While a key goal of the blog is to talk in depth about particular books and ideas, I want to start with some very quick surveys. These are intended simply to mention books that I’ve found particularly insightful, thought-provoking, or interesting. I’m organizing them by topic into what I call the Renaissance Reader’s Library, playing off the concept of the Renaissance Man as a scholar whose interests bridge multiple disciplines. These posts will be different from my usuals in that they will be “living” documents, with new books added periodically.
Some of my favorite books are character studies of individuals who achieved something great, or simply lived in extraordinary times. To me, these are a more multifaceted picture of the human condition. Note: most recently read books can be found at the top of the list.
Years of Upheaval
Henry Kissinger
Written following the Nixon presidency, this memoir covers the tumultuous years of Nixon’s second term (which only lasted 2.5 years due to his resignation following Watergate) from a foreign policy perspective. Kissinger served as National Security Advisor and then as Secretary of State during this period, and the piece covers Kissinger’s experience in government during this period, shaping foreign policy in several key theaters. Relations with the U.S.S.R., China, and Europe are recurring themes, while the work to wrap up the tragedies of Vietnam and forge peace following the October 1973 war in the Middle East also take center stage for large swaths of the book. Kissinger casts Nixon in a more positive light than most Americans at the time, and credits him with many foreign policy achievements—but does not mince words about the character failings in Nixon and his subordinates that brought about the Watergate affair.
Napoleon
Andrew Roberts
Our understanding of Napoleon is often shaped by two factors: the common image of him as a short, power-hungry dictator conjured up by British satirists during his time, and the spurious parallels to Adolf Hitler as a warmongering hegemon of Europe. Roberts dispenses with both, giving us a true sense of the man as understood by the French at the time. The result is an outstanding portrait into his genius for battlefield command, his talents for administration, and the ultimate overreaches that left him at the mercy of his foes.
Long Walk to Freedom
Nelson Mandela
This is simply a must-read. I consider Mandela as among the foremost statesmen of the 20th century, and his story is the story of South Africa’s struggle to end apartheid.
Ben Franklin
Walter Isaacson
Franklin was among the most eccentric of our founding fathers (with Jefferson as his primary competition). The book captures the personality of this American da Vinci, full of anecdotes that bring the man to life.
Grant
Ron Chernow
Ulysses S. Grant is a reminder to me of the importance of contingency in history. He spent his life succeeding at practically nothing, yet he became the preeminent Union general in the Civil War, and eventually President of the United States. The book focuses heavily on his presidency, his fatal loyalty to many whom he trusted, and shows some glimpses into the far-sightedness of his leadership.
Joan of Arc
Mark Twain
It’s a strange twist that brings the classic American novelist to translate the Personal Reflections of Joan of Arc, written by a childhood friend and battlefield companion of France’s 15th-century savior. Yet Twain considered it one of his finest works and spent a dozen years writing it. The divine nature of Joan of Arc may or may not be true, and it is difficult to ultimately separate fact from fiction. Yet the narrative is both charming and compelling.
The Rasputin File
Edvard Radzinsky
This work relies on a file of eyewitness testimony regarding Rasputin, the monk who played an extensive role in the court of Tsar Nicholas II near the end of the Russian Empire. It gives insights while leaving some key questions still hanging unanswered. The truth of whether Rasputin had supernatural powers is never definitively established, but either way, the story establishes his behavior as unhinged and unchristian.
Catherine de Medici
Leonie Frieda
An Italian princess who married into the Valois dynasty of France, Catherine de Medici lived through an era of religious and dynastic turmoil. For much of her life, she was practically powerless at court despite being queen, yet she bided her time, ultimately exercising great influence over the characters who would plunge France into a series of wars of succession and end the royal Valois line, replacing it with the House of Bourbon. The book is fascinating as a portrait of patience and a window into the constant bickering, intrigues, and egos that made monarchies as dysfunctional as one could imagine.
Honorable Men: My Life in the CIA
William Colby
Bill Colby, former CIA director, writes about his career in the CIA, from covert operations in Italy and Vietnam to ultimately being fired due to suspicions around Watergate. He tells fascinating stories, but the book raises questions about what manner of intelligence service is appropriate in a democratic republic like the U.S.
Churchill
Andrew Roberts
To me, Winston Churchill stands alone as the greatest statesman of the 20th century. Roberts captures the man from his early life to his political career, covering his prolific writings, dogged convictions regarding the inevitability of war with Nazi Germany, and his leadership through and after the war that came. The true indispensable man. I can’t recommend this enough.
Truman
David McCullough
Fighting a reputation as a Missouri party hack his entire career, Truman stands to me as a more underrated president. He didn’t shy away from tough or controversial decisions—dropping the atomic bomb, or trying to draft an entire industry of workers in the Army to avoid a strike. He acquitted himself better than many in his office.
John Adams
David McCullough
It’s easy to overlook John Adams as both a founding father and President—Washington earns our reverence, Madison is credited with the Constitution, and Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. But Adams stands out in his own ways. He wrote the Massachusetts state constitution, which in many respects became a model for those of other states. He worked overseas during the Revolution to seek funding from sympathetic nations, and his presidency was torn apart over factional disputes that weren’t entirely his fault. But what stands out most is his personal life. Many great figures throughout history accomplish great things at the expense of a “house full of love” with their family—but John Adams did not. For this he deserves more admirations than he presently receives.
Alexander Hamilton
Ron Chernow
Hamilton’s story ends in a highly unsatisfactory way, at the hands of the Vice President in 1804, at a still fairly young age. Part of this is a continued uncertainty over what he really meant to the American story. Prior to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit musical, Hamilton was portrayed in American high schools as merely the “anti-Jefferson”, a dangerous reactionary who wanted to undo much of what the Revolution had accomplished—as Chernow puts it, the “American Mephistopheles”. But this is an incomplete story. Hamilton, more than any other founder, laid the framework for America’s future as a commercial and financial power with a strong central government. Wall Street likely owes its existence in New York to Hamilton’s influence. And looking at the state of America today—with less autonomy in state governments, more federal power than ever before, and an executive branch of unprecedented scope and strength—it’s clear that our world is far more Hamiltonian than Jeffersonian.
Titan
Ron Chernow
This biography of John D. Rockefeller was intriguing to me because of a single question—how did one guy get all that money? It’s a staggering tale of the sheer brigandry that characterized mid-18th-century American capitalism, and the calm, accountant-like demeanor of the man that came to master the oil industry. Austere and distant, John D. came from humble and troubled backgrounds to become the wealthiest, most vilified character to date in the American story.