Follow Up Pt. 2: Inspiration! Suggestions Needed!

Yesterday, I posted the non-fiction recommendations of books about American History that I should read in my post, Follow Up: Inspiration! Suggestions Needed! Today, I am continuing the list of recommendations I received from family, friends, and fellow bloggers with the fiction books that people suggested I read. I even got a few suggestions for books for The Netherlands!

If you have any books that are not the typical American History that we learn in school or books about your own country that you think are worthwhile reads, please share them with me! I'm going to be on a mission in 2011 to expose myself to new things!

All descriptions of the books come from Amazon.com unless otherwise noted.
Fiction

The Lonesome Gods - Louis L'Amour (recommended by my brother-in-law)

Left to die by his vengeful grandfather, rescued by outlaws, and raised by native Americans, Johannes Verne is strengthened by his love for two women and his ambition to survive on the Palm Springs desert. 

Lonesome Dove - Louis L'Amour (suggested by Farm Lane Books)

A love story, an adventure, and an epic of the frontier, Larry McMurtry’s Pulitzer Prize— winning classic, Lonesome Dove, the third book in the Lonesome Dove tetralogy, is the grandest novel ever written about the last defiant wilderness of America. Journey to the dusty little Texas town of Lonesome Dove and meet an unforgettable assortment of heroes and outlaws, whores and ladies, Indians and settlers. Richly authentic, beautifully written, always dramatic, Lonesome Dove is a book to make us laugh, weep, dream, and remember.

The Help - Kathryn Stockett (recommended by Farm Lane Books and Leeswammes)

What perfect timing for this optimistic, uplifting debut novel (and maiden publication of Amy Einhorn's new imprint) set during the nascent civil rights movement in Jackson, Miss., where black women were trusted to raise white children but not to polish the household silver. Eugenia Skeeter Phelan is just home from college in 1962, and, anxious to become a writer, is advised to hone her chops by writing about what disturbs you. The budding social activist begins to collect the stories of the black women on whom the country club sets relies and mistrusts enlisting the help of Aibileen, a maid who's raised 17 children, and Aibileen's best friend Minny, who's found herself unemployed more than a few times after mouthing off to her white employers. The book Skeeter puts together based on their stories is scathing and shocking, bringing pride and hope to the black community, while giving Skeeter the courage to break down her personal boundaries and pursue her dreams. Assured and layered, full of heart and history, this one has bestseller written all over it. (Feb.) 

~Review by Publisher's Weekly (listed on Amazon.com) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd - Jim Fergus (recommended by Leeswammes)

One Thousand White Women is the story of May Dodd and a colorful assembly of pioneer women who, under the auspices of the U.S. government, travel to the western prairies in 1875 to intermarry among the Cheyenne Indians. The covert and controversial "Brides for Indians" program, launched by the administration of Ulysses S. Grant, is intended to help assimilate the Indians into the white man's world. Toward that end May and her friends embark upon the adventure of their lifetime. Jim Fergus has so vividly depicted the American West that it is as if these diaries are a capsule in time.

The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck (recommended by Leeswammes)

Novel by John Steinbeck, published in 1939. Set during the Great Depression, it traces the migration of an Oklahoma Dust Bowl family to California and their subsequent hardships as migrant farm workers. It won a Pulitzer Prize in 1940. The work did much to publicize the injustices of migrant labor. The narrative, interrupted by prose-poem interludes, chronicles the struggles of the Joad family's life on a failing Oklahoma farm, their difficult journey to California, and their disillusionment once they arrive there and fall prey to a parasitic economic system. The insularity of the Joads--Ma's obsession with family togetherness, son Tom's self-centeredness, and daughter Rose of Sharon's materialism--ultimately gives way to a sense of universal community.

~The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature --This text refers to the Unknown Binding edition.

Mudbound - Hillary Jordan (recommended by Farm Lane Books)

In Jordan's prize-winning debut, prejudice takes many forms, both subtle and brutal. It is 1946, and city-bred Laura McAllan is trying to raise her children on her husband's Mississippi Delta farm—a place she finds foreign and frightening. In the midst of the family's struggles, two young men return from the war to work the land. Jamie McAllan, Laura's brother-in-law, is everything her husband is not—charming, handsome, and haunted by his memories of combat. Ronsel Jackson, eldest son of the black sharecroppers who live on the McAllan farm, has come home with the shine of a war hero. But no matter his bravery in defense of his country, he is still considered less than a man in the Jim Crow South. It is the unlikely friendship of these brothers-in-arms that drives this powerful novel to its inexorable conclusion.

The men and women of each family relate their versions of events and we are drawn into their lives as they become players in a tragedy on the grandest scale. As Kingsolver says of Hillary Jordan, "Her characters walked straight out of 1940s Mississippi and into the part of my brain where sympathy and anger and love reside, leaving my heart racing. They are with me still."

Esperanza Rising - Pam Munoz Ryan 

(recommended by Chelle at The Prairie Library)

Esperanza thought she'd always live with her family on their ranch in Mexico--she'd always have fancy dresses, a beautiful home, & servants. But a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to flee to California during the Great Depression, and to settle in a camp for Mexican farm workers. Esperanza isn't ready for the hard labor, financial struggles, or lack of acceptance she now faces. When their new life is threatened, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her difficult circumstances--Mama's life and her own depend on it.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian - Sherman Alexie 

(recommended by Chelle at The Prairie Library)

Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he thought he was destined to live.

Ride the Wind - Lucia St. Clair Robson (Allison at The Allure of Books)

In 1836, when she was nine years old, Cynthia Ann Parker was kidnapped by Comanche Indians. This is the story of how she grew up with them, mastered their ways, married one of their leaders, and became, in every way, a Comanche woman. It is also the story of a proud and innocent people whose lives pulsed with the very heartbeat of the land. It is the story of a way of life that is gone forever....












Fiction Novels based in The Netherlands

Girl with a Pearl Earring  - Tracy Chevalier (recommended by Leeswammes)
Set in 17th-century Delft, this historical novel intertwines the art of Johannes Vermeer with his life and that of a maiden servant in his household. From the few facts known about the artist, Chevalier creates the reality of The Netherlands. The parallell themes of tradesman/artist, Protestant/Catholic, and master/servant are intricately woven into the fabric of the tale. The painters of the day spent long hours in the studio devising and painting re-creations of everyday life. The thrust of the story is seen through the eyes of Griet, the daughter of a Delft tile maker who lost his sight and, with it the ability to support his family. Griet's fate is to be hired out as a servant to the Vermeer household. She has a wonderful sense of color, composition, and orderliness that the painter Vermeer recognizes. And, slowly, Vermeer entrusts much of the labor of creating the colored paints to Griet. 

~Kristin  M. Jacobi, Eastern Connecticut state University

~From Library Journal (on BN.com)

Tulip Fever - Deborah Moggach (recommended by Leeswammes)

In Tulip Fever, acclaimed author Deborah Moggach has created that rarest of novels--a literary tour de force that is also brilliantly, compulsively readable. Not since Patrick Suskind's Perfume has a work of fiction so vividly evoked a time, a place, and a passion. 

In 1630s Amsterdam, tulip fever has seized the populace. Everywhere men are seduced by the fantastic exotic flower. But for wealthy merchant Cornelis Sandvoort, it is his young and beautiful wife, Sophia, who stirs his soul. She is the prize he desires, the woman he hopes will bring him the joy that not even his considerable fortune can buy.

Cornelis yearns for an heir, but so far he and Sophia have failed to produce one. In a bid for immortality, he commissions a portrait of them both by the talented young painter Jan van Loos. But as Van Loos begins to capture Sophia's likeness on canvas, a slow passion begins to burn between the beautiful young wife and the talented artist. As the portrait unfolds, so a slow dance is begun among the household's inhabitants. Ambitions, desires, and dreams breed a grand deception--and as the lies multiply, events move toward a thrilling and tragic climax.

Follow-Up: Inspiration! Suggestions Needed!

Last month, I was flipping through channels on the TV and came across, "America, The Story of Us" on The History Channel. It was so interesting that I put out a call for my friends, family, and fellow bloggers to help me find books that are not the traditional Colonial American History learned in school in my post, "Inspiration! Suggestions Needed!" I also asked my international book blogging friends to tell me about books they recommend about their countries.

I've compiled a list of people's responses and will definitely be adding some of these (if not all of them) to my ever-growing To Be Read list. Because the list and descriptions are fairly long, I will post the Fiction recommendations people gave me in Part Two of the post tomorrow!


All the product descriptions/reviews come from Amazon.com unless otherwise noted:

Non-Fiction

A People's History of the United States - Howard Zinn (recommended by my brother-in-law)

Consistently lauded for its lively, readable prose, this revised and updated edition of A People's History of the United States turns traditional textbook history on its head. Howard Zinn infuses the often-submerged voices of blacks, women, American Indians, war resisters, and poor laborers of all nationalities into this thorough narrative that spans American history from Christopher Columbus's arrival to an afterword on the Clinton presidency.
Addressing his trademark reversals of perspective, Zinn--a teacher, historian, and social activist for more than 20 years--explains, "My point is not that we must, in telling history, accuse, judge, condemn Columbus in absentia. It is too late for that; it would be a useless scholarly exercise in morality. But the easy acceptance of atrocities as a deplorable but necessary price to pay for progress (Hiroshima and Vietnam, to save Western civilization; Kronstadt and Hungary, to save socialism; nuclear proliferation, to save us all)--that is still with us. One reason these atrocities are still with us is that we have learned to bury them in a mass of other facts, as radioactive wastes are buried in containers in the earth."


If your last experience of American history was brought to you by junior high school textbooks--or even if you're a specialist--get ready for the other side of stories you may not even have heard. With its vivid descriptions of rarely noted events, A People's History of the United States is required reading for anyone who wants to take a fresh look at the rich, rocky history of America.




The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History - Thomas E. Woods, Jr. (recommended by my brother-in-law)

Claiming that most textbooks and popular history books were written by biased left-wing writers and scholars, historian Thomas Woods offers this guide as an alternative to "the stale and predictable platitudes of mainstream texts." Covering the colonial era through the Clinton administration, Woods seeks to debunk some persistent myths about American history. For instance, he writes, the Puritans were not racists intent on stealing the Indians' lands, the Founding Fathers were not revolutionaries but conservatives in the true sense of the word, the American War Between the States (to even call it a civil war is inaccurate, Woods says) was not principally about slavery, Abraham Lincoln was no friend to the slaves, and FDR's New Deal policies actually made the Depression worse. He also covers a wide range of constitutional interpretations over the years, particularly regarding the First, Second, Ninth, and Tenth amendments, and continually makes the point that states' rights have been unlawfully trampled upon by the federal government since the early days of the republic. Though its title is more deliberately provocative than accurate, Woods' attack on what he sees as rampant liberal revisionism over the past 25 years proves to be an interesting platform for a book. He's as biased as those he rails against, of course, but he does provoke thought in an entertaining way even if he sometimes tries to pass off opinion as hard facts.


This quick and enjoyable read is packed with unfamiliar quotes, informative sidebars, iconoclastic viewpoints, and a list of books "you're not supposed to read." It is not a comprehensive or detailed study, but that is not its aim; instead, it offers ideas for further research and a challenge to readers to dig deeper and analyze some basic assumptions about American history--a worthy goal that Woods manages to reach. --Shawn Carkonen

Nisei: The Quiet Americans - Bill Hosakawa (recommended by my cousin)

Hailed at the time of its publication in 1969, Bill Hosokawa's "Nisei" remains an inspiring account of the original Japanese immigrants and their role in the development of the West. Hosokawa recounts the ordeals faced by the immigrant generation and their American-born offspring, the Nisei;the ill-advised government decisions that led to their uprooting during WWII; how they withstood harsh camp life; and their courageous efforts to prove their loyalty to the United States.

Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong - James W. Loewen (recommended by my cousin)

Americans have lost touch with their history, and in Lies My Teacher Told Me Professor James Loewen shows why. After surveying eighteen leading high school American history texts, he has concluded that not one does a decent job of making history interesting or memorable. Marred by an embarrassing combination of blind patriotism, mindless optimism, sheer misinformation, and outright lies, these books omit almost all the ambiguity, passion, conflict, and drama from our past.

In this revised edition, packed with updated material, Loewen explores how historical myths continue to be perpetuated in today's climate and adds an eye-opening chapter on the lies surrounding 9/11 and the Iraq War. From the truth about Columbus's historic voyages to an honest evaluation of our national leaders, Loewen revives our history, restoring the vitality and relevance it truly possesses.

Thought provoking, nonpartisan, and often shocking, Loewen unveils the real America in this iconoclastic classic beloved by high school teachers, history buffs, and enlightened citizens across the country.

Farewell to Manzanar - Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston (recommended by Scrabblequeen)

During World War II a community called Manzanar was hastily created in the high mountain desert country of California, east of the Sierras. Its purpose was to house thousands of Japanese American internees. One of the first families to arrive was the Wakatsukis, who were ordered to leave their fishing business in Long Beach and take with them only the belongings they could carry. For Jeanne Wakatsuki, a seven-year-old child, Manzanar became a way of life in which she struggled and adapted, observed and grew. For her father it was essentially the end of his life.

At age thirty-seven, Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston recalls life at Manzanar through the eyes of the child she was. She tells of her fear, confusion, and bewilderment as well as the dignity and great resourcefulness of people in oppressive and demeaning circumstances. Written with her husband, Jeanne delivers a powerful first-person account that reveals her search for the meaning of Manzanar.

Farewell to Manzanar has become a staple of curriculum in schools and on campuses across the country. Last year the San Francisco Chronicle named it one of the twentieth century"s 100 best nonfiction books from west of the Rockies.

Specimen Days - Walt Whitman (recommended by Chelle at The Prairie Library)

Specimen Days, published in 1882, provides an extraordinary picture of an aging poet reassessing the path of his long life, one intrinsically linked with the trajectory—and traumas—of the nation he cherished so deeply. Its diary-like entries, is a prose compilation of a life lived richly and in the service of others, as well an enduring portrait of a monumental writer. Specimen Days reveals the remarkable course of Whitman’s life and accomplishments, starting with his boyhood spent roaming the coast of Long Island, to his days as a writer and observer of the cities of New York and Brooklyn, to his volunteer work as a Washington field nurse during the Civil War, and finally to his serene nature writings and travel diaries as an older man. Whitman’s book of memories resounds with striking sections on war, nature, people, and travel. Composed by arguably the finest and most original of American poets, Specimen Days is an underappreciated autobiographical masterpiece by one of America’s most important writers of any generation.

~Synopsis from BN.com

Please feel free to add more recommendations in the comments!

Inspiration! Suggestions needed!

I came home earlier today and decided to eat a cup of yogurt for lunch. I flipped on the television to watch some of the boob tube and actually found a really interesting show on the History Channel. The show is called, "America the Story of Us". It was an all day marathon I guess, but I just caught a few episodes that included Westward Movement, The Gold Rush, and the Civil War. I realized that though I've taken a few years of American History, I really didn't pay that much attention or enjoy myself while taking those classes in high school and college. Also, given what is going on with immigration reform, I am becoming more self-aware and more interested in our cultural history. The country is so vast that I don't think we learn much of history other than Colonial American History and these peoples' Westward Movement.

Because of this, I am calling all my followers and others that read this blog to help me out with inspiration for next year! I would like to read more books about American History that isn't the traditional history you learn in high school and college.

Here are a few topics that I find interesting:

• The Black/African-American experience
• The Asian experience
• The Southwest (I'm originally from New Mexico and am much more interested in exploring Southwestern History since the passing of the restrictions on ethnic studies in Arizona)
• The Native American experience
• Women's History in America
• The Cajun experience (I became interested in this when I went to Nova Scotia and learned about the Acadians, some of whom ended up in Louisiana)
• War experience of minorities in America

NEED SUGGESTIONS!

I would just like to broaden my knowledge of history in the United States. I don't care if it is a novel, a non-fiction book, or if it's controversial. Running this blog has helped me become more open to different reading experiences. Also, if you happen to be from another country and can suggest an interesting novel or historical non-fiction book from your country (that's available in English), I would love to learn more about your culture and country's history as well.