5 GREAT CLASSIC NON-FICTION BOOKS

[@sherryfyman7066]

I'm sitting in a park in New York City at 7:30am drinking a cup of coffee. This is video is an absolute joy. It lifted me up and turned me around. I will surely keep all of these books on my list. Thank you!

[@philtheo]

00:00 Intro 01:35 Reflections on the Revolution in France (Edmund Burke) 07:35 Samuel Johnson on Shakespeare (Samuel Johnson) 14:55 Walden (Henry David Thoreau) 20:45 Studies in the History of the Renaissance (Walter Pater) 24:28 The Complete Essays of Francis Bacon (Francis Bacon) 35:20 Outro

[@akearn456]

Thank you @pattube

[@jayv3264]

Thank you!

[@jasonsmith8567]

You're the real MVP

[@christybearden9033]

First time commenting here and first let me say how happy I am to have found your channel.. enjoying your videos immensely! Just wanted to say that YES, please discuss slower living in future. I’ve read here and there on Thoreau’s works, and also some of John Burroughs and John Muir. Personally, I love to spend time in the woods and creek on our farm, being quiet, listening to and observing nature around me… it’s just good for the soul, especially in these hectic times!

[@tristanandtheclassics6538]

Thank you for commenting and a hearty hello to you. Slow living is vital to all levels of our health. I shall think how to share this passion via video.😃👍❤️

[@TLK526]

Slowing down and enjoying life sounds wonderful. Please consider doing more on this vast way of life. Thanks for the great list of books.

[@donnabennett7382]

Yes I would definitely be interested in a video(s) regarding Thoreau, slowing down, and your other thoughts that he wrote about. This is something that I try to work on constantly. Your channel is superb, please keep it going!!!

[@dqan7372]

As much as I would enjoy that third channel, I'd hate to see you spreading yourself too thin. Increasing your workload 50% to make a channel about slowing down could have some contradictory consequences. Then again, you might find the variety energizing. Love that you included nonfiction classics here.

[@gommine]

Is there a second channel?

[@anthonyskrobul3726]

Hello from one of your American friends! These classic non-fiction books all sound great, and I want to read them all. I love your way of explaining ideas so succinctly. Of the five books you discussed, I have only read 'Walden' by Henry D. Thoreau. It is required reading in many American high schools and/or colleges. Looking at my book shelves I discovered six copies of Walden! My favorites are an illustrated 'Walden,' and 'Walden: A Fully Annotated Edition' edited by Jeffrey S. Cramer. Thoreau was truly brilliant and widely read. Speaking for myself, I hope you do a channel about simple living. I will look forward to watching it. A non-fiction classic that you may enjoy is 'Travels With Charley" by John Steinbeck. The book is about Steinbeck's 10,000-mile road trip across the USA in 1960. Charley is a standard poodle. The book is such a delight that I revisit it often. Thanks for your amazing channel.

[@gaildoughty6799]

Excellent list, Tristan. I think almost all of us could benefit from a discussion on how to slow down in this frenetic age.

[@elenabaer7712]

Thank you for adding to my TBR pile. I would love to listen to you talk about slowing down. Or taking us for a walk in your Walden woods.

[@goboogeeee]

Learning how to slow down is something I’m enjoying and I’d love to see more content from you on this. Thanks for all your wonderful videos!

[@goldilocks913]

Apart from Walden none of the others were attractive to me until you started talking about them and your enthusiasm and description lit them up. Very nice.

[@battybibliophile-Clare]

I loved that you did a video on non-fiction, and included so many of my favourites. I'd love more of this both English and other nations. Thanks.

[@alilatifshushtari]

Before even starting the video, just by looking at the title, Burke's reflections on the French Revolution came to my mind. I was so happy (almost like a child) that Tristan randomly picked that one as the very first. Absolutely Brilliant!

[@HMOtis01]

Tristan's emphasis on slowing down and being fully present is spot on. Mastering the art of living in the moment offers unparalleled clarity of mind and soul. In our fast-paced world, reconnecting with the trifecta of mind, body, and spirit is essential. Personally, I find my Zen in daily walks with my dog and sister, indulging in a good book or film, and cooking up a storm. And let's not forget the joys of good food, fine wine, and, of course, sex-though not necessarily in that order. It's all incredibly soothing for the soul. Looking forward to more of these enlightening discussions on slow living!

[@mryan4719]

Algorithm brought you to me, and I clicked immediately because of the expression of maniacal glee in the thumbnail image -- and about nonfiction, no less!! One of my favorite genres, and now so is this channel! 🎉🤩

[@leedsdevil]

I raise my hand for another video on non-fiction classics outside of the anglosphere.

[@patrickbrunsdon6318]

I’d love to slow down

[@shelleygebhardt3609]

Yes, a slower life. Being quick and a multi-tasker is so valued... I moved to Vermont in the US, and it is teaching me that you can live without being completely activated and you can mono-task and enjoy it. It was hard in the beginning because I am from the city and lived a very activated life...

[@zaygezunt]

Thank you for including Samuel Johnson on your list, Tristan. A giant intellect, yet humble and human, bending his boundless mind on the greatest wordsmith Shakespeare. Unfortunately, Johnson is neglected today and we are the poorer for it.

[@mlouw8218]

Thanks so much! I would be interested in hearing about anything that your passionate about. Your enthusiasm is contagious 😊 Your channel is making me want to read again and to generally become more curious and eager to learn. Hopefully I’ll be able to nurse my brain back out of its vegetative state 🤓🤞

[@kirsten0929]

I've had Walden on my shelf for a while now; you've just inspired me to give it a go. I've also added The Essays of Francis Bacon to my TBR list. I would definitely be interested in videos on living simply as it's definitely something I try to practice.

[@alilatifshushtari]

This, in my opinion, was one of your best videos by far Tristan. Thank you for creating it. 🙏

[@jassdad5202]

Additions: The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon, The Gallic Wars and the Civil War by Julius Caesar, and Grants Memoirs by General (President) Grant. I've read all of them, and they are excellent.

[@lanceschaina3084]

Here here to Grant's memoirs!! Every American should read it.

[@delwynjeffs6267]

Hi Tristan first time commenter I love both your channels your way of explaining the classics has made me many a time jumper onto amazon (while I pause your video) to purchase the books your talking about, my library is extensive now... well to be honest it always has been but, even so now🤣 I would love to hear you talk about how to have a slower life, in this day and age I think we all need to ease up a bit.

[@severianthefool7233]

We’d watch your videos regardless of what they’re about! But a channel on slow living sounds particularly lovely. I recently picked up a book by Johann Kari called “Stolen Focus”, which I’ve found essential to the practice of slow living. It’s incredibly useful without being preachy or full of gimmicks. One of the things I most love about reading is that it’s one of the few entirely healthy things that keeps you in the present moment. The presence of mind I get from literature and poetry is something I’ve otherwise only been able to find in nature

[@gommine]

I have that book on Kindle, I need to get to it!

[@margueritespringer3687]

Very appreciative of you informing us of these books, which I hope to read. Thank you.

[@PinaPuddu]

What a great list! Thank you Tristan. I would love to hear more on slowing down.

[@kathleensmith]

Very good list. I have a great interest in non fiction books , primarily history and biography. I am currently reviewing Will of the World by Stephen Greenbkatt as a companion to my current read of all Shakespeare. I also loved Walden. A great add to this is Ralph Waldo Emerson’s writings and essays. When I do a complete read of an author’s canon, I will include at least one or two biographies of author , currently working on Steinbeck, Hemingway and Woolf. I do like your idea of living simpler or with mindfulness. But please be careful you do not burn yourself out. If you ever stop with your classics channel…we your channel and Patreon members would be lost!!! Always the best to you and your family.

[@DefaultName-nt7tk]

Slower life? The sooner the better 😁. Yess, yess❤

[@stefashaler8340]

Wow! I loved this. Thank you. I'm planning to order this set from my local bookstore. As for a slower life, I can't imagine one slower than mine. Walden sounds like a whirlwind in comparison--always trying to figure everything out.....

[@anoma-b4n]

In this rushed and busy world ,living life at a slower pace and appreciating things more seems a saner way of living.Would love a video on this topic if you can do one.

[@janeylfoster6197]

Fantastic video Tristan, makes me want to read them all but starting with Thoreau, Pater & Bacon. Always keen to hear more from you. ❤

[@kimmyk3640]

You have inspired me to read Walden. Wow. I never knew what self-discovery lay there. And I would love to hear more of your thoughts on the ideas of Walden.

[@KAZHE63]

Thank you so much for this! I love non-fiction! Expanding on the “Walden-type books”, can you work on a bigger list of more nature-centered non-fiction for us?? Come September, I just love nature writing.

[@erinlizzo4486]

Yes! Nature writing has become one of my favorites genres also… adventurers like John Muir, John Krakauer,etc. Walden has been on my to-read list for a while, so this is my reminder to get to it☺️

[@doyle6000]

Thank you for the recommendations!!

[@yvonnehayton6753]

You make any book sound fascinating, Tristram! Another great video.

[@yvonnehayton6753]

Tristran, sorry

[@vivianmavros2963]

You have sped me on to read again and enjoy and understand what I’m reading thank you. I would be interesting watching You talk about slowing down and enjoying life

[@yvonned.983]

Loved this! I will read some of these suggestions. I would really like to hear your ideas about slowing down and enjoying life!

[@nedludd7622]

Just a few that have impressed me. Robert Graves-"The Greek Myths" and others; Graham Greene's autobiography in two or three short volumes; H.G. Wells-"A Short History of the World" which was surprisingly good for the time. All are so well-written and entertaining.

[@J1.1ipeVeVeaD]

Thank you, Tristan, for reigniting a love of reading within me! I’m a newer follower, working my way through your fantastic videos🤗 My husband and I noticed a high pitched ringing noise in some of your latest videos. Specifically in your latest 6 videos here on KZbin. Is there a chance it’s not just us hearing this?

[@raymonddonahue7282]

Nice list of books thanks.

[@carinchua]

loved this video tristan! would love to get more non-fiction recommendations! love from singapore

[@Roderic07]

this was a fun video...i never considered any non fiction as a classic...i would like to read the one on Shakespeare...because there is not so much known from Shakespeare...so would be great to see what he had written about

[@elizabethwolfe297]

Yes! I would love to hear your musings on slowing down! Thank you for your excellent channels!

[@Beesmakelifegoo]

By all means,tell us some more concerning how to focus on the value of slow. Thank you for all that you say and do. Your enthusiasm is so real.

[@radiantchristina]

Another great video. No one ever talks about classic nonfiction. My favorite classic nonfiction is The Reveries of the Solitary Walker by Jean Jacques Rousseau.

[@MrWhosegaloo]

Great videos promoting good books is a worthy reason to post a video. I have a degree in English literature and for me that meant pre mid twentieth century. My neighbor criticizes me saying I have not read the newer contemporary authors. Yes I said I have not read many except for PG Wodehouse Somerset Maugham William Faulkner Eudora Welty. I tried to get her to realize I have not scratched the surface with the classics yet just Chaucer and the odyssey and some Shakespeare. I do not try to read a lot but try to understand what I have read. I have read and studied not so much there is lifetimes of volumes Anyway great videos I have just found you I usually listen to audio books now!

[@artofmusic303]

Surprising choices. You have piqued my interest in Burke, someone I would not have otherwise read, as well as the Bacon Essays. I will definitely put these on my list. As for the philosophy of slower living, I have benefited greatly from the big three Roman Stoics and from Walt Whitman. Cheers.

[@cynthiasmith2685]

Yes, I would like to see videos about living a slower life. I would also like to see more videos on non-fiction classics. Maybe on on non-English authors? Thank you for this video! I love your enthusiasm!

[@10538overture]

Henry Mayhew's "London Labour And The London Poor", and Gilbert White's "Natural History Of Selbourne", are great too.

[@captainnolan5062]

Glad to see Walden on the list! You could ass the Essays of Montaigne a well.

[@beeheart6529]

Isaac Asimov has a book about Shakespeare which I enjoy. He is able to explain when Shakespeare was not historically accurate but also he helps me understand the plays.

[@Michael-hw5wk]

I enjoyed this particular video and hope to read some of the selections I have yet to read. I enjoyed Walden, but it should be said that Thoreau didn't quite live as secluded a life as the book would lead one to believe as he frequently returned to town for various things like having his clothes washed.

[@joelharris4399]

I've been to many bookstores in Montreal, and man oh man, getting my hands of an archetypical conservative book is very difficult. It's true! Edmund Burke's writing can't even be found in the philosophy section in bookstores. He deserves to be read both critically and with an open mind, I agree, insofar that his ideas are very influential and continue to play a role in contemporary politics.

[@bdwon]

Burke isn't really considered philosophy by most philosophers. I dunno, I guess that they think it is history or criticism or something like that. I don't understand why they think that. Montaigne, for example, isn't obviously more "philosophical," but he is often regarded as philosophical.

[@joelharris4399]

@@bdwon evidence of an ideoligical bias in education? Maybe🙂. Good points

[@OmnivorousReader]

Study in the History of the Renaissance! That one sounds right up my alley, thank you.

[@davidparry3837]

A thought provoking set of books. A Walden experience of living a slower life would be good please Tristan. I think life is to intensity not duration which is my reading of Thoreau.

[@shabirmagami146]

brilliant recommendations.... thank you 💌

[@b.t.3406]

I’d love recommendations for classic short stories.

[@katerinafar]

A very good list, thank you!

[@margueritespringer3687]

I too would love another video of non-fiction books out of the anglosphere. Thank you

[@autumnscott568]

I would love to hear you talk more about long verses short writing!

[@margaretinsydney3856]

This is a wonderful list, thank you! And I'd love a list of non-fiction from outside the anglosphere. From this list, I've only read Walden. I'd very much like to hear your thoughts on slow living, which is a passion of mine, too. 😊

[@maggiehassall7167]

I'd love to hear your thoughts on slow living Tristan

[@njackson6115]

How do you all find the time to read so much?

[@sandraelder1101]

Of course, while Thoreau was hanging out in the woods, enjoying nature, and writing Walden Pond he was also taking regular trips to town to see friends and get supplies. It’s actually a rather nice balance of society and solitude.

[@bill8784]

Good video. You are amazingly well read.

[@justpopzy8516]

hello i am a big fan. 😄

[@akearn456]

Would love to see you talk about slowing down, Tristan. Love your channel.

[@DefaultName-nt7tk]

Tristan, you made those books so luring, appealing and fun getting into them. I definitely will check some of them as soon as I finish the heavy volume of The Mandarins by Simone de Beauvoir.😊😊 Thanks for the great video❤

[@lanceschaina3084]

Sixty three year old American auto-didact here. I've read Reflections of the French Revolution, Walden and the essays of Bacon, and loved them. I agree with your analysis, thank you very much. I think a person's favorite non-fiction winds up being intensely personal, maybe more than fiction. Here are the 5 non fiction books I've enjoyed the most, in no particular order: 1. The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shirer. This is the Iliad of the modern world. So many questions addressed: why Hitler? Why Moussolini? Why the Holocaust? How could the German people let this happen? How could the world let this happen? And finally, how were the good guys able to win? The entire human experience is encapsulated in this book. An apology to my British friends: although Churchill's WWII series is an amazing work of art, I could only really get through the first book (The Gathering Storm). I ENJOYED Shirer's book more. 2. The 12 Caesars by Suetonius, translated by Robert Graves. Absolutely delightful book, and of course an exploration of the politics and psychology of power. 3. The Two Chief World Systems by Galileo. Beautifully written, an amazing snap-shot of physics and science in general in the 1630s. Galileo was probably the most important person, even more than Newton, in helping the human race make the transition from Aristotelian "science" to modern science that can be used, not just to explain, but to predict future phenomena. And the way that Galileo just RIPS, absolutely just PUNKS, just OWNS the ideas of Pope Urban VIII is hilarious. Galileo deserved everything that happened to him. 4. Fear and Trembling by Soren Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard's exploration of faith came at an important time in my life of faith. (I'm what used to be called a Born Again Christian, which means I'm the precise OPPOSITE of what is now, in the United States, called an Evangelical "Christian"). 5. Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. Beautifully and clearly written. I was surprised, for a book written in the 18th century, how much Smith grounded his conclusions in hard economic and business data. 6. Ok, one more: The Etiology, Concept, and Prophylaxis of Childbed Fever by Ignaz Semmelweis. Semmelweis wrote this book in 1859, six years before Pasteur's discovery of the germ theory of disease, and 20 years after he had, for the first time, determined that childbed fever, and most diseases in general, were caused, not by astronomical phenomena, or miasma in the air, or epidemic influences coming from the earth, or spirits, but by biological particles which transferred from the sick (or dead) to the well. And all one had to do was wash one's hands, medical instruments and clothes with chlorine and those particles would wash away. It's an extraordinary book, using primitive data analysis to show that the only actions that protected the pregnant women in his care from disease was forcing doctors and nurses to wash everything that came in contact with the patient. In his time, many doctors refused to accept the shocking research and conclusions from this Jewish physician, and Semmelweis died in a sanitarium for mental illness. One of the great triumphs, and tragedies, of the human story.

[@barbarapaige4587]

Hi Lance, thank you for such a great list. I have read three of them and they are the kind of books you never forget. I am a history buff, and the Shirer book several times, and I think it's the best book on WWII. Totally illuminating and written in an engaging style. Seutonius was an amusing gossip, but you do understand the dynamics of power plays. It's an intense sport...Another great series, though not a classic work yet, is Rick Atkinson's trilogy of WWII in Africa, Italy and northern Europe.

[@baileybenton4429]

Wonderful! Thank you

[@catedee5012]

I would love to hear about a slower life and Walden.

[@Stormbrise]

Yes, I think you should talk about philosophy and I would listen to your musings. Might have some other insights than the stoic philosophy that I am so fond of reading.

[@faithharbour]

Yes please to videos on slowing down.

[@rogerevans9666]

With respect to the French Revolution, Mark Twain in his "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" said that the true "Reign of Terror" took place BEFORE the French Revolution and lasted over a thousand years. Twain points out that the bodies of all those killed during the so-called "Reign of Terror" during the French Revolution would fill only a small cemetery. With respect to Walter Pater, his book is "pitter patter Pater" compared to Heinrich Wolfflin's "Principles of Art History" and his five dichotomies, although he has little to say about color. Wolfflin's "Classic Art" (about the Italian Renaissance artists) is far beyond Pater's book. His chapter on Raphael is the best way to learn about composition. He has little to say about Titian and the other Venetians, but nobody's perfect. He is Swiss/German, not in the Anglosphere, but still I would read him, not Pater, if I had to make a choice. Ironically, the two people who really have not done much in art--the British and the Germans---have produced the greatest art historians. Conversely, the three people who have done so much in art---the French, the Spanish, and the Italians---have produced only chatty, superficial art historians. One classic non-fiction book that sadly has much to teach us about human nature is Thucydides' "Peloponnesian War". It is about ourselves even though it took place 400 years before Christ. Everything that happened in that war happened in the twentieth century, except our technology is more advanced. There was a massacre of children just for the fun of it at Mycalessus. The civil war combatants in Corcyra were so passionate that they almost destroyed the entire town they were living in. There was a concentration camp in the quarries near Syracuse. The foolishness, the demagoguery of Alcibiades and Creon, the slowness and weakness of Nicias, the greed, the lack of humanity, the selfishness are all there to read about even though all they had were spears, swords, and arrows. On the other hand, there was the wisdom, brilliance, and bravery of Brasidas, Gylippus, and Pericles. Had the Athenians succeeded in conquering Sicily, there would have been no Roman Empire. Again, as with Wolfflin, Thucydides is not in the anglosphere, but I hope my comments have been of positive use. People go by first impressions, and we tend to be introduced to the ancient Greeks by means of their beautiful art, profound literature, and philosophy. After all that, reading Thucydides was a strong and much needed slap in the face.

[@tristanandtheclassics6538]

Loved this comment. Thank you 😊

[@scarletowl8337]

As a painter 👩‍🎨 very interested in the Pater Renaissance book 📕!

[@murphbee]

Thank you, a slow life channel would be a gift.

[@veronicamaria2730]

Really enjoyed your comment on intellect. I had to run it back and listen again, so I could accurately parrot your comment against parroting. Yep, it was that good. Thank you for the book offerings and food for thought.

[@hanichay1163]

Thank you for this intriguing list. The Pater and Bacon attract me most. I agree about Thoreau’s Walden. (I swam across it when visiting! ) There is much more to it than modern environmentalism types want you to think. Also, I learned it was all agricultural fields back then. Now it’s gone to forests.

[@silvermine2033]

Excellent list!

[@NickBR57]

Just got Boswell's life of Johnson which should be interesting. I have been meaning to read Walden, mainly to get more understanding of Tuomas Holopainen's composition "My Walden", inspired by this book. Not a single biography?

[@pmclaughlin4111]

For Americans at least: Democracy in America by Definition Tocqueville. Very readable and his commentary on the characteristics of Americans is still resonant.that

[@petergibson2035]

Try reading In Pursuit of Spring or The South Country by Edward Thomas. He is mainly remembered as one of the great poets of WW1 but before the war he loved to walk or bicycle his way through England. In calm and wonderful prose he shows us an England now lost forever: an England about 1910 still laid out from Domesday Book.

[@carolstimpson3799]

Slow living and a summary of Thoreau - yes please Tristan. This will be most interesting. Thanks for highlighting the essays of Bacon.

[@pmclaughlin4111]

A few months ago, I put "something" from Burke. Thank you.

[@mattvrabel2072]

On living mindfully - yes, please

[@jackiesliterarycorner]

I want to read more non-fiction classics, and I have tried some. I have been reading The Federalists Papers and will read some more of it this summer. I tried Origin of the Species, but wasn't my thing. I have The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, The Histories, Democracy in America, The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, The History of the Peloponnesian War, The Travels: Marco Polo, The Lives of the Caesars, and both letters of Van Gogh, and John/Abigail Adams. Classic non-fiction is intimidating, because I don't how the writing will be for me. I ask, is it too dry or will it take a long time to read?

[@rupatiwary3008]

I have watched ton of your videos Tristan and I love them, your way of explaining But still I can't find a perfect video which has book recommendations for non native speaker like in india and a guide how to raise level It would be a huge help and would be very much appreciated if you put the effort of making that specific video. Thanks

[@sanasamrin7900]

I meant to ask this, I am a fellow Indian.

[@johnford6967]

Your right.Not to take on more than one can balance.For Tristan and ourselves..Must. be enjoyable for all.m

[@Ajoe5810]

I expected to find Origin of Species by Darwin. World changing.

[@lauraDemarco-hc7gr]

A third channel is fine but I miss your in-depth reviews of single works be they fiction or non fiction. Would you consider resuming individual lengthier book reviews?

[@gommine]

I read Walden years ago - some of it I enjoyed, some of it I found really dull. I think I might have been too young for it (and I was already 'old' haha). I will re-read it at some point.

[@ryanbroganreads]

I'm interested in you making a third channel. Thank you!

[@davidwright7205]

Did anyone see that tv documentary recently where Jane Macdonald (singer) attended a Japanese silent meditation session? The teacher ,who said everybody spends nearly all of time thinking of the future or the past but barely any on the present , actually hit her (on the head) for lack of concentration. That's why slowing down to think deeply and enjoy life ,however nice sounding, might be a bit hard for some of us.

[@anayrre2062]

Yes I would be interested 20:38 🤓

[@ChrisHunt4497]

A Slowing Down edition would be wonderful. ❤

[@Isabela-Thomas]

Non-Anglo top 5 list please ❤

[@tristanandtheclassics6538]

Good call.😀👍

[@debraparker971]

Absolutely interested in listening to anything you say. Can you clone yourself please. You are so great. I love your videos. On another point, do you have thoughts on whether Shakespeare wrote all of his works or perhaps, as you mention, other hands were in the pie, i.e. Francis Bacon, Edward de Vere, ....?

[@shelleygebhardt3609]

It's more about learning to create in stillness.

[@stretmediq]

I've read Burke, Thoreau and Bacon so 3/5 not bad

[@BrianCalabro]

What are your best books on music?