A History of Britain in Ten Enemies

Hardcover

English language

Published Jan. 1, 2024 by Bantam.

ISBN:: 978-0-85750-635-1

(1 review)

Ah, Britain. So special. The greatest nation on earth, some say. And we did it all on our own. Didn’t we?

As it happens Britannia got its name from the Romans, and for the past two centuries we have been ruled by Germans. As Horrible Histories author Terry Deary argues, nations and their leaders are defined by the enemies they make.

Elizabeth I would count as a minor royal without the Spanish Armada
Without the Nazis, Churchill would be remembered as an opposition windbag
The surprisingly sadistic Boudica would be forgotten if it weren't for the Roman Ninth Legion

And after all, every nation sometimes needs a bit of unifying Blitz spirit (although in an ideal world, we wouldn’t have accidentally let Corporal Hitler go in the first place).

The British have a proud history of choosing their enemies, from the Romans to the Germans. You might even say those …

Ah, Britain. So special. The greatest nation on earth, some say. And we did it all on our own. Didn’t we?

As it happens Britannia got its name from the Romans, and for the past two centuries we have been ruled by Germans. As Horrible Histories author Terry Deary argues, nations and their leaders are defined by the enemies they make.

Elizabeth I would count as a minor royal without the Spanish Armada
Without the Nazis, Churchill would be remembered as an opposition windbag
The surprisingly sadistic Boudica would be forgotten if it weren't for the Roman Ninth Legion

And after all, every nation sometimes needs a bit of unifying Blitz spirit (although in an ideal world, we wouldn’t have accidentally let Corporal Hitler go in the first place).

The British have a proud history of choosing their enemies, from the Romans to the Germans. You might even say those enemies made Britain what it is today...

A History of Britain in Ten Enemies is a witty, whistlestop tour of British history that will have you laughing as you find out what they didn't teach you in school.

1 edition

matthewmincher reviewed A History of Britain in Ten Enemies by Terry Deary

Underwhelmed

3 stars

I loved the horrible history books as a kid so I was pretty excited to see this come out. It's up there with Redwall and Goosebumps for getting me into reading.

This was an alright read, but didn't have the same charm (or perhaps it doesn't transfer to a more adult book...) Would have preferred it to be a bit longer, or to have done a few less enemies, though it was cool travelling through time. I think this book was trapped between not having enough space to go into detail and spend time in humourous story telling, and having to fill a book with something.

Regretted listening to the audiobook as although he did an acceptable job, I don't think the narrator conveyed the jokes and humour very well at all.

I'd read another one though, so I hope he does some more. I'd love some drawings, too.