I’ll start: Two books by Henry Wiencek, “An Imperfect God” - George Washington and his slaves and “Master of the Mountain” about Thomas Jefferson and his slaves.
Both excellent and written in a readable manner. Lots of food for thought.
Anyone else read a good book, History or Biography lately that you’d recommend?
I’ve mentioned this one before-“The Warmth of Other Suns”, following several people/families on the various paths of the Great Migration. H recommends it to everyone. He was very surprised to find the story of someone from his parents’ Louisiana hometown in it, but that’s not what drew him to it.
The Devil in the White City or In The Garden of Beasts…or for that matter anythingelse by Eric Larson
Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve been reading a lot of black history lately. Wiencek’s “The Hairstons” was interestin but not as good as the two president books I mentioned above.
I also liked “A Slave in the White House” by Paul Jennings about a slave of James and Dolley Madison’s. The book is based on his written autobiography, one of the few written by a slave of the time.
I’m also reading Cokie Robert’s “Capital Dames” which is superficial and not that engaging as a result.
Funny you mentioned Eric Larson. I just finished “The Garden of Beasts”. I also read his new book on the sinking of the Lusitania, “Dead Wake”.
I also liked “Isabella: Warrior Queen” by Kirsten Downey. I was ‘studying’ before a trip to Spain. It’s hard to find good books on Spanish history.
Empty Mansions (Dedham) – mysterious heiress from Gilded age
The Great Bridge (McCullough)---- it’s McCullough! so it’s great!
Tom’s River (Fagin)-- NJ Chemical company and town destroyed by polluted groundwater
Sanctuary of Outcasts (Sweet)-- Leper colony in Louisiana. Seriously.
King Leopold’s Ghost ( Hochschild) colonial history of Belgian Congo, very disturbing stuff
What is the What (Eggers) – technically a “fictionalized memoir” since Eggers subject was only a traumatized child when most of the events take place, and cannot reconstruct it with certainty. Heartbreaking modern African diaspora
Here are 3 The Devil in the White City. Seabiscuit. April 1865
thoroughly enjoyed “the Wright brothers” McCullough’s newest
Devil in the white City
Polio: An American Story Paperback – September 1, 2006
by David M. Oshinsky (Author) ( winner of Pulitzer for history )
History with a dose of humor :
Assassination Vacation Paperback – February 6, 2006
by Sarah Vowell (Author)
Yes, April 1865 was a truly great book, a page turner eventhough all the events are known.
And “Seabiscuit” was great as well. A book has to be great to take a subject (horses and racing) in which I had absolutely no interest before and make it something I couldn’t put down.
“Cadillac Desert” about water wars and damn construction in California in the first half of the 20th century.
“The Indifferent Stars Above” about the Donner Party, by the author of “Boys in the Boat”.
“Salt: A World History” about the role of salt in development of civilizations around the world.
“The Captured: A True Story of Abduction by Indians on the Texas Frontier”- very interesting and readable!
Susan Dunn’s “Jefferson, Madison and the Decline of Virginia” for those who like reading early American history is a very interesting economic history.
My Lobotomy by Howard Dully. A memoir. This one has stayed with me.
The Boys in the Boat, about the Washington Huskies rowing team in the 1930s, trying to make the Olympic rowing team.
The Victorian City: Everyday Life in Dickens’ London by Judith Flanders.
Desert Queen by Janet Wallach (about Gertrude Bell).
Just Kids by Patti Smith.
Kurlansky’s Cod and McPhee’s The Founding Fish were both very good.
I am not a fisherman.
The boys in the boat was great, loved it.
I like Nathaniel Philbrick, he wrote Mayflower and In the Heart of the Sea which I think won the National Book Award.
Two older books that have stayed with me:
Conundrum, published in 1974, by the great travel writer Jan Morris about her personal journey from male war hero, James Morris, to the woman she always believed she truly was. It opened my eyes to the idea of transgender people as a college student in an amazing way. In this summer of Caitlin Jenner I highly recommend it.
My Own Country by Abraham Verghese. His first book, the story of seeing AIDS patients early in the epidemic while working as a young Indian doctor in rural Tennessee. It’s a great book that displays enormous heart in the midst of fear and suffering.
A fitting recommendation for your moniker, psychmomma ! I am going to check that one out- sounds very interesting!
I also enjoyed “The Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks” about a black woman who died from cancer in the 1950’s and whose cells have been used in thousands of scientific research projects since, all w/o permission or knowledge by her family. It gets a little too heavy with scientific background and jargon at times but the background story is fascinating and disturbing.
I’m reading “At Home” by Bill Bryson. It is a history of the modern house, covering how different rooms evolved with all sorts of tangents into the spice trade, crazy failures of Thomas Edison, etc.