What then should you read?

Do you want to know who you are? Trace and study your past. There is no better way than studying history to understand what/why/how/who/where we are now. Here is a suggested list of books for you to start.

http://ednews.org/articles/21699/1/An-Interview-with-Professor-Don-Elder-On-Reading-History/Page1.html

An Interview with Professor Don Elder: On Reading History
Michael F. Shaughnessy Senior Columnist EdNews.org
Eastern New Mexico University

At the beginning of every year, one contemplates the books that one has read in the past year and realizes the need to delve more deeply into various books, and issues. Over the past year, I have received many comments about the need to encourage students to read more- and the need to have them read more primary sources as well as fiction, non-fiction, biographies and autobiographies.

In this interview, Professor of History, Donald Elder responds to some questions about important books that need to be read, and the issues regarding these books. As we enter this election year, it seems imperative to reflect back on our country's history, as we are surely making history now, and the current election will contribute to our nation's history.

The issue of what students in social studies, history, and Western Civilization should be reading has been continually debated and discussed over the past year. We thank Professor Elder for sharing his views, beliefs and opinions about the crucial issue of reading, and the specific issue of reading historical materials.

1) As we enter the New Year, one often thinks about the books that one "should" have read last year. As we enter this New Year, what is on your list of important books in the realm of history that SHOULD be read by adults and citizens of this country?

I would hope that all American citizens read The Battle Cry of Freedom. James McPherson tells the story of the most cataclysmic event in our nation's history in a balanced and very readable fashion.

All Americans should read Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, to see how humans have the capacity, for better or worse, to fundamentally alter their environment.

I also think that they should read 1776 by David McCullough. We should never lose sight of how desperate the American cause was in that year, and how great a debt we owe to the individuals (of both sexes and all ethnicities) that kept the idea of liberty alive.

2) Progressing along, what are some books that should be MANDATORY reading for high school students- and tell us why?

I would say that for high school students, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is the most important book about US History. Because Douglass saw slavery from every vantage point, the book presents the institution as it truly was. You can't understand our country without understanding slavery's effect on us, and this is the best avenue for gaining comprehension.

I would also recommend The Scarlet Letter, as it puts the mindset of Puritan New England into a setting that young people could relate to even today.

Finally, I would recommend The Grapes of Wrath. It captures perfectly the essence of how The Great Depression forced hardships on the American people, but also shows their amazing resilience.

3) And what are some books that should be MANDATORY reading for college students who are history majors?

For History majors, they should Thomas Paine's Common Sense and The Federalist Papers to see how logical argumentation has been able to influence the course of our nation.

They should also read Women at Work by Thomas Dublin to see how women made their first large-scale foray into the developing manufacturing sector.

Paul Johnson's A Shopkeeper's Millennium shows how religion and American society have intersected. Upton Sinclair's The Jungle is great at describing the costs that immigration, industrialization, and urbanization carried with them.

Douglas Kennedy's Freedom from Fear does a great job of demonstrating the complexities of The Great Depression and how it affected the political balance in America.

Finally, The American Age by Walter LaFeber does a masterful job of describing the Cold War.

4) Do you think it more important for students in high school history classes and college American history classes to read biographies or autobiographies and why?

I like certain autobiographies (Douglass and Franklin come immediately to mind), because you hear from the protagonists in their own words. But autobiographies are usually to a certain extent self serving, and thus have to be taken with a grain of salt.

Biographies (like those written by David McCullough or Doris Kearns Goodwin) are good because they can put the lives of their subjects into context. But the authors of biographies may interpret their subjects through their own belief system, so they too must be approached with caution.

5) Do you think it more important for high school students to read fiction as opposed to non fiction?
I have always felt that fiction is quite valid in high school. Indeed, two of the three books that I recommended for high school students were fiction. I think because of all the TV and movies they watch it is easier to approach them through fiction, as long as teachers place the books into the proper context.

6) I believe it was Descartes who said "The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest men of past centuries". If this is true, who would you recommend for high school students and then college students to read?

I totally agree with the quote. Reading The Gettysburg Address by Lincoln, a speech of Malcolm X, or the Declaration of Rights that came out of the women's convention at Seneca Falls in 1848 definitely allows me to connect with the people whose ideas and actions helped shape our nation.

7) Given the upcoming election, are there books that you think the average citizen should read?

I'm afraid I would reflect my political bias if I did! Seriously, I would recommend The Making of the President, 1968 by Theodore White. As divided as we may think we are today, it pales in comparison to the horrendous situations that divided us that year.

8) If the "unexamined life is not worth living", surely, a school's reading list of history should be examined by parents and taxpayers. If you were on a school board, reviewing the required reading list for high school history students, what criteria would you use for the required reading over the course of four years?

I would want them to have a good balance of male and female writers from various ethnic groups spanning chronology both in terms of when the books are set and when they were actually written.

9) If there were one book you would recommend for the understanding of America, what would it be and why?

I would recommend 1968: The Year That Rocked the World, by Mark Kurlansky. It offers the best look at how events all over the globe in that one year had the most profound effect on the way that the last forty years would play themselves out.