Free books: History & Biography
Mr. Selfridge: The Showman of Shopping (2013)
As a historian, I love history books. If you are watching public television maybe you have watched Mr. Selfridge on Masterpiece Theater. This book is the real history. I love Mr. Selfridge the TV show and this book.Selfridge was a self made man. His father disappeared after the American Civil...
Barça - verdens bedste fodboldhold (2012)
There are few books about football which are both interesting and objective. This is not one of them.Endless. It took me forever to get through the pages and there were times it felt like and endless read, especially at moments I would find annoying. Which was happening most of the time. It was a...
Mossad: The Greatest Missions of the Israeli Secret Service (2012)
I enjoyed this book and fond it interesting. It lost one star for narrative issues. The stories tend to jump around a lot for no particular reason. It lost another start for bias. I appreciate that this book has a point of view, and I knew that going it. However, there is absolutely no critical e...
Mugged: Racial Demagoguery from the Seventies to Obama (2012)
Американската политика и обществен живот са в огромна степен повлияни от наследството на робовладелската институция, която просъществува там най-дълго от целия цивилизован свят. И днес американското обшество и политика не само не са загърбили противопоставянето на тема раса, но дори го задълбочав...
The Book of Dead Philosophers. Simon Critchley (2008)
Philosophy in 190 small parts. Actually, death in 190 parts. This book is not about to teach philosophy to anyone, not even to introduce it. Its not even about how philosophers live. It's about how philosophers die. What was the causes of their death and what they believe for it. It's well writte...
The Great Degeneration: How Institutions Decay and Economies Die (2012)
In his latest book Niall Ferguson argues that the four key institutions (Democracy, Capitalism, Rule of Law, and Civil Society) that allowed the West to dominate the last half millennium are now all in decay. The erosion of these institutions’ previous 'cumulative added value' has led to a stagn...
Hellraisers: The Inebriated Life and Times of Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, Richard Harris & Oliver Reed (2008)
I had no idea this book existed until I came across it perusing the biography section at my library but I was thrilled when I saw it--I am currently on a Richard Burton binge/obsession and I adore Oliver Reed so I was pretty sure I would enjoy this. It's a very entertaining book--tabloid-y but e...
Resolved: 13 Resolutions for LIFE (2011)
Great book, absolute must read with poignant resolutions to stir the soul and mind. I've not come across a book before that embodies topics (to name only a few) ranging from friendship, vision, purpose to systems thinking and financial management. Open this book and your mind and you'll begin to ...
Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring (2010)
I honestly found this book to be a little boring. It had a hard time capturing my attention, and I think it would be hard to capture a child's. I had some of my friend's read it, and they didn't finish it (they're 20 years old). The illustrations are wonderful and the way the words dance around t...
Watching the Watchmen: The Definitive Companion to the Ultimate Graphic Novel (2008)
It is quite disconcerting to feel that you are missing important aspects of the story when you are reading a graphic novel designed in the best comic tradition. But this is supposed to be the great Graphic Novel and it’s themes are many and were ground breaking for this genre in 1986. The Cold Wa...
Born to Fly (2009)
Born to Fly by Michael FerrariGenre: Historical FictionSummary:Eleven old Bird McGill loves to fly. Ever since she can remember she has been flying with her Dad. He even taught her to fly at a very young age. Suddenly, the life she had always known is changed forever. Her Dad is called to war. ...
The Great Sea: A Human History of the Mediterranean (2011)
The Great Sea - A Human History of the Mediterranean by David Abulafia is a fascinating book. If it was a work of fiction, or if it was more mythically inclined, I would even venture to call it an epic. Instead the book tells us a story based on documented deeds and occurrences, which makes it al...
Science Ink: Tattoos of the Science Obsessed (2011)
An amazing collection of pictures and stories, Zimmer's book catalogs the tattoos of persons who responded to a blog. He has pictures of their skin pictures and information about how the specific pictures were selected and what the meaning of the tattoos for their owners. It provides no informati...
The Vikings: A History (2009)
This comment in the book (p. 89) "Obviously some rudimentary notion of what it meant to be Christian would have to be conveyed if Christianization were to work as an effective political tool." I am looking for a historically researched book on Christianity as Empire. I know about the book, "Fait...
Woman Behind the New Deal (2009)
FDR is a particularly despised president amongst frum Jews because he could have done more to save the Jews in the Holocaust. But even though that’s true, I always felt he had two big saving graces: 1) he still led America into World War II in order to defeat Hitler and 2) the New Deal. Now, I kn...