As a high school student, I never had a good history teacher, a storyteller who could make history come alive. As a result, I thought history was boring. What good is it to memorize a bunch of dates or learn to reel off the names of the wives of King Henry VIII? At Bowdoin College, I didn’t take a single history course, even though the college had some wonderful history professors. Shame on me.

Now chugging along in the November of my years, I’m increasingly drawn to books about history — both fiction and nonfiction. Here’s a brief recap of some of the books I’ve read over the last six months.

“History Matters” by David McCullough includes selected writings by the noted historian. The book, edited by McCullough’s daughter Doris McCullough Lawson and his longtime researcher Michael Hill, features compelling essays and speeches, most of which have never been published before. Some of the chapter titles convey the compelling nature of this book: “American Values,” “Harriet Beecher Stowe In Paris,” “The Love of Learning,” “A Book on Every Bed” and “A Bit of History About My Typewriter.” That guy could write.

“The Book Club for Troublesome Women” by Marie Bostwick, set in the 1960s. Four women who feel they are missing something in their lives form a book club, drawing their inspiration from “The Feminine Mystique” by Betty Friedan. The book club gives the women the courage to declare their independence in various ways. Having lived in the “Father Knows Best” world of the 1950s, I was reminded of the advances women have made in American society over the last 60 years. That said, members of the anti-woke crowd aren’t too pleased with where we are today.

“James,” by award-winning writer James Percival, reimagines “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” told from the enslaved Jim’s point of view. This powerfully crafted, yet often humorous book, helps us see the world from the perspective of a group of Americans who have been marginalized simply because of the color of their skin. This issue remains a work in progress, stalled by staunch believers in white Christian nationalism.

“Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey From Slavery to Freedom” by Ilyon Woo won the Pulitzer Prize in Biography in 2024. In announcing the award, the committee noted, “A rich narrative of the Crafts, an enslaved couple who escaped from Georgia in 1848, with light-skinned Ellen disguised as a disabled white gentleman and William as her manservant. This gripping book seems too incredible to have been true, but it was. If you’re seeking a book that demonstrates the immense power of the human spirit, then this one’s for you.”

“The Boys in the Light: An Extraordinary World War II Story of Survival, Faith, and Brotherhood” by Nina Willner is another powerful story of great resilience against all odds. This book gives hope for humanity.

“Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life, and the Unique Child who Became Theodore Roosevelt” by David McCullough. I’ve always loved Teddy Roosevelt, and this book provides a close-up look at the tremendous odds he faced overcoming a debilitating asthmatic condition as a child. He never played the woe-is-me victim. You have to admire him and, of course, America’s historian, McCullough.

The more I read about history, the more I want to read. Would that more Americans would immerse themselves in our shared past so we can be guided by a historical perspective rather than histrionic tweets.

David Treadwell, a Brunswick writer, welcomes commentary and suggestions for future “Just a Little Old” columns at dtreadw575@aol.com.