8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
not your typical 1066 history, January 30, 2010
I only just started Wood's account of 1066 and I have to admit all versions pale next to what was written some decades ago by David Howarth, but Wood is a feisty author and intent on holding her own; enough that I've been sticking with her despite of my own preconceptions! Her writing style pivots between an easy familiarity to admittedly academic level lecture-speak. But don't let that put you off, she has a wonderful sense of moment and humor and truly advocates that a highly evolved culture existed in England before the Normans; one that was virtually crushed or snuffed out of existence once William and his (oh let's call them mercenaries) warriors came and decided to stay. But for what appears to be sheer dumb luck one wonders what Europe and Anglo-Saxon England would have been like had William's boats been blown off course, or had confronted Harold only after Harold had recovered from his earlier battle. No Plantagenets? That boggles my mind and since I am obsessive about the Plantagenets this strikes me to the quick. Grab this book, give her voice a full throat, she makes a long overdue case for the "dark ages" before the Norman Conquest!
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Thugs on Horseback" - Great Book, well written, concise and opinionated, January 13, 2010
This review is from: The Battle of Hastings: The Fall of Anglo-Saxon England (Hardcover)
This is a concise, well written book that explains, from an Anglo-Saxon point of view, all that was lost in England, Europe and perhaps the world with the Norman invasion of England. As some may know, official U.K. tourist organizations express the view that "real" English history begins with the Norman invasion and they couldn't be more wrong. Harrier Harvey Wood neatly explains why. Her prose is easy, not too scholarly and she expresses her strong opinions with facts. It's easily accessible to anyone beginning to study the Anglo-Saxon culture.
She falters in some of her writing. She should never have mentioned metal shields and some other trivia but it's a good, almost fun book if you don't consider what was lost with the Norman invasion. I also fault her for not using/believing the Carmen de Hastingae - but of all the authors of the events surrounding 1066 I've read, she gets to the main points most directly and succinctly. Each chapter is filled with insight. I enjoyed reading it immensely. Of course this book will likely be remembered for her calling the Normans "Thugs on horseback" but she backs up her points. She emphasizes a lot of what England had before the Normans, for example she examines the rights of women compared to the two cultures. Some basic Anglo-Saxon rights weren't given back to the English people until the 19th century! This surprised me a lot. One is right to believe, after reading this book, that had the Saxons stayed in power and been able to overcome the inevitably bad rulers, there may not have been the need for the Magna Carta - the Saxons already had basic rights. Also one can envision the enmity between England and Ireland could have been avoided. Things we'll never know but Ms. Wood allows one to see that.
I'd say there probably isn't a lot of new scholarship in this book but her perspective is refreshing. With an ever growing appreciation of the Anglo-Saxon culture and with new archeological finds that show the Normans were not close the being in the Saxons class as far as actual culture goes. Ms. Wood has made an excellent contribution to this subject.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic Book, August 30, 2010
This review is from: The Battle of Hastings: The Fall of Anglo-Saxon England (Hardcover)
Like many others, I became fascinated with the story of the Battle of Hastings upon reading David Howarth's book "1066 The Year of the Conquest." I gave this new book a try because I had heard that the author gave a fair appraisal of the battle from the English point of view and I can say that she did not disappoint. History is almost always written by the victors and Howarth's book as well as many other accounts of the battle recount William as a great and majestic leader and Harold as a clueless oaf. I, for one, am sympathetic to Harold's story and was fascinated to read a book that showed him to be a great leader who had a little bit too much adversity to overcome in a short span of time. Ms Wood also takes great pains to not report apocryphal accounts as fact, something that Mr. Howarth didn't take the time to do. Some may find it tedious to read an account and then find out it is probably hogwash, but I found the honesty to be refreshing. To anyone approaching the topic for the first time I would still read Mr. Howarth's book first, but by all means you should read Ms. Wood's book second. It was very well done.
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