Mark Booth's THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD: "A Scholarly and Imaginative Masterpiece"

Just released this month in paperback is Mark Booth's provocative bestseller The Secret History of the World. From mystic revelations to esoteric codes, here is an alternative history of the world, based upon the beliefs of the secret societies. Based on over twenty years of research, Booth offers a radical reinterpretation of human existence and a view of the world previously hidden from us.

Here's a sampling of praise for The Secret History of the World:

"This book will take you on a jaw-dropping journey through the spiritual and mythological history of the world . . . A wonderfully controversial read, which challenges the accepted view and spiritual history of human society."- Soul and Spirit Magazine

"I can say without exaggeration that this book is the best and most accessible treatment of the western esoteric tradition that I have read in decades . . . a scholarly and imaginative masterpiece." - Ronald M. Mazor, Professor of German and French, Winona State University

"A totally engrossing book, an esoteric journey from the beginning of time to the present day, based on beliefs and writings of the secret societies. I loved it!" - Patricia Scanlon, "Books of the Year," The Mail on Sunday.

Mark Booth's SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD Now in Paperback

The Secret History of the World, Mark Booth's enthralling intellectual tour of secret societies, is now available in paperback. Starting from a dangerous premise—that everything we’ve been taught about our world’s past is corrupted, and that the stories put forward by the various cults and mystery schools throughout history are true—Booth produces nothing short of an alternate history of the past 3,000 years!

The Secret History of the World, an Overlook bestseller for over two years, charges through time and space and thought in interdisciplinary fashion; embracing cognitive science, religion, psychology, historiography, and philosophy, a new timeline is drawn, and a huge swath of our cultural heritage that has for long been hidden is restored. From Greek and Egyptian mythology to Jewish folklore, from Christian cults to Freemasons, from Charlemagne to Don Quixote, from George Washington to Hitler- author Mark Booth shows without a doubt that history as we know it needs a revolutionary rethink, and he has 3,000 years of hidden wisdom to back it up.

Praise for The Secret History of the World:

"Step right up, folks, and read the one true guide to Western and Eastern esoteric societies from the Freemasons to the Rosicrucians."-Salon.com

“An entire library’s worth of scholarship [in] a single volume.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“Authentically mind-boggling.” —Kirkus

“Booth’s history incorporates so many disparate philosophies. . . His universe is full of bizarre theories, entertaining primarily for their weirdness.” —Publishers Weekly

“The Secret History of the World is one of those rare works. It's a mindboggling adventure that I recommend to anyone who has a thirst for knowledge and a desire for an alternate glimpse into the past.” – Midwest Book Review

“Booth’s luminous prose, his fast-paced storytelling, and his astonishing breadth and depth of knowledge about a multitude of secret societies provide breathtaking glimpses into worlds that heretofore have been little explored. . . A brilliant, exhaustive, ground-breaking study.” - ForeWord Magazine

Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol and THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD

The release of Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol will once again raise interest in secret societies, and in particular the Freemasons. Mark Booth, in his provocative bestseller The Secret History of the World, offers an entire chapter on "The Age of Freemasonry." Booth's alternative take on history is relentless, charging through time and space and thought in interdisciplinary fashion; embracing cognitive science, religion, psychology, historiography, and philosophy, a new timeline is drawn, and a huge swath of our cultural heritage that has for long been hidden is restored. From Greek and Egyptian mythology to Freemasons, from Charlemagne to Don Quixote, from George Washington to Hitler-The Secret History of the World shows without a doubt that history as we know it needs a revolutionary rethink, and he has 3,000 years of hidden wisdom to back it up.

Great Gifts for Father's Day

Nothing better for Dad on Father's Day than a great book, and The Winged Elephant has a few suggestions for weekend shoppers. For the outdoorsman, How to Fish by Chris Yates. For the history buff, The Plot Against Pepys and The Imperial Capitals of China. For the inquisitive, philosophical Dad, we recommend The Secret History of the World. And for all those Dad's just looking for a little quiet time with a great novel, we recommend Gerald Seymour's The Walking Dead and Warren Adler's Funny Boys, both page-turners, hot off the press.

Mark Booth Explains THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD at the New York Open Center on June 22

Author Mark Booth will discuss his controversial book The Secret History of the World at the New York Open Center on Sunday, June 22. Booth will look at how Hebrew prophets, medieval and Renaissance astrologers, and the Freemasons understood the origins of consciousness, the structure of reality, and the purpose of life, and also explore whether we can experience the same supernatural patterns of meaning in our own individual lives that they and other writers steeped in the esoteric tradition, from Sophocles to Cervantes to Dickens to George Eliot to Tolstoy. For more information, call 212.219.2527.

George Washington and THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD

Mark Booth surveys "The Age of Freemasonry" in his new book The Secret History of the World, recently published by Overlook. Included in a fascinating chapter on the secret mission of freemasonry are some interesting bits on George Washington, whose birthday we will celebrate this President's Day weekend. Washington, Booth notes, was initiated as a Freemason in 1752, and eventually became a "Master Mason," the highest rank you can achieve as a Freemason. Who were the original Freemasons? What do they believe, and what influence have they had on the world? Find out in The Secret History of the World.

THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD Hits New York Times Extended Bestseller List on February 3

Mark Booth's incendiary study of the world's secret societies, The Secret History of the World, lands on The New York Times Bestseller List at #32 for the week of February 3.

The Secret History of the World explores the stories and teachings put forward by the various cults, societies, and Mystery Schools throughout history. Charging through time and space, Booth produces nothing short of an alternate account of the past three thousand years.

Mark Booth Discusses THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD on Sirius Satellite Radio's "Positively Incorrect" Tonight

Mark Booth, author of The Secret History of the World, will be Scott Cluthe's guest on "Positively Incorrect," broadcast nightly on the Sirius Satellite Network (channel 114) and streamed LIVE on Lime Radio.

The Secret History of the World examines the various secret societies throughout history. ForeWord Magazine recently commented: "Booth's luminous prose, his fast-paced storytelling, and his astonishing breadth and depth of knowledge about a multitude of secret societies provide breathtaking glimpses into worlds that heretofore have been little explored."

THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD in The San Francisco Chronicle

Maybe Sean Penn has a point. The San Francisco Chronicle seems a little dazed and confused these days, especially after reading Simon Maxwell Apter's bizarre review of Mark Booth's The Secret History of the World this weekend. Apter, an assistant editor at Lapham's Quarterly, seems most offended by Booth's wide-ranging survey of the influence of Secret Societies: "Concocting a sort of literary Long Island Iced Tea, Booth throws every liquor he can find into his cocktail. The predictable result is overwrought, overflavored and overblown. A Long Island Iced Tea can be an entire night's worth of drinking in one glass; Booth's history is an attempt to cram an entire library's worth of scholarship into a single volume."

Hidden Knowledge of the Secret Societies Revealed in Mark Booth's THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD

Mark Booth's controversial new book, The Secret History of the World, is now in bookstores across the country. After a lifetime of research, Booth offers nothing less than a complete history of the world, from beginning of time to the present day, based on the beliefs and writings of the secret societies. Based in London, Mark Booth is also blogging away under the nom de plume of Jonathan Black, offering his views on secret societies, esoteric teaching, and the world at large with his inside-out thinking.

Peter Mayer Speaks Out on THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE WORLD

Dear Friends,
I don’t write letters very often in support of our books. This one is really worth special attention. The world has always been interested in something other than what our moms or dads told us, what our teachers told us, what our churches told us, what the media told us. As we get older there’s often a deep suspicion about received wisdom. In a new book that arrives in bookstores this week,The Secret History of the World, brilliant editor and author Mark Booth has, after a lifetime of research, assembled a book that looks at the deepest histories of our universe and of our world—three thousand years of hidden knowledge and wisdom. Booth’s is a relentless approach, charging through time and space and thought in interdisciplinary fashion: Booth covers Lewis Carroll, Philip K. Dick, Schrödinger, Duchamp, and Bob Dylan with equal flair; and he deals with the subjects of Cognitive Science, Religion, Psychology, Historiography, and of course Philosophy in drawing up this new history of our world. I don’t think Overlook has ever published a book at once so marvelously speculative and so solemnly grounded by research into the corners of our lives and often the well springs of our religious and political beliefs, whether they be Greek and Egyptian mythology, Jewish folklore, Christian cults, Gnosticism, early American philosophy, Catholic conspiracy theory, Freemasons, Rosicrucians, the Illuminati, and people like Shakespeare, Washington, Newton, Dostoevsky, Wagner, Hitler… all of them do more than make their appearance in these pages. I think this book will sell and sell, this season and this year, and for many years. It is certainly unlike any book we’ve ever published, nor are we likely to come upon another one. Please take a look at The Secret History of the World.

Peter Mayer
Publisher
The Overlook Press