We sat with Michael Farquhar to discuss his latest book More Bad Days in History: The Delightfully Dismal, Day-by-Day Saga of Ignominy, Idiocy, and Incompetence Continues.
A fascinating book that gives us a unique take on our history, one of misfortune. A treasure trove of 365 historical misfortunes. One for every day of the year, and ranging from trivial to momentous, from laughable to cringeworthy. Some even delivered without a punchline or a commentary, relying on our common sense to see the absurdity.
You’ll learn about a charlatan seeking donations to avert a 900-foot-tall Jesus’s wrath; about innovators ridiculed early on by ignorant pundits but ultimately vindicated; a founding father’s wishes to find a more suitable title for our nation’s highest office (His Majesty); a scientific paper using derogative remarks when referring to its subjects; an author in exile and threatened for writing a novel; a lamenting Robert E Lee; and a disgusting war criminal known for his antics as much as for his cruelty. And that’s just January!!!
More Bad Days in History is a sequel that calls for a series and a relevant read that appeals to our curiosity and morality to better understand our past, no matter how shameful it was at times.
Michael is a former writer and editor for The Washington Post, and the bestselling author of the critically praised Behind the Palace Doors, as well as the national bestsellers A Treasury of Royal Scandals, A Treasury of Great American Scandals, A Treasury of Deception, and A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans.
His work has been featured in a number of national publications, and he has appeared as a commentator on such programs as History’s top-rated Russia: Land of the Tsars and The French Revolution. Learn more about Michael and his work: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/81444/michael-farquhar/ https://www.facebook.com/NatGeoBooks/posts/4514281151930138
