Reading The Landscape of History: Or, Why I Really Like Prose that Flows Well

I'm reading The Landscape of History by John Lewis Gaddis for my history class (future blog posts on this to follow), and I can't help but notice how well Gaddis transitions between huge important historical topics and clever anecdotes and witticisms, which is a trait that I really appreciate in authors (a good example from Gaddis' book is when he opens Chapter Four by talking about how he kept associating the term "teasing out" with hairdressing - which is an amazing analogy, and absolutely hilarious in context).

Which set me to thinking - what is it that I really like about this book? What does it have in common with other non-fiction works that I have enjoyed in the past?

And the answer that I came up with, in my musings, was this: I like prose that flows well.

This may be a trait of being an English major as well, but I enjoy books where the author writes his/her prose as if it is a novel. Some of these works are more successful than others. All of them, however, allow the reader to get into the mind of the people of the time, whether it be through a third person omniscient narrator, or through a semi-narrative, semi-informative method of storytelling. This is a (very limited) list of the ones that I really liked:

Under the Black Flag: The Romance and Reality of Life Among the Pirates - David Cordingly
I'm pretty sure that this book reads so well because of the fantastic nature of piracy in general, and the fact that this book focuses mainly on the Golden Age of Piracy (think Blackbeard, Morgan, and Calico Jack) makes it even more fascinating.

Manhunt: The 12 Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer - James L. Swanson
This thing reads like a murder mystery and adventure novel. Swanson's narrative never really lags, and the tension constantly builds. I also learned so much about Lincoln, Booth, and the assassination that I didn't read anything that wasn't associated with the main figures for months.

The Billionaire's Vinegar: The Mystery of the World's Most Expensive Bottle of Wine - Benjamin Wallace
I am unashamedly fond of our third president, and this book deals with him, albeit in a round-about manner: it focuses on one of the greatest scandals in the wine world, that of the Jefferson Wine Bottles. Rumored to be the oldest bottles of wine in existence, their existence was questioned by everyone from the highest of wine critics to the staff of Monticello. But they also fooled the greatest of minds. It's a really entertaining read, going into the story of wine and white-collar crime - and, of course, Thomas Jefferson's sojourn in Paris.

Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34 - Bryan Burroughs
This book is amazing - fast-paced, well-researched, and insanely fascinating. It covers all of the major criminals of the day - Bonnie and Clyde, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, and John Dillinger - in intricate detail, all while contrasting them with the FBI agents who chased them and, in many situations, gunned them down.

One Summer: America, 1927 - Bill Bryson
Honestly, just any of Bill Bryson's books. Because all of them are hilarious. And the ones that I've read - this one, At Home, Shakespeare, and Notes from a Small Island (not technically about history, but with lots of very interesting historical content thrown in at random intervals) are very witty looks at the world.

I'm looking forward to seeing where Gaddis goes with Landscape of History!