ksva
02-28-2009, 11:17 AM
Hi. This is a list of some of the books our 24yos has read over the years which have helped him make interesting 'connections' in history. Unfortunaely, he didn't keep a complete list, but here are a few. (He wants to be - is??- a writer, btw.) The list is a little long so I'll post it in 2 parts. HTH. Kathy
To those who want to get a bigger, better picture of history.
Here are some book titles and categories that I found made history far more interesting. Most titles I recently read (I didn’t keep running lists).
BOOKS TOPICALLY. Try to go topically if you want books that bring together the big picture. For instance, I read a book (actually several) that dealt topically with the Popes during the Reformation and the Renaissance, and gained a greater understanding about the Papacy overall that I wouldn’t have gotten from a single biography or a simple analysis of the Vatican. Also, I was exceptionally interested in the Renaissance, and read many books on the various city states of the Renaissance. (Did you know that one Italian Renaissance city council actually elected Jesus as their new duke? And twenty councilmen voted against Him!J) Along with biographies of Francis I of France, Machiavelli, Michelangelo, and DaVinci (as well as the notebooks of DaVinci), these books made the Renaissance a remarkable time period, and things began to connect and make sense. DaVinci was the military engineer for a little-known Renaissance general named Casare Borgia, who tried to conquer Italy. Mr. Borgia, who was exceptionally treacherous, also employed Niccolo Machiavelli at one point, and many historians believe Borgia was the model for Machiavelli’s Prince. You can see how topical and biographical research of major historical periods will begin to connect figures that previously seemed isolated. (The case is even more so in the history of science.)
I could dig up many of the books that I found to be very enlightening (especially from about 1400 to 1800 AD) if anyone is exceptionally interested. I have included only the best here.
The Twelve Caesars. Suetonius. The most accurate portrayal of the Caesars I have yet read, this book deals specifically with the twelve Caesars who ruled at the height of the Roman Empire (Julius Caesar to Domitian?), so it does a very good job of bringing together a ‘big picture’ of the Caesars, as well as just being downright fascinating. After I read this original source, the Caesars (and the Roman Empire) made far more sense. I found it not just intriguing but also hysterical. (The Roman citizens invented a ditty about Caesar’s palace swallowing up all of Italy; Nero used to hide in closets during thunderstorms; one Caesar tried to have an elephant walk a tightrope; etc.)
God’s Bestseller. Excellent book detailing the doings of Henry VIII, Thomas More, Cardinal Wolsey and how they perpetrated the martyrdom of William Tyndale, whose translation of the NT the KJV relied upon. Somewhat dry, but makes a host of other things more interesting (KJV NT, Utopia, English reformation).
Marooned. Charles H. Barnard. One of my favorites. First-person account by a New York captain who was betrayed and marooned by a shipwrecked English crew in the Falkland Islands. Brings together many threads of history, such as the fact that Mr. Barnard slipped hurriedly out of an American harbor to hunt seals near Antarctica because of trade laws that were about to go into effect in light of the War of 1812; his use of long-forgotten trades and talents; the crew of criminals escaped from Botany Bay (modern Australia) who had wrecked on the Falkland Islands, and who betrayed him; and the Spanish settlers among whom he wandered afterward. Apart from being an excellent historical book, Marooned has elements of Robinson Crusoe, Pilgrim’s Progress, Gulliver’s Travels, and Don Quixote all wrapped up in an intriguing plot worthy of Shakespeare.
A Great Improvisation. Stacy Schiff. About Benjamin Franklin’s part in forging America’s alliance with France in the American Revolutionary. If this book doesn’t pique your curiosity in France and Benjamin Franklin, nothing will.
John Paul Jones’ Autobiography (mostly concerning his Revolutionary battles) which he presented to King Louis XVI of France. As far as I know this has no standard publication form, but I managed to find one with footnotes that gave context to what JPJ assumed Louis would understand, but which the modern reader wouldn’t.
DETAILED BIOGRAPHIES. A biography titled "X (person) and his time/day/world" is especially helpful when seeking a broader perspective. Although not universally true, the older biographies are better. Even when I find a good modern biography, its primary source usually turns out to be a now-out-of-print biography, or original documents.
The Man who Was Don Quixote (?). Written by a man who confesses that he found Cervantes dull until he read about old Miguel’s life. Reading this book made “Don Quixote” more interesting, which is saying something. Ink illustrations done by author.
Rousseau and His Era. John Morley. I’m sure this is out of print, but if you can find it, it is worth reading as much for its literature value as for its information. I must have had two pages full of poetic passages copied from this old book when I finished.
Thomas Jefferson and His Times. Thomas Watson. Unusual biography. Brings together many aspects of history from a Southern Conservative point of view (hence the uniqueness). Although he had strong opinions about a man’s ethnicity (i.e., he was a racist), his perception of American history seemed unusually clear, because he made sense out of what other authors had ignored or made more confusing. Beware that he assumes the reader is already familiar with the Revolution. Due to his shady background, I double-checked many historical accounts he used in his descriptions. I found they were all accurate.
EXPLORATION/TRAVEL JOURNALS. General descriptions and travel journals ought to increase your interest in a country and its history. Because I like Scotland, I have been reading about it. In “An Innocent in Scotland” David McFadden very broadly recounted the history of Hadrian’s Wall while visiting it, and lent background to it I was unaware of. He said that a legion of Roman soldiers simply disappeared when they marched into Scotland. Also, he said the Roman soldiers told stories about the Picts being able to lurk submerged up to their ears in their cold, nasty bogs for days waiting for the blundering Romans to march by. Now I knew another reason the Romans built a wall and avoided the Scots. Also, his and others’ descriptions of the weather in the Irish Sea were helpful. How? The Spanish Armada’s defeat was due in large part to the fact that, after the battle with the English, it sailed up the Irish Sea between Ireland and Britain, where many ships sank in violent storms.
“The Scots” (Clifford Hanley?) had some excellent anecdotes and summations of Scottish history. At one point, after citing many examples, Mr. Hanley concluded that the Scottish just don’t make good rulers, however sensible they seem otherwise. Irrelevant, right? Later on I read that Ulysseus Grant was one of our most inept presidents. Grant is one of the Scottish clans. Alexander Hamilton was a conniving skunk in Washington’s administration. He was the son of a Scottish peddler. Many of the notorious British rulers were Scottish. However, the book also pointed out that Scotsmen make superb military leaders, and our own history affords at least four: Alexander Hamilton, John Paul Jones, Ulysseus Grant, and Douglas MacArthur. Even his anecdotes were helpful. Illegal stills became a problem when Britain (in London) began taxing Scottish whiskey. The Scots, then, began inventing ingenious ways of evading the law. One still-maker anonymously called up the revenue committee in charge of eradicating illegal stills and told them there was a still on a desolate island off the Scottish coast. The committee dispatched their investigator, who wandered around on the uninhabited island for a day and a night, during which he was driven mad by ants and foul weather. He returned with nothing to report. A week later, another anonymous tip-off caused a repeat of the fruitless fiasco. Once the committee was fully infuriated and certain there was no still on the island, the anonymous informant rowed out to the island and set up his still. Pointless story? Not for someone living in the shadow of the Appalachian Mountains, near the self-proclaimed “Moonshine capital of the world.”
To those who want to get a bigger, better picture of history.
Here are some book titles and categories that I found made history far more interesting. Most titles I recently read (I didn’t keep running lists).
BOOKS TOPICALLY. Try to go topically if you want books that bring together the big picture. For instance, I read a book (actually several) that dealt topically with the Popes during the Reformation and the Renaissance, and gained a greater understanding about the Papacy overall that I wouldn’t have gotten from a single biography or a simple analysis of the Vatican. Also, I was exceptionally interested in the Renaissance, and read many books on the various city states of the Renaissance. (Did you know that one Italian Renaissance city council actually elected Jesus as their new duke? And twenty councilmen voted against Him!J) Along with biographies of Francis I of France, Machiavelli, Michelangelo, and DaVinci (as well as the notebooks of DaVinci), these books made the Renaissance a remarkable time period, and things began to connect and make sense. DaVinci was the military engineer for a little-known Renaissance general named Casare Borgia, who tried to conquer Italy. Mr. Borgia, who was exceptionally treacherous, also employed Niccolo Machiavelli at one point, and many historians believe Borgia was the model for Machiavelli’s Prince. You can see how topical and biographical research of major historical periods will begin to connect figures that previously seemed isolated. (The case is even more so in the history of science.)
I could dig up many of the books that I found to be very enlightening (especially from about 1400 to 1800 AD) if anyone is exceptionally interested. I have included only the best here.
The Twelve Caesars. Suetonius. The most accurate portrayal of the Caesars I have yet read, this book deals specifically with the twelve Caesars who ruled at the height of the Roman Empire (Julius Caesar to Domitian?), so it does a very good job of bringing together a ‘big picture’ of the Caesars, as well as just being downright fascinating. After I read this original source, the Caesars (and the Roman Empire) made far more sense. I found it not just intriguing but also hysterical. (The Roman citizens invented a ditty about Caesar’s palace swallowing up all of Italy; Nero used to hide in closets during thunderstorms; one Caesar tried to have an elephant walk a tightrope; etc.)
God’s Bestseller. Excellent book detailing the doings of Henry VIII, Thomas More, Cardinal Wolsey and how they perpetrated the martyrdom of William Tyndale, whose translation of the NT the KJV relied upon. Somewhat dry, but makes a host of other things more interesting (KJV NT, Utopia, English reformation).
Marooned. Charles H. Barnard. One of my favorites. First-person account by a New York captain who was betrayed and marooned by a shipwrecked English crew in the Falkland Islands. Brings together many threads of history, such as the fact that Mr. Barnard slipped hurriedly out of an American harbor to hunt seals near Antarctica because of trade laws that were about to go into effect in light of the War of 1812; his use of long-forgotten trades and talents; the crew of criminals escaped from Botany Bay (modern Australia) who had wrecked on the Falkland Islands, and who betrayed him; and the Spanish settlers among whom he wandered afterward. Apart from being an excellent historical book, Marooned has elements of Robinson Crusoe, Pilgrim’s Progress, Gulliver’s Travels, and Don Quixote all wrapped up in an intriguing plot worthy of Shakespeare.
A Great Improvisation. Stacy Schiff. About Benjamin Franklin’s part in forging America’s alliance with France in the American Revolutionary. If this book doesn’t pique your curiosity in France and Benjamin Franklin, nothing will.
John Paul Jones’ Autobiography (mostly concerning his Revolutionary battles) which he presented to King Louis XVI of France. As far as I know this has no standard publication form, but I managed to find one with footnotes that gave context to what JPJ assumed Louis would understand, but which the modern reader wouldn’t.
DETAILED BIOGRAPHIES. A biography titled "X (person) and his time/day/world" is especially helpful when seeking a broader perspective. Although not universally true, the older biographies are better. Even when I find a good modern biography, its primary source usually turns out to be a now-out-of-print biography, or original documents.
The Man who Was Don Quixote (?). Written by a man who confesses that he found Cervantes dull until he read about old Miguel’s life. Reading this book made “Don Quixote” more interesting, which is saying something. Ink illustrations done by author.
Rousseau and His Era. John Morley. I’m sure this is out of print, but if you can find it, it is worth reading as much for its literature value as for its information. I must have had two pages full of poetic passages copied from this old book when I finished.
Thomas Jefferson and His Times. Thomas Watson. Unusual biography. Brings together many aspects of history from a Southern Conservative point of view (hence the uniqueness). Although he had strong opinions about a man’s ethnicity (i.e., he was a racist), his perception of American history seemed unusually clear, because he made sense out of what other authors had ignored or made more confusing. Beware that he assumes the reader is already familiar with the Revolution. Due to his shady background, I double-checked many historical accounts he used in his descriptions. I found they were all accurate.
EXPLORATION/TRAVEL JOURNALS. General descriptions and travel journals ought to increase your interest in a country and its history. Because I like Scotland, I have been reading about it. In “An Innocent in Scotland” David McFadden very broadly recounted the history of Hadrian’s Wall while visiting it, and lent background to it I was unaware of. He said that a legion of Roman soldiers simply disappeared when they marched into Scotland. Also, he said the Roman soldiers told stories about the Picts being able to lurk submerged up to their ears in their cold, nasty bogs for days waiting for the blundering Romans to march by. Now I knew another reason the Romans built a wall and avoided the Scots. Also, his and others’ descriptions of the weather in the Irish Sea were helpful. How? The Spanish Armada’s defeat was due in large part to the fact that, after the battle with the English, it sailed up the Irish Sea between Ireland and Britain, where many ships sank in violent storms.
“The Scots” (Clifford Hanley?) had some excellent anecdotes and summations of Scottish history. At one point, after citing many examples, Mr. Hanley concluded that the Scottish just don’t make good rulers, however sensible they seem otherwise. Irrelevant, right? Later on I read that Ulysseus Grant was one of our most inept presidents. Grant is one of the Scottish clans. Alexander Hamilton was a conniving skunk in Washington’s administration. He was the son of a Scottish peddler. Many of the notorious British rulers were Scottish. However, the book also pointed out that Scotsmen make superb military leaders, and our own history affords at least four: Alexander Hamilton, John Paul Jones, Ulysseus Grant, and Douglas MacArthur. Even his anecdotes were helpful. Illegal stills became a problem when Britain (in London) began taxing Scottish whiskey. The Scots, then, began inventing ingenious ways of evading the law. One still-maker anonymously called up the revenue committee in charge of eradicating illegal stills and told them there was a still on a desolate island off the Scottish coast. The committee dispatched their investigator, who wandered around on the uninhabited island for a day and a night, during which he was driven mad by ants and foul weather. He returned with nothing to report. A week later, another anonymous tip-off caused a repeat of the fruitless fiasco. Once the committee was fully infuriated and certain there was no still on the island, the anonymous informant rowed out to the island and set up his still. Pointless story? Not for someone living in the shadow of the Appalachian Mountains, near the self-proclaimed “Moonshine capital of the world.”