Filled with profound reflections and snapshots from the past, Karen Chase's History is Embarrassing weaves together threads from one single life--a girl suffering from polio, a poet, a Jewish woman, a writer, and a painter. Like Chase, the characters who populate these essays are outsiders--undercover cops, a gay couple in 1500s India, bear poachers, psychiatric patients, and even a president--each a meaningful part of history. Divided into three parts--histories, pleasures, and horrors--History is Embarrassing is an assortment of thought-provoking essays that are sure to resonate with many readers.