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Modern History

There isn't more history in the last five centuries than all the previous millennia, we just have more plentiful records of it. In all honesty, sometimes the plethora of detail isn't only overwhelming, it obscures the whole point of the story. As humans, we're all too susceptible to the lure of obscurity, to the desire for darkness where there ought to be light.

In many ways, this is the chief characteristic of modern history. Mankind seems to have accepted Enlightenment ideals en masse, and the result is the non-stop acquisition of knowledge, as though information could shut us off from the eye of a just and jealous God. Evolutionary theory, psychology, existentialism and postmodernism, public education, Communism—all these ideas are intended to put man at a further remove from God.

During the Renaissance, thinkers and artists decided that if man was going to make himself great, he'd have to replicate the glory of the Classical Era, with its enduring artifacts and intellectual produce. Enlightenment thinkers took this one step further, insisting that man could only know what he could deduce using reason alone, and consequently amassing knowledge in order to have a more thorough basis for such reasonable inquiry.

Since then, philosophers and scientists have devoted themselves to interpreting the facts from a purely human perspective, creating a picture of the universe that is mechanistic and godless. Meaning is dead, God is dead, and hope is dead, but the Enlightenment ideal of human progress (repackaged as Darwinian naturalism) is alive and well, the phantom idol of countless millions.

Even a brief survey of the last century would seem to demolish the possibility of any such idea, but it continues to inform nearly every element of our culture, from pop music to public policy debates. Atrocities like the Holocaust, racism in America, abortion, and totalitarian rule in Asian countries are reinterpreted or explained away to fit the overarching rubrik of sustained forward progress.

Christians understand things a bit differently. We aren't pessimists by any means, but we aren't blind optimists, either. God's plan entails one thing: His ultimate glory, and for those who believe His promises and trust Him for salvation, that's the most hopeful doctrine conceivable. At the same time, we also understand that man's efforts cannot be responsible for whatever good befalls us, that "progress" is only a gift of the Most High, and that only through the Holy Spirit is evil overcome by good.

The modern world is increasingly secular. Even in the Church, men and women stray from biblical truth in favor of appealing arguments on behalf of man, substituting a Christ-centered Gospel with one that is primarily focused on mankind and our individual salvation. We must counter these attitudes with God's truth, but we can only do so with an understanding of where those ideas come from and why they've taken root. A thorough study of modern history can and will provide those answers, and teach us how to stand firm in the truth we hold dear.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Abraham Lincoln: Great Speeches
Dover Thrift Editions
by Abraham Lincoln & John Grafton, editor
from Dover Publications
Political Philosophy for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$4.25
Abraham Lincoln: The Man & His Faith
by G. Frederick Owen
from Tyndale House
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Admiral David Glasgow Farragut
by Chester G. Hearn
from US Naval Institute Press
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Adventures of Davy Crockett
by David Crockett, illustrated by John W. Thomason
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Adventures of Theodore Roosevelt
by Theodore Roosevelt
from National Geographic
for 9th-Adult
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
$11.20
Against the Tide
by Hope Irvin Marston
from P&R Publishing
for 9th-Adult
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99
Agatha Christie: An Autobiography
by Agatha Christie
2012 Reissue from William Morrow & Company
for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Aku-Aku
by Thor Heyerdahl
from Rand McNally
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Alexander Hamilton
by Ron Chernow
from Penguin Random House
for 11th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Alice
by Stacey A. Cordery
from Viking Press
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Amazing Grace
by Eric Metaxas
from HarperOne
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$13.59
Amazing Mr. Doolittle
by Quentin Reynolds
from Appleton-Century-Crofts
for 10th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
America 1933
by Michael Golay
from Free Press
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
America the Beautiful/ A Man of Destiny
by the editors of Country Beautiful Magazine
from Country Beautiful
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in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
American Caesar
by William Manchester
from Little, Brown & Company
for 10th grade-adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House
by Jon Meacham
from Random House
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
American Ulysses
by Ronald C. White
from Random House
for Adult
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Americanization of Benjamin Franklin
by Gordon S. Wood
from Penguin Books
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments with Truth
by M. K. Gandhi
from Navajivan Publishing House
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Anne Bradstreet
by Heidi L. Nichols
from P&R Publishing
Biography for 10th-Adult
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
$9.79 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Anne Bradstreet
Christian Renegades Series
by Doug Wilson
3rd edition from Canon Press
Biography for
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$13.56
Anne Bradstreet
by Faith Cook
from Evangelical Press
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Annotated Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant
by Ulysses S. Grant
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 10th-Adult
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Annotated Uncle Tom's Cabin
by Harriet Beecher Stowe
from Paul S. Eriksson, INC.
Realistic Fiction for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Apostle of Liberty
by Stephen McDowell
from Cumberland House
Biography for 9th-Adult
in Leaders in Action (Location: BIO-LIA)
At the End of the Santa Fe Trail
by Sister Blandina Segale
4th Printing from Bruce Publishing Co.
for Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
Dover Thrift Editions
by Benjamin Franklin
from Dover Publications
for 9th-Adult
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$5.95
Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
World's Greatest Literature
by Benjamin Franklin
from Spencer Press
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini
by Benvenuto Cellini
from International Collectors Library
for 9th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Autobiography of George Muller
by George Muller
from Whitaker House
Biography for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.49
Autobiography of William Allen White
by William Allen White
from Macmillan
for Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
B. Franklin, Printer
by David A. Adler
from Holiday House
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$6.40 (2 in stock)
Band of Brothers
by Stephen Ambrose, Foreword by Tom Hanks
25th anniversary from Simon and Schuster
for 10th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$19.99
Battle from the Start
by Brian Steel Wills
from HarperCollins
for 9th grade-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Beatrix Potter's Journal (Abridged)
by Beatrix Potter, abridged and introduced by Glen Cavaliero
from Viking Press
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Becoming Elisabeth Elliot
by Ellen Vaughn
from Broadman & Holman
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.20 (1 in stock)
Becoming Mrs. Lewis
by Patti Callahan
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Behind the Scenes
by Elizabeth Keckley, edited by Frances Smith Foster
from Lakeside Press
for 10th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Ben Snipes, Northwest Cattle King
by Roscoe Sheller
Third Edition from Binford & Mort Publishing
for 7th-Adult
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Benjamin Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings
Signet Classics
by Benjamin Franklin
Reprint from Signet Classics
Autobiography for 9th-Adult
in 18th Century Literature (Location: LIT5-18)
$5.06
Better a Shield Than a Sword
by Edward Teller
from Free Press
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Between the Lines
by Tom and Delphine Frazier
from Regent Press
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Beyond Stateliest Marble
Leaders in Action Series
by Doug Wilson
from Cumberland House
Biography for
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Bismarck and the Foundation of the German Empire
by James Headlam
from CreateSpace
for 10th-Adult
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$8.99
Bombs and Blessings
by Retha Hazel Eldridge
from Review and Herald Publishing Association
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Bonhoeffer
by Eric Metaxas, foreword by Timothy J. Keller
Revised and Updated from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 11th-Adult
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$22.94
Bonhoeffer on the Christian Life
Theologians on the Christian Life
by Stephen J. Nichols
from Crossway Books
for Adult
in Practical Christian Living (Location: XCL-PRAC)
Born to Run
by Christopher McDougall
from Vintage Books
for 9th-Adult
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Boys in the Boat
by Daniel James Brown
Reprint from Penguin Putnam
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Boys in the Boat
by Daniel James Brown
from Viking Press
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Brendan Voyage
Modern Library Exploration
by Tim Severin
from Modern Library
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$19.00
Bridge to the Sun
by Gwen Terasaki
from Rock Creek Books
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$15.99
Bruchko
by Bruce Olson
from Charisma House
Biography for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99
Bruchko
by Bruce Olson
Updated from Charisma House
for 10th-Adult
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Bruchko and the Motilone Miracle
by Bruce Olson
from Charisma House
Biography for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.74
Buffalo Bill and the Wild West
by Henry Blackman Sell and Victor Weybright
Reprint from International Cody Family Assoc.
for Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Buffalo Bill's Life Story
by William F. Cody, Illustrated by N.C. Wyeth
1966 printing from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for 6th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Bulletproof George Washington
by David Barton
2nd edition from WallBuilder Press
Biography for 9th-adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Bulletproof George Washington
by David Barton
3rd edition from WallBuilder Press
Biography for 9th-adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Bully Pulpit
by Doris Kearns Goodwin
from Simon and Schuster
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
Bunyan Characters
by Alexander Whyte
from Baker Books
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Burma Surgeon
by Gordon S. Seagrave
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
C. S. Lewis: A Life
by Alister McGrath
from Tyndale House
for 10th-Adult
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$21.24
Captain Cook
by Alistair MacLean
from Doubleday & Company
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Captain Cook R. N. the Resolute Mariner
by Thomas Vaughan and A. A. St. C. M. Murray-Oliver
from Oregon Historical Society Press
Museum Exhibition Catalog for Adult
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Captured!
by Carolyn Paine Miller
1st edition from Christian Herald Books
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Chance to Die
by Elisabeth Elliot
from Revell Publishing
Biography for 8th-12th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$19.54
Cheer the Lonesome Traveller
by Leslie Alexander Lacy, illustrated by James Barkley
from Dial Press
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
China Cry
by Nora Lam with Richard Schneider
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Choices, Changes
by Joni Eareckson Tada
from Zondervan
Biography for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Christianity and the Constitution
by John Eidsmoe
from Baker Academics
for Adult
in Christianity and the State (Location: XWV-STA)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Christopher Columbus and His Legacy
Opposing Viewpoints Series
by Mary Ellen Jones, Editor
from Greenhaven Press
for 10th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Christopher Columbus: His Story and His Journals
Knowledge Keepers Home Library Series 1492
by Edward Everett Hale and Edward Gaylord Bourne
from Knowledge Keepers
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Churchill
by Paul Johnson
Reprint from Penguin Putnam
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.45
Churchill and Empire
by Lawrence James
from Pegasus Books
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
Churchill: Walking with Destiny
by Andrew Roberts
from Penguin Books
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Clive Staples Lewis
by William Griffin
from Harper & Row
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Co. Aytch
by Sam Watkins
from Touchstone
Historical Non-fiction for 8th-Adult
in American Civil War Era (1850-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$17.00
Colonial Entrepreneur
by Olivia Coolidge, edited by Danny Smith
from Tilbury House Publishing
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Columbus
by Bjorn Landstrom
from George Allen & Unwin Ltd.
for 9th-Adult
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
Columbus and Cortez, Conquerors for Christ
by John Eidsmoe
from New Leaf Press
Biography for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Comes the Comrade!
by Alexandra Orme, translated from the Polish by M.A. Michael and L. Meyer
from William Morrow & Company
for 10th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Complete Maus
by Art Spiegelman
from Pantheon Books
for 10th-Adult
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
Complete Maus
by Art Spiegelman
from Pantheon Books
for 10th-Adult
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
Coolidge
by Amity Shlaes
from Harper Perennial
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
Count Luckner, the Sea Devil
by Lowell Thomas
from Garden City Books
for Adult
in Nautical History (Location: VIN-NAUT)
Cry of the Kalahari
by Mark and Delia Owens
from Houghton Mifflin
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
David Crockett: His Life and Adventures
by John S. C. Abbott
from CreateSpace
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.99
Dearest Mama
by Roger Fulford, editor
from Evans Brothers Limited
for Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Death Valley Scotty
from Trans-Anglo Press
for Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$12.80 (1 in stock)
Declaration of Independence with Short Biographies of its Signers
by Thomas Jefferson
from Applewood Books
Primary Source Documents for 9th-Adult
in 18th Century Literature (Location: LIT5-18)
Defeating the Totalitarian Lie
by Hilmar Von Campe
from HighWay
for 8th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Diary of a Napoleanic Foot Soldier
by Jakob Walter
from Penguin Putnam
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$5.20 (1 in stock)
Diary of a Young Girl
by Anne Frank
from International Collectors Library
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Diary of a Young Girl
by Anne Frank
from Bantam Books
Biography for 7th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.64
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: An Evangelical Reassessment
by Georg Huntemann
from Baker Books
for Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Discoverers
by Daniel J. Boorstin
from Vintage Classics
for 10th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$26.00
Discovery of Guiana
by Walter Raleigh
from Living Book Press
for 10th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$6.99
Easy Company Soldier
by Sgt. Don Malarkey
from St. Martin's Press
for 11th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
Edwardian Lady
by Ina Taylor
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
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in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.80 (1 in stock)
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