I'm currently reading Margaret Macmillan's newest work War: How Conflict Shaped Us. It is a rather interesting bit of "pop history" and she does a nice job of interweaving both historical examples from all eras to support larger arguments about all sorts of questions about war and our connection to it in the past. From discussing why wars break out to the evolution of soldiering and combat through the centuries, and even how settling the peace has developed with conflicts, Macmillan's work is a piece I would recommend to anyone wishing to get to grips with the deeper questions on those struggles which have become such important and mainstream periods of history.

Other than that, from my past reads I would also put forward Robert Edsel's The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History, which deals with that somewhat obscure group of Allied servicemen who dedicated their life and knowledge during the Second World War to hunt down and save priceless works of art from being destroyed by the Nazis. It weaves a detailed narrative of the Monuments Men, from formation, to deployment, to some of the most famous works of art that they were responsible for tracking down and rescuing. Edsel employs that useful trick of following a cast of characters throughout the book, and his primary sourcework from the Monuments Men themselves or people who knew them (along with their work) is rather good. Definitely worth picking up if you're interested in a bit of World War 2 pop history that isn't quite as mainstream as the accounts of the larger conflict.

I am re-reading "Roots of Resistance: A History of Land Tenure in New Mexico" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, and I think it is a very compelling analysis of the material conditions in New Mexico and the various shifts in political economy (pre-colonial, early colonial, late colonial, Mexican period, US territory, US state, present).

One detail I noticed is that the author's bibliography consists only of translations of Spanish language-sources; and in her other book (a memoir which I hated) she mentioned not knowing very much Spanish at all.

Question: Do historians usually need to be able to read untranslated primary-language texts in the relevant area? To be clear, I like the book and nothing jumps out at me as "wrong", but I am just wondering if it is normal for historians to only use translations in their focus area.

Does anyone know of any books, articles, etc., written about the legal/criminal justice/penal system of Prussia or Germany in the 2nd half of the 19th Century? Anything that discusses either civil or criminal punishment (if such a distinction makes any sense in this context) would be of particular interest. Thanks!

I'm open to any suggestions on the history and usage of seals in East Asia.

I got Mae M. Ngai's Impossible Subjects: Illegal Aliens and the Making of America from interlibrary loan at last. Looking forward to reading it; I wonder if anyone here has any thoughts on it!

Anyone have a good list or any recommendations on food history? There's a few books scattered within the various sub-headers, but no subheading for food itself.

I’ve long been keeping my eye out for book(s) or articles that directly address how the declassification of ULTRA affected the historiography of the war. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Just started the daunting journey of Jonathan Sumption's 'Hundred Years War' series. Comes highly recommended and already only a handful of chapters in I can tell I'll be enjoying them due to the writing style.