The Mental Floss History Of The World: An Irreverent Romp Through Civilization's Best Bits [With Earbuds] (Playaway Adult Nonfic

About 60,000 years ago, the first Homo sapiens were just beginning their move across the grasslands and up the ladder of civilization. Everything since then, as they say, is history. Just in case you were sleeping in class that day, the geniuses at mental_floss magazine have put together a hilarious (and historically accurate) primer on everything you need to know---and that means the good stuff.

Twelve core chapters of world history tackle everything from civilization's baby steps in the Fertile Crescent to the Not-Really-That-Dark-Unless-You-Lived-in-Europe Ages to A World United by Terror and TV. From the Golden Haemorhoids of the Philistines (punishment from above) to the likely namesake of the cartoon elephant Babar (a Mongol prince) to the most pressing language translation issues facing the menus of today ("carp" vs. "crap"), all of history's most interesting bits have finally been handpicked and roasted to perfection.

Editorial Reviews

Adult/High SchoolSass and Wiegand do an admirable job of covering 60,000 years of human history in one volume. Along with the names of people and places, the dates and statistics, the wars, disasters, revelations, and accomplishments, there are fascinating stories, hilarious oddities, and plenty of fun. Nearly every page has a sidebar entry or two that fit well with the general narrative and also provide a chuckle or a "Wow, I didn't know that!" reaction. In 12 chapters with titles such as "Athens, Alexander, and All That" and "The Not-Really-That-Dark (Unless You Lived in Europe) Ages," the authors cover our collective story from the earliest Homo sapiens on the grasslands of Africa to the current debate on global warming. Each chapter begins with a helpful "In a Nutshell" summary and a chronology of major events and ends with a well-selected list of comparative statistics. While some may bemoan the lack of bibliographic references and other academic fixtures, others will cheer this clever packaging of a wealth of information.-Robert Saunderson, Berkeley Public Library, CA

About The Author:

Steve Wiegand is an award-winning journalist with 25 years of experience at the Sacramento Bee, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Erik Sass is a journalist who covers the media business from his main base of operations in Los Angeles, with branch offices around the country. When not writing for "mental_floss", he reports on magazines, newspapers, radio, and billboard advertising for MediaPost.com.

A shy, withdrawn child ("loser"), Erik spent many of his formative years reading about history. Ironically, the knowledge he acquired transformed him from mopey misfit to man-about-town; now much sought after for his historical anecdotes, he is considered an indispensable conversational ornament to any party attended by persons of substance.

A giver, Erik also works with "mental_floss" to share these benefits with others. In addition to the present volume, he was a contributing author for "mental_floss presents: Forbidden Knowledge", and also writes about history for "mental_floss" magazine.

Erik has not vomited on the shoes of government officials or their spouses; however, he has vomited on his own shoes more than once.