And the Worst Book of History Is …

New York Times ^ | July 16, 2012 | JENNIFER SCHUESSLER

[reaganaut1]

The political direction of the country may be up for grabs until November, but the right has scored an interim victory

[reaganaut1]

I am interested in Freepers' opinions of the books mentioned.

[GenXteacher]

I would have voted Zinn’s book as the worst immediately- its only fit for toilet paper.

[Sigurdrifta]

I would say that Zinn’s book should be right up there, but I also think Michael Bellesiles’ “Arming America” should be right near the top of the list.

There aren’t many academic “historians” who have had a prestigious prize (Bancroft) rescinded and been kicked out of their school for a “history” they wrote.

[dfwgator]

Dreams of My Father.

[sima_yi]

I concur.

[reaganaut]

Zinn’s book definitely.

[DuncanWaring]

Ping.

[ConservativeDude]

That is my top choice, but the Upton Sinclear screed The Jungle is near the top.

[x]

Thomas DiLorenzo’s “The Real Lincoln: A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War”

Just about anything by DiLorenzo would qualify. His work is the standard of bad history -- or would be, if it were history at all.

Also, Arthur Schlesinger's Age of Jackson which barely mentions what happened to the Cherokee and other Indian tribes during Jackson's reign. I suspect he didn't mention it at all in the original edition, but stuck in two sentences in later editions so people couldn't charge him with completely falsifying the record.

Some of Garry Wills's books are terribly wrong headed, but the man is extremely industrious, and that counts for something. He's sort of like a hunting dog that won't find the fox but will always come up with something unexpected.

[dfwgator]

“I, Rigoberta Menchu.”

[BatGuano]

Those votes were about David Barton, not his book or Jefferson.

Dreams of my Father and Audacity of Hope were not written by B. Hussein Obama but ghosted by “Dr” Bill Ayers They were both trash with more lies than truths.

[ArrogantBustard]

“the least credible history book in print”

The unHoly Qu'ran comes to mind ...

[allmendream]

Nice to see the liar Barton getting the recognition he so richly deserves.

[Fiji Hill]

Another candidate should be The Strange Death of President Harding by Gaston B. Means (New York: Guild, 1930) This sensational "insider" account of the Harding administration was a bestseller until it was exposed as a fraud in 1933

[Noumenon]

Anything by Zinn or Chomsky.

[Noumenon]

Now, now - remember: for leftists, it’s the narrative, not the truth that counts. That was their actual excuse for this stinkburger.

[Fiji Hill]

Rick Perlstein's Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America (New York: Scribner, 2008) was a disappointment when I read it back in 2008. Although he is a man of the Left, Perlstein wrote a credible history of the Barry Goldwater movement in Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus (New York: Hill & Wang, 2004). However, Nixonland is jaundiced and one-sided. For example, in discussing the debates during the 1960 presidential election, Perlstein only focuses on the first of four debates, in which Nixon did poorly, and does not even mention the other three in which he did better.

Although Nixonland provides a lot of details about Nixon's political career, it's bad history and should be read with caution.

[DuncanWaring]

Ping.

[GenXteacher]

“Also, Arthur Schlesinger’s Age of Jackson which barely mentions what happened to the Cherokee and other Indian tribes during Jackson’s reign. I suspect he didn’t mention it at all in the original edition, but stuck in two sentences in later editions so people couldn’t charge him with completely falsifying the record.”

That, and its barely readable and about as interesting as paint drying.

[BonRad]

I agree- Dreams of My Father- plagiarized to boot