(12-25-2017 10:53 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I just finished reading a really good one by David Grann called 'Killers of the Flower Moon' which details the reign of terror of the killings of the Osage Indians in the 1920's to get their oil wealth (it also talks about the birth of the FBI). Very good book, especially if you weren't as familiar with the story as some may be (I realize other sources have talked about the Osage murders but I guess they've escaped my reading and viewing lists). I may try one of his other books (Lost City of Z seems interesting).

I love the Erik Larson genre of historical non-fiction books about interesting murders. My favorites from Larson are Isaac's Storm (well that's more about the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 so no true killing spree by a serial killer but it's a fascinating and quick read nonetheless). But my favorite by him is Devil and the White City which talks about the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and Dr. H.H. Holmes, who many have called America's first serial killer. That one is a great read and I can't believe it hasn't been turned into a film yet.

Any other suggestions in that genre?

(12-25-2017 10:53 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I just finished reading a really good one by David Grann called 'Killers of the Flower Moon' which details the reign of terror of the killings of the Osage Indians in the 1920's to get their oil wealth (it also talks about the birth of the FBI). Very good book, especially if you weren't as familiar with the story as some may be (I realize other sources have talked about the Osage murders but I guess they've escaped my reading and viewing lists). I may try one of his other books (Lost City of Z seems interesting).

I love the Erik Larson genre of historical non-fiction books about interesting murders. My favorites from Larson are Isaac's Storm (well that's more about the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 so no true killing spree by a serial killer but it's a fascinating and quick read nonetheless). But my favorite by him is Devil and the White City which talks about the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and Dr. H.H. Holmes, who many have called America's first serial killer. That one is a great read and I can't believe it hasn't been turned into a film yet.

Any other suggestions in that genre?

(12-25-2017 10:53 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I just finished reading a really good one by David Grann called 'Killers of the Flower Moon' which details the reign of terror of the killings of the Osage Indians in the 1920's to get their oil wealth (it also talks about the birth of the FBI). Very good book, especially if you weren't as familiar with the story as some may be (I realize other sources have talked about the Osage murders but I guess they've escaped my reading and viewing lists). I may try one of his other books (Lost City of Z seems interesting).

(12-26-2017 06:41 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  

(12-25-2017 10:53 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I just finished reading a really good one by David Grann called 'Killers of the Flower Moon' which details the reign of terror of the killings of the Osage Indians in the 1920's to get their oil wealth (it also talks about the birth of the FBI). Very good book, especially if you weren't as familiar with the story as some may be (I realize other sources have talked about the Osage murders but I guess they've escaped my reading and viewing lists). I may try one of his other books (Lost City of Z seems interesting).

I love the Erik Larson genre of historical non-fiction books about interesting murders. My favorites from Larson are Isaac's Storm (well that's more about the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 so no true killing spree by a serial killer but it's a fascinating and quick read nonetheless). But my favorite by him is Devil and the White City which talks about the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and Dr. H.H. Holmes, who many have called America's first serial killer. That one is a great read and I can't believe it hasn't been turned into a film yet.

Any other suggestions in that genre?

"Killers of the Flower Moon" was one of my Christmas gifts. I am looking forward to it.

I've enjoyed all of the Larsen books you mention. Another of that quality and similar subject matter is "The Devil in the Grove" by Gilbert King. It follows the efforts of the NCAA to prosecute lynchings in Florida.

• Homo Sapiens is by far the most damaging invasive species in history, and the disruption to the environment tens of thousands of years ago is equal/greater to that of global warming to date
• A System of Dualistic gods explains the presence of good and evil, but not morality, A Monotheistic System of a benevolent god explains morality, but not good and evil (intellectual gymnastics aside), but only a Monotheistic System of an evil god explains both
  

Quote:Homo sapiens rules the world because it is the only animal that can believe in things that exist purely in its own imagination, such as gods, states, money and human rights.

Starting from this provocative idea, Sapiens goes on to retell the history of our species from a completely fresh perspective. It explains that money is the most pluralistic system of mutual trust ever devised; that capitalism is the most successful religion ever invented; that the treatment of animals in modern agriculture is probably the worst crime in history; and that even though we are far more powerful than our ancient ancestors, we aren’t much happier.

By combining profound insights with a remarkably vivid language, Sapiens has already acquired almost cultic status among diverse audiences, captivating teenagers as well as university professors, animal rights activists alongside government ministers. It is currently being translated into close to thirty languages.

(12-25-2017 10:53 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I just finished reading a really good one by David Grann called 'Killers of the Flower Moon' which details the reign of terror of the killings of the Osage Indians in the 1920's to get their oil wealth (it also talks about the birth of the FBI). Very good book, especially if you weren't as familiar with the story as some may be (I realize other sources have talked about the Osage murders but I guess they've escaped my reading and viewing lists). I may try one of his other books (Lost City of Z seems interesting).

I love the Erik Larson genre of historical non-fiction books about interesting murders. My favorites from Larson are Isaac's Storm (well that's more about the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 so no true killing spree by a serial killer but it's a fascinating and quick read nonetheless). But my favorite by him is Devil and the White City which talks about the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and Dr. H.H. Holmes, who many have called America's first serial killer. That one is a great read and I can't believe it hasn't been turned into a film yet.

Any other suggestions in that genre?

Quote:Months before the outbreak of World War II, Heinrich Himmler—prime architect of the Holocaust—designed a special concentration camp for women, located fifty miles north of Berlin. Only a small number of the prisoners were Jewish. Ravensbrück was primarily a place for the Nazis to hold other inferior beings: Jehovah’s Witnesses, Resistance fighters, lesbians, prostitutes, and aristocrats—even the sister of New York’s Mayor LaGuardia. Over six years the prisoners endured forced labor, torture, starvation, and random execution. In the final months of the war, Ravensbrück became an extermination camp. Estimates of the final death toll have ranged from 30,000 to 90,000.

Quote:In 1961, during the United Nations intervention in the Katangan conflict in the Congo, central Africa, a company of Irish peacekeeping troops was forced to surrender to soldiers loyal to Katanga’s prime minister, Moise Tshombe. Originally dispatched to protect Belgian colonists in Jadotville, they were isolated, without water, supplies or support when they were attacked and forced to defend themselves in a brutal and bloody five day battle. Shamefully neglected by their superiors, they were portrayed as cowards upon their return home.

(02-13-2018 11:43 AM)Lush Wrote:  what about anything on the industrial revolution?

Quote:Named by The Guardian as One of the Top 10 Science and Technology Books for June 2014

Victorian London was filthy. The city was growing at an exponential rate, and the existing systems of waste disposal could not cope, resulting in a sanitary crisis. The solution was a new drainage system for the entire city, which was constructed mainly in the 1860s. Paul Dobraszczyk charts the development and construction of this immense project, using both contemporary and modern imagery to illustrate the complex engineering and magnificent architecture built deep underground to service the modern city of London.