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All Hell Let Loose - The World At War 1939-45 by Max Hastings Cannot recommend this enough. Excellent overview of the Second World War. Focuses a bit more on aspects of the conflict that haven't received as much attention in mainstream histories. Balances out the bigger picture with the experiences of everyday people really well too. It's very recent history really, but at the minuit i'm reading Shake Hands With The Devil - The Failure Of Humanity In Rwanda by Lt. Gen. Romeo Dallaire. (He was the force commander for the initial United Nations presence in Rwanda in the days leading upto and during the genocide) It's angry, accusatory and disturbing. Brilliant book. I'd be interested to know what else is worth reading on the Rwandan genocide?? Good to see Mao's Great Famine get a recommendation, since that's next in the reading list.
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Apr 2, 2012 15:37
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Having just finished 'Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee' and developing a suitable sense of outrage, I'm after recommendations for a more balanced view of the overall picture during that frontier wars period. 'Bury My Heart...' was admittedly quite one sided. Also anything that goes into Native American history/civil rights from that period leading up to the present would be great. As a Brit, it's a subject I feel pretty under informed on.
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Apr 4, 2013 04:58
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Oh no, that's not at all what I'm after. Sorry you even thought that. I was pretty well horrified after reading Wounded Knee. There's certainly no justification for those kind of policies. I guess to define it better, I'm after an overview of how the US was forming as a nation during that period. Everything East of the frontiers i guess.
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Apr 4, 2013 05:48
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Arbite posted:It's certainly not a conventional history book, but Flashman and the Redskins gives a white/foreign perspective on westward expansion in two eras, especially the Black Hills dispute and it climaxes at Greasy Grass. Cheers for the recommendation. Like you say, not conventional history, but could be worth a look. Just to reiterate, i'm not looking for anything that tries to justify what happened, just a good account of what and why it happened. Searching through Amazon though, it looks like books on the subject are few and far between. Any suggestions for books on native American history post 1890, particularly leading up to today? Anyone know if Wounded Knee 1973: Still Bleeding by Stew Magnuson is worth a read? As for what's next on the reading list. I'm about to get into Rubicon by Tom Holland, followed by The Popes by John Julius Norwich. A bit of swotting before a trip to Rome in June. 
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Apr 4, 2013 19:00
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I'm currently a chapter and a half into Return Of A King by William Dalrymple. All about Britains first little military jaunt into Afghanistan in 1839. Very good book already, you can tell it's been thoroughly researched. I'm always fascinated to read about these obscure, less discussed corners of history.
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Jun 16, 2013 19:38
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