‘Brilliantly funny’ SHAPARAK KHORSANDI
‘Immensely enjoyable’ BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE
‘Every page contains delights’ LINDSEY FITZHARRIS
Why is Italy called Italy? How old is curry? How fast was the medieval Chinese post system? How do we know how people sounded in the past? Who invented maths?
Responding to fifty genuine questions from the public, Greg Jenner takes you on an entertaining tour through history from the Stone Age to the Swinging Sixties, revealing the best and most surprising stories, facts and historical characters from the past. From ancient joke books, African empires and the invention of meringues, to mummies, mirrors and menstrual pads – Ask A Historian is a deliciously amusing and informative smorgasbord of historical curiosities.
‘Immensely enjoyable’ BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE
‘Every page contains delights’ LINDSEY FITZHARRIS
Why is Italy called Italy? How old is curry? How fast was the medieval Chinese post system? How do we know how people sounded in the past? Who invented maths?
Responding to fifty genuine questions from the public, Greg Jenner takes you on an entertaining tour through history from the Stone Age to the Swinging Sixties, revealing the best and most surprising stories, facts and historical characters from the past. From ancient joke books, African empires and the invention of meringues, to mummies, mirrors and menstrual pads – Ask A Historian is a deliciously amusing and informative smorgasbord of historical curiosities.
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Reviews
In juggling both the role of ancient Greek scholar and medieval court jester in Ask a Historian, Jenner has delivered an ideal stocking filler that is as enlightening as it is entertaining
Huge fun
Jenner uses all the questions you never dared to ask about history as an excellent excuse to rummage around in some funny, fascinating and downright peculiar corners of the past. Every page contains delights, and you will be illuminated and entertained in equal measure
A rewarding romp through the highways and byways of the past . . . an immensely enjoyable book, written in a lively, engaging style accessible to a broad audience of all ages. One of Jenner's real achievements is the creation of a genre of public history that fuses scholarly research with humour, and it is intended to entertain as much as it is to educate. For this he is to be congratulated
Endlessly entertaining and utterly addictive, this book provides a cornucopia of historical delights. The eclectic, sometimes bizarre range of questions showcase the author's encyclopaedic knowledge and engaging, humorous style to perfection. The result is everything you need to know about history - and much more besides
A lively selection, spanning a diverse array of subjects and periods . . . a great way into some of history's biggest themes and concepts
In this brilliantly funny book, Greg proves yet again that history is for absolutely everybody
If history informs our future, Greg Jenner is one of the best informants out there. He is a natural storyteller, conveying complex ideas and events with pep, verve and wit. For anyone who regularly asks the question 'Why?', this book is for you