Books "for Quizbowl"

New high school teams looking for advice should post here.
Warlockoftheeast
Lulu
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu May 17, 2012 2:12 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Warlockoftheeast »

http://www.theoi.com/Text/Apollodorus1.html

Anyone have any thoughts on Bibliotheca for mythology?
Kieren Weisert
"Away! away! for I will fly to thee,"-Ode to a Nightingale
Corbin High School '14
Columbia University in the City of New York '18

Johnny Quizbowl.
Urech hydantoin synthesis
Tidus
Posts: 525
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 3:35 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Urech hydantoin synthesis »

Warlockoftheeast wrote:http://www.theoi.com/Text/Apollodorus1.html

Anyone have any thoughts on Bibliotheca for mythology?
I mean, sure, that could help, but a combination of Graves/Hamilton/packet studying should be enough to cover high school-level Greek mythology pretty well.
Ben Zhang

Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell '23
Columbia University '18
Ladue Horton Watkins HS '14
User avatar
Mike Bentley
Sin
Posts: 6461
Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:03 pm
Location: Bellevue, WA
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Mike Bentley »

Dan Passner alerted me to this deal on Sunday:

www.half.com has a deal where if you order more than $10 in actual products, up to $25 in shipping is taken off of your order with the code FREESHIP. This is a pretty good deal if you want to buy maybe 8 quizbowl books for $10. If you look on a place like Amazon.com, you'll likely find some pretty good source books for list prices approaching 1 cent, but the caveat is that you usually need to pay $4 shipping (and if you have a Prime membership, the lowest these books are priced is around $4, so you're paying the same amount). With this half.com deal, you can find a lot of good books from one seller (betterworldbooks is a good one) for $.75 + $2 shipping. I ended up getting around 7 $.75 encyclopedias and then one other book that put me as close to $10 as possible. This works out to a savings of around $20 compared to Amazon.

Note that it's often still cheaper to get these types of books at a friends of the library sale, but the selection will be more limited and it takes more of your time/gas money.
Mike Bentley
Treasurer, Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence
Adviser, Quizbowl Team at University of Washington
University of Maryland, Class of 2008
User avatar
Maxwell Sniffingwell
Auron
Posts: 2164
Joined: Sun Feb 12, 2006 3:22 pm
Location: Des Moines, IA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Maxwell Sniffingwell »

Mike Bentley wrote:Dan Passner alerted me to this deal on Sunday:

http://www.half.com has a deal where if you order more than $10 in actual products, up to $25 in shipping is taken off of your order with the code FREESHIP. This is a pretty good deal if you want to buy maybe 8 quizbowl books for $10. If you look on a place like Amazon.com, you'll likely find some pretty good source books for list prices approaching 1 cent, but the caveat is that you usually need to pay $4 shipping (and if you have a Prime membership, the lowest these books are priced is around $4, so you're paying the same amount). With this half.com deal, you can find a lot of good books from one seller (betterworldbooks is a good one) for $.75 + $2 shipping. I ended up getting around 7 $.75 encyclopedias and then one other book that put me as close to $10 as possible. This works out to a savings of around $20 compared to Amazon.

Note that it's often still cheaper to get these types of books at a friends of the library sale, but the selection will be more limited and it takes more of your time/gas money.
Oh my God, this is great. I just ordered $10.38 worth.
Greg Peterson

Northwestern University '18
Lawrence University '11
Maine South HS '07

"a decent player" - Mike Cheyne
nhscody
Lulu
Posts: 9
Joined: Sat Dec 31, 2011 1:25 pm
Location: Des Moines, Iowa

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by nhscody »

For history, I can't recommend anything more highly than this textbook: http://www.amazon.com/History-Western-S ... th+edition

It's made for a standard European history course in college, but it really covers much more than that, including some lit, lots of art, etc.
Cody McKeehan
Central Academy and North High
Des Moines, Iowa
User avatar
Corry
Rikku
Posts: 331
Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2012 11:54 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Corry »

I can only speak about history, but in my experience, pretty much any history textbook is a good resource for quiz bowl, as long as the subject that it covers is specific enough! You're not going to learn much from a standard world history textbook, since it'll only have room to cover subjects that everybody already knows about. This might also ring true for U.S. history textbooks, since everybody in high school has to take that class. But once you get into slightly more specialized subjects, textbooks become a lot more useful. For instance, even the vaguest, most watered-down European history textbooks still include enough details to give you a working knowledge about the subject in tournaments.
Corry Wang
Arcadia High School 2013
Amherst College 2017
NAQT Writer and Subject Editor
User avatar
Scaled Flowerpiercer
Wakka
Posts: 200
Joined: Sun Sep 18, 2011 7:03 pm
Location: Irvington, NY

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Scaled Flowerpiercer »

Christ, I Know wrote:
Warlockoftheeast wrote:http://www.theoi.com/Text/Apollodorus1.html

Anyone have any thoughts on Bibliotheca for mythology?
I mean, sure, that could help, but a combination of Graves/Hamilton/packet studying should be enough to cover high school-level Greek mythology pretty well.
I personally like Apollodorus a lot for greco-roman myth - he is one of few classical authors who will give you different versions of myths in one text. For his Library and Epitome, as well as other searchable classical texts (in translation) I tend to use:http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/

Ben is certainly correct in that Graves and Hamilton are great sources - though notably Graves seems to draw a lot from Apollodorus (Graves sometimes seems to copy him nearly word for word), so they will give you about the same knowledge. As for other sources for Greco-Roman myth, Eurpides/Aeschylus/Sophocles plays good for learning myths in depth, and of course anyone looking to really know Greco-Roman myth should probably read the Aeneid, Odyssey, and Iliad (or at least summaries of them).
Samuel Donow
Irvington High School '12
Williams College '16
User avatar
Tale of Mac Datho's Pachycephalosaur
Wakka
Posts: 174
Joined: Fri Jun 12, 2009 11:40 am

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Tale of Mac Datho's Pachycephalosaur »

Scaled Flowerpiercer wrote:
Christ, I Know wrote:
Warlockoftheeast wrote:http://www.theoi.com/Text/Apollodorus1.html
...anyone looking to really know Greco-Roman myth should probably read the Aeneid, Odyssey, and Iliad (or at least summaries of them).
In my experience, people read the Aeneid much less than the Iliad or the Odyssey. There may be fewer clues used from it, but if you do read it, then you'd probably have a good chance at an early buzz. I've gotten several buzzes on "Calaeno the harpy," for example, so I definitely recommend reading a good translation (like Fagles). I have not seen a whole lot of scholarship asked in tournaments, but it may be a good idea to skim The Serpent and the Flame, by Bernard Knox, and Discolor Aura, by Robert Brooks. They aren't quick reads (and they may be a bit tedious if you don't know some Latin), but you might pick up some allusions and some points on early clues.
Zach Pace
Clarence High School '10, University at Buffalo '14
Writer, NAQT; Reader, NY MasterMinds
Space Advocate, Amateur Astronomer, and Occasional STEM Pundit
You don't want me anywhere near literature that's not sci-fi or written in Latin. Seriously.
User avatar
1992 in spaceflight
Auron
Posts: 1614
Joined: Wed Jun 01, 2011 8:11 pm
Location: St. Louis-area, MO

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by 1992 in spaceflight »

Does anyone have any recommendations for books on Scottish and Eastern European History?
Jacob O'Rourke
Washington (MO) HS Assistant Coach (2014-Present); MOQBA Secretary (2015-Present)
Formerly: AQBL Administrator (2020-2023); HSAPQ Host Contact; NASAT Outreach Coordinator (2016 and 2017); Kirksville HS Assistant Coach (2012-2014); Truman State '14; and Pacific High (MO) '10


Like MOQBA on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!
User avatar
Skepticism and Animal Feed
Auron
Posts: 3238
Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2004 11:47 pm
Location: Arlington, VA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Skepticism and Animal Feed »

The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:Does anyone have any recommendations for books on Scottish and Eastern European History?
I like this book for Russian history:
http://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-Autocrat ... 0385279086

Very clue-dense.
Bruce
Harvard '10 / UChicago '07 / Roycemore School '04
ACF Member emeritus
My guide to using Wikipedia as a question source
User avatar
Important Bird Area
Forums Staff: Administrator
Posts: 6112
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:33 pm
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Important Bird Area »

For Scottish history, try Smout's History of the Scottish People.
Jeff Hoppes
President, Northern California Quiz Bowl Alliance
former HSQB Chief Admin (2012-13)
VP for Communication and history subject editor, NAQT
Editor emeritus, ACF

"I wish to make some kind of joke about Jeff's love of birds, but I always fear he'll turn them on me Hitchcock-style." -Fred
User avatar
Important Bird Area
Forums Staff: Administrator
Posts: 6112
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:33 pm
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Important Bird Area »

The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:Does anyone have any recommendations for books on Scottish and Eastern European History?
I will now outrageously misinterpret Jacob's question to note that this volume has two chapters about Scottish immigrants in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Jeff Hoppes
President, Northern California Quiz Bowl Alliance
former HSQB Chief Admin (2012-13)
VP for Communication and history subject editor, NAQT
Editor emeritus, ACF

"I wish to make some kind of joke about Jeff's love of birds, but I always fear he'll turn them on me Hitchcock-style." -Fred
User avatar
Beevor Feevor
Rikku
Posts: 332
Joined: Sun Oct 28, 2012 9:03 am
Location: Charlottesville, Virginia
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Beevor Feevor »

Any books particularly good for science questions? I know the basic concepts fairly well, but I have no idea how to get the really early clues about the biology and chemistry tossups.
Eric Xu
Western Albemarle '15
Virginia '19
Harvard '23
shrey96
Lulu
Posts: 68
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2011 1:32 am
Location: New York, New York

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by shrey96 »

I'm not sure about books (other than intro-level college textbooks), but I've found MIT OpenCourseWare to be extremely helpful for quizbowl science.
Shreyas Vissapragada
Columbia University '17
Metea Valley High School '13
User avatar
1992 in spaceflight
Auron
Posts: 1614
Joined: Wed Jun 01, 2011 8:11 pm
Location: St. Louis-area, MO

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by 1992 in spaceflight »

Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:
The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:Does anyone have any recommendations for books on Scottish and Eastern European History?
I like this book for Russian history:
http://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-Autocrat ... 0385279086

Very clue-dense.
I actually took a Russian history course last year, but that book looks interesting. I'll definitely take a look at it. And any recommendations for Polish/Hungarian history would be good as well.
Jacob O'Rourke
Washington (MO) HS Assistant Coach (2014-Present); MOQBA Secretary (2015-Present)
Formerly: AQBL Administrator (2020-2023); HSAPQ Host Contact; NASAT Outreach Coordinator (2016 and 2017); Kirksville HS Assistant Coach (2012-2014); Truman State '14; and Pacific High (MO) '10


Like MOQBA on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!
David Riley
Auron
Posts: 1401
Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2003 8:27 am
Location: Morton Grove, IL

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by David Riley »

The most recent Hungarian history that I have is Peter Sugar's History of Hungary. It's been my experience that most go out of print rather quickly but you might check Amazon, and be sure to read the reviews. The Cambridge Concise History should be a good overview, and there are any number of books on St. Stephen, Matthias Corvinus, Kossuth and the Austro-Hungarin Empire.

I don't know any Polish histories but I can probably find out....LARGE Polish population here.
David Riley
Coach Emeritus, Loyola Academy, Wilmette, Illinois, 1993-2010
Steering Committee, IHSSBCA, 1996 -
Member, PACE, 2012 -

"This is 1183, of course we're barbarians" -- Eleanor of Aquitaine in "The Lion in Winter"
User avatar
Skepticism and Animal Feed
Auron
Posts: 3238
Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2004 11:47 pm
Location: Arlington, VA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Skepticism and Animal Feed »

I daresay my knowledge of Hungarian history is well above the 90th percentile of this forum, but virtually all of it comes from internet sources. Hungarians love their own history and have documented it extensively on Wikipedia and other websites. There's bias, but it's so comically transparent that you can easily screen it out.

Honestly, the only book I've read that contained any quizbowl-useful information about Hungary was Kinross's book on the Ottoman Empire, which I recommended somewhere much earlier in this thread.

Anyway, a few years back, I put together a parody of NAQT's "You Gotta Know..." list, which contains:

[*] You Gotta Know These Rulers of Hungary
[*] You Gotta Know These Hungarian Rebellions

As far as I recall, these are mostly accurate, though the rebellions one seems to be missing the Vatha Rebellion, which is probably more important than the Samuel Aba rebellion, though it never comes up in quizbowl. But they're likely far too deep for high school.
Bruce
Harvard '10 / UChicago '07 / Roycemore School '04
ACF Member emeritus
My guide to using Wikipedia as a question source
User avatar
1992 in spaceflight
Auron
Posts: 1614
Joined: Wed Jun 01, 2011 8:11 pm
Location: St. Louis-area, MO

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by 1992 in spaceflight »

Bruce, you do realize I'm in college, right?

EDIT: I do appreciate the history information. Thanks a ton!
Jacob O'Rourke
Washington (MO) HS Assistant Coach (2014-Present); MOQBA Secretary (2015-Present)
Formerly: AQBL Administrator (2020-2023); HSAPQ Host Contact; NASAT Outreach Coordinator (2016 and 2017); Kirksville HS Assistant Coach (2012-2014); Truman State '14; and Pacific High (MO) '10


Like MOQBA on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!
User avatar
Skepticism and Animal Feed
Auron
Posts: 3238
Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2004 11:47 pm
Location: Arlington, VA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Skepticism and Animal Feed »

The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:Bruce, you do realize I'm in college, right?

EDIT: I do appreciate the history information. Thanks a ton!
Yeah but this is the high school section, there's high schoolers reading it, and if I make some kid write a tossup on Pal Maleter for his housewritten high school tournament because I don't make it clear to him that this is way too hard for high school, I'll rightfully be condemned.

Incidentally, don't write a tossup on Pal Maleter for anything easier than Chicago Open.
Bruce
Harvard '10 / UChicago '07 / Roycemore School '04
ACF Member emeritus
My guide to using Wikipedia as a question source
User avatar
Fakespeare
Kimahri
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Nov 10, 2012 6:43 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Fakespeare »

A bit of a thread resurrection, but I found Great military leaders and their campaigns, edited by Jeremy Black, to be an immensely helpful and enjoyable read, complete with lots of 3D campaign maps to help with those lead-ins that describe tactical maneuvers.

What is a good clue source for some of the less well-known mythologies? Specifically looking at Celtic, Oceanic, and African myth systems here. Primary resources are always good, but I'm looking for more of a compilation.
Maxwell Huang
Katy Taylor HS '15 | UT Austin '19
User avatar
Important Bird Area
Forums Staff: Administrator
Posts: 6112
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:33 pm
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Important Bird Area »

Welcome to the forums!

For Celtic myth, I recommend going straight to the sources- reading the Mabinogion (Welsh) and the Tain (Irish) will result in plenty of points (granted, "plenty" is a relative term for Celtic myth).
Jeff Hoppes
President, Northern California Quiz Bowl Alliance
former HSQB Chief Admin (2012-13)
VP for Communication and history subject editor, NAQT
Editor emeritus, ACF

"I wish to make some kind of joke about Jeff's love of birds, but I always fear he'll turn them on me Hitchcock-style." -Fred
User avatar
Fakespeare
Kimahri
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Nov 10, 2012 6:43 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Fakespeare »

Thanks, Mr. Hoppes!

It's unfortunately very true Celtic myth doesn't come up too often (especially at the high school level). I've been to some college tournaments lately (MFT and ACF Fall) and missed a certain myth tossup to an early buzz from LASA.

So yeah, I've been seeking to widen my mythological horizons in preparation for both future tournaments and potentially college-leveled competition. Your advice is much appreciated!

EDIT: removed stuff about answer lines from uncleared tournaments
Maxwell Huang
Katy Taylor HS '15 | UT Austin '19
Halved Xenon Stinging
Wakka
Posts: 162
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2014 5:31 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Halved Xenon Stinging »

David Mccullough's John Adams has helped me power almost every single question regarding colonial to early American history
Devin Shang
Lexington High School Co-Captain '16
Pomona '20
2016 National History Bee Runner-Up, 2016 National History Bowl Runner-Up
NAQT Writer
NHBB Writer
User avatar
1992 in spaceflight
Auron
Posts: 1614
Joined: Wed Jun 01, 2011 8:11 pm
Location: St. Louis-area, MO

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by 1992 in spaceflight »

I'd love some recommendations for books on Religion.
Jacob O'Rourke
Washington (MO) HS Assistant Coach (2014-Present); MOQBA Secretary (2015-Present)
Formerly: AQBL Administrator (2020-2023); HSAPQ Host Contact; NASAT Outreach Coordinator (2016 and 2017); Kirksville HS Assistant Coach (2012-2014); Truman State '14; and Pacific High (MO) '10


Like MOQBA on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!
User avatar
zachary_yan
Lulu
Posts: 76
Joined: Wed Mar 13, 2013 11:56 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by zachary_yan »

The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:I'd love some recommendations for books on Religion.
Sparknotes has pretty good summaries of the major books of the Bible.
Wayzata '13
St. Olaf College
Wayzata middle schools assistant
User avatar
at your pleasure
Auron
Posts: 1723
Joined: Sun Aug 03, 2008 7:56 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by at your pleasure »

Warlockoftheeast wrote:Is there any opinions on Europe: A History by Norman Davies? Also, does The Golden Bough have any external quizbowl purposes besides tossups about it?
My dim memory of attempting to read The Golden Bough is that there's nothing in it that you couldn't find in more recent and more worthwhile works on religion and comparative mythology.
The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:I'd love some recommendations for books on Religion.
Jewish Literacy by Joseph Telushkin is a perfectly cromulent survey of more or less most Judaism-related things that come up in quizbowl, although apparently the current edition has more of a wacky-right-wing slant than the one I have has. If you want to learn about Christianity for quizbowl purposes, studying art history is a surprisingly effective and memorable way to kill two birds with one stone-I suppose in this case the things to look at are survey books on Late Antique/Byzantine/Medieval/Renaissance art, so David Talbot Rice's Art of The Byzantine Era, Peter Lasko's Ars Sacra 800-1200, the catalog to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Byzantium and Islam show, Michael Baxandall's Painting and Experience in Fifteenth Century Italy or any one of the innumerable surveys of Renaissance art will all be useful value here.
Douglas Graebner, Walt Whitman HS 10, Uchicago 14
"... imagination acts upon man as really as does gravitation, and may kill him as certainly as a dose of prussic acid."-Sir James Frazer,The Golden Bough

http://avorticistking.wordpress.com/
jonah
Auron
Posts: 2383
Joined: Thu Jul 20, 2006 5:51 pm
Location: Chicago

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by jonah »

at your pleasure wrote:
The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi wrote:I'd love some recommendations for books on Religion.
Jewish Literacy by Joseph Telushkin is a perfectly cromulent survey of more or less most Judaism-related things that come up in quizbowl, although apparently the current edition has more of a wacky-right-wing slant than the one I have has.
I came here to say that, then changed my mind on the assumption that no one wants to read 700 pages on this subject. Regardless, it is a very good book, nonwithstanding apparent changes in later editions.
Jonah Greenthal
National Academic Quiz Tournaments
User avatar
naesorman555
Lulu
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon May 27, 2013 1:40 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by naesorman555 »

Not sure if anybody's mentioned it yet, but An Incomplete Education is great. Covering art, lit, history, mythology, philosophy, Econ, just about every topic is at least highlighted. Book's also pretty witty too
Sean Moran
Hoover High School Quiz Bowl player (2009-2013)
Hoover High School Assistant coach (2013-present)
Birmingham-Southern College Class of 2017
Eddie
Rikku
Posts: 454
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2012 6:59 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Eddie »

What are some good books on the history of ancient Egypt, the history of the ancient Near East, or the history of ancient and classical Japan?
Eddie
he/him/his/hine
UCSD, UCLA
User avatar
i never see pigeons in wheeling
Rikku
Posts: 440
Joined: Mon May 31, 2010 3:57 am

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by i never see pigeons in wheeling »

Dmitri Shostakovich wrote:What are some good books on the history of ancient Egypt, the history of the ancient Near East, or the history of ancient and classical Japan?
For surveys on these topics, classes of mine have used:
Egypt, Greece, and Rome by Charles Freeman
The Japanese Experience by W.G. Beasley
Ankit
Cal '16
Bellarmine College Preparatory '12
User avatar
Mike Bentley
Sin
Posts: 6461
Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:03 pm
Location: Bellevue, WA
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Mike Bentley »

Came across this interesting site today: http://backlist.cc/

Its slogan is "Historians recommend the books they love." Essentially, a historian will write about some subject ("The History of Modern China") and then list out some of the best books in the field about the subject, from overviews to specialized texts.
Mike Bentley
Treasurer, Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence
Adviser, Quizbowl Team at University of Washington
University of Maryland, Class of 2008
User avatar
Zealots of Stockholm
Tidus
Posts: 622
Joined: Fri Jul 10, 2015 3:28 am
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Zealots of Stockholm »

Does anyone have any recommendations for somewhat specific history? I'm open to pretty much anything more specific than just "US/World/Euro" history.
Chandler West
Staff, Emory
Vanderbilt University '22
Auburn University '20
Good Hope High School (Cullman, AL) '16
Full Member, ACF; Member, PACE
Writer/editor, ACF, PACE, IQBT
User avatar
SpanishSpy
Wakka
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Sep 30, 2016 1:19 am
Location: Arlington, Virginia

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by SpanishSpy »

Back when I played for Washington-Lee I had one book in particular that got me lots of points - An Incomplete Education: 3,684 Things You Should Have Learned but Probably Didn't gives a basic but entertaining overview of various academic topics. I remember getting plenty of tossups from it, especially one on Kierkegaard.
Alex Wallace
Washington-Lee High School Class of 2015
College of William & Mary Class of 2019
User avatar
Antonio777100
Lulu
Posts: 21
Joined: Fri Sep 25, 2015 3:27 pm
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Antonio777100 »

Anyone know of any good books for studying music?
Antonio Jimenez

Cardinal Spellman High School '17
University of Pennsylvania '21
Member, PACE
User avatar
vinteuil
Auron
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2011 12:31 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by vinteuil »

Take a look at this thread: viewtopic.php?f=117&t=19328
Jacob R., ex-Chicago
User avatar
SpanishSpy
Wakka
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Sep 30, 2016 1:19 am
Location: Arlington, Virginia

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by SpanishSpy »

Any good books for Europe from the Reformation to the Seven Years' War, the English Civil Wars, and pre-Revolutionary America?
Alex Wallace
Washington-Lee High School Class of 2015
College of William & Mary Class of 2019
User avatar
Skepticism and Animal Feed
Auron
Posts: 3238
Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2004 11:47 pm
Location: Arlington, VA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Skepticism and Animal Feed »

The English Civil War: A People's History by Diane Purkiss is described by one of its reviewers as "extraordinarily popular" and is the book I read about the English Civil War for quizbowl purposes. Also I once had a wild bird fly into my parents house, and of the hundreds of books I own (and left at my parents when I moved out), it choose to land on that book.
Bruce
Harvard '10 / UChicago '07 / Roycemore School '04
ACF Member emeritus
My guide to using Wikipedia as a question source
User avatar
Important Bird Area
Forums Staff: Administrator
Posts: 6112
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:33 pm
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Important Bird Area »

SpanishSpy wrote:Any good books for Europe from the Reformation to the Seven Years' War
Try The Pursuit of Glory by Tim Blanning.
Jeff Hoppes
President, Northern California Quiz Bowl Alliance
former HSQB Chief Admin (2012-13)
VP for Communication and history subject editor, NAQT
Editor emeritus, ACF

"I wish to make some kind of joke about Jeff's love of birds, but I always fear he'll turn them on me Hitchcock-style." -Fred
jonah
Auron
Posts: 2383
Joined: Thu Jul 20, 2006 5:51 pm
Location: Chicago

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by jonah »

Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:The English Civil War: A People's History by Diane Purkiss is described by one of its reviewers as "extraordinarily popular" and is the book I read about the English Civil War for quizbowl purposes. Also I once had a wild bird fly into my parents house, and of the hundreds of books I own (and left at my parents when I moved out), it choose to land on that book.
And then Jeff has the nerve to recommend a different book?!
Jonah Greenthal
National Academic Quiz Tournaments
User avatar
Important Bird Area
Forums Staff: Administrator
Posts: 6112
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:33 pm
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Important Bird Area »

Skepticism and Animal Feed wrote:Also I once had a wild bird fly into my parents house, and of the hundreds of books I own (and left at my parents when I moved out), it choose to land on that book.
Bruce captured my spirit animal!

Edit: yes, Jonah, I have the nerve

Purkiss's book is very good, but it probably wouldn't be my first choice for quizbowl use, at least until the world is ready for that common-link tossup on _cookbook_s written during the _English Civil War_.

Michael Braddick, God's Fury, England's Fire is my favorite short overview.

More to recommend:

Derek Hirst, England in Conflict
Conrad Russell, The Causes of the English Civil War
Anthony Fletcher, The Outbreak of the English Civil War
Austin Woolrych, Britain in Revolution 1625-1660
J. P. Kenyon and Jane Ohlmeyer, The Civil Wars: A Military History of England, Scotland, and Ireland 1638-1660
R. H. Parry, The English Civil War and After
the three volumes by C. V. Wedgwood, The King's Peace, The King's War, and A Coffin for King Charles
Austin Woolrych, Battles of the English Civil War
Ronald Hutton, The Royalist War Effort
Ian Gentles, The New Model Army
Christopher Hill, The World Turned Upside Down: Radical Ideas during the English Revolution
Jonathan Scott, England's Troubles: Seventeenth-century English Political Instability in European Context
Blair Worden, Roundhead Reputations: The English Civil War and the Passions of Posterity
Jeff Hoppes
President, Northern California Quiz Bowl Alliance
former HSQB Chief Admin (2012-13)
VP for Communication and history subject editor, NAQT
Editor emeritus, ACF

"I wish to make some kind of joke about Jeff's love of birds, but I always fear he'll turn them on me Hitchcock-style." -Fred
User avatar
Sam
Rikku
Posts: 338
Joined: Sat Nov 07, 2009 2:35 am

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Sam »

Mike Bentley wrote:Came across this interesting site today: http://backlist.cc/

Its slogan is "Historians recommend the books they love." Essentially, a historian will write about some subject ("The History of Modern China") and then list out some of the best books in the field about the subject, from overviews to specialized texts.
This unfortunately seems to have cooled down since last summer, but a similar site (albeit of more uneven quality) is http://fivebooks.com. There's a less academic focus overall than backlist and some of the choices are less than inspired, but it's an interesting place to get ideas.
Sam Bailey
Minnesota '21
Chicago '13
User avatar
SpanishSpy
Wakka
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Sep 30, 2016 1:19 am
Location: Arlington, Virginia

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by SpanishSpy »

Just want to give a belated thanks to the people who gave recommendations. Once I'm done with the books I'm currently reading I'll give them a look.
Alex Wallace
Washington-Lee High School Class of 2015
College of William & Mary Class of 2019
vydu
Lulu
Posts: 34
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 2:10 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by vydu »

Can anybody recommend me books on the history of science/mathematics?
Vincent Du
UNC '22, '27
User avatar
Mike Bentley
Sin
Posts: 6461
Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:03 pm
Location: Bellevue, WA
Contact:

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Mike Bentley »

vydu wrote:Can anybody recommend me books on the history of science/mathematics?
It's not limited to just science per se, but Robert Friedel's A Culture of Improvement is an excellent survey of the history of technology since the middle ages.

MIT University Press has a ton of great books on more specific science history, especially in the field of computing.
Mike Bentley
Treasurer, Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence
Adviser, Quizbowl Team at University of Washington
University of Maryland, Class of 2008
Vivek Bhave
Kimahri
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Feb 05, 2013 11:23 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Vivek Bhave »

The Library of Congress Country Studies are an excellent (albeit outdated) source of history and geography material that you can (legally) read for free on the Internet. There is also an iPhode /iPad app providing free access to the Encyclopedia Britannica that may be helpful.
Last edited by Vivek Bhave on Sun Jun 18, 2017 7:03 pm, edited 7 times in total.
Vivek Bhave
Eaglebrook School (Coach) 2021-present
UC Berkeley 2011-2014
UC San Diego 2009-2011
Torrey Pines High School 2005-2009
qiu621
Lulu
Posts: 7
Joined: Sun Jun 14, 2015 2:06 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by qiu621 »

Can somebody recommend to me books on Aztec and Egyptian mythology?
Jeffrey Qiu
Canyon Crest Academy '18
User avatar
Majin Buu Roi
Wakka
Posts: 145
Joined: Sat May 17, 2014 1:52 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Majin Buu Roi »

qiu621 wrote:Can somebody recommend to me books on Aztec and Egyptian mythology?
I've got nothing for Aztec, but Gods, Heroes and Monsters by Carolina Lopez-Ruiz is fantastic for deeper cuts of Egyptian myth, and I can guarantee that it will also comically over-prepare you for any ancient near eastern myth if you read it. For introductions, you'd be surprised how good even basic children's books can be for the high school level stuff, but more rigorously there's also the stuff by Geraldine Pinch and the Seinfeldianly-named Jan Assmann.
Jason Golfinos
Trinity School '13 (inexplicably in charge, 2011-13)
Princeton '17 (inexplicably in charge, 2015-16)
Cambridge '18
HLS '22
User avatar
Skepticism and Animal Feed
Auron
Posts: 3238
Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2004 11:47 pm
Location: Arlington, VA

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by Skepticism and Animal Feed »

https://www.amazon.com/Flayed-God-Mesoa ... 0062507494

The Flayed God was recommended to me in 2004 by one of the greatest myth players in quizbowl history when I asked him how to get better at Mesoamerican mythology. The book was a decade old then and is now over two decades old now, but I pass this advice on nonetheless.
Bruce
Harvard '10 / UChicago '07 / Roycemore School '04
ACF Member emeritus
My guide to using Wikipedia as a question source
User avatar
tksaleija
Wakka
Posts: 240
Joined: Fri Jun 30, 2017 8:27 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by tksaleija »

I've seen a lot of people note Benet's as a poor source. I just grabbed it from the library but I haven't had a chance to really read through it. What's the big issue with it?

I've also been reading An Incomplete Education some and I've found that's useful as a general knowledge "handbook." It covers art, music, lit, history, etc (pretty much the Big Stuff™) but lacks some information that would be important for quiz bowl. Definitely use it reference and study, but complimentary to the other books suggested in this forum.
Aleija Rodriguez
University of Michigan 202x
MCMC/MCCC 2019
User avatar
physicsnerd
Lulu
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Jan 11, 2018 2:22 pm

Re: Books "for Quizbowl"

Post by physicsnerd »

This is a really old thread, but I thought I'd add some stuff for people who are browsing now.

For mythology, all of Rick Riordan's books. It may seem nuts, but if you like reading fiction, it's got all the greek, egyptian, and norse myth you'll need to start out with (for the most part, anyway). Pretty much all the points from mythology I've gotten are from those. The Book of Great Books, while it only covers 100 classics, does so in rather impressive depth (very comparable to Wikipedia) and also includes themes, author bios, etc. The New York Times Guide To Essential Knowledge is another reference book that is nice to get an idea of topics to study, though it does have a lot of stuff that you definitely don't need in quiz bowl (a guide to wine connoisseur, anyone?) and I don't really like its organizational style.

For science, The Scientists by John Gribbin and A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson really help to give context to a lot of scientists/their work, and both cover astronomy, physics, chemistry, biology, and earth science. (For a more middle school level/low highschool level, I'd recommend Joy Hakim's 3 book "The Story of Science".) Chemistry: The Central Science is what I'm currently reading to study for chemistry. It covers nuclear, bio, organic, and inorganic chemistry, but we'll see how much it actually helps with quiz bowl. Reading pop-sci books is also nice - think Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time/The Universe in a Nutshell, one or two of Brian Greene's books on string theory, John Gribbin has one called In Search of Schrodinger's Cat, Sean (?) Carroll has a book called the arrow of time or something like that that talks a lot about cosmology and entropy, etc.

I saw there was a comment up above on studying for biblical questions - I would read the gospels, Acts, and Revelation (though if you're short on time, pick one gospel, they do overlap quite a bit) from the New Testament and Genesis, Exodus, and 1st Samuel through 2nd Chronicles. If you do this and also read through summaries of some other biblical stories (Daniel, Ruth, Esther, a short summary of which churches Paul sent letters to, Joshua, Sampson) you'll be, I think, more than good for most of the questions I've heard come up.

History-wise, when I was younger I really enjoyed Joy Hakim's History of US which *is* 9 books, but they're all pretty short and easy reading. They also have some quotes from primary sources. Very good crash course in U.S. History. (Speaking of Crash Course, their videos are pretty good and cover most topics - I especially like their literature ones and have buzzed based on those quite a bit.) Finally, in terms of art/art history, when I was younger, I played Go Fish for Art (they have ones for a lot of different "schools") which is just kind of fun and allows you to know the artist, title of the work, and view the painting itself. It can be kind of nice to look at a museum guide, which generally contains a picture of the work, a short history of the work and the artist, and the date it was produced.

Hope this helps.
Auden (class of '25)
Waukee A (Iowa) 2017-2018
NoHo A (SoCal) - 2018-2021
UC Berkeley - 2021?

Read Percy Jackson to study myth, you must
Post Reply