A day late but a friend passed along a video this morning which got me thinking about what Columbus Day means to me and the reading that I have done over the years that helped developed my world view that might does not equal right. Below is a short list of books that popped up in my mind as I watched that video and talked about the holiday and its subtext with Management.
- Howard Zinn – People’s History of the United States
- Bernal Diaz del Castillo – The Conquest of New Spain
- John R. Chavez – The Lost Land
- Hugh Thomas – Conquest
- Dee Brown – Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
Lest I am branded some politically correct leftist bastard, my interests lie mainly with how groups of individuals construct and negotiate relationships based on power (economic, social, political, and military), though in hindsight maybe that is why I am branded. However, the above books are worth reading with a mind focused on asking why.
Good list. If you haven’t read it, I’d also recommend Charles Mann’s “1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus.”
Ah, good recommendation. That one has been on my to-read-list for too long; maybe it is time to bump it up when I get a little mental bandwidth.
http://tinyurl.com/yhj7ekq
Inevitable revolutions: the United States in Central America by Walter LaFeber
A classic. Not precisely about Columbus, but about his heritage.