[cityben100]

Hi everyone,

I'm thinking of applying for History this year and most universities offer no reading list on their websites and instead suggest students read around areas that are of specific interest to them.

Does anyone have any respectable suggestions for the history of:

-The Anglo-Saxon era
-The English Civil War
-Historiography
-Spanish History

Look forward to hearing your suggestions, I just didn't want to spend my summer reading a few books to then discover after using them in my personal statement that they're not academically respected/historically accurate

[sambrfc10]

I'm not really sure for your chosen subjects, but you need to read The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli and The Art of War by Sun Tzu. 2 of the most famous books ever written.


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[Astronomical]

You forgot Ancient Greece, Alexander the Great, and The Roman Empire off your list of interests!

Spoiler:

Show

Nevertheless, I'm sure if you go on amazon and have a look in the history section you'll be able to find lots of books; you can always read the reviews, too, to help you decide.

Spoiler:

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Robin Lane Fox writes well, if you're into ancient history.

[LoudMusicLover]

Read

'Wild Swans'

and

'My friend the enemy'

just for fun!

They're awesome historical novels!

[cityben100]

(Original post by Astronomical)
You forgot Ancient Greece, Alexander the Great, and The Roman Empire off your list of interests!

Spoiler:

Show

Nevertheless, I'm sure if you go on amazon and have a look in the history section you'll be able to find lots of books; you can always read the reviews, too, to help you decide.

Spoiler:

Show

Robin Lane Fox writes well, if you're into ancient history.

you're right! i do love ancient history but i'd rather do a more modern-focused course at uni. the modern&ancient combined course looks great but i think i'd have a pile of further reading up to my bedroom ceiling if i chose that!

[cityben100]

thank you for your responses guys i'll check all those books out! I already have 'the prince' so i'll get started!

[Jack-Jimmison]

For the English civil war i'd defiantly go with Civil War: The War Of Three Kingdoms by Trevor Royle , and for Spanish history Imperial Spain by J.H Elliott and maybe the Battle for Spain by Antony Beever

[The Gentle Giant]

The 'Short Introduction' series is always a good place to get both a basic background and an expanded reading list for any significant subject you wish to study at a more than reasonable price. Their one on history (http://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Very...4032847&sr=8-1) has a good background to historiography from what I remember. They have less highly rated ones for spanish history, but I havent actually read them, so I am hesitant to judge.

For historiography itself, A Global History of Modern Historiography (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Global-Histo...032940&sr=1-10) is the obvious tomb for world historiography, but relies on some background knowledge. Edward Said's Orientalism, even with its many shortcomings, is a basic requirement for any historian to read.

As for British History, This Sceptred Isle is the best background book which is exceptionally readable.

That said, if there was one single book that I would recommend to understand world history and people from the past, it would be a non history book. The book, Freakonomics, by Levitt and Dubner, analyses and discusses human interactions and decisions from an economic and game theory viewpoint, and this is invaluable when considering history as it allows the reader to consider in wider terms why people make decisions which seem really stupid, but make rational economic sense.

Hope this helps.