J.D.

A good short historical fiction piece showing the role women played during the Revolution

Revisado: 07-19-20

Agent 355 is another quick little Audible Original. Overall it’s a good listen, and the narrator does a good job. As a free member benefit audio program, this is a good historical fiction story that is worth the 2 hours that it takes to listen to it.

Despite being based on historical events, the audiobook itself is definitely a work of fiction. Agent 355 was a real person, and was a member of the Culper Ring that worked with Robert Townsend. Agent 355 did play a role in the capture or Major John André, and in revealing the betrayal of Benedict Arnold. And it was rumored that Robert Townsend May have been in love with Agent 355. Yet, that is where there truth of the story ends.

The real identity of Agent 355 is still unknown. There is a theory that she may have been Robert Townsend’s common law wife. It’s also said that Agent 355 was help on the prison ship Jersey. Yet there is no record of a woman ever being kept aboard the Jersey. The most likely candidate for Agent 355 is actually Anna Strong, whose husband was imprisoned on the Jersey, where she was allowed to visit him. It’s also very unlikely that anyone in New York, especially one with Revolutionary sympathies, didn’t know who Benedict Arnold was at the time. He was the second most famous general in the Continental Army, and was a hero of battles occurring in the colony of New York including Ticonderoga.

Aside from those historical inaccuracies this is a well written and performed audiobook. It’s a good story, and is able to be enjoyed by adults and young listeners. The story does a good job presenting the roll women played during the American Revolution. Overall it’s a simple but entertaining audiobook.

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More about the author’s hurt and hate than President Trump

Revisado: 07-16-20

I’m going to do my best to review this book in as much of an unbiased from the center way as possible. This is perhaps one of the hardest books I’ve ever tried to review.

First, the book is well-written with an easy flowing writing style. Compared to the recent book by John Bolton, the writing style is much less dry. The story itself is a interesting tale of family disfunction. However, this book is not exactly what it or the press claimed it to be. It’s less a story of Donald J. Trump and what made him who he is today, but instead is the story of Mary L. Trump and what made her her who she is today.

Early on, Ms. Trump mentions looking at a picture of Hillary Clinton she “had to wonder how this happened.” Her politics are on display whenever she talks about her uncle today. As a lesbian clinical psychologist college professor, she probably doesn’t fall into the demographics of most Donald Trump supporters. I went into this book keeping this in mind, but trying to give the author the benefit of the doubt since it her family she’s writing about. Unfortunately, it the very fact that it is her family she is writing about her family makes it hard to take what she says at face value.

Mary L. Trump admits early on that she has spent little overall time with her uncle, and has rarely seen him in recent years. She states that she relied on the reporting of NYT, Washing Post, Vanity Fair, Politico, etc. “for general background”. At first it appears that she might be reluctantly telling her family story saying, “I’m the only Trump willing to tell it.” Though dispels any semblance of this when near the end of book when she states, “I had to take Donald down.”

The majority of the book is a chronological history (from her point of view). She pulls no punches throughout the book on anyone in her family, except for herself, her father, mother and brother.

There’s some great tidbits about members of her family. Among the most interesting is her drawing on her clinical psychology to diagnose her uncle Donald as having Narcissistic Personality Disorder, Anti-Social Personality Disorder, Dependent Personality Disorder, a learning disorder and a sleep disorder. She also claims her grandfather Fred Trump Sr. was a high functioning sociopath. The idea of “Donny” (Donald Trump Jr.) follow Jared Kushner out of a room is a humorous one that call to mind episodes of Our Cartoon President. The statement that her Aunt Maryanne, who was a liberal federal judge appointed by Bill Clinton, voted for her brother “out of family loyalty” is also a little surprising.

Unfortunately, as the book gets going, the author makes it very difficult to says at face value. The book’s family history quickly dissolves the story of how her father, mother, brother and herself are the only decent members of the Trump family whose faults are nonexistent and who were all treated horribly by the rest of the family. Unlike the author, I’m not a clinical psychologist, but it’s doesn’t take a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Adelphi University to tell that there’s more going on here than what is on the surface. The book is filled with hurt and hatred that is hard to overlook.

Mary Trump describes her father as a great man who was driven to alcoholism by his family, especially his father and brother. “Freddy should’ve been the star of the family,” she claims her Aunt Maryanne said. She seems to be angry that her father never had the acclaim or money that his younger brother had. When talking about her uncle starting to work for her grandfather she says, “From his first day on the job my 22 year old uncle was given more respect and perks, and paid more money than my father ever had been.”

Her mother is portrayed as a wonderful and caring woman who was very independent. She is obviously upset that her mother was thought to be a “gold digger” by the rest of the family. The author also seems to lay the blame for her parent’s divorce on the rest of the family instead of their own problems or her father’s alcoholism.

Her father and mother are described as having nothing, yet talks of her father buying a boat and a plane, as well as having a second home. When her father dies she bitterly states, “I got nothing.” Yet, she ended up with a trust fund that provided a living that most people. She attended a private boarding school, had her college paid for and went to sailing camp. At one point she is hired by her uncle to ghost write The Art of the Comeback before being let go by the publisher. She dismisses all this by saying, “Everyone in my family experienced a strange combination of privilege and neglect. “

As the book continued on, her own issues with her family come even more to light. When her grandfather’s dementia worsened she describes him forgetting who his kids and grandkids were in various episodes. It actually humanizes Fred Trump. Though “he never forgot Donald,” which seems to only irk her more. When her grandfather died she found that he had only left her and her brother the same amount of money that all the grandkids received, and did not leave them to split what she believed should be her father’s share of the estate. Her and her brother eventually sued her aunts and uncles. There was a bitter legal fight before being settled out of court, in a way she thought was unfair. (The NDA from this case is what almost kept this book from being published.) She slams all of her aunts and uncles for their part in this. She then later found that when her grandmother died she was removed from her will completely.

Really what this book seems to be about is her own issues with her family. If everything in the book is true, then she certainly seems to have good reasons to be upset. Yet, there little self examination in the book, which seems odd considering her clinical psychology background. Everyone knows someone who blames everyone but themselves for their troubles and jealousies, and Mary L. Trump appears to one of those people. Her father, mother, brother and herself are the only people that escape her critical eye. The whole book is summed up in the line, “Donald, following the lead of my grandfather, and with the complicity, silence and inaction of his siblings destroyed my father. I can’t let him destroy my country.”

If you listen to this book with the intention of gaining any real insight into Donald Trump as President then you are likely to be dissatisfied. There are better books like Fire and Fury by Michael Wolf or The Room Where It Happened by John Bolton. No matter how hard I tried it was difficult to take this book seriously at face value, because the author’s hatred and hurt are on full display throughout. Despite being well written and interesting, this book comes off as a personal family squabble brought into the public eye out of vindictiveness and personal gain. Maybe Mary Trump has more in common with her uncle than she’d like to admit in that respect.

As an audiobook, read by the author herself, it becomes even more apparent how she feels about her family. Often her disgust, hurt, hatred and annoyance with her family comes through more than just if the words were being read on the page. Yet, as a narrator Ms. Trump does a great job for someone who has not previously been an audiobook narrator.

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Better as Book 6 than Book 1

Revisado: 07-13-20

The Magician’s Nephew is the first (narratively) or sixth (publication) book in The Chronicles of Narnia. It’s a simplistic book that manages to answer more complicated questions that arise from reading the other books in the series.

How was Narnia formed? How is the wardrobe able to act as a gateway to Narnia? Why is there a random lamppost in Narnia? How did the White Witch end up in Narnia? How does the witch seem to know of our world? These are all questions that are answered in this book. Because of this it’s definitely a book that fulfills it’s purpose.

Personally, I find Lewis’s world view to be very simplistic. Everything is black and white in his world. These books are written for children in the 1950s, so that is to be somewhat expected. Though these books lack the sophistication of J.R.R. Tolkien or even Lloyd Alexander. The Magician’s Nephew is no different in this respect.

As a book for children, which is obviously the book’s primary audience, The Magician’s Nephew is a good easy read. The book accomplishes what it sets out to do. Although, it’s billed at the first book chronologically, I personally think it’s better to read this one last. The action of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is better at drawing the reader into the story. Some of the mystery and excitement of both books is diminished by reading The Magician’s Nephew first.

The narrator does a great job, and his voices make the book an enjoyable listen.

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As much humorous Travel Log as History Book

Revisado: 07-10-20

This is a different kind of history book, and that is what makes it worth the time. An interesting, funny, irreverent and unique look at German history. This book is a wonderful overview of Germany pre-WWII. It is surprisingly unlike any other history book I’ve read, but it was very enjoyable.

Unlike other history books, this is not a dry detailed history of the subject. Instead, this is a very personal book, where the author injects personal anecdotes about how his love of German history developed. The author often makes humorous comparisons to Great Britain or the United States. At times this book is a history, at others a travel diary and others a memoir. It’s very well written and often flows like the author is carrying on a personal conversation with the reader.

Those looking for a detailed history will be disappointed with this book. It is a book written by a British author who admits he doesn’t speak German. Yet, the book does not display the loathing of the German people and all things German that is typical of many Brits (and to a lesser extent Americans) seem to display. While the book is not perfect it does what it sets out to do. As long as you go into this book realizing that it’s as much travel log as history text, I think that it is an enjoyable book.

The author avoids WWII history, because he believes it is already well known and not representative of the history of Germany on a whole. Instead the book starts at Germany’s tribal beginnings and works up to just just touch the beginning of WWII. It is not a detailed history, and at times that is unfortunate because it leaves the reader wanting more.

This is the first of three books that the author wrote on the Germanic people. This book deals mainly Germany proper, with a little bit on the Germanic areas to the West and East of what is now modern Germany. The second book, Danubia deals with the Germanic lands to the East (Austria, Czech, Poland, Latvia, etc.) using the Hapsburgs as the backbone. The final book, Lotharingia focuses to the Germanic areas to the West (Switzerland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, France). The other two books are similar to this one, but it is necessary to have the background that this book provides before delving into those other books.

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Not what it claims to be

Revisado: 07-10-20

This book was one I was very excited to read, but ended up being very disappointed with. I apologize in advance for the length of this review, but these are the kind of books that really bother me. It’s billed as a book “based on a thirty-eight year study of its [Houston’s] economic, demographic and cultural landscapes.” Instead this book is instead a political diatribe couched in the idea that it’s an impartial study or work of science. As someone from the center, who is more of a numbers and statistics person, I find this slight of hand a bit offensive.

This book very much leans to the left. Once again I find myself trying to dissect a political book from the center, for those who are more interested in facts than rhetoric. It’s pretty hard with this one, but I will try my best...

It begins with a brief history of the City of Houston, and its founding. The history of the city itself is very spot on, though even here little credit is given to the mentality of the people and instead is given to government help. The city is portrayed as immoral one minute, but then the morality of those moving to Houston from other parts of the country (ie. Ken Lay) is questioned. It’s as if the actual history of the city is fighting with the author’s narrative.

Though, it’s after the city’s history that the book becomes more and more an opinion piece. Often the author says things like the facts or statistics are “real and indisputable,” however those facts or statistics are never presented. They are obviously “indisputable” when the statistics or sources are not presented! It’s impossible to verify the statistics. The moments that statistics are present are when they back up the author’s premise. Breakdowns of the stats are not given when they could contradict the author’s point of view.

The author’s biases are on full display throughout the book. At one point the author laments to an interviewee “lack of progress on Social Justice issues.” While this may be a logical complaint, it seems like it would be better made by the interviewee rather than the interviewer. At another point the author gloats that the “closed minded church based socially conservative religiosity” is diminishing. At another point describing a volunteer who helped Hurricane Katrina refugees the author calls her, “as right wing crazy as they come.” These seem like unnecessary commentary.

Very few center or right leaning politicians or businesspersons are interviewed. Often when they are, such as former Republican Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, the author asks why they didn’t do more to solve the problems they may talk about. The same is never asked of the former Democratic politicians. While Democrat Bob Lanier is portrayed negatively, none of the other mayors are really questioned. The corruption under current mayor Sylvester Turner is never mentioned, despite it being a big enough issue that he faced a general election challenge from Dwight Boykins in his own party. When he does quote someone from the right side of the political spectrum the come from the very very far right.

When talking about Houston floods, the other makes some good points. Though here again it would seem that facts and numbers are not included.

The author’s distain for the oil industry is readily apparent. Again the author ignores facts and figures in place of personal opinion. The Industry that built the city of Houston is treated more as a detriment than an advantage.

The statement is made that the oil companies do not do enough to benefit the city’s many charities and activities. This is an odd statement considering they sponsor the Houston Zoo (ConocoPhillips, P66, Marathon, Lyondell, Centpoint Energy, TXU Energy), the Houston Museum of Natural Science (Chevron, Exxon, ConocoPhillips, Shell, Oxy, Transocean, Marathon, and more), the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (Enbridge, CenterPoint, Schlumberger, etc) and Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo (BP, NRG, Hess, Shell, P66 and more) among others. Even the author’s own surveys are sponsored by Richard Kinder’s foundation, who was an Enron executive and founder of Kinder-Morgan. This makes the author’s statements on this subject a bit disingenuous.

Honestly, this review would need to be a book of its own to point out all the skewed information presented in this book. For those looking for someone to be an echo chamber for their political beliefs will find this book to be a good read. However, anyone who is looking for an honest fact filled book on a metro area that is the size of Massachusetts will find this book doesn’t fit the bill. While it’s still worth reading, this book is not what it purports to be. Overall, giving it 2 stars seems generous, but 1 star would be too harsh.

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A Good Book (That Should Not Have Been Published)

Revisado: 06-28-20

I thought it was important to write a real review of this book. The majority of the “reviews” of this book are political statements (either left or right) and not actual reviews of the book or the contents of the books. Some even say they haven’t read the book. Maybe not being able to read or review a book without vitriol directed at those with ideas we disagree with is why political discourse has gotten so out of hand in this country. Agree with Bolton or not this is still an important book. So, I’m going on attempt to actually review this book while keeping politics out of it as much as possible. For those looking for a brief review, or one that bashes a particular political party may want to skip reading on.

Overall, The Room Where it Happened is a quick and easy read. It’s not exactly the most well written book, but it’s also doesn’t bog down too much. John Bolton is never going to win awards for his prose, but the book is definitely readable. Sometimes the book is too reliant on exact times, which is great for congressional testimony, but know the exact time his plane touch down and the exact length of the car ride to the hotel ruins the flow of the overall narrative. Oddly, for someone who is so into dates and times, the book is organized roughly by subject instead of date.

This may actually be the most interesting book on what occurred inside a foreign policy decision making group since The Best and the Brightest by David Halberstam, though this one is obviously not as well written. The book is a must read for those interested in politics or the Trump Presidency. It’s obvious that the author has an agenda, but it’s not as straight forward as some (especially those on the right) think.

Some people (including the President) will say that Bolton is lying, because he doesn’t like Trump or is trying to sell books. It is fair to say that John Bolton definitely does not like Donald Trump. Though he never comes out and says so, it’s readily apparent from the way he talks about Trump in his book. For the purposes of this review I am taking Bolton at his word that contents are true, even when contradictory accounts exist in other books or statements.

Most of this book is filled with with foreign policy decisions and how they are made. Though immigration issues are briefly covered, most of this book is devoted to the Trump administration’s policy towards and conventions with other world leaders. These interactions are very detailed, and only refrains from using direct quotes (which Bolton explains were removed dude to the pre-publication review process).

Now for the contents and takeaways from this book. Whether or not you actually agree with him I think it’s important to lay out the gist of what Bolton lays out in his book.

***Spoilers beyond this point***

Bolton describes many members of the administration including their personalities, motivations and opinions. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson comes of as in over his head, and separated from the rest of the administration. General Mattis is described as a “liberal Democrat” that often tried to slow play, change or disobey orders given to him by President Trump. General John Kelly is described by as good man who was often frustrated with the way the White House was run, and was dissatisfied with several Trump policy objectives. Secretary of the Treasury Mnuchin is described as being overly concerned with how policies (foreign and domestic) is would effect big business, and often was involved in decisions that didn’t concern him. Ambassador Nikki Haley is described as being a “free electron” operating on her own and often more worried about her political career than policy objectives. Ambassador Gordon Sondland is described as insinuating himself into things that he had no business being a part of. Though many other administration officials are talked about, those are the ones that really stand out in the book.

For President Trump himself, Bolton’s contempt for him shines through. He describes Trump’s erratic behavior and decision making process, which most Americans are now familiar hearing about. He presents an image of a President with a severe case of policy related ADD. There are times when he points out the press got something wrong, like when the decision for Trump to miss a visit to a WWI Memorial due to rain, which was apparently made by the military pilots and secret service and not Trump himself. When Trump makes a decision or statement that Bolton agreed with he often takes credit for it himself, but when Trump makes a statement or decision he disagrees with he often blames Trump’s erratic decision making. He also says all of Trump’s decisions were made with reelection in mind, though this could be said of almost every first term president.

One of the biggest takeaways from the book is that Bolton often thinks Trump did not go far enough, especially in his use of sanctions and military force. Depending on your personal politics this can be pretty scary. He advocated for more military action in the Middle East, thinking that Trump did not go far enough in Syria, Iran and Afghanistan. He seems to advocate for more military and economic support of Juan Guaidó’s efforts in Venezuela. He also advocates for tougher sanctions on Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, China and Russia. Bolton also appears to think Trump did not go far enough in his immigration (or lack of immigration) efforts. Bolton’s biggest complaint throughout the book is that these things make the US and the President appear weak.

One of the biggest features of the book is the closed door conversations between US officials and the President over foreign policy decisions. These are extremely detailed, and seem odd considering they involve offices that still hold office who are currently dealing with these same issues. He details the administration’s positions and strategy for dealing with Iran, Iraq, North and South Korea, Venezuela, China, Russia, Japan, the EU, NATO, Afghanistan and (to a lesser extent) Ukraine. The descriptions of policy debates are very detailed, and often mention which individual official felt which way towards a certain country or world leader. While it makes this book an extremely interesting read, it probably does not help the US carry out it’s foreign policy issues.

Along the same lines, the book goes into very detailed descriptions of President Trump and administration officials’ interactions with foreign leaders. There is likely not a world leader out there who is happy about this book’s publication. Shinzō Abe and Boris Johnson are descibed as being Trump’s best personal relationships among foreign leaders. Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un are described as eerily smart boogeymen that take advantage of the US and Trump. Moon Jae-in is the leader that’s treated the worst, appearing very weak throughout the book. It’s had to imagine that any world leader mentioned in the book can be happy about it.

Despite what was said before the book’s publication, there are very few “bombshells” in the book. It does mention, “Trump’s penchant to, in effect, give personal favors to dictators he liked,” but also says “Whether there was anything even more troubling beneath the surface, none of us knew.” But many of the descriptions he offers are when Trump deviates from Bolton’s hard right positions. He also says things like, “The pattern looked like obstruction of justice as a way of life, which we couldn’t accept.” Though he did continue to accept it, so it would seem it either didn’t happen or he didn’t think it was such a big deal at the time.

On impeachment, Bolton seems to play both sides of the issue. He criticizes the House impeachment hearings as being rushed, politically motivated and one-sided. He never states he thinks Trump committed an impeachable offense. Then he says he would have testified in the Senate had witnesses been called saying, “there might have been a greater chance to persuade others that ‘high crimes and misdemeanors’ had been perpetrated.”

Conclusion: This is definitely an important book on the Trump Presidency, and will be referenced by future historians. When it comes to foreign policy decision making it’s the most interesting since David Halberstam’s The Best and the Brightest. Though that book was written in 1972, long after Kennedy and Johnson’s presidencies were over. Perhaps that’s the biggest takeaway from this book; that it probably should not have been released until after Trump has left office. The officials in the book are still dealing with many active issues in the book, and Bolton appears to give away too much about debates, negotiating positions and strategy towards foreign policy issues. This was a good book, but those on the right will likely label it anti-Trump lies while those on the left will label Bolton as a warmonger who kept Trump from being impeached by not testifying. Those with an object interest in political science and history will find this book worth the time though.

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Horrible Narration Makes It Hard to Listen To

Revisado: 05-07-20

Generally, I try to separate the substance of a book from the narration of the audiobook when I review a book on here. With this book it becomes almost impossible to do so.

I find the subject matter extremely interesting. I find the brilliance and contradictions of Jack & Bobby Kennedy. While I’ve listened to many books on the Kennedy brothers, I have wanted to listen to Bobby’s book on the Cuban Missile Crisis for a long time. Yet, no matter how hard I tried I found it impossible to listen to because of the narrator.

Kurt Elftmann, the narrator of this book drones on in a nasal monotone. There is almost no inflection in his reading of the book, despite the subject matter dealing with the thirteen intense days surrounding the Cuban Missile Crisis. While it’s true it’s not a mystery novel or something that requires overly dramatic narration or the ability to do different voices, the subject matter deserves better treatment than it is given. The book is read with all the intensity of someone reading off their grocery list. With over 800 titles in my audible library, this is the first where I felt compelled to post a review about the terrible narration and how it makes the book near impossible to listen to.

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Okay, but better books on the subject

Revisado: 12-07-19

Although the summary promises “told like never before” a fair amount of this book is a rehashing of stories and information that is found in more original and entertaining sources. While it’s a decent book overall, but those with any basic knowledge of Disney history will find this books retreads familiar ground. In reality almost divided into 5 separate parts: 1) A brief history of Walt Disney’s career, 2) A brief history of pre-Disneyland amusement parks, 3) The building of Disneyland 4) The opening of Disneyland 5) A brief description of Disneyland’s early years and it’s impact.

Section 1 is truncated version of the more entertaining and detailed biographies of Walt Disney. It’s hits all the high points of Disney’s pre-Disneyland career. This can be a bit boring for those familiar with Bob Thomas or Neal Gabler’s books.

Section 2 is a brief history of early amusement parks like Coney Island. It then describes Walt’s formation of the idea of Disneyland. This actually quite interesting and new material.

Section 3 is where the book begins to bog down. Much of what appears here can be found in a new streaming documentary, books by John Hench and others.

Section 4 dealing with the opening of Disneyland is perhaps the most tedious. Much of this part of the book is dedicated to a word for word recitation of what occurred in the Dateline Disneyland program that aired on ABC. You are better of just finding the original program and watching it.

Section 5 is about Disneyland’s impact and detractors. There’s really no information about Disneyland after the death of Walt. Instead it focuses on the academic impact of the park of the amusement park business, architecture, city planning, culture and its impact.

While overall the book is okay. I think there are plenty of well written books on the subject including Sam Greenaway’s book.

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The Best Great Course Ever... Seriously

Revisado: 05-04-19

This is most definitely the greatest of the Great Courses! Instead of being one giant course on a single subject it is 36 lectures, each focusing on different men and women that have changed the world and the way we think about it. Each of the 36 lectures has been been pulled from other Great Courses, and is taught by a different lecturer who is an expert on the subject. There is a brief introduction about the lecturer, which also lets you know the name of the Great Course that each lecture comes from. The format makes this one of the most (if not the most) wide ranging and interesting of all the Great Courses that I’ve encountered.

Each of the 36 lectures of this course shines a spotlight on a different “Revolutionary Figure” from world history. While each lecture is structured slightly different due to the person giving, they are all a combination of a biography of the individual, an overview of what made them significant (ie. conquests, teachings, writings, theories, inventions), and their lasting effect on the world around them. The individuals that are profiled vary greatly, with some hailing from leadership/politics to arts/philosophy. The only common thread is that each of the figures has a proud effect on the world around them. While some lectures are better than others, they are all quite good and definitely informative.

The only downside of the course itself is that, despite having 36 lectures, it almost seems a little short in that there are probably a few extra revolutionary figures that could be included such as Nikola Tesla, Henry Ford, Martin Luther King Jr or Steve Jobs. Still, this is was one of the most interesting and engaging of the Great Courses that left me wanting to learn more by following up with the course that the lecture is taken from.

One thing that is disappointing is nowhere, either on the page or within the app is a list of the individuals who are featured in each lecture. (There is no accompanying PDF with this info either.) For those that would like to know this information here it is: 1) King Narmer 2) Confucius 3) Socrates 4) Hippocrates 5) Artaxerxes II 6) Alexander the Great 7) Virgil 8) Julius Caesar 9) Augustus Caesar 10) Jesus 11) Constantine 12) Muhammad 13) William the Conqueror 14) Thomas Aquinas 15) Geoffrey Chaucer 16) Martin Luther 17) Copernicus 18) Galileo 19) Roger Williams 20) Isaac Newton 21) Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 22) Thomas Paine 23) Samuel Slater 24) Immanuel Kant 25) Napoleon 26) Karl Marx 27) Charles Darwin 28) Harriett Beecher Stowe 29) Abraham Lincoln 30) Queen Victoria 31) Albert Einstein 32) Adolf Hitler 33) Winston Churchill 34) Gandhi 35) Mao 36) Margaret Thatcher

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One of the better Templar books

Revisado: 11-11-18

Much like Dan Jones previous books The Plantagenets and The War of the Roses, this look at the Knights Templar is a well researched and written book. This audiobook avoids getting bogged down in conspiracy theories and instead focuses on the provable history of The Templars. From their early begins to their arrest and improbable fall, this is one of the most captivating histories of the Knights Templar.

#history #crusades #KnightsTemplar #Templars #Tagsgiving #Sweepstakes

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