{"product_id":"stranger-than-we-can-imagine-making-sense-of-the-twentieth-century-9781593766269","title":"Stranger Than We Can Imagine: Making Sense of the Twentieth Century","description":"In \u003ci\u003eStranger Than We Can Imagine\u003c\/i\u003e, John Higgs argues that before 1900, history seemed to make sense. We can understand innovations like electricity, agriculture and democracy. The twentieth century, in contrast, gave us relativity, cubism, quantum mechanics, the id, existentialism, Stalin, psychedelics, chaos mathematics, climate change and postmodernism. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn order to understand such a disorienting barrage of unfamiliar and knotty ideas, Higgs shows us, we need to shift the framework of our interpretation and view these concepts within the context of a new kind of historical narrative. Instead of looking at it as another step forward in a stable path, we need to look at the twentieth century as a chaotic seismic shift, upending all linear narratives. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHiggs invites us along as he journeys across a century \"about which we know too much\" in order to grant us a new perspective on it. He brings a refreshingly non-academic, eclectic and infectiously energetic approach to his subjects as well as a unique ability to explain how complex ideas connect and intersect--whether he's discussing Einstein's theories of relativity, the Beat poets' interest in Eastern thought or the bright spots and pitfalls of the American Dream.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=AUTH-3865968\"\u003eJohn Higgs\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Soft Skull\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/10\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 356\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.90lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.90h x 6.00w x 1.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781593766269\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1593766262\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBISAC Categories:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=CAT-HIS\"\u003eHistory\u003c\/a\u003e | \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=BISAC-HIS037070\"\u003eModern | 20th Century\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=CAT-HIS\"\u003eHistory\u003c\/a\u003e | \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=BISAC-HIS049000\"\u003eEssays\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=CAT-HIS\"\u003eHistory\u003c\/a\u003e | \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/sureshotbooks-com.myshopify.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=BISAC-HIS054000\"\u003eSocial History\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJohn Higgs\u003c\/b\u003e created the long-running BBC Radio 4 quiz show \"X Marks the Spot\" and has directed BAFTA-winning episodes of animated pre-school British TV. He is the author of \u003ci\u003eKLF: Chaos, Magic and the Band that Burned a Million Pounds\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eI Have America Surrounded: A Biography of Timothy Leary\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eOur Pet Queen: A New Perspective on Monarchy\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Soft Skull","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42686692262125,"sku":"9781593766269","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0550\/8097\/6621\/products\/img_611fd4d2-761f-47ec-ad9c-0b0d0dcf10f2.jpg?v=1649777795","url":"https:\/\/sureshotbooks.com\/products\/stranger-than-we-can-imagine-making-sense-of-the-twentieth-century-9781593766269","provider":"SureShot Books Publishing LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}