Grand unified books thread

[DontSayBanana]

I finally started digging through my piles of books that I've been given for various holidays. Michael Scott's "The Magician (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel)" might just need to disappear quietly.

The Comte de Saint-Germain as a disco star. Machiavelli in charge of the Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure. 'Nuff said.

[PDH]

I don't. I've no desire to run around Timmy fanwanks.

It is a good thing that there is a range then, that one might be able to read history that is not dispassionate, dry, and still be good history that Tim would hate because it is nuanced and intellectual.

[jimmy olsen]

It is a good thing that there is a range then, that one might be able to read history that is not dispassionate, dry, and still be good history that Tim would hate because it is nuanced and intellectual.

How about you suggest a "nuanced and intellectual"  history and I'll read it and report back on whether I hate it or like it. I expect it will be the later.

[Alatriste]

Napoleonic books recently:

Fighting Napoleon by Charles J. Esdaile. Supposedly an account of the guerrilla war in Spain, but spends the first 50 pages blabbering about previous works in the field and jabbering that English writers have generally ignored the Spanish viewpoint. CRY ME A FUCKING RIVER, YOU BLOWHARD. I stopped there.

Worst 4.98 spent in the last month.

How Far From Austerlitz?: Napoleon 1805-1815 by Alistair Horne. A generally entertaining read. However, suffers from English writer-itis.

Passable read.

I have read one Esdaille's book on guerrillas (perhaps the same) and it was really funny. In essence he proceeded to

a) Maintain that English writers have generally ignored the Spanish viewpoint.

b) Maintain that French writers had got all wrong, even those that had fought the guerrillas themselves in 1808-1814.

c) Maintain that guerrillas in fact had been counterproductive and caused more harm to the Allies than to the French.

I found the thesis very weak. Esdaille found easily contemporary sources telling that guerrillas did rob and abuse the peasants, conscript young men against their will, hide in the hills and rarely fight the French, encourage desertion from regular army units that couldn't enforce discipline without causing men to leave ranks and join the guerrillas, etc, etc... but such a view is so unconsistent with French sources from the period that I couldn't take them seriously.

War is a nasty business and guerrilla war is even nastier, but jumping from that nastiness to concluding that guerrillas actually helped the French because they turned the peasants against the Allies and eroded regular army's disicpline, as Esdaille does, is a jump far too long.

[Ed Anger]

I have read one Esdaille's book on guerrillas (perhaps the same) and it was really funny. In essence he proceeded to

a) Maintain that English writers have generally ignored the Spanish viewpoint.

b) Maintain that French writers had got all wrong, even those that had fought the guerrillas themselves in 1808-1814.

c) Maintain that guerrillas in fact had been counterproductive and caused more harm to the Allies than to the French.

I found the thesis very weak. Esdaille found easily contemporary sources telling that guerrillas did rob and abuse the peasants, conscript young men against their will, hide in the hills and rarely fight the French, encourage desertion from regular army units that couldn't enforce discipline without causing men to leave ranks and join the guerrillas, etc, etc... but such a view is so unconsistent with French sources from the period that I couldn't take them seriously.

War is a nasty business and guerrilla war is even nastier, but jumping from that nastiness to concluding that guerrillas actually helped the French because they turned the peasants against the Allies and eroded regular army's disicpline, as Esdaille does, is a jump far too long.

I didn't even get  to his other 2 theories. The dude's writing was so annoying and whiny, I gave up. I'll give it another try, since the meat of his argument does sound hilarious.

If I still had my 'Cavalcade of Crap" thread, it would go in there.

[jimmy olsen]

Finished Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Very amusing. I quite recommend it. 

[Syt]

Bought two more books today.

McCarthy's The Road
Robert Dallek: Nixon and Kissinger - Partners in Power (I also consider picking up his "John F. Kennedy - an unfinished Life")

[Savonarola]

Robert Dallek: Nixon and Kissinger - Partners in Power (I also consider picking up his "John F. Kennedy - an unfinished Life")

How did he get enough time off from battling the Doctor to write a book? 

[jimmy olsen]

Been reading some college textbooks on the Holocaust. So depressing. 

[CountDeMoney]

I'm getting ready to read "The Memoirs of William Tecumseh Sherman", as well as his collected correspondences.
Anyone have any recommendations for Sherman biographies? I'd prefer as balanced or as pro-Sherman as possible.

[Alatriste]

Robert Dallek: Nixon and Kissinger - Partners in Power (I also consider picking up his "John F. Kennedy - an unfinished Life")

How did he get enough time off from battling the Doctor to write a book? 

Any AI worth its salt should be able to find 4 alien civilizations, decypher the structure of 8 complex proteines and calculate the exact value of pi to the 10^45 decimal between one word spoken by the doctor and the next.

[Korea]

I started reading the 52 series again. One of my favorites!


Um, I forgot to check if we have the comic thread. Oops.

[Syt]

How did he get enough time off from battling the Doctor to write a book? 

[Malthus]

I'm getting ready to read "The Memoirs of William Tecumseh Sherman", as well as his collected correspondences.
Anyone have any recommendations for Sherman biographies? I'd prefer as balanced or as pro-Sherman as possible.

Sherman is very quotable. My favorite:

"Grant stood by me when I was crazy, and I stood by him when he was drunk, and now we stand by each other."

[Sheilbh]

Robert Dallek: Nixon and Kissinger - Partners in Power (I also consider picking up his "John F. Kennedy - an unfinished Life")

Let me know how that is.  I've almost bought it a few times.  I enjoyed the JFK biography.  I think it's fairer than the worship or pseudo-intellectual denigration - which is the historical equivalent of theatre that just tries to shock.

I'm reading 'A History of Histories' at the minute.  At the start of the Christian era (about a third of the way through), an excellent book.  It's problem is that it makes me want to then read the books which is expanding my never quelled amazon wish list