Best Historical Japan Biographies
The dramatic, pulse-pounding story of Harry Truman’s first four months in office, when this unlikely president had to take on Germany, Japan, Stalin, and the atomic bomb, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. although there are plenty of good biographies of Truman, few are as entertaining as Baime’s." Baime is a master storyteller, and The Accidental President contains everything a reader could ever want from a work of history: characters that jump off the page, tension that makes your pulse pound, and smooth, smart writing that makes you think. Baime's biography uses new sources to paint Harry Truman as a complex and thoroughly American figure. Baime has put a spotlight on those four months, recounting them faithfully and with heart, so that you come away with not only a sense of history, but a sense of the man, Harry Truman, as well. As Grandpa himself said a few years later, ‘It’s hell to be President of the Greatest Most Powerful Nation on Earth.’” —Clifton Truman Daniel, Truman’s grandson and author of Growing Up with My Grandfather: Memories of Harry Truman. “An entertaining new history of Truman’s first months in office...filled with events that are strikingly proportionate to what the Trump administration has weathered since January.” —John Batchelor, The Daily Beast. "By relying mostly on primary sources, Baime allows for a better perspective of Truman, in which his political decisions are equally as significant as the correspondence with his beloved wife, daughter, and mother. His carefully crafted narrative transports the reader back in time... Each sentence is carefully constructed and colorfully packed with details that makes Harry Truman and this period in history come alive.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"His previous books on Willow Run and the La Mans battle between Ferrari and Ford were just tremendous. Taking what Baime claims is four of perhaps the four most consequential months of any presidency, a point of which is probably correct, this book starts off with FDR's surprising death in Warm Springs, Georgia as World War II reaches its penultimate moments with the collapse of Germany and the beginning of the end of the Empire of Japan."
"We have all read good books and great books from a historical perspective. This book is one, if you please, that is an absolute must read."
"I highly recommend this book to students of history, Truman, WWII, and/or the Presidency."
"Baime has produced a meticulously researched account of the period from April to August 1945, telling the dramatic story of how an underestimated man took the weight of the world on his shoulders. He took the oath, summoned the Cabinet, and began a series of meetings, in one of which he was informed for the first time of the Manhattan Project to build an atomic weapon. Over the next days and weeks he dealt with the complexities of guiding the US through the final days of the war in Europe, began to make plans for the post-war economy, made contact with other world leaders (some for the first time), discussed plans for the ongoing war with Japan, and above all had the first of a series of exchanges with Stalin, Molotov, and other Soviet officials which revealed sharp ideological differences. He oversaw the establishment of the United Nations, led negotiations at Potsdam with Churchill, Attlee, and Stalin, and approved the use of the atom bomb on Japan. Among the unanswered questions of twentieth century history are those which ask whether the Cold War was inevitable, or if Roosevelt could have done a better job than his successor in easing tensions with the Soviets, thus avoiding the creation of the Iron Curtain."
"Excellant Book !!!"
"My only regret is that my dad is no longer alive to talk with me; he was a gunner on a B-29 in the Pacific just as the new Truman administration was trying to figure out how to defeat the Japanese, leading to the A-bomb decision."
"Good book."
"Works well as a companion to other books."
From April to August of 1945, Captain Jerry Yellin and a small group of fellow fighter pilots flew dangerous bombing and strafe missions out of Iwo Jima over Japan. He participated in the first land based fighter mission over Japan on April 7, 1945, and also has the unique distinction of having flown the final combat mission of World War II on August 14, 1945 – the day the war ended.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Years ago I had heard most of it from a pilot that was in the other squadron in Jerry's fighter group on Iwo Jima."
"I truly enjoyed reading this book about Jerry Yellin, the last fighter pilot."
"If you like military flying, this is a good book."
"Great story combined with well researched facts."
"He makes clear that fighting a war, even in a P51 is NOT fun & games."
"A nice read about the young kids that flew fighters in WW II."
"The story really takes you back to the horrors of the war in the pacific."
More than 20,000 of these "picture brides" immigrated from Japan and Okinawa to Hawaii to marry husbands whom they knew only through photographs exchanged between them or their families. This engrossing book continues Kawakami's exploration of this part of the American story to include a group not much previously noticed. By letting her subjects, all issei (first-generation immigrant) women, tell their stories in their own words, taken from 250 hours of interviews she recorded with them, Kawakami gives voice to the silence-riddled history of picture brides in Hawaii and the reader feels an instant connection to them.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Excellent book."
"Wonderful women I had the pleasure to grow up with..."Hana but ta days"!"
"The information in this book will be helpful to me in the writing of my novel."
"awesome book!!!"
"Some of the stories made me cry but more than anything they bring to light the story of America -- how hard work, perseverance, sacrificing for the next generation -- this is what America is about."
"Barbara's documentation of the personal accounts of this generation of Japanese women immigrating to Hawaii is incredible!"
Best Historical European Biographies
Because of that, he became Putin’s number one enemy, especially after Browder succeeded in having a law passed in the United States—The Magnitsky Act—that punishes a list of Russians implicated in the lawyer’s murder. A financial caper, a crime thriller, and a political crusade, Red Notice is the story of one man taking on overpowering odds to change the world, and also the story of how, without intending to, he found meaning in his life. "The first half of Red Notice traces Browder’s improbable journey from prep-school washout through college, business school, and a series of consulting and Wall Street jobs before becoming Russia’s largest foreign investor....This book-within-a-book does for investing in Russia and the former Soviet Union what Liar’s Poker did for our understanding of Salomon Brothers, Wall Street, and the mortgage-backed securities business in the 1980s. Browder’s business saga meshes well with the story of corruption and murder in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, making Red Notice an early candidate for any list of the year’s best books." “In Red Notice , Bill Browder tells the harrowing and inspiring story of how his fight for justice in Russia made him an unlikely international human rights leader and Vladimir Putin's number-one enemy. It is the book for anyone interested in understanding the culture of corruption and impunity in Putin's Russia today, and Browder’s heroic example of how to fight back.” (Senator John McCain). Bill Browder is an amazing moral crusader, and his book is a must-read for anyone who seeks to understand Russia, Putin, or the challenges of doing business in the world today."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I've read a lot of Russian and Soviet history and I am interested in hedge funds, so I picked this book off the Amazon Vine list. Red Notice is the story of Bill Browder's hedge fund, Hermitage Capital, which at one time was the largest foreign investor in Russia. Hermitage produced extremely high returns and, before its demise, Browder had four and a half billion dollars under management. Boris Yeltsin and his advisers who inherited the Russian state wanted to make sure that communism would never return. Gorbachev had almost been overthrown in a coup by the communist old guard, so Yeltsin and his advisers felt that they had to put the state on an irreversible course away from communism as soon as possible. This was the environment that gave rise to the Oligarchs, brilliant and ruthless men who built multi-billion dollar fortunes from the rubble of the Soviet State. He was fascinated by Eastern Europe and when few people saw the possibilities in Russia he established a hedge fund that became wildly successful buying up under priced Russian assets. He managed to get the famous billionaire investor Edmond Safra to put up the initial money for the fund and went on to make huge profits. The standard share for hedge funds is 20% of the profits, so Browder must also have become a very wealthy man (e.g., hundreds of millions of dollars). After buying the under-priced assets they exposed the corruption, which at least for a time drove the thieves away and caused stock prices to rise. What ever the case, there is some irony in Browder's renouncing his US citizenship, since it was the US that allowed him to gain some measure of retribution by passing the Sergei Magnitsky Act."
"Without giving away too much, the book starts with a brief history of the authors early life before proceeding to his university days at Chicago and Stanford before moving to London to be a research analyst for a few firms. To that end he setup his own firm, Hermitage Capital, moved to Russia and came across amazing opportunities as the fall of the Berlin wall and communism was taking place. Starting out with just $25 Million in seed money from Edmund Safra (one of the richest people in the world), Hermitage Capital went on to become one of the largest investment banks in Russia growing to over $4 Billion. This apparently came from President Obama as it would hurt his total appeasement plan of "resetting" relations with Russia and at the time Kerry himself was trying to get the Secretary of State position after Hillary Clinton. Only after another piece of legislation came to bear and the two were tied did it come to the floor but even then John Kerry gave totally shameful remarks during the passage of the bill."
"Both adjectives describe Vladimir Putin leader of Russia and according to Browder, the richest man in the world."
"A great book for understanding the current oligarchy in Russia following the fall of communism, for understanding the still heathen and corrupt system of government in that country, and for understanding the economic sanctions that Russia and the U.S.A. currently are imposing upon each other, back and forth, like little tyrants."
"I don't recall how this book got into my Kindle queue but I am so glad it did."
Best Humanities
A lean, fleet-footed translation that recaptures Homer’s “nimble gallop” and brings an ancient epic to new life. “A staggeringly superior translation―true, poetic, lively and readable, and always closely engaged with the original Greek―that brings to life the fascinating variety of voices in Homer’s great epic.”. - Richard F. Thomas, Harvard University. “Emily Wilson has produced a clear, vigorous, sensitive Odyssey that conveys both the grand scale and the individual pathos of this foundational story. Emily Wilson has convincingly answered this call: hers is a vital Odyssey for the twenty-first century that brings into rhythmic English the power, dignity, variety, and immediacy of this great poem.”. - Laura Slatkin, New York University.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"More than in other translations, the Odyssey comes across here strongly as a historical document, the product of a culture from a particular time and place. Muse, tell me how he wandered and was lost. when he had wrecked the holy town of Troy, and where he went, and who he met, the pain. he suffered in the storms at sea, and how. he worked to save his life and bring his men. back home. Compare Wilson's language with that of the opening of Robert Fitzgerald's translation: "Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story. of that man skilled in all ways of contending, the wanderer, harried for years on end, after he plundered the stronghold. on the proud height of Troy. He saw the townlands. and learned the minds of many distant men, and weathered many bitter nights and days. in his deep heart at sea, while he fought only. to save his life, to bring his shipmates home. Fitzgerald translates it as "skilled in all ways of contending," and Fagles as "the man of twists and turns.""
"I have read and taught the Odyssey at least five times over the past twenty years. And Emily Wilson's version is a godsend."
"The first stanzas will make you perk up and realize that this is the most interesting translation of the Odyssey for our time."
"but at age 81 I consider The Odyssey the greatest book I have ever read, for itself and for its influence on my ways of thinking and of living. The main reason is that, in comparison to the others, it is best at creating the mood of an ancient, epic, poem. I love it when he repeats, for the nth time, "Son of Laertes and the Gods of old, Odysseus, master of land ways and sea ways..." and other such formulaic hints that we are not reading a James Bond or even a Scott Fitzgerald, nor Salinger, nor McEwan, nor certainly a Hemingway novel -- the content should perhaps be enough to distinguish Odyssey as the great epic it is, but I like the complementing embellishments of Fitzgerald's version. For a more important difference, compare the climax, as Odysseus is about to slaughter the suitors: Fitzgerald has him say: "You yellow dogs, you thought I'd never make it. home from the land of Troy. But Fitzgerald focuses on breaking the rules, on disrespecting the mores of their time: the suitors were contemptuous of both the gods, and the opinions of their fellow men."
"A view of Odysseus more complicated and less favorable than in other texts. And still confusing. Penelope is clearer, and better. A great read."
Best Historical China Biographies
The story of three generations in twentieth-century China that blends the intimacy of memoir and the panoramic sweep of eyewitness history—a bestselling classic in thirty languages with more than ten million copies sold around the world, now with a new introduction from the author. The New Yorker Her family chronicle resembles a popular novel that stars strong, beautiful women and provides cameo roles for famous men....But Wild Swans is no romance.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I am sure it would be very good for the younger Chinese generation to read this account as it is of great historic interest for all the world but perhaps especially appropriate for the present Chinese generation to re acquaint themselves with what their ancestors have had to strive for."
"Jung Chang passionately teaches the unfortunate story of life in China for three generations of women in her family."
"In my (admittedly narrow) experience, Chinese people who grew up during the Cultural Revolution tend not to want to talk too much about those years."
"Although the narrative is often intense, the book doesn't come across as overly critical of Chinese culture at the time, even though women in western nations didn't have to endure anything like women in the far east during the same time."
"When I first purchased this book (as a book accompanying a college class) I had very little interest in the book matter, and only saw a 500+ page book I was being forced into reading."
"Ms. Chang writes very dryly and dispassionately about her family's torment and trouble, I suspect because it is impossible for her to deal on an emotional level with the remembrance of such things as her mother's being made to kneel on broken glass. Yes, it IS history, and ought to be read as such, but it is also an affirmation of the survival of love, family, and the human spirit in incredibly tough times."
"It is a sweeping Memoir about how the coming of the communist age in China, and the madness of a man who wished to be Emperor or even God, affected only one family."
Best Historical India & South Asia Biographies
The astonishing, uplifting story of a real-life Indiana Jones and his humanitarian campaign to use education to combat terrorism in the Taliban’s backyard. Anyone who despairs of the individual’s power to change lives has to read the story of Greg Mortenson, a homeless mountaineer who, following a 1993 climb of Pakistan’s treacherous K2, was inspired by a chance encounter with impoverished mountain villagers and promised to build them a school. Coauthor Relin recounts Mortenson's efforts in fascinating detail, presenting compelling portraits of the village elders, con artists, philanthropists, mujahideen, Taliban officials, ambitious school girls and upright Muslims Mortenson met along the way.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It's a good children's book."
"This was a well written account and put forth a totally different solution to terrorism than the popular media presents."
"Both books offer extended examples of the heroics these men went to in order to safely escort/save Mortenson and Luttrell."
"Should be required reading in school."
"I thought it was far too full of flowery language and exaggeration, which was inappropriate for an account of real events."
"They need to be empowered to make their own decisions about schools, culture centers and health care, locally... not patronized as incapable so we have to do it for them. Would that not have been a greater good and left the local residents to direct their own futures? The poppy war lords had a vested interest and money as did many of the people with whom Mortenson came into contact. He had not been invited to do so and while the book is an interesting adventure, had it not been a book club selection, I would have stopped reading on ethical principles alone."