/tags/history/ Recent content in history on Perlkönig Hugo -- gohugo.io Copyright © 2006-{year} Aaron Dalton. All Rights Reserved. Tue, 11 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/story-of-aint-by-david-skinner/ Tue, 11 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/story-of-aint-by-david-skinner/ Rating: 2/5 David Skinner, The Story of Ain’t: America, Its Language, and the Most Controversial Dictionary Ever Published (New York: Harper, 2012). It’s books like this that make me question my sanity. I read the jacket and promotional copy, I read the reviews, and I have to start to wonder if it’s just me. This book was awful! The only reason it’s getting 2 stars is because there is some kernel of interesting history here; it’s just very, very difficult to find. /posts/jerusalem-by-simon-sebag-montefiore/ Wed, 26 Sep 2012 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/jerusalem-by-simon-sebag-montefiore/ Rating: 4/5 Simon Sebag Montefiore, Jerusalem: The Biography (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2011). This is one serious piece of work! This 650-page tome presents an excellent high-level summary of the history behind the conflicts we are seeing today in the Middle East. It does what a good history book should do: that is, go beyond just presenting a sequence of events and instead present a cohesive and meaningful narrative. The subtitle is “The Biography” because the book examines the people and families integral to the history of Jerusalem. /posts/debt-the-first-5000-years-by-david-graeber/ Thu, 05 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/debt-the-first-5000-years-by-david-graeber/ Rating: 5/5 David Graeber, Debt: The First 5,000 Years (New York: Melville House, 2011). I really, really enjoyed this book. This is not a manifesto. It’s an honest-to-goodness anthropological history of money, debt, and everything that goes with it. What I love about the book is how it builds. After going through all the history, when he finally gets to modern times, everything makes sense, without him having to spell it all out. /posts/autobiography-of-parley-p-pratt/ Sat, 21 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/autobiography-of-parley-p-pratt/ Parley P. Pratt, Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1985). And now for something completely different. As yet I haven’t reviewed any church-related literature, of which I read a great deal. Certainly not because I am ashamed in any way of my faith. Any who know me at all well are aware that I am a proud member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints . /posts/the-words-we-live-by-by-linda-monk/ Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/the-words-we-live-by-by-linda-monk/ Rating: 4/5 Linda R. Monk, The Words We Live By (New York: Hyperion, 2003). This book is the entire text of the US Constitution and its 27 amendments, annotated line by line with explanations, historical motivations, and ramifications thereof. If you’re a US citizen, or just interested in politics, then understanding the Constitution is essential. This book gives you not just the text but also the tools to understand this incredible document. /posts/infectious-greed-by-frank-partnoy/ Tue, 24 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/infectious-greed-by-frank-partnoy/ Rating: 4/5 Frank Partnoy, Infectious Greed: How Deceit and Risk Corrupted the Financial Markets (Revised ed.) (New York: Public Affairs, 2009). Make no mistake, this is one daunting read. It is 450 pages of small print and excruciating detail, and the content is enough to make you just go mad with frustration. This book is a financial history. Partnoy’s point is that the financial meltdown of 2008 did not come out of nowhere. /posts/colour-by-victoria-finlay/ Thu, 10 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/colour-by-victoria-finlay/ Rating: 3/5 Victoria Finlay, Colour: Travels Through the Paintbox (London: Sceptre, 2002). Victoria Finlay is one adventurous woman. From the Australian outback to war-torn Afghanistan, Finlay explores the origins of various colours and how they ended up on canvasses and clothes. It’s not enough for her to simply read and research, instead she must herself visit the places and people involved. The resulting narrative goes beyond simply “the facts” and becomes instead a colourful recounting of a fascinating journey (which includes all the facts too). /posts/wanderlust-by-rebecca-solnit/ Fri, 04 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/wanderlust-by-rebecca-solnit/ Rating: 5/5 Rebecca Solnit, Wanderlust: A History of Walking (New York: Viking, 2000). I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is beautifully written and I think hits some very powerful points. It’s not a history of walking per se (what would that look like?) but more a history of what walking has meant and how the perception of the peripatetic has changed over time. She touches on issues of class, gender, and politics. /posts/salt-by-mark-kurlansky/ Sat, 06 Nov 2010 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/salt-by-mark-kurlansky/ Rating: 3/5 Mark Kurlansky, Salt: A World History (A. Knopf Canada, 2002). If you like reading history, then you’ll enjoy the book. It’s well organized and clearly written—very accessible writing style. If history bores you, then the book will bore you. It is just what it says it is, a book on the history of salt production throughout the world. Some very interesting stuff, actually! I did do a bit of skimming, though, when I got to parts that weren’t particularly interesting to me personally. /posts/guns-germs-and-steel-by-jared-diamond/ Tue, 26 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0000 /posts/guns-germs-and-steel-by-jared-diamond/ Rating: 4/5 Jared Diamond, Guns, Germs, and Steel (W. W. Norton, 1997). Well now I know. After 6 months, I’m still not recovered from grad school. After reading some “art for art’s sake” books, I thought I’d try Guns, Germs, and Steel, a book on my to-read list for some time. After 100-odd pages, I finally had to give up. I’m too exhausted. That said, it is an excellent book. Diamond writes in an exceedingly clear and accessible style.