All the Countries We've Ever Invaded (and the few we've never got round to) by Stuart Laycock #bookreview

Book review: This book could have been called, "A short history of British invasion", but not in chronological order, not in geographical order, but alphabetically by country, including the countries we didn't invade. This approach means that there are repeated parts (where wars have crossed boundaries) and that no sooner are you getting into the flow of something than you're moved onto something else. The intro does make this clear, though. "This [book] isn't supposed to be an account of our invasions, rather it's intended to whet the readers' appetites to go in search of more information." This is also repeated throughout the book so the author recognises this failing. Perhaps a "suggested further reading" section should have been added to aid this?

Also, the book could have been made better with maps for each country alongside their text detailing the main places discussed, as not everyone's world knowledge is extensive. But there are world maps at the back at least, although not all countries are labeled on here, and some that are labeled are labeled wrongly, e.g. Malta is not Sicily, Zaire is the old name of DR Congo. These maps also would work better if they were interactive but this is a book.

The book does make you realise that the history Great Britain has is not normal and is perhaps something that we take for granted. "We've invaded, had some control over or fought conflicts in the territory of something like 171 out of 193 UN members... Sometimes, because we're used to it, we forget quite how unique out story is."

It has humour in it to help make the facts more digestible, which I appreciated, e.g. the Great Game - "They called it a game, but it was the kind of game where people ended up dead in large numbers rather than just, for instance, being given a stern word by the referee or getting sent off." But some of the humour is repeated with lots of references to amusing ship names used and how wars end up with multiple names.

Still, I am a bit of a history novice so perhaps I need more detailed books than this to get into the subject compared to others, and I read this cover-to-cover when it is probably best dipped into or done by areas (e.g. Africa), and indeed it does lend itself pretty well to that approach with its format. But overall it is ok for what it is doing and has given me an intro to the history of Britain's marauding past.

Available to buy on AMAZON UK here

All Played Out by Pete Davies

Book review: “All Played Out” is the tale of Italia ’90, with a focus on England’s time there. It is interesting reading it now as in many ways despite not being that long ago it seems a different era. This was a time when the Premier League hadn’t begun, when Lineker had scored only thirty-odd goals for England, and when it was still just 2-points for a win. Also “these were the horror days of a nation all played out, a nation of riot and yobbery, a nation whose football was oafish and whose fans were louts.” Hooligans are far less an issue these days of course.

Along the way as the author follows England there is a lot of talk of the “fans” and the thuggish behaviour of a minority, always written about in the English press in an over-exaggerated manner, and the thuggish behaviour of the Italians too, plus their baton-wielding police. There is also a lot of talk about the English press, “the worst disciplined press in Western Europe”, because the author of the book was a fully signed-up member of the press pack with all the privileged access that brings, this access allowing him to conduct several interviews in the book with members of England’s playing squad, as well as the manager.

Some of these interviews are interesting retrospectively now, like how Lineker would “like to go into television”, and how Waddle thought Gazza with his personality could be a danger to himself when he was older. Also retrospectively it looks odd why Bobby Robson got so many negative headlines as England manager with his impressive record of a world cup quarter-final followed by a semi-final, but when the author maligns the press behaviour through much of the book you can probably begin to see why that happened.

The book also delves into football more technically than other offerings, with lots in particular on systems with 4-4-2 being said to be “all played out”. The author also covers all the wider football stuff going on at the World Cup in “Planet Football” with England players performing commercial activities such as casually modelling clothes or delivering Malaysian sound-bites, and some remarks on the official cheese of Italia ’90 with a multitude of tall, beautiful cheesewomen being present at various press events, never failing to impress the author, although the cheese less so as he never talks about tasting it.

The book covers more than just football though. For example it starts before the World Cup with a journey to Sardinia and Cagliari, England’s World Cup base for their group games, and delves into the history and culture of the place. Some of this works better than other bits, for example all the administration bits about waiting for fax machines to work etc. as he tries to obtain press tickets and the like could have been left out.

There is also a good writing style present too. On the unpredictable Gazza getting fouled: “Will he clout the guy? Or will he get up and shake his hand, pat his face and ruffle his hair, then embrace the referee?” And on the stadiums: “where the ordinary folk go to watch the men who’ve got gold in their shoes.”

Overall then an enjoyable read, and if you want to play a game whilst reading then see if you predict when the author is just about to use his favourite phrases “all played out” and “Planet Football”.

Published: 29 Oct 1990

Available on AMAZON

The Book of the Bothy by Pheobe Smith

Book review: "The Book of the Bothy"" is, surprise, surprise, about bothies. But what are bothies. Well a bothy is "a  mountain hut that's completely free to use as an overnight stop", thanks to the organisation called the MBA, the Mountain Bothies Association, and they are in remote locations far from roads, so this is a book for walkers and hikers of Britain, and those who love the countryside.

Firstly upon getting the book it is full colour. The beautiful picture on the front is typical of the pictures that follow inside. And the inside contains information about 26 bothies including one on the Balmoral estate, one that was set up as a remote hostel and one that was the very first bothy. Each entry has a little history about the building and sometimes a little detail about its past residents before the building was abandoned. Then there is a map, map reference, details of the route in (by foot), an alternative, more challenging route, what facilities each has (no toilets in most), what to look out for while you're there (wildlife etc.) as well as the author's bothy book entry, the bothy book being a book found at each bothy allowing visitors to write their thoughts down for the next set of visitors to find and read and add to.

The author's bothy book entries included things like imagining what the five-year-old girl who wrote an earlier entry felt whilst she stayed in this bothy in a typically beautiful location. These entries definitely helped to break up the more factual information bits that the rest of the book brings, as do the lovely full-colour pics of course, even if common themes do pop-up in them, such as talk of the mice that also live at the bothies, and the author's frustration when she realised she would have to share with others who arrived before her (but then it turned out alright anyway).

The book is suitable for beginners and also for experts I guess, although they may want to skip the early sections on what bothies are, the etiquette involved, what to take, as they probably know these parts or may disagree slightly.

There are some bothies missing from this book as it says there are over 100 in Britain, and this book covers just 26 of them. The author's reason for excluding the other 74 plus is that she "didn't want too large a spread so that there were no new ones for you to discover yourself - that is after all the joy of bothying."

As for me I've never been in a bothy before, and may never do so in the future, but at least I am aware of them now, and should I go on a walking holiday I have a new option available to me, possibly allowing me to explore parts of the country I would never otherwise have seen.

Published on 15 August 2015

Out now on AMAZON.

The Gauntlet by Ronald Welch

Book Review: Having read one of Ronald Welch's other books "Knight Crusader" I knew what to expect from this book. I expected Boys' Own knights-in-shining-armour stuff and that is what I got.

Originally released in 1951 and now being re-published "The Gauntlet" is about "an old glove" or a gauntlet. By wearing the magical gauntlet 1950s child Peter Staunton goes back in time to the middle ages where he becomes Peter de Blois son of the owner of Welsh castle Carreg Cennen. Being Norman barons in the Welsh heartlands there is a danger that the Welsh could start an uprising and if so then young Peter is sure to be involved in the ensuing battle,

The book is quite clever in how it "teaches" the historical aspects of the situation. In the beginning during the 1950s there is the vicar character who is gives lectures on the ruins of Carreg Cennen, for example, and its history, thus getting the messages across. Then when Peter ends up in the 14th century after the gauntlet finds him, he observes everything going on through his 20th century eyes, or "with the detached eye of an observer from another age". This includes things like Peter learning the longbow and the art of falconry. You can see that the author has the passion for the subject which explains why he became a history teacher.

All-in-all then a book that is interesting for its historical teaching cleverly disguised within a piece of fiction, and the bringing to life of the real events that happened at the time (although some bits are imaginary of course), and for the adrenaline rush of the jousting and battle scenes.

Release date: 5 March 2015 (originally released in 1951)

Amazon link (available for £7.99): The Gauntlet

Macbeth: A Shakespeare Story by Andrew Matthews and Tony Ross

My 7-year-old read this to me over four/five evenings. This is a kids' version of the famous Shakespeare play Macbeth. It explains some of the complicated concepts of the original story in simple ways. This works well. For example the way Macduff is explained to not be born of woman is put across in a way that is easy to understand for children. The book does seem to miss some famous phrases from the original play though like "Hubble, bubble, toil and trouble."

The story contains a lot of bloodthirstiness which could be inappropriate for children, and these were my initial thoughts as we read through it. My worries were allayed though by a 2-page section at the back of the book that explains why the evil in Macbeth took place, and what was driving the killing spree of Macbeth.

The other bit at the back of the book is called "Shakespeare and the Globe Theatre". This brings alive the time of Shakespeare and his plays, and talks about Elizabethan society and how the audiences behaved. For example "audiences at the Globe were smelly".

As well as the text there are illustrations. Throughout there are plenty of black and white illustrations which help with the picturing of the text.

Overall this book is a good idea as it brings Shakespeare to a younger audience, but may be a bit bloodthirsty for some so one of the other books in the series may be more to your preference. The books can also be bought as a complete set if you wanted.

Publication date: 30 October 2003

Amazon UK link: Macbeth: A Shakespeare Story

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens and read by Dominic Cooper

Oliver Twist is a classic story. This is an abridged version of it, and lasts for 1 hour 10 minutes. I play it at night for my 6-year-old daughter as she goes to sleep. Here is her summary of the beginning of the story:

• Oliver's mum rose up from the hospital bed and put her lips on Oliver's forehead and died. Then the hospital person said, "she was a nice looking girl, where did she come from?" and a nurse said, "she came here last night, found lying in the street."
• Then Oliver was taken to a workhouse.
• Then the boys winked at Oliver while his next neighbour nudged him. He was desperate with hunger.
• "Please sir, I want some more."
• The man was a fat healthy man, but he turned pale.
• Then he made about £5 by selling Oliver.

Then her summary of the middle:

• Then when it was morning he decided to run away to London. It took him seven days and seven nights.
• The eighth day Oliver sat on a cold door step. Then a boy who passed him returned and said, "what's your out."
• Then Oliver said, "I've been walking for seven days and seven nights and I'm cold and hungry."
• The boy had manners like a man.
• Then the boy said, "You need grub, and you shall have it."
• Soon, Oliver learnt his new friend was Jack.
• Then Jack said, "I know a man who will give you money for nothing, and never ask for the change." Soon they walked to a shop, or a house that was owned by Fagin.
• Then Fagin asked if Oliver could pick a handkerchief out of his pocket without him feeling it like the other boys could.
• Then Fagin closed his eyes. And then Oliver took the handkerchief without Fagin feeling it and Fagin said, "Did you take it out? Did you take it out?"
• Then Oliver said, "It's here sir," in his hand.
• Then Fagin give Oliver a shilling. Then Oliver went to bed with Jack and the other boys.

After a few listens she liked this, and said it is better than her previous favourite from the series, Bill Nighy Reads The Wonderful Wizard of Oz because she likes the characters like Mr Brownlow and Bill Sykes, and she likes the voices of the characters, like when Fagin says, "Where is Oliver?"

(I got this Audio CD through Amazon Vine. It is listed HERE.)

You Are Awful (But I Like You): Travels Through Unloved Britain by Tim Moore

This book is a recollection of a journey by the author taking in some of the awful places of Great Britain such as Great Yarmouth in England, Methil in Scotland and Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. To make the journey as awful as possible he took it in the worst car, did it whilst listening to the worst music, think novelty hits and albums, and was directed by the worst sat-nav voice, that of Ozzy Osbourne. He stayed at the worst hotels and ate the worst foods whilst visiting the worst tourist attractions. And he did it all at the worst time of year - in the bleak mid-winter.

Initially this book works. I particularly liked the story as to why the Austin Maestro was selected as the transport. However after the umpteenth town visited where the reason for it being awful was that it had some industry which had now disappeared made the book get a little repetitive and a bit stale as it went on. Other running themes in the book were that he'd visit a place, say a pub or museum, and it would close shortly after he'd been there. It became a bit sad after a while.

The selection of towns for the awful places was a bit random too. For example Hull was selected because it was voted worst town in the publication "Crap Towns" (in part it must be said) yet Luton wasn't selected despite being voted worst town in "Crap Towns II". Similarly Skegness was chosen by the author simply for its name sounding, to him, awful. Admittedly there was also a lot of research that went into the selection of other places, mainly through a Location, Location, Location list, but I think the final selection was made to make the most convenient journey around the country for the author.

Then at the end the last few towns were whizzed through in a rush so all you residents of Coventry, Northampton and Slough may feel short-changed.

The book was best when it involved people rather than just descriptions of the places themselves. For example there was an altercation with a Scottish Ned that was gripping. Also the author did well to get regional accents across when he did met people.

Other plus points were that I was able to follow the descriptions whereas with other travel books I have sometimes struggled to get the words to form the correct pictures in my head. Also there is a useful map on the inside front cover of the journey he took so if your town is on the route you may want to delve into the book.

Overall I felt the book could have been made better by being made shorter. For example there is one part where the author can't take it anymore and makes for home. That would have made for a good ending - Britian, you were so awful that you defeated me - but as it is it is too long resulting in the story getting stale with the issues getting repetitive.

(I got this book through Amazon Vine. It is listed on Amazon here.)

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

Essentially this book is about one man and his journey, by foot, from Kingsbridge in Devon all the way up the length of England to Berwick-upon-Tweed. But really this book is about more than just a walk. It's about relationships; it's about life and death; it's about how someone can think themselves as ordinary when in fact to others they are someone special.

The book starts with Harold Fry, retired, receiving a letter from an old work colleague, Queenie Hennessey, who he has not seen or heard from for 20-years. She informs him she is dying of terminal cancer. Harold writes a response and goes out to post it, but he doesn't just do that - he starts a pilgrimage. After meeting a girl in a nearby garage he is inspired to walk the length of England to keep his friend alive.

I have to say that for me the first part of the book was the worst. The conversations seemed unrealistic. The garage girl's inspirational speech didn't, to me, seem that inspirational. The characters Harold met seemed weird. But then at this point he is still umm-ing and arr-ing about whether a walk was the right thing to do anyway so maybe the two are related. Eventually he fully commits and the story picks up. We learn that ordinary Harold Fry touches so many people along the way with plenty of tear-jerking moments. We learn why he is estranged from his son. We learn about Harold Fry's life as he reflects upon it during his walking time. What he is doing is special and the person he is doing it for is special too for what she did for him all those years ago when they were colleagues. The lesson from the book is that we are all special to the people we interact with, no matter how ordinary we may appear.

Overall this is a read that took a little while to get going but turned into a belter of a book by the end.

(I got this book through Amazon Vine. It is listed on Amazon here.)