Ben Gazur – författare

The bestselling alternative history series in bite-size chapters. Thoroughly researched and entertaining. This is history … but not as you know it.Explore the tyrants who have shaped the course of history. All power corrupts, but absolute power can turn people into absolute monsters. The true stories behind the men and women who led tyrannies around the world. This is history ... but not as you know it.Leading readers through all of world history, Ben Gazur looks at how tyrants and their regimes have shaped the course of humanity from the earliest times right up until the modern day. From the first Ancient Greek tyrants to those who still dominate nations today, dictators have always been pulling the strings.In 50 bite-sized chapters spanning thousands of years, A Short History of the World in 50 Tyrants examines their rise to power, how they stayed there and how they were overthrown, investigating their lives and crimes. Readers will learn how Catherine the Great seized the throne from her own husband, how Adolf Hitler created a cult of personality to assume complete control, and how Julius Caesar met his end under a rain of stabs on the senate floor.Follow the whims, eccentricities and evil acts of dictators across the millennia, such as the deadly search for immortality by the first Chinese Emperor, the wily machinations of the Emperor Augustus and the crushing brutality of Pol Pot’s rule.Also available:A Short History of the World in 50 Failures (9781789296938)A Short History of the World in 50 Lies (9781789294606)A Short History of the World in 50 Books (9781789294088)A Short History of the World in 50 Animals (9781789292954)A Short History of the World in 50 Places (9781789291971)

Death comes for us all in the end. But it does not always come in a way you might expect. Throughout history there have been people who have suffered extraordinary, unusual, and downright weird demises. In Strange Ways to Die in History you will find out about the true stories behind unlikely stories of bizarre accidents, assassinations, and misadventures. Did a playwright really die from a tortoise being dropped on his head by an eagle? Why did an English vicar end up being eaten by lions? And what are the chances of fatality from falling into a toilet?Looking at the lives that came before the deaths reveals some of histories most fascinating individuals. Some of those examined are well known. Some are remembered only for the odd way they departed this life. Some have been forgotten entirely. Sometimes how a person dies, and how history has recorded the event, can tell us a lot about society and how we remember.This book uncovers eye-witnesses to the deaths described and contemporary reports from those who were left behind.

How should we live?In ancient Greece one man came up with a pleasingly simple answer to this question. The philosopher Epicurus taught his followers that pleasure and contentment were the aims of the good life. For hundreds of years Epicureanism was one of the dominant schools of philosophy.But by the 6th century it had all but disappeared. Discovering how and why Epicureanism was driven from philosophy and public discourse reveals much about how Western thought developed. Despite attempts to erase him, the lessons of Epicurus have been recovered from the mists of time and the ashes of Vesuvius. How he was restored to his place in history is a story of brilliant Renaissance scholars, chance discoveries, and a hunger for intellectual freedom.This new biography of Epicurus reveals the life of Epicurus and traces how his teachings have influenced thinkers across time. Epicurus still has much to teach us about friendship, happiness, and our place in the world.

How should we live? In ancient Greece one man came up with a pleasingly simple answer to this question. The philosopher Epicurus taught his followers that pleasure and contentment were the aims of the good life. For hundreds of years Epicureanism was one of the dominant schools of philosophy. But by the 6th century it had all but disappeared. Discovering how and why Epicureanism was driven from philosophy and public discourse reveals much about how Western thought developed. Despite attempts to erase him, the lessons of Epicurus have been recovered from the mists of time and the ashes of Vesuvius. How he was restored to his place in history is a story of brilliant Renaissance scholars, chance discoveries, and a hunger for intellectual freedom. This new biography of Epicurus reveals the life of Epicurus and traces how his teachings have influenced thinkers across time. Epicurus still has much to teach us about friendship, happiness, and our place in the world.

How should we live? In ancient Greece one man came up with a pleasingly simple answer to this question. The philosopher Epicurus taught his followers that pleasure and contentment were the aims of the good life. For hundreds of years Epicureanism was one of the dominant schools of philosophy. But by the 6th century it had all but disappeared. Discovering how and why Epicureanism was driven from philosophy and public discourse reveals much about how Western thought developed. Despite attempts to erase him, the lessons of Epicurus have been recovered from the mists of time and the ashes of Vesuvius. How he was restored to his place in history is a story of brilliant Renaissance scholars, chance discoveries, and a hunger for intellectual freedom. This new biography of Epicurus reveals the life of Epicurus and traces how his teachings have influenced thinkers across time. Epicurus still has much to teach us about friendship, happiness, and our place in the world.

The bestselling alternative history series in bite-size chapters. Thoroughly researched and entertaining. This is history … but not as you know it.Explore the failures, mistakes and missed opportunities that shaped history in this new entry in the bestselling series.From the botched attempt to create a life-extending elixir that produced gunpowder, to the unsuccessful stint in medical school which led to a career in naturalism for Charles Darwin, to the missile detection system malfunction that almost sparked a nuclear war, the course of human history has so often been shaped by failures of all magnitudes.In fifty bite-sized chapters spanning thousands of years, A Short History of the World in 50 Failures details how the world as we know it has been defined by plans gone awry, opportunities not seized upon and schemes that were always fated to end in catastrophe.Whether it’s the pharaoh Akhenaten’s misplaced attempt to found a new religion or Napoleon’s doomed invasion of Russia, discover a fascinating collection of outsized tales and historical snafus that created the world as we know it today.Also available:A Short History of the World in 50 Conspiracies (9781789299076)A Short History of the World in 50 Murders (9781789297737)A Short History of the World in 50 Tyrants (9781789298437)A Short History of the World in 50 Lies (9781789294606)A Short History of the World in 50 Places (9781789291971)A Short History of the World in 50 Animals (9781789292954)A Short History of the World in 50 Books (9781789294088)

The bestselling alternative history series in bite-size chapters. Thoroughly researched and entertaining. This is history … but not as you know it.Explore the failures, mistakes and missed opportunities that shaped history in this new entry in the bestselling series.From the botched attempt to create a life-extending elixir that produced gunpowder, to the unsuccessful stint in medical school which led to a career in naturalism for Charles Darwin, to the missile detection system malfunction that almost sparked a nuclear war, the course of human history has so often been shaped by failures of all magnitudes.In fifty bite-sized chapters spanning thousands of years, A Short History of the World in 50 Failures details how the world as we know it has been defined by plans gone awry, opportunities not seized upon and schemes that were always fated to end in catastrophe.Whether it’s the pharaoh Akhenaten’s misplaced attempt to found a new religion or Napoleon’s doomed invasion of Russia, discover a fascinating collection of outsized tales and historical snafus that created the world as we know it today.Also available:A Short History of the World in 50 Conspiracies (9781789299076)A Short History of the World in 50 Murders (9781789297737)A Short History of the World in 50 Tyrants (9781789298437)A Short History of the World in 50 Lies (9781789294606)A Short History of the World in 50 Places (9781789291971)A Short History of the World in 50 Animals (9781789292954)A Short History of the World in 50 Books (9781789294088)

The bestselling alternative history series in bite-size chapters. Thoroughly researched and entertaining. This is history … but not as you know it.Explore the tyrants who have shaped the course of history. All power corrupts, but absolute power can turn people into absolute monsters. The true stories behind the men and women who led tyrannies around the world. This is history ... but not as you know it.Leading readers through all of world history, Ben Gazur looks at how tyrants and their regimes have shaped the course of humanity from the earliest times right up until the modern day. From the first Ancient Greek tyrants to those who still dominate nations today, dictators have always been pulling the strings.In 50 bite-sized chapters spanning thousands of years, A Short History of the World in 50 Tyrants examines their rise to power, how they stayed there and how they were overthrown, investigating their lives and crimes. Readers will learn how Catherine the Great seized the throne from her own husband, how Adolf Hitler created a cult of personality to assume complete control, and how Julius Caesar met his end under a rain of stabs on the senate floor.Follow the whims, eccentricities and evil acts of dictators across the millennia, such as the deadly search for immortality by the first Chinese Emperor, the wily machinations of the Emperor Augustus and the crushing brutality of Pol Pot’s rule.Also available:A Short History of the World in 50 Failures (9781789296938)A Short History of the World in 50 Lies (9781789294606)A Short History of the World in 50 Books (9781789294088)A Short History of the World in 50 Animals (9781789292954)A Short History of the World in 50 Places (9781789291971)

‘I’ll be raiding this Wonder Pantry of a book for years to come … Diverting, delightful and deliciously weird enough to satisfy the most demanding appetite.’ - Christopher Hadley, author of The RoadWhen did we start throwing salt over our shoulders?Why do British people chase cheese down a hill?Where can loving couples win a side of bacon?What cake keeps witches from your door?Folklorist Ben Gazur guides you as he rummages through the dark cupboards of British history to uncover how our strange food habits and traditions have been passed down through the generations. Get a taste of what life was like in a time when food was both magical ingredient and sustenance: when an apple kept the doctor away, predicted who you would marry, and entertained children in a game involving burning candles.Hilarious and fascinating, A Feast of Folklore will introduce you to the gloriously eccentric folk who aren’t often noticed by historians. Herein lies a smorgasbord of their dark remedies and deadly delicacies, just waiting to be discovered.