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- Damn History #97 / December 2025
Ring Lardner
Here are the books I have most enjoyed reading in 2025:
Nonfiction
Bone Valley by Gilbert King
Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe
The Secret History of the Rape Kit by Pagan Kennedy
Bury the Chains by Adam Hochschild
A Light in the Northern Sea by Tim Brady
Judgment in Tokyo by Gary Bass
No More Tears by Gardiner Harris
How to Grow Old by Cicero
Valley So Low by Jared Sullivan
Fiction
Chenneville by Paulette Jiles
Where Eagles Dare by Alistair Maclean
North Woods by Daniel Mason
The Lost Ticket by Freya Sampson
The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne
Brother of the More Famous Jack by Barbara Trapido
In Damn History you'll find, as usual, recommendations on good and popularly accessible historical reading, with tips on writing and updates on my own work.
Follow me on X at @Jack_ElHai, on Bluesky at @jackelhai.bsky.social, and on Threads at @jackelhai1.
Contact me by email at [email protected]
Personal Notes
Along with last month’s release of Nuremberg, a movie adapted from my book The Nazi and the Psychiatrist, I appeared on several podcasts: Big Books and Bold Ideas with Kerri Miller, True Murder, History Shorts, River Radio, and Based on a True Story. The film’s director and screenwriter, James Vanderbilt, detailed how he created the adaptation. My home town city magazine, Mpls.St.Paul, profiled me.
For my recommendations of popular-history books, search X, Bluesky, or Threads for #popularhistory.
Recent Popular History from All Over
You may find some of these articles behind a paywall if you’ve exceeded the publisher’s allowance of free views.
Norman Rockwell’s family has condemned the misuse of his artwork by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
After 63 years, police in Pennsylvania have used DNA evidence to identify the murderer of a nine-year-old girl.
Oz is the home of the great American fairy tale.
This art thief made used the Social Register to plan his heists.
Humanitarian aid has never been a crime.
An ode to Evel Knievel.
What we learn from every mention of “democracy” in the Congressional Record.
Little remembered today, Malcolm Cowley shaped American literature during the twentieth century.
Resources
In search of information on Virginia Faulkner, a biographer explains how to research history like a pro.
AI’s great gift to history research: handwriting recognition.
Enjoy this lovely essay about books and reading.
Confederate monuments can become good remade art.
Rebecca Makkai describes the error of writing books as if they are movies.
“How can you write if you can’t cry?” – Ring Lardner
Housekeeping
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About me: I'm a history and science writer. I've contributed hundreds of articles to such publications as Smithsonian, The Atlantic, The Washington Post Magazine, Wired, Scientific American, Discover, GQ, Longreads and many others. My books include The Lost Brothers: A Family’s Decades-Long Search, The Lobotomist: A Maverick Medical Genius and His Tragic Quest to Rid the World of Mental Illness, Non-Stop: A Turbulent History of Northwest Airlines, and The Nazi and the Psychiatrist: Hermann Goering, Dr. Douglas M. Kelley, and a Fatal Meeting of Minds at the End of WW2.
I frequently give talks and lead workshops on the topics of my books as well as on the craft of nonfiction writing. To book me for your event, please contact Jayme Boucher, Hachette Speakers Bureau, at [email protected].
Please feel free to get in touch.