Return to a time when men were men and swamps were fire swamps, full of quicksand and rodents of unusual size. Lagoons were inhabited by shrieking eels, and the most beautiful woman in the world was named...Buttercup? Well, it's a bent fairy tale, complete with all the fencing, fighting, chases, escapes and silly accents you'd expect.

Ray Barone is a successful sportswriter and devoted husband and father. Unfortunately, he must deal with his bickering parents, as well as his dopey brother, who all live close by and are constantly dropping in.

What is the scene or incident in European history that you would like to have witnessed--and why? This is the question that the editors posed to twenty superb historians, who each wrote a personal essay in response. The result is this engrossing book, a worthy sequel to the acclaimed volume on American history, I Wish I'd Been There. From the death of Alexander the Great to the German surrender ending World War II, these essays move across a wide...