History

History (from Greek ἱστορία - historia, meaning "inquiry, knowledge acquired by investigation") is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians. It is a field of research which uses a narrative to examine and analyse the sequence of events, and it sometimes attempts to investigate objectively the patterns of cause and effect that determine events. Historians debate the nature of history and its usefulness. This includes discu ...more

The Vampire's Cult: The Untold Story of Obsession, Control, and a Shocking Small-Town Murder
The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State
Hiroshima, 8:15: The Lost Memoir
The Story of Your Life: How Social Media Shapes the Way We Experience Everything
The Everest Mystery: Sandy Irvine, George Mallory, and the Truth Still Buried on Everest
Exhumed: Unearthing the History of the American Vampire
Are They Dead Yet?: The Art of the Obit
Empire of Ashes: Truman, Hirohito, and the Descent into Total War
What Happened to Liberal Democracy?: Remaking a Politics of Shared Prosperity
A Moment in the Sun: Black Manhattan Before the Civil War
The Last Emperor of China: Twilight of the Forbidden City
He Has the People: Abraham Lincoln and the Election of 1860
Ortiz’s War: The Allies' Secret Weapon Against the Nazis in France
Nineteen Days in Autumn: A New History of 1066
The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World's First Super-Terrorist
  • The Piano Teacher of Montparnasse by Heather   Morris
    The Piano Teacher of Montparnasse
    by

    Release date: Oct 20, 2026
    We're giving away 25 advance copies of the latest from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Heather Morris. ...more
    View Details »

    Format: Print book

    Giveaway ends in: a

    Availability: 25 copies available, 10930 people requesting

    Giveaway dates: Aug 21 - Sep 20, 2026

    Countries available: U.S.

  • Young Men In Harm's Way by Arnold W. Krause
    Young Men In Harm's Way: A Chronicle of Service and Survival
    by

    Release date: Aug 25, 2026
    Didn't win the "Giveaway?" Still want a eBook copy?There will be a discounted promotion 30 days after launch available. Thank you for you interest. ...more
    View Details »

    Format: Kindle book

    Giveaway ends in: a

    Availability: 100 copies available, 557 people requesting

    Giveaway dates: Aug 25 - Sep 20, 2026

    Countries available: U.S.

  • From Protest to Politics by Brett Gadsden
    From Protest to Politics: How Black Americans Transformed the Presidency in the 1960s

    Release date: Feb 02, 2027
    The inspiring true story of the generation of Black officials who took their activism into the halls of power, working in historic leadership roles wi ...more
    View Details »

    Format: Print book

    Giveaway ends in: a

    Availability: 20 copies available, 1725 people requesting

    Giveaway dates: Sep 05 - Sep 20, 2026

    Countries available: U.S.

  • London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth
    Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection
    The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession
    A Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession, and Shipwreck
    The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder
    Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump
    The Diamond Eye
    Agrippa: A Novel of Ancient Rome's Descent into Dictatorship
    Lázár
    The Marriage Portrait
    Biological War: A Scenario
    May We Feed the King
    The Personal Librarian
    Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty
    Odyssey (Stephen Fry's Great Mythology, #4)
    Sapiens by Yuval Noah HarariHomo Deus by Yuval Noah HarariA Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill  BrysonThinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel KahnemanSingle at Heart by Bella DePaulo
    Best of 21st Century Non-fiction
    1,337 books — 1,394 voters
    Band of Brothers by Stephen E. AmbroseBlack Hawk Down by Mark BowdenUnbroken by Laura HillenbrandWe Were Soldiers Once... and Young by Harold G. MooreLone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell
    Best Non-fiction War Books
    2,263 books — 2,623 voters

    1984 by George OrwellAnimal Farm by George OrwellGuns, Germs, and Steel by Jared DiamondBrave New World by Aldous HuxleyMan's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
    Best Books To Frame Thinking
    1,426 books — 1,672 voters
    Steve Jobs by Walter IsaacsonUnbroken by Laura HillenbrandEinstein by Walter IsaacsonInto the Wild by Jon KrakauerJohn Adams by David McCullough
    Best Biographies
    1,816 books — 3,307 voters

    Animal Farm by George OrwellThe Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-ExupéryThe Prince by Niccolò MachiavelliThe Communist Manifesto by Karl MarxThe Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
    Most influential books under 100 pages
    294 books — 991 voters
    Things Fall Apart by Chinua AchebeThe Poisonwood Bible by Barbara KingsolverHalf of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieHeart of Darkness by Joseph ConradCry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
    Africa (fiction and nonfiction)
    1,898 books — 1,799 voters

    Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
    Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
    A People’s History of the United States: 1492 - Present
    The Diary of a Young Girl
    The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
    1776
    SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome
    A Short History of Nearly Everything
    The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany
    1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus
    Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI
    Night
    Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West
    Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
    The Guns of August

    Related News

    Have you ever wondered what books have been the most popular among Goodreads members over the past decade? You know, the ones that have...
    Cassandra Clare
    “ I was alive when the Dead Sea was just a lake that was feeling a little poorly. ”
    ― Cassandra Clare, City of Ashes

    Cormac McCarthy
    “ Scars have the strange power to remind us that our past is real. ”
    ― Cormac McCarthy, All the Pretty Horses

    More quotes...
    1×1+ RPs (This group was formerly 1x1 Romance) Welcome to 1x1 RPs! This the perfect group for all types …more
    1,272 members, last active 5 days ago
    Burstock Book Club This is the Burstock Book Club
    2 members, last active 17 days ago
    Underground Knowledge — A discussion group This global discussion group has been designed to encourage debates about important and underrep…more
    26,229 members, last active 5 hours ago
    EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club Click HERE for the latest group announcements. "It reminded me of ____ but in space." "I re…more
    29,171 members, last active 3 hours ago

    Tags

    Tags contributing to this page include: history, past, and storia