Bloody Tower

These are the diary entries of Tilly between the ages of 12 and 18. Tilly is the daughter of the Tower of London’s physician, and it is set in the years starting with the short reign of Lady Jane Grey and ending with Elizabeth I’s ascent to the throne. During these years Tilly watches the waves of change in English politics that flow around the Tower, and witnesses many executions. There are some nice details of daily life in 16th century London that the author slips in unobtrusively.

This book doesn’t spare any gory details, and some of them may be disturbing to especially sensitive readers, but it IS a children’s book, so it’s pre-teen level head chopping ;-) This is part of the My Story series, which also includes books show more about the 17th century plague, the Irish famine and the London Blitz. This is also a good gateway book to start any young reader’s Tudor addiction. Bloody Tower at ten, Wolf Hall at 18. show less

One of a series entitled My Story written for young adults that give a behind the scenes look at historical moments in English history by having one of the participants keep a diary which is what the reader has access to years later. This diary presented here covers the four year period in English history, 1555 to 1559 in which King Henry VIII's son, King Edward VI dies leaving a question of who should succeed him. Should it be half sister Ann or half sister Elizabeth?

For nine days a reluctant Lady Jane Grey is declared queen but is soon deposed and Queen Mary I becomes queen. All the power struggles and killings of rivals is described through the eyes of a teenage girl who lives in the Tower of London where her father is the Royal Doctor

This book is one in the My Story series. The books in this series are fictional diaries of young girls living during different periods of British, Scottish, and Irish history.

Tilly Middleton is thirteen years old in the spring of 1553, when she begins her diary. She and her family live at the Tower of London, where her father is the physician. She describes her life at home, doing chores and helping care for her younger siblings, as well as the events of the day in England. It is a time of great turmoil, as the young king, Edward, dies, and his Catholic half-sister, Mary, becomes Queen of England. During Mary's reign, many people are kept at the tower as prisoners, including Mary's Protestant half-sister, Elizabeth.

I enjoyed this book show more from the My Story series a lot, as I particularly like this time period, but the book covered a long time period, and as a result, the later half contained a lot less detail than I would have liked, so I wish it were longer. However, I still recommend it to readers who enjoy historical fiction in diary format or who have an interest in this time period. show less

This entire series is a wonderful way to learn history or teach it to adolescents. I find today's generations seem to recall more when they learn through other people (pop songs, celebrity gossip, etc.), so what better way to teach history than through someone else's perspective? Yes, "authentic" diaries would be "better", but would the language really hold the modern student's attention? Did the diary writer know what WOULD be important in the context of history? Probably not.

This is a great book which gives great insight into the events surrounding Edward VI's succession. The story is written in Diary format and shows how events may have looked from the point of view of a girl growing up in the Tower of London. The story is followed by a timeline of events then copies of historivcal documents. A great way to get kids interested in History.

The title goes with the story line i was 3 or 4 pages in and i was hooked on to the book it was sad when the book ended

this book is kind of scary because it tells you how people died in the past and that bloody mary died in the 15 or 19