What do you think?
Rate this book
After the Fact: The Surprising Fates of American History's Heroes, Villains, and Supporting Characters
This book picks up where traditional histories leave off. Where Are They Now? meets History 101. Lingering on the scene long after the smoke has cleared and the spotlights have moved on, it uncovers the telling details of history's most compelling subplots.
272 pages, Paperback
First published August 7, 2012
15 people are currently reading
927 people want to read
About the author
Owen J. Hurd
4 books4 followersA Chicago-area resident for thirty-eight years, I live in the Andersonville neighborhood with my wife and son.
I've always been interested in history and literature, making my living one way or another through the written word: as an editor for several book publishers, freelance writer for corporations and non-profit organizations, and most recently as an author.
I recently finished my second book, After the Fact: The Surprising Fates of American History's Heroes, Villains, and Supporting Characters. Targeted to adult readers, the book will be published on August 7, 2012 by Perigee Trade, a division of Penguin Group USA.
Check out my book giveaway:
I've always been interested in history and literature, making my living one way or another through the written word: as an editor for several book publishers, freelance writer for corporations and non-profit organizations, and most recently as an author.
I recently finished my second book, After the Fact: The Surprising Fates of American History's Heroes, Villains, and Supporting Characters. Targeted to adult readers, the book will be published on August 7, 2012 by Perigee Trade, a division of Penguin Group USA.
Check out my book giveaway:
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
September 8, 2014
As non-fiction goes, this is high on the "light and fluffy" end. If you know me at all, you know I prefer the less-dense, more-accessible style of non-fiction, but this one was a little on the light side for me. Also, I was a bit skeptical after the first two chapters because they covered a lot of material that I already knew. I'd picked up this book hoping to learn new stuff.
Fortunately, I kept reading and after those first two chapters, I started learning a lot of stuff. Hurd's writing is very accessible. I really liked that he focused on a lot of historical figures that I've never given a second thought to. What happened to Custer's wife after his last stand? How did Robert Ford's life turn out after he shot Jesse James in the back? Was Elliot Ness truly the man that "The Untouchables" presented him to be?
There are a lot of good, interesting stories here. I absolutely breezed through this book.
Fortunately, I kept reading and after those first two chapters, I started learning a lot of stuff. Hurd's writing is very accessible. I really liked that he focused on a lot of historical figures that I've never given a second thought to. What happened to Custer's wife after his last stand? How did Robert Ford's life turn out after he shot Jesse James in the back? Was Elliot Ness truly the man that "The Untouchables" presented him to be?
There are a lot of good, interesting stories here. I absolutely breezed through this book.
September 20, 2012
*I received this book for free through GoodReads First Reads!*
I was excited for this book from the moment I read about it! As the title implies, this book takes you through what happened to some of America's well known heroes, villains, and supporting characters after the events that made them part of our history. I am a history buff, so this concept was fascinating to me.
I found the whole book incredibly informative and thoroughly entertaining. I loved the format and Hurd's writing style. In the back of the book there is a listing of the sources he used so you can go and read the full story of the various people he focused on--I fully intend to go find several of these books and I'm so thankful he included this info for his readers.
Thanks for a wonderful book! :)
I was excited for this book from the moment I read about it! As the title implies, this book takes you through what happened to some of America's well known heroes, villains, and supporting characters after the events that made them part of our history. I am a history buff, so this concept was fascinating to me.
I found the whole book incredibly informative and thoroughly entertaining. I loved the format and Hurd's writing style. In the back of the book there is a listing of the sources he used so you can go and read the full story of the various people he focused on--I fully intend to go find several of these books and I'm so thankful he included this info for his readers.
Thanks for a wonderful book! :)
November 13, 2021
As promised, this is a book that covers the lives of famous people after the fanfare ended. For some, becoming famous was the best thing to ever happen to them, and their lives were wonderful and rosy afterwards; but it seems that for a lot of people, becoming famous only highlighted problems that became glaring in the light of day. I very much enjoyed this book, ever though I will not become famous, except perhaps in retrospect.
The book is fairly American-centric; the first chapter deals with the Age of Discovery, and relates the later lives of Christopher Columbus and other explorers of the Americas. We then move to Early Settlers, with everyone associated with Jamestown and everyone associated with the Salem Witch Trials. The book moves on through The American Revolution (Paul Revere was a better craftsman than military man, and only became part of Americana because of Longfellow’s poem many years after Revere’s death), The Western Frontier, Literary Legacies (Herman Melville’s name was misspelled in one of his obituaries), The Civil War (giving the later histories of those associated with President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination), Disaster Relief (the Johnstown Flood and the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire), Wild West Outlaws and Sheriffs (Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid, which was the high water mark of his life, and how Wyatt Earp became famous for the Shootout at the OK Corral, even though he was only a deputy to his brother Virgil), Inventors (Samuel F. B. Morse later became a strident champion of slavery), Gangsters and G-Men (Melvin Purvis shot Dillinger, and was hounded the rest of his life by J. Edgar Hoover, who hated Purvis getting the credit), Games Over (the seriousness of Lou Gehrig’s condition was kept from him, under orders from his wife to his doctor), World War II (what happened after Pearl Harbor, Iwo Jima, and the dropping of the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki), Happy Days No More (the people who named names, or who refused to name names, before the House Committee on Un-American Activities regarding the existence of Communism in Hollywood), and Civil Rights and Wrongs (Rosa Parks was marginalized after her historic refusal to give up her seat, and the career of James Meredith after he integrated the University of Mississippi).
I did note that a few people were left out (the later life of Audie Murphy would have been nice to know about), and that while the soldier who shot John Wilkes Booth against orders was mentioned, it did not mention that Boston Corbett, before he was a soldier, castrated himself, and that after getting out of military service he was put in a mental facility for a time. Otherwise, the book was a fun read, and I would not be surprised to see a sequel to this book.
The book is fairly American-centric; the first chapter deals with the Age of Discovery, and relates the later lives of Christopher Columbus and other explorers of the Americas. We then move to Early Settlers, with everyone associated with Jamestown and everyone associated with the Salem Witch Trials. The book moves on through The American Revolution (Paul Revere was a better craftsman than military man, and only became part of Americana because of Longfellow’s poem many years after Revere’s death), The Western Frontier, Literary Legacies (Herman Melville’s name was misspelled in one of his obituaries), The Civil War (giving the later histories of those associated with President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination), Disaster Relief (the Johnstown Flood and the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire), Wild West Outlaws and Sheriffs (Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid, which was the high water mark of his life, and how Wyatt Earp became famous for the Shootout at the OK Corral, even though he was only a deputy to his brother Virgil), Inventors (Samuel F. B. Morse later became a strident champion of slavery), Gangsters and G-Men (Melvin Purvis shot Dillinger, and was hounded the rest of his life by J. Edgar Hoover, who hated Purvis getting the credit), Games Over (the seriousness of Lou Gehrig’s condition was kept from him, under orders from his wife to his doctor), World War II (what happened after Pearl Harbor, Iwo Jima, and the dropping of the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki), Happy Days No More (the people who named names, or who refused to name names, before the House Committee on Un-American Activities regarding the existence of Communism in Hollywood), and Civil Rights and Wrongs (Rosa Parks was marginalized after her historic refusal to give up her seat, and the career of James Meredith after he integrated the University of Mississippi).
I did note that a few people were left out (the later life of Audie Murphy would have been nice to know about), and that while the soldier who shot John Wilkes Booth against orders was mentioned, it did not mention that Boston Corbett, before he was a soldier, castrated himself, and that after getting out of military service he was put in a mental facility for a time. Otherwise, the book was a fun read, and I would not be surprised to see a sequel to this book.
August 6, 2018
An entertaining, if not all that enlightening historical commentary, giving the facts on a selection of people and events, and following up on what happened after the well-known aspects of said people or events occurred. A rather limited and sometimes obvious selection (Columbus, Hudson, Capt. Cook, all of whom ended ignominiously--arrested and accused, abandoned by mutineers, stupidly killed by Hawaiians; John Smith; the Pilgrims; what happened to various signers of the Declaration; the Chicago fire and the San Francisco earthquake; the OK Corral event; various gangsters and crime-busters; sports legends).
An ideal bedtime reading choice: short essays, clearly written, amusing/ ironic tales of disappointment and failure after initial fame.
I will remember that Nathaniel Hawthorne was a supporter of the South during the Civil War, and was skeptical of abolition, and the anti-slavery efforts of so many of his fellow New England intellectuals.
An ideal bedtime reading choice: short essays, clearly written, amusing/ ironic tales of disappointment and failure after initial fame.
I will remember that Nathaniel Hawthorne was a supporter of the South during the Civil War, and was skeptical of abolition, and the anti-slavery efforts of so many of his fellow New England intellectuals.
September 16, 2019
Overall, very interesting and I do recommend this book for historical information that traditional history books leave out about important events and people. But you can hear the author’s own political lean in some of the verbiage. And the tone can be a little too cheeky for me, considering the topic, but only in few spots.
The author provides a vast list of further reading and a great index at the end of the book, which I can only assume were most, if not all, of his sources (no in-text citations). Some explanation about how this author put this historical information together would be nice though or in-text citations/footnotes.
The author provides a vast list of further reading and a great index at the end of the book, which I can only assume were most, if not all, of his sources (no in-text citations). Some explanation about how this author put this historical information together would be nice though or in-text citations/footnotes.
March 25, 2019
This book is reminiscent of Paul Harvey's "The Rest of the Story..." It focuses on historical figures from sports, politics, gangsters... The stories ae brief and well-researched. The tales tend to be on the sad side, since life for many of these people did not end well. My major complaint with the book is that the author affects a tone of moral superiority at times (especially toward Martin Luther King, Jr. in my opinion) and that interferes with the newspaper style of delivery. This is a fast read and Hurd presents many little known facts that will undoubtedly be of interest.
August 31, 2017
I had high hopes for this book, unfortunately they were dashed. I love history and hoped to find some new and "surprising fates" of those we have come to know in our history. I realized immediately the book would be more of an overview as it tried to cover everyone from Columbus to Nixon. At 256 pages that is almost an impossibility.
The book was an easy read but, for me, not very informative. There was only a few scraps of new information.
The book was an easy read but, for me, not very informative. There was only a few scraps of new information.
October 28, 2019
3 1/2 stars. Interesting to read about "the rest of the story" - often rather sad to learn what happened to this group of historic figures, both heroes and villains, e.g., Rosa Parks becoming sidelined after her historic action in Montgomery in 1955. Easy to read, a collection of curious stories over 500 years of American history; certainly not trying to be comprehensive, and Hurd does provide a nice bibliography for further reading.
December 22, 2019
As another review said, this is History Light, an overview of folks’ lives after they became notorious or beloved, as the case may be. All the big stuff already happened, so we’re left to follow their later exploits, many quite depressing. Some folks, of course, went on to happy lives but the majority seemed to have real struggles. Good to read as a break from long plots and complex characters of other books.
November 9, 2017
I read this for the theme nonfiction.
It was OK. My brain just doesn't do well with history facts or politics. I have never enjoyed these subjects but I do enjoy behind the scenes peeks. That is what drew me to this book. Well that and I was on a trip to Boston and I like to always buy a local book if I can. I would recommend to the history buffs out there.
It was OK. My brain just doesn't do well with history facts or politics. I have never enjoyed these subjects but I do enjoy behind the scenes peeks. That is what drew me to this book. Well that and I was on a trip to Boston and I like to always buy a local book if I can. I would recommend to the history buffs out there.
July 8, 2018
What a fun survey of a lot of interesting history! This book traces the ultimate fates of many of American history's star players, including explorers and colonists, warriors and villains, with little snippets about what happened to supporting players after the drama of their historical importance was over.
October 27, 2024
I absolutely put this book into the category of "things I didn't know I needed to know." There were some that I was familiar with, but how often do we think about certain people (spoiler-free) that come up in this book? It truly is a fascinating and eye-opening read and one that's very difficult to put down.
July 3, 2019
Lots of interesting stories about the lives of both the famous and infamous in American History- after their fame. Author Owen Hurd has done his research to find a variety of interesting tidbits about his subjects.
Read
August 27, 2019A quick but concise overview of major events and personalities and the "afterward" seldom covered in history books! A fun, easy read that is a good refresher and offers a different perspective on those impacted by major events.
January 5, 2018
A quick read and interesting for anyone who likes to know the real story. Not all of the facts were new, but they were well-written. Looking forward to using some in my classroom.
May 13, 2019
Sometimes you just want to ready some brief little anecdotes. The facts in here weren't anything too shocking or unknown, but they still made for an interesting, easy, read.
July 29, 2019
Some interesting tidbits about the aftermath of some famous careers/actions. Nothing worthwhile if you've studied history.
March 19, 2020
I really enjoyed this book learning behind the scenes info about people who made history.
September 26, 2020
3.5 stars
August 12, 2023
Pop pablum. I was intrigued by some of the items but am left to my own sleuthing due to lack of source references. Good bathroom reading material.
June 10, 2025
3.5 stars. Satisfying, not-too-deep pop history with some new revelations (to me)
July 27, 2013
In the introduction to this book the author states "We're all familiar with the momentous events in our nation's history... But what about the lives lived after the fact?" That is the whole premise of this thoroughly enjoyable non-fiction offering. The author explains what happened in the lives of some of the most famous, or infamous, people in our nation's history AFTER the event that made them famous.
For example, what happened to Paul Revere after he warned those in Concord that British troops were marching their way? What happened to Jackie Robinson after he retired from baseball? What happened to Rosa Parks after she was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus? The book is told chronologically, with a chapter on Columbus and the "discovery" of North America appearing first, followed by chapters that deal with the American Revolution, the Western frontier, the Civil War and the World Wars, just to name a few. Each chapter discusses a few (usually more than two, but often not more than four) people during that era and what happened to them after their history-making events. Also included after each vignette is a "Loose Ends" section, which gives brief histories of others that were involved in the lives of the main person being discussed. For example, in the vignette about the Wright brothers, the "Loose Ends" section discusses what happened to the original Kitty Hawk Flyer, and how "famously shy and reserved" the two brothers were.
If you like history at all, you should read this book. It gives a unique perspective on the effects of the notoriety of being historically famous. Did you know that Meriwether Lewis (of Lewis and Clark map the Louisiana Purchase fame) committed suicide just three years after his return from reading the Pacific Coast? Did you know that Jackie Robinson actually supported Richard Nixon in his first bid for the presidency? You'll learn a lot in this book and enjoy the learning.
For example, what happened to Paul Revere after he warned those in Concord that British troops were marching their way? What happened to Jackie Robinson after he retired from baseball? What happened to Rosa Parks after she was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus? The book is told chronologically, with a chapter on Columbus and the "discovery" of North America appearing first, followed by chapters that deal with the American Revolution, the Western frontier, the Civil War and the World Wars, just to name a few. Each chapter discusses a few (usually more than two, but often not more than four) people during that era and what happened to them after their history-making events. Also included after each vignette is a "Loose Ends" section, which gives brief histories of others that were involved in the lives of the main person being discussed. For example, in the vignette about the Wright brothers, the "Loose Ends" section discusses what happened to the original Kitty Hawk Flyer, and how "famously shy and reserved" the two brothers were.
If you like history at all, you should read this book. It gives a unique perspective on the effects of the notoriety of being historically famous. Did you know that Meriwether Lewis (of Lewis and Clark map the Louisiana Purchase fame) committed suicide just three years after his return from reading the Pacific Coast? Did you know that Jackie Robinson actually supported Richard Nixon in his first bid for the presidency? You'll learn a lot in this book and enjoy the learning.
January 13, 2013
*I received this book for free through GoodReads First Reads*
This was a quick read and was pretty interesting. It was quite fun to learn about the parts of history that people often leave out, forget, and just do not ever discover. I am a history buff, so these stories were quite fascinating and often surprising. Some of the sections were very fun, very interesting and quite entertaining. My favorites were the sections on Watergate and WWII.
The organization of the book is chronological, which is nice if you're reading the book from start to finish. It covers all of the major eras and decades throughout history and all types of subjects and areas of interest.
The author’s writing style is great and very easy to follow – the language isn't too superfluous and the stories get to the point before the reader loses interest. The book is relatively simplistic, but it makes for a quick read. The author also gives references in the back of the book in case you want to do further reading on any one topic.
(My one critique: as a student, lawyer, and natural 'researcher' I was a little disappointed with the lack of citations. There are some facts and suggestions that I really would have loved to have access to further reading material on specific topics. There is an appendix and a list of cited sources, but I like to have page numbers or chapters referenced in the text to go to when I am trying to locate material. I know that this book is written as a book of general interest, not a 'scholarly' book, so this critique is really just a personal preference, and a minor one at that.)
November 13, 2016
I grabbed this on a whim because it looked interesting. History meets a "Where Are They Now?" style of looking at the lives of historical figures after their big moments? Yeah, that sounded like fun.
And that's really what it is. It's not any in-depth look at any particular people, but a quick, "Hey, here's what happened to so-and-so after their big moments." You probably got about 5 pages tops for any one person, but that was ok with me. I knew who most of the people were before reading (except for most of the Wild West heroes/villains), so I didn't need any extensive background on what they did. And you have to also realize that sometimes history is a little hard to pin down when these people aren't famous anymore. So we don't always know a lot about everyone.
Really, it's just a fun quick read. I enjoyed learning about what these people did after fame (Rosa Parks suing OutKast?!) and it also gave me a few more historical moments/people that I want to research in my spare time. I call this a win/win.
And that's really what it is. It's not any in-depth look at any particular people, but a quick, "Hey, here's what happened to so-and-so after their big moments." You probably got about 5 pages tops for any one person, but that was ok with me. I knew who most of the people were before reading (except for most of the Wild West heroes/villains), so I didn't need any extensive background on what they did. And you have to also realize that sometimes history is a little hard to pin down when these people aren't famous anymore. So we don't always know a lot about everyone.
Really, it's just a fun quick read. I enjoyed learning about what these people did after fame (Rosa Parks suing OutKast?!) and it also gave me a few more historical moments/people that I want to research in my spare time. I call this a win/win.
December 13, 2012
Full disclosure, I received this book for free through a Goodreads giveaway.
The concept is a simple one: Take famous people and stories and explain what happened after the event that made them/it famous. The author accomplishes this well, if a bit simplistically, giving the rest of the story for people like James Cook, Paul Revere, Wyatt Earp, and Lou Gehrig.
It's a good light read, perfect for someone with a passing interest in history, though not necessarily for history buffs as everything is kept at a very basic level.
The concept is a simple one: Take famous people and stories and explain what happened after the event that made them/it famous. The author accomplishes this well, if a bit simplistically, giving the rest of the story for people like James Cook, Paul Revere, Wyatt Earp, and Lou Gehrig.
It's a good light read, perfect for someone with a passing interest in history, though not necessarily for history buffs as everything is kept at a very basic level.
March 13, 2014
This was an interesting read about what happened before and after some famous moments in history. It was an easy book to dip into here and there since it was written episodically. Some of the time periods/themes of each chapter weren't as interesting to me, but I really enjoyed the fact each section ended with some final bullet points ("Loose Ends"). There were some topics that I wanted to know more about, but the author included an amazing list of references at the end so I could easily go read more. Great little history factoids and an enjoyable read.
October 4, 2012
I really enjoyed this book! If you are looking for a David McCullough type book, this one isn't for you. If you enjoy reading about history that is easy to understand and has some good shock factor and humor, then this book is perfect. I really had to bit my tongue to not spout off interesting things I learned in this book to everyone around me while I was reading it.
There are so many historical characters out there- I hope another book is in the works!
There are so many historical characters out there- I hope another book is in the works!
February 1, 2013
Interesting and succinct enough that it wasn't a chore. Very nice writing, too, for non-fiction. It's interesting to see some of America's most recognized events within the framework of the lives of those who lived them. Did you know that Lewis of Lewis and Clark fame killed himself? Or that Abraham Lincoln's wife was an obsessive compulsive shopper? This book also confirmed my previous opinion that Christopher Columbus was a jerk.
May 3, 2013
This is an interesting non-fiction account of what happened to many famous figures in American History after their 15 minutes of fame. The account goes from the American Revolutionary War to the Nixon administration. It's a pretty good review of several common knowledge moments in American history and was also instructive as a vocabulary builder for me!
November 16, 2012
This was an easy read but fun to discover "the rest of the story." Many of the news makers in history really had the spotlight for a brief moment. We tend to view their lives as a whole by those headlines. This book gives condensed but interesting information about how histories characters filled the rest of their time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews