When I was in high school I read a play called "Rhinoceros" about a small town where people kept turning into rhinos except the main character, who was kind of a John Nada worker type. He just watched friend after friend transformed into these wild destructive beasts, while the rest of the townspeople told the main character he was over reacting, paranoid, over thinking things. Then that townsperson or friend would turn into a rhino and go on a rampage.
I didn't understand it in 1996. But in the last 5 years or so I was thinking about it, looked it up to see what it was about and reread it. Apparently, its about people turning into fascists, and I was like ooooohhhhhh yeah that's dead on.
I also read lots of history but there is something about cultural work, maybe especially fictional, that let's us explore social and cultural themes within our own hearts and minds in a way that actually affords a better understanding of history. I used to get a little irritated by people quoting Margaret Atwood and George Orwell in political discussion, like engage with actual political history and theory, but now I realize you can read like 3-4 absolute doorstop books about the history of Russia from like 1850-1935, or you can read Animal Farm in a day and get the gist. The gist isn't good enough for some organizing and political work, but its a good enough principled foundation for the vast majority of people, esp young people. I just wish Orwell got to the part where Napoleon slaughters all the pigs who helped him take control of the farm in the first place.