Since I started The Hourglass House, I’ve gotten many requests for history book recommendations. This makes my heart so happy because I love to tell people what to read. Or so I always joke–what I really love to do is match people with the right book for them.
I chose these history book recommendations by standing for a few minutes in front of every bookshelf in my house. (Yes, that took a while!) Then I narrowed down the list, trying to think about what I’ve learned about followers of this blog over the past few months and what would interest you.
I hope you find something here that is right for you. When you do, I’d love to hear what it is.
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For the Board Book Reader
For most board book readers, it’s all about the introduction. In preparation for a trip to Ireland, we read Good Night Ireland and Good Night Dublin, which are part of the Good Night Our World series. My toddler loves them! You won’t get details about events, but you will get mentions. It may even inspire you to look up more, as it did me.
You can learn a lot from a board book. One strategy is to choose titles based on where you live or where you’re going or have visited on a trip so that you can make real world connections with your board book reader. There are so many titles (hundreds!) in this series, based on states, countries, and sites, that you’re sure to find the right one for you.
For the Chapter Book Reader
Which may be a child or may be an adult who wants to learn enough to carry on a conversation about a topic but doesn’t want to commit to a 400-page tome. Say it with me: children’s books aren’t just for children.
The Who Was? Series is great, despite the giant heads that kind of freak everyone out. My first-grader is a huge Harriet Tubman fan. She used this book as her main source for preparing a presentation for school. We have a few of the titles in this series, and I highly recommend you check it out.
Just to repeat that #pro-tip: you can learn a lot in 108 pages. (Fun publishing insider fact: Nonfiction chapter books are usually designed to go just over 100 pages because publishers know teachers often require books to be at least 100 pages for projects and book reports.)
|Related: History Activities at Home: 5 Simple, Fun, and Cheap Ideas for Your Family
For the Jane Austen Fan
I’ve got you covered, fellow fans.
This is a great little book in so many ways. I say “little” because it is small, but lovely. The Library of Luminaries series from Chronicle Books (a favorite publisher of mine) presents brief illustrated biographies. They are not specifically directed at children, but they will work for children or adults. This is the first biography of Jane Austen my daughter and I read together. It’s short enough to finish at bedtime, while also offering a clear overview of Austen’s life and world.
This biography is a page-turner. You think Jane Austen’s life was all fancy tea parties and balls? It was not, though there was some of that. If you’d like to keep the stereotypical image of “sweet aunt Jane” that her family tried hard to promote long after her death, don’t read this book. If, like me, you’ve ever been reading along and thought, “Wow, Jane Austen was kind of mean and she sure hated moms!” read this book to find out why.
For the Reader Who Wants To Learn More About Pandemics
These are two of my favorite books about major pandemics. (What a strange sentence to write, but it’s true.)
I found reading them to be oddly comforting as we straggle our way out of our own. They reminded me that, people being what they are, it was never going to go well. The governments and the health agencies and the populace were never going to actually get it together. The labor shortage and the inflation were always going to happen. It’s nobody’s fault. (Or maybe it’s everybody’s fault.) It’s the way these things go. I find a certain peace in that. Perhaps you will too.
For the Reader Who’s Missing Downton Abbey
Writer, Countrywoman, Fascist, Nazi, Communist, Duchess.
Do you want to read the book now? Born from 1904-1920, the lives of the six Mitford sisters, daughters of the 2nd Baron Redesdale, seemed to embody the conflicts of the mid-20th century.
The eldest, Nancy, is best known as the author of The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate, and it’s mostly thanks to her work that the Mitford sisters are as well known as they are today. However, each of the sisters has her own fascinating (and sometimes horrifying) story.
For the Reader Who Wants More Musical or Scots-Irish History
I have “Wayfaring Stranger” in my head now.
Fun story, in 2016 I was in Perth, Scotland, and they had this book by the register at a small Beatrix Potter museum. I was aware of the book and asked about it (thinking it was kind of an odd choice to pair with Beatrix Potter). The folks at the counter told me that one of the authors lived down the road!
It comes with a CD and Dolly Parton herself wrote the Forward, so what more could we ask for?
|Related: What I Learned in Northern Ireland: 3 New Perspectives on St. Patrick’s Day Traditions
For the Reader Who Wants to Learn More About Their Surroundings
Bill Bryson’s work is always entertaining, and the history of daily life is my jam. I love how Bryson approaches his subject. There’s no way he could deal with the history of every type of home all over the world, so he uses the house he’s living in, a Victorian manse, as his “way in” to the topic. It’s great, and it will leave you with a greater appreciation for and understanding of your own home.
For the Reader Who Needs a Ray of Hope
And isn’t that all of us these days?
I chose this book because the premise–that most people are actually pretty decent–is something that my own study of history leads me to believe is true. We want to believe people are good–and sometimes it’s helpful to have data to back that up.
Which of these history book recommendations do you love?
Which of these history book recommendations sounds like your next great read? Or did you get any good ideas for gifts? I’d love to hear more about what interests you!
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