John Higgs

In The 20th Century: An Alternative History, John Higgs argues that before 1900, history seemed to make sense. We can understand innovations like electricity, agriculture and democracy. The Twentieth Century, in contrast, gave us relativity, cubism, quantum mechanics, the id, existentialism, Stalin, psychedelics, chaos mathematics, climate change and postmodernism. In order to understand such a disorienting barrage of unfamiliar and knotty ideas, Higgs shows us, we need to shift the framework of our interpretation and view them within the context of a new kind of historical narrative. Instead of looking at it as another step forward in a stable path, we need to look at the Twentieth Century as a seismic chaotic shift, upending all linear narratives. Higgs invites us to join us as he journeys across a century about which we know too much” in order to grant us a new perspective on it. He brings a refreshingly non-academic, eclectic and infectiously energetic approach to his subjects and a unique ability to explain how complex ideas connect and intersectwhether he's discussing Einstein's theories of relativity, the beat poets interest in Eastern thought or the bright spots and pitfalls of the American Dream.

An Alternative History of the 20th Century

Stranger Than We Can Imagine

Phil James

Nicklas Persson

"The twentieth century should make sense. It's the period of history that we know the most about, an epic geo-political narrative that runs through World War One, the great depression, World War Two, the American century and the fall of the Berlin Wall. But somehow that story doesn't quite lead into the world we find ourselves in now, this bewildering twenty-first century, adrift in a network of constant surveillance, unsustainable competition, tsunamis of trivia and extraordinary opportunity. Time, then, for a new perspective. John Higgs steps off the main path and wanders through some of the more curious backwaters of the twentieth century, exploring familiar and unfamiliar territory alike, finding fresh insight on our journey to the present day. We travel in the company of some of the most radical artists, scientists, geniuses and crazies of their age. They show us that great innovations such as relativity, cubism, quantum mechanics, postmodernism and chaos maths are not the incomprehensible, abstract horrors that we assume them to be, but signposts that bring us to the world we live in now. An alternative history of the strangest of centuries. Higgs shows us how the elegant, clockwork universe of the Victorians became increasingly woozy and uncertain; and how we discovered that our world is stranger than we imagine. John Higgs is a British journalist, television writer and producer and author. He is the author of I Have America Surrounded: The Life of Timothy Leary, a biography of the pioneer of psychedelic drugs"--Provided by publisher.

In Stranger Than We Can Imagine, John Higgs argues that before 1900, history seemed to make sense. We can understand innovations like electricity, agriculture and democracy. The twentieth century, in contrast, gave us relativity, cubism, quantum mechanics, the id, existentialism, Stalin, psychedelics, chaos mathematics, climate change and postmodernism. In order to understand such a disorienting barrage of unfamiliar and knotty ideas, Higgs shows us, we need to shift the framework of our interpretation and view these concepts within the context of a new kind of historical narrative. Instead of looking at it as another step forward in a stable path, we need to look at the twentieth century as a chaotic seismic shift, upending all linear narratives. Higgs invites us along as he journeys across a century “about which we know too much in order to grant us a new perspective on it. He brings a refreshingly non-academic, eclectic and infectiously energetic approach to his subjects as well as a unique ability to explain how complex ideas connect and intersect—whether hes discussing Einsteins theories of relativity, the Beat poets' interest in Eastern thought or the bright spots and pitfalls of the American Dream.

Stranger Than We Can Imagine An Alternative History of the 20th Century

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