In 1932 the Australian army declared war on emus. The emus won.In 1890 nineteen tons of mummified cats were auctioned in Liverpool as fertilizer. The can opener arrived forty-eight years after the can. A city once paid a bounty for rat tails and watched its citizens start farming rats. The treadmill was invented as a punishment, and we have been paying to use it ever since.None of this was made up. That is the whole point.History, Explain Yourself! collects 99 true stories of brilliant inventions, terrible decisions, and accidents that changed the world, told the way the creator of the Odds of History channel tells them: fast, dry, specific, and illustrated throughout with a round-headed stickman who is exactly as confused as you are.Inside:The oldest customer complaint on Earth (3,700 years old, still one star)A warship that sank twenty minutes into its first voyage, in front of the kingDoctors who refused to wash their hands, and the man who begged them toWhy the chainsaw was invented, and it was not for treesPigeons trained to steer missiles, a pig put on trial with a lawyer, and a cow that was framedThe myths that get checked: tulips did not bankrupt Holland, the chocolate chip cookie was no accident, the Library of Alexandria did not burn in one nightEvery story runs two or three pages and ends with a one-line note on how sure we actually are: documented, probably true, debated, or legend. A sources section at the back shows where each story comes from. Nothing is repeated, nothing is padded.For adults and teens who like history, trivia, and intelligent comedy. Short enough for a waiting room. Strange enough to read aloud to whoever is nearest. An easy gift for the person who already has everything except an explanation. Read more
