How They Choked: Failures, Flops and Flaws of the Awfully Famous

Don’t let the scary guy on the cover keep you from an entertaining view of history you didn’t find in your high school classes.  The famous and infamous alike come to life with their failures and seldom talked about quirks.

Each chapter is devoted to a notorious name from the pages of history, sports, and science. Some obvious failures are included, such as Benedict Arnold and J. Bruce Ismay, the owner of the Titanic. Other subjects are the heroes and heroines of history, such as, Isaac Newton, Susan B. Anthony and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson.

Bragg’s turn of phrase reveals a knack for capturing the true identity of individuals such as George Armstrong Custer, who is described as “a peacock with a pistol,” or Susan B. Anthony, who she explains was a “pioneering pain in the butt.” The snarky writing provides an entertaining twist, along with illustrated caricatures of each subject. This book proves that you might be famous, but a future writer may reveal your flaws.