torvald Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 i'm interested in reading up on texas and pre-WWII american history. between the library and amazon.com there are too many to choose from. a few folks at work recommended howard zinn's "a people's history of the united states". what books do you folks recommend and why? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 i'm interested in reading up on texas and pre-WWII american history. between the library and amazon there are too many to choose from. a few folks at work recommended howard zinn's "a people's history of the united states". what books do you folks recommend and why?Your interest reminds me of "It's a Wonderful Life"If you read up on Texas history... a bell will ding.. and somewhere a Mexican will get offended.Shame on you !!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torvald Posted April 4, 2006 Author Share Posted April 4, 2006 Your interest reminds me of "It's a Wonderful Life"If you read up on Texas history... a bell will ding.. and somewhere a Mexican will get offended. Shame on you !!!!! you know this whole situation has actually resparked my interest in early texas history again. i was in the grocery store yesterday and some kid (about 6, i'd guess) asked his father -- "are we at war with mexicans?" he said, "well, we were a long time ago but now we're friends." the kid said, "did we win?" the father said, "i think so but i really don't think you need to worry about that right now." he was trying to fit the kid into the toddler seat of a shopping cart, which he was clearly too old for. although i'd been meaning to anyway, i thought: it's library time! i went to the montrose branch (since the main library is closed ) and they had 3 general texas history books on the shelf. a large part was actually hispanic influences in texas, there was one on asian influences in texas and one on african american influences in texas. i want to read a general texas history first. texas history was one of my favorite classes in high school. as a first generation texan and i found it pretty wild compared to my family's history of stuffy english folks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 i'm interested in reading up on texas and pre-WWII american history. between the library and amazon.com there are too many to choose from. a few folks at work recommended howard zinn's "a people's history of the united states". what books do you folks recommend and why?The Handbook of Texas Online is always a good starting-point for just about any Texas-related topic.I've only read a few Texas history books over the past few years. One I recommend completely: Isaac's Storm. The other is far more technical albeit extremely thorough - more of an academic sociological study really: German Seed in Texas Soil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 My general feeling on the matter of history is you never owe an apology for generations past. Any entity doesn't owe an apology for decisions made before they took control.Todays generation shouldn't get a free pass in life and have a 'get out of jail free' excuse card for shouting out buzzwords.. but slavery did this, but the holocaust did that, oh.. but they were the original Americans.., Etc.We don't owe the Mexican-Americans anything. Texas doesnt owe anyone an apology for winning. We should be proud we won. I despise the whole 1836 situation.. we should not have to feel guilty.America does not owe slavery retribution to african americans.Was slavery horrible.. sure. Should we have to feel guilty for it now.. nope.Would there even be such a thing today as an African-American had slavery not happened ?Would they all still be making clicking sounds and beating drums ?America doesn't owe Japan an apology or should they feel guilty for dropping the bombs.Horible.. yup.. Did it arguably spare the lives of many many American servicemen.. yup. Feeling guilty.. Nope ! Do we owe them any sort of apology today... nope.Germany - next to their holocaust musuem, they should have a nazi musuem. Educate.. don't be all hush hush over the parts of your history you deem embarrasing.Should they feel bad.. sure. Do todays germans owe todays Jews anything... nope.American Indians. Civilized people took over indigenous tribes. Happened all over the world.Do we owe them land and apologies now. Nope. They had their chance to hold on to their land.. they failed.. history was written... the end.History writes itself. Apologizing for the past is like wishing it didn't happen. Would the word be better off if a certain decision wasnt made or an action didnt or did take place ? Would it be worse off?Nobody can ever answer that.So you live with the history you have and make the best of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 My general feeling on the matter of history is you never owe an apology for generations past. Any entity doesn't owe an apology for decisions made before they took control.Todays generation shouldn't get a free pass in life and have a 'get out of jail free' excuse card for shouting out buzzwords.. but slavery did this, but the holocaust did that, oh.. but they were the original Americans.., Etc. We don't owe the Mexican-Americans anything. Texas doesnt owe anyone an apology for winning. We should be proud we won. I despise the whole 1836 situation.. we should not have to feel guilty. America does not owe slavery retribution to african americans. Was slavery horrible.. sure. Should we have to feel guilty for it now.. nope. America doesn't owe Japan an apology or should they feel guilty for dropping the bombs. Horible.. yup.. Did it arguably spare the lives of many many American servicemen.. yup. Feeling guilty.. Nope ! Do we owe them any sort of apology today... nope. Germany - next to their holocaust musuem, they should have a nazi musuem. Educate.. don't be all hush hush over the parts of your history you deem embarrasing. Should they feel bad.. sure. Do todays germans owe todays Jews anything... nope. American Indians. Civilized people took over indigenous tribes. Happened all over the world. Do we owe them land and apologies now. Nope. They had their chance to hold on to their land.. they failed.. history was written... the end. Hijacking in progress.. Sheesh! Cool your jets! He was just asking for book recommendations. Stick with the topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 Hijacking in progress..Sheesh! Cool your jets! He was just asking for book recommendations. Stick with the topic. Most threads have applicable tangents... and the original poster did repond to my post as bascially the underlying topic that sparked his interest and his original post..... but Fine *pout* I suggest Texas Monthly... its Grrrrreat !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lwood Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 i'm interested in reading up on texas and pre-WWII american history. between the library and amazon.com there are too many to choose from. a few folks at work recommended howard zinn's "a people's history of the united states". what books do you folks recommend and why?For local interest try GALVESTON by Cartwright. It is very interesting and has information on things that are familiar to you.Check our Half Price Books on lower Westheimer. They have a Texas section just inside the front door on the right. Also look in the Texas travel section (left wall, about half way down) for Leon Hale's books on Texas history. They are light reading with photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torvald Posted April 5, 2006 Author Share Posted April 5, 2006 The Handbook of Texas Online is always a good starting-point for just about any Texas-related topic.I've only read a few Texas history books over the past few years. One I recommend completely: Isaac's Storm. The other is far more technical albeit extremely thorough - more of an academic sociological study really: German Seed in Texas Soil.i love the texas handbook online --- but that just makes me want to read further on the subject. the few general books at the library seemed like actual high school text books yet none were as great as the one i used in class (if i could only remember which one). i figured with all of the texas/tejasloving folks here someone would know of an awesome and informative texas read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted April 5, 2006 Share Posted April 5, 2006 i love the texas handbook online --- but that just makes me want to read further on the subject. the few general books at the library seemed like actual high school text books yet none were as great as the one i used in class (if i could only remember which one). i figured with all of the texas/tejasloving folks here someone would know of an awesome and informative texas read.I know what you mean...I visted the Rockport/Fulton area about a year ago, and at some point was fairly close to Victoria for some reason...don't remember why. But I crossed over the behemoth Victoria Barge Canal and was curious as to why such a massive facility was built for so little seagoing traffic. The Texas Handbook Online was like an appetizer without the main course.I think that if you go to Austin, there is a State library similar in purpose to the Library of Congress. I don't know where it is, or much anything else about it other than that there's a book supposedly kept there about my portions of my ancestral history. Also, the General Land Office has a lot of interesting maps and documents.I did read one other Texas book in recent history...City on Fire, about the Texas City disaster. I've got a fairly close connection because my grandparents were within earshot of it (albeit many miles away) at the time. I liked the events described in the first half (although many of the accounts of human carnage were biologically impossible), but the second half, while important to the development of U.S. law, was pretty boring. All in all, mediocre.I'll keep you in mind when I go looking for new Texana. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torvald Posted April 19, 2006 Author Share Posted April 19, 2006 Check our Half Price Books on lower Westheimer. They have a Texas section just inside the front door on the right. Also look in the Texas travel section (left wall, about half way down) for Leon Hale's books on Texas history. They are light reading with photos.i went there today and they have a bunch of brand new steven f. austin & texas history paperbacks. i purchased one but was totally pissed off when bitten by a really tiny bug veryheartily in the nostalgia section (on the foot). i just looked it up on-line and it was a BEDBUG --- harg! i have never seen one and that little thing hurt! i think i may be allergic as it really itches... at least they don't lay eggs in people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevfiv Posted April 19, 2006 Share Posted April 19, 2006 that is...not cool... unfortunately, many of the sellers to half price books do not properly store or take care of books, and some make it into the store with all sorts of nasty things on/in them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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