Tag: European history
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Hanged in Medicine Hat by Nathan Greenfield
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Hanged in Medicine Hat: Life is so much more civilized without Nazis. Quick synopsis: The story of executions at a German POW camp in Canada. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Yes, there is a town in Canada called Medicine Hat. Fun Fact for History Nerds: Yes, there were German POW…
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White Knights in the Black Orchestra by Tom Dunkel
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for White Knights in the Black Orchestra: Yeah, the title is already awesome. I got nothing. Quick synopsis: The story of various Germans who tried to destroy the Nazis from within in World War II. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Henry Ford was a huge anti-Semite. Hitler was a huge admirer…
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Wise Gals by Nathalia Holt
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Wise Gals: Women spies want the same pay? Who would have thought. Quick synopsis: The story of the first women in the CIA. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: In Egypt, American money helped build a massive concrete spire to broadcast a radio station. Its nickname was, “Roosevelt’s erection.” Fun Fact…
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Prisoners of the Castle by Ben Macintyre
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Prisoners of the Castle: Life is so much more civilized without Nazis. Quick synopsis: The story of Colditz Castle and the prisoners and guards placed there in World War II. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: “Augustus the Strong” lived in Colditz where he played “fox-tossing” (yes, it’s what you think…
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The Templars by Dan Jones
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Templars: They really need a public relations overhaul. Quick synopsis: The story of the Knights Templar which most people think are a secret organization bent on world domination. That was literally never a thing. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Most Templars were really just bankers. They protected personal belongings,…
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Inventing the It Girl by Hilary Hallett
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Inventing the It Girl: Sex sells. Quick synopsis: A biography of novelist and screenwriter Elinor Glyn. Fun Fact for Non-History People Will Like: In the 1890s, 46,000 women died giving birth in England and Wales. Fun Fact for History Nerds: Elinor’s sister and brother-in-law survived the sinking of the Titanic. My…
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The School That Escaped the Nazis by Deborah Cadbury
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The School That Escaped the Nazis: A school that kids actually wanted to go to! Quick synopsis: The story of Anna Essinger and how she relocated her school to England out of the Nazi’s reach. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: In December 1938, almost 2,000 children were saved from Nazi…
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Agent Josephine by Damien Lewis
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Agent Josephine: Celebrities can work for the greater good! Quick synopsis: The untold story of how entertainer Josephine Baker was also a French spy in World War II. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: A list of animals Josephine took with her nearly everywhere: a Great Dane, monkey, golden lion tamarin,…
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The Black Joke by A. E. Rooks
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Black Joke: If you can’t beat them, steal their ship and then beat them. Quick synopsis: A story of a slave ship turned freedom ship off the coast of Africa in the 1800s. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: A quarter of all the freed enslaved people were courtesy of…