The Mental Floss History of the United States: The (Almost) Complete and

From Columbus "discovering" America to the U.S. "not torturing" people, THE MENTAL FLOSS HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES is the history book you've always wished you had. In trademark smart aleck style, here is history according to mental-floss, an insightfully accurate and incisively humorous exploration of little-known truths and widely believed hoods, which simultaneously exposes some of America's oddest moments, strangest citizens, most egregious frauds, and much, much more. Ten meaty chapters, peppered with fun trivia, entertainingly cover the essential timeline of the social, political, and cultural happenings, mythbusting all the lies our teachers told us along the way. Do you still think of Abraham Lincoln as a heroic defender of liberty and freedom? The late 60's as a groovy time of peace and love? That the U.S. has always been dependent on foreign oil? Mental-floss will set you straight, while relating the fascinating stories behind politics, literature, fashion, televangelism, serial killers, the original Swine Flu, potato chips, mobsters, rum, Communists, beaver wars, and everything else made in the U.S.A.