History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

The Vagabond Duchess (Harlequin Historical Series)

Average customer rating:

Really Good
A great read
Surprisingly Good

The Vagabond Duchess (Harlequin Historical Series)
Claire Thornton
Manufacturer: Harlequin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0373294468

Book Description

He'd promised to return.

But Jack Bow is dead. And Temperance Challinor's quietly respectable life is changed forever.

Practical Temperance has no time to grieve for the irresistible rogue who gave her one night of comfort in a blazing city. She must protect her unborn child—by pretending to be Jack's widow.

A foolproof plan. Until she arrives at Jack's home…and the counterfeit widow of a vagabond becomes the real wife of a very much alive duke!

Customer Reviews:

Really Good.......2007-09-19

First time reading anything from this author. The characters were very well rounded and believable. Look forward to reading more.

A great read.......2007-04-19

The Vagabond Duchess is a bit different from most historicals around. It takes place in 1666, with repercussions from the king's exile, the vicious spread of the plague and the horrid London fires. Because of this the characters are excellently flushed out. Jack, the Duke, does masquerade as a vagabond at times. It was a persona he picked up while exiled in France; he was forced to hide his background. This makes him resourceful and resilient, but unwilling to put himself at the whims of others. Temperance is a shopkeeper that has lost her entire family and was left to fend for herself, she's independent and strong-willed. Naturally, when they meet each other the sparks fly. They have both found someone to lean on.

The plot line basically follows their intial courtship while Jack is a vagabond and then Temperance's life as the new Duchess. I would say this work is more driven by its characters,a very good thing. It is such a warm, sweet story. The only thing I would change is Toby; a very spoiled child. So many tantrums and no one to discipline him, especially since his dad was a wanderer and most likely let him have his way out of guilt at not being home all the time. I felt bad for the sweetheart that was Issac, he was forced buddy up with the brat.

Surprisingly Good.......2007-04-10

I've boycotted HQN as low quality for years - or at least I thought I did. A recent conversation over at Word Wenches made me realize I've been buying a few HQN's here and there. I constantly ask for more diversity in the genre and at the same time (it was pointed out) I limited myself from exploring all the places I could find that diversity. I picked up The Vagabond Duchess because of an interest in the London Fire of 1666 and I'm delighted I did. I've been a fool and a snob. What struck me most was how these characters live in a time that was far more treacherous than the Napoleonic. The plague had just left, the fire is upon them, a king has been lost then regained - there is no certainty and in times of uncertainty there's an odd freedom. I was far more inclined to believe a shop owner and a duke could expect to make a go of it than I otherwise would have been. This was a tremendously entertaining read. I encourage you, if you've been curious about breaking out of Regency Vampires to try this title out.

A Journal of the Plague Year (Modern Library Classics)

Average customer rating:

Yes, Bubonic Plague is no fun.
History will repeat itself
Malignity is the very nature of man
Rare record of a terrible year.
Building our imaginary

A Journal of the Plague Year (Modern Library Classics)
Daniel Defoe
Manufacturer: Modern Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0375757899
Release Date: 2001-11-13

Book Description

Defoe's account of the bubonic plague that swept London in 1665 remains as vivid as it is harrowing. Based on Defoe's own childhood memories and prodigious research, A Journal of the Plague Year walks the line between fiction, history, and reportage. In meticulous and unsentimental detail it renders the daily life of a city under siege; the often gruesome medical precautions and practices of the time; the mass panics of a frightened citizenry; and the solitary travails of Defoe's narrator, a man who decides to remain in the city through it all, chronicling the course of events with an unwavering eye. Defoe's Journal remains perhaps the greatest account of a natural disaster ever written.

This Modern Library Paperback Classic is set from the original edition published in 1722.

Customer Reviews:

Yes, Bubonic Plague is no fun........2007-03-04

A Journal of the Plague Year. Is it a novel or a historical document? Apparently it is a bit of both, as Daniel Defoe took a real journal from a real survivor of the London plague of 1664 and filled in various historical tidbits to enliven the text six decades after the fact. The result is a most illuminating description of London life when half the city is sick and dying. There is no particular organization to the text, and Defoe does not include anything like a chapter or section break. He, speaking as the narrator, simply comments on subjects of interest that he witnessed or recalled. Some is repetitive, but deadly epidemics are repetitive things and the stories of the dead, dying, sick and crazy do tend to follow various repeated trends. The original author did seem to get around a bit, though, and at various times seemed to be in a position of some responsibility to examine the effects of the plague as it spread. He also maintained, possibly with Defoe's posthumous aid, an eye for relevant detail and a willingness to put it to paper. While the text maintains a style of detached, impersonal writing common to the era, it does make abundantly clear that a plagued city is a thoroughly unpleasant place to avoid.

History will repeat itself.......2005-11-21

Defoe, Daniel, A Journal of the Plague Year. 1722. Penguin Books, 1966.
Now that we're all reading up on bird flu, the flu pandemic of 1918, and even the Black Plague, it seems appropriate to revisit Daniel Defoe's account of the London outbreak of 1665. The author cleverly spins a fictional world based on the real one which struck England when he was only five. Using real statistics and first or second hand accounts, he brings the reader full into that world with its constant terror, its bell-ringing nightly dead carts, the screams of the dying and their families, all of which teaches us something about the fragility of society as we know it. During the pestilence and for months afterward all foreign trade was stopped between Britain and other countries; shops were shut, factories closed, and the wretchedness of the poor, which was only partially relieved by charity--primarily private--increased immeasurably. Aside from total isolation, which was virtually impossible in a mercantile economy, there were only a few ways to avoid the sickness. One mentioned by Defoe was by a woman who doused herself from head to toe with vinegar. I used this method myself in Acapulco in 1951, to avoid being bitten by sand fleas, and it works.

Defoe's narrator says that he fell ill for a few days before the pestilence reached its peak, but quickly recovered. He obviously gained immunity through this mild exposure. Samuel Pepys kept a diary during the 1660s, and casually mentions in one passage that he poured gin into his bathwater for its cooling effect. The gin, of course, killed any fleas that might have been around and Pepys survived unharmed and unaware of what had saved him from death.

Vinegar and gin will not save us from the flu pandemic that is threatened. Face masks and strictly enforced quarantine (disapproved of by Defoe) seem to be the answer, as inoculation will not likely be timely or sufficiently available. Defoe's tale shakes the reader's confidence in government's ability to help its people in a crisis; if it cannot figure out what to do in a hurricane, what will happen when disaster strikes the entire country?

Five stars.

Malignity is the very nature of man.......2005-10-06

In this documentary novel, Defoe sketches poignantly the irrational behaviour of man under extreme circumstances, when death threatens behind every corner of the street.
People turned to fortune-tellers, astrologers or conjurers who deluded them. They became the victims of `doctors' selling `infallible preventive pills'. They `swarmed to a wicked generation of pretenders to magic and black art'.
People were terrified by the force of their imagination and saw representations and appearances in clouds. Their impudence increased by using devilish blasphemous language.
Others risked their lives by stealing and plundering without any regard to the danger of infection.
Man behaved as a mad dog.

The Government encouraged devotion, public prayers, fasting and humiliation to implore the mercy of God to avert the dreadful judgment. `Many a penitent confession was made of crimes long concealed.'
Innumerable religious sects and divisions fought for the souls of the condemned. It was `altar against altar'. The discourses of the religious ministers were full of terror, prophesying evil tidings.
Unfortunately, religion was not the solution: `the best physic against the plague was to run away from it.' People who believed in predestination (`tis the hand of God, there is no withstanding it') and stayed home, were infected too and died by thousands.
For Swift `there was no apparent extraordinary occasion for supernatural operation, it was really propagated by natural means.'

The near view of death reconciled men of good principles one to another.
But as the terror of infection abated, things all returned again to the course they were in before.
More, after the plague, `people, hardened by the danger they had been in, were more wicked and more stupid, more bold and hardened, in their vices and immoralities.'

In this impressive panorama, worth a Breughel or a Hieronymus Bosch, the only weakness is the lack of some kind of plot.

Not to be missed.

Rare record of a terrible year........2005-01-08

This fictionalised journal (written decades after the event when Defoe was only 5 years old) argues its case better by a bald statement of facts, than by any elaborate literary devices. This reads like it is meant to be, a journal, bringing home the horrors of that awful time in a way that a second-hand description could never do.
Having said that, this account IS second-hand; it is only Defoe's journalistic expertise, boyhood memories and down-to-earth style that make it so believable.

BUT - anyone who reads this should not expect another Gulliver's Travels - it IS heavy going; it's not a book that one can curl up with & relax, you have to work for your entertainment.

The main point that comes across is the constant religious undercurrent, which was, I guess, typical of the time (if not of Defoe) and the willingness to attach blame for anything unusual to outsiders, or God's will, rather than examine their own circumstances (so what's changed in 339 years!?). As one of the few records of that terrible year, this deserves a place on any amateur historian's bookshelf.

Building our imaginary.......2003-12-12

This is quite an interesting book. Looks pretty much like journalism in a time the concept was not yet developed. It is very realistic and it looks like the author was actually present went the story happened, when in fact he wrote the whole thing many years after. Another interesting aspect regarding this book is that it "constructed" in a sense, our imaginary regarding middle ages epidemics. The descriptions are so vivid that they were used many, many times in the movies, paintings and other fictional pieces to characterise this kind of situations. Just for the sake of curiosity, one can read Noah Gordon's "The Physiscian" or watch the movie "Interview with the Vampire" (pay attention to the episode of the epidemics in New Orleans), to see that Defoe's influence came a long way through. Good read!

Average customer rating:

Fascinating Subject, But Book Could Be Better
Intriguing book on how catastrophes impact nations...
Should have been much better
Resurgam
Wow, an exciting book.

By Permission of Heaven
Adrian Tinniswood
Manufacturer: Riverhead Hardcover
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1573222445
Release Date: 2004-01-01

Book Description

A work of dynamic history that depicts in fascinating detail the cataclysm that was the Great Fire of London and the modern European capital that rose from its ashes.

By Permission of Heaven is a thrilling account of the Great Fire of London that makes terrific use of a vast array of first-person accounts and forensic investigation. The result is an impeccable achievement in historical storytelling that calls to mind equal parts Patricia Cornwell, Sebastian Junger, and Iain Pears.

By Permission of Heaven follows the conflagration from its beginnings in a Pudding Lane baker's kitchen in 1666 through the extreme devastation it wreaked. Adrian Tinniswood recounts the horror and wonder that gripped the city as the flames spread, destroying 13,200 homes, ninety-three churches, St. Paul's Cathedral, and every administrative building in the capital. While looting, savage violence, panic, and chaos reigned within the city and war raged without, hundreds of thousands buried their most precious possessions and fled, never again to see the Lon-don they knew.

Finely depicted here are the towering figures of Restoration England, such as Charles II, Samuel Pepys, and Christopher Wren, who played critical roles in the fire and its aftermath. Tinnis-wood also brings to life the schoolchildren, servants, clerks, and courtiers of the day as they watched the streets run with fire and the greatest city in Britain disappear before their eyes.

Customer Reviews:

Fascinating Subject, But Book Could Be Better.......2004-10-01

I did enjoy Tinniswood's book and found the subject very intriguing. The Great Fire of London was incredibly dramatic and Tinniswood shines when he brings in primary sources such as the diary of Samuel Pepys and the poetry of the time. I also appreciated the maps that tracked the progress of fire as well as other city plans and artwork included in the plates. Another strong point of the book is the discussion of the English fear of "papism"; the 17th century mind equated Catholicism with a loss of liberty, which is something I hadn't heard of before.

That being said, I found Tinniswood's writing style to be less than dynamic. The book does read quickly due to the subject matter, but I wouldn't call it great literature in and of itself. I would also have liked more historical background on the Restoration to help place the event in context. This book was worth the time to read, but this book is, for me, one to borrow rather than add to my personal library.

Intriguing book on how catastrophes impact nations..........2004-08-05

Tinniswood is an author I will be looking for in the future. His history of the great London fire of 1666 makes it memorable, and it is amazing how much is still the same as per politics and political maneuvering by those in power during such a daunting happening as this fire, that more or less razed London to the ground.

England was in the midst of a war as per usual with Holland and France when this fire broke out in the late summer of 1666. Even though it would have been easy to blame this fire on England's enemies (and some did exactly that...the war-mongers will always be with us I fear), King Charles and his many courtiers and even his generals made it more than clear at the Parlimentary Committee that was established to determine how the fire got started, that the extremely dry summer, the way London homes were built with wood and with extensions over alleys, and the lack of accessible water and plans for fighting a city fire were at fault for the loss of London.

I thoroughly enjoyed the research Tinniswood did on the writings from that time period. Not only does he include official writings of the fire, but also poetry lamenting the fire, the various preachers and sermons they gave on what the fire meant as far as God was concerned, and later in the book, information concerning the rebuilding of the city of London. This information incorporates all the thinking of the time into a very pleasing history on a single occurrence, which like the sinking of the Titanic, had an impact on the way people did things. In this case, London was rebuilt with bricks and stones, rather than wood, people were kept from building right down to the Thames (at least for a while), and other laws were incorporated to make all cities safer from fires.

A couple of things I found amazing was how little life was lost due to this fire. Considering the great amount of people in such a small space, one would have expected a great loss of life...but that didn't happen. The other thing that was amazing was the fact that most people just gathered up their families and things and left. It wasn't until Charles gave his brother the task of trying to stop the fire that anything was done, and he did a good job at it.

Great history.

Karen Sadler,
Science Education

Should have been much better.......2004-05-25

It's hard to take a fascinating historical subject like this and make it boring, but that's exactly what Tinniswood does with this book. He does a very, very poor job of setting the scene and introducing characters -- if you don't already know a lot about 17th century life and the geography of London, you'll likely find yourself lost. His extremely dry writing style doesn't help matters, either.

The book also suffers from a lack of depth -- it's fact after fact with almost no attempt made at interpretation. And the lack of detail when compared to other books about historical fires (such as Von Drehle's "Triangle") is disappointing. Still, Tinniswood clearly has a very good knowledge of this interesting subject, and that's what keeps me from giving this book 1 star.

Resurgam.......2004-02-18

This book is a fascinating mix of disaster epic, social history, biography, and just plain good storytelling. I highly recommend it.

Adrian Tinniswood, the author of a biography of Christopher Wren and a history of architecture (among other titles), brings us to the intersection of those two topics, the massive fire that swept through the City of London in early September, 1666. For me, as I'd suspect for many readers, about the only thing I knew about the Great Fire of London was that it allowed Christopher Wren to demonstrate his genius in rebuilding the city's churches. In fact, the story is quite a lot larger than that.

Tinniswood's recounting of the fire itself is a narrative worth the price of the book. But what really makes this memorable history is the way the author places the fire in a larger social context of municipal politics, religious bigotry, the fear of war and reprisal, and much more.

What I found more fascinating even than the fire, however, was the author's description of the rebuilding of London and what it demonstrates about the English. In other nations and other times, politicians would not have hesitated to use the Fire as an excuse for a massive "visionary" building of a glorious new capital. But in London, any such plans foundered on the rocks of economic and property rights. The government simply refused to trample propertyholders' legitimate claims -- and the landowners and tenants themselves refused to be driven off their land merely to accommodate the social engineers' dreams of a newer, greater London.

Similarly, "A nationwide tax [to pay for rebuilding the City] would have been turned down flat by Parliament -- why should the rest of the country be made to suffer for London's losses?" [p. 225]. Parliamentary and City leaders even hamstrung the power of the powerful Companies to limit entry to their trades in order to keep reconstruction costs down ... sort of the seventeenth-century equivalent of Right to Work laws.

On the whole, there is a lot going on in this story. But Adrian Tinniswood ties it all together extremely well. Even for readers whose interests may not lie in the history of the Restoration era, this is an interesting tale that's both educational and inspirational. And that's not a bad way to spend your reading time.

Wow, an exciting book........2004-02-13

Wow, an exciting book. Adrian Tinniswood has an undergraduate degree in history and a master's in literature and is a respected journalist. From the extensive bibliography for By Permission of Heaven, one can see that his training in historical research has enabled him to dig a first rate story out of historical archives, while his training in literature produced a riveting tale. The True Story of the Great Fire of London reads like a novel. Tinniswood's effective mining of his sources has paid dividends in the creation of historical characters at least as engaging as those of fictional works, and these individuals are set in the dramatic setting of the fire and its aftermath. The author chronicles the birth and progress of the fire, its amazing destructiveness with little fatality, and its effects on later London and English society. Adding excitement to the story is the fact that, unlike the Chicago fire which was almost as devistating, the London event was set in the midst of war with another country and the very real fear of invasion.

At the end of the book I felt like there should be more story to read and began to cast about for biographies and other historical works on 17th Century England. What more can one ask from a good book?

FOR THOSE WRITING PAPERS IN HISTORY, ANTHROPOLOGY, OR SOCIOLOGY: One might write a comparison of the Chicago fire and the London fire using the author as a resource. How were they different? What types of political factors in both made the situation better or worse for either? What kinds of social factors entered into these situations if any? Why were there so few fatalities during the London fire? How did things change for the working class after the fire? Why? Could either fire have been prevented? Why were these cities particularly vulnerable? Were they more vulnerable than other cities of the time or just unlucky? Could Per Bak (How Nature Works: The Science of Self Organized Criticality) or similar authors on the subject of criticality have predicted these events? What would they say about them? Are cities still as vulnerable to fire today despite our better preventive and fire fighting measures? Under what circumstances might such a fire occur today? Would there be more or fewer fatalities? Are third world countries prone to this type of event even today? Why or why not?

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The Great Fire at Hampton Court (Miscellaneous)
Michael Fishlock
Manufacturer: New Amsterdam Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1871569494

Book Description

On Easter Monday 1986, a spectacular fire severely damaged the Wren wing of Hampton Court Palace. Within hours, experts were sifting through the ruins to salvage Grinling Gibbons's carving and other priceless artifacts. Michael Fishlock has written a dramatic first-hand account of the fire itself and the challenging restoration scheme, recounting the critical decisions made about what to conserve, what to restore, what to build anew; the wonderful discoveries of handprints from the 17th century; the graffitti left by Wren's workmen; the seashells beneath the floors that were the sound insulation.

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The Great Fire of London in 1666
Walter George Bell
Manufacturer: The Folio Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000K04V1E

The Great Fire of London: In That Apocalyptic Year, 1666

Average customer rating:

Too much fiction
A Dramatic Read
Maps
Where's the map?
A Nice Popular History

The Great Fire of London: In That Apocalyptic Year, 1666
Neil Hanson
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0471218227

Book Description

Acclaim for The Great Fire of London

"Popular narrative history at its best, well researched, imaginatively and dramatically written. . . . The author marshals his story and his mass of contemporary quotations with great skill."
-Times Literary Supplement

"The brilliance of its narrative chapters . . . a marvelous eye for evocative detail. Hanson's prose is animated by the ferocious energy of the fire and seems to be guided by its inexorable movement. He creates the literary equivalent of the special effects in a disaster movie. . . . A rich mixture of imagination and research."
-The Daily Telegraph (London)

"He writes with knowledge and verve. As if making a television documentary on a natural disaster, he includes a gripping technical chapter on the mechanism and chemistry of combustion. This works brilliantly. . . . The book gains immeasurably from the author's eye for detail and from his understanding of the beliefs and prejudices of the day. . . . Informative and lively account."
-The Sunday Times (London)

"The best depiction of the Great Fire seen to date. . . . He manages to describe not only the atmosphere of the event itself, but also the experience of living in seventeenth-century Britain."
-Soho Independent

"A riveting book for those who like their history with a bit of mystery."
-The Brisbane News

"A rollicking good yarn."
-The Age (Melbourne)

"Blends high-class original research with a narrative style that mimics fiction. . . . Horrific subjects have served this man well and he has a knack for plugging into the dark themes that run like molten rivers beneath our social veneer."
-New Zealand Herald

"Neil Hanson's descriptions of the inferno are like CNN reports from Kosovo."
-Camden New Journal

"It's not the technical data which makes the book so riveting though. It's the flair with which Hanson invests his account with qualities usually reserved for novels-narrative drive, persuasive character sketches, vivid scene stealing."
-Sunday Star Times (New Zealand)

Customer Reviews:

Too much fiction.......2006-01-17

Too much novelesque fictional fluff obscuring the facts. A whole paragraph devoted to how someone tosses a loaf of bread is too much. I fell asleep after page 4 and couldn't go on. I want to learn about the fire not read a bedtime story about 17th century England. You can tell the author did a lot of research, it's a shame that he fluffed it up so much with his own fictional image of 17th century London life.

A Dramatic Read.......2005-04-16

There's a touch of the novel about this book, but in a good way. The author 'fills in' what certain characters were thinking. This is a good thing; it adds reality to the facts of what happened. The book covers the time from the start of the fire to the ending of it, how the people reacted, and he gives a very nice chapter about fires in general, how a fire of this size behaves. Overall, the book seems very historically accurate and brings to life how miserable an event the Great Fire of London must've been.

I always thought that the Great Fire was the reason there was no longer any Plague in London, but the author gives good reason why this is probably not the case.

I enjoy books about Restoration England and this was not a disappointment.

Maps.......2005-03-16

To answer the query of a reviewer below, there are maps on pages 61, 77 and 109 showing the progress of the fire. The book also has many contemporary illustrations.

This is an exciting book, revealing just how fair and how foul the human character can reveal itself in times of disaster.

Where's the map?.......2004-04-01

The Great Fire of London by Neil Hanson traces the progress of the conflagration street by street, building by building on all its fronts. Unfortunately the publishers did not include any useful maps so the reader could follow the progress. This oversight detracts fatally from Hanson's exciting and dramatic narrative.

Hanson does not give a proper examination of the long term effects of the fire. His examination of short terms effects is cursory. The book ends with a discussion of pyromania.

The Great Fire of London is enjoyable (what a complement to give a disaster), but not completely satisfying.

A Nice Popular History.......2003-03-02

This is a history for the nonhistorian. That is not meant as a criticism. It is meant as a selling point. There are not thousands of footnotes, but do you really read those things?

This book should interest historians, people who travel frequently to London and the general reading public who are just curious. It takes us back into the world where death from plague was a daily threat and parents lost child after child. Death was a daily companion. Age 35 was an old man. People married young because they had to. By 40 they would probably be dead--especially women who dropped like flies in childbirth.

Then, one night in a baker's house in Pudding Lane the house caught fire. At first it did not look like much but eventually it consumed virtually the entire old city of London.

Efforts to fight the fire, led by Charles II and his brother James, Duke of York, were unsuccessful. With the primitive water mains broken, the only way was to dynamite houses.

When it was all over, the medieval city was gone to be replaced by ruins. The plague disappeared helped along no doubt by the immolation of the rats. Rebuilding began immediately. We all know (or should) about Sir Christopher Wren building all those churches.

And punishment for the fire? One deranged man, who had nothing to do with it was executed.

Book Description

This gripping account of London's Great Fire of 1666 is a worthy companion to At the Sign of the Sugared Plum. Only one year after the city suffered such terrible losses during the Plague, London is recovering and Hannah convinces her parents that, with her younger sister Anne's help, she can return to the city and manage the sweetmeats shop on her own. The girls are thrilled to be back in London, and Hannah even finds her old beau, Tom, alive and well and working for a magician. But her newfound happiness is short-lived as fires begin to spring up around the city and quickly move closer to their shop. Finally, Hannah and Anne are forced to abandon their home to save their lives. When the fires have abated, the girls return to find their shop in ruins. They also find Tom, beaten and injured after being chased by a mob that blamed the magician for starting the fire. Despite their losses, Hannah is sure that one day she will rebuild her shop and once again trade under the sign of the sugared plum.

Customer Reviews:

At the sign of the Surgard Plum.......2005-05-17

This was an AMAZING book!!!! I was surprised to hear about all of the things that happend during the plague, but it was fun to read about a girl close to my age that lived during it. You will DEFINETLY enjoy this book!!!

Wonderful sequel to At the Sign of the Sugared Plum........2004-08-30

Teenaged Hannah and her older sister Sarah barely managed to escape London alive during the great plague of 1665. Now a year has passed, and the plague has finally died out. Hannah wants to return to London to reopen their sweets shop, but Sarah wishes to remain at the family home in the countryside. So when Hannah returns to the city, she is accompanied by her younger sister, Anne. However, her life is once again interrupted when fire begins to spread through London. Can Hannah find the strength to survive yet another terrible calamity?

I highly recommend this book to all readers who enjoyed the first book about Hannah, "At the Sign of the Sugared Plum." I also recommend it to new readers who enjoy historical fiction and are interested in this time period. Hannah is a wonderful character, and her struggle for survival is riveting. I hope Mary Hooper writes another book about Hannah's adventures, as I would love to read it.

you won't be able to put this down.......2004-07-21

The sequel to AT THE SIGN OF THE SUGARED PLUM is just as good and carries on the wonderful adventure of Hannah as she grows up to learn different things in different enviroments. Just as thrilling as the first this will keep you guessing what's going to happen. If you want your teenage daughter to read give her this book and the one before. She'll love it and feel the same feelings as Hannah. Seeing as i'm a teenager i know what i'm talking about.

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