedyI've read it some years ago and found it very interesting, because it touches on some pretty unknown topics and has a good pace despite going into deep details at times. Though I have to warn you that it is a pretty dry read
Very succinct summary of the history of the oil industry, very relevant to the conflicts in the Middle East and Eastern Europe.
>>23592860Finished it recently. Amazing coverage, emphasis on economic collapse, the Russian counter-elite, and diplomacy with the West.>>23601693The realization that weird individual/bespoke cosmologies are nothing new. Normies create weird syntheses of everything they come across since time began
>>23599988>>23602910Not an autobio/bio, but Roger Crowley's The Conquerors is a great adventure story about the Portuguese breaking into the Indian Ocean. Pirates, Mamelukes, Turks, Rajas, Prester John, deceitful Venetians and Florentine spies. Battles, raids, fortresses, high seas voyages
>>23583869why do you need to?
>>23598493I’m gonna look that up, reading early American history atm
>>23576642Any books on Pompeii or historical volcano eruptions?
>>23576642Also any books on art history too?
>>23606353Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded by Simon WInchester
>>23606357Ruskin’s The Stones of Venice or Pater’s The Renaissance if you want true stone cold classics. Would be interesting to read back to back too since Ruskin famously despised renaissance art and thought the medieval Gothic was where it was at. For a more general overview maybe try Simon Schama’s The Power of Art. Keep in mind all of these are emphatically not generic Wikipedia article surveys and the authors’ imprint is clearly stamped on each of these books their writing styles, but in my opinion that’s what makes them interesting, memorable, and /lit/
>>23592842im with >>23592746 on woman authors concerning history and war. they cannot comprehend what compels men to act the way they do - women cannot empathize.
>>23606357EH Gombrich
>>23607650His A Little History of the World was quite enjoyable.
>>23606635I was reading Pater but found it exceptionally dry so I threw it on to my back burner list>>23607650>>23607654Thanks, wishlisted three of his including that one
>>23606471I already have that wishlisted but thanks
>>23578711Pierre Berton's railway books are kino
>>23592430>>23594411Wedgwood is great. Haven't read the other so can't compare.
>>23596439>Indian historyJohn Keay>Sub-saharanJ. D. Fage>RussianCambridge history of russia
>>23599988>>23602910Read this
>>23577357>This looks good too bad Anna’s archive is the only repository that has the whole thing for free.Anon, I..https://libgen.gs/edition.php?id=4370312
>>23592860>>23604183
>>23608406Any books about mass industrialization in the Soviet Union and its early economic history?
>>23608404I didn’t see it on my end but cool, thanks I guess
>>23608404Nevermind dude that’s the wrong book. You got me good, though. Thanks for playing.
>>23608248Too late but yeah I picked up the Wedgwood one
>>23586902pink floyd nigga wrote a book?
>>23589245In Chaye's On Corruption in America, she applies her methods of analysis towards the United States. In doing so, she in no uncertain terms denounces it as now being ran by an international kleptocracy that is deeply intertwined with other national elites, all under the umbrella of the Second Gilded age. This development, spurred on by globalization, the conglomeration of the American economy, and dirty deals with other countries across the world, with the corruption in these over countries reverberating back to the US, has undermined America's democracy/republic and threatens a fall into whatever form of despotism that is to come. A must read towards having a non-chud understanding of power politics and international elites.
>>23610027
>>23576642Reading 1968: The Year That Rocked the World by Mark Kurlansky. It's a pretty entertaining read and I've learned a lot from it. But I must go on a /pol/ tangent here- it is truly remarkable how many leaders of the left, in particular student activists, were jews. Three-fourths of the Freedom Riders were jews. A German jew led the student protests in Paris. They were involved in the United States, in Poland. Truly remarkable. And of course the author himself is a leftist jew who openly sympathizes with all of these causes. Like I said I'm enjoying it... and learning (((a lot))).
Looking to read some Ron Chernow for the first time. Narrowed down my choices to these two. Does anyone have any recommendations between them, or something else he's written that's demonstrably better?
>>23576642I started reading this and Hamilton is the worst. My nigga wanted to abolish state government's entirely
>>23608803he wrote a book abt the british raj too
I'm looking for a good book on Thomas Jefferson, I've heard the Jeffersonians is poorly written so I'm interested if there are better options
I'm reading this atmSeems like a balance between reading Jonathan Sumption's magnum opus and a 300 page bookI think the author is a bit biased towards France
>>23611464Any recommendations for French books on French related history would be greatly appreciated btw
>>23610027Thanks for bringing this up. Recently I came across a Russian substack blogger who essentially applies these 'transnational elite cooperation' and the 'American liberal democratic international marketplace' narratives to his unfolding understanding of the current conflict in Ukraine. I'll have a look at Chaye's book, very glad to see this 'type' of recommendation. Important to have a coherent understanding of modern international political dynamics.
Any good recommendations on Christian history? I read Zealot and want to read more about Christianity in a historical context
>>23611464>I think the author is a bit biased towards FranceYa think? They’re the most egocentric people in the world and refuse to translate their books
>>23611198Hogeland wrote a book I ownToo bad his wiki is nearly empty
>>23611508He sounds like an ideologue
>>23611206>good book on Thomas JeffersonDumas Malone is still the best biographer of Jefferson, but also do make time to read Jefferson's own writings.
>>23611194Titan is not just Chernow's best book, it's up there with David McCullough's book about Harry Truman and Robert Caro's books on Lyndon Johnson as some of the best and most compelling biographies written about men who were true POS at times (or most of their life).
>>23611987i've only read paul johnson and it was ok, but i don't think he explained things very well. it would have made a better second book. i'll try the diarmaid mccullough next and you should too
>>23611987>Alister McGrath>Diarmaid MacCulloch>Justo González>Henry Chadwick>Mark Noll
>>23576642Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert Massie>An account of the last of the Romanov dynasty, the love affair of Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Alexandra, their family, their involvement with Rasputin, and the revolution that transformed imperial Russia.
any thoughts on pop history authors like Mark Kurlansky and Simon Winchester? anything redeemable about their work or typical NYT bestseller slop?
French Revolution books?I’m thinking either Citizens, 12 Who Ruled, or The Coming of the French Revolution
>>23613265What makes you say that?He isn't at all, far less ideologically zealous (if at all) compared to any other online writers I've come across, or people in general.And unlike many Russians, or eastern euros in general, he readily admits when he's wrong. That being said, most of his predictions have ended up panning out. He has a very robust understanding of Russian and Ukrainian oligarch politics, it really is a breath of fresh air.
>>23614238I dunno man, I’m just really wary these days
>>23614303Fair enough, can't blame you.
>>23613651Thank you
>>23613592Would you believe McCullough was the one I was considering before even asking for recommendations? Seems like his book is one of if not the best source
reading this from front to back for the first time ever to celebrate the man's passing
>>23614741First book from kissinger that you read? Like it so far? how good it is? I was looking at "On china" when he died but didn't bought it.
>>23614873I read some of it when I was in high school. his writing style is as lucid and compelling as I remember it. he's been criticized for historical inaccuracies, here or elsewhere, and yes, it's a book about the history of diplomacy. but it's also a history book written by a statesman. one of the only statesmen that still practiced and advocated for realpolitik in the West under American hegemony. I'm willing to sacrifice some historical accuracy for the insights of a man who directly influenced it.
>>23615014That's why I looked into it also, the fact that he was directly involved. It's the same overall opinion for "On china" he was heavily involved but the book has some mistakes here and there but would read it as a first person point of view and not for historical accuracy like other books on the topic. I think both are worth a read just need to finish what I have now and might get into them after for a more recent history related topic as i'm reading ancient mesopotamia archeology and history at the moment. Thanks anon
>>23576642Need more books on the high Middle Ages and early modern period So far I’ve read Henri Pirenne - “Medieval Cities - Their Origins And Revival Of Trade”Chris Wickham - “Medieval Europe”Ferdinand Braudel - “Out Of Italy - Two Centuries Of Domination And Demise”Christopher Hill - “The World Turned Upside Down - Radical Ideas During The English Revolution”Hugh-Trevor Roper - “Crisis Of The Seventeenth Century - Religion, Reformation, & Social Change”I also have Desmond Seward “The Hundred Years War” and “The Thirty Years War” by C.V. Wedgwood, but have not read them yet.
>>23614741Your sentence confuses me. Who celebrates a “passing”? Celebrations are for births, weddings, new jobs and retirements.
>>23615403He died a 100 years old you can celebrate it, and writer's death is usually good publicity for his books so I don't see any issues here.
>>23615416I mean I guess
>>23615357>Desmond Seward “The Hundred Years War” and “The Thirty Years War” by C.V. WedgwoodThose are both solid reads, if you already have them you might as well read them first. Everything written by Desmond Seward is worth reading IMO.
>>23597958Intrigued. Would you recommend ?
>>23611508Who? Post the blog
>>23616025Yeah but what else?
>>23616110>Simon WinchesterHis book about James Murray (The Professor and the Madman) and the one about the eruption of Krakatoa were pretty good.
>>23615357
Does anyone know where to find pdfs of the translations of some parts of the Zizhi tongjian by Achilles Fang (Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms) and the volumes of the Xiongnu by Josep h Yap
>>23578775i did read this but i didn't retain any of it. my lasting impression is that condoleezza rice was responsible for 9/11
>>23616837Not OP, but it sounds like Rurik Skywalker. He's closer to the mark than most Western Z-tard "Russophiles" and certainly a lot closer to how the actual hard right in Russia perceives things, but still probably too paranoid and dismissive of the Kremlin (he thinks Putin is a Western plant, for instance). If you want to get something close to an accurate picture on contemporary Russia, I'd read him and Meduza (believing neither of them) and solid history books on the Soviet period.
Best book on war of the roses.Reading Dan Jones plantagenets atm. Its... Okayish. Easy read, not quite as meaty as I'd like, but maybe it gets better in the middle?Preferred style is Tuchman. Yes I've read mirror already.
>>23617815This is meant to be a question: What is the best wotr book?
I'm reading this to remediate my American public school education. Still reeling from the revelation that Babylon was a real kingdom, and not just part of a biblical myth. In school, I only learned about the Sumerians for a little bit, then we skipped straight to Hellenistic Greece and Rome.Any good texts on the history of Mesopotamian kingdoms? Or just bronze/early iron age near-east and eastern Mediterranean societies in general. Especially stuff heavy on anthropology, or just straight-up anthropological texts. I'm curious what their governments, religion, way of life, trade, etc. was like.
>>23599440Norwich is the king
>Becomes the richest man to ever live by being an insanely autistic weirdoInsanely based. He was so obsessed with money that large amounts of it would make him horny. Also he believed that everything he did was messianically blessed by God.8/10 It's a little dry and the prose is kinda over the top for a biography.
>>23617815https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wars_of_the_Roses#Bibliography
>>23576642A great snapshot of 19th century Russia and its political and literary scene. This is the abridged version at like 900 pages, as there are multiple books in the set
Any good books on the history of Serbia? I'm particularly interested in what led to the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, its nationalism and its apparently tumultuous early political history and of course Yugoslavia
>>23617291I have that, I guess I’ll add it to the pile.
>>23618314I want to get it some time as well. But here ya go.
>>23617855>Any good texts on the history of Mesopotamian kingdoms?Age of Agade for Akkad and Sumeria during the Akkadian EmpireThere's a new book on Assyria by Eckart Frahm as well
>>23618164Amazing work. Go eat a cookie, you've earned it on this grand day.>>23618314Sir, we have discovered Wikipedia bibliographies now.
>>23618443Thanks, anon.
>>23576642>current history readsThe Power Game in Byzantium - Theodora and AntoninaIt's a good bookI don't think I have a favorite but maybe Hereward Tilton's The Quest for the Phoenix about Michael Maier and Renaissance esotericism may be it.Really too many to read. I just downloaded The Occult Sciences in Byzantium and I have to download when it will ever appear online Renaissance Complete.
>>23611987Richard Carrier
>>23599988Check out Ravenau de Lussan & John Esquemeling(Haven't read them myself, just stumbled across them mentioned in a book I'm reading about the Spanish colonization of the Americas and remembered a litanon asking for pirate books)
>>23616837>>23617645Haha yeah, that's right. It is indeed Rurik from 'Slavland Chronicles' on Substack.Not being Russian, Ukrainian, or from any of the other former Soviet Republics myself, it's difficult for me to really get a solid pulse on the dealings of these territories, especially when much of it is a question of nailing down specific 'oligarch' players, their personal history, allegiances, so on and so forth.It's a little bit more 'straightforward' in the west, insofar as you tend to be able to nail down particular institutions as a whole, and work your way down to snuff out certain people. With that being said, my intuition agrees with you that he's overly paranoid w.r.t. Putin's alleged American 'spook-state' political support. For the time being, it seems far-fetched, especially considering that (to my knowledge) he hasn't produced any evidence, circumstantial or otherwise, to create any kind of noteworthy linkage here. There's a lot of speculation that goes into this claim.>If you want to get something close to an accurate picture on contemporary Russia, I'd read him and Meduza (believing neither of them) and solid history books on the Soviet period.When you say Meduza, I assume you're referring to "Meduza — The Real Russia. Today.", the journal/paper.As for the history texts, could you provide any specific recommendations? All I currently have are IB European History books on the early Soviet Union.The ones I'm referring to are Allan Todd's "The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, 1924-2000", and Morris & Murphy's "Europe: 1870-1991".Maybe not particularly the most rigorous analyses of the period, as you can see.
>>23603774Succinct? Nigga, it's like 1,200 pages.
>>23591064How to Write History by Lucian of Samosata
>>23611987Cambridge History of ChristianityDeschner if you can read German
>>23615357Georges Duby - The Three Orders: Feudal Society ImaginedFernand Braudel - Civilisation and Capitaliasm, 15th-18th centuryJohn Julius Norwich's works
>>23617815Thomas Costain's Plantagenets quadrilogy
>>23621376ThanksAlso looking for a definitive history of /law/
>>23620811It is the entire history of oil, 1,200 pages is succinct for such a topic, not comprehensive.
>>23576642Current
>>23582614It's generally better to read the most current volumes on prehistoric eras with the most recent archaeological findings but when you're dealing with anything later what does it matter if you're reading a history written 50 years after the fact or 100?
>>23617855>I'm reading this to remediate my American public school education.>Still reeling from the revelation that Babylon was a real kingdom, and not just part of a biblical myth.What fucking state did you grow up in? Holy shit...
>>23622511>The Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzantinae (CSHB; English: Corpus of Byzantine history writers), also referred to as the Bonn Corpus, is a monumental fifty-volume series of primary sources for the study of Byzantine history
>>23622611I have his Invasion Of Europe By The Barbarians
Is there any ethnic studies but for Europe like picrel that have a historical focus?
>>23621382I'll check it out, thanks.
>>23578851Considering the mental state he was in and that he had to rewrite it almost entirely from memory and a few notes, I still consider this to be a total masterpiece. His writing is also excellent.
