Does this idea intrigue you? If you passed by a museum of ordinary people on your next vacation would you stop inside to see what it’s all about? I definitely would! I love all museums but I hold a soft spot in my heart for the small, quirky museums dotted around the countryside. Museums created…
Everyone knows about the Pony Express. It’s one of the most romanticized failed business ventures in American history. I am one of many Americans fascinated by the legend of the Pony Express. I have visited a Pony Express museum, and a Pony Express station, and even sent letters via the Pony Express. Clearly, I am…
“A good puzzle makes the solver feel smart.” David Kwong A Brief History of the Crossword Puzzle The first crossword puzzle was created by journalist Arthur Wynne and published in the New York World on Sunday, December 21, 1913. Other publications also began to publish similar puzzles and it had become a popular fad in…
In a recent poll, twenty percent of the people said that they wanted a pet giraffe. I already liked giraffes myself but after researching these stories a bit more, I am definitely part of the giraffe-loving crowd. Of course, I was also ready to get a camel after researching them a few months ago. Do…
West with Giraffes is an emotional, rousing novel inspired by the incredible true story of two giraffes who made headlines and won the hearts of Depression-era America. “Few true friends have I known and two were giraffes…” Woodrow Wilson Nickel, West with Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge Official Synopsis Woodrow Wilson Nickel, age 105, feels his…
Once upon a time, I met a camel named Ali and he told me all about his time in the US Army Camel Corps. He was born in Egypt but was captured by humans and loaded into the belly of a ship that spent 3 months sailing from Egypt to Texas. Sounds pretty unbelievable, doesn’t…
Did you say horse diving? Yes, apparently horse diving used to be a thing. It was the brainchild of Dr. Carver who claims he once had a horse that loved jumping off bridges into the water. Horse Diving eventually became a headline act at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City and in many smaller fairs…
If you’re like me, you’ve seen The Wizard of OZ movie many times. But have you ever stopped to wonder how it came to be? It turns out that The Wizard of OZ has quite the backstory and history! I don’t remember now why I decided to read Finding Dorothy. My to-be-read pile is quite…
Chicken Sisters, Chicken Wars, and Harvey Girls… What on earth could these three things have in common? I recently read Chicken Sisters by Kj Dell’antonia. In the prologue to the story, two sisters who had started out as Harvey Girls left the Harvey House restaurant to start their own restaurants, both serving fried chicken. Three…
So by now you probably know that I like to go all-in when I’m researching a new idea to write about here. When I read 80 Days to Elsewhere by KC Dyer it reminded me of a podcast I had listened to a year or so ago about two women who were racing around the…
Is life more extraordinary than we might realize at the time? Two friends, Gene Weingarten and Tom Schroder, came up with the idea for this book when Gene asked Tom, “I wonder what happened on May 17, 1957.” And so began the journey that ends with One Day: The Extraordinary Story of an Ordinary 24…
The Marvelous Thing That Came From a Spring: The Accidental Invention of the Toy That Swept the Nation This book, written and illustrated by Gilbert Ford, is a delightful telling of how Richard James was inspired to create the Slinky toy. A mechanical engineer tasked with finding a way to cushion delicate machines aboard…