History Books
recommended by historians
Last updated: January 14, 2026
History is the study of the past and so is very broad in scope. For a great introductory book to the subject, we recommend History: A Very Short Introduction by John Arnold. It opens with a murder and bills itself as a "work of enthusiasm" about history, laying out how history has been studied down the millennia and why it matters. If you're less interested in history as a discipline and just want to know what happened when, you could start out with A Little History of the World by E.H. Gombrich, aimed at teenagers.
For a more detailed look at specific topics or events, we’ve spoken to hundreds of historians over the past 15 years, asking them to recommend the best books in their field of study. You can find their recommendations by browsing below:
World history | Military History | American History | World War 2 | Popular History | Chinese history | British history | Ancient history | Medieval history | New History Books | History Books for Kids | Nonfiction Books | Pulitzer Prize |
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1
Frederick the Great: King of Prussia
by Tim Blanning -
2
The Culture of Power and the Power of Culture: Old Regime Europe 1660-1789
by Tim Blanning -
3
Frederick the Great: A Military Life
by Christopher Duffy -
4
The World in Flames: A Global History of the Seven Years' War
by Marian Fussel -
5
Friederisiko: Friedrich der Grosse Die Essays
The best books on Frederick the Great, recommended by Adam Storring
The best books on Frederick the Great, recommended by Adam Storring
Frederick the Great (1712-1786) embodied two ideas of kingship: on the one hand, the traditional one of the warrior monarch, and on the other, an enlightened monarch, patron of the arts, a social reformer, and the friend of philosophes like Voltaire. It is on this dual character of his rule that his perennially high reputation rests, says historian Adam Storring. He introduces us to both sides of Frederick’s kingly character and recommends books to learn more about the brilliant military campaigner who led Prussia from 1740 until his death nearly half a century later.
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1
Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age
by Eleanor Barraclough -
2
The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV
by Helen Castor -
3
The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective
by Sara Lodge -
4
Survivors: the Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the Atlantic Slave Trade
by Hannah Durkin -
5
The Gravity of Feathers: Fame, Fortune and the Story of St Kilda
by Andrew Fleming -
6
Multicultural Britain: A People's History
by Kieran Connell
The Best History Books of 2025: the Wolfson History Prize Shortlist, recommended by Helen King
The Best History Books of 2025: the Wolfson History Prize Shortlist, recommended by Helen King
The Wolfson History Prize is awarded annually for historical writing that is both brilliantly researched and a great read. Professor Helen King, one of this year’s judges, talks us through the 2025 shortlist and explains why each book stood out.
The best books on World War II, recommended by Antony Beevor
The popular military historian Antony Beevor recommends some of his own favourite books about the Second World War.
The best books on World War I, recommended by Jonathan Boff
It’s been more than 100 years since World War I ended, but there is still very little consensus about what caused it, or what its consequences were. Historian Jonathan Boff talks us through the latest books and best modern interpretations of World War I.
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Native Nations: A Millennium in North America
by Kathleen DuVal -
Combee: Harriet Tubman, the Combahee River Raid, and Black Freedom During the Civil War
by Edda L. Fields-Black -
No Right to An Honest Living: The Struggles of Boston's Black Workers in the Civil War Era
by Jacqueline Jones -
Freedom’s Dominion: A Saga of White Resistance to Federal Power
by Jefferson Cowie -
Cuba: An American History
by Ada Ferrer
Pulitzer Prize-Winning History Books
Pulitzer Prize-Winning History Books
Every year, the Pulitzer Prize jury awards $15,000 to a “distinguished and appropriately documented book on the history of the United States.” We’ve compiled a guide to the winning books since the turn of the millennium.
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1
All His Spies: The Secret World of Robert Cecil
by Stephen Alford -
2
Augustus The Strong: A Study in Artistic Greatness and Political Fiasco
by Tim Blanning -
3
The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV
by Helen Castor -
4
Henry V: The Astonishing Triumph of England's Greatest Warrior King
by Dan Jones -
5
The Rebel's Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon
by Adam Shatz
The Best Historical Biography: The 2025 Elizabeth Longford Prize, recommended by Roy Foster
The Best Historical Biography: The 2025 Elizabeth Longford Prize, recommended by Roy Foster
A good historical biography should help us redefine and rethink what makes a person historically significant, says Roy Foster, chair of the judging panel of the Elizabeth Longford Prize. He talks us through the brilliant books that made the 2025 shortlist, including the lives of various monarchs who left their mark on European history, a portrait of an early modern spymaster, and a biography of Frantz Fanon, the anti-colonial writer.
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A Cool Head in Hell: The Wartime Diaries of a British Doctor from Dunkirk to the Burma Railway
by Harry Silman & Jacqueline Passman (editor) -
King of Kings: The Fall of the Shah, the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the Unmaking of the Modern Middle East
by Scott Anderson -
The First King of England: Æthelstan and the Birth of a Kingdom
by David Woodman -
The Mission: The CIA in the 21st Century
by Tim Weiner -
The Library of Ancient Wisdom: Mesopotamia and the Making of the Modern World
by Selena Wisnom
New History Books
New History Books
It’s a golden age for historical writing, as well-researched and sometimes quite specialist books by historians are written in an engaging style for a broad audience. History books out in recent months range from ancient Assyria to the CIA in the 21st century.
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1
The Essential Codex Mendoza
by Frances Berdan & Patricia Anawalt -
2
Book of the Gods and Rites and the Ancient Calendar
by Diego Duran -
3
Aztec Imperial Strategies
by Elizabeth Hill Boone, Frances Berdan, Mary G. Hodge, Michael E. Smith & Richard E. Blanton -
4
The Nahuas After the Conquest: A Social and Cultural History of the Indians of Central Mexico, Sixteenth Through Eighteenth Centuries
by James Lockhart -
5
The Offerings of the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan
by Leonardo Lopez Lujan
The best books on The Aztecs, recommended by Michael E. Smith
The best books on The Aztecs, recommended by Michael E. Smith
The history of the Aztecs is the best documented of all the Native American peoples, shedding light on life in the Americas before the arrival of the conquistadors. Professor Michael E. Smith, an archaeologist at Arizona State University, introduces books about the Aztec Empire — with a focus on documentary sources and artefacts that reveal not only how the elites lived, but also ordinary people.
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1
The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge
by David McCullough -
2
Wilderness At Dawn: The Settling of the North American Continent
by Ted Morgan -
3
The Story of American Freedom
by Eric Foner -
4
This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War
by Drew Gilpin Faust -
5
In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette
by Hampton Sides
The best books on American History, recommended by Brent Glass
The best books on American History, recommended by Brent Glass
Which are the best books on American history? Brent Glass, Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, the world’s largest museum devoted to telling the story of America, chooses five standout books in a crowded field.
The Best Roman History Books, recommended by Ross King
To write The Shortest History of Ancient Rome, bestselling author Ross King went back to the insightful and often entertaining accounts Roman and Greek historians gave of the city’s past. He talks us through some of his favourites, from Polybius—who wrote during the Roman Republic’s heyday—to Cassius Dio, who penned his magnum opus as the Roman Empire was in its decline.
