[HPFGU-OTChatter] Re: Don't Know Much About History . . .

[Melissa McCarthy]

Ali said:
> Still, if it's
> non-fiction you're after, I'd second Christopher Hill.

I agree, Christopher Hill is an interesting writer; I recommend his The
English Bible and the Seventeenth-Century Revolution.

James Sharpe's Instruments of Darkness is a good look at English witch
hunts, and not too sensationalist.

I'm not entirely sure what to make of The Keys of Avalon by Steve Blake and
Scott Lloyd; it's a reinterpretation of the historical basis of the
Arthurian legends that aims to rewrite much of early English history, and
although it looks convincing, something seems a bit off, and I can't put my
finger on what.  Still, it makes a good read.

David Starkey's Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII is dauntingly long (and
heavy!) but fascinating.  It reads almost more like a historical novel than
like a history, and the author emphasizes what a good story it makes.

Illustrated History of Europe: A Unique Portrait of Europe's Common History,
edited by Frederic Delouche, is a gorgeous book, beautifully illustrated,
and a good overview of general European history.

>From Dawn to Decadence by Jacques Barzun looks at the history of western
culture.  I don't agree with all of his conclusions, but it's well written
and engrossing.

Patricia Anderson's When Passion Reigned is a look at the history of
Victorian sexuality.  It makes a good light read, and a lot of it is
amusing.  The tone of the book might not be to everyone's taste, though.

And for a reasonably good quick'n'dirty look at the whole of history (well,
the whole of those parts of history that have affected North America), try
Doris Flexner's The Optimist's Guide to History.  It's not so much a history
as a list of things that have happened that we should be happy about, but
there is a lot of history in it.  I find it terribly oversimplified, but I
have an MA in history, so if you're not as obsessive about history as I am,
you might really like the book.

I know you're looking for non-fiction, but Anne Perry's mystery novels (the
William Monk series and the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series) are set in
Victorian Britain and offer some pretty good insights into what life was
like then for people of all different classes.

I'm not sure if all of those books are in print, but used-book stores around
universities are likely to carry any that are out of print and not in the
library.

Melissa, somewhat obsessed with English history