My "To Read" Books

I’ve had three emails so far from people who saw my post on books I read in 2024. I noted on that post that I have 49 books on my TO READ shelves, so the question has been, “what are the books on your 'To Read' shelves?" For all those who have that question in their heads, this post is an answer.

Listed in the order on my shelf in which they will be read, and if I didn’t buy them at Barnes & Noble that will be noted.:

Books purchased from a book sale on 11/12/22 (started with 14)

Currently reading: The Beauty and the Sorrow: An Intimate History of the First World War, by Peter Englund

Pax Britannica: The Climate of an Empire, by Jan Morris

A History of the Twentieth Century, by Martin Gilbert

Volume one: 1900--1933

Volume two: 1933--1951

Volume three: 1952-1999

An Army At Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943, by Rick Atkinson

Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape and the Making of Winston Churchill, by Candice Millard

The Civil War, A Narative, by Shelby Foote

Volume one: Fort Sumter to Perryville

Volume two: Fredericksburg to Meridan 

Volume three: Red River to Appomattox

The rest will have the date acquired—purchased or given to me.

12/7/22 Battle for the American Mind: Uprooting a Century of Miseducation, by Peter Hegseth

Via Christmas gift card, 12/26/22

Suddenly Soldiers: The 166th Infantry Regiment in World War II, by Robert Thompson 

War in the Far East: Asian Armageddon 1944-1945: by Peter Harmsen

Riders in the Storm: The Triumphs and Tragedies of a Black Cavalry Regiment in the Civil War, by John D. Warner

Via Gift Card, 4/9/23

The Polar Bear Expedition: The Heroes of America’s Forgotten Invasion of Russia, 1918-1919, by James Carl Nelson

A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Big Horn, by James Donovan

4/15/23 Two Cents to Save America, by Perry Johnson (free in the mail)

5/5/23 Scotland’s Forgotten Past: A History of the Mislaid, Misplaced & Misunderstood, by Alistair Moffat

6/9/23 Jerusalem: The Biography, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

6/11/23 An Army Firefighter in Vietnam, 1970-1971, by Michael Kuk (purchased at firefighter memorial—he plays keyboard and sings during the service).

8/6/23  A History of Europe, by J.M. Roberts. Found at Goodwill—looked new

8/7/23: The Viking Battalion: Norwegian American Ski Troopers in World War II, edited by Olaf Minge, Kyle Ward, and Erik Brun. Bought at Norwegian-American Museum.

8/28/23 Kent State: What Happened and Why, by James A. Michener. Found used on line

9/13/23 Defenders of the West: The Christian Heroes Who Stood Against Islam, by Raymond Ibrahim. Bought from author.

9/19/23 The Women with Silver Wings, by Katherine Sharp Landdeck. Bought at Annual Stearman Fly-In

Via Dec gift cards (4 books)

12/24/23  The Slave Trade: The Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade: 1440-1870, by Hugh Thomas

12/27/23 Exit Wounds: A Vietnam Elegy, by Lanny Hunter

2/2/24 The Pioneers, by David McCulloch

2/2/24 Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates, by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yeager

Books from Ed Bateman (retired pastor friend, Korean War vet)

3/27/24 God’s Covenant With Israel, by Rabbi Binyamin Elon.

3/27/24 Out of Mormonism, by Judy Robertson

3/27/24 The Anabaptist Story: an Introduction to Sixteenth-Century Anabaptism, by William R. Estep

3/27/24 Apostolic Fathers, edited by Jack Sparks

5/2/24 Paul’s Gospel: An Analysis and Exposition of the Major Epistles, by Earl C. Smith

5/2/24 Studies in Genesis One, by Edward J. Young

5/2/24 Christian Palestinianism: Charting the Rise of Evangelical Anti-Zionism, by Paul R. Wilkinson.

5/2/24 King James Version Debate: A Plea For Realism, by D.A. Carson

5/2/24 Historical Criticism of the Bible: Methodology or Ideology? By Eta Linnemann

Back to regular acquisitions

6/3/24 Immortal Valor: The Black Medal of Honor Winners of World War II, by Robert Child. I saw an advertisement on Facebook.

Next two from gift card

6/18/24 Judgement at Tokyo: World War II on Trial and the Making of Modern Asia, by Gary J. Bass

6/24/24 Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West, by Stephen E. Ambrose

7/10/24 The Dangerous Gentleman: A Call For Men to be Courageous in a Culture of Fear, by Victor Marx. From Ed Bateman

Bought at Norwegian-American Museum in Decorah

8/1/24 Counterfeiter: How a Norwegian Jew Survived the Holocaust, by Moritz Nachtstern and Ragnar Arntzen

8/1/24 Assault in Norway: Sabotaging the Nazi Nuclear Program, by Thomas Gallagher

8/23/24 Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin: The Glider Pilots of World War II, by Scott McGaugh, Advertised on Facebook.

9/15/24 Islam Unveiled: Disturbing Questions about the World’s Fastest-Growing Faith, by Robert Spencer. From our pastor cleaning his library.

12/8/24 A History of Slovakia: The Struggle for Survival, by Stanislav. J. Kirschbaum. Bought at the Czech & Slovak Museum in Cedar Rapids.

12/28/24 with Gift Card

The Mighty Moo: The USS Cowpens and Her Epic World War II Journey, by Nathan Canestaro

The Survivors of the Clotilda: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the American SlavemTrade, by Hannah Durkin

SAS: The Authorized Illustrated History of the SAS, by Joshua Levine.