A Short History of the World in 50 Failures

By: Ben Gazur

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Hardcover | 1 April 2025

At a Glance

Hardcover
288 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
13.9 x 18.6 x 2.9

Hardcover

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A fascinating and entertaining alternative history of the world told through fifty of the greatest failures, catastrophes and missed opportunities ever to occur.

Explore the failures, mistakes and missed opportunities that shaped history in this new entry in the 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.

About the Author

Ben Gazur is a freelance writer and author specializing in history, folklore and science. He has written for outlets including the Guardian, the BBC, All About History and Fortean Times. His books cover everything from Epicurus to history’s strangest deaths and British food folklore.

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A fascinating and entertaining alternative history of the world told through fifty of the greatest failures, catastrophes and missed opportunities ever to occur.

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