Tag: World history

  • Reaping the Whirlwind by Dominic Etzold

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Reaping the Whirlwind: More reasons never to go in a submarine. Quick synopsis: A look at the submarine war in World War I off the coast of the U.S. Fact for Non-History People: Only 5 German subs made it across the Atlantic to the U.S. coast during World War I as…

  • The Stalin Affair by Giles Milton

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Stalin Affair: Romancing Uncle Joe. Quick synopsis: A look at the alliance between Stalin, Churchill, and FDR in World War II. Fact for Non-History People: A U.S. poll taken two days after the German invasion of the Soviet Union found that two-thirds of the country was against aiding Stalin. Fact…

  • Adventures in Volcanoland by Tamsin Mather

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Adventures in Volcanoland: Big mountain go boom sometimes. Quick synopsis: A science travelogue by a seasoned volcanologist. Fact for Non-History People: The continents move at about the same rate of toenail growth. Fact for History Nerds: Radium is a million times more radioactive than uranium. My Take on Adventures in Volcanoland:…

  • A Brief Atlas of the Lighthouses at the End of the World by José Luis González Macías

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for A Brief Atlas of the Lighthouses at the End of the World: Long title, short book, tons of fun! Quick synopsis: A look at lighthouses…at the end of the world. So, the title, basically. Fact for Non-History People: The first lighthouse was of course Egypt’s Pharos of Alexandria, better know as…

  • Twenty Years by Sune Engel Rasmussen

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Twenty Years: Plenty of rage to go around. Quick synopsis: A look at the war in Afghanistan through the eyes of various Afghans. Fact for Non-History People: In the 1980s, Afghans in Iran and Pakistan made up nearly half of the world’s population of refugees. Fact for History Nerds: The U.S.…

  • The Horse by Timothy Winegard

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Horse: Because without them, we’d have to walk. Like suckers. Quick synopsis: The story of the horse. Yes, the whole story. Fact for Non-History People: 99.99 percent of all species that have ever existed are extinct. Fact for History Nerds: Horses have been used in war for over 5,000 years.…

  • Alexander at the End of the World by Rachel Kousser

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Alexander at the End of the World: Bro did not know when to go home. Quick synopsis: The story of Alexander the Great’s final 7 years. Fact for Non-History People: Alexander was never defeated in battle. Fact for History Nerds: Alexander named over 70 cities after himself. Self-obsessed much? Am I…

  • Kinky History by Esmé Louise James

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Kinky History: It’s history. But sexy. Quick synopsis: A look at the history of sex and how humans talked about it. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Seriously, go back and read Shakespeare. Dude was filthy. Fun Fact for History Nerds: James Joyce wrote many things to his wife about her……

  • Taking London by Martin Dugard

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Taking London: Sometimes it takes an island. Quick synopsis: The story of the Battle of Britain through the eyes of four Allied pilots. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: The Nazi Party grew from just a small movement in 1920 to about 400,000 people by World War II. Fun Fact for…