BOOK REVIEWS
This section contains Dennis McDonald’s occasional book reviews.
- An index of book reviews is here.
- Scroll down for recent entries.
Entries in History (20)
Anthony Lewis' FREEDOM FOR THE THOUGHT THAT WE HATE: A BIOGRAPHY OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT
This little volume is packed with an amazing amount of readable information about the history of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment, libel, privacy, freedom of speech, and freedom of the press.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, Law, Politics
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Helen Nicholson's THE CRUSADES
I assigned three tags to this book review:
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, War, Religion
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Lisa Jardine's INGENIOUS PURSUITS: BUILDING THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION
Late 17th Century London and the Royal Society provide the setting for this book. It concentrates on the “great men” who lived, worked, and created modern science.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, Science
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Shelby Foote's SHILOH
This novel follows several Confederate and Union solders during the two days of the 1862 battle of Shiloh in Tennessee.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Fiction, War
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Stephen Jay Gould's ROCKS OF AGES
Scientist Gould in this short book attempts to demonstrate both (a) how Science and Religion can learn to co-exist and (b) how efforts to control Science through Religion-imposed limits are prime examples of the two “magisteria,” as he refers to Science and Religion, transgressing on each other’s territory.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, Science, Philosophy, Religion
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Will Eisner's THE PLOT: THE SECRET STORY OF THE PROTOCOLS OF THE ELDERS OF ZION
It is common knowledge that the book The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, which tells about a sinister Jewish plot to take over the world, is a 19th-century fabrication that emerged in Europe during the time of the infamous Dreyfuss affair.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, Graphic Novel
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Chiara Frugoni's BOOKS, BANKS, BUTTONS, AND OTHER INVENTIONS FROM THE MIDDLE AGES
Beautifully translated by William McCuaig from the original Italian, this lavishly illustrated book tells the surprising story of the many important inventions that emerged from Europe during the Middle Ages.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction
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Elie Wiesel's NIGHT
This short book, newly re-translated into English, is the memory of a teenage Jewish boy who is sent to a series of German concentration camps during World War II.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, War, Autobiography
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Evan Thomas' SEA OF THUNDER
This extremely well researched and written tale of World War II tells the story behind the climactic Battle of Leyte Gulf. This was the last great sea battle fought by huge opposing forces — the Americans and the Japanese — involving both battleships and aircraft carriers.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, War
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Freeman Dyson's THE SCIENTIST AS REBEL
This collection of essays and reviews by the physicist/mathematician Freeman Dyson makes for fascinating reading. The range of topics is broad and the style of writing is clear and approachable. Topics include religion, hydrogen bombs, Isaac Newton, the relative roles of technology and ideas in the advancement of science, the future of humanity in space (think: comets), and the role of amateurs in scientific research.
Dennis D. McDonald
in History, Non Fiction, Science
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2 Comments