History's Mysteries: People, Places and Oddities Lost in the Sands of Time Book

Haughton is a fine craftsman and a good researcher. More importantly (and refreshingly), he brings critical thinking to bear upon subject matter that has often been dominated by quacks and charlatans. In the end, however, the book opts for breadth over depth, delivering short articles (a few pages each) on a variety of mysterious places, people, and objects. The subjects are well chosen--I had heard of only a few of them, and I learned something from every article--but the depth and range of information contained in these pages will never satisfy the cravings of anyone more serious than a curious dilettante.

I bought this book on Amazon's recommendation when I was searching for more information about Gobekli Tepe, the newly discovered ancient temple site that dates to before Egypt's pyramids and has forced a complete reappraisal of our theories about prehistoric culture. The article rehashes a lot of information contained in the National Geographic special that turned me on to this site, but that's okay--I like having a printed copy of the information in addition to the film saved to my DVR. But that realization led me to another: These articles read a lot like the narration you'll hear in cable TV specials about these mysterious sites. The articles have about the same depth and scope of knowledge, and they are written with the same desire to surround their subjects with drama and intrigue. All this makes for an appealing read. You have to respect anyone who makes learning fun. But ultimately, I was just as excited by the bibliographic references to other articles on Gobekli Tepe as I was by the article itself.

And to give Haughton his full due, he has put together a marvelous set of references. This book is like a buffet of mysteries, allowing readers to sample some of the old favorites and new delicacies both. But (to continue the analogy) it's a buffet that passes out recipes, too, giving readers who become captivated by a particular mystery some guidance to help them continue their reading elsewhere. While this buffet isn't quite fine dining, it should satisfy most hungers for a little while.