The Mammoth Book of Oddballs and Eccentrics

by Karl Shaw

Howard Hughes, Liberace, Imelda Marcos, Sarah Bernhardt, Ed Wood, Jr., Ludwig von Beethoven -- they're all here, along with an astonishing assortment of other oddballs, kooks, dreamers, despots, prophets, performers, royals, politicians, inventors, philosophers, writers, artists, and more garden-variety eccentrics. Here, too, are the phobias, compulsions, odd beliefs, and weird habits that have placed them in the ranks of the bizarre, curious, and strange. You will discover, for instance, that Elvis Presley was convinced he could turn Graceland's sprinkler system on and off by the sheer power of concentration, that Salvador Dali ate vast quantities of Camembert cheese before bedtime to make his dreams more vivid, that Florence Nightingale carried a miniature pet owl in her pocket, while Kaiser Wilhelm II always carried with him photos of his deceased relatives in their funeral attire. You will learn, too, that the Victorian judge Lord Monboddo spent his entire life convinced that babies were born with tails (which midwives cut off), and that John Harvey Kellogg of cereal fame spent his wedding night writing an essay on the evils of sexual intercourse. Throughout the pages of this mammoth book you'll find impulses, whims, obsessions, and hangups as skewed as the schemes of Francisco Lopez, the Paraguay president who attempted to rout the Brazilian army with a battalion of small boys wearing false beards. You'll find cases galore that are screwier, too.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, History, Trivia, Reference, Biography

512 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Karl Shaw writes humour and popular non-fiction titles including the New York Timss bestsellers Royal Babylon and 5 People Who Died During Sex. His most recent is the acclaimed historic true crime thriller The Killing of Lord George: A Tale of Murder and Deceit in Edwardian England.

Reviews

[Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Mammoth Book of Oddballs and Eccentrics is exactly what it sounds like: an index of freaks, geeks, neurotics and crazies. It's not the easiest reference book to navigate and it probably won't come in particularly handy to anyone for any rational reason, but it's still a fun read and certainly worth taking a look at. From eccentric inventors to celebrities and their phobias to hilarious, unique deathbed confessions, this book really does shine a light on how truly weird some of the most famous people in history have been.

NC

[HeavyReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book consists of mostly short little stories (mostly less than one page long) about weird behaviors of mostly famous British people. It is one of those books that doesn't have a plot, that can be read in short sittings, that doesn't have to be read from cover to cover in chronological order. The stories were mostly fun to read (although some were disturbing), but I'm not sure that tomorrow I will remember any of what I read.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those books that is an absolute jumble of quirky information- some of it accurate, some not, about all sorts of individuals- from dukes to kings (Elvis, that is) and lots of folks in between.

I found that it was well read if kept on theback of the toilet tank...

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite "bathroom book" of all time. Nearly every portrait, rarely longer than a page in length, is amusing, disturbing, baffling or all three. Great as a gift to friends, even those who aren't readers (if you have such friends).

[Kasimir Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book since I was preteen because of the unusual or weird facts and stories of various people, such as judges, criminals, presidents, writers, artist, actors, musicians, or just “ordinary” citizens. I felt this book is an example of one of those books you read that you will think on and off for your rest of your life, or a way to make yourself laugh out loud. At least for me it was both.

I remembered reading every pages, which I was either amused, shocked, puzzled, or even grossed out. I do not want to give out too much spoilers but I’ll give out two: I learned president George Washington grew his own cannabis and had very explosive temper. I also learned a judge was sympathetic with a man who killed his wife for over-cooking and his another wife for under-cooking.
I literally went to my computer to see works of very unusual artists mentioned in this book, such as Canadian feminist artist with unusual obsessions with XY genitals.
Overall, I strongly recommend this book for those who love reading Ripley’s Believe it or not and any trivia books on eccentric behaviors.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Mammoth Book of Oddballs and Eccentrics by Karl Shaw (Carroll & Graf Publishers 2000) (796). This is a thick compendium of mostly British nutjobs and weirdos. There is no coherent narrative intended, so the reader may sample at leisure from the hundreds of entries contained herein. My rating: 7/10, finished 2/10/16.

[Megrcross · Rating 5 out of 5]

HILARIOUS anecdotes of the crazies! Easily organized by person so you can read a few at a time or whole chapters. Shaw, a British author, has a wonderfully dry wit, which will make you laugh out loud.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a few years since I read this, but I recall loving every page. But then I love true accounts of those who walk a...different non conforming path. I believe I still own it somewhere in this messy library. One day I should fish it out and skim through it.

[Mark Haberfield · Rating 2 out of 5]

It had some interesting bits but I'm afraid I gave up on it about a quarter of the way through as it failed to keep my interest through a lot of the dry passages about historical peers that I could not relate to. There are some gems in there if the extracts on the back cover are anything to go by.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, but contains a lot of information from his other books and is simply, not as riveting. It was also hard to find. I had to special order it from Amazon...

[Avis Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not everything in here is accurate, but it's a very fun read.

[Jim]

sounds like fun

[Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best Book ever!!!

[Sean Evans]

The Mammoth Book of Oddballs and Eccentrics by Karl Shaw (2000)

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much unverifiable information, about a myriad of unknown people -- and the few I DID know about were described inaccurately. Not much faith in this book at all.

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book to read! Lots of little interesting things that you wouldn't know about people you may have studied in school!