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100 Inventions That Shaped World History

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What three famous beers are named for hats? What is the world's oldest brew pub? Over 200 questions.

Paperback

First published July 1, 1993

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About the author

Bill Yenne

203 books52 followers
Bill Yenne is the author of several novels and over three dozen books on historical topics. He has also been a contributor to encyclopedias of both world wars.

The New Yorker wrote of Sitting Bull, his biography of the great Lakota leader, that it "excels as a study in leadership." This book was named to the number 14 spot among Amazon's 100 Best Books of the Year.

Library Journal observed that "enthusiastic World War II readers will be drawn to" his dual biography, Aces High: The Heroic Story of the Two Top Scoring American Aces of World War II.

Recently, his book Convair Deltas was named as Book of the Month by Air Classics, while his book Tommy Gun was named Pick of the Month by Shooting Illustrated.

His book Guinness: The 250 Year Quest for the Perfect Pint was listed among the top business books of the year by Cond Nast Portfolio Magazine, which rated Yenne's tome as its TOP pick for "Cocktail Conversation."

Yenne's Rising Sons: The Japanese American GIs Who Fought for the United States in World War II, was praised by Walter Boyne, former Director of the National Air & Space Museum, who called it "a fast moving... page turner," and the "best book yet written on the saga."

The Wall Street Journal wrote, when reviewing his Indian Wars: The Campaign for the American West, that Yenne writes with "cinematic vividness," and says of his work that it "has the rare quality of being both an excellent reference work and a pleasure to read."

The author lives in San Francisco, California, and on the web at www.BillYenne.com

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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Profile Image for Nikki.
517 reviews
October 25, 2025
I liked the selections made and appreciated the fact that Yenne made a point to include precursors, competitors, and parallel inventions alongside the most well-known versions of each device/technology. Short and sweet for a young reader. The trivia and report topic prompts at the end are a nice touch!
Profile Image for anis Ahmad.
47 reviews13 followers
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March 13, 2008
yenne mengungkapkan seratus peristiwa yang paling memberikan pengaruh bagi perkembangan dunia, mulai dari masa kuda gigit besi,sampai kemampuan manusia dalam menaklukkan semesta. layak dibaca siapa saja, khususnya yang ingin mengetahui peristiwa-peristiwa besar di dunia
2 reviews
May 15, 2010
I learned about many inventions in this book. I didn't even know what half of the inventions were. I now have more knowledge about inventions. My favorite invention was the zipper, because it fun to zip up and down. I don't know how people lived without zippers until 1905.
Profile Image for Dina.
33 reviews8 followers
December 9, 2008
It should be thank for the inventor that invented the things we need to make people's life easier. Nice book and motivating me to reach the better future.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews

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