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van_worldexplorer's review
2.0
A silly goofy read but nothing super memorable. Higher if you want a daily read like those daily calendar things.
roksyreads's review against another edition
funny
informative
slow-paced
2.5
This was my final non-fiction and penultimate read for 2022. Whilst enjoyable and intriguing at times, I had many issues with the way this book was presented.
First, it really should be titled "Bad Days in 'Western' History" or similar. A whopping 54% of the days centre on events from the USA, and very, very few of the remaining stories originate from outside of Europe. And yes, I did go through each day and count, if only to verify that I wasn't imagining such a bias.
Second, it's clear that the author really wanted to write a book about American Sports anecdotes, but he (or the publisher) felt this wouldn't target as big an audience. However, having more than 1 baseball anecdote is definitely an indulgence on the part of the author, and whilst he's certainly entitled to make such a decision, I am certain that there were many more interesting anecdotes that could have taken their place.
Third and finally, whilst many of the stories are genuinely "gleeful" in nature, encouraging a strong sense of schadenfreude, there are plenty of intensely grim and even gruesome stories. Often, these are intermingled with more humorous anecdotes, and the transition between them can be jarring.
First, it really should be titled "Bad Days in 'Western' History" or similar. A whopping 54% of the days centre on events from the USA, and very, very few of the remaining stories originate from outside of Europe. And yes, I did go through each day and count, if only to verify that I wasn't imagining such a bias.
Second, it's clear that the author really wanted to write a book about American Sports anecdotes, but he (or the publisher) felt this wouldn't target as big an audience. However, having more than 1 baseball anecdote is definitely an indulgence on the part of the author, and whilst he's certainly entitled to make such a decision, I am certain that there were many more interesting anecdotes that could have taken their place.
Third and finally, whilst many of the stories are genuinely "gleeful" in nature, encouraging a strong sense of schadenfreude, there are plenty of intensely grim and even gruesome stories. Often, these are intermingled with more humorous anecdotes, and the transition between them can be jarring.
steelcitygator's review
2.0
It's not unreadable but boy do I have issues with the book. First the good, a very interesting concept that gives a short blurb for every day of the year can keep the stories varied and interesting. Unfortunately the author likes to induce this with their own writing. The wording often came as over the top and way more grandiose than needed for what the book does. Also the author seemed kinda biased on a few (handful even) stories that they considered bad days for reasons I can only assume were personal stake in the subject matter. Lastly, but maybe my largest gripe, is that while the author doesn't lie in any story, I can certainly say the truth is stretched and mangled for a comedic twist that falls very flat. And that was only for the parts where I had heard and read up on a story before reading the book. It makes it hard to trust other stories being told. Most of the content is very accurate ik sure but these discrepancies are hard to overlook. I cant recommend it but I can also see how someone might find some joy out of the book where I haven't. Also it's not a very hard read even if you need to force your way through it at times.
siobhanward's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.5
This was a fun little read - I liked that it was a combination of well-known stories I was familiar with and some lesser-known stories. It would be really fun to read a story per day for a whole year, but even just sitting down and reading it straight through was lots of fun.
alexcruse's review
4.0
I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway from the author and I'm very happy I did! As a history nerd, this wasn't all new information but I did learn a few new interesting tidbits. The format of this book makes it very easy to pick up now and then, you can't really lose your bearings with it. The author does take some liberties with language and bias regarding certain events but it wasn't anything that turned me off as a reader. Overall, I would recommend it to those who enjoy historical events served in small pieces.
readmore's review against another edition
challenging
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
4.0