Michael Farquhar

Hardcover (1 to 2 lbs)

Virginia

The Delightfully Dismal, Day-By-Day Saga of Ignominy, Idiocy, and Incompetence Continues

In the sequel to his sleeper hit Bad Days in History, acclaimed journalist Michael Farquhar brings us another 365 wickedly entertaining days of historical bad luck, epic misfortune, and unadulterated mayhem. 



History is filled with struggle and triumph, determination and discovery, courage and revolution--and let's face it, some really bad days. Featuring tales of bad romance, failed business deals, presidential missteps, royal sabotage, tragic loss, and missed opportunities, this illuminating narrative tells the unfortunate--but often comical--tales of days gone horribly wrong from ancient history to the modern day. With a red-letter event for every day of the year--from January 2, 1492, when the sultan of Granada was relieved of his kingdom by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, to February 18, 1900, when heroin was first prescribed by doctors to cure the common cough--you'll find yourself amused, intrigued, and sometimes horrified by day after day of hilarious misfortune.



Think you're having a bad day? Think again.

More Bad Days in History

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Light Paperback (1 lb or less)

Pennsylvania

The Shocking True Stories History's Wickedest Weirdest MostWanton Kings Queens

From Nero's nagging mother (whom he found especially annoying after taking her as his lover) to Catherine's stable of studs (not of the equine variety), here is a wickedly delightful look at the most scandalous royal doings you never learned about in history class. Gleeful, naughty, sometimes perverted-like so many of the crowned heads themselves-A Treasury of Royal Scandals presents the best (the worst?) of royal misbehavior through the ages. From ancient Rome to Edwardian England, from the lavish rooms of Versailles to the dankest corners of the Bastille, the great royals of Europe have excelled at savage parenting, deadly rivalry, pathological lust, and meeting death with the utmost indignity-or just very bad luck.

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

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California

Three Centuries of Autocracy, Debauchery, Betrayal, Murder, and Madness from Romanov Russia

“Michael Farquhar doesn’t write about history the way, say, Doris Kearns Goodwin does. He writes about history the way Doris Kearns Goodwin’s smart-ass, reprobate kid brother might. I, for one, prefer it.”—Gene Weingarten, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and Washington Post columnist Scandal! Intrigue! Cossacks! Here the world’s most engaging royal historian chronicles the world’s most fascinating imperial dynasty: the Romanovs, whose three-hundred-year reign was remarkable for its shocking violence, spectacular excess, and unimaginable venality. In this incredibly entertaining history, Michael Farquhar collects the best, most captivating true tales of Romanov iniquity. We meet Catherine the Great, with her endless parade of virile young lovers (none of them of the equine variety); her unhinged son, Paul I, who ordered the bones of one of his mother’s paramours dug out of its grave and tossed into a gorge; and Grigori Rasputin, the “Mad Monk,” whose mesmeric domination of the last of the Romanov tsars helped lead to the monarchy’s undoing. From Peter the Great’s penchant for personally beheading his recalcitrant subjects (he kept the severed head of one of his mistresses pickled in alcohol) to Nicholas and Alexandra’s brutal demise at the hands of the Bolsheviks, Secret Lives of the Tsars captures all the splendor and infamy that was Imperial Russia. Praise for Secret Lives of the Tsars “An accessible, exciting narrative . . . Highly recommended for generalists interested in Russian history and those who enjoy the seamier side of past lives.”—Library Journal (starred review) “An excellent condensed version of Russian history . . . a fine tale of history and scandal . . . sure to please general readers and monarchy buffs alike.”—Publishers Weekly “Tales from the nasty lives of global royalty . . . an easy-reading, lightweight history lesson.”—Kirkus Reviews “Readers of this book may get a sense of why Russians are so tolerant of tyrants like Stalin and Putin. Given their history, it probably seems normal.”—The Washington Post

Secret Lives of the Tsars

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Smoke free home. Ships securely and with care! 

Texas

Tantalizing True Tales of Historic Misbehavior by the Founding Fathers and Others Who Let Freedom Swing

Following on the heels of his national bestseller A Treasury of Royal Scandals, Michael Farquhar turns his attention to matters a little closer to home with A Treasury of Great American Scandals. From the unhappy family relationships of prominent Americans to the feuds, smear campaigns, duels, and infamous sex scandals that have punctuated our history, we see our founding fathers and other American heroes in the course of their all-too-human events. Ineffectual presidents, lazy generals, traitors; treacherous fathers, nagging mothers, ungrateful children, embarrassing siblings; and stories about insanity, death, and disturbing postmortems are all here, as are disagreeable marriages, vile habits, and, of course, sex: good sex, bad sex, and good-bad sex too. We can take comfort in the fact that we are no worse and no better than our forebears. But we do have better media coverage. Bonus educational material: A brief history of the United States, including scandals! The American Hall of Shame! A complete listing of presidential administrations!

A Treasury of Great American Scandals

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Paperback (1 to 2 lbs)

Michigan

Treasury of Royal Scandals paperback book by Michael Farquhar
Trade paperback book.  Good shape.  Some cover creases. About 320 pages long. Date stamped on top. 

Trade paperback. Pages are clean and tight with no spine creasing. Cover may show slight shelf wear. 

Wisconsin

Pirates, Skinflints, Patriots, and Other Colorful Characters Stuck in the Footnotes of History

A lively, compulsively browsable collection of neglected notables-from the bestselling author of A Treasury of Royal Scandals

"History," wrote Thomas Carlyle, "is the essence of innumerable biographies." Yet countless fascinating characters are relegated to a historical limbo. In A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans, Michael Farquhar has scoured the annals and rescued thirty of the most intriguing, unusual, and yes, memorable Americans from obscurity. From the mother of Mother's Day to Paul Revere's rival rider, the Mayflower murderer to "America's Sherlock Holmes," these figures are more than historical runners-up-they're the spies, explorers, patriots, and martyrs without whom history as we know it would be very different indeed.

A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans

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2001 edition. Covers, pages and binding are in great shape! 

Missouri

Florida

Minnesota

Five Centuries of Sex, Adventure, Vice, Treachery, and Folly from Royal Britain

Spanning 500 years of British history, a revealing look at the secret lives of some great (and not-so-great) Britons, courtesy of one of the world’s most engaging royal historians Beleaguered by scandal, betrayed by faithless spouses, bedeviled by ambitious children, the kings and queens of Great Britain have been many things, but they have never been dull. Some sacrificed everything for love, while others met a cruel fate at the edge of an axman’s blade. From the truth behind the supposed madness of King George to Queen Victoria’s surprisingly daring taste in sculpture, Behind the Palace Doors ventures beyond the rumors to tell the unvarnished history of Britain’s monarchs, highlighting the unique mix of tragedy, comedy, romance, heroism, and incompetence that has made the British throne a seat of such unparalleled fascination. Featuring: • stories covering every monarch, from randy Henry VIII to reserved Elizabeth II • historical myths debunked and surprising “Did you know . . . ?” anecdotes • four family trees spanning every royal house, from the Tudors to the Windsors

Behind the Palace Doors

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South Carolina

Light Hardcover (1 lb or less)

Georgia

A Gleefully Grim Chronicle of Misfortune, Mayhem, and Misery for Every Day of the Year

National Geographic author Michael Farquhar uncovers an instance of bad luck, epic misfortune, and unadulterated mayhem tied to every day of the year. From Caligula's blood-soaked end to hotelier Steve Wynn's unfortunate run-in with a priceless Picasso, these 365 tales of misery include lost fortunes (like the would-be Apple investor who pulled out in 1977 and missed out on a $30 billion-dollar windfall), romance gone wrong (like the 16th-century Shah who experimented with an early form of Viagra with empire-changing results), and truly bizarre moments (like the Great Molasses Flood of 1919).Think you're having a bad day? Trust us, it gets worse.

Bad Days in History

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Kentucky

North Carolina

Massachusetts

Maryland

five centuries of sex, adventure, vice, treachery, and folly from royal Britain

Behind the palace doors

#britishhistory #paperback #sex #adventure #vice #treachery #folly #RoyalBritain #Tudors #Windsors 

Washington

Some shelf wear to the cover of the book. #USA #AmericanHistory #Presidents #Government

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Michael Farquhar

More Bad Days in History

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

Secret Lives of the Tsars

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Great American Scandals

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

Secret Lives of the Tsars

Michael Farquhar

Behind the Palace Doors

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals

Michael Farquhar

Bad Days in History

Michael Farquhar

Secret Lives of the Tsars

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Great American Scandals

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Great American Scandals

Michael Farquhar

Behind the Palace Doors

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans

Michael Farquhar

Behind the palace doors

Michael Farquhar

Behind the Palace Doors

Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Great American Scandals