Do you know who was the last Roman Emperor? Billy the Kid's last victim? Or the Beatles' last No. 1 hit. At last! A definitive look at the endings that have left their mark on our world today. Everybody knows who was the first man on the moon; but who was the last? We know the dodo is extinct, but where was the last one seen - and how did it die? From the last of the Aztecs to the last days of the Berlin wall, The Book Of Lasts is a look at the triumphant conclusions and tragic endings of history - what ended with a bang and what sidled out with a whimper. People, animals, events and practices are all given their place as the final instances of something occurring, from those that changed the face of society to those that were hardly noticed until it was all over.
Table of Contents
Last of All - the last dodo, the last book of the bible, the last Roman Emperor; Historic Last Days - the last day of the Berlin Wall, the last day of World War I, the last day of Pompei; Personal Lasts - Shakespeare's last play, Van Gogh's last painting, Marilyn Monroe's last film; Last to date - last man on the moon, last US president to be assassinated, last Oscar-winning movie sequel; Last Requests and Bequests - strange or significant bequests; Last Past the Post - memorable losers; Last Journeys - James Dean, Buddy Holly, Diana Princess of Wales; Famous Last Words - dying sayings of the great and the good; The Last Post - cobbler's last, the last post, the last straw.
Author Biography
Ian Harrison has researched and written a number of books on subjects ranging from ancient battlefields to modern airports, including three historical books written in conjunction with The Times newspaper. He worked first as a researcher for television documentaries and then in publishing. Television research included entering the weird world of inventors and inventions, hunting for pirate treasure, investigating the two heads of Cromwell and delving into the wit and wisdom of branding. He is author of the hugely successful The Book Of Firsts and The Book Of Inventions for Cassell Illustrated.
