#WorldHistory – Page 4 – Book Reviews by the Reluctant Retiree

History of Spain

Posted on April 28, 2026April 25, 2026 by BookReviews

A Captivating Guide to Spanish History, Starting from Roman Hispania through the Visigoths, the Spanish Empire, the Bourbons, and the … to the Present (European Countries)

If you want to discover the captivating history of Spain, then keep reading…

Free History BONUS Inside!

Throughout the centuries, Spain has been subject to the lordship of other countries. It was occupied by the ancient Greeks and Romans, the Visigoths, the French, and the Muslims. It has been the playground of both the respectful and the ruthless. The Spanish coasts have been occupied by the trading empires of Carthage and Rome. All that time, Spain was told by others how to run their country, how to fight, whom to fight, and where to fight. They had one of the largest empires in the world—something history barely mentions—as they had acres of land in both North and South America, the Caribbean, Mesoamerica, and some islands in the Mediterranean. Evidence of Spanish architecture dots the world.

Yet Spain was also a battlefield for countries fighting for other causes. They were sucked into wars fought by the Carthaginians, Romans, Moors, Visigoths, British, French, Portuguese, Dutch, and Austrians, just to name a few. Some of the most famous men in history traversed Spanish soil, including Hannibal Barca, Julius Caesar, Augustus, Pompey, Hadrian, Vespasian, Trajan, Marcus Aurelius, and Napoleon. Four Roman emperors were born there, and Augustus Caesar spent his vacations there. Pablo Picasso was born in Spain, while El Greco moved there.

This book will examine the highs and lows of Spanish history and will hopefully pique your interest in learning more about it.

In History of Spain: A Captivating Guide to Spanish History, Starting from Roman Hispania through the Visigoths, the Spanish Empire, the Bourbons, and the War of Spanish Independence to the Present, you will discover topics such as

Prehistory
The First and Second Punic Wars
Rome Entrenching
Roman Hispania
Enter the Germanic Tribes and the Muslims
The Transformation of Spain
The Struggling Spanish Empire
Bourbon Spain
War of the Third Coalition, 1803–1806
Aftermath
Rocky Road to Freedom
And much, much more!

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Remembering America

Posted on April 27, 2026April 23, 2026 by BookReviews

A Voice from the Sixties

From the speechwriter and top adviser to presidents Kennedy and Johnson: A behind-the-scenes history of the most momentous decade in American politics.

Richard N. Goodwin entered public service in 1958 as a law clerk for Supreme Court Associate Justice Felix Frankfurter. He left politics ten years later in the aftermath of Senator Robert F. Kennedy’s assassination. Over the course of one extraordinary decade, Goodwin orchestrated some of the noblest achievements in the history of the US government and bore witness to two of its greatest tragedies. His eloquent and inspirational memoir is one of the most captivating chronicles of those turbulent years ever published.

From the Twenty-One quiz-show scandal to the heady days of John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign to President Lyndon Johnson’s heroic vote wrangling on behalf of civil rights legislation, Remembering America brings to life the most fascinating figures and events of the era. As a member of the Kennedy administration, Goodwin charted a new course for US relations with Latin America and met in secret with Che Guevara in Uruguay. He wrote Johnson’s historic civil rights speech, “We Shall Overcome,” in support of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and formulated the concept of the Great Society and its programs, which sought to eradicate poverty and racial injustice. After breaking with Johnson over the president’s commitment to the Vietnam War, Goodwin played a pivotal role in bringing antiwar candidate Eugene McCarthy to within a few hundred votes of victory in the 1968 New Hampshire primary. Three months later, he was with his good friend Robert F. Kennedy in Los Angeles the night that the young senator’s life—and the progressive movement that had rapidly brought about such significant change—came to a devastating end.

Throughout this critical decade, Goodwin held steadfast to the passions and principles that had first led him to public service. Remembering America is a thrilling account of the breathtaking victories and heartbreaking disappointments of the 1960s, and a rousing call to action for readers committed to justice today.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“More powerfully than any other chronicler of the 60’s, Mr. Goodwin has re-created the soaring hopefulness that suffused American liberals in the early years of the decade and the sense of loss and betrayal that enveloped them at its end.” —The New York Times

“Intimate, percipient, wry, marvelously anecdotal and often profound in its grasp of politics, character and paradox. John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson walk through these pages like major characters in a big novel.” —Norman Mailer

“This is more than a history, more than a memoir. It is a literary achievement that wonderfully relives its time.” —John Kenneth Galbraith

“Remembering America is an absolutely compelling book about the sixties; a beautifully accurate narrative of a man who saw it all from the inside. It was a unique period in American history—a time of hope and a time of tragedy—and Dick Goodwin has captured it all.” —Tip O’Neill

About the Author

A graduate of Tufts University and Harvard Law School, Richard N. Goodwin began his career as a law clerk to Supreme Court Associate Justice Felix Frankfurter and as special counsel to the congressional subcommittee investigating the quiz-show scandals. During the Kennedy administration, Goodwin served as deputy assistant secretary of state for inter-American affairs and as secretary-general of the Peace Corps. In 1964, he became a special assistant to President Lyndon B. Johnson, for whom he wrote the landmark “We Shall Overcome” speech in support of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and also originated the Great Society programs. After leaving government service, Goodwin taught at Wesleyan University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The author of several books, including Promises to Keep and Remembering America, he lives in Concord, Massachusetts, with his wife, Doris Kearns Goodwin.

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History of Romania

Posted on April 26, 2026April 25, 2026 by BookReviews

A Captivating Guide to Romanian History, Including Events Such as the First Roman–Dacian War, Raids of Vlad III Dracula against the … War, and World War 2

Do you want to discover more about the country that inspired the story of Dracula? Then dive into the captivating history of Romania!Free History BONUS Inside! Romania was internationally recognized in 1878, but its history is much older. To understand the people who inhabit this country, one must go back thousands of years and meet the first king who united the local tribes, Burebista. He and his successor, Decebal, warred against Roman legions, and although they displayed extraordinary bravery and military prowess, it wasn’t enough to preserve their independence. In this book, you will discover how Romania developed from a distant Roman province on the fringes of the Roman Empire to a modern state in eastern Europe, one ready to adopt Western values. Romania lies on Europe’s eastern border, and as such, it is often neglected in history. Although it is a culturally very rich country, the world displayed little interest in its promotion. By reading this captivating history of Romania, you will learn about the turbulent past of the region, the many wars it fought, and the people who led them. You will also learn the truth behind the character of Vlad the Impaler and decide for yourself if he was a ruthless, bloodthirsty ruler or a politician, tactician, and national hero. Here is a tiny fraction of what you will discover in this book:

Who the Dacians were and if they really are the ancestors of the Romanian people
How Romania connected the West and East
How the first independent Romanian kingdoms formed and took the role of guarding Europe against Ottoman invasions
Vlad Tepes, Stephen the Great, and Michael the Brave, three medieval heroes who are still celebrated today
The Phanariots, the Greek rulers of Moldavia and Wallachia
The unification of the country and its international recognition
The position of minorities and how gypsies and women were treated in Romania’s past
What role Romania played during the two world wars
How communism almost destroyed the nation
Communism Rising
The Ceausescu Regime
And much, much more!