Tag: true crime
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Ask Not by Maureen Callahan
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Ask Not: Ask not what this family did to women, ask why they got away with it. Quick synopsis: The story of all the women destroyed by the Kennedy family. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: The firefighter who retrieved Mary Jo Kopechne’s body at Chappaquiddick estimated she stayed alive for…
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The Talented Mrs. Mandelbaum by Margalit Fox
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Talented Mrs. Mandelbaum: Her talent was crime. Quick synopsis: The story of Gilded Age crime boss, Fredericka Mandelbaum. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Brooks Brothers was founded in 1818 in New York City and was known for the shoddy products it provided to the Union Army during the Civil…
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A Gentleman and a Thief by Dean Jobb
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for A Gentleman and a Thief: So smooth you’d thank him for stealing. Quick synopsis: The story of Jazz Age jewel thief, Arthur Barry. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Barry stole over $60 million dollars (in today’s dollars) worth of jewels during the Roaring Twenties. Fun Fact for History Nerds: The…
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Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult (Netflix)
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Dancing for the Devil: Now we really need to outlaw TikTok. Quick synopsis: The story of a cult which gained prominence as a studio for TikTok dancers. Fact for Non-History People: TikTok has over 1 billion monthly active users globally. Fact for History Nerds: There are over 915.9 million posts on…
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There Is No Ethan by Anna Akbari
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for There Is No Ethan: This is a “read in one sitting” book. Quick synopsis: The bonkers story of a catfish and the women who brought them down. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: There was a guy on OkCupid called the “Swiss Cheese Pervert” and he’s exactly what you think he…
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College Girl, Missing by Shawn Cohen
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for College Girl, Missing: That’s it. My kid is not going to college. Quick synopsis: The story of the disappearance of Indiana University student Lauren Speirer in 2011. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: I’ve been very drunk at Indiana University before. So, there’s that. Fun Fact for History Nerds: California has…
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The Infernal Machine by Steven Johnson
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Infernal Machine: This book is explosive! (I’m so sorry, I’ll see myself out.) Quick synopsis: A story about dynamite, anarchists, and the evolution of policing in New York City. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Owen Eagen was the only (what we would now call) bomb disposal personnel working with…
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The Shooter at Midnight by Sean Patrick Cooper
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Shooter at Midnight: Farming folk can be just as murderous as city folk. Quick synopsis: The story of the 1990 murder of Cathy Robertson in Missouri. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: The farming crisis of the 1970s saw farmers take their own lives at double the national rate. Fun…
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Four Shots in the Night by Henry Hemming
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Four Shots in the Night: If you were lucky, you only got stitches. Quick synopsis: The story of a murder in Northern Ireland. Fact for Non-History People: 3,720 people were killed, while 47,571 were injured, and about 10,000 people were imprisoned during the Troubles. Fact for History Nerds: Almost 50%…