For a good amount of time now, I have been witnessing history pages popping up in the light of politics and religion claiming to be "researchers" (which is an insult to researchers who spend their entire life in reading and understanding history and have degrees) and people actually believing every word that these pages, websites and people say. So here is my own brief understanding of how to actually "read" history. 1. Find a topic (can be an event, a person, a dynasty) 2. Look up popular writers on the topic. (Check out their international recognitions, degrees and area of expertise) 3. Look up books with good reviews. 4. Pick your book. Make sure it has a reference and a Bibliography given. 5. Cross-check facts with the references given. Read up on the books given in the bibliography. 6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the next book. 7. If you are reading about dynasties, make sure you read their contemporary accounts, in the earliest possible translation and modern tr...