List of Suggested Readings
These texts, many of them book-length, should be available in a local library or for purchase from bookstores. Searching for these texts online may provide downloadable files. When possible, links are provided for accessible versions.
1. HISTORY’S STORY
Jacques Barzun and Henry F. Graff, The Modern Researcher (1957): Two American scholars lay out basic methodology for students of history [Here.]
Marc Bloch, The Historian’s Craft/Apologie pour l’histoire, ou Métier d’historien (1949):
A French historian, killed by the Nazis before he could finish this book, explains the use of history. [Selections here.]
John Tosh, The Pursuit of History (1984): In the first and more recent revised editions, the author reviews strengths and weaknesses of using theory to organize historical study. [Selections here.]
2. WANDERERS AND SETTLERS: THE ANCIENT MIDDLE EAST TO 400 BC
Anon., Gilgamesh (before the seventh century BC): In this epic poem, the king of Uruk seeks the meaning of life. [Here.]
Anon., The Book of the Dead (before the thirteenth century BC): A collection of hymns, stories, and speeches reveals much of Egyptian mythology. [Here and here].
3. THE CHOSEN PEOPLE: HEBREWS AND JEWS, 2000 BC TO AD 135
The "Old Testament" of the Bible/Tanakh, especially Genesis, Exodus, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings (before the second century BC): These books cover much of the history that Jews used for self-understanding; every person wanting to be educated should read the entire Bible, since it is foundational to Western culture. [Here and with Hebrew here.]
Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews/Antiquitates Judaicae (ca. AD 94): A pro-Roman Jewish scholar offers his own summary and interpretation of Jewish history.[ Here and here.]
4. TRIAL OF THE HELLENES: THE ANCIENT GREEKS, 1200 BC TO AD 146
Arrian, The Campaigns of Alexander/Anabasis Alexandri (AD second century): This account focuses on Alexander’s impressive military exploits. [Here.]
Herodotus, History of the Persian War/Historiai (mid-fifth century BC): “The father of history” offers a wide-ranging description of the ancient world as well as the Greek victory over the Persians. [Here.]
Ovid, Metamorphoses/Metamorphōseōn librī (AD early first century): This collection of tales presents many of the classic myths of Greece and Rome. [Here and in Latin.]
Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War/Historiai (late fifth century BC): The first great historian insightfully covers the conflict between Athens and Sparta. [Here.]
5. IMPERIUM ROMANUM: THE ROMANS, 753 BC TO AD 300
Julius Caesar, The Gallic War/Commentarii de bello Gallico (ca. 50 BC): The general not only praises his own victories but provides details on his enemies. [Here in Latin and English.]
Livy, From the Foundation of the City/Ab Urbe Condita (late first century BC): The chronicler generously covers many stories of Roman history. [Here.]
Plutarch, Parallel Lives/Bíoi Parálēlloi (first century AD): A Greek writing for Romans compares and contrasts heroes and villains of the ancient world. [Here.]
Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars/De vita Caesarum (AD 121): Brief biographies cover both the noble and scandalous activities of the rulers of Rome. [Here and here.]
6. THE REVOLUTIONARY RABBI: CHRISTIANITY, THE ROMAN EMPIRE, AND ISLAM, 4 BC TO AD 1453
The "New Testament" of the Bible/ta Biblia, especially the "Gospel according to Luke" and the "Acts of the Apostles:" These two books cover the life of Jesus and the formative years of the early church; every person wanting to be educated should read the entire Bible, since it is foundational to Western culture. [Here and here in Greek.]
Augustine, The City of God/Confessiones (ca. AD 415): The bishop and theologian explains God's role in history amidst the decline of the Roman Empire. [Here or here.]
Augustine, Confessions/De civitate Dei contra paganos (ca. AD 425): The author of The City of Godtells his story of conversion. [Here, here, and here.]
Eusebius Pamphili (of Caesarea), Ecclesiastical History/Historia Ecclesiastica (ca. AD 325): The biographer of Constantine sums up Christianity’s conquest of Rome. [Here.]
Josephus, The Jewish War/Bellum Judaicum (ca. AD 75): A pro-Roman Jewish scholar offers his own summary and interpretation of recent events leading to the destruction of Jerusalem. [Here and here.]
7. FROM OLD ROME TO THE NEW WEST: THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES, AD 500 TO 1000
Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People/Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum (early eighth century): The author views English history through its Christian development. [Here, here, and here.]
Benedict of Nursia, Rule/Regula Benedicti (sixth century): The founder of Western monasticism outlines regulations for the ideal life. [Here.]
Einhard, Life of Charlemagne/Vita Karoli Magni (early ninth century): This short biography offers a lively summary of its hero’s life. [Here and in Latin.]
Gregory of Tours, A History of the Franks/Historia Francorum (late sixth century): The author promotes the Franks as the protectors of Christianity . [Here.]
8. THE MEDIEVAL MÊLÉE: THE HIGH AND LATER MIDDLE AGES, 1000 TO 1500
Peter Abelard, Story of My Misfortunes/Historia Calamitatum (1132): This confident teacher in the early universities covers the high and low points of his career. [Here.]
Anon., The Song of Roland/La Chanson de Roland (ca. 1000): This epic poem conveys the rough life of early knights within a crusading ideology. [Here and in French.]
Balderich, The Deeds of Albero/Gesta Alberonis (mid-twelfth century): The biography of Trier’s warrior-bishop conveys the complexities of church/state issues during and after the Investiture Struggle.
Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales (late fourteenth century): This collection of colorful tales from many points of view illustrates medieval society. [Here.]
Jean Froissart, Chronicles/Chroniques (ca. 1380–1400): This French knight who also served in England conveys firsthand the stories of the Hundred Years War and its background. [Here and here, also in Volumes 1 and 2 and in French.]
9. MAKING THE MODERN WORLD: THE RENAISSANCE AND REFORMATION, 1400 TO 1648
Erasmus, In Praise of Folly/Moriae Encomium (1509): The author mockingly dissects his contemporary society. [Here and in Latin.]
Olaudah Equiano, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African Written by Himself (1789): A victim of slavery writes an account of his experiences. [Here and here.]
Bartolomé de Las Casas, A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies/Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias (1552): The first priest in the Americas criticizes the Spanish occupation. [Here and in Spanish.]
Niccolò Machiavelli, The Prince/Il Principe (1532): The Florentine politician offers enduring and pragmatic advice to Renaissance rulers. [Here and here.]
Giorgio Vasari, Lives of the Artists/Le Vite delle più eccellenti pittori, scultori, ed architettori (1550/1568): In this long collection, the author offers detailed portraits of many Renaissance artists. [Here.]
10. LIBERATION OF MIND AND BODY: EARLY MODERN EUROPE, 1543 TO 1815
Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790): A British conservative comments on the mistakes of the French. Here and here.
Glückel of Hamelin, Memoirs/Zikhroynes (1699–1719): A Jewish merchant describes the challenges she faced.
John Locke, The Second Treatise of Government (1690): Written just after the Glorious Revolution, this long tract argues in support of democratic and republican constitutions over and against monarchy. Here.
Michel de Montaigne, Essays/Les Essais (1580): These perceptive pieces range widely across social issues of the late Renaissance in France. [Here and in French.]
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Confessions/Les Confessions (1781/1788): The philosopher reveals the personal behind the polemical. [Here.]
Duc de Saint-Simon, Memoirs/Mémoires de Saint-Simon (1788): A noble participant in the courts of Kings Louis XIV and XV of France collected gossip-filled stories and descriptions. [Here and here and in French.]
Voltaire, Candide/Candide ou l'Optimisme (1759): This novel about an innocent satirizes contemporary events and eternal cruelties. [Here and in French.]
Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792): This manifesto calls for the education and equality of women. [Here, here, and here.]
11. MASTERY OF THE MACHINE: THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION, 1764 TO 1914
Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex (1871): This follow-up to his Origin of Species offers a nineteenth-century perspective on science and humanity, applying to human beings his theories of natural selection and sexual selection. Here and here.
Friedrich Engels, The Condition of the Working Class in England/Die Lage der arbeiten-den Klasse in England (1844): One of the founders of communism describes the exploitation of workers during the early Industrial Revolution. [Here or here.]
John Stuart Mill, On Liberty (1859): The author makes the case for nineteenth-century liberalism. [Here, here, or here.]
Émile Zola, Germinal (1885): This novel about French coal miners vividly portrays their miserable working and living conditions. [Here, here, and in French.]
12. THE WESTERNER’S BURDEN: IMPERIALISM AND NATIONALISM, 1810 TO 1918
Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front/Im Westen Nichts Neues (1929): The author realistically portrays his actual experiences in the German trenches of World War I [Here and in German.]
Henry M. Stanley, How I Found Livingstone (1871): The journalist tells the sensationalized experiences of his African expedition. [Here, here, and here.]
Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America/De la démocratie en Amérique (1835/ 1840): A French aristocrat studying prison reform contrasts the new American republic with his own country. [Here and here.]
Jules Verne, Around the World in Eighty Days/Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours (1873): A novel shows the Europeans’ increasing awareness of and interaction with the rest of the globe. [Here.]
13. REJECTIONS OF DEMOCRACY: THE INTERWAR YEARS AND WORLD WAR II, 1918 TO 1945
Winston Churchill, While England Slept (1938): Churchill’s warning against appeasement policies toward Nazi Germany; also, his multivolume History of the Second World War (1948–1954) offers his unique voice and perspectives on the conflict. [Here.]
Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents/Das Unbehagen in der Kultur (1930): The psychiatrist analyzes the value of civilization, applying his theories of guilt. [Here.]
Adolf Hitler, My Struggle/Mein Kampf (1925/1926): The Nazi leader’s manifesto outlines his racial views, which more of his contemporaries should have read more carefully and taken more seriously. [Here.]
George Orwell, Animal Farm (1945): A fantasy novel about farm animals who create their own totalitarian society reflects contemporary developments. [Here.]
John Reed, Ten Days That Shook the World (1919): The journalist offers his eyewitness account of the Russian Revolution. [Here and here.]
William L. Shirer, Berlin Diary: The Journal of a Foreign Correspondent, 1934–1941 (1941): An American reporter presents a firsthand account of Nazi Germany. [Here.]
Elie Wiesel, Night/La Nuit (1958): A survivor of the Nazi “Final Solution” relates his experiences. [Here.]
14. A WORLD DIVIDED: THE EARLY COLD WAR, 1945 TO 1980
Aimé Césaire, Discourse on Colonialism/Discours sur le colonialisme (1950): The author, raised under French colonial rule, indicts imperialism. [Here.]
Betty Friedan, The Feminine Mystique (1963): The housewife-turned-scholar dissects American consumerism to understand women’s issues. [Chapter 1, 2.]
Václav Havel, The Power of the Powerless (1978): The Czech playwright and future president explains how people can live under communist regimes. [Here and in Czech.]
George F. Kennan [“X”], The Sources of Soviet Conduct (1947): This article influenced the subsequent policy of containment by the United States toward the USSR. [Here.]
The Pentagon Papers/"Report of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Vietnam Task Force" (1971 and later): compilation of government documentes which had a controversial release. [Here.]
Robert S. McNamara, In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam (1996): One of the key planners of the war gives his view of what went wrong. [Access here, review here.]
Alvin Toffler, Future Shock (1970): The author reviews how modern technological society seems to be accelerating out of control. {Reviews here and here.]
15. INTO THE FUTURE: THE CONTEMPORARY ERA, 1980 TO THE PRESENT
Timothy Garton Ash, History of the Present: Essays, Sketches, and Dispatches from Europe in the 1990s (1999): Essays by the author of The Magic Lantern: The Revolution of ‘89 Witnessed in Warsaw, Budapest, Berlin and Prague (1990) further illuminate postcommunist Europe [Review.]
Tony Judt, Postwar: History of Europe since 1945 (2005): A contemporary historian pulls together a masterly analysis of recent decades. [Selections and review.]
Tina Rosenberg, This Haunted Land (1995): Interviews reflect on the fall of communism in Czechoslovakia, Poland, and East Germany. [Jacket quote and access here.]
