A Short History of Drunkenness

A Short History of Drunkenness

Summary

THE PERFECT GIFT FOR ANYONE WHO ENJOYS A TIPPLE . . . OR TWO . . . OR TEN!

Almost every culture on earth has drink, and where there's drink there's drunkenness. But in every age and in every place drunkenness is a little bit different. Tracing humankind's love affair with booze from our primate ancestors through to Prohibition, it answers every possible question:

What did people drink? How much? Who did the drinking? Of the many possible reasons, why?

On the way, learn about the Neolithic Shamans, who drank to communicate with the spirit world (no pun intended), marvel at how Greeks got giddy and Romans got rat-arsed, and find out how bars in the Wild West were never like the movies.

This is a history of the world at its inebriated best.

'This book is a laugh riot. I mean the way the author has presented it is hilarious and to the point' Goodreads Reviewer

'Highly entertaining. Cheers! Bottoms up! Good health!' Goodreads Reviewer

'It can make a good gift for someone with a sense of humour and appreciation for the magical powers of alcohol' Goodreads Reviewer

Reviews

  • My favourite book of this and possibly any other Christmas is Mark Forsyth's A Short History of Drunkenness
    Marcus Berkmann, The Spectator

About the author

Mark Forsyth

Born in London in 1977, Mark Forsyth (a.k.a The Inky Fool) was given a copy of the Oxford English Dictionary as a christening present and has never looked back. His book The Etymologicon was a Sunday Times Number One Bestseller and his TED Talk 'What's a snollygoster?' has had more than half a million views. He has also written a specially commissioned essay 'The Unknown Unknown' for Independent Booksellers Week and the introduction for the new edition of the Collins English Dictionary. He lives in London with his dictionaries, and blogs at blog.inkyfool.com.
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