A History of Ambition in 50 Hoaxes

July 11, 2016
This addition to the History in 50 series explores hoaxes and the motivations behind them. “There is something artistic about a fine hoax,” Eaton writes. “Like a good novel or a conjurer’s trick, it creates an alternative reality.” Proceeding chronologically, she recounts each ruse in brief entries that also include maps, sidebars, and other supplemental information. In the case of an 18th-century man, William-Henry Ireland, his desire for recognition by his father led him to forge false letters and even a play supposedly written by Shakespeare. In 19th-century New York, the Fox sisters were instrumental in the rise of Spiritualism, even though they revealed that their spiritual communications had been faked. In a broad-ranging and fascinating study of artifice, Eaton raises intriguing questions about human instincts, especially the ones to deceive and believe. Simultaneously available: A History of Travel in 50 Vehicles. Ages 12–up.

April 15, 2016
Hoaxes are a lot of fun, tell us much about ourselves, and sometimes, just sometimes, change the course of history.As part of the History in 50 Series, which seeks to present history through thematically linked, chronological stories about people and events, Eaton links hoaxes to ambition. To do this so intimately may be stretching the point, but the meat of the stories here lies in revealing what peopled believed and how they tested its truth (or didn't). History is best told through stories, the more chromatic the better. The hoaxes here--and some lie outside that definition, including the Trojan Horse, the travels of Marco Polo, and the nature of the Voynich manuscript--are colorful by far. Eaton doesn't sensationalize them; the melodrama has been mellowed and the stories allowed to speak for themselves, and they display great grip. Some instances should spark further investigation--the Potemkin villages, art forgers by the name of Michelangelo and van Meegeren--and more than a handful of the 50 ought to be new to readers, including scientific high jinks and the Walam Olum (which purported to tell 3,600 years of Leni-Lenape history). There is a hoax for every mood: cheat, propaganda, assault, cruelty, inventions of merit, a more nuanced appreciation of art, and marvel.We have met the hoaxsters, and they are us: family stories, human progress, and often enough the pinball nature of our history. (Nonfiction. 10-16)

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September 1, 2016

Gr 6 Up-Successful hoaxers follow two rules: tell the audience something they want to believe, and let the audience feel clever. This is a fascinating compilation of 50 famous and influential hoaxes in European and U.S. history. Entries include well-known stories such as the Trojan horse, the original Ponzi scheme, the Loch Ness Monster, and more, as well as lesser-known bits, like Benjamin Franklin's penchant for writing zany newspaper editorials under pseudonyms. Each subject is covered in about four pages, with numerous photographs and illustrations throughout. The main text explores the motivations of the perpetrators, the effect on the unknowing participants, and the overall influence of the scheme in culture and history. This would make a good read-aloud in a history class to introduce specific people and events from various time periods in a captivating way. VERDICT A solid collection of miscellanea for middle and high school students that is equally useful for browsing and research.-Lisa Crandall, formerly at the Capital Area District Library, Holt, MI

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