This non fiction book of Mums was entirely engrossing taken in what I like to call ‘One Chapter Chunks with a Cup of Tea’, alternating with a re reading of the fictional ‘Cold Mountain’ by […]
Tag: History
103. ‘South Riding’ by Winifred Holtby.
I first read this book in a hard cover edition I borrowed from my local library as a teenager, and I loved it. I remember I initially chose it because of the title/location – although […]
91. The Underground Railroad by colson whitehead
Without a doubt one of the most powerful books I have ever read. I was loaned this recently with the warning that it was unsettling, in fact deeply disturbing, and I pass these words on […]
88. ‘The Story of the British Isles in 100 places’ by Neil Oliver
First published in 2018, this delightful book is not from Mum’s library, but it is certainly one that would have appealed to her enormously. Before her retirement from teaching, and before we lost my fabulous […]
84. ‘Wild Swans’ by Jung Chang
This is an extraordinary book, one that really is hard to put down, and certainly hard to forget. I remember reading it back in the early 90’s when it was first published, and being deeply […]
82. ‘Ten Cities that made an empire’ by Tristram Hunt.
A rather brilliant non fiction volume from Mum’s bookshelves – like me, Mum was always fond of a good history book, and this is no exception. The premise is to tell the story of the […]
81. ‘The Duchess’ by Amanda Foreman.
Before I start, I have to say I was initially very put off by the obvious reference to Martin Bashirs 1995 interview with Princess Diana on the cover, regardless of how true the quotation is […]
77. ‘The Time Traveller’s Guide to Medieval England’ by Ian Mortimer.
Flipping heck, what a jolly good read this was! Especially for a history nerd like me. I think a part of the blurb on the back says it best – ‘History is not just something […]
34. ‘Shakespeare’ by Bill Bryson.
It’s safe to say Mum loved this book as she has two copies of it; the first dated 2008, the second copy, 2011 and 2014….obviously Mum mislaid the first copy, so she bought it again! […]
33. ‘Rubicon’ by Tom Holland, a guest review by Tom Gray.
It is a tired old trope, perhaps because of its enduring truth; history repeats itself. And drawing parallels between the late years of the Roman Republic and the modern United States is almost irresistible to […]
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