Category: Books/Museum Reviews

  • The Rest is History by Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Rest is History: Historians gone wild. Quick synopsis: Basically, whatever Tom and Dom felt like writing down about history in various forms. Fact for Non-History People: The first formal celebration of Christmas wasn’t until the year 336. AD, obviously. Fact for History Nerds: Stanley Baldwin, a very rich British PM,…

  • The Black Angels by Maria Smilios

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Black Angels: If you need something done, find yourself a nurse. Quick synopsis: The story of the Black nurses who helped cure tuberculosis. Fact for Non-History People: Tuberculosis killed Doc Holliday at age 36. Fact for History Nerds: In the first half of the twentieth century, tuberculosis killed 5.6 million…

  • Disneyland on the Mountain by Greg Glasgow and Kathryn Mayer

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Disneyland on the Mountain: Is there any place the mouse won’t set up shop? Quick synopsis: The story of Walt Disney’s attempt to build a ski resort. Fact for Non-History People: Bambi lost money at the box office. Fact for History Nerds: Walt Disney was so strapped for cash in 1938…

  • The Last Ships from Hamburg by Steven Ujifusa

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Last Ships from Hamburg: 99 problems but a ship ain’t one. Quick synopsis: The story of the men instrumental in the Jewish exodus from Eastern Europe before World War I. Fact for Non-History People: Thomas Ismay purchased the White Star Line in 1867 for only one thousand pounds. Yes, the…

  • 60 Songs That Explain the 90s by Rob Harvilla

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for 60 Songs That Explain the 90s: Just put the nostalgia directly in my veins! Quick synopsis: Um, just look at the title. Fact for Non-History People: Green Day’s Dookie sold 20 million copies. Fact for History Nerds: Everyone in Metallica, including the drummer Lars Ulrich, concede that Lars is an overrated…

  • Unwavering by Taylor Kiland and Judy Gray

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Unwavering: Hell hath no fury like a military spouse. Quick synopsis: The story of the POW/MIA movement during the Vietnam War. Fact for Non-History People: There were 591 American servicemen repatriated in 1973 from Vietnam. Fact for History Nerds: 643,000 tons of bombs were dropped on Vietnam over the three-and-a-half-year campaign…

  • Founding Partisans by H.W. Brands

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Founding Partisans: Always Team Hamilton. Quick synopsis: A look at just how much partisan politics affected the early U.S. Fact for Non-History People: Hamilton crammed his legal studies into 6 months and then passed the NY bar. Fact for History Nerds: In the first election without Washington, Adams beat Jefferson by…

  • Battle for the Island Kingdom by Don Hollway

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Battle for the Island Kingdom: It’s good to be king. Until you get killed, probably by a family member. Quick synopsis: A look at England and its rulers from 1000-1066. Fact for Non-History People: A mail hauberk (shirt made of metal links) could take a thousand-man hours to create. Fact for…

  • The Last Outlaws by Tom Clavin

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Last Outlaws: Crime doesn’t pay unless you count the free bullets you get shot with. Quick synopsis: The story of the Dalton Gang and the end of the Wild West. Fact for Non-History People: Emmett Dalton was shot 23 times and didn’t die. Fact for History Nerds: The Daltons were…