I have been a longtime listener of Ann’s podcast, Vulgar History, and, as a historian myself, could not have been more excited to read this book. As such, my expectations were high… and she absolutely delivered. I don’t think I’ve ever had this much fun reading a biography.
I really appreciated how real this story felt. Not just because it is based on a true story, but because it feels as though it captures life as it actually could have been—during the war and particularly in its aftermath, in both Europe and the United States—without necessarily being overly detailed…
The long and short of it? Oathbreakers: The War of Brothers That Shattered an Empire and Made Medieval Europe starts off rough (SO much information—names, details, locations, etc.—thrown at you), but if you stick with it, it’s super, super interesting; definitely a real-life Game of Thrones!
As a family historian, I was immediately drawn to Anneke Jans in the New World and its effort to bring real ancestors to life on the page. But I’ll be honest: I struggled at times with the large cast (and very similar names), the number of deaths, and some historical references that could’ve used more explanation.
Okay, I just lived through the 16th-century turmoil that was the question of the English succession during and after Elizabeth I’s reign, and let me tell you—I don’t know how this woman even lived or enjoyed daily life with all of the anxiety she constantly had over this???
Douglas Brunt’s The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel is not only packed with fascinating information about Diesel himself, but it also offers a sharp look at the quarter century leading up to World War I. Weaving together the lives of key figures, Brunt shows how their ambitions collided with the era’s political and economic turmoil.
From the pages of The Vampire Genesis Chronicles, we’ve had the privilege of witnessing the echoes of Vlad the Impaler’s Wallachia… Embark on a journey through time, myths, and history with us as we immerse ourselves in Lara Bronson’s The Vampire Genesis Chronicles.
In the early hours of April 15, 1912 some 110 years ago the RMS Titanic passenger ship sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on her maiden voyage, capturing the world’s attention and taking with her more than 1,500 souls.
Syndrome K was a neurological illness “that began with convulsions and dementia and led to paralysis and death from asphyxia.” This ailment, which terrified the Nazi soldiers occupying the city, reportedly saved anywhere from 20 to over 100 Jews who were destined for the Auschwitz concentration camp. But how was this possible during an epidemic of such a lethal sickness?
The 20th century was one filled with significant change within Europe, including the Russian Revolution of 1917, which consisted of two pivotal rebellions that year. While the latter November Revolution led to the rise of a group of communists known as the Bolsheviks to power, it was the initial February Revolution that ended centuries of imperial rule in Russia.
In 1587, Englishman John White led a group to establish the Roanoke colony in present-day North Carolina. After leaving for England due to supply shortages, he returned to find the colony abandoned. Various theories exist about their fate, including assimilation into local tribes and a letter inscribed on a stone. Archaeological findings continue to fuel speculation.
Word got around and before they knew it, people from all over New Jersey and New York were coming to talk to the famous spirit (with help from Maggie and Kate, of course). Thus, modern spiritualism was born and the Fox sisters became the first “mediums.” In fact, the movement grew so large that by the year 1867, more than 11,000,000 Americans (or two-fifths of the entire population at the time) were “spiritualists.”
