Barbara W. Tuchman

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born

in New York, New York, The United States

January 30, 1912

died

February 06, 1989

gender

female

genre

History

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Barbara Wertheim Tuchman was an American self-trained historian and author. She became best known for The Guns of August, a history of the prelude and first month of World War I.

As an author, Tuchman focused on producing popular history. Her clear, dramatic storytelling covered topics as diverse as the 14th century and World War I, and sold millions of copies.

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Barbara W. Tuchman's Books

Average rating: 4.15 · 28,534 ratings · 1,687 reviews · 17 distinct works · Similar authors

	The Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman, Robert K. Massie (Foreword) 4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 11,515 ratings — published 1962 — 43 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century 4.15 of 5 stars 4.15 avg rating — 9,591 ratings — published 1978 — 41 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War 1890-1914 4.14 of 5 stars 4.14 avg rating — 2,513 ratings — published 1966 — 26 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam 4.02 of 5 stars 4.02 avg rating — 1,840 ratings — published 1984 — 27 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Zimmermann Telegram 4.01 of 5 stars 4.01 avg rating — 1,027 ratings — published 1958 — 24 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Stilwell and the American Experience in China 1911-45 by Barbara W. Tuchman, John King Fairbank (Introduction) 4.11 of 5 stars 4.11 avg rating — 812 ratings — published 1970 — 22 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The First Salute 3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 avg rating — 736 ratings — published 1988 — 22 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bible and Sword: England and Palestine from the Bronze Age to Balfour 3.72 of 5 stars 3.72 avg rating — 216 ratings — published 1956 — 15 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Practicing History: Selected Essays 3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 avg rating — 228 ratings — published 1981 — 15 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Guns of August/The Proud Tower (Library of America #222) by Barbara W. Tuchman, Margaret MacMillan 4.56 of 5 stars 4.56 avg rating — 43 ratings — published 1962	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Quotes by Barbara W. Tuchman

“Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill. Without books, the development of civilization would have been impossible. They are engines of change (as the poet said), windows on the world and lighthouses erected in the sea of time. They are companions, teachers, magicians, bankers of the treasures of the mind. Books are humanity in print.

[Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Nov. 1980), pp. 16-32]”
― Barbara W. Tuchman

tags: books, civilization, humanity, literature, mind, thought

262 people liked it

“War is the unfolding of miscalculations.”
― Barbara W. Tuchman

21 people liked it

“Learning from experience is a faculty almost never practiced”
― Barbara W. Tuchman

13 people liked it

See all Barbara W. Tuchman's quotes »

Polls

Which book would you like to read for Septembers book club.

The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir

9 votes, 20.5%

The Great Influenza The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History by John M. Barry

9 votes, 20.5%

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt

8 votes, 18.2%

Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

7 votes, 15.9%

Undaunted Courage by Stephen E. Ambrose

4 votes, 9.1%

A Distant Mirror The Calamitous 14th Century by Barbara W. Tuchman

2 votes, 4.5%

A Night to Remember by Walter Lord

2 votes, 4.5%

No Ordinary Time Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt The Home Front in by Doris Kearns Goodwin

1 vote, 2.3%

Manhunt The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson

1 vote, 2.3%

The Indifferent Stars Above The Harrowing Saga of a Donner Party Bride by Daniel James Brown

1 vote, 2.3%

King Leopold's Ghost A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild

0 votes, 0.0%

44 total votes

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Barbara W. Tuchman

Author profile

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Topics Mentioning This Author

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Barbara W. Tuchman's Books