History as Literature

1.
The Histories
The Histories
by: Herodotus
4.01 avg rating — 54,680 ratings
2.
A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century
A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century 4.05 avg rating — 43,232 ratings
3.
John Adams
John Adams 4.08 avg rating — 373,219 ratings
4.
The Trigger: Hunting the Assassin Who Brought the World to War
The Trigger: Hunting the Assassin Who Brought the World to War 3.81 avg rating — 4,036 ratings
5.
The Guns of August
The Guns of August 4.18 avg rating — 82,590 ratings
6.
1776
1776 4.10 avg rating — 243,315 ratings
7.
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies 4.04 avg rating — 445,010 ratings
8.
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln 4.28 avg rating — 196,285 ratings
9.
In Cold Blood
In Cold Blood 4.09 avg rating — 710,306 ratings
10.
Night
Night 4.38 avg rating — 1,334,095 ratings
11.
The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914
The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914 4.12 avg rating — 9,480 ratings
12.
Undaunted Courage: The Pioneering First Mission to Explore America's Wild Frontier
Undaunted Courage: The Pioneering First Mission to Explore America's Wild Frontier 4.23 avg rating — 66,329 ratings
13.
The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire 4.02 avg rating — 15,255 ratings
14.
The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl―A National Book Award Winner
The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl―A National Book Award Winner 4.06 avg rating — 60,117 ratings
15.
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany 4.22 avg rating — 144,568 ratings
16.
Truman
Truman 4.17 avg rating — 90,308 ratings
17.
Plutarch's Lives: Volume I
Plutarch's Lives: Volume I
by: Plutarch
4.10 avg rating — 5,997 ratings
18.
History of the Peloponnesian War
History of the Peloponnesian War 3.94 avg rating — 39,936 ratings
19.
Dispatches
Dispatches 4.22 avg rating — 21,212 ratings
20.
1066 and All That: A Memorable History of England
1066 and All That: A Memorable History of England 3.92 avg rating — 3,428 ratings
21.
The Right Stuff
The Right Stuff
by: Tom Wolfe
4.23 avg rating — 54,850 ratings
22.
Peter the Great: His Life and World
Peter the Great: His Life and World 4.15 avg rating — 22,817 ratings
23.
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West
by: Dee Brown
4.26 avg rating — 99,671 ratings
24.
The Civil War: A Narrative
The Civil War: A Narrative 4.53 avg rating — 8,028 ratings
25.
Nicholas and Alexandra: The Classic Account of the Fall of the Romanov Dynasty
Nicholas and Alexandra: The Classic Account of the Fall of the Romanov Dynasty 4.23 avg rating — 29,465 ratings
26.
The History of Rome, Books 1-5: The Early History of Rome
The History of Rome, Books 1-5: The Early History of Rome
by: Livy
3.96 avg rating — 9,757 ratings
27.
Columbine
Columbine 4.29 avg rating — 99,719 ratings
28.
Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War
Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War 3.89 avg rating — 45,335 ratings
29.
The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Visions of Glory, 1874-1932
The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Visions of Glory, 1874-1932 4.33 avg rating — 15,702 ratings
30.
The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Alone, 1932-40
The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Alone, 1932-40 4.39 avg rating — 11,881 ratings
31.
Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest
Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest 4.44 avg rating — 136,003 ratings
32.
The Twelve Caesars
The Twelve Caesars
by: Suetonius
4.02 avg rating — 22,150 ratings
33.
The Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 9,144 ratings
34.
Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War
Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War 4.31 avg rating — 6,885 ratings
35.
The Gathering Storm (The Second World War, #1)
The Gathering Storm (The Second World War, #1) 4.38 avg rating — 7,488 ratings
36.
Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era
Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era 4.40 avg rating — 33,172 ratings
37.
Inside the Third Reich
Inside the Third Reich 4.10 avg rating — 14,149 ratings
38.
The Six Wives of Henry VIII
The Six Wives of Henry VIII 4.12 avg rating — 72,135 ratings
39.
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore Roosevelt, #1)
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore Roosevelt, #1) 4.23 avg rating — 59,119 ratings
40.
His Excellency: George Washington
His Excellency: George Washington 3.96 avg rating — 42,824 ratings
41.
From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life, 1500 to the Present
From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life, 1500 to the Present 4.13 avg rating — 4,605 ratings
42.
Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War
Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War 4.10 avg rating — 24,888 ratings
43.
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed 3.93 avg rating — 73,869 ratings
44.
The Wives of Henry VIII
The Wives of Henry VIII 4.11 avg rating — 18,966 ratings
45.
The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956
The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956 4.33 avg rating — 33,403 ratings
46.
Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War
Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War 4.30 avg rating — 67,941 ratings
47.
The Path to Power (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #1)
The Path to Power (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #1) 4.42 avg rating — 25,860 ratings
48.
Homage to Catalonia
Homage to Catalonia 4.09 avg rating — 68,310 ratings
49.
Is Paris Burning?
Is Paris Burning? 4.15 avg rating — 4,025 ratings
50.
Ecclesiastical History of the English People
Ecclesiastical History of the English People
by: Bede
3.83 avg rating — 4,778 ratings
51.
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation 3.95 avg rating — 46,966 ratings
51.
Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege, 1942–1943
Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege, 1942–1943 4.32 avg rating — 40,051 ratings
53.
The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York
The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York 4.52 avg rating — 27,068 ratings
54.
A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam
A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam 4.24 avg rating — 12,399 ratings
55.
The Perfect Storm
The Perfect Storm 4.12 avg rating — 117,721 ratings
56.
The Crusades Through Arab Eyes
The Crusades Through Arab Eyes 4.20 avg rating — 10,230 ratings
57.
A History of the English Speaking Peoples, 4 Vols
A History of the English Speaking Peoples, 4 Vols 4.21 avg rating — 1,666 ratings
58.
Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45
Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45 4.16 avg rating — 3,678 ratings
59.
Up from Slavery
Up from Slavery 4.11 avg rating — 35,598 ratings
60.
A People's History of the United States
A People's History of the United States 4.08 avg rating — 259,672 ratings
61.
Salt: A World History
Salt: A World History 3.75 avg rating — 75,168 ratings
62.
Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life
Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life 3.93 avg rating — 16,522 ratings
63.
Mornings on Horseback
Mornings on Horseback 4.10 avg rating — 34,705 ratings
64.
Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time 3.99 avg rating — 75,016 ratings
65.
How the Irish Saved Civilization: The Untold Story of Ireland's Heroic Role from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe
How the Irish Saved Civilization: The Untold Story of Ireland's Heroic Role from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe 3.81 avg rating — 46,384 ratings
66.
The Civil War
The Civil War 4.10 avg rating — 1,893 ratings
67.
Balkan Ghosts
Balkan Ghosts 3.91 avg rating — 5,678 ratings
68.
Ghost on the Throne: The Death of Alexander the Great and the War for Crown and Empire
Ghost on the Throne: The Death of Alexander the Great and the War for Crown and Empire 4.28 avg rating — 2,763 ratings
69.
Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution
Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution 4.03 avg rating — 6,179 ratings
70.
The Life of Elizabeth I
The Life of Elizabeth I 4.03 avg rating — 32,631 ratings
71.
The History of Joseph Smith by His Mother
The History of Joseph Smith by His Mother 4.27 avg rating — 5,204 ratings
72.
Washington: A Life
Washington: A Life 4.16 avg rating — 79,865 ratings
73.
Berlin Diary: The Journal of a Foreign Correspondent 1934-1941
Berlin Diary: The Journal of a Foreign Correspondent 1934-1941 4.34 avg rating — 6,316 ratings
74.
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 4.36 avg rating — 36,104 ratings
75.
The Fatal Shore: The Epic of Australia's Founding
The Fatal Shore: The Epic of Australia's Founding 4.09 avg rating — 10,199 ratings
76.
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman
Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman 3.94 avg rating — 107,261 ratings
77.
My Early Life, 1874-1904
My Early Life, 1874-1904 4.26 avg rating — 4,741 ratings
78.
The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History
The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History 3.98 avg rating — 42,018 ratings
79.
The Great War and Modern Memory
The Great War and Modern Memory 4.13 avg rating — 6,077 ratings
80.
Marie Antoinette: The Journey
Marie Antoinette: The Journey 3.94 avg rating — 38,045 ratings
81.
Assassination Vacation
Assassination Vacation 3.93 avg rating — 47,005 ratings
82.
The Devils of Loudun
The Devils of Loudun 3.86 avg rating — 3,447 ratings
83.
Mary Queen of Scots
Mary Queen of Scots 3.99 avg rating — 17,292 ratings
84.
The History of the Kings of Britain
The History of the Kings of Britain 3.72 avg rating — 6,790 ratings
85.
The Weaker Vessel
The Weaker Vessel 3.92 avg rating — 1,424 ratings
86.
The Children of Henry VIII
The Children of Henry VIII 4.01 avg rating — 15,352 ratings
87.
Story of Civilization
Story of Civilization 4.43 avg rating — 1,787 ratings
88.
The Johnstown Flood
The Johnstown Flood 4.13 avg rating — 24,629 ratings
89.
Parting the Waters: Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Movement 1954-63
Parting the Waters: Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Movement 1954-63 4.36 avg rating — 9,962 ratings
90.
The French Revolution: A History
The French Revolution: A History 3.89 avg rating — 1,058 ratings
91.
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration 4.48 avg rating — 113,274 ratings
92.
The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge
The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge 4.25 avg rating — 18,111 ratings
93.
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus 4.05 avg rating — 93,174 ratings
94.
Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963-65
Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963-65 4.35 avg rating — 3,007 ratings
95.
Theodore Rex
Theodore Rex 4.19 avg rating — 50,656 ratings
96.
The Puritan Dilemma: The Story of John Winthrop
The Puritan Dilemma: The Story of John Winthrop 3.43 avg rating — 775 ratings
96.
The Conquest of Gaul
The Conquest of Gaul 4.01 avg rating — 13,198 ratings
98.
The Secret History
The Secret History
by: Procopius
3.84 avg rating — 3,331 ratings
99.
1066: The Year of the Conquest
1066: The Year of the Conquest 4.06 avg rating — 4,524 ratings
100.
Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany and the Winning of the Great War at Sea
Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany and the Winning of the Great War at Sea 4.41 avg rating — 3,586 ratings
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