Tag: European history
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Henry V by Dan Jones
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Henry V: Shakespeare took a little dramatic license. Quick synopsis: A full biography of England’s greatest warrior king, Henry V. Fact for Non-History People: Henry V got shot in the face with an arrow as a teen and somehow didn’t die. Fact for History Nerds: Around the time of Henry’s…
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The Siege by Ben Macintyre
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Siege: Proof that fiction can’t touch great non-fiction. I said what I said. Quick synopsis: The story of the 1980 hostage crisis of the Iranian embassy in London. Fact for Non-History People: British police did not carry guns except for Diplomatic Protection officers. That becomes very important. Fact for History…
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Lovers in Auschwitz by Keren Blankfeld
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Lovers in Auschwitz: They found love in a hopeless place. Quick synopsis: The story of the two people who fell in love and survived Auschwitz in World War II. Fact for Non-History People: In 1941, the Warsaw ghetto covered 2.4% of the city but housed 30% of the city population. Fact…
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Cunning Folk by Tabitha Stanmore
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Cunning Folk: Magic without getting burned at the stake. Quick synopsis: The story of benevolent magic practitioners during the medieval and early modern period. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: There used to be a food called buttocks bread. No, I won’t explain why. Fun Fact for History Nerds: Among other…
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1217 by Catherine Hanley
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for 1217: King John was as bad as Mel Brooks said he was. Quick synopsis: The story of why King John was just the worst. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: The nobility and religious communities at this time made up about 6% at most of the population meaning the other 94%…
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Cracking the Nazi Code by Jason Bell
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Cracking the Nazi Code: Hitler was not the beginning. Quick synopsis: A look at the career of Winthrop Bell who spied on the Nazis before World War II. Fact for Non-History People: By the end of World War II, the Nazis were responsible for 20 million deaths without counting combat related…
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The Killing Ground by Myke Cole and Michael Livingston
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Killing Ground: You don’t have to be a Spartan to die here! Quick synopsis: A look at all the battles that ever occurred at Thermopylae. It wasn’t just the one. Fact for Non-History People: It wasn’t Leonidas and 300 Spartans. There was about 1,000 Spartans and 6,000 other Greeks. Fact…
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The Counterfeit Countess by Elizabeth White and Joanna Sliwa
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Counterfeit Countess: Best. Fraud. Ever. Quick synopsis: The story of Dr. Josephine Janina Mehlberg who became a fake countess and saved thousands of people in World War II. Fact for Non-History People: Mehlberg negotiated the release of at least 9,707 people and that does not include the people saved by…
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The Art Thief by Michael Finkel
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Art Thief: Fine, let’s do a heist. Quick synopsis: The story of Stéphane Breitwieser. The world’s most prolific art thief. Fact for Non-History People: It is estimated Breitwieser stole art worth $2 billion dollars. Yes, BILLIONS. Fact for History Nerds: Myles Connor Jr. was a member of MENSA and also…