“Enthralling history” – Library Journal (starred review)
“Comprehensive.” – Booklist (starred review)
“Masterful Sleuthing” – NYT Bestselling author Steve Hodel
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Indiebound
Just Kill Me
(Simon and Schuster 2016, coming Aug 30) A novel about a ghost tour guide who makes places more haunted by killing people at them, JUST KILL ME is a noir comedy about unsolved mysteries, dark history, strange legends, long distance love, and scandalous Disney villain fanfic.
GHOSTS OF CHICAGO
(Llewelyn 2013) From Resurrection Mary and Al Capone to the Murder Castle of H.H. Holmes and beyond, the spine-tingling sights and sounds of Chicago's yesteryear are still with us...and so are its ghosts! Seeking to find what we really know about the ghastly history behind Chicago's ghost stories, historian Adam Selzer pieces together the truth, bringing to light dozens of previously-unknown bits historical data.
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Flickering Empire: How Chicago Invented the US Film Industry
(w Michael Glover Smith, Univ of Columbia Press, 2015)
The fascinating but too-little-known known story of how Chicago served as the unlikely capital of film production in America prior to the rise of Hollywood. Colorful, larger-than-life historical figures such as Thomas Edison, Charlie Chaplin, Oscar Mischeaux, Francis X. Bushman, Gloria Swanson, Broncho Billy, and Colonel William Selig all come together in this, the critically-acclaimed first book-length account of the era by Adam Selzer and Michael Glover Smith
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The Smart Aleck's Guide to American History
(Random House 2009) Look, there are a lot of American history textbooks in the world, but not all of them have the courage to say what we're all thinking about General Ambrose Burnside's facial hair. Equal parts hilarious and fascinating, The Smart Aleck's Guide to American History was a Junior Library Guild selection, an Illinois Reads pick, and YALSA nominee. It's very popular with history teachers who seem as though they ought to know better.
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GHOSTS OF LINCOLN
(Llewellyn 2015) For years, stories have circulated about Lincoln haunting the White House, attending seances, and predicting his own death. Investigating everything from obscure seance transcripts and forgotten newspaper articles to the most peculiar paranormal claims, Selzer digs deep into the annals of history and reveals the fascinating true stories behind the tales, rumors and lore.
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SPARKS
The Epic, Completely True Blue (Almost) Holy Quest of Debbie
"Touching and humorous....Debbie and her offbeat cohorts are nuanced and authentic." - Publishers Weekly
"Original and appealing...a kinetic and well-paced comedy that just might win a few converts." -Kirkus
"Hilarious... will appeal to teenagers who are a little bit on the outside." - School Library Journal
Play Me Backwards (Simon and Schuster 2014)
(Simon and Schuster 2014 - now in paperback!)
A novel for young adults who worship the devil.
"Mordantly funny" - Publisher's Weekly
"Hilariously subversive, but also tender and poignant" - VOYA (starred review)
"Timelessly true to life...a diabolically funny slacker-makes-good coming of age story." - Booklist
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