Pretty much what the title states - my wife decided to start the naturalization process and was interested in doing some of the prep from reading actual books rather than memorizing the booklet that is handed out so I was curious if anyone has any recommendations.
All I can think if are old textbooks I read back in school :)
Neither of these is a survey of US history per se, but I enjoyed these two works of historical fiction set in the era of the establishment of the American republic:
Scandalmonger: William Safire’s novel of how freedom of the press (and all that goes with it) challenged the early government.
Last Refuge of Scoundrels: Paul Lussier’s very irreverent novel about “how the revolutionary war really went”. This was kind of tough to read for just how grounded and often gross it made a time we almost always romanticize. I’ll never shake the image of French courtiers powdering their hair to suppress the itching of lice trapped under their massive wigs.
For a good, and realtively easy read, check out David McCullough. 1776 is particularly relevant to your wife’s interest @Ex-SWoo. But he has several biographies that are largely viewed as some of the best. Compared to the writing of some histories, his is brisk and lively (if not as colorful as something like Guns of August).
Personally I love Teddy Roosevelt, and so obviously would point to his biography of Teddy, but John Adams also won a Pulitzer I believe.
One of my personal favorites, though it would be pretty limited for naturalization, is Devil in the White City. A story of the Worlds Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893, and the first US serial killer. It also shows the competition between Tesla and Edison as a background element.
One fun way to learn history is to read good biographies as they gave the history as a matter of course of the story. Combine the biographies with a good timeline.
Any of the books by Albert Marrin:
He wrote for the 7th to 12th grade level but his books are very captivating. My wife and I both read his books as well as our kids. I usually buy the old library copies when I come across them.
My favorite book by Marrin; The Secret Armies:
I am certain that many realize that there were men who trained to parachute behind the lines to help with causing problem for the Germans in WW2. Many of the men failed to do the jump but as I recall there were about 50 women trained and everyone of them made the jump. This was a great book with a lot of little stories about espionage and courage, and people who did simple things at times that had huge consequences in the war.
It’s light, it’s fun, it’s an overview of US History, you can’t do any better than Larry Gonick’s Cartoon History of the United States. (His Cartoon History of the Universe/Modern World series is good too, but that’s not one volume and doesn’t focus on the U.S. like this one does.)
The Onion’s Our Dumb Century only covers one century, but boy is it a dumb one.
Though I must admit that these sources are getting old. A generation or more has dropped out of high school since they were first published.
How about an actual overview of history that’s light and fun, then?
Davis is a very good historian, and a very lively writer. This is fun and interesting stuff that moves along quite quickly and covers all eras of US History.
I really liked an earlier edition of this book that I read about a decade ago.
Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow has been recommended on Qt3 before. Probably on the same level as @CraigM’s McCullough recommendation. Loved it, myself. Fun & light, maybe not, but I found it very accessible and engaging. YMMV I guess.
Thanks guys! I’ve ordered some of the books based on your recommendations.
The biography books are probably too heavy for the immediate need but I think I’ll add some of these to my personal reading list ;)
Here is what I listened to:
Granted, it’s 43+ hours of lectures, but I found them very engaging. Especially when you go on a road trip in the U.S., and listen to the history of the U.S. at the same time.
Howard Zinn: A People’s History of the United States
I kid, I kid.
Details man! We want DETAILS!
Also, fair point on biographies. They are much more specialized, due to their nature. For someone looking for a ‘big picture’ history of America, they are probably superfluous. Though some, particularly of the founders, can be particularly enlightening. Just saying ;)
I chose the two books that seemed like the easiest reads :
That said, a recent trip to DC museums piqued my personal interest in American history so rest assured some of the heavier books will be read too ;)
This is the exact reason if found my way into this thread.
Hey, the thread reminded me that I have “Don’t Know Much About History” - the non Anniversary Edition that I still need to read. Thanks for saving me money!