So a couple people i know, respected and trusted older people recommended some "light" reading:
Book of Enoch
I Maccabees (read first Maccabees)
II Maccabees (read second Maccabees)
The Book of Wisdom
Others have posted before, but it cannot be emphasized enough, these outline historical events which directly talk to events transpiring today.
If you understand history, you understand the present, and can help shape it.
No, its just the message didn't directly fit into the grace narrative. I had a long discussion with a couple gentlemen years ago. The general consensus was that regardless of content it was unimportant to salvation, so it didn't matter that it wasn't canonized in todays bible. I tend to disagree personally, as history plays an important role in understanding why the present is what it is.