I liked how the biography didn’t only talk about his work but also the type of person he and his family were. I’ve looked for biographies on other contemporaries but usually they are politically based and focus on one aspect of their life. If anyone has some ideas I’d be so grateful!
(Note: I’ve also read Chernow’s Washington biography)
I made this list last year, but I've updated it with some new works and added Donald Trump to the list. On this President's Day I want to give people a chance learn about all the good, bad, and forgettable Presidents.
I should note, that these recommendations are my opinion and If you think you know of a better biography for a President, say so!
Enjoy!
1 George Washington (1732-1799) President from 1789-1797
There are few figures in American history stand as tall as the country's first President. George Washington helped lead America during the Revolutionary War, helped create and lead a new nation, and became a celebrity in his own time. One of his most important legacies was the two-term tradition that followed him after he voluntarily stepped down. The capitol of the nation, the $1 bill, the Washington monument, and a U.S. state all bear his name. Bestowed with an almost Olympian stature for centuries, more recent authors have strived to uncover the true Washington from beneath centuries of propaganda and legend to reveal the entire complex scope of his life.
Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow - Authored by the master behind Alexander Hamilton, Chernow's biography is an joy to read and a great starting place for those with an interest in the Washington.
Washington: The Indispensable Man by James Thomas Flexner - This single volume work on Washington is the condensed version of the massive, 2,000 page, four-volume tome by Flexner that won a National Book Award and Special Pulitzer Prize. Flexner combines elegant writing with fantastic research to paint a full picture of the First President.
2 John Adams(1735-1826) President from 1797-1801
The first Vice President and first President to lose a re-election, the legacy of Adams is sometimes overshadowed by the titanic stature of his predecessor and successor. On the contrary, I think Adams is among the most interesting Presidents. The man possessed a fiery, explosive temper, a hatred for slavery (of the first 12 Presidents, only Adams and his son John Quincy Adams never owned slaves), and played a crucial role in the Revolution and the creation of America.
John Adams by David McCullough - McCullough's Pulitzer Prize winning biography is incredibly accessible and there is a reason is incredibly popular. It ranks among my favorite biographies of anyone, period. It reads like a novel and covers Adams' entire tumultuous career and his amazing 90-yea
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My players love getting lore in-game, so I've been writing little "books" for them to read about various subjects that come up. They just got to Vallaki, so I thought I'd write them a book about Saint Andral. As far as I've been able to tell, there isn't any actual biographical information about him, so I just made it up.
The years are based on the timeline created by u/dash27
I'd love to hear if anyone actually ends up using this or a version of this :)
Wow,. I am a very sweet girl who gets along with just about everyone. Things don't always work out how I'd like but I have a good grasp on things and feel like I am pretty in control of my own life. Too in control apparently. Reading this book was like someone showing me childhood pictures of myself that I didn't know they had taken. It is me. Brought to me by someone else. I realize that having control over my own life and always anticipating what will happen is a side effect of codependency. I always thought I that codependency meant you heavily relied on your partner or parent for support but I see now that it is a major issue I've developed. Trying to do some self growth after a breakup and found out this info. Any tips on getting better about it?
I'm reading Down the Highway, and so far the most revelatory bit of information is the fact that Dylan traveled to Denver when he was 19 and attempted to enter its folk circuit. His attempt to do so was thwarted. People either ignored him or were explicitly dismissive. He stole some records from a loose acquaintance and was almost arrested for it.
Having been practically run out of Denver, he would subsequently be compelled to leave Minnesota by the menacing presence of several enemies. There was the other guy he stole records from - Pankake - who assaulted him and doubtless had it in for him. There were also two mysterious strangers who broke into Dylan's friend's house at night hoping to find him there and "teach him a lesson".
He was slightly crazy and had he not crystallized it into musical genius he could easily have been a casualty of life. His whole youth and ascent to stardom plays like a tight rope trot through a thunderstorm.
The most remarkable thing about Dylan's life is that he was so, so ridiculously close to being arrested or murdered or otherwise incapacitated. He was a genius but nobody knew it and, per his genius, he was also slightly crazy. His singing didn't impress people and he generally had a blemished reputation on campus, aside from a few friendships with resolutely bohemian students.
I'm trying to get into non-fiction, but when I google "best non-fiction books", 90% of the recs are biographies and i'm sick of them. Please recommend me other books! I don't really care about the subject, as long as they are not biographies (although I must say I won't read far right political theory as well). Thank you in advance!
Do you guys know of any book that examines Muhammad's life from an objective historical perspective? Not an Islamic perspective but an actual historical, concrete analysis?
I masturbate. A normal thing. I've asked this before, and a lot of answers are like "It is fine to do it daily" or "Masturbation is healthy". I know it is, but I am very concerned.
Recently, my parents have been having many lengthy conversations with me, heart to heart, about what I'm undergoing and how I will handle it. I am a Muslim teen, and this puts me at trouble; I need to have enough self control, I need to handle my harmones.
I want to be heart to heart, with all Redditors out there, right now, and I want advice, good advice, I don't want the usual answers.
Starting from the beginning, I can remember, since I was 5 years old, I have loved masturbating (weird?), obviously I knew nothing about Puberty, I would erect and to my pleasure, masturbate, I don't remember, but my parents say they tried to stop me. Again, back then, I don't believe there was any harm, because it was only pleasure, no sperm would come out, nothing.
This continued a lot, I masturbated nearly daily, and I guess my testosterone levels were low, because I would erect by seeing the navel of women, I live in North America, so I see many women with crop tops and such, and then my origins are in South Asia, and there culture allows navels to reveal.
I am a proud Muslim, and so in Islam (the religion I follow) it is mandatory that most girls properly cover themselves with Pardah (to conceal a woman's body, translation: curtain), and I believe that is good, men keep their testosterone levels low and do not erect.
But I can't stop everybody! I can only wish Islam was global, but in the end, it is the choice of everyone on this planet, which way do they want to go. But anyway, even at my current age, 13, I do not watch porn, and never will, but before I gained access to the internet, I would see the TV, the outside world, or imagine, things that would make me masturbate.
When I was 7, I gained my first, full access to the internet, but I didn't search or do anything wrong. I was in that period of my life, where "1 hour of games" wasn't enough for me, I wanted more time to play games, but I took time limits (claps to my mom) and played a lot with LEGO.
Until now, since I was 2, I have played with LEGO. Nearby teens question my obsession, why do I like LEGO so much? My parents bought me it once and I loved it, I still play to this day, but I feel that I am becoming a more mature LEGO fan, who wants to build more than play with LEGO.
Anyway, that was off-topic, that
I've read a good number of them and I think "Behind the Shades" is the best. Even though Clinton Heylin has his own opinion about songs and albums it's still the most informative about Dylan's music and his life surrounding his music, without becoming like a gossip rag.
Any others?
Hello!
Im trying to put together a YouTube video basically explaining who is Mohammed Rajab Wali. I figured you all seem to be very knowledgeable. Tell me any and all details you guys have, it would be much appreciated!
My favorite part is how he failed and contemplated giving up over and over but came back stronger each time. I know is corny but I'm in a rough spot and need some motivation from someone who has come back from defeat. Don't care at all if its an athlete, actually a story about someone who turned their life around to help people would be great.
The creature, artificial spirit, and self proclaimed “father” of Emilia known as “Puck” was born in Munich, Germany, in 1902 under the name of Heinrich Higglesdorf. After growing up during WWI and experiencing the depression of the Weimar Republic, Higglesdorf was disillusioned with the current state of politics in Germany and as a result rapidly fell in with the National Socialist German Workers Party under Adolf Hitler in the late 1920s. Higglesdorf quickly became known as one of the party’s chief enforcers and acquired a reputation for brutality, cunning, and mercilessness; having managed to defeat entire units of German police by himself during skirmishes with the Nazi party’s paramilitaries.
After Hitler seized power in 1933, Higglesdorf gained in standing and moved up the party ranks to become one of Hitler’s right hand men. As a result, he was tapped to lead the invasion of not just Poland, but Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France; his capacity as a warmonger and force of evil was evergrowing. After being used as the Nazi’s superweapon for sometime, he took a year long tour of the Third Reich, espousing racist and inflammatory slogans so vile and disgusting that even the SS (Hitler’s most fanatical supporters and private military forces) were shocked, and absolutely refused to allow Higglesdorf to join them.
This did not stop Higglesdorf however, and in 1941 he kickstarted Operation Barbossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, by himself. He became directly responsible for roughly 99.99% of atrocities and war crimes committed by both sides on the Eastern Front during 1942-1943; as Higglesdorf whenever he entered battle was overcome by a beastial frenzy and a inexplicable pathological hatred for black-haired teenagers in tracksuits, and would proceed to demolish anything and anyone in sight.
Luckily, Higglesdorf’s rampage was stopped when a Soviet IS-2 heavy tank blasted him point blank with its 122 mm cannon in 1944, blasting his soul directly into Lugunica (Od Laguna apparently was having an aneurysm at this time) and becoming trapped inside the body of an artificial spirit, named “Puck” by the Witch of Greed, Echidna. Rapidly realizing the current situation had turned against him, “Puck” embraced this calling and played along, adopting a sarcastic and cruel personality with a penchant for making any silver haired half-elves in the vicinity cry.
After the freezing of Elior Forest, “Puck” took this time to use his magic
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Title pretty much says it all. I’m looking for an in-depth biography of Christ that is written from an objective, dry standpoint. Basically looking for a historical biography. Not pro or con. Not written by anyone who is religious in any way—Christian or otherwise. Thanks!
I finished "The Years of Lyndon Johnson" and I read "The Power Broker" last year. They were both incredible. Both of them are about people who were personally quite detestable, but became very powerful. It's more than a biography: Caro shows how the whole political system works and how people gain power in that system. Some of my favorite parts of his book are the mini-biographies of other people. Al Smith, Coke Stevenson. Or that Johnson brought big money into politics (He often outspent his opponents by 10x). Or how Moses ended up controlling the elected officials who were supposed to answer to him.
They really showed me how the government really works in practice, and really made me rethink my approach to politics.
