As I embarked on this book, my first thought was that half the middle ages were missing, starting as it did in 1066. A quick examination of the cover revealed that Anglo Saxon Britain had its own Very Short Introduction. As I got the end it was apparent that there was more England than Britain, or at least the discussion of the rest of the British Isles was in the context of English invasion. That said, there is a lot of history crammed into a small format. So much so that it can hardly be recommended for he reader with no familiarity with Medieval history - such a reader is too likely to quickly get lost. ( )

Readable and in a way informative, but with two drawbacks. First, there is two much emphasis on power struggles at the expense of social history. Second, the title is quite misleading, because the book is really concerned with medieval England; Scotland and Wales are (similarly to France and Ireland) rarely mentioned outside of the context of English attempts at ruling these regions as well. ( )

Another useful introduction to a complicated subject. Parts of the book were a bit tedious and academically written, but in general it was a useful read. Made me want to go out and read more around many of the topics covered. ( )

Still very much told from an English viewpoint despite the title. It is basically a reign by reign account of the English monarchs and their doings interspersed with general chapters on social, economic,and religious matters. It is hard to believe that this is entirely due to a paucity of surviving material from the other countries that make up Britain. Having said that, it is a reasonable introduction to the history of England from 1066 to 1485, though the genealogies could have done with being in a larger font. ( )

E-books II