Category: Books/Museum Reviews
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The Zorg by Siddharth Kara
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Zorg: A historical horror story. Quick synopsis: The story of the slave ship which ignited the abolition movement. Fact for Non-History People: Netting was attached to slave ships to keep Africans from trying to drown themselves. Fact for History Nerds: Liverpool, England was responsible for 82% of all slaves trafficked…
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Useless Etymology by Jess Zafarris
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Useless Etymology: Useless, but fun! Quick synopsis: The wild and wonderful history of English words. Fact for Non-History People: “Hello” didn’t become a standard greeting until 1876. Fact for History Nerds: “Factoid” used to mean “fake news” basically. Now it means fun fact. Life is weird. My Take on Useless Etymology:…
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Race Against Terror by Jake Tapper
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Race Against Terror: Got the criminal — not sure about the court. Quick synopsis: The trial of Al-Qaeda terrorist, Spin Ghul, years after his murder of American soldiers in Afghanistan. Fact for Non-History People: At its height right before September 11th, 2001, Al-Qaeda had about 3,000 core members, but because of…
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Matisse at War by Christopher Gorham
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Matisse at War: A master caught in stasis. Quick synopsis: The story of the artist Henri Matisse during World War II. Fact for Non-History People: A bout of appendicitis in his 20s led to Matisse giving up a possible law career for art. Fact for History Nerds: His Odalisque couchée aux…
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The Gales of November by John Bacon
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Gales of November: If it’s November, don’t go on the Great Lakes. Quick synopsis: The story of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Fact for Non-History People: The Great Lakes hold 80% of North America’s freshwater and 20% of the entire world’s. Fact for History Nerds: Between 1875 and 1975,…
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Nemesis by Catherine Hanley
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Nemesis: Of course England’s greatest enemy is a Frenchman. Quick synopsis: The life of medieval French King Philip II aka Philip Augustus. Fact for Non-History People: During his reign, Philip doubled the size of the French royal domain. Fact for History Nerds: He was the first to order the streets of…
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Deadwood by Peter Cozzens
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Deadwood: Yup, better than the show (and I love the show). Quick synopsis: The story of the rise and fall of Deadwood. Fact for Non-History People: Within 5 months of the first gold strike in Deadwood, more than 200 buildings had been put up. Fact for History Nerds: The fabled “Dead…
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The Last Adieu by Ryan Cole
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Last Adieu: It was one hell of an adieu. Quick synopsis: The story of when the Marquis Lafayette returned to America decades after the revolution. Fact for Non-History People: Lafayette was commissioned a major general at the age of 19. Fact for History Nerds: Lafayette drafted the influential Declaration of…
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When You Come at the King by Elie Honig
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for When You Come at the King: You best not miss. Quick synopsis: A look at the U.S. Special Counsel cases from Nixon to today. Fact for Non-History People: In the first 18 years after the adoption of the Special Counsel, there was only one. Fact for History Nerds: However, starting in…