by
John Richard Stephens
"We heard shooting. We hid in the brush. The sounds of the shooting multiplied -- pop -- pop -- pop -- pop -- pop -- pop! We heard women and children screaming. Old men were calling the young warriors to battle. Young men were singing their war songs as they responded to the call. We peeped out. Throngs of Sioux men on horses were racing toward the skirt of timber just south of the Uncpapa camp circle, where the guns were clattering. The horsemen warriors were dodging through a mass of women, children and old people hurrying afoot to the benchland hills west of the camps."The Native American woman who wrote this was experiencing the beginning of an event that would become legendary in American history. She was about to be one of the few eyewitnesses to Custer's Last Stand.
Thought history was dull and boring? That's because you were never taught any of the really interesting stuff. In this book, John Richard Stephens brings together striking firsthand accounts, rare documents, and weird and unusual information to reveal the flip side of "official" history. This is the sort of stuff they wouldn't dare teach you in school.
Can you guess which American presidents said:A spy explains how easy it was to steal CIA secrets and sell them to the KGB.
"Things are more like they are now than they have ever been."Find the answers in Weird History 101. You'll wish this book had been your history class textbook!"Oftentimes...I don't seem to grasp that I am President."
"I have opinions of my own -- strong opinions -- but I don't always agree with them."
Scattered throughout the book are quotes like:
"I will now open my trousers, and reveal some even more precious treasures to Your Royal Highness."There are humorous anecdotes like:-- the Archbishop of Uppsala, Sweden, attempting to show off his command of the English language.
On their wedding night, Napoleon and Josephine were in the middle of passionate sex when Napoleon suddenly cried out. She thought he was crying in ecstasy, but actually her dog had bitten his leg. As M. de Ravine put it, "All night the disappointed Josephine had to put compresses on her invalid’s wound. He huddled in the bed and loudly moaned that he was dying of rabies."Plus there are strange and unusual facts like:
In 1977, María Rubio of Lake Arthur, New Mexico, put a tortilla in her oven. When she pulled it out, it had a picture of Jesus Christ on it. The three inch image soon attracted pilgrims from all over the world—often as many as two dozen a day. María says the tortilla caused her husband to stop drinking and helped her through a difficult pregnancy. Because of the steady stream of visitors, the Rubios built a shrine for the Holy Tortilla of New Mexico.This is history as entertainment, ladies and gentlemen. You may be surprised, amused, infuriated, and perhaps even offended, but I guarantee you won't be bored! This is real history. History like you're not used to seeing it. The kind that is often censored, covered up, ignored or white washed. You're going to love it. You have to get this book.
You can check out a listing
of the many bizarre topics covered by clicking on "Contents" below.
Paperback,
8" x 9", illustrated, Adams Media Corporation, 340 pages, $12.95
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