Henry VIII's Wives: History in an Hour by Julie Wheeler

Review by The Mole

From BBC drama to "Carry On Henry" to books such as "Wolf Hall", "Bring Up The Bodies", "VIII" and many more - the wives of Henry VIII have been the subject of attention throughout recent times. But what were the facts behind the stories?

Six wives, six lives in an hour doesn't give the opportunity to do any of the people true justice but it does concentrate the information into the most important facts.

Once again I have to admit my knowledge of this subject was lacking - it didn't even stretch to the order they married in! When I read this I came away with a very different impression of both the wives and the man's relationship with them, also his gullibility to be influenced by those around him. Please don't think though that I came away thinking him a sweet innocent - anything but. As I mentioned there is not much time for detail, but as an appetite whetter it is an extremely good read and may well leave you wanting more from much larger tomes.

Another very good book in the History in an Hour series. (See my review of World War One History in an Hour by Rupert Colley)

Publisher - Harper Press
Genre - Non-Fiction, Tudor, History

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World War One History in an Hour by Rupert Colley

Review by The Mole

We normally start a review with a synopsis but I think most people are aware of this event in history and it's outcome, but how much do we know about how it started and who the main participants were? I set out reading this with an admission that my knowledge of these events was pretty poor so wanted to see how much I could find out 'in an hour'.

I am a slow reader so it did take me more than an hour but not a great deal more. But how much is actually covered? There is very little time for waffle in this account so be prepared for facts to come at you like the proverbial machine gun fire. The narration is well structured to keep all events moving along chronologically - something that is not easy when war was raging on so many fronts at the same time - and you arrive at the end dizzying over the amount that has been presented to you in such a short time. Perhaps I should have read it as several smaller sessions, but my memory is poor and I will have to go back and reread to try to absorb more of it.

"Thoroughly enjoyable" somehow doesn't do it credit. Extremely well done and extremely informative.

Publisher - Harper Press
Genre - Non-Fiction, War, History

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