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The Great Book of Crazy President Trivia: Interesting Stories of American Presidents
Do you love American history? Do you enjoy learning about the US Presidents? If so, then this President Trivia book is for you. The Great Book of Crazy President Trivia is filled with many lesser-known facts about the American Presidents. It is filled with great stories of the US Presidents that you will not find in any US history books. This President Trivia book is going to let you see the Presidents of the past in a whole new light. Learn about their personal lives, the challenges they faced, and their great accomplishments. When you read this trivia book, you are going to learn not only about the Presidents of the US but about the history of the US as well. When we learn about the Presidents, most often we learn about a few of their accomplishments that they had while in office, however, this book is going to show you the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to the lives of these men. At the end of each chapter you will find trivia questions and answers that are going to allow you to learn even more about the men that have been in charge of The United States of America. You are going to learn how war not only challenged these men but how it affected who they were. You will see how great decisions were made as well as some that were not so great. In the end, you are going to find that these men were in fact just men who took on a huge responsibility. Some of them were successful some of them failed miserably but each of them with their own hands, molded the US into what it is today.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
155 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 1, 2017
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72 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 30, 2017
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
This was an easy and entertaining listen, but many of the facts I already knew and are general knowledge. As such, it didn't really live up to the title and was slightly boring.
This was an easy and entertaining listen, but many of the facts I already knew and are general knowledge. As such, it didn't really live up to the title and was slightly boring.
October 8, 2017
I think this is a good collection of trivia and the author put in quite a few facts I didn't know. For the most part, the author doesn't try to sway a person's opinion of the President's he is writing about ad tries to stay with just the crazy facts. The book is interesting and well written. I also see this author has a few other trivia books worth looking into, especially if you are a history and a trivia buff, like I am.
December 3, 2018
This is a very random collection of information, but it's light reading and there are some fun and interesting bits of trivia. One reason I rated it only two stars because I couldn't think of a single person I'd recommend it to. It's too light and random for me to tell an adult they'd enjoy it; and because it's such a random set of trivia, it runs the risk of misrepresenting the presidents for readers (like kids) who may not know the history yet. It's also sometimes too focused on presidential sexual misconduct for me to feel like it's a good book for students.
The book -- being a trivia book -- also has a tendency to focus too much on one famous or thing about a president, and not mention anything about their achievements to balance. Jefferson was just the father of illegitimate children with a slave, Kennedy is just his assassination, Nixon is pretty much just Watergate, Johnson really liked his private parts, Carter had a family peanut farm scandal, Clinton is all-scandals, all-the-time. The better trivia profiles in the book had funny trivia, but also pointed out some of the other things the president did, too. I wish all of the profiles had been more like that.
There's also clear political bias in the profiles of the more recent presidents, despite the author's statement that every president deserves to be respected for attaining that office. Only conservative presidents (like Reagan and GW Bush) are talked about just in terms of their broad likability.
The book -- being a trivia book -- also has a tendency to focus too much on one famous or thing about a president, and not mention anything about their achievements to balance. Jefferson was just the father of illegitimate children with a slave, Kennedy is just his assassination, Nixon is pretty much just Watergate, Johnson really liked his private parts, Carter had a family peanut farm scandal, Clinton is all-scandals, all-the-time. The better trivia profiles in the book had funny trivia, but also pointed out some of the other things the president did, too. I wish all of the profiles had been more like that.
There's also clear political bias in the profiles of the more recent presidents, despite the author's statement that every president deserves to be respected for attaining that office. Only conservative presidents (like Reagan and GW Bush) are talked about just in terms of their broad likability.
December 26, 2017
Fun & Entertaining Tidbits
In this volume of trivia, Bill O’Neill tackles the politics of the long list of US Presidents. It could best be seen as a summary of important and trivial details about the earlier Presidents. Many are covered in detail. Some are only given cursory coverage, as in the case of Calvin Coolidge. Of course, there is more info available on different Presidents. And, the focus of the book seems to be on the “crazy” details.
An example of the odd: Zachary Taylor owned slaves, but opposed the Compromise of 1850 because it would require returning runaway slaves to their owners. After he was (most-likely) poisoned, Millard Fillmore became President. Fillmore was anti-slavery, and enforced the anti-slave act, but accepted compromises that returned run-away slaves while postponing the Civil War. Had Taylor not been killed the War would have perhaps been sooner. But, the contradictions in the beliefs each man held were astounding to me.
Presidential policies are a political topic, and some things can be seen as arguable, as with all political ideas. There are facts and then there is politics and they don’t always exist together in the real world. As for the book, there are a couple of grammatical errors, in addition to arguable ideas. But, most of what is included is quite interesting and entertaining. The book will inspire you to read more about a few of the Presidents.
An example of an arguable idea, or at least an idea that I couldn’t “get my head around” went as follows:
This quote comes just after all the evidence presented that Harding seemed to indeed be a womanizer who had more than one extramarital affair. There are other Presidents, Clinton and JFK to name two, who were very good presidents, even though they clearly had multiple affairs. So, I just did not understand the author’s argument here. You have to read it for yourself to decide your own opinion. And, I think that is what marks our fascination with reading about the Presidents.
I had a great deal of trouble reading through the Civil War Presidents, and especially the section on Lincoln brought tears, simply because of the sadness. It really is a book that is well worth reading if you like Presidential facts and minutiae.
I requested and received a copy of the Audible edition of this book free for review purposes. It is difficult to say which I liked better: this or the World War 2 Trivia book by the same author, which I also reviewed. I found nothing to disagree with in the WW2 book, but then it was not quite a political topic. Each book has its own allure, and for that reason, I believe this is a book you will want to read for yourself. I have already reread a few sections; even though anxious to get to The Fun Knowledge Encyclopedia, by O’Neill which I’ve already downloaded to read next.
In this volume of trivia, Bill O’Neill tackles the politics of the long list of US Presidents. It could best be seen as a summary of important and trivial details about the earlier Presidents. Many are covered in detail. Some are only given cursory coverage, as in the case of Calvin Coolidge. Of course, there is more info available on different Presidents. And, the focus of the book seems to be on the “crazy” details.
An example of the odd: Zachary Taylor owned slaves, but opposed the Compromise of 1850 because it would require returning runaway slaves to their owners. After he was (most-likely) poisoned, Millard Fillmore became President. Fillmore was anti-slavery, and enforced the anti-slave act, but accepted compromises that returned run-away slaves while postponing the Civil War. Had Taylor not been killed the War would have perhaps been sooner. But, the contradictions in the beliefs each man held were astounding to me.
Presidential policies are a political topic, and some things can be seen as arguable, as with all political ideas. There are facts and then there is politics and they don’t always exist together in the real world. As for the book, there are a couple of grammatical errors, in addition to arguable ideas. But, most of what is included is quite interesting and entertaining. The book will inspire you to read more about a few of the Presidents.
An example of an arguable idea, or at least an idea that I couldn’t “get my head around” went as follows:
“Now, Harding is remembered as a terrible president, a womanizer, and a lazy good-for-nothing senator, although when you look what he did accomplish it’s obvious that none of those things is true.”
This quote comes just after all the evidence presented that Harding seemed to indeed be a womanizer who had more than one extramarital affair. There are other Presidents, Clinton and JFK to name two, who were very good presidents, even though they clearly had multiple affairs. So, I just did not understand the author’s argument here. You have to read it for yourself to decide your own opinion. And, I think that is what marks our fascination with reading about the Presidents.
I had a great deal of trouble reading through the Civil War Presidents, and especially the section on Lincoln brought tears, simply because of the sadness. It really is a book that is well worth reading if you like Presidential facts and minutiae.
I requested and received a copy of the Audible edition of this book free for review purposes. It is difficult to say which I liked better: this or the World War 2 Trivia book by the same author, which I also reviewed. I found nothing to disagree with in the WW2 book, but then it was not quite a political topic. Each book has its own allure, and for that reason, I believe this is a book you will want to read for yourself. I have already reread a few sections; even though anxious to get to The Fun Knowledge Encyclopedia, by O’Neill which I’ve already downloaded to read next.
October 11, 2017
The Great Book of Crazy President Trivia wasn’t great, but it was entertaining and an easy read. I had hoped to learn some new tidbits of previously unknown facts to wow friends with but found that many of the anecdotes have been written about before and the others weren’t that much of a wow.
One thing that became evident as I read was how much presidential politics of the past resemble those faced today. Negative campaigning? Just look at the attacks made against Andrew Jackson’s wife when he ran for president. Immigration concerns? Fillmore ran in 1856 with the principal policy of limiting Irish Catholic immigration. Race relations? Hayes removed troops from the southern states which led to their violation of black rights, violations that continue today in the form of disparate voter registration practices and Republican Party favoring voter districting.
If you’re a lover of American History, then this is a text that will drive you to research the presidents’ lives further. It’s a perfect book for when you have a limited amount of time and need something to read. Otherwise, the book is an enjoyable read and it will leave you without regret at the short amount of time it took to read.
One thing that became evident as I read was how much presidential politics of the past resemble those faced today. Negative campaigning? Just look at the attacks made against Andrew Jackson’s wife when he ran for president. Immigration concerns? Fillmore ran in 1856 with the principal policy of limiting Irish Catholic immigration. Race relations? Hayes removed troops from the southern states which led to their violation of black rights, violations that continue today in the form of disparate voter registration practices and Republican Party favoring voter districting.
If you’re a lover of American History, then this is a text that will drive you to research the presidents’ lives further. It’s a perfect book for when you have a limited amount of time and need something to read. Otherwise, the book is an enjoyable read and it will leave you without regret at the short amount of time it took to read.
July 29, 2019
Really? I mean, REALLY?
A book desperately in search of an editor. There are historical inaccuracies rampant in the book. An example talks about Lee Harvey Oswald. “In 1956, he joined the Marines, but he was discharged three years later. Nine years after being discharged, he traveled to the Soviet Union where he tried and failed to become a citizen. He returned to the US in 1962 with his wife, who was a Soviet woman, and their baby daughter.”
If he was discharged in 1959 and 9 years he traveled to the Soviet Union. That would mean that he traveled to the Soviet Union in 1968. By that time JFK, Oswald and Ruby were all dead. It also says that Oswald was shot by Ruby at a press conference. No, he was shot being transported from jail to a more secure facility. The press was there but it was not a press conference.
The book mentions the scandals associated with the Clintons prior to taking office. In the list it includes Watergate. No, wrong President. What it should have said was Whitewater.
I believe I paid the right price for this book, ZERO!
A book desperately in search of an editor. There are historical inaccuracies rampant in the book. An example talks about Lee Harvey Oswald. “In 1956, he joined the Marines, but he was discharged three years later. Nine years after being discharged, he traveled to the Soviet Union where he tried and failed to become a citizen. He returned to the US in 1962 with his wife, who was a Soviet woman, and their baby daughter.”
If he was discharged in 1959 and 9 years he traveled to the Soviet Union. That would mean that he traveled to the Soviet Union in 1968. By that time JFK, Oswald and Ruby were all dead. It also says that Oswald was shot by Ruby at a press conference. No, he was shot being transported from jail to a more secure facility. The press was there but it was not a press conference.
The book mentions the scandals associated with the Clintons prior to taking office. In the list it includes Watergate. No, wrong President. What it should have said was Whitewater.
I believe I paid the right price for this book, ZERO!
October 4, 2017
🌟🌟🌟🌟Crazy President Trivia by Bill O'Neill. I received a free ebook copy of this book from the author in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own. This book is a fun-filled fact and trivia book. Instead of just question and answers there are funny facts, stories to prove or unprove myths of presidents past. Did you know Andrew Jackson and his family hung their laundry to dry in a room of the Whitehouse? I didn't either! George Washington's dentures were not made of wood. This book is filled with fun things to keep children laughing and learning. Review also posted on Instagram @jasonnstacie, Library Thing, and my blog https://readsbystacie.com
January 4, 2025
Do not recommend. Many inconsistencies in the book, such as the trivia sections have the wrong answers, the order the presidents were listed isn’t completely correct, and there is a clear bias with how the presidents are portrayed. Each section focused heavily on mostly one aspect of their presidency, instead of providing more of an overall view of their time in office. The writing was very clunky and in same cases having a strange structure of how one thought connected to the next. Even for a lighthearted trivia book I cannot in good conscience recommend this to someone.
November 19, 2017
The Great Book of Crazy President Trivia was interesting but not exciting. I found a couple of things that were inaccurate and felt that some of the trivia was trivial when discussing the President of the United States. Other parts were very interesting and had facts about the different presidents and how they were elected that seems to be repeating patterns in our history. I think that is the biggest strength of this trivia book.
December 22, 2017
The Great Book of Crazy President Trivia
: Bill O'Neill
A fun short listen of presidential trivia. I had heard some of these things and others were new to me. I loved the little quizzes sprinkled in.
The narration was well done. Rob Maxwell made it an interesting listen.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
: Bill O'Neill
A fun short listen of presidential trivia. I had heard some of these things and others were new to me. I loved the little quizzes sprinkled in.
The narration was well done. Rob Maxwell made it an interesting listen.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
February 27, 2019
Fun book for Middle school history teacher trying to keep things from getting boring!
Wish there was more or even a way to divided into decades/major time periods. Some info, like part about Ford was encouraging others was surprising, but not unheard before for instance Johnson and his Johnson!!
Wish there was more or even a way to divided into decades/major time periods. Some info, like part about Ford was encouraging others was surprising, but not unheard before for instance Johnson and his Johnson!!
March 8, 2020
Average at best
This book was not very well written, suffering from several grammatical errors. Also, there are some questionable claims, some of which are simply not true. One such falsehood was the claim that it was ONE not Truman who dropped the bombs on Japan. I would not recommend this book.
This book was not very well written, suffering from several grammatical errors. Also, there are some questionable claims, some of which are simply not true. One such falsehood was the claim that it was ONE not Truman who dropped the bombs on Japan. I would not recommend this book.
November 17, 2024
It was not as fun or interesting as I thought it would be. Good tie-ins with history. I appreciated the debunking of some old trivia. I did note that the answer to one of the trivia questions was wrong. It was Harry Truman who was president when the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, not Lyndon B Johnson.
March 4, 2018
Interesting Presidential facts
Enjoyed learning these little known facts about the US Presidents. Some made me laugh out loud, while others were rather disturbing! Enjoyable read.
Enjoyed learning these little known facts about the US Presidents. Some made me laugh out loud, while others were rather disturbing! Enjoyable read.
March 5, 2018
Audible:This was full of little known facts about every president.I was very surprised to find out how Abe Lincoln decided to become a Lawyer!Rob Maxwell was a fine narrator for this project.“I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.”
March 7, 2018
Interesting
A fairly interesting collection of Presidential trivia. There was a huge amount of this I had never heard before. I particularly enjoyed the parts about Lincoln, Bush, and Roosevelt.
A fairly interesting collection of Presidential trivia. There was a huge amount of this I had never heard before. I particularly enjoyed the parts about Lincoln, Bush, and Roosevelt.
February 11, 2019
Entertaining little book with crazy tidbits. I always heard that LBJ was an adulterer but damn...I never knew he was such a disgusting pervy pig who certainly wouldn't have survived the 21st century with that behaviour.
October 30, 2017
Interesting
Trivia is usually pretty interesting and this book of trivia is just that. It humanized some men that tend to seem more than human. A fun read.
Trivia is usually pretty interesting and this book of trivia is just that. It humanized some men that tend to seem more than human. A fun read.
November 25, 2017
Interesting read and facts
Great reading, fast read. Very enjoyable and good trivia. So many facts I should become a trivia hero amongst my friends
Great reading, fast read. Very enjoyable and good trivia. So many facts I should become a trivia hero amongst my friends
August 6, 2019
X
O'Neill either got bored of didn't think anyone was interested in any President after McKinley. He also thought Harding was a great president, just misunderstood by the press.
O'Neill either got bored of didn't think anyone was interested in any President after McKinley. He also thought Harding was a great president, just misunderstood by the press.
September 17, 2020
A fun read.
The author has done a good job in this trivia book. From tidbits of knowledge to interesting behind the scenes stories, this book has it.
The author has done a good job in this trivia book. From tidbits of knowledge to interesting behind the scenes stories, this book has it.
March 31, 2021
Fascinating Book
Odd facts and stories on the U S Presidents So much covers areas I had no idea about. Very insightful
Odd facts and stories on the U S Presidents So much covers areas I had no idea about. Very insightful
January 17, 2018
Despite being titled "crazy president trivia" much of the trivia here, while interesting, ins't really crazy. This book is good for getting a quick overview of who the Presidents are, what they did and what they are known for.
The book runs through each of the presidents, telling a brief history of their Presidency (although for some, like Lincoln, it focuses as much on his pre-Presidential life). Some it is a straight forward history. 'They we're elected here, they did this'. Some have some interesting stuff - like Cleveland marrying his ward who was 27 years younger than him.
There are some things that are strange, possibly unintentionally so. The author states that Reagan was an amazing President, telling of some of the things he did. Then a few lines later, in some of the small trivia parts he talks about how Reagan like Trump is. Does that mean he thinks Trump is amazing? I don't know. I would hazard a guess the author is more Republican than Democrat, based on how he talks about the last few Presidents. Then again, it is hard to talk about the legacy of presidents who are very recent, as the legacy isn't fully known. I don't think it changes the book too much - it seems fairly even handed more the most part.
Rob Maxwell does well with narration. Clear, well paced and enjoyable to listen to.
The book runs through each of the presidents, telling a brief history of their Presidency (although for some, like Lincoln, it focuses as much on his pre-Presidential life). Some it is a straight forward history. 'They we're elected here, they did this'. Some have some interesting stuff - like Cleveland marrying his ward who was 27 years younger than him.
There are some things that are strange, possibly unintentionally so. The author states that Reagan was an amazing President, telling of some of the things he did. Then a few lines later, in some of the small trivia parts he talks about how Reagan like Trump is. Does that mean he thinks Trump is amazing? I don't know. I would hazard a guess the author is more Republican than Democrat, based on how he talks about the last few Presidents. Then again, it is hard to talk about the legacy of presidents who are very recent, as the legacy isn't fully known. I don't think it changes the book too much - it seems fairly even handed more the most part.
Rob Maxwell does well with narration. Clear, well paced and enjoyable to listen to.
August 20, 2019
If I could rate this lower than a 1 I would.
There is so much wrong here.
-Many of the dates are incorrect for things. A perfect example is in the section discussing Kennedy's assassination the dates regarding Lee Harvey Oswald don't make any sense. IF they did then Kennedy would have been assassinated in 1968???
-The author shows tremendous bias towards a few specific presidents, especially Nixon and Reagan and at the same time heavily disparages LBJ and Kennedy. A book like this should be factual not based on the authors political bent.
-The section on LBJ was entirely about his penis!?!?! I'm sure that there were many more stories that could and should have been in place of this. What was the author thinking?
I got the book for free and I still feel like I paid too much for it. The author should go back and reconsider his career because it certainly should not be in writing books like this.
In summary, avoid this book like the plague because the information provided is inaccurate and not worth your time or money.
There is so much wrong here.
-Many of the dates are incorrect for things. A perfect example is in the section discussing Kennedy's assassination the dates regarding Lee Harvey Oswald don't make any sense. IF they did then Kennedy would have been assassinated in 1968???
-The author shows tremendous bias towards a few specific presidents, especially Nixon and Reagan and at the same time heavily disparages LBJ and Kennedy. A book like this should be factual not based on the authors political bent.
-The section on LBJ was entirely about his penis!?!?! I'm sure that there were many more stories that could and should have been in place of this. What was the author thinking?
I got the book for free and I still feel like I paid too much for it. The author should go back and reconsider his career because it certainly should not be in writing books like this.
In summary, avoid this book like the plague because the information provided is inaccurate and not worth your time or money.
November 23, 2023
It's very eye opening and definitely an interesting read!
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews