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 | | The Story of Britain: From the Romans to the Present: A Narrative History by Rebecca Fraser ISBN-10: 9780393329025 ISBN-10: 0-393-32902-X ISBN-13: 9780393329025 ISBN-13: 978-0-393-32902-5 Paperback 2006-11-20 W. W. Norton Find Lowest Price |
Editorials | ||
Product Description "A beautifully written story, a box of delights, a treasure trove: final proof of truth's superiority over fiction."—Andrew Roberts Rebecca Fraser's dramatic portrayal of the larger-than-life characters who forged Britain's national institutions is an enjoyable introduction to British history and a useful chronology of the past. A highly readable account of the men and women who created turning points in history, it is packed with anecdotes about British scientists, explorers, soldiers, traders, writers, and artists. 154 illustrations. | ||
Reviews | ||
Good old-fashioned history The kings and queens, the battles, the anecdotes -- if that's the history you're wanting, then Rebecca Fraser has the book for you. The book is odd in some respects; for instance, she gives a great deal of attention to monarchs, but shys away from even wondering if Richard I, Edward II, or James I were homosexual (while obliquely giving us the manner of Edward's murder, and acknowledging James's fondness for pretty young men). In a book that's so personality-driven, that's a glaring omission. But one can only go so far criticizing a book about "Britain from the Romans to Tony Blair" for what it fails to include. Either as an introduction or as an overview, the book does its job readably and well, for what it is. If you want social history, etc., try something more academic. | ||
Excellent Narration! I should say, this is the most enjoyable British history I have ever read. Although more than 800 pgs, you would only find it is difficult to put down the book once you begin to read. Though not an academic reference in strict sense, the book can help you obtain a general understanding of the thousands years' history of a country which has been so prominent in human civilization. I trust that your further interest on this topic would be raised after going through the whole length of this book. | ||
The Story of Britain by Rebecca Fraser Studying English literature (distance learning)at London School of Journalism requires at least a rudimentary knowledge of British history and I, being a foreigner, (from Slovenia) have a very modest knowledge of it so far. I admit I have ordered this book trusting on my luck- and I am sure it is a direct hit! Although I have only been able to study first 200 pages, I am already convinced that I have got THE book I really need; because: - it is easy readable, especially for a foreigner - the articles are short, consise and of manageable size. - the articles are sufficiently equipped with charts and pictures - I would not dare to review the content- but I really enjoy this extremely interesting and charmingly written narrative book. | ||
The Story of Britain is an excellent popular history of Great Britain Rebecca Fraser the author of "The Story of Britain" is the daughter of famed historian Lady Antonia Fraser. Rebecca continues the excellent tradition of her mother by this 785 page behemoth of a book. In these closely printed pages Fraser unfolds the pageantry, poetry, politics and personalities that have made GB the oldest democracy in the world. Fraser has divided her book up by reporting in concise prose the history of each monarch's reign. She covers all the kings and queens from Roman times to the long reign of the present Queen Elizabeth II. The sections are: 1. Norman and Angevin: 1066-1216 2. Plantagenet: 1216-1399. 3. Lancastrian and Yorkist-1399-1485 4. Tudor-1485-1603 5. Stuart-1603-1714 6. Hanoverian-1717-1901 7. Saxe-Coburg: The reign of Edward VII-1901-1910 8. Windsor-1910-the present. This book was originally published for the general audience in England. An American, however, with a scant knowledge of British history could follow the fascinating story with ease. Fraser's style is elegantly easy to comprehend even when explaining complex economic, relgious and political controversies. I assert that this fine book would be a good textbook for an introductory course on British history or it could serve as a valuable resource in a course on Enlish Literature. Fraser's book focuses on politics,& royalty and gives little space to the lives of everyday people. In that sense it is an old fashioned type histiography. The book is well illustrated with period etchings and photos. Her work on post-1900 was especially well done as she describes World War I and World War's II's devastation of the British Empire. Her words on Prime Minister Magaret Thatcher were also valuable. The book has a handy bibliography of works which will lead the interested reader to exploring personalities, reigns and times which are covered in the Fraser text. Unlike many books in my library I know I will be referring to this one for years to come. Worth it's price! | ||
Good description of the rulers of England I found this book very helpful in learning about British history. I am looking for the emotional and psychological quality of the times which many books don't give. This book does. It is filled with descriptions of what the people who ruled Britain were like, not just what they did and when. There are places where it skips back and forth -- in fact the place a previous commentator found confusing is where I was confused for a bit -- but that is a minor flaw as far as I am concerned. More importantly for me, is that pages go by without even a year being mentioned. I would like more of "in November, 1702, things got worse". | ||