Book Spotlights

Pocket cannons, duck’s foot pistols, volley guns, pepperboxes, and famous mechanical misfires reveal the wonderfully strange history behind firearms innovation.

Baby eating fountains, current powered ferries, alien art, dragon mountains, the Devil’s Bridge, and practical advice for exploring Switzerland by train.

Bear jams, abandoned cabins, moonshine lore, Cherokee history, a road to nowhere, and current fall travel advice for the Great Smoky Mountains.

Dancing goats, coffeehouse conspiracies, royal bans, smuggled beans, revolutionaries, and the strange machines behind the world’s favorite cup.

Rome’s strangest sights lead from gladiator tunnels and talking statues to sacred cats, bone chapels, a secret keyhole, and Vatican oddities.

Witch trial sites, haunted taverns, revolutionary arguments, old graveyards, a deadly molasses flood, and practical advice for exploring Salem and Boston.

Turnip lanterns, wandering spirits, fortune cakes, unruly pranksters, strange costumes, and the wonderfully odd history behind Halloween night.

Meet Europe’s stranger Christmas traditions, from Krampus and the Yule Lads to the Mari Lwyd, La Befana, and one famously vulnerable Swedish goat.

Explore Arches, Canyonlands, Moab’s strange history, desert pothole creatures, impossible roads, and practical tips for surviving Utah’s red rock wonderland.

Rocket mail, radioactive products, flying cars, mechanical men, and the brilliant failed inventions that helped build the modern world.