It Ended Badly

I freaking LOVED this book. I loved it soo much that I actually plan on buying it, which from me is HIGH PRAISE! This book was just what I needed to prepare myself for being single on Valentine's Day again. This book was laugh out loud funny and should be required reading for fans of history, romance, and literature. Author, Jennifer Wright, finds the thirteen worst breakups in history to make you feel better about your love life. From ancient Rome to the 1050's Jennifer has got you covered. Her tone is very conversational, enlightening, and freaking hilarious. I want the author to come over to my house to drink boxed wine and watch BBC shows. She's just that kind of gal, she brings witty humor to some truly awful stories and has a little something for everyone. If you have ever started snickering at happy couples on the street, read about Anna Ivanovna from Russia. If you have just sent your ex a very intense emotional e-mail, read about Caroline Lamb and Lord Byron. If you deserve an apology, read about Norman Mailor and Adele Morales Mailer. Seriously, this book was over the top informative and off the charts funny. From sex dolls, to dressing subjects as chickens and eggs, to stabbing your wife, to claim your a virgin while seven months pregnant, this book tells it all and you need to read it. So far my favorite book of 2016.

Drinking in America

I LOVED this book! I'm a huge fan of micro-histories, and while this subject is a little broad it all come back to the booze. Soo intriguing! Author, Susan Cheever, does a brilliant job of cataloging many of the incidents that helped make America great and then launches in to how booze played a part. Trust me, a big part. Why did the pilgrims land at Plymouth? Because they were running out of beer and didn't think they could make it to the land they were actually granted. Why did everyone really love Johnny Appleseed? Because the nasty apple trees he planted weren't good for eating but WERE good for turning into cider. How much did soldiers drink in the American Revolution and the Civil War? Triple what you thought, maybe more. How did booze play a part in President KEnnedy's assassination? His security detail had partied hard the night before and were too hungover to react quickly. My view of American history is forever altered. Booze has been present every step of our country's way and it is NEVER mentioned (unless it's about the prohibition). Cheever talks about how laws have changed as is how we define drunkenness. In the eighteenth century this little diddy helped define who was drunk: "Not drunk is he who from the floor, / Can rise again and still drink more, / But drunk is he who prostrate lies, / Without the power to drink or rise." I doubt that version of sobriety would pass today. In fact during the 1820's Americans were drinking TRIPLE what we consume today!! Crazy! Cheever doesn't condone drinking but she does a great job of illustrating the negative AND positive effects booze has had on our country. A fascinating book!

Halloween: An American Holiday, An American Tradition

I'm not gonna lie, when I first picked up this book I was a little skeptical . I'd read "The Halloween Tree" by Ray Bradbury, I knew all their was to know about the history of Halloween, how could their possibly be any more to the story? Well, that's where I was wrong. Author, Lesley Pratt Bannatyne, painstaking researches the origins of traditions, feast days, and folk lore going all the way back to the Celts, Druids, and Romans. Even though the title of this book boasts the "American History," Bannatyne does her research and takes the reader all the way back to Europe to get a glimpse of the first origins. She then talks about how it was meshed with other cultures and religions (the Roman Empire, Christianity, etc.) through the centuries and how it finally was celebrated on October 31 (November 1 is All Saint's Day or Hallow's Day, so October 31 is Hallows Eve). Once it was joined with Scottish and Irish traditions, it started to more closely resemble the holiday we celebrate now: costumes to blend in with the dead, begging for food door to door, carrying turnip lanterns (pumpkins were a new favorite when they came to America), and playing pranks or tricks on one another (picked up from Guy Fawkes Day). Once the immigrants brought their traditions to the United States, things escalated and by the late nineteenth century, ladies magazines were producing articles on how to throw the best Halloween parties. When the Halloween tradition came to America, it lost a lot of the "communion with the dead" aspects. The Victorian age simply turned it into another reason to party.

Overall, it was a fascinating read. I learned soo much about one of my favorite holidays and I definitely appreciate it even more, knowing the rich history behind the traditions. A must read for any fan of Halloween or things that go bump in the night. It's filled with great poetry, pictures, and drawings to go along with the history. I do wish there had been more about the Day of the Dead and the evolution of costumes (how did they get so slutty?!), but hey, this book is 25 years old, I understand :)

The History of the Peloponnesian War

Here's another audiobook review for the Library Journal. It's written according to the journal's standards so it doesn't have my usual quirkiness, but oh well.

Written nearly half a millennium before the birth of Christ, Thucydide’s, The History of the Peloponnesian War continues to be one of the most powerful and influential works of our time. This masterpiece brings to life a convincing account of the struggle between the empires of Athens and Sparta over expansion, shipping, and trade and in the process combines myth, romance, and history to create a painstakingly factual record of the catastrophic conflict that eventually ended the Athenian empire. Neville Jason, renowned voice actor and winner of multiple Audiofile awards and the coveted diction prize beautifully brings to life a long forgotten era and fills the listener with an overwhelming sense of urgency and passion. For lovers of history; past and current.