This was my final non-fiction and penultimate read for 2022. Whilst enjoyable and intriguing at times, I had many issues with the way this book was presented.

First, it really should be titled "Bad Days in 'Western' History" or similar. A whopping 54% of the days centre on events from the USA, and very, very few of the remaining stories originate from outside of Europe. And yes, I did go through each day and count, if only to verify that I wasn't imagining such a bias.

Second, it's clear that the author really wanted to write a book about American Sports anecdotes, but he (or the publisher) felt this wouldn't target as big an audience. However, having more than 1 baseball anecdote is definitely an indulgence on the part of the author, and whilst he's certainly entitled to make such a decision, I am certain that there were many more interesting anecdotes that could have taken their place.

Third and finally, whilst many of the stories are genuinely "gleeful" in nature, encouraging a strong sense of schadenfreude, there are plenty of intensely grim and even gruesome stories. Often, these are intermingled with more humorous anecdotes, and the transition between them can be jarring.