Top 10 Historical Novels

Mott the Hoople said:
What surprized me about Stalingrad is that I thought it was the worst battle of WWII in terms of the loss of life but I believe it ranks #3 behind the Battle for Berlin and the Battle of Manila.
Click to expand...
I didn't know that, but Berlin makes sense. I love studying the Eastern front, in some ways the stories are almost like legends, too extraordinary to be real.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
What surprized me about Stalingrad is that I thought it was the worst battle of WWII in terms of the loss of life but I believe it ranks #3 behind the Battle for Berlin and the Battle of Manila.
Click to expand...
Ahhh now I know why that is. Stalingrad was the worst but statisticians, for some reason, seperate military casualties from civilian casualities and they segregate the casualties from the Battle vs the Siege. When all are combined that's over 2 million casualties making it the worst battle of WWII.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
Ahhh now I know why that is. Stalingrad was the worst but statisticians, for some reason, seperate military casualties from civilian casualities and they segregate the casualties from the Battle vs the Siege. When all are combined that's over 2 million casualties making it the worst battle of WWII.
Click to expand...
Ok, that's what I thought.
 
I guess the main reason "Enemies at the Gate" didn't make my top 10 list, even though it's a great book and all should read it, is because it's not a fun read. I didn't enjoy reading it at all. Not that it was the authors fault but this period of history was macabre, perverse and grotesque. That lack of humanity or respect for human life by both sides is appaling in the extreme. Was the book informative? With out a doubt. Was the book accurate? I'm certain it is. Does it provide an object lesson about mans inhumanity towards his fellow man. It does. Was it fun or enjoyable to read. Not hardly. My emotions ran between depressed and horrified. So though this was not a fun book to read, it's still a great book and I highly recommend it.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
I guess the main reason "Enemies at the Gate" didn't make my top 10 list, even though it's a great book and all should read it, is because it's not a fun read. I didn't enjoy reading it at all. Not that it was the authors fault but this period of history was macabre, perverse and grotesque. That lack of humanity or respect for human life by both sides is appaling in the extreme. Was the book informative? With out a doubt. Was the book accurate? I'm certain it is. Does it provide an object lesson about mans inhumanity towards his fellow man. It does. Was it fun or enjoyable to read. Not hardly. My emotions ran between depressed and horrified. So though this was not a fun book to read, it's still a great book and I highly recommend it.
Click to expand...
I disagree. It certainly has its horrors, but it is told in such a way that in the end, you see the light at the end of the tunnel.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
I guess the main reason "Enemies at the Gate" didn't make my top 10 list, even though it's a great book and all should read it, is because it's not a fun read. I didn't enjoy reading it at all. Not that it was the authors fault but this period of history was macabre, perverse and grotesque. That lack of humanity or respect for human life by both sides is appaling in the extreme. Was the book informative? With out a doubt. Was the book accurate? I'm certain it is. Does it provide an object lesson about mans inhumanity towards his fellow man. It does. Was it fun or enjoyable to read. Not hardly. My emotions ran between depressed and horrified. So though this was not a fun book to read, it's still a great book and I highly recommend it.
Click to expand...

Now I really want to read it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top