Monday, November 09, 2009

Excellent book on Central Asian history

The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia (Kodansha Globe) The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia by Peter Hopkirk

My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews >>

John Adams by David McCullough

John Adams John Adams by David McCullough

My rating: 5 of 5 stars One of the best books I've read in a long, long time. Excellent biography that deftly fills in the well-rounded character of one of the true Patriots and the 2nd President of the U.S.
What a wonderful, refreshing, engaging read! McCullough does an excellent job in some 600 pages plumbing the depths of John Adam's character, without lapsing into any boring recitation of dry historical facts. Revolutionary personages like Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, Hamilton, Madison, Benjamin Rush, and especially Adam's intelligent and engaging wife, Abagail, are all brought alive, mainly through their letters to each other and others.

Great read which only spurs me on to read and learn more about this fascinating and ground-breaking period. And the movie series (by HBO, I believe) based on this book, starring Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney, is superbly done as well.