BBC History Magazine

[Susanne Frank]

Since we don't review historical fiction in the magazine, we didn't mention Hilary Mantel's fantastic book about Thomas Cromwell's rise to power. I hope she wins the Booker prize for this! It's a huge book but really draws you in with the immediacy of the language. It's written in the present tense and with colourful, strong language - never a Tudor pastiche but always giving you a real sense of what people would have said. From having read the Shardlake crime novels by CJ Sansom, I had seen Cromwell as a nasty charcter. In Wolf Hall he is a complex human being, with his own history of a tough childhood, and for example grieving for his wife and children who were swept away by the sweating sickness, and just trying to stay alive in Henry's reign. Bring on the sequel! (She's working on it at the moment)

[Reginald Dalton]

Whilst on the subject (somewhat..), why don't you review historical fiction? I think a great historical fiction novel is a a really great tool to bring alive history, and to get the speculation going regarding what life was really like "back in those days".. Nevermind the lengthy discussion that could be enjoyed regarding the historical accuracy, etc...

My personal favourite is probably Bernard Cornwell's The Winter King, first book in the The Warlord Chronicles series

Reg.

[Susanne Frank]

The discussion whether to review historical fiction is ongoing... A magazine is a fluent, ever changing thing so the Books section might change too over time. At the moment, the editorial team feel there are so many non-fiction books out there every month which we should review, that we simply run out of space. I'll keep championing the fiction cause though.

And just to say, i'm so chuffed that Hilary Mantel won the Booker!

[iandevlin]

Congrats to her indeed, I shall be looking out for that book, although I have far too many to read at the moment!

I too, think that historical novels are great and can ignite a history interest in people. I've always been a fan of the books of Patrick O'Brian and Bernard Cornwell, to name two.

[Hilary Yewdale]

Have recently received this book as a present and am really looking forward to reading it.

[Hilary Yewdale]

I have just finished reading this wonderful book which I would highly recommend to other BBC History readers. The book suggests a different, more sympathetic side to Cromwell, but it's attraction for me was the way it developed this world of characters that I could dip into. I found myself thinking about them when I was away from the book. Although I knew the "facts" of the story I was surprisingly gripped by what would happen next! Mantel's title gave the book some dramatic irony because it subtly indicated the future influence of the Seymour family - and what would happen after the book's closing pages.
It is a long book and needs careful reading because of the use of "he" to refer to a number of people without clearly signposting who the " he" is! Mantel's unusual style enhanced the book for me but some readers may find the need to re-read sections a little annoying.

[Goat Peter]

I know it may be scoffed at by some, but the novel A Dead Man in Deptford by Anthony Burgess, gives, I imagine, a fair idea of the danger and squalor of Elizabethan London as well as an insight into the world of theatre during this time. The text itself is an exercise in Elizabethan language (though no doubt highly stylized).
Burgess' other novel, Nothing Like the Sun, offers a similar grimy insight into the Elizabethan world - though I quite appreciate these books may be hard to swallow for staunch historians!

[Snuky_255]

While I was at school I had no interest in history or reading anything, in fact I became interested in learning many years after leaving school. I started to read books particularly anything history related. It has only been recently that I have started to read fiction books (most being Patrick O'Brian and Cronwell). I now belive that had I been handed on of these books while I was at school I would have wanted to learn, although would some people read the books and take them for fact? Just a thought.