My friend's birthday is coming up and I want to get him a new history book. He is really interested in the history of the church, Byzantine and Constantinople. He likes narrative history books as well. Please let me know if you have any suggestions!! What are your favorite history books?
The Story of Christianity is a two volume series by Justo Gonzalez. It's very good, and is the textbook I used in a church history class I took in seminary.
The First Thousand Years by Robert Louis Wilken is a rich scholarly introduction to church history, and a joy to read! For lighter fare, The Church in History by B. K. Kuiper is excellent.
Not the church, but the Papacy: John Julius Norwich's History of the Papacy is really great. Plus, Norwich is originally an expert on Byzantium who crossed over into Italian history later on.