Dirty Little Secrets of the Twentieth Century - Softcover

Dunnigan, James F.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0688170684 ISBN 13: 9780688170684

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks, 1999

Synopsis

The popular author of Dirty Little Secrets, Dirty Little Secrets of World War II, and Dirty Little Secrets of the Vietnam War offers a comprehensive look at what really happened in our century, exposing the real stories behind what we've always assumed as fact. In a concise, easy-to-read format, Dunnigan divulges 150 of the biggest misconceptions about the twentieth century, organizing them under a broad range of such categories as the military, entertainment, technology, and politics.

In the same thoughtful but slightly irreverent style that has characterized the Dirty Little Secrets series, Dunnigan explains why nongovernment organizations are actually more powerful than many governments and how the use of droids or combat robots has gone largely unnoticed. He reports the real reason the human life span is so much longer now, and reveals that this century has been as plagued as the Middle Ages by religious wars. And while we might think that wars or epidemics have been the primary cause of death in the twentieth century, Dunnigan reveals that more people have been killed by their own governments than any other means.

Perfectly timed for the approach of a new millennium, Dirty Little Secrets of the Twentieth Century reveals the shape of the past and direction of our future through the best-kept secrets and surprises of the century.

About this title

About the Author:

James F. Dunnigan is the author of many books and over a hundred historical simulations. He has been a lecturer to the State Department, the CIA, and the U.S. Army War College. He lives in New York City.

From Kirkus Reviews:

An overview of our late, great century that is consistently fun and informative. Dunnigan is the author of five military history books, other dirty little secret books, and a combination of the two (Dirty Little Secrets of the Vietnam War, 1999, which he co- authored with Albert A. Nofi). The author offers a bird's-eye view of 20th-century changes in areas like population, the economy, health, technology, and lifestyles, and yet can be analytical and conspiratorially revealing on subjects such as marketing, the media, and politics. Rather than simply seeing Americans as a hard-working, well-educated and highly paid people who are unusually mobile, Dunnigan sees the will to move to the jobs as a key to American success. Yes, we've led revolutions in living standards with mass-produced inventions like the safety razor and tampon, but Dunnigan doesn't attribute our superior health and longevity records to antibiotics and hi-tech medical gizmos, but to improved sanitation. Typical of Dunnigan's humor and insights, he writes: ``let us never forget the true medical miracle of the twentieth centurythe sewer pipe.'' The writing is ironic or droll, but the author boldly takes on the high price of police, teachers' unions, and advertising. Dunnigan writes insightfully about Wal-Mart, General Motors, and Atari as well as his familiar subjects like warfare and politics. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0688170684
• ISBN 13: 9780688170684
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336