Editors of Mental Floss

Erik Sass

Steve Wiegand

History is . . . (a) more or less bunk. (b) a nightmare from which I am trying to awaken. (c) as thoroughly infected with lies as a street whore with syphilis. Match your answers: (1) Stephen Daedalus of James Joyce's Ulysses (2) Henry Ford (3) Arthur Schopenhauer It turns out that answer need not be bunk, nightmarish, or diseased. In the hands of mental_floss, history's most interesting bits have been handpicked and roasted to perfection. Packed with little-known stories and outrageous—but accurate—facts, you'll laugh yourself smarter on this joyride through 60,000 years of human civilization. Remember: just because it's true, doesn't mean it's boring!

An Irreverent Romp through Civilization's Best Bits

The Mental Floss History of the World

People, places, and dates with a dash of fun — history will never be the same!

Don't know much about American history? Don't worry! With this friendly reference, you can bone up on all those facts you missed in history class — and have a good time in the bargain. From the Revolution to the Civil War, from the Great Depression to the Cold War, this is history the way it ought to be — fresh, memorable, and fun.
--back cover

U.S. History for Dummies

Become an expert on the Revolutionary War American Revolution For Dummies capitalizes on the recent resurgence of interest in the Revolutionary War period—one of the most important in the history of the United States. From the founding fathers to the Declaration of Independence, and everything that encapsulates this extraordinary period in American history, American Revolution For Dummies is your one-stop guide to the birth of the United States of America. Understanding the critical issues of this era is essential to the study of subsequent periods in American history … and this book makes it more accessible than ever before. Covers events leading up to the war, including the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, and the Boston Tea Party Provides information on The Declaration of Independence Offers insight on major battles, including the Battles of Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, and Yorktown Reviews key figures, including George Washington, Charles Cornwallis, the Marquis de Lafayette, and Alexander Hamilton If you want or need to become more knowledgeable about the American War of Independence and the people and period surrounding it, this book gives you the information necessary to become an expert on the essential details of the revolutionary period.

American Revolution For Dummies

The Maryhill Museum of Art is located on 5,300 acres in the Columbia River Gorge. Miles from any sizeable town and surrounded by the gorge's spectacular scenery, Maryhill is an internationally recognized -- and undeniably eclectic -- repository of art that ranges from one of the nation's best Rodin collections to one of the world's largest assemblage of chess sets. It is, as The New York Times once described it, "oddly fitting -- it brought the better works of man near one of the better works of nature." Dancer, Dreamers, and the Queen of Romania is the story of the four widely disparate people whose lives intertwined in such a way as to lay the foundation for the museum. Loie Fuller was once the world's most famous dancer, who dreamed of becoming beautiful by creating beauty. Alma Spreckels was one of America's wealthiest women, who dreamed of being accepted for who she wanted to be rather than who she was. Sam Hill was a rich man who dreamed of becoming a great man. And Marie of Romania was a real-life queen who dreamed of being a fairy-tale queen. And it is the story of those who followed them. These people nurtured and grew Maryhill from a fascinating oddity that Time magazine once called "a top hat in the jungle" to one of the relatively few U.S. museums accredited in every category by the American Alliance of Museums. This is a book that will appeal to readers who like both biography and history, and will have particular appeal, but by no means be limited to, Western U.S. and Pacific Northwest audiences. It is "side-street" history in the tradition of Boys in the Boat, Unbroken, or Dead Wake. It will appeal to art lovers. It will also appeal to everyone who has visited or just passed by an inviting-but-oddly-located museum and wondered how it got there and who keeps it going. This heretofore untold and remarkable story is narrated by a master wordsmith and historian. Steve Wiegand is the author or co-author of numerous books, including U.S. History for Dummies (Wiley), the 4th edition of which will be out in March 2019; Lessons from the Great Depression for Dummies (Wiley, 2009); The Mental Floss History of the World (Collins, 2008) and Papers of Permanence: The First 150 Years of the McClatchy Company (McClatchy, 2007). Wiegand spent 35 years as a newspaper reporter and columnist for the San Diego Union-Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, and Sacramento Bee, and has published in numerous magazines and periodicals.

How an Unlikely Quartet Created America's Most Improbable Art Museum

The Dancer, the Dreamers, and the Queen of Romania

Now revised — the easy-to-understand guide to the story of America Want to better understand U.S. History? This friendly book serves as your tour guide through the important events of America's past and present, introducing you to the people who helped to shape history. From pre-Columbus to the American Revolution, from Watergate to Iraq to Barack Obama, you'll discover fascinating details that you won't find in dry history texts! They're coming to America — explore early civilizations, meet Native Americans, and see how the development of the English colonies led to slavery and the American Revolution From Thomas Jefferson to Abraham Lincoln — examine the contributions of great Americans as well as the discovery of gold, the birth of California, the Civil War, and Manifest Destiny America grows up — be there during the conquering of the West, industrial development, and the invention of the light bulb and the telephone The impact of the World Wars — understand the sweeping changes these epochal events brought to America and the rest of the world The Cold War, Camelot, and Clinton — take a closer look at the Korean War and communism, the fabulous '50s, JFK, Vietnam, Nixon and Watergate, Reaganomics, and the Clinton years From the '90s to now — witness the birth of the microchip, the impact of hanging chads in a presidential election, the largest terrorist attack on American soil, and the growing economic crisis Open the book and find: Ten important events that defined American culture Interesting Americans, from presidents to gangsters to sports heroes How America fought to win independence from England Details about all the major wars and their long-term effects Insight into the roots of slavery Inventions that changed life for Americans The impact of the atomic bomb The Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence

U.S. History For Dummies

Kaum ein Land polarisiert so sehr wie die USA. Sie werden bewundert, belï¿1⁄2chelt und geschmï¿1⁄2ht zugleich. Was macht dieses Land aus, das der Welt seinen Stempel aufdrï¿1⁄2ckt wie kein anderes? Steve Wiegand zeigt Ihnen die Geschichte dieses Landes, er beginnt mit den Ureinwohnern, beschreibt Motivation und Engagement der Pilgervï¿1⁄2ter, den Unabhï¿1⁄2ngigkeitskampf und den Bï¿1⁄2rgerkrieg. Ausfï¿1⁄2hrlich stellt er Politik und Gesellschaft der USA im 20. Jahrhundert dar: vom Ersten Weltkrieg bis zum Fall der Berliner Mauer. Abschlieï¿1⁄2end zeigt er noch ein Amerika, das als einzige Supermacht seinen Platz in der Welt sucht. Fundiert und mit einem kritischen Blick auf Anspruch und Wirklichkeit beschreibt der Autor den Weg der USA von Sklavenhaltern bis zum ersten schwarzen Prï¿1⁄2sidenten.

Die Geschichte der USA für Dummies

Pop quiz! Who said what about history? History is . . . (a) more or less bunk. (b) a nightmare from which I am trying to awaken. (c) as thoroughly infected with lies as a street whore with syphilis. Match your answers: (1) Stephen Daedalus of James Joyce's Ulysses (2) Henry Ford (3) Arthur Schopenhauer It turns out that the answer need not be bunk, nightmarish, or diseased. In the hands of mental_floss, history's most interesting bits have been handpicked and roasted to perfection. Packed with little-known stories and outrageous—but accurate—facts, you'll laugh yourself smarter on this joyride through 60,000 years of human civilization. Remember: just because it's true doesn't mean it's boring! Now with Breaking News "If You Thought the Last Depression Was Great . . ." Answers: (a) 2 (b) 1 (c) 3

Steve Wiegand

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