But in terms of the spread of commerce, culture, religion and empire, Asia's is a largely maritime history, carried on the monsoon winds.

ECONOMIST: Banyan

If the book whets your curiosity about Scottish history, read John Prebble's Darien: The Scottish Dream of Empire, first published in 1968 and recently reissued in paperback.

FORBES: When Scotland Lost Its Mind

History: "Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam, " by Fredrik Logevall (Random House), a balanced, deeply researched history of how, as French colonial rule faltered, a succession of American leaders moved step by step down a road toward full-blown war.

WSJ: 2013 Pulitzer winners in journalism and arts