One of the most rewarding genres for me is the diary / journal, which I think is essentially the exact opposite of the “give me the Wikipedia summary of facts” approach. The typical journal is filled with a ton of information about what the author ate, whom he met, what various activities he did that day, etc. - and for this reason I find it infinitely more historically insightful than a nonfiction summary of facts book.
Writing a journal used to be more of a common thing that educated people did, but nowadays I guess social media is too big of a distraction…not the mention the question of whether anyone would read a journal as opposed to the simplified sloganeered book public figures typically put out today.
For some specific recommendations: I am about halfway through Harry Kessler’s 1890-1915 journals, and I just started George H. W. Bush’s journal on his time in China. Both are pretty insightful so far.
I would recommend Samuel Pepys' diary as well, a figure involved in England's Navy in the 1600s. He wrote a diary entry every day with a lot of candor, and there's a site I've been following that posts his diary entry for that day - so every day you can follow along with his life over the span of his ~10 year diary. I find it endlessly fascinating, even when his diary summary is basically "I woke up, worked, then had dinner with my cousins". The way he writes and the details he chooses to include I've found to be very fun
I find it very fun to follow along daily using the site, We're only at year 2 of his diary on this trip around so it's a great time to join. People comment on every entry and there's a nice little community
I agree and for me it ties into the general theory that our brains are narrative engines. The big processes running in our brains are building narratives for sorting fantasy from fiction in history building and prediction for planning and narrative is a major tool. Language has evolved a significant role in transferring narrative between individuals and generations. Immersion matters from that perspective and diaries and narratives are more relatable and effective and useful for feeding that beast.
It's not particularly helpful when your in a more purely fact recall mode, though.
Writing a journal used to be more of a common thing that educated people did, but nowadays I guess social media is too big of a distraction…not the mention the question of whether anyone would read a journal as opposed to the simplified sloganeered book public figures typically put out today.
For some specific recommendations: I am about halfway through Harry Kessler’s 1890-1915 journals, and I just started George H. W. Bush’s journal on his time in China. Both are pretty insightful so far.
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_von_Kessler
2. https://www.amazon.com/China-Diary-George-Bush-President/dp/...