Read any good books lately?

I know there used to be a book club thread, but it disappeared a while back. And I realised that we could do with a thread for discussing good reads, favourite authors etc.

My name is SVT and I like reading. I have very little knowledge of literature (I took English Language instead at A-Level) but I am semi-literate and enjoy a well-constructed book. I particularly like historical novels and well-written factual history.

My most recent read (okay, re-read for the third or fourth time) is 'Stalingrad' by Antony Beevor. It's a superb piece of historical writing, going from the start of Hitler's war against Stalin up to the end and aftermath of the battle of Stalingrad. What could be quite dry (but still interesting) is turned into a gripping read by the focus on the human aspects of the battle. Every page has an anecdote from someone involved in the campaign (from military archives) or focusses on one fo the German or Russian senior officers. Beevor creates real people that you can identify with, if not empathise with, and the historical becomes much more personal. A superb book that even those with little interest in the era would find riveting.

Over to you...

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