Tag: American history
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The Fighting Bunch by Chris DeRose
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline: Pissing off soldiers back from World War II seems like a bad strategy. Quick synopsis for The Fighting Bunch: The story of the Battle of Athens, where armed soldiers back from World War II took on a corrupt local government. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Only 139 cars were made during…
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Madam by Debby Applegate
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Madam: Our grandparents never told us these stories. Quick synopsis: The story of Polly Adler, a very famous madam during the jazz age of New York City. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: After 1900, out of wedlock sex went from 13% to 51%. Fun Fact for History Nerds: The Jewish…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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.…
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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…
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Freedom on Trial by Scott Farris
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Freedom on Trial: Technically it was the KKK on trial. So “Idiots on Trial” would also work. Quick synopsis: A look at the Ku Klux Klan trials of South Carolina right after the Civil War. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: During the Ku Klux Klan trials, the juries were mostly…