My understanding of history is pretty pathetic, and I am trying to improve it. Looking for a book that isn’t revisionist, racist, or full of colonial apologia. Something that goes as far back as the 15th century would be perfect.
A People’s History of the United States: 1492-Present by Howard Zinn
I appreciate this recommendation, thanks! Do you have any suggestions for books that are not centered around America?
A people’s history of the world by Chris Harman, Open veins of Latin America, how Europe underdeveloped Africa, anything by Gerald Horne, the age of series by Hobsbawm, 1491, 1493, (actually those last two might be Americas focused), Micheal Hudson’s work, and that’s all I can think of for world history back to then.
Thanks, I wouldn’t mind reading history focused on America but once I get a macro understanding of the history. It might take my incompetent brain some time to digest all the suggestions here but I’ll get there
The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Graeber, David Wengrow is accessible and portrays history from the perspective of the colonized. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dawn_of_Everything
I will say that it neglects much of African and Asian history. It’s a good look at what was happening in Europe and the Americas though.
I like this one a lot, thank you!
How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney
James W. Loewen’s Lies my teacher told me: everything your American history textbook got wrong. Taught me that Wall St. was originally a spot where Europeans marketed slaves.
Memory of fire trilogy and open veins of latin america.
For anyone interested, links to the books recommended here
- How Europe Underdeveloped Africa: https://archive.org/details/how-europe-underdeveloped-africa-pdfdrive.com
- The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity: https://archive.org/details/graeber-wengrow-dawn/David Graeber%2C David Wengrow - The Dawn of Everything_ A New History of Humanity-Farrar%2C Straus and Giroux (2021)/
- A people’s history of the United States: https://archive.org/details/pdfy-otanUZGGGcnDgfr7
- Lies My Teacher Told Me: https://archive.org/details/loewen-james-w-lies-my-teacher-told-me/page/n5/mode/2up
- Europe and the People Without History: No archive[dot]org link. I have a PDF, DM me if you want a link.
- Memory of fire - cannot find a link yet
Someone else mentioned my favorite anthropologist, David Graeber, and I’m working through that book right now!
Another anthropologist, Eric Wolf, wrote Europe and the People Without History, which you might also find interesting.
It covers the time span you’re looking for, and focuses on how global, political-economic trajectories were shaped by the “people without history” (the colonized).
