The Autumn 2005 Book Sense Top Ten Picks About Luminaries in Science, Art, and Politics

This week, Book Sense and The History Channel present the Autumn 2005 Top Ten Picks About Luminaries in Science, Art, and Politics. The list is based on the nominations of independent booksellers nationwide and is the sixth time Book Sense has compiled a list in association with The History Channel.

The inspiration for the list is an upcoming History Channel production that will revisit the life, accomplishments, and vision of Leonardo da Vinci, a special presentation, Da Vinci & The Code He Lived By. It will air Sunday, December 4, at 9:00 p.m./8:00 Central Time.

This ongoing initiative with The History Channel provides booksellers with another opportunity to offer a range of intriguing titles to customers in conjunction with compelling television programming.

For a downloadable PDF file of the Autumn 2005 History Top Ten, click here.

1. ANDREW JACKSON: His Life and Times, by H.W. Brands (Doubleday, $35, 0385507380) "This is the first major treatment in years of this extremely important, but often overlooked, president. Brands vividly brings to life this complex, mercurial man, who created a democratic revolution and staunchly defended the Union." --Bill Cusumano, Nicola's Books, Ann Arbor, MI

2. STARRY MESSENGER: Galileo Galilei, by Peter Sis (FSG, $6.95 paper, 0374470278) "This beautiful picture book, which tells the story of Galileo's life and work, is a timely message about censoring science." --Sara Carter, Children's Bookshop, Kent, WA

3. ASSASSINATION VACATION, by Sarah Vowell (Simon & Schuster, $21, 0743260031) "Inspired by a Stephen Sondheim musical on the theme of presidential murder, Vowell is gripped by a fever for a subject that bends every personal orbit to a bizarre nucleus -- that of assassination. She provides humor, wit, and insights as applicable to today as yesterday." --Anthony Finney, Inkwood Books, Tampa, FL

4. A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES: 1492 - Present, by Howard Zinn (Perennial, $18.95 paper, 0060838655) "Howard Zinn's work exploring the birth and growth of the United States is both fascinating and disturbing, telling many of the familiar stories of our history from the point of view of those most affected by the events. Reading this insightful analysis has forever changed the way I will view our past and interpret the events shaping our future." --Patrice Beck Stein, Beck & Stein Books, Newport News, VA

5. THE TROUBLE WITH TOM: The Strange Afterlife and Times of Thomas Paine, by Paul Collins (Bloomsbury, $24.95, 1582345023) "Paul Collins steers down one of history's strange, forgotten tributaries: the disappearance of Tom Paine's remains. En route, he drums up phrenology, post-mortem autobiographies, 18th-century vending machines (which sold gin), and some great, lost hyperbolic eccentrics." --Dan Blask, Brookline Booksmith, Brookline, MA

6. NELSON'S TRAFALGAR: The Battle That Changed the World, by Roy Adkins (Viking, $27.95, 0670034487) "Quoting firsthand accounts of the battle's survivors whenever possible and filled with informative diagrams, Adkins' book is vivid and well-written, making you feel like you are living amidst the events it describes." --Carol Schneck, Schuler Books & Music, Okemos, MI

7. WAR AND THE ILIAD, by Simone Weil and Rachel Bespaloff (New York Review of Books, $14.95 paper, 1590171454) "Simone Weil's classic essay 'The Iliad, or a Poem of Force' is reprinted in this volume, analyzing the horrific effects of war on both those who bend their necks to the blade and those who wield it. A trenchant look at a brilliant work of the Western canon, which has more than passing relevance today." --Shawn Wathen, Chapter One Book Store, Hamilton, MT

8. BURY THE CHAINS: Prophets and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire's Slaves, by Adam Hochschild (Houghton, $26.95, 0618104690) "This is an excellent account of the birth of the antislavery movement in England, profiling in detail several of the key activists, some of whom met initially at a bookstore and printshop in London, thus proving once again the critical role bookstores play in their communities." --Kris Kleindienst, Left Bank Books, St. Louis, MO

9. OVER THE EDGE OF THE WORLD: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe, by Laurence Bergreen (Perennial, $15.95 paper, 006093638X) "Bergreen's account of Magellan's voyage, now available in paperback, is wonderful history and very readable, especially for adventure freaks." --Nancy Brown, R.J. Julia Booksellers, Madison, CT

10. FORTUNE IS A RIVER: Leonardo da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli's Magnificent Dream to Change the Course of Florentine History, by Roger D. Masters (Plume, $12.95 paper, 0452280907) "A colossal failure by two of the most revered minds in European civilization provides the framework for this slender but richly informative book, which casts light on a lesser-known period in the lives of Machiavelli and da Vinci." --Nena Rowdah, St. Johns Booksellers, Portland, OR