History is an important aspect of mankind. It represents the fails and triumphs of the human race. Preserving stories has been a sheer instincts from the very beginning of our existence. Thus writing our stories down is one of the most common practice of our race. Thus history has been recorded. There is a certain genre in literation which preserves this history in an authentic yet unconventional way. This sector is known as Non-fiction.

Non-fiction writing has been considered as one of the hardest writing in any literature. As it is related to facts and statement, a writer should be aware of each and every particle of his writings. There are some astonishing writers in the world who are very good at what they are doing, and that is preserving the history within their writings.

Today we will be going through some of best of the best writers and their history books which preserves an important part of our culture and the heritage of the world.

List of the 15 Best History Books of All Time

Before publishing the list, I would like to inform my readers that it was next to impossible to short list from such a huge amount of books. Not to forget, all of them are a piece of master class and a shining jewel of our literature. So, it was quite injustice to categories the books into such a short list. But I have been judging in a lot of aspects, some important incidents and the depth of the facts are also kept under consideration. So, the list of the 15 best history books of all time are given as follows:

1. The River of Doubt
2. In the Heart of the Sea
3. Genghis Khan
4. A Brief History of Time
5. Rats
6. Say Nothing
7. The Last Lion
8. Ten Restaurants That Changed America
9. SPQR
10. Lies My Teacher Told Me
11. Sapiens
12. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
13. 1776
14. Norse Mythology
15. The Ghost Map

I am very much satisfied with the outcome. All of the books that are mentioned above has been occupying a lot of reputation in the non-fiction arena. This is very much the reflection of the enriched and diverse writings of our literature.

So, without further ado, let us dig into the reviews of the history books real quick.

The River of Doubts

Teddy Roosevelt was the 26^th President if the United States of America serving the nation between the years 1901 to 1909. But the defeat in the 1912 elections was a huge setback in the former president’s mind. As he was very agile and also wanted to explore the world, he went down deep inside the Amazon rain forest with his son Kermit and a Brazilian famous explorer, Mariano da Silva Rondon. Together, they rum down a detailed expedition into the forest. The writings expresses the facts that Teddy was indeed an adventurer. The ups and downs of the exploration, all the perils, misfortunes and thrills are expressed with sheer brilliance and also did justice to his efforts in the jungle. This is why this book is considered to be one of the best of all time.

In The Heart of the Sea

If you see this name as a familiar one then you are not wrong, my friend. I hope you have probably seen the stunning movie of the same name casting my Mamma’s favorite Chris Hemsworth. The movie was actually a cinematographic adaptation from the book itself. This books represents and expresses the tragedy of the Whale ship Essex. It was based on the tragic naval disaster in 1820. The whaling vessel of Essex was rammed by a large sperm whale which resulted in overturning the vessel. The crew had to basically float on the open sea for over 90 Days!

Genghis Khan

There is a great debate between the most successful conquerors of the world. Some say Alexander the Great, some say it was the Mourya King Ashoka. But there is one name which is still taken with great respect. And the name is Genghis Khan. Genghis Khan and his Mongol Army was able to capture and conquer almost the same amount of land in 25 years which the Romans were able to conquer in 400. The aspects that set apart Genghis from the other rulers that he was very progressive and also ahead of his time. He was a down to earth person, respected the freedom of practicing different religion and a sharp thinker as well. His humble behavior was the main power behind his success. Which his humbleness and honesty, he was able to build the world’s largest empire even though he was from a remote area of the world.

A Brief History of Time

Steven Hawking is one of the brightest minds ever appeared in the field of science. Despite being handicapped, he was able to do what even the fittest of us cannot do, which is to think differently. The book, A Brief History of time has been a shining example of the thought of Steven and is celebrated till now. From the very beginning, Human race had some questions which were not answered till then date. Like the concept of time, can we pause the time, or can we travel in the past. The book enlighten us about the very concept of time. The beginning of the universe, multiple dimensions and the end of everything is explained with scientific methods. This book is considered as one of the best scientific explanation of time in the course of the history. Thus this will be the all-time best book ever written.

Rats

This is perhaps one of the most unusual book in the list so far. This book is about the observation on the history and the habitant of t6he New Work City’s most unwanted inhabitants, the Rats. Yes, you heard it right guys! This book is about Rats! But hold on a sec, why is this one doing in my list? The main reason is that it is not only about the Rats, it is beyond that. Author Robert Sullivan immersed himself in the story when he visited an infested alleyway just blocks away from the Wall Street, New Work City. There he found out that this little inhabitants are way better than the humans who are residing in the city. They are more habitant than us. This extraordinary expedition influenced him to write it down for us.

Say Nothing

This book is based on a true incident of a murder and memories of the accident in Northern Ireland. Every Englishmen, especially the Westerners are likely to believe that the socio-political tension in violence and terrorism is against their culture. But the best picture will be uphold if we can hear it from the frontlines of the I.R.A. Pattrick Radden Keefe was one of the man-on-the-streets back then  when Jean McConville, a mother of ten was abducted and later on murdered. This murder changed the climate of the state and created an intense between the communities. This book is not a happy ending one of course. But it upholds an important incident that potentially created a new page in the chapter.

The Last lion

There are leaders who redefines the course of the history with their intense leadership and sheer knowledge of the surroundings. These leaders can take the nation to greater heights that the nation could not ever imagine. Such patriotic and skilled leader is Winston Spencer Churchill. He was the then prime minister of England. The book is a biography spanning over a brief yet glorified years of 1940 to 1965. Back then the world was under the World War 2. The great leadership of Churchill led the English to seal the victory. This book is going to be a bit tough to read and decode. But it represents a massive amount of importance in the English history. That is why it has made up the order and be featured in my list.

Ten Restaurants That Changed America

 If we closely walk down the memory lane, we will be able to see that the core concept of colonizing in human race was to find shelter and food. This is why, food has been the driving material for the communities around the globe. You can easily recognize the community by just seeing the food and the eating lifestyle of the individual.

But the food we eat today was not actually meant to be this the whole time. Years of evolution and change in the approach and taste took us to this point. From a 100 years from now, we will also forget today’s method of eating.

Such contradictions are represented in the factors of the book. Author Paul Freeman has uphold the basics of the American fooding nature and also been able to showcase 10 iconic restaurants that has been changing the American diet for decades. This is also an important section of history. This was the exact reason behind me listing this book into my bucket list.

SPQR

In the history of mankind, Greeks and the Romans were among the first to civilize. They had been very successful in their run as well. The book, ‘SPQR’ is about the brief history of the Romans. Though being influenced by the Greek culture, the Roman’s left their neighbors well behind in aggregation of the cultural aspects and social advancements. Their quest of being the biggest empire in the world was accomplished by themselves. Their influences was very much all over the world now. They were very much ahead of their time in many aspects such as concealing, ruling, building and enforcing policies and above all architectural aspects. Even the US capital is highly influenced by the architectural tactics of the Romans. This books consists all the elements of the factors of Roman Empire. This is a very important course of the history which we cannot wish top foresee. That is the reason behind the book being an all-time best historical writings ever written.

Lies My Teacher Told Me

Sometimes readers often get this book a wrong way around. This is a book that does not go against schooling. Instead, it pleas and cries for its betterment. The American government and their policies of schooling is contrasting to the present times and histories. The history of the winners is not the true face of the history. It can be a part of the history, but certainly not the entire picture. This is exploited in the book itself. It was originally published in 1995. Back then, this book started a survey of the 12 leading history textbooks that were taught in the US public schools. These books were deeply ignoring the fails and errors of American History which can be very disturbing as well as alarming.

The main motive of the book is to point out the flaws and urge the officials to correct the shortcomings.

Sapiens

Mankind first emerged in the planet almost 200,000 years ago. But the earth is way older than us. But thanks to our skills and developed thinking, we are ruling the planet by using majority of its resources. The history of mankind started from inventing fire, living in caves, hunting, eating, colonizing, evolving and now using the computer to write this very article. But the intense and huge history of mankind cannot be written in one book. So, the author tried to cover the highs and lows of the mankind itself. This is very much the sum up of the advancement of our race.

After all, the human race is the main aspect of the history which we are seeing today. So, it is wise to pick a book which will be describing the very evolution of the human race in this planet which we call earth. I strongly suggest all the readers of different sectors to read this book and gain the knowledge of the very race we belong from.

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

Perhaps, no nation is standing this tall without blood stains in their hands. This also implies with arguably the most successful nation of the world, the American. This is a big eye opener for the nation. Because, we usually hear all the triumph of the nations. But the black spots are always remaining covered. This might be uncomfortable, but as an American, they have all the rights to know the other side of the coin. They have been very reluctant about the history. But they should also know about the massive genocide of the Native Americans. This book uphold the major aspects of the massacre. But, it is a matter of grief that, this part of the history is not even discussed properly to the younger generations.

Knowing the full history can be beneficial for a clarity of thoughts and the reader will also learn from the previous mistakes and build themselves as a better person. The sole motive of this book is to influence the youth as well as the legislative readers who are willing to know the full story. At least, all the Americans should read this book just to have some clarity in their knowledge.

1776

This is a glorious chapter of the United States of America. This was the year when they declared their independence. After an intense realization, I come to the fact that the United States of America is one of the most versatile, violent, explosive and radical nation in the beginning of its run. But slowly this nation has built themselves up as a strong force in the world.

This book is running on a different track rather than running the usual. This follows a narrative style, but the facts are restored as the same. This book not only allows the reader to relieve the then revolving motions, but also helps then understand the other perspective of the British Red courts.

This book is a must read, even if you know the exact history of emerge of the United States of America.

Norse Mythology

Now, now! Settle it down there! I know what you are thinking right now. I know the fact that you are thinking when does mythology secures a place in the non-fiction criteria. I know that is not true. But I have some reasons for that.

First of all, let us dig into some basics. The basics of mythology stands in the common sayings of the people which is running down from centuries. But if we look into the fact closely, we will be able to see that the myths are nothing but the common practices of a certain community in a certain manner. So, if it is a certain practice, then it might secure some of the facts that are very crucial for the course of the history.

So, coming down to the main discussion, why this book got a seat in the table. Because of the factually documents that influences the Vikings. Though the book is a bit on the side of novelistic storytelling, but the facts are very much able to represent the complex European Culture.

That is the reason why this book has been granted as an important chapter of the history of the world.

The Ghost Map

By the end of the 1890s, England became the most powerful nation in the world and London became the epicenter of the glorious Western civilizations. But little did they know that the clock was ticking fast for them. As London became the hub of every possible aspects in England, the city started to grow and became the first every modern city in the world. But there was a huge flaw which the city runners wished to oversee. No proper access to clean water and lack of good and organized waste disposal led the city to ruins. By the year 1894, the city faced a huge epidemic in the form of Cholera which eventually had no cure. This led the city to a massive down fall and it became the darkest times of the English history.

Such horrifying state and the revolving course is displayed in this book, the Ghost Map. As it reflects an important party of the history, this book find the way to my list.

Wrapping Things Up!

History bears a lot of pages and chapters of the human race. From the greatest triumphs to the biggest failures, humans has been learning from all of the sides. The core belief of p [reserving the history is not only to see what the ancestors did. But the belief is to extract useful learnings and information to become a better person. A nation which has a good knowledge over their history, are the nations who can prosper at lightning speed.

The books that are mentioned today are the reflections of many important historical aspects. But that does not explain the full course of mankind. There are a lot of astonishing and wonderful books still out there that deserves to be read, to be heard, to be discussed.

The time has been a limitation for me. That is why I have not been able to explore more and more about the historical preface. Call it as a failure of mine or a sense of ignorance. But I do regret that I have not been able to read all the chapters of the history of mankind.

We will all try to cherish the history, relieve the wins and triumphs of our nation as well as the human race. The main ideology should be clear, no borders should stop you from learning. Always remember, the key to succeed in life is not only learn from the triumphs of the ancestors, but also learn from their mistakes.

That was all for today, I hope you guys like it so far. I know I have missed a lot of books. So, I would like you all to be a part of the discussion in the comment sections.