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The Young Oxford History of Britain and Ireland

A complete History of Britain, intended for bright 10–13 year–olds but ideal for many adults who want a clear, well–illustrated history. It's amazing how much we managed to cram in, however briefly.

Here's a flavour of the book from the TES review:

For a book of just 400 pages it is rich with sources as diverse as the subject demands. First-hand accounts and other primary sources are used wherever possible, to capture the mood of a period or to illustrate an event or development. In most cases a single source has to suffice and is selected for its ability to encapsulate the issue in question. A good example is the young Churchill's reaction to Seebohm Rowntree's report of 1901: "I can see little glory in an empire which can rule the waves and is unable to flush the sewers."

The writers have avoided the temptation to popularise. This is history seriously written and intelligently presented. Political, economic and religious history are given their due weight alongside social and military aspects.

The well-mannered and restrained invective that was a feature of political debate in the last century is used to embellish the portraits of otherwise indistinct if notable figures; so Peel, according to Shaftesbury, is "an iceberg with a slight thaw on the surface", and that great tree-feller and classicist, Gladstone, is called "a vindictive fiend" by Disraeli, and aptly summed up by Lady Palmerston: "If you boiled Gladstone you would not find an ounce of fun in him."

Features on topics such as Pilgrimage, the English Country House and the Motor Car are useful and well-presented additions to a text which is otherwise an unbroken narrative, with more than 500 visual sources complementing the text.

The text is highly readable and should be accessible to most teenagers who are interested in history and read for pleasure. In fact the clarity of the prose and the use of many fresh illustrations are invitations to browse, and it is not difficult to imagine adults reclaiming what would make an ideal gift.

 

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