Post and discussion about any type of history book.
>Vengeance: The Last Stands of Custer, Crazy Horse, and Sitting Bull by Tom Clavin
>On June 25–26, 1876, the Battle of the Little Bighorn, commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was fought between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes and the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army. Along the Little Bighorn River in Montana Territory, the battle resulted in the devastating defeat of U.S. forces and was the most significant action of the Great Sioux War of 1876.
The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History by Tonio Andrade
>Tonio Andrade examines the historical trajectory of gunpowder technology and its military implications, particularly focusing on China and the West. The book provides a fresh perspective on why China, despite being the birthplace of gunpowder and initially leading in its military applications, fell behind Western nations by the early 1800s.
>>25306686 I've considered this too, but some countries just have too much for one book and some are too irrelevant. How are you gonna get a whole book out of south sudan?
I found this a pretty illuminating read as somebody unfamiliar with the history of the Muslim world, but what I found particularly informative was way it rendered the "Muslim mindset" to a non-Muslim. It's essentially an explainer for how Islamic culture saw the world at various points in history, how they explained history and major world events.
I had some assumptions going in about what "disrupted" referred to, and believed at first it would build up to the crusades. But as it turns out, the crusades were an altogether minor setback for the Islamic world. While they were an immense hardship for the people of the Levant, overall, Islam found the Crusader states bothersome, rather than catastrophic. The real catastrophe, that massive disruption that totally derailed Dar-al-Islam, was the Mongols. I had no idea the apocalyptic damage the Mongols did to the Islamic world, nor the effect it had on their religious beliefs.
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Anonymous05/28/26(Thu)01:21:38
>>25306791 Is there any other histories like this? Like global history through Chinese or Indian eyes?
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Anonymous05/28/26(Thu)01:25:48
>>25306791 I thought it was neat too. At first it sounded like grievance slop but the author is actually pretty mild and even-handed.
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Anonymous05/28/26(Thu)03:27:03
>>25304889 This guy seems like a chode but I'll look into it regardless
Some anon recommended picrel in the previous thread - It is a great read and I'm interested in more detailed histories of some of the peoples and cultures described there. For example, the story of the Irish peregrini sailing around the North Sea was fascinating
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Anonymous05/28/26(Thu)12:09:01
We need a rentry for these threads. I have missed to many books rec'd here already.
>Since 1600 Japan has undergone three periods of wrenching social and institutional change, following the imposition of hegemonic order on feudal society by the Tokugawa shogun; the opening of Japan's ports by Commodore Perry; and defeat in World War II. The Making of Modern Japan charts these changes: the social engineering begun with the founding of the shogunate in 1600, the emergence of village and castle towns with consumer populations, and the diffusion of samurai values in the culture.
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Anonymous05/29/26(Fri)17:16:48
>>25309252 >World Economic Forum Number One Book Ehhhh....ok I guess
>>25310789 I own The Little Ice Age on e-reader, how does it compare to Geoffrey Parkers "Global Crisis"?
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Anonymous05/29/26(Fri)22:17:41
>>25310826 I don't know, I only just got it and is on my to read list lel. I bought it based on a recommendation from another anon in the previous thread.
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Anonymous05/29/26(Fri)22:53:11
I've read A History of Christianity from Diarmaid MacCulloch, his other books are also worth reading? "Lower than the angels" and "Silence: A Christian History" in particular. What about "The Reformation" ?
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Anonymous05/29/26(Fri)23:33:54
>>25307432 Hey that was me! It's a very fun book & gives you a starting point to learn about the various cultures around the globe & their relation to the Atlantic ocean. Wished the author made a sequal for the Pacific or various others like the Indian Ocean. I think the roughest part of the book for me had to be the subchapter (subheadings?) on Viking instruments. It just didn't click with me that bit. It was interesting learning on various topics from the Calusa tribes & their middens, to Irish desert brothers braving the seas in their little boats & their various types of martyrdom. Lots of stopping of points for personal research & for other books.
>>25310975 Also going to be starting this! I couldn't get into the Invasion of Italy books which sucks but enjoying this. Gonna do a double back to back with this & "The Battle of Stalingrad Through German Eyes: The Death of the Sixth Army" but idk if that will result in burnout so we will see. I also just finished a book on German PoWs in North Wales. I will write up my thoughts on it tomorrow after visiting a castle. >>25310789 Went to a charity store & two Max Hastings books on WW1 & 2 for £2. Then yesterday got like 5 for £10. I can't remember the titles but I know one was of nurses in war & conflicts.
>>25310789 >>25310988 I also want to get some Mark Felton books as some of the topics interest me but they are kinda expensive for me :/ On this note, has anyone read his books? Are they of a high quality? I've heard some people call him a fraud but I don't know enough about the situation.
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Anonymous05/30/26(Sat)01:03:42
>>25310904 >What about "The Reformation" ? Yes it's quite good.
It's just unbelievable how much superior nonfiction is to fiction. Yes, even the classics. I remember forcing myself to read shit like the Iliad and Candide and feeling like a slog. Then I picked up books like Seeing Like a State and the difference was like night and day. Reading about ACTUAL THINGS AND PLACES just feels to much more fascinating than reading the shallow world building and character motivations of places like Oceania or Middle Earth and Ralkolnikov or Odysseus. Really glad to see other /lit/zens are waking up to the superiority of nonfiction with these generals. >>25310789 >>25310826 Don't know about Global Crisis but The Little Ice Age has passages like these. It's a neat little book that concisely describes the eponymous climactic phenomenon.
While browsing Goodreads I stumbled upon this. It has a really high score on the platform and glowing reviews BUT... I did my research and turns out this "Dan Jones" is a pop historian that seemingly prefers doing TV appearances than actual research. I'm also suspicious of the subtitle. Whenever a book advertises itself as "A New History of X" you have to assume it's revisionist, right? Should I still give it a try anyways or nah? Also, are Under the Black Flag and The Age of the Vikings good primers on the Golden Age of Piracy and the Viking Age respectively or should I read something else?
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Anonymous05/30/26(Sat)04:10:43
>>25304749(OP) Does anyone know of a good book on the 19th Century Italian unification?
>>25311223 >Under the Black Flag by David Cordingly? I own it, haven't read it. apparently its more of a history of piracy in popular culture than piracy in actuality, but I'd recommend Black Flags, Blue Waters if you want something more about the actual practice through the ages.
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Anonymous05/30/26(Sat)11:44:22
>>25311067 How does it compare to the one from Owen Chadwick?
>>25304749(OP) best history of penal systems besides picrel and Discipline & Punish? I'm the same anon who asked for history of law recs in the last thread.
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Anonymous05/30/26(Sat)21:27:22
>>25306881 I'm not sure, but I'd be interested in them as well. This book is the product of the author's personal experience as an British Afghan, somebody who has lived in both the cultural traditions of Islam, and the west, and chafed at the misunderstandings his western friends and mentors had about his homeland, and about Muslims in general. As >>25306895 pointed out, he's surprisingly even-handed in his discussions and doesn't use the book as an opportunity to vent his grievances, but rather, it is a genuine attempt to educate people.
So I think we just have to wait for a similar author to come along for China and India, though unfortunately the Chinese one is going to be hard to find in the sea of Chinese diaspora literature that exists currently.
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Anonymous05/30/26(Sat)22:53:34
>>25312376 Michele Pifferi - Reinventing Punishment: A Comparative History of Criminology and Penology in the 19th and 20th Century.
Jesus christ I feel like an old man. I spent easily 5 minutes figuring out the captcha. Fuck 4chan these days man.
Backcountry War: The Rise of Francis Marion, Banastre Tarleton, and Thomas Sumter by Andrew Waters
>Explores the intense guerrilla fighting during the American Revolution in South Carolina, focusing on the contributions of these three key figures. The narrative highlights their roles in pivotal battles and the broader context of the war in the southern theater.
>>25304749(OP) What are some good histories of late 1600s/early 1700s wars?
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Anonymous06/01/26(Mon)05:21:12
>>25315110 Tim Blanning - The Pursuit of Glory Howard Peckham - The Colonial Wars Robert Gaudi - The War of Jenkins Ear James Falkner - The War of Spanish Succession John Lynn - The Wars of Louis XIV Reed Browning - The War of the Austrian Succession
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Anonymous06/01/26(Mon)07:40:28
>>25310975 Thanks again for the recommendation! >Lots of stopping of points for personal research & for other books. My plan is to follow it up with more reading on the Portuguese exploration and expansion, as I have a general interest in their history, and this book proved a great starting point, putting it all in the broader context of the region.
Ive been reading scifi for the past decade or so. I want to read some history. I used to read shit like Herodotus, tacitus, xenophon, but I can't imagine going back to that. The last history book I read was the devils chessboard. I need some recommendations of history books that are not too long or academic but also haven't been outright debunked. I like cia/conspiracy shit, military stuff mostly modern, and stuff with action(?) thanks
>>25316592 Read works on wars written by soldiers who were in them. Like a modern day Thucydides or Xenophon. The stuff by soldiers in the conflicts like Rhodesia and Angola is very interesting.
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Anonymous06/02/26(Tue)05:26:33
Will be starting the Oxford history of the US soon, looks like the book that covers the progressive era and the roaring 20s got pushed back yet again, any recs for filling in that gap? I've seen Brands' "American Colossus" and Jackson Lears' "Rebirth of a Nation" if anyone is familiar with them.
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Anonymous06/02/26(Tue)12:52:05
>>25316952 I actually read part of Richard White's The Republic For Which It Stands so far. Its not bad but he simps for Andrew Johnson a bit
>>25307432 >>25315313 Just finished 'Ocean' and jumped right into this one. Still early on it feels like a straight continuation, and the style seems similar. Can't wait to get to the struggle with the Ottomans over the Indian Ocean. From what I know of the conflict, it looks kinda like an early modern version of the Cold War, proxy-wars, embargoes and puppet rulers included.
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Anonymous06/02/26(Tue)14:18:19
Whats the Edward gibbon equivalent for Greek civilization
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Anonymous06/02/26(Tue)14:28:06
>>25317460 probably Jacob Burckardt's "Greeks And Greek Civilization"
Worth a read? I'm a crusade mood and I'm want to start from the beginning
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Anonymous06/02/26(Tue)17:55:49
>>25306791 Ordered and arriving today. Thanks for posting this, it sounds good.
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Anonymous06/02/26(Tue)18:45:17
>>25316592 I'd unironically recommend World Order by Henry Kissinger, regardless of what you may think of the man. Very digestable, fairly short and very relevant for understanding modern world politics (although it is a little bit outdated since it was written in 2013 I think?). It might not quite be what you're looking for based on what you mentioned that you liked (cia/conspiracy shit, military stuff mostly modern, and stuff with action) but I think that there's enough overlap in the subject matter to the point where you'll probably find it interesting. Give it a read.
>>25311650 >Owen Chadwick Haven't read him. Diarmaid MacCulloch and Roland Bainton are the most engaging authors on the Reformation that I've come across.