A History of Britain : At the Edge of the World, 3500 B.C.-1603 A.D

Average customer rating:

Great--but don't buy hardcover version

Excellent read

Good for sippin'

Schama abbreviated

Great Overview!!

A History of Britain : At the Edge of the World, 3500 B.C.-1603 A.D
Simon Schama
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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A HISTORY OF BRITAIN: 300 B.C.-A.D.1600

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ASIN: 0786866756
Release Date: 2000-10-25

Amazon.com

What do you get when you combine the resources and ethos of the BBC with the literary panache of one of the world's best narrative historians? The answer is Simon Schama's A History of Britain, the first volume of which accompanies the BBC-History Channel series of the same name. In a beautifully written and thoughtfully crafted book, studded with striking portraits, pictures, and maps, Schama, the bestselling author of books on European cultural history such as The Embarrassment of Riches and Citizens, as well as 1999's Rembrandt's Eyes, has managed to be both conventional and provocative.

He tells the official version of Britain's island story--from Roman Britain, through the Norman conquest, the struggles of the Henrys and Richards with their barons and clerics, Edward I and the subjugation of Wales, King Death (the plague), and on to the Henrician reformation, before closing with the remarkable reign of the virgin queen, Elizabeth I. But, while sticking to a script familiar to anyone who sat up and listened in history lessons at school, Schama brings it all alive, with memorable prose--Simon de Montfort's rebel parliament is described as inaugurating the "union between patriotism and insubordination"; with Henry VIII, Schama says, "you could practically smell the testosterone." And with fine sensitivity, too, particularly on the symbolism of buildings, memorials, language, and ceremonies, and on the complex relations between England and her Celtic and Catholic neighbors. If history must have gloss, then let it be written and presented like this. --Miles Taylor, Amazon.co.uk

Book Description

Simon Schama's magesterial new book encompasses over 1,500 years of Britain's history, from the first Roman invasions to the early seventeenth century, and the extraordinary reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Schama, the author of the highly acclaimed Citizens and The Embarrassment of Riches, is one of the most popular and celebrated historians of our day, and in this magnificent work he brings history to dramatic life with a wealth of stories and vivid, colorful detail, reanimating familiar figures and events and drawing them skillfully into a powerful and compelling narrative. Schama's perspective moves from the birth of civilization to the Norman Conquest; through the religious wars and turbulance of the Middle Ages to the sovereignties of Henry II, Richard I and King John; through the outbreak of the Black Death, which destroyed nearly half of Europe's population, through the reign of Edward I and the growth of national identity in Wales and Scotland, to the intricate conflicts of the Tudors and the clash between Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots. Driven by the drama of the stories themselves but exploring at the same time a network of interconnected themes--the formation of a nation state, the cyclical nature of power, the struggles between the oppressors and the oppressed--this is a superbly readable and illuminating account of a great nation, and its extraordinary history.

Customer Reviews:

Great--but don't buy hardcover version.......2006-10-03

This is a wonderfully readible history of Great Britain and I enjoyed this volume tremendously--until I finished page 352. The version I have then jumped back to page 321 and repreated pages 321 through 352. Then it jumps to page 385. So I'm missing pages 353-384.

If you can, don't by the hardcopy version of this volume.

Excellent read.......2006-01-31

This is volumn 1 of a 3 volumn series. It is well written well researched and enables the reader to enjoy history. The events and characters come alive in this series and you fell history as it is being made. A series well worth reding.

Good for sippin'.......2006-01-24

Leslie Klinger, author of "The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes," describes Simon Schama's "A History of Britain" as "magisterial," and that indeed is how I felt about the televised version (produced in the U.K. by the BBC and aired here in the U.S. on the History Channel). But for some reason I find myself somewhat disenchanted by its printed form. That it is beautifully written is almost indisputable. It should appeal to anyone with a broad vocabulary or to those who like to read with their dictionary close at hand. But at the same time, some might perceive Schama's style as simply a case of "showing off." Balancing $20 words with $.99 specials to create an understandable and aesthetically pleasing result is a delicate art, and there are times when the narrative seems a bit too adorned.

In his preface, Schama describes his three-volume work as an attempt to breathe new life into some dusty historical characters - and for a typical Yank like me, to whom British history is more remote than my country's own, they are indeed dusty. But, while entertaining, his conversational, direct, and almost anecdotal (and even, at times, flippant) style may also alienate his audience. There is a bibliography and index, but there are no footnotes either to his text or even to his quotations, which often sound suspiciously modern or paraphrastic. Certainly, this has to be tolerated to a point - because most people (including me) wouldn't be able to read Anglo-Saxon, nor would they want to stumble over Middle English. You always lose something in translation, though, and that just makes the absence of references more bothersome.

"A History of Britain" can certainly be enjoyed as a "palpable," or "audible," or "tangible" story, but, in my opinion, it is writing of a non-academic nature, and that usually raises doubts about dreadfully scholarly things like "authority" and "accuracy." At least, it does for me. In my opinion, a "good" history is an impartial presenation of facts, and while Schama is careful to avoid an overt taking of sides, his preference for the unfolding "drama" of Britain's history necessarily forces him into some fairly acrobatic prose when it comes to topics like the English Civil War(s). He is, for instance, particularly hard on Charles the First, claiming that the man rarely thought at all and when he did, it was only about himself (Vol. II, p. 116).

Regardless of how you might feel about Charles I (or the Stuarts in general), this hyperbolic description of the man is purely editorial. A few pages later he gives the antagonists in Parliament the same treatment. What makes this and similar disclosures difficult to read and accept as authoritative is not so much the "rightness" or "wrongness" of the assertions as it is that, in playing up the drama, Schama doesn't offer the reader much chance to clean his palate with any kind of reasonable inference: such as, in this case, that the system of government was, at that time, comprehensively flawed, and THAT is what led to the conflict. Whether the king had a brain or not. But that kind of reasoning is eschewed in favor of plot twists - more intrigue and decapitation.

There are omissions in his presentation - and, granted, there must be some in a work that spans two millenia (more, if you accept Volume One's starting date of 3500 B.C., but to me that seems to go a bit beyond the pale, and, needless to say, Schama doesn't spend much time on pre-Roman Britain) - but some ommissions are, in my opinion, conspicuous. There is, for example, no mention at all of "The Canterbury Tales," and only a passing remark concerning Geoffrey Chaucer (but, oddly, not as an author). Of course, Schama's work is a review of history, not of literature, but I would have thought "Canterbury Tales" historically significant and influential enough to merit at least a mention. Likewise, Shakespeare is curiously presented. Little is said about the Bard, other than suggesting that "The Tragedy of King Richard the Second" was a rather clever bit of "Lancastrian-Tudor propaganda, neatly disposing of the embarrassment of a deposition by claiming that Richard resigned the throne rather than having it snatched from his desperate grip." (Vol. I, p. 264). I'm quoting him somewhat out of context, since there is some truth to this statement (and at any rate I don't really believe he meant it to be controversial), but I do think it aptly illustrates the sort of odd details Schama considered worthy enough to mention in a comprehensive history - instead of things like Shakespeare's influence on Elizabethan England or on British history.

More seriously, particularly where Roman and Medieval Britain is concerned, Schama tends to be far more precise about who did what, why they did it, and what they said about it afterwards than is, I think, reasonable. The fact is that, although research and archaeology continue to reveal and tantalize, distant times in the British Isles are still more unknown than known, and about them there is, to say the least, some scholarly debate. Much of the written evidence exists in fragmentary accounts that rarely corroborate and often contradict each other. Bede is probably the best known, and certainly one of the most significant, but even so he is not generally regarded as 100% reliable. Schama relies on Bede, and does so almost without caveat. Geoffrey of Monmouth isn't wholly to be trusted, either, but Schama goes a little far in making him out to be the author of "outrageous fantasy," (Vol. I, p. 116) - like some sort of twelfth-century pulp novelist. Most ironically, the legend of King Arthur is given only incidental mention. That is selling the story a little short, I believe. No, there is no need for a protracted discussion of the "real" Arthur, but I think it was a mistake not to mention his symbolic value and the degree to which he represents a society's contemporary view of itself.

But all of these are academic quibbles. Although he prefers a dramatic approach to a more rigid scholarly one, lest the matter-of-fact make for dry reading, Schama's history is not a "bad" history. It may be a kind of "cliffhanger," but its performance-like presentation does make for entertaining reading. If British history as written by the likes of Macauley must be considered heavy fare - something like, say, a porterhouse steak or a Henry-the-Eighth-sized turkey leg - then I think Schama's version has to be taken as a "weak" white wine - that is, good for sippin', but probably not a regular choice for the connoisseur. A good introduction to the treasure that is Britain's history and one that entices the reader to learn more.

On that note, then, my unsolicited advice is to buy the DVD set first. It goes into less detail (obviously), but Schama narrates it very well and what you don't get in the books - nuances of inflection or body language - makes the DVDs more palatable - thus a better place to start.

Schama abbreviated.......2006-01-17

This is a popular political history which was written for a televised documentary, and it shows. I think that the medium forced Schama to keep to a more rigid outline than the "master of digression" would use had he been writing for book format only. But then, a text-only presentation would likely be in excess of 1500 pages (think of the time frame!), all delightful, no doubt, but not as well organized as the 416 pages of this title.

This is not really a social or intellectual history, it's primary focus is the political realm and how the nations of Britain are one. But elements of all types of history are present. I really felt that Schama wanted to develop some very relevant ideas that he was only barely able to touch on, but the medium is prohibitive.

I should probably have given it five stars because it's quite an undertaking even for an author as accomplished as Simon Schama, but although television prompted its existence, television also closely defined its scope. Rembrandt's Eyes is classic, 5-star Schama. A History of Britain is classicc, 5-star BBC.

Oh, btw, it "reads like a novel" and the photography is incredible.

Great Overview!!.......2005-06-03

This is an entertaining general overview of English history, as only the English can tell it. If you are looking for an indepth dry bit of scholarly work - then maybe this isn't for you. But then again, you just might find yourself learning something afterall. Simon Schama's gift is his ability to sort through all the details and pull out the humanity we can connect with. Be aware - if you've seen the BBC or A&E series - you will read it with Mr. Schama's wit & accent in your mind.

Edge of Empire: Lives, Culture, and Conquest in the East, 1750-1850

Average customer rating:

An innovative history
Confused

Edge of Empire: Lives, Culture, and Conquest in the East, 1750-1850
Maya Jasanoff
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1400041678
Release Date: 2005-08-23

Book Description

A Palladian mansion filled with Western art in the center of old Calcutta, the Mughal emperor’s letters in an archive in the French Alps, the names of Italian adventurers scratched into the walls of Egyptian temples. In this imaginative book, Maya Jasanoff delves into the stories behind vestiges such as these to uncover the lives of people, collectors in India and Egypt, who lived on the frontiers of the British Empire during a pivotal century of its formation. From household names like Clive of India and Napoleon Bonaparte to little-known figures such as the circus strongman Giambattista Belzoni or the Swiss mercenary Antoine Polier, Edge of Empire traces the exploits of collectors to tell an intimate history of imperialism. Jasanoff delves beneath the grand narratives of power, exploitation, and resistance to look at the British Empire through the eyes of the people caught up in it. What does empire look like from the inside out?

Written and researched on four continents, Edge of Empire makes an original and significant contribution to international history. Jasanoff offers a fresh account of European imperialism that challenges received wisdom about how imperial power was asserted in Asia and the Middle East. She shows us that Britain’s expansion involved more than the mere imposition of an “imperial project” over foreign subjects, and that the stereotypical “white man’s burden” ideology emerged only after long years of cross-cultural encounters. Edge of Empire enters a world where people lived, loved, mingled, and identified with one another in ways richer and more complex than previous accounts have led us to believe were possible. And as this book demonstrates, traces of that world remain tangible–and topical–today.

An innovative, persuasive, and provocative work of history.

Customer Reviews:

An innovative history.......2007-10-12

If there was ever a `clash of civilisations' it was arguably during the age of colonies where cultures, values, religions and industries convulsed together. The interactions were mostly fractious but occasionally there were some constructive paths that got paved along the way. Compulsive wealth seeking on the part of the colonialists made interactions with the `other' compulsory at one level. No matter how much they may have tried to wall themselves within the sanctuary of clubs and salons, contact with the colonised was inevitable.

In some cases, the contact was alluring and left its mark in strange ways that revealed how human beings have a remarkable propensity for connections -- often through the collection of objects. The resplendent museums that we savour in many Western capitals today are a result of this urge, which in some cases was outright theft, but in others was a more nuanced acquisitive process. Maya Jasanoff has provided a humanising history of this time that addresses the process of mutual change during colonisation through the eyes of these collectors.

Spanning the period of British colonisation of the Indian subcontinent and Egypt from 1750 -1850, Jasanoff has uncovered a fascinating world where British aristocrats try to take on Eastern traditions and cultures. The mere act of collecting art may seem like a self-centred proposition to many but it shows how an ability `cross borders' in multiple ways. As the daughter of an Indian mother and an American father (both of whom are now professors at Harvard), Jasanoff has a somewhat personal connection to this narrative.

Collectors tried to understand the stories behind the objects that they collected. Focusing on the seductive city of Lucknow, Jasanoff shows how Muslim and Hindu traditions were embraced with equal fervour under the banner of cultural curiosity. Each side tried to co-opt the other in subtle ways, leading to a more nuanced portrayal of East-meets-West than earlier works such as Edward Said's Orientalism have done.

South Asia in particular is a region that has been at the fulcrum of world trade and colonisation for millennia. Aryans who brought Hinduism colonised the Dravidians. Waves of Muslim dynasties in turn colonised the region as well and forged their own alliances and avenues for cultural exchange. This book provides an erudite review of these issues though with some rather academic prose.

Confused.......2006-04-17

This book has interesting episodes- Lucknow, Seringpatam , Egypt and the role of France versus the British,-but lacks a logic or argument which would justify the book. It touches on europeans collecting local objects and local rulers buying foreign technology and advice to defend themselves However as it starts in North America, there should be discussion of why artefacts of North American Indians were not collected. On the other hand there could be some reference to the tradition of collecting of antiquities ( see Jonathon Scott Pleasures of Antiquity or the catalogue of the exhibition at the Gulbenkian Foundation Exotica )The role of France in opposing the British in India should have been argued through : intriguing in the Mutiny but allies in the Crimean War ?
In general the prose is over adjectived, why is the Dictionary of national Biography " compendious ", when is is actuaully comprehensive ?
And the illustrations are a disgrace, too small and dark, the wonderful Col.Mordaunt's Cockfight reproduces as a black postage stamp

Clinging to the Edge: Journals from an Orkney Island

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Clinging to the Edge: Journals from an Orkney Island
An entrancing account of island life

Clinging to the Edge: Journals from an Orkney Island
Jim Hewitson
Manufacturer: Trafalgar Square Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1851588213

Customer Reviews:

Clinging to the Edge: Journals from an Orkney Island.......1999-12-28

Jim Hewitson's book provides an interesting glimpse into life on the tiny and remote Orkney island of Papa Westray. Although physically small, Papa Westray's diminutive size, four miles by one mile, belies its long and rich history. Papa Westray is home to several imporant archealogical sites (the Knap of Howar, a 5,500 yerar old farm house and St. Boniface Church to name a few) and currently home to 67 intrepid souls. Hewitson does a brilliant job of weaving together the past and the present to create an entrancing view of Papa Westray. After reading this book, I felt compelled to visit to Papa Westray and found Hewitson's book an ideal primer. Anyone interested in the Orkney's should read this book.

An entrancing account of island life.......1998-12-28

Jim Hewitson has written an entrancing book about life on the tiny but beautiful and historic Orkney island of Papa Westray. Each chapter is a story in itself, bringing the island's delightful characters to life. A professional journalist, Jim has an experienced eye and a great skill with words. He lives on the island and understands the key issues in Papa Westray's struggle to survive in the modern world. An excellent book for anyone interested in Orkney or small island life.

St. Kilda: Island on the Edge of the World (Canongate Classic)

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A fascinating account of life on St Kilda
Account of a Scottish island before its complete evacuation

St. Kilda: Island on the Edge of the World (Canongate Classic)
Charles MacLean
Manufacturer: Canongate Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Life and Death of St Kilda (Fontana Original)

ASIN: 0862413885

Customer Reviews:

A fascinating account of life on St Kilda.......2000-05-13

I have read Charles Mclean's book on St Kilda many times. On one level it is a fascinating account of the inhabited history of St Kilda, a group of islands off the north western coast of Scotland whose population survived until 1930 largely independently of the mainland. On another, it is an insightful analysis of the both the durability and long-term unviability of remote communities. Mclean writes with genuine affection for St Kilda and, one detects, admiration for the physical and physchological endurance of the St Kildans. Yet he avoids overly-romanticising what was often a harsh and ultimately impossible way of life, albeit one that had survived for hundreds of years. The story of St Kilda is genuinely tragic and Mclean delicately captures the collective melancholy of a people who know that they have been overtaken by the pace and demands of modern society. His final reflections on the nature of primitive social organisation remain relevant today as society (often in the form of major oil companies) come to terms with the few remaining truly remote communities left in the world. This is a wonderful book by a gifted and learned writer. I recommend it.

Account of a Scottish island before its complete evacuation.......1999-10-05

A fascinating history of a tiny island 110 miles off the coast of mainland Scotland that was evacuated in 1930 and remains a sanctuary to sea birds and a site for archaeological study. MacLean's account is extremely well-written, detailing the simple lifestyle of the people that was made unfeasible over the years by the outside world, the damage being done by everything from disease to which the islanders were not immune, overly zealous missionaries, and an undermining of the islanders' self-reliance. The last chapter, in which the author gives his opinions on utopian society as a concept is a bit dated (pub. date 1972) but overall the book is terrific.

Angels on the Edge of the World: Geography, Literature, And English Community, 1000-1534

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Angels on the Edge of the World: Geography, Literature, And English Community, 1000-1534
Kathy Lavezzo
Manufacturer: Cornell University press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0801473098

Book Description

"The various and contradictory signs of English otherworldliness offered medieval writers a remarkably elastic medium with which to construct national identity. . . . Above all, the wonderful aspects of geographic otherness made it possible for English writers to see their homeland as not only barbarously divided but also blessed and united. Even as they acknowledged England as a barbarous wasteland . . . or as a site of brutal disorder . . . , the English also imagined England as a holy wilderness or as a blessed isle."—from the Introduction

In a view that sweeps from the tenth century to the mid-sixteenth century, Kathy Lavezzo shows how the English people's concern with their island's relative isolation on the global map contributed to the emergence of a distinctive English national consciousness in which marginality came to be seen as a virtue. Lavezzo examines the many world maps and textual geographies produced by the English during these years. In a beautifully illustrated book, she argues that the English looked to the globe only to emphasize and, in time, to exalt their own exceptional geographic status.

Book Description

The social and political history of Qu'ayti and Kathiri sultanates of Hadhramawt during their gradual incorporation into the British Empire.

Customer Reviews:

Comprehensive and valuable.......2003-09-25

As a Hadhrami who has lived abroad for most of his life, I found "On the Edge of Empire" intriguing reading. I was overwhelmed by the amount of information presented in this historical documentation of Hadhramout. It is rarely, if not the only time, I have come across a resource that is inclusive of all the various venues of the Hadhrami society, as well as the diversity of its people.
The author apparently spent extended periods of time among Hadhramis. This was reflected in the details she presented of their social composition. She even managed to grasp the dialect and provide the reader with an accurate translation of famous and unique idioms of the period.
What impressed me the most about the book is that it established a lot of the historical events that lead to the recent social developments and political changes of Hadhramout.
I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in knowing more about this part of Southern Arabia.

England on Edge: Crisis and Revolution 1640-1642

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England on Edge: Crisis and Revolution 1640-1642
David Cressy
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0199280908

Book Description

England on Edge deals with the collapse of the government of Charles I, the disintegration of the Church of England, and the accompanying cultural panic that led to civil war. Focused on the years 1640 to 1642, it examines stresses and fractures in social, political, and religious culture, and the emergence of an unrestrained popular press. Hundreds of people not normally seen in historical surveys make appearances here, in a drama much larger than the struggle of king and parliament. Historians commonly assert that royalists and parliamentarians parted company over issues of principle, constitutional scruples, and religious belief, but a more complex picture emerges from the environment of anxiety, mistrust, and fear. Rather than seeing England's revolutionary transformation as a product of the civil war, as has been common among historians, David Cressy finds the world turned upside down in the two years preceding the outbreak of hostilities. The humbling of Charles I, the erosion of the royal prerogative, and the rise of an executive parliament were central features of the revolutionary drama of 1640-1642. The collapse of the Laudian ascendancy, the splintering of the established church, the rise of radical sectarianism, and the emergence of an Anglican resistance all took place in these two years before the beginnings of bloodshed. The world of public discourse became rapidly energized and expanded, in counterpoint with an exuberantly unfettered press and a deeply traumatized state. These linked processes, and the disruptive contradictions within them, made this a time of shaking and of prayer. England's elite encountered multiple transgressions, some more imagined than real, involving lay encroachments on the domain of the clergy, lowly intrusions into matters of state, the city clashing with the court, the street with institutions of government, and women undermining the territories of men. The simultaneity, concatenation, and cumulative, compounding effect of these disturbances added to their ferocious intensity, and helped to bring down England's ancien regime. This was the revolution before the Revolution, the revolution that led to civil war.

Danziger's Britain: A Journey to the Edge

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Stunning & Depressing

Danziger's Britain: A Journey to the Edge
Nick Danziger
Manufacturer: Trafalgar Square Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0006382495

Book Description

In the spirit of George Orwell's Down and Out in Paris and London, Nick Danziger has written a harrowing account of the marginalized, the homeless, and the unemployed of Great Britain. Featuring 48 photographs. In 1994, for the better part of a year, Nick Danziger lived among the homeless and unemployed in the ruined factory towns and ``no-go'' areas of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. There, he won the trust, shared the lives, and listened to the stories of hundreds of society's outsiders. In words and photographs, he records the lives of Britain's forgotten people as he pays tribute to their resilience in the face of overwhelming odds. Nick Danziger is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and a highly published photographer; he is the author of Danziger's Travels and Danziger's Adventures: From Miami to Kabul. 368 pp 5 x 8 48 b/w photos

Customer Reviews:

Stunning & Depressing.......2000-06-13

Wow. What a depressing book. In it, Danziger (Danziger's Adventures) recounts his attempt to discover, interview, and photograph "the huge ranks of the excluded and marginalized people of Great Britain." Danziger covers the gamut, from inner city, to tiny village, from recent immigrants, to the purest English, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, everywhere. I don't think I can sum up the result any better than the print reviews: "A chilling indictment of what we've let happen in the past two decades.... This book is so important that every one of us should read it and weep." --The Independent, "Grips and appalls the mind....The sheer extent of civil catastrophe and human waste here threatens to beggar belief." --Sunday Times. None of what he describes (children drug addicts, single mothers, welfare catch-22s, no future) would be considered particularly newsworthy in the US, on its own, but it does shatter the common perception Americans tend to hold of Great Britain. A polar opposite to Bill Brysons's fairly affectionate British travelogue, "Notes From a Small Island."

Average customer rating:

An Amazing Twist of Historical Events and Fiction
Adventure, excitement and a great historical fiction!
Great fun
* A Brave Soul Named Flaed! *
Amazing Book!!!!!

The Edge on the Sword
Rebecca Tingle
Manufacturer: Putnam Juvenile
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0399235809

Book Description

"You will be important to many people," her mother tells fifteen-year-old AEthelflaed. This is obvious enough. She is King Alfred's eldest daughter, after all. But her royal blood makes her a target as well, vulnerable to those who would wish to hurt the king.

Suddenly betrothed to the king's ally, AEthelflaed finds herself constrained by the presence of Red, a gruff new bodyguard assigned to protect her and deliver her to her new home. At first, she tests the limits of Red's control, but soon she learns that Red has much more than protection to offer her. He begins teaching her how to battle like a man. And when enemies threaten the borderlands, Flaed turns first to her guardian, and at last to her own inner resources and battle skills to save her life and protect the lives of her men.

Medieval history says little of AEthelflaed, an actual noblewoman who seized power in central England a thousand years ago. Tingle recreates her early life in an elegantly-told medieval tale of courage, conviction and honor. AEthelflaed became the greatest heroine in Old English medieval history. This is the thrilling story of what turned a girl into a leader (historical note included).

Customer Reviews:

An Amazing Twist of Historical Events and Fiction.......2007-05-15

"Surprise, stealth, unbalancing her enemy, these were the ways her guardian had taught her to save herself, and to win," are the words that are featured on the back of the book, The Edge on the Sword, because the things her guardian taught her is a crucial point. Making history come alive, Rebecca Tingle mixed magnificent facts and fiction together to make an unforgettable story, where any girl can escape. In 2001, it was published by Penguin Putnam Books. Beautifully, remarkably, and magnificently done, the front cover illustration of The Edge on the Sword was drawn by Karen Savary, a memorable artist.

At the end of the ninth century, Flæd was now on her fifteenth year of living. Living in the burgh, staying with family, and learning her languages were all she knew, since she had done that for all her life. Her father was King Alfred of Wessex. He had a passive kingdom. As Flæd grew up, her main companion was her brother, Edward. They enjoyed their ambitious adventures among the forests around the burgh. Eventually, these trips got slim because Flæd began her education in writing, Latin, and Greek under her instructor, (w) Bishop Asser. Little did she know that soon her life would dramatically alter.

As instructed, Flæd headed toward her father's private chamber. Inside the small room she entered, sat King Alfred, who had been waiting. He gestured for her to sit. Alfred looked at her for a second then said gently, "Æthelflæd, as women grow they obtain more responsibilities. Now, that you are almost sixteen, it is time for you to be married. At the end of the summer you will travel to Lundon, Mercia, to be married to my friend and partner, Æthelred." Being the daughter of a very powerful man, Flæd had known this was coming, but it still shocked her. Soon, she would leave everything. She would lose her family. Permanently, she would leave home. Immediately the next morning, a warrior and envoy from Lundon came to be her guardian and warder. His name was Red. Flæd had always had a strong, enduring friendship with her brother, but as that last summer came and went, that friendship was almost lost, but that friendship lasted. No longer could they go on their private adventures in the woods, because of Red, Flæd guardian, who followed her everywhere.

At the end of the summer, Flæd equipped herself, packed up, and prepared her gifts for Æthelred in preparation for her departure to Mercia, because it would be several days before they would arrive in Lundon. As her protection, she had been trained in the arts of the sword and had a minute band of warriors with her. Leading them, Red rode at the front, followed by two wagons and a small amount men on horse back. They followed the river. Surprisingly, they were attacked and many of the men fell in battle, leaving Flæd with a few desperate men and little hope. Could they arrive safely after this tragedy?

This book has a fantastic twist of history and adventure, as if the excitement is literally bounding off the pages. As a great source of entertainment and much more, every pre-teen and early teen girl should read this book. Over all, The Edge on the Sword is an astounding masterpiece, because of the unforgettable story and amazing use of words, which is a charismatic combination.

Adventure, excitement and a great historical fiction!.......2007-04-10

This is definetly one of my favorite books! I've read it countless times and I also love the sequel 'Far Traveler'. The characters are all lovable and the plot is excellent. Another great thing about this book is it is partially a historical fiction novel. The author Rebecca Tingle wrote this book wrote this looking at historical notes. AEthelflaed was a real person and did many great things. Enough great things to be known as Lady of the Mercians.

Flaed is a girl that's only lived fifteen winters but her father King Alfred is making her marry a man named Ethelred of Mercia...a man that she's never met... He's also many years older than her. But Flaed must agree and her father tells her that she cannot be left alone any longer. She must have a bodyguard...a man named Red.

While Flaed and Red are together Red teachers her many things on how to defend herself. She learns how to ride faster and better (which will let her show off to her future husband soon), she uses the sword and many other things. But little does Flaed know that when she leaves for her new home trouble will follow.

Great fun.......2007-03-05

First of all this is a teen book and I'm 28. That being said, I loved the book. For advanced readers it's a fast read, but thouroughly enjoyable. I could picture the places the author was describing and picture Æthelflæd easily. With so few historical fiction novels being directed toward great women, this was a welcome read, and the author stayed true to the history of the time.

* A Brave Soul Named Flaed! *.......2006-11-22

A teenager named Aethelflaed, is the daughter of the king. That means he picks the husband for her! Her dad picks a man that's about his age (which is about in his fourties!), which she's never met. She sadly can't refuse her dad on this, and is now tortured by the thought of what he looks likeand who he is.

Her dad hire's a protecter for her, since there is a big deal of raiding in the area. Aethelfaed is annoyed by the man who watches her because he follows her everywhere(she is very independant!) She eventually befriends the man, and he teaches her to defend herself, and she teaches him a few tricks as well.

There is a lot of stuff that occurs that I don't want to give away, so you'll have to read it! I'll warn you that there is a sad part, but a happy one fills it in! This book has a slow begining, but gets you hooked!

This was a awesome book, and if you read it you'll enjoy it as much as I did, and I enjoyed it a lot!

Amazing Book!!!!!.......2006-10-19

I absolutly loved this book. I think Aethelflaed is an amazing heroine. It was sad in some parts, happy in others, with a great plot. Aethelflaed seems so real, and sort of like me. I hope other people can relate to this book as well as I can.

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Around Gilwern (Images of Wales)
David Edge
Manufacturer: Tempus Publishing, Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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