Thursday Reading and Recommendations is intended as bookish free-for-all, for the discussion and recommendation of all books historical, or tangentially so. Suggested topics include, but are by no means limited to:
Asking for book recommendations on specific topics or periods of history
Newly published books and articles you're dying to read
Recent book releases, old book reviews, reading recommendations, or just talking about what you're reading now
Historiographical discussions, debates, and disputes
...And so on!
Regular participants in the Thursday threads should just keep doing what they've been doing; newcomers should take notice that this thread is meant for open discussion of history and books, not just anything you like -- we'll have a thread on Friday for that, as usual.
I'm looking for recommendations for my 12-year-old who is interested in medieval Europe. He is currently reading Juliet Barker's Agincourt and is really enjoying it. I'd like to get him something for Christmas (I shop early) or an upcoming birthday.
I'm looking for a comprehensive history of the Taiping Rebellion in English. Any good suggestions?
Hi all, looking for recommended books on:
Thank you!
I'm looking for books on Ming-era China and before. I have East Asia: Tradition and Transformation by John Fairbank as well as The Search for Modern China by Jonathan Spence. I was wondering if anyone could recommend anything that gave a broader overview of "older" China.
Is "Rise and Kill First" biased? Is it worth reading? I read first couple of pages and it looks interesting, but I can't find anything about bias or how historically accurate it is.
I have similar question about Kissinger's "Diplomacy". Can it be read for the content of the book, or is it primary read to understand Kissinger and USA diplomacy?
I've started reading Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics, and I honestly have no idea what to think about it. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to approach it?
Hey, I hope somebody can help me out! I already created a thread about this but:
I plan on doing a presentation about the price revolution in Spain and Europe of the 16th century. I however lack sources at the moment. Does anybody know some good books or articles to get me started? They can be in either English or German.
Hello. I've been having difficulty finding books on Sengoku period Japan (c. 1467 - c. 1568) written in, or translated to, English. Are there any especially lauded books on this period (or on Feudal Japan as a whole)? What books would you recommend? I'm especially interested in the politics, battle tactics, and leaders of the era, however most of what I've been able to find centers around the three unifiers and no one else.
I'm trying to understand what we know about 'cradles of civilisation' (i.e. places where things like writing and state organisation arose indepndently). Any good books on this as a whole, looking at how development was similar/different in different places and evidence for them influencing each other. Stuff I've read online differs on whether Egypt's development was independent of that of the Fertile Crescent...