Best History/Biography Reads of 2023

As I review the history and biography books I read this year, I notice, as is frequently the case, that I read a lot of Canadian history again this year.  As well, some of my favorite historians ended up the list again – Sean McMeekin, David Kertzer, Allen Guelzo, Tim Cook, Adrian Goldsworthy, John McManus – along with a few new “favorite” authors like Ronald C. White.  Overall, I read a lot of good, serious
s history this year, as well as a few “just for fun” books like the story of the Princess Bride movie and a history of the World Hockey Association.  Choosing a handful of the best books was difficult.

 

On Great Fields:  The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain by Ronald C. White.  Ever since I read Michael Shaara’s classic novel Killer Angels, I have been fascinated by Joshua Chamberlain, the hero of Little Round Top at Gettysburg.  White’s excellent biography traces all of Chamberlain’s life, from his early days to his time as President of Bowdoin College and as Governor of Maine.  The book also places Chamberlain’s faith in proper perspective, something many modern biographies fail to do.

 

Rendezvous with Destiny:  Ronald Reagan and the Campaign that Changed America by Craig Shirley.  Enough time has passed for historians to begin to write balanced history of Ronald Reagan’s time in office.  Shirley’s book is about Reagan’s 1980 campaign for the presidency.  The book is remarkable; understated at times and sarcastic at others.  There are times he criticizes Reagan and other times he gives him the utmost praise. But through it all, the book is very incisive, not only with regard to Reagan but also about his competitor, Jimmy Carter.

 

The Fight for History:  75 Years of Forgetting, Remembering and Remaking Canada’s Second World War by Tim Cook.  This was a fascinating book for me to read.  I was never taught much about the Canadian experience during World War 2, and this book explains why.  From the hallowing of the great national sacrifices of World War 1, the power of the Canadian Legion vets, the overshadowing of the Canadian effort by the Americans and the British and the battle for the new Canadian War Museum, Cook explains why Canada has struggled for decades to tell at tale that needs to be told.

 

The Pope at War:  The Secret History of Pius XII, Mussolini and Hitler by David I. Kertzer.  David’s Kertzer’s specialty is the history of the papacy in the last couple of centuries.  Having access to newly opened archives, Kertzer shows that Pope Pius XII did all he can to stay in the good graces of the Germans and Italians during World War 2, which naturally means that he did not have the courage to speak up to protect Jews from the Holocaust.  Kertzer’s portrait is balanced and scholarly, but ultimate so very sad and disappointing.

 

Hundred Days:  The Campaign that Ended World War 1 by Nick Lloyd.  I read Lloyd’s amazing book on the Western Front in World War 1 a few years ago.  This volume pre-dates that one, is shorter and is focused on the final 100 days of combat during the war.  Over the years, historians have argued that the Germans were not truly defeated on the field of battle, but surrendered for other reasons like strife at home.  Lloyd proves otherwise – that by the end of the war, the German army was a beaten force in every way.

 

Ottoman Endgame:  War, Revolution and the Making of the Modern Middle East, 1908-1923 by Sean McMeekin.  Sean McMeekin is one of my favorite historians.  This book is a history of the end of the Ottoman (Turkish) Empire, from the years leading up to World War 1, through the war, the dismantlement of the Empire and finally it’s revival (in part) by Mustafa Kemal as the nation of Turkey.  Fascinating, well-told history.

 

At the Sharp End:  Canadians Fighting the Great War 1914-1916 and Shock Troops:  Canadians Fighting the Great War 1917-1918 by Tim Cook.  This is Cook’s 2-part history of the Canadian military during World War 1.  Cook leaves no stone unturned, speaking of the corruption and megalomania of Sam Hughes (Canada’s Defense Minister), the raising and training of units, their first experiences in combat to the days when they were among the finest troops serving overseas under the leadership of the brilliant Canadian General Sir Arthur Currie.

 

2^nd Tier Reads, but still great books:

Blood and Iron:  The Rise and Fall of the German Empire, 1871-1918 by Katja Hoyer

The Making of Oliver Cromwell by Ronald Hutton

The Anglo-Saxons:  A History of the Beginning of England, 400-1066 by Marc Morris

The Rebel League:  The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey Association by Ed Willes

The Fleet at Flood Tide:  America at Total War in the Pacific, 1944-1945 by James D. Hornfischer

Thomas Jefferson:  A Biography of Spirit and Flesh by Thomas S. Kidd

As You Wish:  Inconceivable Takes from the Making of the Princess Bride by Cary Elwes and Joe Layden

The Wager:  A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Gramm

To the End of the Earth:  The US Army and the Downfall of Japan, 1945 by John C. McManus

Everest 1953:  The Epic Story of the First Ascent by Mick Conefrey

The Ghosts of Medak Pocket:  The Story of Canada’s Secret War by Carol Off

King:  William Lyon MacKenzie King, A Life guided by the Hand of Destiny by Allan Levine

Jungle of Stone:  The Extraordinary Journey of John L. Stephens and Frederick Catherwood and the Discovery of the Lost Civilization of the Maya by William Carlsen

The Marshall Plan:  Dawn of the Cold War by Benn Steil

Rome Resurgent:  War and Empire in the Age of Justinian by Peter Heather

The Mad Trapper of Rat River:  A True Story of Canada’s Biggest Manhunt by Dick North

The Berlin-Baghdad Express:  The Ottoman Empire and Germany’s Bid for World Power by Sean McMeekin

Lincoln and Douglas:  The Debates that Defined America by Allen C. Guelzo

The Last Outlaws:  The Desperate Final Days of the Dalton Gang by Tom Clavin

American Sanctuary:  Mutiny, Martyrdom and National Identity in the Age of Revolution by Roger Ekirch

Longstreet:  The Confederate General who Defied the South by Elizabeth R.  Varon

Rome and Persia:  The Seven Hundred Year Rivalry by Adrian Goldsworthy

 

3^rd Tier Reads, good but somewhat disappointing as well.

Ravenna:  Capital of Empire, Crucible of Europe by Judith Herrin

A New World Begins:  The History of the French Revolution by Jeremy D Popkin

The Attack on the Liberty:  The Untold Story of Israel’s Deadly 1967 Assault on a US Spy Ship by James Scott