I asked, "What's the best history book you've ever read?"

I received 300+ responses.

Here are 20 books that will help you understand the world and how we got here:

1/

Sapiens

by @harari_yuval

https://t.co/lUZQ84rpDX
2/

The Lessons of History

by Ariel Durant & Will Durant

https://t.co/yJs2qN3acr
3/

Guns, Germs, and Steel

by Jared Diamond

https://t.co/rKFBcptM8b
4/

A Brief History of Nearly Everything

by @billbrysonn

https://t.co/Ndl6r8sQfz
5/

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

by Jack Weatherford

https://t.co/jSUFMSWxjj
6/

1776

by David McCullough

https://t.co/zoQS8ovRrf
7/

A Little History of the World

by E. H. Gombrich

https://t.co/GDetb4Rg4w
8/

The Guns of August

by Barbara W. Tuchman

https://t.co/ONTm2A3TCh
9/

The Silk Roads

by @peterfrankopan

https://t.co/CABoaCsfn3
10/

The Invention of Nature

by @andrea_wulf

https://t.co/Fw4jccq244
11/

The Ascent of Money

by @nfergus

https://t.co/MMJZ15LCCO
12/

An Ancestor’s Tale

by @RichardDawkins

https://t.co/mKUnijhRnc
13/

Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee

by Dee Brown

https://t.co/D4rCfWZYQh
14/

The Dawn of Everything

by @davidgraeber & @davidwengrow

https://t.co/SrG8it8Jv0
15/

A People's History of the United States

by Howard Zinn

https://t.co/42OPvfgcF0
16/

How to Hide an Empire

by @dimmerwahr

https://t.co/hxQ4iYzJHy
17/

The Warmth of Other Suns

by @Isabelwilkerson

https://t.co/2HXurjb2pa
18/

The March of Folly

by Barbara W. Tuchman

https://t.co/yeZ8yV69y8
19/

SPQR

by @wmarybeard

https://t.co/IuPqyyBdOG
20/

Lies My Teacher Told Me

by @JamesWLoewen

https://t.co/6zFjSjvBnl
If you want more:

-book recs
-book reviews
-reading tips

Follow @AlexAndBooks_ 👈

ps: this thread uses amazon affiliate links so if you want to support A&B (and yourself), buy a book!
Want a new book summary every week with actionable advice to improve your life?

Then sign up for my free book newsletter:

Join 14,000+ readers here:
https://t.co/7lQSijvU59
Looking for even more awesome book recs?

Check out this thread:

https://t.co/6gvIQexSmu

More from Alex & Books 📚

More from Reading

You May Also Like

I'm going to do two history threads on Ethiopia, one on its ancient history, one on its modern story (1800 to today). 🇪🇹

I'll begin with the ancient history ... and it goes way back. Because modern humans - and before that, the ancestors of humans - almost certainly originated in Ethiopia. 🇪🇹 (sub-thread):


The first likely historical reference to Ethiopia is ancient Egyptian records of trade expeditions to the "Land of Punt" in search of gold, ebony, ivory, incense, and wild animals, starting in c 2500 BC 🇪🇹


Ethiopians themselves believe that the Queen of Sheba, who visited Israel's King Solomon in the Bible (c 950 BC), came from Ethiopia (not Yemen, as others believe). Here she is meeting Solomon in a stain-glassed window in Addis Ababa's Holy Trinity Church. 🇪🇹


References to the Queen of Sheba are everywhere in Ethiopia. The national airline's frequent flier miles are even called "ShebaMiles". 🇪🇹