Histories of the Unexpected: How Everything Has a History

Histories of the Unexpected

by James Daybell

'History as you've never seen it before.' Dan Snow'A wonderful, eclectic and entertaining history of everything, full of fascinating, surprising stories.' Suzannah LipscombDid you know that the history of the beard is connected to the Crimean War; that the history of paperclips is all about the Stasi; and that the history of bubbles is all about the French Revolution? And who knew that Heinrich Himmler, Tutankhamun and the history of needlework are linked to napalm and Victorian orphans?In Histories of the Unexpected, Sam Willis and James Daybell lead us on a journey of discovery that tackles some of the greatest historical themes - from the Tudors to the Second World War, from the Roman Empire to the Victorians - but via entirely unexpected subjects.By taking this revolutionary approach, they not only present a new way of thinking about the past, but also reveal the everyday world around us as never before.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

481 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 4, 2018

Reviews

[Maria Hill AKA MH Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best way to describe this is that it is like a trip to the Tudor History Museum in a book. Just enough factual information and some interesting stories. I particularly liked the letter written to Thomas Cromwell by Sir Thomas Heneage about the effectiveness of the enema on Henry the VIIIs bowel movements :)

[Sabrina (Taylor’s Version) · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was a really fun short read on the plane!

[Claire Geraghty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so fascinating! Being a huge Tudor fan I found this very insightful and intriguing. Learning about how everyday objects like The chair, The Toilet, Hats, Eyes etc have a huge impact in Tudor history and link together in unexpected ways.

The chapters are short and easy to read and I like how informative it is without it being to hard to take in. I also found parts quite amusing and there were parts where I was like “ahhh makes so much sense” to when I’ve done my own research into the Tudors. You certainly do learn something new everyday.

I highly recommend this to any Tudor and History fans. Such a great book. I couldn’t put it down.

[Jill Jemmett · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Histories of the Unexpected: The Tudors gives a history of the Tudors that isn’t traditionally written about. Often history books are about the art, religion, and monarchy of the Tudor era. This book has chapters on monsters, toilets, rings, bells, and even cannibalism. It was definitely unexpected and entertaining!

If you want to learn some fun facts about the Tudor era, I recommend this quick read!

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some topics discussed in this book are quite interesting, like how Tudor spies used orange juice to write secret messages. However, the only setback of this book is that the text is quite complicated to read, and sometimes I didn't understand what was going on.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A simply delightful and informative wee read!

[iz · Rating 4 out of 5]

short and sweet and really humanises history! the further reading section was an added bonus to someone who's bothered

[Trelawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short introduction to Tudor life with some fun and quirky facts

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collective about some trivial aspects of Tudor life which are widely not considered or taught. Easy to flick through and read and chapter here and there. I agree this felt like walking through a little museum.