Product Description

Find out about history's interesting bits from one of the writers of the hit TV quiz QI:

What is bunkum?
Who was the original Nosy Parker?
Which infamous dictator drew the poster for Teddy s Perspiration Powder ?
Was there really a female pope?
Why did Lady Godiva take her clothes off?
Was Good King Wenceslas really good?
Who said of whom, He never commanded more than ten men in his life and he ate three of them ?
Which English king exploded?
Who fought the Dog Tax War?



Did you give your school history lessons your undivided attention?

Even if you did, you re probably none the wiser as to how exactly Henry II of France came to have a two-foot splinter in his head or why Alexandra of Bavaria believed she had swallowed a piano. Or where terms like bunkum, maverick, John Bull and taking the mickey come from; or how the Tsarina of Russia once saved a life with a comma; or why Robert Pate hit Queen Victoria on the head with a walking stick.

For some unknown reason the most interesting bits of history are kept out of lessons and away from syllabuses. Relegated to history s footnotes, they lie buried beneath the dense text like a few golden nuggets in a mountain of granite.

Now The Interesting Bits rights this wrong; it is a veritable treasure trove of those surprising, eccentric, chaotic, baffling asides that don t fit neatly into history s official narrative.

They are history s little-known treasures the gems that generations of teachers have excised from lessons on the grounds that they might make history too much like well fun.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4647 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

Review
'Fabulous ... the perfect toilet book' --Paul O Grady

'An energetic, colourful book that bounces through the bits of the past that you never knew you wanted to know, but surprisingly, do' --Easy Living

About the Author
Justin Pollard read archaeology and anthropology at Cambridge. As an historical writer and researcher he has advised on six feature films including Elizabeth and its sequel, The Golden Age, as well as over twenty-five documentary series such as Time Team for Channel 4. He is also a researcher for QI and the author of the Seven Ages of Britain, The Rise and Fall of Alexandria and Alfred the Great.

Customer Reviews

A funny and interesting look at history
I have always wondered why Henry II had a massive splinter in his head (well, not really. I didn't even know this juicy little fact before reading the book). And have you ever thought about trying a dead Pope for heresy? Well someone did and the information can be found in this little book of interesting, funny and twisting-turning outlines of historical nuggets. What makes this book so unique is that the information inside isn't common knowledge. It isn't the kind of thing granny passes down through the generations and even if it were you probably would mark it all down as some sad wives' tale of bygone years. I think there are some 200 of these kinds of history nuggets in the book to laugh at and smile at and wonder why you didn't know at.

It's a good addition to any history library and I think would be a fantastic read for teachers who need to spice up their history lessons a bit with some funny interludes.

Funny yet deep I think this is an enjoyable romp through the pages of history and is just enough so that it doesn't get boring or too silly. Highly recommended!

Book as the title describes
The title of the book describes exactly what is expected from this little tome. It has loads of interesting snippets from history, that you would probably not have learnt in your standard history lesson. What is good about this book, is that you can dip in and out of the book, and learn bits of trivia which may be useful in a pub quiz. This is a quirky, enjoyable book and very appropriate for a stocking filler or present for a light history buff or quiz fan.

fun but inconsequential
Books like this are okay if you want five minutes worth of reading every now and again. The stories feel a bit over-familiar though, or a little redundant: why should I care to know how many eggs Elizabeth I ate in a year?

The sections were ordered arbitrarily. Fair enough, it makes for easy dipping, but it then lacks an overall cohesion. The book's good for obscure pub quiz knowledge, but you go away from it without a story, without the "why?" of history. And without that, historical writing becomes redundant.