On This Day
452 – Sack of Aquileia: After an earlier defeat on the Catalaunian Plains, Attila lays siege to the metropolis of Aquileia and eventually destroys it.[4]
The sack of Aquileia occurred in 452, and was carried out by the Huns under the leadership of Attila.[1]
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711 – Umayyad conquest of Hispania: Battle of Guadalete: Umayyad forces under Tariq ibn Ziyad defeat the Visigoths led by King Roderic.
The Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula (Arabic: فَتْحُ الأَنْدَلُس), also known as the Arab conquest of Spain,[1] by the Umayyad Caliphate occurred between approximately 711 and the 720s. The conquest resulted in the defeat of the Visigothic rulers (which themselves comprised a very small percentage of the overall population) and led to the establishment of an Arabic state (or wilayah), Al-Andalus.
Born On This Day
1504 – Heinrich Bullinger, Swiss pastor and reformer (d. 1575)[21]
Heinrich Bullinger (18 July 1504 – 17 September 1575) was a Swiss Reformer and theologian, the successor of Huldrych Zwingli as head of the Church of Zürich and a pastor at the Grossmünster. One of the most important leaders of the Swiss Reformation, Bullinger co-authored the Helvetic Confessions and collaborated with John Calvin to work out a Reformed doctrine of the Lord’s Supper.[1]
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1223 – Baibars, sultan of Egypt (d. 1277)
Al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari (Arabic: الملك الظاهر ركن الدين بيبرس البندقداري;[a] 1223/1228 – 1 July 1277), commonly known as Baibars or Baybars and nicknamed Abu al-Futuh (أبو الفتوح, lit. ’Father of Conquests’), was the fourth Mamluk sultan of Egypt and Syria, of Turkic Kipchak origin, in the Bahri dynasty, succeeding Qutuz. He was one of the commanders of the Egyptian forces that inflicted a defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France. He also led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260,[4] which marked the first substantial defeat of the Mongol army and is considered a turning point in history.[5]
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FYI
NASA: Astronomy Picture of the Day
EarthSky News
This Day in Tech History
This Day In History
Interesting Facts
Word Genius: Word of the Day
Condolences
George Robert Newhart (September 5, 1929 – July 18, 2024) was an American comedian and actor. He was known for his deadpan and stammering delivery style. Beginning as a stand-up comedian, he transitioned his career to acting in television. He had received numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2002.
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By Open Culture: The Cramps Play a Mental Health Hospital in Napa, California in 1978: The Punkest of Punk Concerts
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: How Choose Your Own Adventure Books Became Beloved Among Generations of Readers
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: Eno: The New “Generative Documentary” on Brian Eno That’s Never the Same Movie Twice
Gray Media: Harlem Globetrotters return to live television for first time in 40 years
Lives Well Lived — GENERATIONS: Resilience, Positivity, and Purpose at Every Age Kindle Edition
by Sky Bergman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
What if you had a treasure trove of resilience, positivity, and insight at your fingertips?
Sky Bergman grew up in an Italian household with four generations around the dinner table where the stories, wisdom, and knowledge would flow. You can almost smell the aroma of Grandma’s lasagna wafting in the air as you immerse yourself in a vibrant Italian household where laughter and wisdom blend as richly as spices. Lives Well Lived — GENERATIONS, by Sky Bergman, is a heartfelt invitation to dine at a table stretching back thousands of years.
Sky weaves a legacy quilt from the stories of over 40 individuals, embodying 3000 years of life experience. Each tale is a thread in the tapestry of human resilience and joy, an insight from her acclaimed PBS documentary, Lives Well Lived.
The book distills life’s essence, celebrating wisdom shaped through generations. It’s about finding purpose, leaning on each other, and the art of thriving through life’s rollercoaster.
Join Bergman as she unveils the beauty of age-old connections, introduces you to the pioneers bridging generational gaps, and champions the unifying force of shared experiences.
Lives Well Lived — GENERATIONS is more than a book; it’s an experience—a journey through the soul of humanity, urging us to cherish every moment and every story. Sit down, turn the page, and savor the flavors of a life well-lived.
Colion Noir: 2A Influencer & Injured Vet Crispy Unleashed: Shooting, Speeding, & Surviving
Gary Sinise Foundation Podcast with Gary Sinise
Former Navy SEAL & Founder of Blackwater Tells All! | Twins Pod – Episode 22 – Erik Prince
Cleaed Hot Podcast: When Will it Be Enough?
Ideas
By Jason Keil, Life Hacker: Throw Your Kids a ‘Summerween’ Party Before Fall Hits Let’s face it—we could all use some chills right about now.
By Brie Dyas, Country Living: How to Get Rid of House Flies Quickly Put down the bug spray and try this natural DIY hack.
Recipes
Just the Recipe: Paste the URL to any recipe, click submit, and it’ll return literally JUST the recipe- no ads, no life story of the writer, no nothing EXCEPT the recipe.
DamnDelicious
RecipeTinEats
- Spinach French Onion Cob Dip – Australia’s favourite dip! June 19, 2026Meet Australia’s favourite dip!!! This Spinach French Onion Cob Dip is made using a French Onion Soup mix and is served in a cob bread loaf. It is unapologetically retro, gloriously unfashionable, breaks every real-food rule I preach, and is completely addictive!! Spinach French Onion Cob Dip This dip has been a fixture at Australian... […]Nagi
- Easy Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Beef June 16, 2026Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Beef is what you make when you want a big batch of crowd-pleasing food with relatively little effort. The succulent pulled beef is smothered in an incredible homemade barbecue sauce, and there’s so many ways to serve it – pile into sliders, heap onto plates or stuff into baked potatoes! Easy... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 20 June 20, 2026Picture of the day Flower of a Geranium sanguineum, bloody crane's-bill. Focus stack of 51 photos.
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 19 June 19, 2026Picture of the day Alley on Escheckstraße (and part of the cuckoo clock trail), Schönwald im Schwarzwald, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
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Welcome to the Stump the Bookseller blog!
Stump the Bookseller is a service offered by Loganberry Books to reconnect people to the books they love but can’t quite remember. In brief (for more detailed information see our About page), people can post their memories here, and the hivemind goes to work. After all, the collective mind of bibliophiles, readers, parents and librarians around the world is much better than just a few of us thinking. Together with these wonderful Stumper Magicians, we have a nearly 50% success rate in finding these long lost but treasured books. The more concrete the book description, the better the success rate, of course. It is a labor of love to keep it going, and there is a modest fee. Please see the How To page to find price information and details on how to submit your Book Stumper and payment.
Thanks to everyone involved to keep this forum going: our blogging team, the well-read Stumper Magicians, the many referrals, and of course to everyone who fondly remembers the wonder of books from their childhood and wants to share or revisit that wonder. Isn’t it amazing, the magic of a book?