Today:
Saturday Reading and Research will focus on exactly that: the history you have been reading this week and the research you've been working on. It's also the prime thread for requesting books on a particular subject. As with all our weekly features, this thread will be lightly moderated.
So, encountered a recent biography of Stalin that revealed all about his addiction to ragtime piano? Delved into a horrendous piece of presentist and sexist psycho-evolutionary mumbo-jumbo and want to tell us about how bad it was? Need help finding the right book to give the historian in your family? Then this is the thread for you!
The results of my most recent research can be found over on /r/badhistory. It is an examination of Pius XII's congratulatory message to Franco, and an analysis of how papal writings often say more than the mere words alone would suggest. It is long (11k words) for a reddit discussion, and not in the academic language that I would use here. It also boils down to "I wish these authors would write a chapter on this subject rather than a paragraph," so I may well have gone completely overboard in analyzing a thousand word speech.
Also, Joseph Maiolo's Cry Havoc is just outstanding reading. He is presenting things I knew already, but with an economic foundation that I have never really delved into. His ability to document worldwide economic decisions over a long time period without being confusing is astonishing.
this crash video is awful particularly this part
Has anyone here read John Darwin's book "The Empire project"? Thoughts? I am working my way through it now.
Does anyone have suggestions for a book on the history of stand up comedy?
Any good books on assyriology and is there any academic review of the ark before noah
Reading: I begin today down to the final three chapters of Battle Cry of Freedom. Should have read it years ago. It's been a great read that has truly rounded out my Civil War knowledgebase. McPherson has a gift for linking the bigger picture to the seminal events and circumstances in a compelling narrative that makes it easy to cite this work as a definitive single volume history.
Research: Continuing initial groundwork for a project dealing with Grant's relationships and interactions with Union Civil War generals who remained active U.S. Army into his presidency, Sherman, Sheridan, et.al. Any insights as to which books on Grant are best for post-Civil War coverage would be much appreciated, as would suggestions for any other topical works.
Book project in parrallel of my thesis. Doing research on an historical neighborhood. Social and micro history. I got to go to scout out some photographs at the archives.
I'm looking at headgear in Mesoamerica to compare to the shaft tomb figures from my area.
Anyone know how accurate legacy of ashes: a history of the cia is?
Does anyone have any good recommendations for books on Poland? Mainly the Hussars.