What Are You Reading in February (2008)

Nobody done posted no thing for January... and January is almost over so I thought I'd start with February.
Hope it's not too shocking :

In Feb, I'm going to be reading Fletcher Pratt's "A Short History of the Civil War: Ordeal by Fire" along with a few others as part of the 2nd Non-Fiction Group Group Read over on the Amazon discussion board. (all are welcome)

And right now I'm trying to finish up some reviews for some fine books and articles I've read recently. Plus finish an article by Thomas Gallant entitled: "Honor, Masculinity, and Ritual Knife Fighting in Nineteenth-Century Greece".

Okay, I've done my bit to promote community.

Ah, we're writing the history before it happens.

God's Crucible: Islam and the Making of Europe for me. Got interested while recently reading Don Quixote and thinking about just how Arabic it was in tone and format. So far, mixed reviews. Interesting subject, he feels compelled to do an Early Islam 101 for the first 100 pages, and has a few factual points that are highly suspect. Still, interesting and for the most part decently written.

I'm not quite there yet, but I think I'll be starting Civil War on Pensacola Bay by John K. Driscoll and Troublesome Young Men by Lynne Olson.

I got the civil war book in an auction benefiting the State's Veterans Museum. So even if it isn't a great read, I'll know my money went to good use.

I've mostly been reading straight-up military history or science fiction, but I'm now about halfway through American Mobbing. This is an examiniation of political street violence in the run-up to the War between the States.

Also starting on two French books: "French Demystified" and "Beginning French for the Utterly Confused". I don't want to speak French, but I sure would like to be able to read some source works in that language.

Finished Una guerra entre ingleses (A war betwixt Englishmen). Fine book on a rare subject, the war at sea between Argentina and Brazil, 1825-30.

Sigh ... another thread that is dangerous to my wallet. :D I've just started in on Nina Burleigh's Mirage: Napoleon's Scientists and the Unveiling of Egypt, whose touchstone doesn't work for some reason so I included an Amazon link. It tells about the coterie of French scientists and intellectuals who sailed to Egypt with Napoleon's military in 1798 (including the discovery of the Rosetta Stone, and so forth.) Great stuff so far!

Edited to fix html tag.

I'm about half-way through The Valley Forge Winter, which is as much about politics and the social impact of it all as it is about strictly military events.

Have begun Americanism. A concise look at "American Exceptionalism". So far, a great book to give foreigners who don't understand the mentality of America as a whole. Agree or disagree, this seems very accurate so far.

I'm getting close to wrapping up The Ornament of the World, by Maria Rosa Menocal about Al-Andalus and early Spain. I'm not ready to leave my medieval Andalusian journeys - if anyone else has books to recommend on the topic, I'd be interested.

I'm halfway through The Voices of Morebath, a detailed description of an English village's daily life during the Reformation.

I'm just starting The First Samurai.

Started The Children of Henry VIII a few days ago. I'm already halfway through it.

Halfway through The Radicalism of the American Revolution. Excellent!