I'm reading The Immigrants by Howard Fast. I'm not that familiar with American history in the early part of the 20th century, so I can't really comment on how historically accurate it is, but the storyline is decent enough. I don't think I'd go out of my way to find this book, but for the buck I paid, it's pretty good.

Currently reading Freedom Just Around the Corner A New American History 1585-1828, by Walter McDougall. Interesting interpretation.

Donna wrote: "Hi Emily and Chrissie, I'm sorry to say I didn't finish Ines of My Soul. I kept putting it down to read something else and then it needed to go back to the library. I do think I would like to try t..."

Well I too prefer her earlier writings, particularly tThe House of the Spirits and the ones about her daughter. That you kept putting it down isn't a good sign!

Hi Emily and Chrissie, I'm sorry to say I didn't finish Ines of My Soul. I kept putting it down to read something else and then it needed to go back to the library. I do think I would like to try to finish it at some time but it just didn't hold my interest like Daughter of Fortune which I thought was terrific.

Just finished Nathanael Greene A Biography of the American Revolution by Gerald M. Carbone.

Donna wrote: "I just started Ines of My Soul A Novel by Isabel Allende and so far it is very good. I am not sure if this came before or after Zorro but it seems to be more like her earlier books."

I am just about to finish this one as well. What did you think Donna? Have you read Daughter of Fortune by Allende? I have to say Daughter of Fortune is my favorite by her. Ines of My Soul is very good to but just not quite as good IMHO.

Good luck Donna. I think it was published after Zorro. Please mention here in this thread what you think in the end! Kirkus did not give it a very good review.

I just started Ines of My Soul A Novel by Isabel Allende and so far it is very good. I am not sure if this came before or after Zorro but it seems to be more like her earlier books.

Thank you for the books, Chrissie. The Johnstown Flood is an interesting topic to read about.

I read his The Johnstown Flood in the last month or so, and it's very good, too. And a short one for McCullough. I think it was his first book; it was published in 1967, I think.

Lena, It is called Mornings on Horseback. It is about Theodor Roosevelt. You will find that Susanna in message 53 has a direct link to it! If you like reading more about him, I read another great book about him and his discovery of a tributary of the Amazon. See above my message 40 for a direct link. The book is called the River of Doubt.

That sounds like a good book about Roosevelt. What's it called?

Susanna and Lena, Actually I HAVE read this author. I read his book about Roosevelt, but that was over 10 years ago! I am tempted to add both the Panama and the Brooklyn Bridge one to my must shelf - ie the shelf of books that I will buy when I order next time! I really enjoyed the one about Roosevelt!

Hello Chrissie,
I have not read his book on the Panama Canal, though I would like to. I usually read books about the Founding Fathers, so I usually prefer books like John Adams. But as I would like to be a diverse reader, I would be eager to read about the Panama Canal. Susanna, I agree with you. I am also a big fan of David McCullough.

Chrissie wrote: "Susanna, have you read the book David McCullough wrote about the Panama Canal? I have that on my must read shelf. All of his books sound fascinating. Which did you like best? I have a hard time cho..."

I have it on my bedside table.

The first one I read,
Mornings on Horseback The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life & the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt, may be my favorite. But I've enjoyed all of them, particularly The Great Bridge The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge, which I read last summer and gave five stars.

I am a big fan of Mr. McCullough.

Emily, I loved Allende's earlier books, the ones's about her family,particularly House of Spirits, but I think her newers ones are totally terrible. She has gone into children's stuff. Somewhere around Zorro they started going down the drain.

Hi Lena, have your read David McCullough's book about the Panama Canal? I haven't read anything by him and I am having difficulty choosing. You prefer his John Adams?

As someone else mentioned Daughter of Fortune was fantastic. I really loved that book and then I was disappointed by the next book of Allende's (Zorro)that I started and actually did not finish it.

David McCullough is a very good author. Have you ever read his book John Adams? They turned it into a movie.

Susanna, have you read the book David McCullough wrote about the Panama Canal? I have that on my must read shelf. All of his books sound fascinating. Which did you like best? I have a hard time choosing!

I've just started reading Founding Brothers and General George Washington: A Military Life. Both are amazing books!

Sara wrote: "Chrissie wrote: "I can highly recommend the following books:
1. The Master Butcher's Singing Club
2. The Book of Negroes
3. [book:The Devil in the White City: Murder ..."
Sara, I've lived there and NY so I really liked the bit about Olmert who planned the park layout at the fair and Central Park in NYC! Yeah, maybe I ought to read more about Olmert. Warning - I have read other books by the author of the first book in my list and I didn't like them at all. I was totally lost, understood nothing. I didn't understand what was indian legend, who was saying what.... I have suppressed the title of the book somewhere in my head. The characters in the first book listed are really wonderful and quirky.

Chrissie wrote: "I can highly recommend the following books:
1. The Master Butcher's Singing Club
2. The Book of Negroes
3. [b:The Devil in the White City: Murder Magic and Madness..."

Oh, any format works! I really enjoyed Devil in the White City too. I'm a Chicago girl, so I love reading books that take place there. I want to get around to Sin in the Second City Madams, Ministers, Playboys, and the Battle for America's Soul sometime soon. Thanks for adding your recommendations! :)

I'm reading The Colour of Lightning by Paulette Jiles, about the American West. It's brilliant. I highly recommend it.

Finished The Johnstown Flood, by David McCullough, recently. Another really good read. I don't think I've read a book by him that I haven't enjoyed.

I can highly recommend the following books:
1. The Master Butcher's Singing Club
2. The Book of Negroes
3. The Devil in the White City: Murder Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
4. The River of Doubt

These are all on my favorite shelf!
I wanted to contribute too, as a way of thanking the other members of this group for suggesting so many interesting books! I am a bit unsure about the formatting - I hope it works!

John Jakes "California Gold" is an excellent read, as is "Men to Match My Mountains" (the author's name escapes me but has Irving in it). All of Michnener's books are excellent reads and contain good historical data. Anya Seton's "The Winthrop Woman" is another very good read of New England historical data.

I am currently reading Robert McCammon's "Speaks the Nightbird" which has been in my to be read pile for way too long. It is an excellent read. The story is about a clerk (Matthew) for a magistrate that have been called to Fount Royal, North Carolina to try a witch in 1699. However, Rachel claims that she is innocent of the charge and Matthew believes her. He sets out to prove her innocence, even though everyone in the town wants her to burn. The Salem witch trials are often referred to in the story. McCammon is known for his horror stories but this one is more historical and I am really enjoying it. He continues a series about Matthew in Queen of Bedlam and Mr. Slaughter both of which take place in New York.

Wow, I am new to this group, and I love it. I just can't keep up with all the great reading suggestions!! So many truly intriquing books are listed here. First I have to decide which to add, and then the pleasure of reading them!

FYI, apparently Gwen Bristow's Calico Palace is being reissued later this year, and an excellent book for those wanting to read more about early San Francisco and the Gold Rush.

I just started Wanderers Eastward, Wanderers West by Kathleen Winsor of Forever Amber fame. It starts in 1861 and is set in both Montana and New York City.

Susan wrote: "I started Henry and Clara by Thomas Mallon today (about the unfortunate couple who shared the Lincolns' box at Ford's Theatre)."

That book sounds really cool! Let me know what you think.

I'm currently reading The Great Influenza The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History by John M. Barry. It's pretty good, but some parts are really dense. There is also A LOT of lead up before actually getting to stuff about the 1918 flu. I'm about a quarter of the way through, and I've learned a lot about the history of medicine, physicians, U.S. medical schools and now the U.S. policies leading up to the U.S.'s entry into WWI, but not too much about the 1918 flu itself yet.

I started Henry and Clara by Thomas Mallon today (about the unfortunate couple who shared the Lincolns' box at Ford's Theatre).

I am reading Gerald Kolpan's Etta and am enjoying it. Mr. Kolpan's novel is a historical fiction. No one really knows the origins of Etta Place or what became of her after 1909. Mr. Kolpan took his research and made up a story about her beginnings and ending. The time she spent with the Wild Bunch is based on fact, although some of the timelines were changed to fit the story, as noted in Author Notes. It does fragment from chapter to chapter between fictional/factual news articles, diary entries and just a story line, but it is enjoyable and interesting.

A historical fiction book that I really enjoyed about the Plague is Year of Wonders. It's a quick read, too.

I found The Ghost Map The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic--and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World interesting. It's about London's great cholera epidemic in the 1850s.

Moloka'i is about the leper colony in Hawaii at the turn of the century. I read this for my book group and we all enjoyed it.

Alright, does anyone know of any good flu/disease history books? It doesn't have to be limited to north or south america (I just randomly picked this thread). I know I have a book on the 1918 flu on my to-read shelf and some others, but I haven't gotten to any of them yet. I think I'm going to try to pick one up soon.

I'm trying to get to a Great Depression book, but it keeps getting pushed off. (I mostly wrote this so the threads reappear on the home page.)

Welcome to the group Joy! Ha ha, my to-read shelf has probably doubled due to this group and the suggestions I've gotten here.

I just joined this group/thread, and I'm glad I did. Thanks for all the great suggestions! I can't wait to get started.

No worries Lea! I've got a ton of books piled up too and a to-read list with over 500 books, so I'm keeping busy. So many books, so little time! :)

Sara wrote: "Lea, I've wanted to read that. I look forward to hearing how you like it!"

I'm sorry that I haven't updated you on the book yet, Sara. As I just posted to another group I seem to have reader's block. But this book is on my nightstand and I hope to get to it soon.

Sarah, Jakes wrote the Kent family chronicles and the North and South trilogy (remember the TV mini with Swayze??) and a few others. You might be thinking of Michener with the States, he did Texas, Hawaii and I forget how many others. You have to be in the right mood to read Michener - he's got the same style as Rutherford - skipping the story ahead many generations. De Blasis' The Proud Breed is much better retelling old California history IMO.

California Gold is good but won't be quite a five star read. It might be me, I prefer female authors especially when there's a love story involved.

John Jakes - is he the dude who writes (wrote??) all of those state books? You know, the ones that had "Nebraska" or "Oklahoma" or some state name plastered across the cover. He may not be, and I may not be making much sense, but some other people have to remember those books. I've never read one, but they always seemed intriguing.

I'm about half way through California Gold by John Jakes. It's not the best book ever but certainly entertaining, and he's throwing lots of movers and shakers into the storyline - Hearst, Muir, Leland Stanford.

Okay, I finally realized why these history threads "disappeared" before, so I've given them their own topic again (but I combined them together under this new "General History" topic). It seems that topic headings will disappear if no new posts have been made in threads under that topic within 30 days or so (which is why the Note to Spammers isn't showing up on the main page anymore, although it does still exist if you look at the list of all threads).

Lea, I've wanted to read that. I look forward to hearing how you like it!

I'm just about to start Painter in a Savage Land: The Strange Saga of the First European Artist in North America. I'll let everyone know how it is.

For some more South American historical fiction I can recommend Our Lives Are the Rivers: A Novel by Jaime Manrique. It's about Simon Bolivar and his mistress who was a bit of a revolutionary in her own right. Also some of Isable Allende's books such as Daughter of Fortune: A Novel are historical fiction.

I tweaked some of the major folder topics because I realized these threads weren't showing up anymore (goodreads must be limiting how many show up on the main page or something).

Anyway, I turned the "Other Book Discussions" into "Other Discussions" and put the general history threads under this heading. That should keep them from disappearing! If you want to post any general type of history thread, feel free to post it under this main heading.