Tag: American history
-
The Fifteen by William Geroux
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Fifteen: A very one-sided trade proposal. Quick synopsis: The story of a prisoner exchange between the U.S. and Germany during World War II of soldiers facing the death penalty. Fact for Non-History People: There was approximately 400,000 German POWs in the U.S. during World War II. Fact for History Nerds:…
-
Boutwell by Jeffrey Boutwell
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Boutwell: The dude behind the dude. Quick synopsis: The life of Civil War era politician, George Boutwell. Fact for Non-History People: During Reconstruction, President Grant only declared martial law once and it was in South Carolina. Fact for History Nerds: The number of slaves in the U.S. tripled between 1790 to…
-
Trespassers at the Golden Gate by Gary Krist
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for A History of Trespassers at the Golden Gate: Live bold, die bold. Quick synopsis: The story of Gilded-Age San Francisco and a wild murder. Fact for Non-History People: San Francisco’s population was so young in the 1850s that the death of a 47-year-old carried the byline “Death of the Oldest Inhabitant…
-
Firestorm at Peshtigo by Denise Gess and William Lutz
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Firestorm at Peshtigo: Well, I’m certainly going to be nice to Forest Rangers after reading this. Quick synopsis: The story of the Peshtigo fire of 1871, the deadliest fire in American history. Fact for Non-History People: You may not have heard of this because it happened on the same exact day…
-
Blood and the Badge by Michael Cannell
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Blood and the Badge: Sometimes the apple falls right next to the damn tree. Quick synopsis: The story of two corrupt NYPD detectives in the 1980s. Fact for Non-History People: When an internal police trial is conducted there is no fifth amendment protections or appeals. Fact for History Nerds: Actual mafia…
-
Somewhere Towards Freedom by Bennett Parten
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Somewhere Towards Freedom: A brutal army march was way better than the alternative. Quick synopsis: A look at Sherman’s March focusing on the stories of the newly freed slaves that followed his army. Fact for Non-History People: By the time Sherman reached Savannah, there were 20,000 freed slaves with him. Fact…
-
Our Ancient Faith by Allen Guelzo
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Our Ancient Faith: The ultimate democracy fanboy. Quick synopsis: A look at how Abraham Lincoln treasured and communicated his love for American democracy. Fact for Non-History People: Abraham Lincoln is in the Wrestling Hall of Fame. Fact for History Nerds: Lincoln is the only president who holds a patent. It was…
-
Save Our Souls by Matthew Pearl
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Save Our Souls: Probably shouldn’t trust the crazy dude you meet on a deserted island. Quick synopsis: The story of the shipwreck of the Wandering Minstrel and the attempts at survival of the captain’s family and the crew. Fact for Non-History People: Elizabeth Walker, the captain’s wife, would unknowingly become the…
-
The Apache Wars by Paul Andrew Hutton
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Apache Wars: Everything is inevitable if you are stubborn enough. Quick synopsis: A chronicle of the Apache Wars which was really a bunch of smaller wars over about 30 years. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Nickname fail: One of the main characters was half white, half Apache named…the Apache…