Remember, Remember (the Fifth of November)

This is a cracking little book: it may be read cover to cover in little more than an hour - even by a reading sloth such as my good self.

Sometimes, I find that I get lost in an area of history and struggle to connect it to the big picture. This is where this tome is invaluable. Just one word of warning, it is just a tad, "Britain the great Empire builder can do no wrong" in its approach but, a healthy dose of cynicism can deal with that.

Definitely worth a place on the bookshelf - and it will soon become a well thumbed friend.

I really enjoyed this book. The author summarizes British history from the Roman Invasion to the end of World War II and the founding of the United Nations. There are 150 entries, and each is no more than 250 words, so it is succinct and surprisingly complete.

I'm a Yankee, of course, so I was intrigued by the different viewpoint of many historic events I knew, and lots of events I had never heard of. I even finally understand Guy Fawke's Day.

This is a great little book for an overview of British history from Roman times through World War II. Though each section is, as advertised, brief, there are some interesting personal tidbits about monarchs and statesmen.

“The history of Britain in bite-sized chunks,” it says here, and that’s pretty much exactly what it is. According to the introduction, “… many of us reach adulthood with embarrassing gaps in our knowledge, conscious of a vague feeling that we should know more about the subject,” and this is certainly true in my case. Or it was. Now that I’ve read this book, my problem has been solved!

Okay, not really. But at least I have something quick and easy to refer to.

A most excellent read.

A most excellent read.

A most excellent read.