Book recommendations for my husband, please!

[KoalaMama]

I'm looking for some good reading material for my husband. He likes good biographies, political or sports figures in particular, and historical fiction, especially with a good grasp on politics and social issues of the time.

Some of the fiction authors he enjoys include Leon Uris, James Clavell, Wilbur Smith, Tom Clancy. Some authors that really *don't* appeal to him include Jane Austin and John Grishham. Ultimately he likes fiction that is well written and captivating.

Ideas??

[RowansDad]

Ok, I don't know how U.S.-centric this list may be, but here goes:

The Killer Angels - by Michael Shaara, was the last historical novel I've read and have been told by others it is one of the best. Based on the Battle of Gettysburg during the U.S. Civil War.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/034...lance&n=283155

The Teammates - by the great David Halberstam. Who would have thunk a book about a road trip of former teammates and long-time pals off to see their dying bud once known as The Splendid Splinter (aka, Ted Williams) would be so cool. Well, I did, but I'm a huge Red Sox fan. Still, I think it transends baseball and touches on friendship and loyalty.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/140...lance&n=283155

A Peace to End All Peace by David Fromkin. I've been plugging this book all over the place, including over in N&C. The book tells the story the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during and after WWI and of how England and France and their colonial meddlings pretty much set up the problems the world would experience from the modern Middle East.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/080...lance&n=283155

All the Shah's Men by Stephen Kinzer. See Persia/Iran get exploited. See it really get exploited by the Brits after WW I. See the Iranians push back and elect Mossadegh. Watch Mossadegh nationalize the Brit-owned oil company. Watch the Brits blow a gasket and try to overthrow Mossadegh, only to fail. Watch the Brits get stiffed by Harry Truman in trying to plot Mossadegh's demise. Watch the Brits catch a break after Ike becomes U.S. president and the there's-a-commie-under-every-bed Dulles brothers take over the reigns at the CIA and the State Department and buy into the overthrow plan. Watch them succeed and plant the Shah in charge...the rest is history. The book is fantastic and reads like Le Carre spy novel.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/047...lance&n=283155

[LadyMarmalade]

I'm not sure if they're 'just right' but my DH has similar interests and loves Daniel Silva and Matthew Reilly.

[nicole lisa]

He's most likely read this already (it's been out for some time), but if not it's worth checking out. I loved, loved it.

The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester.

The Professor and the Madman, masterfully researched and eloquently written, is an extraordinary tale of madness, genius, and the incredible obsessions of two remarkable men that led to the making of the Oxford English Dictionary -- and literary history. The compilation of the OED, begun in 1857, was one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken. As definitions were collected, the overseeing committee, led by Professor James Murray, discovered that one man, Dr. W.C. Minor, had submitted more than ten thousand. When the committee insisted on honoring him, a shocking truth came to light: Dr. Minor, an American Civil War veteran, was also an inmate at an asylum for the criminally insane.

[Bearsmama]

What about the new Doris Kearns Goodwin book about Lincoln? Of course, I'm running a blank on the title at the moment.

[KoalaMama]

Thank you all so much! These recommendations are perfect!

RowansDad... You should write marketing hype for publishers. I'm itching to read All the Shah's Men after your little description.

[Greenie]

If he sometimes ventures out into other genres, these are the two best books I've read, period:

Neil Stephenson - Snowcrash

Neil Gaiman - American Gods

Good luck on the book hunt!

[Alkenny]

Has he read Philip Roth? The Plot Against America in particular?

[shanagirl]

For an amazing combination of fiction, current politics and history, try The Mammoth Cheese. One of the characters is a man whose side job is to impersonate Thomas Jefferson, so he is very aware of Jefferson's mind set and 'channels' him in some ways as he lives in the present. The writing is VERY rich.

[cielle]

Mark Helprin maybe:

Memoir from Antproof Case