This book is not for the faint-hearted or conservative types. Often times history is boring mostly because we get the sanitized version. This is why I loved having Ambeth Ocampo as my history teacher in college because he wanted us to question the so-called facts, not just to memorize it but analyze how and why (i.e. why are the Katipuneros always depicted as wearing red pants? If that was what they were truly wearing during the rebellion then they would be moving targets for the enemy!)
This is why I love books like this! It sheds light on the realities that surround historical figures that are usually shrouded in the cloaks of their legendary status. This is totally racy and deals with the more…ahem… private details. =P So definitely keep out of children’s reach!
- Yes the impotency trial in the latest episode of The Borgias (TV series) really did happen in 16th/17th century French impotence courts
- Was Alexander the Great homosexual?
- Who are the top 10 Papal lechers?
- And of course… why so much interest in Napoleon’s privates? (And the truth about many other celebrity body parts)
- Cleopatra was not physically beautiful (she had a beak nose and rolls of fat around her neck/jowls)
As I said not for the faint of heart or conservative types. Questions that you may be too embarrassed to verbalized are discussed here with much research and detail. But there are also other really interesting topics like…
- How the restaurant concept was invented
- How Cassanova was not just a pretty face, he was a genius in his own right!
- How doping also occurred in the ancient Greek olympics (600 BC)
I am impressed by the author’s curiosity and such thorough research and work! I highly recommend for history buffs and nerds like me.
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