Thinking Blogger Award

I've been "tagged" for the first time ever! But this one has some, er, thought behind it. Kevin Levin at Civil War Memory picked me for a Thinking Blogger Award, which means that, in his estimation, I'm one of the 5 "thought provoking" blogs he reads:

The blog called Spinning Clio is a must stop for those looking to explore the space where politics and history intersect. No doubt there has been plenty to comment on over the past few years in that regard. You can be guaranteed that the posts are well crafted and while they do betray a bias on the part of the blogger the views are always fair and tightly argued. I love the "Reviewing the Reviewer" series; check out the latest installment critiquing a Woody Holton review.

I emailed Kevin already to thank him, but thanks again!

The next step is for me to pick 5 of my own. But first, where did this all start? Well, a fella called Ilker Yoldas was tired of blog memes (or tagging), but wanted to go out with a blaze of glory, so he came up with the Thinking Blogging Awards. These are the only rules:

The participation rules are simple:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think,
2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme,
3. Optional: Proudly display the 'Thinking Blogger Award' with a link to the post that you wrote (here is an alternative silver version if gold doesn't fit your blog).

Here are my five "Thinking Bloggers":

1) Light Seeking Light - Whether he knows it or not, Dale Light is a blogging mentor of mine. His insightful analysis of current events is steeped in his knowledge of history and it all comes from a right of center perspective--something rare in the history profession, to be sure. But he doesn't just dig into "thick" history topics. You never know when a movie or theatre review or a bit of poetry or even a swimsuit model will show up. Always entertaining and informative.

2) The Rhine River - Nathanael Robinson makes me think. Really deep thoughts about geography and history and literature and history and an occasional personal story. I envy his ability to cross academic disciplines and pull common threads together. The result is often a new and thought-provoking post about a topic that you had previously thought had been part of well-trod historical ground. Nothing else to say but hop in a boat and float down the Rhine, you'll be happy you did.

3) Blogenspiel - Another Damned Medievalist is an anonymous professor at a Big University on the East Coast with an interest in early medieval history. Many (if not most) of her posts deal with her life in academia, which give a non-academic historian like myself a view into how the "other side" lives. As a fellow medievalist, what really keeps me coming back are her (too rare!) posts on early medieval history. In fact, the scarcity of those posts are the only reason I'd damn her!

4) History Is Elementary - I love reading the pedagogical insights from this Georgia teacher on such things like the French and Indian War or Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (and here). Other than early medieval stuff, I also have a special interest in American History from Colonial times through the Early Republic and she posts quite a bit about these topics, including a whole bunch on the American Revolution. Finally, her Wordless Wednesday postings feature images of just about anything, most with some historical link. But you've gotta guess!

5) Cacciaguida - A recent find, I probably like his posts because he's a medievalist, a conservative Catholic and a Dad just like me. Plus he's pithy. I like pithy (probably because I rarely am).

There you have 'em, 5 blogs I like to read that offer up some o' that food for thought.