Customer Reviews

Dangerous Book of Heroes

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The latest installment in the "Dangerous Book" series is "The Dangerous Book of Heroes." It's a fairly thick volume with dozens of short biographies, which range from about a dozen to twenty pages. For me, that makes it a perfect book for Reading While Waiting. I spend a lot of time in doctor's offices, so waiting is a huge part of my life. These short biographies are just the right length to entertain and engage me before the doctor knocks on the door. I found the choice of Heroes to be especially interesting, especially since I had never heard of at least one of them referred to in any kind of a positive way before.

The book starts out with George Washington, and discussed many things I had never considered about the Father of our country. For instance, his biography begins by calling him neither a great soldier nor a great farmer, just a man put in the right place at the right time. It's a theory that carries throughout the book.

Part of the reason I really liked this book is the idea that anyone can be a hero, given the circumstances. The passengers of Flight 93 on September 11, 2001 were heroes, although I don't think that any one of them thought that they would save the lives of thousands when they boarded their plane. Yet I think their inclusion in this book of heroes is perfect.

All in all, I recommend this book for any reader over the age of twelve or so, anyone old enough to accept the fact that not every story ends happily and that not all heroes have medals. I think it would be especially wonderful to read as a family, and to discuss the heroes listed here, and if they agree with the author that these people are heroes at all. (I agree with most, but not all of the people listed here, and there are a few others I'd have included)

In the Dangerous Book for BoysThe Dangerous Book For Boys --2008 publication., Conn and Hal Iggulden created created a new classic. Written in a style that was a throwback to the early 1900s, they resurrected and updated a lore for boys found in books like the original Boy Scout Handbook and the American Boy's Handy Book--a little archaic, a little politically incorrect, but timeless, and always amusing. The success of this book spawned the inevitable spin offs and sequels and the Igguldens joined the fray with some lesser 'Dangerous Boy' pocket books, kits, games, and even calenders.

The Dangerous Book of Heroes is the Igguldens' latest attempt to capitalize on their earlier success and as with most sequels it never quite makes the grade. It is essentially a series of mini-biographies of historical figures that the Igguldens feel were pivotal, heroic and whose stories can serve as an inspiration for the youth of today. This time, however, the Igguldens seemed bogged down by the archaic style that worked so well last time. Here, the use of language and tone makes these vignettes seem just a little too old fashioned and a little too long. Moreover, I still haven't figured out the intended age group for this book: the authors occasionally veer off into topics that are a little too grisly or scatological for the young reader; yet the content seems a little superficial for children in their early teens. That being said, the book is a worthy attempt to assemble biographies of historic figures that children can aspire to, it just never quite strikes the right chord.

The writing ranges in style from a sort of watered down 11th edition Encyclopedia Brittanicaesque to the kind of written for children biographies circa 1940 to 1960 that you might have borrowed from your public library as a kid. The biographies are complimented by pen and ink drawings that appropriately bring back that feeling of a bygone era. The level of detail is somewhat random, with George Washington at the top of the pack with 27 pages of narrative and the astronauts of Apollo 11 taking a large step for mankind at 7 pages. The shorter biographies held my interest more than the longer ones. The George Washington, Captain Cook, William Bligh, and Horatio Nelson vignettes suffered a little from laundry lists of accomplishments, battles, and/or ports of call.

Generally, however, the vignettes were serviceable encapsulations of the subjects lives. The best of the best, in my opinion, were those of Sitting Bull, the women of the SOE, Winston Churchill, and Harry Houdini. The authors were able to hold my attention by pointing out the remarkable and admirable characteristics of the heroes described, their major accomplishments, and interesting, lesser known facts about these heroes in a succinct and accessible fashion.

The reading level seems uneven to me, although it may well be that the choices of words used are more characteristic of a British child's vocabulary. Adults will have no problems here, but children ages 7 to 16 in the US may fall a little short. There is also a tacit understanding that the reader has a rudimentary knowledge of basic British history, the workings of the British government, military terminology, and relationships in the British monarchy. Here too, a child in the US might be at a bit of a loss.

The choice of the subjects for the biography was solely at the discretion of the authors, but some statistics are revealing. There are 36 vignettes in total, most are about individuals but some describe groups of people. 29 of the vignettes are exclusively about men and 5 of them are exclusively about women. Quickly counting, there appear to be 17+ Brits (it really depends on how you do the counting), 7 Americans, a single Native American, and a single African American. Asia is only represented by the Gurkhas and Tenzig Norgay (who shares the spotlight with the be-knighted New Zealander, Sir Edmund Hillary). Canadians everywhere will cheer for Billy Bishop, their single entry in the book. There is but one French woman, who was one of the women of the SOE. I couldn't find any Africans. There were no Muslims of note. Given the conspicuous absence of the word "boy" in the title of this book, I believe that the Igguldens were trying to attract a more diverse audience. However, the content of the biographies leans toward the white, British or American man and shows a glaring lack of diversity. That being said, an African would have as tough a time as a Spaniard or German in finding a hero herein to relate to. The Dangerous Book for Boys has been translated into many languages, I doubt that this will be the case for this title.

The authors are mostly successful in maintaining their characteristic tone, but sometimes the tone made me shudder. The most glaring reference occurred when the authors referred to one of the Alamo's defenders as "[Jim] Bowie's black freedman, Sam." I am sure that Sam was referred to in this manner in some older historical texts, but it would have been more appropriate to refer to Sam as Jim Bowie's hired servant. There are also references to sexual behavior, venereal disease, adultery, cannibalism, etc. that are certainly part of the history and would work for older readers, but if this book was intended for 7 to 10 year olds it would have been better to gloss over some of this.

All this being said, there is worthy and interesting information that can be found herein, but the book is simply not as universal or as classic as the Dangerous Book for Boys, and for this reason I was sadly disappointed. I did enjoy reading many of the biographies presented and do believe that they have a certain value to them. But this is not a book that I could recommend wholeheartedly as an extension of the authors' 'Dangerous Book' series and would suggest that you read the excerpts carefully before purchasing.

This book is a collection of condensed biographies of various remarkable individuals dating from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. The stories are all interesting, most are inspiring, and the facts seem to be relatively accurate. The stories are brief; I don't think any are more than 20 pages. The blurb on the back cover makes it sound like this is a collection of American heroes, but the assortment seems to be primarily British. Here's who's in it:

George Washington, American colonial officer, Revolutionary general, first president of the United States.
Sir Ranulph Fiennes, 20th century explorer, adventurer and Incredibly Tough Guy.
Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton, Victorian adventurer, translator of the Arabian Nights into English.
Daniel Boone, archetypal American frontiersman.
The Royal Air Force Command, "The Few" who defended Britain's airspace in WWII.
The Magna Carta Barons, founders of the modern concept of liberty. The oldest heroes in this book.
Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England during the years of the Commonwealth.
Helen Keller, deaf and blind girl.
Captain James Cook, pathfinder of the seas.
Edmund Hillary and Tensing Norgay, first men to reach the top of Mt. Everest.
Various lawyers and politicians who worked to abolish slavery in the British Empire.
Sitting Bull, the last Sioux chief to defy the United States government.
Edith Cavell, brave nurse of WWI.
Thomas Paine, author of _Rights of Man_.
The Women of SOE, undercover operatives during WWII.
The Texan defenders of the Alamo.
Sir Henry Morgan, king of the buccaneers.
Lawrence of Arabia.
Florence Nightingale, inventor of modern nursing.
The passengers of Flight 93 who fought back against the terrorist hijackers.
Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of England during WWII.
The Gurkhas, formidable elite British troops from Nepal.
Horatio Nelson, the admiral who defeated Napoleon at sea.
The Marines at Iwo Jima, one of the hardest-fought battles in WWII's Pacific theater.
Billy Bishop, flying ace of WWI.
Codebreakers of Bletchley Park, inventors of the first computers during WWII.
William Bligh, captain of the HMS "Bounty" of mutiny fame.
The Apollo 11 astronauts, first men on the moon.
Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon at Waterloo.
Alcock and Brown, first to fly nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean.
Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Francis Drake, two Elizabethan adventurers.
Harry Houdini, escape artist.
Scott of the Antarctic, the first to explore Antarctica.
The Men of Colditz, escape-prone inmates of a Nazi prison during WWII.
The Unknown Warrior, symbol of all fallen servicemen. Britain was the first to officially honor one.
Martin Luther King, Jr. civil rights pioneer.

As you can see, these are all heroes of Western culture. No Asian, African or Middle Eastern heroes here. Taken for what it is, though, the book is very entertaining. A few of the articles towards the end seemed to drag, but my overall impression is favorable. It was fun to read, and educational. Since I can't find anything to really complain about, I guess I have to award a full 5 stars.

I'm well above the target age for this book, but I've found that even in my mid-30s I enjoy reading some of the tales in this book. The tales are fairly short (10-20 pages) and make good bedtime reading. Having not given much thought to some of the historical figures depicted in "The Dangerous Book of Heroes" since grammar school or high school, I find it fun to read up a bit on what I had learned once and forgotten.

The array of heroes selected for the book is a fairly good selection of heroes, mostly from English and American history. Heroism, as depicted here, is not limited to brave men fighting wars. Heroic figures profiled range from Thomas Paine (intellectualism/free thinking), to Captain Cook (leadership and exploration), to Helen Keller (disability activism and women's rights). However, if you (or your child) are looking for profiles of historical figures from other countries, you need to look elsewhere.

The vignettes of historical figures do try to cover too much in too little space. Entire lives of some historical figures are covered in a few pages, and the description of their accomplishments reads more like a list without much historical context or explanation provided. As a result, I felt that the writing falls a little flat. For example, while Winston Churchill had a long and fascinating career, it is too much to cover in a few pages. I would have preferred to read a profile focusing on Churchill's heroism and courage strictly during World War II, rather than an unfocused profile of his 90-year life.

This isn't as fun as the authors' "The Dangerous Book for Boys" but it's still pretty good. If "The Dangerous Book for Boys" had not been a surprise best-seller, I doubt this book would've ever seen print; it doesn't have a particularly striking perspective on the topic of heroism. But here it is, a deliberate throwback that fills a need for a kind of old-fashioned tome filled with hero biographies set up as exemplary tales of morality and virtue -- not all that commonly seen nowadays.

I will give Mrs. Iggulden credit for taking a point of view and sticking to it. Having said that they do make attempts at a balanced book which presents what by their viewpoint should be heroes. What's confusing is what they consider a hero to be? They roam from some obvious moral choices such as Martin Luther King to Florence Nightingale, but they stick with an almost exclusive line up of military men. I would estimate that 80 percent of the heroes they portray are military and of that most are British. Some like Oliver Cromwell don't even belong here.

Sadly missing are men of science and learning who made the world better. Why no Benjamin Franklin or Jonas Salk? Why no Terry Fox or people whose courage inspires as much as their activities. While they deserve credit for the book introducing some ancient heroes, a more balance approach would have made for a better book.

If you're expecting a book like the Dangerous Book for Boys or Girls, this is not like those! This has no activities, etc in it. It is full of stories of heroes from history. It may not be appropriate for little kids because it has some details they might find a little disturbing. One story has a woman being tortured daily, her toenails being pulled out, etc. I think teens might not be too grossed out. Also, there are a LOT of heroes from different wars in here, so interest in military history is a bonus for anyone thinking of reading this book.

There are way more men than women featured in this - the women include: Helen Keller, Edith Cavell, The Women of SOE, and Florence Nightingale. There are 32 other stories about male heroes.

Also, the authors appear to be Welsh, so many of the heroes in this are British (Oliver Cromwell, James Cook, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Lawrence of Arabia, Winston Churchill, Horatio Nelson, Walter Raleigh and Francis Drake, William Bligh, etc). I'm an anglophile, so I didn't mind this!

If you just want good hero stories and don't care where they lived, etc, it's a pretty fascinating book! It could teach young adults very valuable character traits!

"Dangerous Heroes" was a pleasant surprise, although I'm still a little puzzled by the title. I think my definition of Hero is different than the authors'. But I guess "Dangerous Book of VERY INTERESTING PEOPLE" wouldn't have the same effect.

I love the profiles in this book. Some of the personalities are familiar (like George Washington) and some were completely unknown to me (like Edith Cavell). Each profile is about 20-30 pages long, which is just long enough to give you a deeper insight than you'd get from a Wikipedia article, but not the same commitment as reading an entire biography on the person. That's great for me, because I appreciate the exposure to all these rich stories, yet there's no way I'd want to read hundreds of pages about some of these figures. However, each section includes recommended additional reading for anyone interested in further details.

My favorite part about this book though, is the non-American viewpoint of the authors (not "un-American" or "anti-American", just NOT American). I like to think I have a broad perspective for an American man, but the truth is that it's very easy for us to overlook the viewpoint of the "rest" of our planet's inhabitants. For example, the telling of George Washington's story from the perspective of these two British authors points out the differences in the American perspective of the "Revolutionary War" compared to the British perspective of the "American War of Independence".

All in all, these human profiles are well written and very interesting. I couldn't help be feel like the element of "heroism" wasn't as strong as I'd expected from such a boldly titled book, but that doesn't take away from the stories themselves. I applaud the results from these two brothers who researched all of these interesting personalities and compiled their stories into a well written and nicely illustrated collection. I feel personally enriched for reading their tales.

My eight-year old son loves adventure stories and enjoys learning about history. I thought this would be a perfect fit for him. I imagined that we would start by reading these together and then he would take off on his own. Unfortunately this book was not at all what I thought it was going to be.

The blurb on the back reads that it "compile[s] the stories of America's heroes from across the ages," but as another interviewer pointed out these are not just stories of Americans, but many many Brits as well. Although I guess one could argue they are still heroes of America, this is a bit misleading. It also promises "stories of courage and adventure." And yes, these are stories of people who had adventures and courage, unfortunately that adventure and courage is not communicated to the reader, especially younger readers.

Instead of the tales OF adventure that I was expecting, what we found when we opened this volume was fairly dry, short autobiographies filled with dates and names. Together we read the selection on Harry Houdini, a favorite historical figure of my son's. And we got immigration facts, his height, and the name of his wife. Not exactly reading that will keep a busy eight-year-old boy on the edge of his seat. The parts that could have interested him were quickly passed over with very few details given. For example, when he ran away from home at age 12 by jumping on a train was described in about as many words as I just used. These are not, as the back describes them, stories: they are collections of the facts, mere outlines of the stories.

The idea of this book has great potential. My son would love a collection of stories about some of the great adventures men and women have had in history. But they need to be told as stories, with details and emotion, and with carefully built suspense. As it is this book was a disappointment to both of us; we couldn't even finish the section on Houdini as I was as bored as he was. We may shelf this one for when he is older, but honestly I don't think it will be read. The life of these lives has been distilled out: all that is left is the facts, and that's not much fun to read (although it may be informative).

As a history teacher I often decry the politically and factually correct, but dreadfully dry and boring history textbooks. I was hoping that this book, The Dangerous Book of Heroes, could be a popular antidote and a return to the famous Landmark books series that I grew up reading. Mostly, A Dangerous Book of Heroes is just that - a collection of biographies - some just a few pages, some longer. They are illustrated with the same kind of line drawings that I remember from the Landmark books.

But, this book does have a danger to it, and not the tongue-in-cheek kind suggested by the title. The publisher has declared that it's target audience is 18 years old and above. If this was truly was aimed at high school seniors and college students, we have become an illiterate society indeed. Not that this book is horrible, it is just simplistic. College students should be reading real biographies, not 8 page biographical sketches complete with line drawings.

One of the author claims it is aimed at 14 year olds and above. Sadly, the series is aimed at pre-teens and some of the topics discussed are just not appropriate for elementary school students, especially in the story about "Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton."

In fact, if it were not for this entry, I'd recommend the book for pre-teens and older. However, the Burton entry is full of references to drug experimentation, frequenting prostitutes, male and female brothels, spousal murder, the Kama Sutra - unnecessary references in a biography that was already so laden full of facts that it had bogged down and became an endless list, much like a bad powerpoint presentation with an endless supply of bulletpoint entries.

Note, I am not squeamish when it comes to teaching kids history. When I teach world history, we discuss, among other things, facts like Alexander the Great's sexual orientation(s), how Nero kicked his wife to death, slave owners abusing their female slaves in America (and throughout time) and the slaughtering of thousands in the fall of Jerusalem and Constantinople.. But, there is context in that presentation. In this book, it seems to glorify the negatives of Burton's personality - he's a hero so let's look at everything he did and celebrate all of it, the good and the bad.

Other issues that really are small compared to the issue of the Burton entry:

-Multiple references to the "sneak attack" on the "small British garrisons at Lexington and Concord." The way it is worded seems to imply that the Colonial militia attacked 2 forts rather than noting that 700 British regulars secretly marched out of Boston to take the munitions depot of the Colonial militia in Concord and were turned back by militia who were informed by spies (like Paul Revere) that the British army was on the move.

-He incorrectly notes that the Indians remained Loyalist and neutral in the Revolutionary War. Loyalist is a questionable concept - they were not pro-British so much as they were in favor of the British policy of not developing the Ohio River valley. For the Igguldens to comment that Indians did not work in conjunction with the British in the George Washington entry is to disagree with their own article on Daniel Boone. For those that doubt that the British worked in concert with Indians in the Ohio River Valley, read about Henry Hamilton the "Hair Buyer" Lt. Governor of Detroit who was believed to have paid bounties for white scalps in an effort to destroy the settlements in Kentucky.

-The "Forks of the Ohio" near Louisville were actually the "Falls of the Ohio". They are no longer there due to flood control dams.

-The atomic bombing of Japan was actually done with atomic bombs, not hydrogen bombs (much bigger than the A-bombs and, more importantly, they were not invented during World War II).

Those last areas of concern are relatively small and would not have much affected my review of this book. However, the Burton entry must be the reason the publisher is recommending the book for people 18 years and older and certainly is the reason that I would not recommend it for the age group that the rest of the Dangerous Book series is designed for.