"So what are you reading right now?" Topic

Since we have a little less to peruse here right now, let's have one of these periodic topics!

Currently I'm a few chapters into:
"Civil War: The Wars of the Three Kingdoms 1638-1660", by Trevor Royle.

A fine read, exciting, and shaping up to be the best general book on the subject I've read.

Military Campaigns of the Wars of the Roses.

Want to dig out my stuff on the early renaissance, Italian Wars – 1494 – 1525, or so (but with more emphasis on 1515, and earlier).

Sea of Thunder.

My wife picked up David Halberstam's _The Coldest Winter_, about the Korean War for me at a swap meet last week. Good book on a subject I am not too conversant with.

Tactics of Mistake

A Frozen Hell

Schwarzkopf autobiography.

Ah, TMP, where someone asks what you are reading, and you just say the title, because nobody asked you what it's about, whether it's any good, or even who wrote it ----

I'm reading a book with a red cover I bought ages ago.

Just finished the second Logusz book on the wilderness war last night.

"Didn't we have fun", a book about baseball in the mid 1800's

Actually I am reading Nancy Marie Brown's recent 'Ivory Vikings' about the Lewis chessmen. It's interesting, even for a non-chess player like myself, in that it covers walrus hunting, medieval clergy, the settlement of Greenland, and the possibility that they were carved by a single woman called Margret in medieval Iceland.

Nancy Brown is probably my favourite popular historian right now.

"Blue Water Patroits" by James Volo

"A Distant Mirror:The Calamitous 14th Century", really very good, a sadly seems rather relevant.

Ancient Warfare, Medeival Warfare, and Ancient History magazines. Can't recommend them enough. I look forward to every issue.

"Never Met A Man I Didn't Like" A biography of Will Rogers.
Lots of Will Rogers pithy statements about government,etc.

"The Sicilian Vespers" by Runciman

Now I know what to do with all my unpainted 12th. century Latins from Legio Heroica.

"Son of the Revolution" by Heng and Shapiro. It is autobiographical story of a man who grew up in China. He was born in 54 and we are in the 60s there now in the story. Place was way messed up.

Midnight in Siberia – a Train Journey into the Heart of Russia

Cursed Kings!! The fourth volume of Jonathan Sumption's history of the Hundred Years War. It includes the reigns of Henry IV and V.

As usual I have several going at once, I just have to move around a bit that's all….

Once in a Great City – Story of Detroit in the 60s
In Search of El Cid
The First Seven Ecumenical Councils Their History and Theology.
The Cost of Discipleship
Where the Iron Crosses Grow – WW2 in the Crimea
also a history of the FFL but I forgot the title.

Current: "1776" by David McCullough

Recently finished: "Epic Journeys of Freedom: Runaway Slaves of the American Revolution and Their Global Quest for Liberty" by Cassandra Pybus.

"The Forsaken: An American Tragedy in Stalin's Russia" by Tim Tzouliadis

"Breakout from Juno" covering 1st Canadian Army's part in the Normandy campaign from late June to closing the Falaise Gap.
By Mark Zuehlke. I try to get everything he puts out.

Just starting "1775"--Kevin Phillips
Picked up Alex Kershaw's "Escape From the Deep",about the Tang,in Goodwill the other day.
And Lord Dunsany--one short story every night at beddy-bye time.

Working my way through my Pratchett collection – again.

Just finished Against All Odds by Chuck Norris. His life story is a very enjoyable read with plenty of reasonable life lessons learned by an imperfect man.

Just finished "Co. Aytch", the classic ACW wartime autobiography by Sam Watkins this morning and am starting on "Champion Hill", an account of the key battle of the Vicksburg Campaign by Timothy Smith

Actually, I am reading three books now:

Robert Service "The end of the Cold War" (not very impressed so far)

Nikolaus Wachsmann "KL. A history of the Nazi Concentration Camps" (VERY impressed so far)

And for lighter read:

Peter Englund "The Battle that Shook Europe" (re-reading, actually, but I love that book. It's a narrative of the Battle of Poltava, by the way)

"Social Class in the twenty first century", the clue is in the title, as I got a bit bored with "The Darkling Spy".

Next up, "Europe's Tragedy". history of the 30 years war.

Reading "Breakout And Pursuit", a fantastic reprint of the Official US Army In WWII series of "Green Books". The quality is better than the originals as to binding and paper which is high gloss. All the fold out maps are there too. I bought mine from Edward R Hamilton Bookseller for $4.95 USD. Indeed they have the entire series on the European Theatre of Operations, the D-Day landings clear through the end of the war. All are $4.95 USD. Wow!

The Victors

The Wars of the Nineties by A.Hilliard Atteridge

The eighteen nineties, that is. Over 800 pages and 300 illustrations. Covers the Matabele War, the Reconquest of the Sudan, The Chino-Japanese War, The Greco-Turkish war, The Spanish American War and many others.

Very well written and stirring stuff.

Village of secrets by Caroline Moorehead, Mettle and Pasture a history of 2nd Battalion Lincolns in WW2 and I've finally got round to buying reading Mercer's Waterloo Journal.

Last two done were The Post Captain and Sharpe's Rifles but I'm thinking of reading reading Chandlers Campaigns of Napoleon, haven't in a long tiime.

Mary Beard's SPQR, popular history of Rome. In novels it's Warriors of the Storm, Bernard Cornwell's newest in the Saxon Tales.

"Fires in the Sky" by Parotti, just started it so can't say if its good or bad. A novel about the Trojan War.

Last night I finished the latest Journal of 20th Century Wargamers.

Not history, but I've been rereading some Dashiell Hammett lately: first The Maltese Falcon and then Red Harvest. It's been at least ten years. The first probably needs no comment: memorable characters (somewhat over the top, but it wouldn't be TMF without them!), foggy streets in San Francisco, great action, dashes of "history"…it's just great in every way.

Red Harvest, Hammett's first novel, is about an utterly corrupt city and the jaded, cynical "op" who brings the whole rotten edifice crashing down. I'd be stunned if there is a better novel about a gang war and all the ruthlessness it entails. All, of course, told in Hammett's superb prose: even a guy who gets four slugs in his stomach manages some snappy dialogue before crumpling to the floor.

Beyond the stories themselves, it's interesting to get some glimpses into how people lived in the 20s: what they ate (a lot of steak and potatoes apparently), the ease with which one could find information about fellow guests at a hotel, their entertainment (radio and theatre), the way they dressed (everyone looked superb, of course), and other details like that. What's especially striking is the amount everyone drinks and smokes (both are engaged in pretty much all day); and mind you, there are no "sissy drinks" like wine or beer here, it's all gin, scotch and bootlegged hooch of some description.

Also, no one ever seems to sleep. It must have been quite a time!

Every few years sir so I take out The Bandy Papers, just finishing the fist book Three Cheers for me.
The author Donald Jack won the Stephen Leacock award for humor with these books.
It's about a Canadian who joins the army in WW1. Spends a few months in the trenches and gets transferred to the RFC.
It's a very funny series.

The Penguin 80s. 80 little books bound in black, extracts from an eclectic range of classic authors, all the way from Ancient China to the twentieth century.

Just finished William Washington American Dragoon. Very good read, with insights into cavalry and it proper use. Just starting on Washington's Immortals about the Maryland line.

I'm reading an old Lance & Longbow book – 'The Herberts of Raglan and the Battle of Edgcote' … boning up on the battle of Edgcote (1469) the victory of Warwick's rebels over Edward's men led by Devon and Pembroke.

Very interesting. Pembroke was executed at Northampton after the battle.

Phil

Just finished a book on the Caribbean campaigns 1796-1815 and starting a history of the Portuguese War of Restoration 1640-1668.

I've started the Forester Hornblower novels for the first time. Found a series in internal career order versus publication, and am up to Atropos so far.

Daryl Haselton +1. I can last about a year inbetween re-reading all of Hammett. Good stuff.

Bloodlands by Snyder.

All the Books I have by Byron Farwell.