fiction that people confuse for fact
352179
The latest trend of historical fiction, or borrowing from history to write a novel concerns me.  I find that people have a very, very hard time seperating fiction from fact.  Although this is a very well written and enjoyable book the author herself will tell you that the "Red Tent" did not exsist in Biblical times and it is somewhat uncertain how it was used in the American Indian culture she borrowed the idea from.  I enjoyed this book but I do wish that all readers would take it upon themselves to research the facts and fictions behind these types of stories.
1136982
I overlooked the obvious error in his creatively defining "first space" and "second space", then ran smack into the equally creative geographical relocation of Reston, VA.

The author (or editor if there was one) needs to do some basic fact checking.  It is difficult to take what is supposed to be a factual non-fiction book seriously when obvious, easily verified "facts" are in error.  It casts serious doubts on the factuality of the remainder of the story.
3076466
While there are some interesting facts here, it's quite a stretch to say that "everything you know is wrong."  Many of the facts are based on splitting hairs (i.e. largest city, coldest place on earth).

If you want interesting trivia presented in a way that's not snarky (and is hysterically funny) I recommend The Know It All by A.J. Jacobs.
595409
The writer has such talent for making everything truly convincing, that I was very disappointed to realise, as I read, that this was really fiction. Too many inconsistencies and oddities. Kokopelli in Manitoba? boy, he's a long way from home! I've travelled in the South-West and known Navajo people, and Lakotas in South Dakota, and I've lived in Canada, though not Manitoba, and the points made by those who describe that western province are very convincing. No way do Andrews' descriptions ring true.

The clincher was where at the end Andrews is strictly enjoined not to tell anyone of her experiences: she asks "what should I do" and is told "Write a book!" I think Andrews is almost slapping the more gullible readers upside the head!

And it's sad, because on its own terms, it does in some ways convey a quite meaningful view of the world, and encourages us to be open to the deeper meanings and the spiritual connections and resonances of the natural world.  So I wish it were a real account, but as it isn't, I have to feel that such transformations of reality must do more harm than good. What happened to a medieval Christian when it was proved that the famous saint's relic everyone had revered was the bone of a dog's hind leg? Didn't it hurt the faith that had sustained him, and damage the good that was in that faith? Other reviewers have mentioned more accurate, reality-based reports of the shaman's world: I'll have to follow some of those up.
3698488
The book is pure fiction and the main character, Kwan Sia Hung a fictional character. The stories are interesting on a level of the TV series "Kung  Fu, The Legend Continues," but equally fiction and sometimes far fetched.

I was disappointed with the book once I did some research on the validity of the story.
4853485
In an age when writers are seeking to make the top dollars, historical accuracy can be compromised for the sake of a good story.  "Pop History", as some call it, surely make for a good read if the reader is willing to suspend disbelief; yet these stories often offer up a few slices short of the whole pizza pie.
The is irrefutible proof that the Imperial Treasure fleet was real, that it travelled around the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and that it was disassembled around the year 1421.  These facts, in combination with what Mr. Menzies believes to be proof of a Chinese pressence in the Americans, lead him to put forth several interesting theories.  Revisionist Historians, ex: Howard Zinn, have been searching for ways to discredit Columbus's discoveries, and Menzies's book seems to follow along with the current trends of thinking.  Eastern, rather than western, settlement of the "new world" would render everything Each AMerican learned in High School about American History,and face it folks isn't that the farthest that most of our fellow countrymen choose to pursue this path, wrong.
if it were true.
Although Mr. Menzies can tell a good story, he was unable to convince me of the soundness of his argument, however hard he did try.
2651643
Suspension of disbelief is nearly impossible with this.  Imaginative but people who think about government, society, and human behavior likely have a lot of questions as to why this fictional world behaves the way it does....
2703033
Not everything in here is a fact. Some of the 'facts' are actually legends.  Such as the idea that Shakespeare wrote the bible, when in fact The Bible was around waaaay before Shakespeare was even born.
2143504
The short stories in this book are fiction  A mountain man upgrading to a repeating rifle, from a muzzle loader seems impossible..  Repeating rifles available in isolated frontier trading posts, just doesn't make sense.  Oh a river pirate attacking a mountain man is also farfetched. The American rifleman has accurate historical info, that this author should research.  I did with a search of repeating rifles.  I was able to easily find errors that make this fiction fantasy
1596171
I bought the book for the information on the Winnemucca Bank Robbery. But after reading and researching I would say this is a work of fiction. If there really is a lost journal then why has it never been shown to anyone? The story here and the facts of the Winnemucca Bank Robbery do not match up. And now there are different editions being released with information that has changed? This really makes you think it is just something made up to sell a book.
1920505
I went to Amazon to see if this book was cast as fiction or non-fiction by the publisher since I'm reading it for the historical information. It doesn't catagorized it either way and in front of the book where you can check for that...it doesn't say!  I think it was written as creative non-fiction where liberties were taken with dialogue, etc. which is fine as long as the reader is aware that liberties were taken with the facts.
4386165
I began reading this book in my free time at the beginning of the semester because it seemed interesting enough, and I wanted to learn something new. I have never studied psychology, but I have studied history, and thought it might be interesting to read about historical figures from a different perspective.

There are more than a few historical inaccuracies and ridiculous assumptions which Dr. Ghaemi presents as fact in order to affirm his thesis (ex: "Lincoln clearly empathized with slaves..."). I managed to overlook those until the chapter about FDR (Ch. 10), where because of my fascination with FDR, and Dr. Ghaemi's ridiculously blatant disregard for fact-checking, I had to stop reading.

The straw that broke the camel's back was the fact that twice (as far as I read), Dr. Ghaemi referred to "Hot Springs, Georgia". The town is called Warm Springs, and it is an actual town in Georgia where FDR owned a home, land, and where he died. This is a basic historical fact that one could confirm with a simple Google search, at yet, Dr. Ghaemi and his editors managed to overlook the existence of an entire town! That's like someone writing a book about the Civil War and deciding to refer to the burning of Hotlanta!

If you can't get simple historical facts straight, then you probably shouldn't be writing a book with any historical claim. Write fiction.
248986
An interesting story if you don't forget it is pure fiction.  A half-dozen factual statements mixed with hundreds of half-baked explainations do not make a true story.

Unfortunately, the 94 men who died aboard the Soviet submarine K-129 cannot refute the author's theory and the true story wouldn't sell many books.
3125066
Good story but rather troubling if it is based on true facts.
714849
Anyone who believes Dan Brown's fiction thriller is based upon actual fact, should get a copy of "Cracking Da Vinci's Code," and then Dr. Darrell Bock's "Breaking the Code."
In "The Da Vinci Code," Brown asserts that all depictions of people, architecture, secret rituals, etc. are historically authentic, when in fact, such is simply not the case. In the novel, Brown shows us just how poorly informed he really is regarding ancient and medieval Christian history. The very fact that Brown relied heavily upon the 1982 work of spurious history entitled "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," by Baigent, Lincoln and Leigh (Brown's character Leigh Teabing is a nod to these authors; "Teabing" is an anagram for "Baigent")-a book not taken seriously by any scholar I'm familiar with, Christian or otherwise, tells one all one needs to know about his "scholarship," or lack thereof. As a student of both ancient and medieval Christian history, I can state categorically that the arguments made in "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," are based purely in the authors' fertile imaginations. Such claims as they make are laughable-or would be, if so many people weren't taking them seriously. The claims that the Knights Templar were some sort of secret occult magicians, or guardians of the Holy Grail, in particular, is a myth which refuses to die, in spite of the research of Templar experts Dr. Malcolm Barber and Peter Partner. In fact, few of the claims Brown makes through his fictional character Teabing, are based in actual fact.
In "Cracking Da Vinci's Code," the authiors explain how Brown's assertions through his fictional characters that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married and the Church has been covering it up for centuries are hardly new arguments; then they give you the real history of people and places mentioned in "The Da Vinci Code." Further, the authors expose an agenda at work, one that is anti-thetical to traditional Christianity.
Why am I bothered by all this, you may ask. Well, the claims of this novel wouldn't be worth worrying about or answering but for the fact that too many people are taking this work of fiction as being based upon sound historical research.
"The Da Vinci Code" is FICTION, folks, as is its premise.
But, if you want fact and not fiction, "Cracking Da Vinci's Code" is a must-read. Read it and learn the secret behind the "mystery" in "The Da Vinci Code."
3071053
This is an interesting story intertwined with some historical fact.  The story provides some alternative interpretation of historical fact, but is presented as fiction.
4118778
Fiction book, based on distorted historical facts.  History rewritten on distorted facts and untruths that may be used (unfortunately) for future reference and citation.  Yes, there was a Triple Nickles battalion of Army paratroopers who did perform acts of exceptional bravery in spite of discrimination and segregation, but this fictional story takes accolades from the equally brave Smokejumpers of the US Forest Service.  A good read, but not to be confused with actual documented truth.