This would have been an impossibly dull read without David Mitchell’s brilliantly humorous and entertaining slant. I really enjoyed it and learned all about our monarchs from when they started up to Elizabeth I. Well done DM!!
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I'd been recommended this book and, as I enjoy the humour of the author, was looking forward to reading it. The idea of the book is to look at the English Kings (and occasional Queen) starting as far back as possible and ending with Elizabeth I. The introduction is interesting (always a good start) as David Mitchell introduces the idea of how the English people view the monarchy. I noted this had been written recently as there are references to King Charles III. This book was first published in 2023. There are 403 pages, if you include a "Bookend" chapter at the end - the chapter cover 39 monarchs with the first few chapters grouping a few together. You can definitely hear the voice of the author coming through in the writing. It's familiar and conversational in a style more commonly used in an autobiography - I thought this made the book very easy to read. I loved the list of monarchs and the maps at the start, always useful for context. Particularly interesting though were the family trees. We are always taught about 1066 onwards but rarely look at the periods before that so it's great to see the names and their connections. The book starts after the Romans and the narrative gets murky/confused for the first couple of chapters. To be fair to the author he is working through a period of history that is also very murky. He makes good efforts to pull together some basic facts in a comedic way then moves on. Once the Viking invade then the history becomes more familiar to both author and reader which makes everything more comfortable. Jokes generally need to be about something recognisable to make them funny and the narrative gets funnier as we progress through the book. The style of the book is very much like a Bill Bryson book - lots of research and lots of facts, all presented in an accessible way with plenty of humour. When we get to the Plantagenets the story gets muddled again and I suspect David Mitchell didn't enjoy this section. Henry Tudor eventually takes over and we are all then back on familiar ground again (bring on the jokes!).
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Rarely do I find a book that makes me get out of bed early to continue reading.Not too academic but lots of factual details, along with a slightly irreverent view of the great and the good. Good fun and a great read.
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Interesting and funny. If you like history you’ll enjoy this book. David Mitchell at his irreverent best. A great Christmas gift!
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The family is split over this one but there was too much David Mitchell being funny for me - I found it difficult to follow the timeline of the history. Probably better to get a straight history book if you really want to learn it. A good read though.
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Impossible to read other than in the voice of the author! Well researched and some interesting material. Book speeds up towards the close and becomes sketchy, but overall a good read. Can’t believe he didn’t know Sorrento had an old harbour!
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NB very sweary so if you’re easily offended, don’t read! A great book that looks at all the early kings and queens of England, up to Elizabeth I. Really interesting and funny and full of fascinating stories. Highly recommend to anyone who likes history. Hope there’s a second!
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If you're interested in history and you like David Mitchell (the Peep Show, husband of Victoria C-M one that is, not the Cloud Atlas, Bone Clocks one - although he's good too) then there's a lot to enjoy in this whistlestop tour of the monarchy of England. Starting with the myth of King Arthur, he takes us from the Dark Ages through to the reign of Elizabeth I. It's serious, erudite and insightful, but also very funny. With his trademark wit, David is an excellent guide to our early history, unpicking the stories behind the thugs and the schemers who wanted the biggest prize of all - a gold hat and the right to rule. As ever, he's most amusing when he gets a little cross about things: "To be honest, I slightly disapprove of kings being made saints. It’s like CEOs getting knighthoods, standing alongside all those dedicated charity volunteers who raised millions for incubators but only get MBEs." If only all history lessons were this entertaining.
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Okay, so I now own the Kindle, the audiobook, and the paperback version of this phenomenal book — and am currently regretting that it doesn’t come in hardcover. I have honestly lost track of how many times I have read or listened to this book — it’s seriously that entertaining (frequently laugh out loud funny), that informative, that well-written, and just that darn good. Are you fond of really well-written medieval English history and weapons-grade British sarcasm? Come on in, the water’s fine. And obviously if you’re a fan of David Mitchell, you already have a decent idea of what you’re getting into. The author would likely cringe to be called erudite, but Mitchell is just so smart and well-spoken that it’s always a sheer joy to read/hear/etc anything he has to say about… well, about anything, honestly. I still think the book deserves more stars.
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If you are a reader and interested in history: great book!
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Ce live est tres bien recherche. A lire lentement pour pouvoir tout absorber!
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El libro contiene muchos comentarios divertidos sobre los personajes y sigo leyéndolo gustosamente. Sin embargo, la copia que yo he recibido, tiene una lista de 56 ilustraciones que figura en las paginas 408 al 410, donde están ordenadas en secuencia y por numeros, pero las ilustraciones están en tres lugares distintas y no están en secuencia. totalmente desordenadas e.j. el 1y el 2 están seguidas por el 19 al 24 y la pagina siguiente tiene el 6 al 9, seguido poe el 29 al 32 y la próxima pagina muestran el 14 al 15. Todos en color y de alta calidad. Algo estraño. Tal vez otra broma del autor ;) James
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