Forgotten History: Unbelievable Moments from the past

by Jem Duducu

Not all history is recorded in school textbooks or cast into towering monuments that shape city skylines. Quite often the most intriguing (and most bizarre) bits are forgotten and fall away into obscurity. In this fascinating book, Jem Duducu shines light on the almost forgotten, wonderfully strange, and often hilarious moments of history that would otherwise be lost forever. Forgotten History tells in delightful detail the stories of the hard-to-believe moments, people or inventions from history. Split into four main eras – ancient, medieval, early modern and twentieth century – this light-hearted and easy-to-read fact book is full to bursting with the bits from history that even a history enthusiast may otherwise have never known. Covering a wide variety of topics, from the time a Pope put his dead predecessor on trial all the way up to the awkward moment when the US Air Force accidentally dropped nuclear bombs on Spain, take a journey through time and discover the weird and wonderful history that you didn’t learn about in school.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

304 pages, Hardcover

Published June 15, 2016

Reviews

[Kirsty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book from start to finish, little bits of information on a forgotten past that you could read in bite size pieces. A refreshing change.

[Georgi_Lvs_Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m gutted that I didn’t enjoy this book. I love learning about history and the past but this book just didn’t do it for me.

I found a lot of it quite boring.

Some stories held my interest, but not enough.

[Jaffareadstoo · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are interested in snippets of 'forgotten history' then this little gem of a book will really appeal to you.

In an easy to read format, the book covers:

Ancient History - where I discovered more about Aliens v Smart Humans:the Nazca Lines..

The Medieval Era - where I discovered more about the strange history of chocolate..

The Early Modern to the Victorians - where I discovered more about the most expensive dress disaster in history..

The Twentieth Century - where I discovered that in 1943, IBM didn't think there was much a future for computers..

It is often said that the truth is stranger than any fiction and whilst some of these forgotten moments seem to be shrouded in myth and legend, there is no doubt that we share a rich and varied history, and that no matter how much you think you know, there is always something new to learn.

The author has done a great job in bringing these forgotten moments of history to life in one slim volume. And reading never becomes a chore as there is always a fascinating fact or two to capture the imagination. So, if you like to learn about history in bite size chunks, from the bizarre to the the genuinely obscure, then this little book would be an interesting addition to any history book shelf.

And you never know, when that pub quiz question asks who was Jonathan Wilde..well.. you'll be able to answer ...in 1718, he was the first self proclaimed Thief Taker General of Great Britain and Ireland ...who knew !!

[Arielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

TLDR this idea exists in more interesting ways in other places, look elsewhere.

Honestly pretty boring. Maybe interesting if this is the first “history fun facts” book you’ve ever read, but I feel like most of them were either fairly common knowledge, uninteresting, or poorly researched. Take “cavemen were communists”. I know this got started on the internet, but come on now, that’s just clickbait. Sharing of resources in of itself isn’t communism, communism is a political and socioeconomic ideology. Saying “cavemen could do it but of COURSE it wouldn’t work past that point because working at McDonald’s is easier than being a doctor” shows not just a lack of understanding of ideology, but also human nature. Far more interesting books have been written about how important sharing resources is, and even how humanity’s desire to take care of one another influenced how we evolved!! Also he blames “the western world” for the malapropism of the swastika at one point.

Anyway, most of the tidbits are about that level of introspection or thought.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

c2016 (2) FWFTB: ancient, medieval, early modern and twentieth century. Another case of a synopsis promising more than the book actually delivers. Its also an example of a blog turning into book - I am just not sure whether this one is a success or not. It is dumbed down history but the author does have some funny asides. Probably more suitable for the younger members of the crew. " The Bohemian art movement has nothing to do with the attitudes or history of the Kingdom of Bohemia."

[Nadvornix · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first sentence of the book contains a factual error.
It reminds me of Reddit. Each page is a new short article for a regular dopamine hit.
Battle of Los Angeles: An Example of Mass Hysteria.
Did you know that D'Artagnan was a real person?
And like Reddit, it is poorly researched. Often following popular myths and saying trivial things as if they are shocking discoveries.
But just like Reddit, it was hard to put down.

[Jess Keast · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Jem's talks on Rest Less Events and I'm happy to report he writes in the same engaging, easy to understand style (and his humour pops up occasionally).
The stories are so quick (a page or two usually) you don't get bored by one topic.
Looking forward to reading more of his books!

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book . Brilliant. Thank you Jem I really enjoyed it . And it’s given plenty to now go research.

[Jbondandrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some interesting history tidbits.

[Neal Nordstrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

fun, easy read with lots of neat tidbits from history

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting to read, although not very well formatted and could do with elaboration on some parts.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading this book. Lots of weird and wonderful stories however, had to take a star off for occasional grammar/punctuation issues...

[Lydia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was 50% very boring and 50% mildly interesting. Not engaging at all.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A miscellaneous collection of stories and facts from history. Some were more interesting than others but it's a great book to dip in and out of.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting bits, though a lot can't really be considered forgotten.

[Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very fun and interesting read apart from the last section of the book that was on the 20th century - it was mostly things about world war 2 and was a little dry. Would have also liked to have read about historic events that covered more countries.

[Shellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, very entertaining. I recommend for amateur historians, especially if he or she has ADD.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full Review can be found on my Book Blog: https://wheretheresinktherespaper.wor...