Category: Books/Museum Reviews

  • Liberty’s Chain by David Gellman

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Liberty’s Chain: A lot of mixed messages in this one. Quick synopsis: The story of Founding Father, John Jay, his descendants and their relation to slavery. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: John Jay still had slaves while serving as a prominent abolitionist. Fun Fact for History Nerds: In the six…

  • The Kingdom of the Anglo-Saxons by Paul Hill

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Kingdom of the Anglo-Saxons: Who would have thought writing stuff down would make such a difference. Quick synopsis: The story of England around the time of Alfred the Great. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Alfred the Great kept a third of his revenues to provide gifts to visiting dignitaries…

  • Diamonds and Deadlines by Betsy Prioleau

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Diamonds and Deadlines: Sometimes a name change is all you need. Quick synopsis: The story of publishing giant and trailblazer Mrs. Frank Leslie. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: In mid-1800s New York City, approximately 20% of the female population practiced prostitution. Fun Fact for History Nerds: 17% of the male…

  • Facing the Mountain by Daniel James Brown

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Facing the Mountain: Well, this entire situation is a really bad look. Quick synopsis: The story of multiple Japanese Americans through the trials of World War II at home and abroad. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: People during World War II thought dogs could track Japanese people better because…. they…

  • A Flick of Sunshine by Frederic and Alexander Hill

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for A Flick of Sunshine: If your boat gets shipwrecked, never sail again. Quick synopsis: A biography of Richard Willis Jackson who had some of the most amazing bad luck and good luck simultaneously. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Coconut milk was used by islanders in the Pacific when they had…

  • The Sinner and the Saint by Kevin Birmingham

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Sinner and the Saint: Hard to feel bad about your own life when you read about Dostoevsky. Quick synopsis: A biography of Fyodor Dostoevsky as he writes Crime and Punishment with inspiration from a notorious French criminal. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: On page 225, Kevin Birmingham pulls out…

  • Three Ordinary Girls by Tim Brady

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Three Ordinary Girls: Who says women can’t work together? Quick synopsis: The story of three Dutch badasses, Hannie Schaft, Freddie Oversteegen, and Truus Oversteegen. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: “I shoot better.” Read the book. You’ll get there. Fun Fact for History Nerds: The three women’s legacies were very…. complicated…

  • Grandma Gatewood’s Walk by Ben Montgomery

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: Prepare to have no good argument against getting that walk in today. Quick synopsis: The story of Grandma Gatewood walking the whole Appalachian Trail. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Oh, forgot the important parts. She was 71 when she walked the ENTIRE trail which is 2,050 miles.…

  • White Hot Hate by Dick Lehr

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for White Hot Hate: Even idiots can put together explosives. Quick synopsis: The story of a domestic terrorism cell in Kansas in 2016. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Listening devices are much better nowadays. Even the FBI out in Kansas have pocket sized listening devices which can record for hours. Remember…