English and British history, including its 42 monarchs since 1066 (there have been 62 Kings & Queens of England and Britain over the past 1200 years or so), is very rich and interesting but how much do you know about it and its royal rulers? More importantly, how much do your children know about it? It is never too late to find out and learn something new but finding the right book to teach whilst be entertaining and enjoyable can be quite a task.
A lot of history books can be quite dry and boring, but Tony Boullemier has written a book about English monarchs that is probably the most concise English history guide that has ever been written and one that is very interesting to read. The Little Book of Monarchs sums up all 42 British monarchs, each summed up in 5 bullet points, giving over 900 years of British history in 122 pages.
The Little Book of Monarchs is what it says, a small pocket-sized history book that covers all English monarchs (42 of them from 1066) from 1066 with William I (aka William the Conqueror) to present times with late Queen Elizabeth II. It is aimed at readers from 10 years + and it covers:
- The Normans
- The Plantagenets
- House of Lancaster
- House of York
- The Tudors
- The Stuarts
- The Commonwealth
- The Stuarts Restored
- The Hanoverians
- House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha
- House of Windsor
Each monarch has a cartoon about their them and reign, summed up in 5 bullet points of text, giving details of their achievements and failures.
For younger readers the chronological order of the book gives a firm foundation for future history studies. For students and older readers, it becomes a reference to flick backwards and forwards through, giving a snapshot of each ruling monarch and the bloody and glorious past of English history.
Overall, The Little Book of Monarchs is an excellent reference book that has short and easy facts to digest. There are 2 pages about each monarch, one with a funny cartoon about them and their reign and the one with the facts in 5 simple bullet points. The facts cover the good and bad of each monarch and don’t overload the reader with too much detail.
The Little Book of Monarchs is an excellent insight into the ruling monarchs throughout English history as well as Royal Families and will appeal to children just starting to learn about our history or older students as a reference guide. It would also make a good simple reference book for anybody with an interest in the monarchy and Royal Families throughout our history. If you are a quizzer it would also be a great little book to brush up on your facts.
You may think that with only 5 facts per monarch that their will not be enough information but there is plenty to whet your palate and give a good insight into them with facts like Henry VI becoming king at 10 months old, George II died while sitting on the toilet and David Cameron is a descendent from William IV, all interesting information.
Along with the 2 pages about each monarch, at the end of the book there are brief descriptions about the Royal Families and a 20 question test to quiz you on your knowledge of the book.
This is a perfect book to introduce children to English monarchs and a brief insight into the history of the country. It is a valuable and original resource book that every child should read to learn more about English history in a quite quirky and somewhat amusing way, and a book that every school should have at least one copy of. With home schooling now more prevalent, it is an excellent starting point for parents and carers to help their children with history lessons, condensing important history into small pieces of knowledge.
Highly recommended. An enjoyable way to learn a bit about British history.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £7.99 (Hardback) / £5.99 (Paperback)
Available to buy from Amazon here.
