Scotland's Story (Yesterday's Classics) [Paperback]

H. E. Marshall (Author), J. R. Skelton (Illustrator), John Hassall (Illustrator)

Book Description

A child's history of Scotland, from legendary days through the time when the kingdoms of Scotland and England were joined together. Relates in vigorous prose the thrilling exploits of the heroes and heroines who defended Scotland from its English invaders. Includes the stories of Macbeth, William Wallace and Robert the Bruce, Mary Queen of Scots, the poet king and the beautiful lady of the garden, the "Glen of Weeping" and many others. First published a century ago, from the author of the highly-acclaimed "Our Island Story."

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for H E Marshall " A miniature masterpiece" Stephen Fry "Astonishingly accurate, quite brilliant!" David Starkey "Extraordinarily evocative to a child's imagination" Lady Antonia Fraser "Stimulates a child's imagination like nothing else" Andrew Roberts "Our Island Story must rank as one of the most influential works of history of the 20th century." Amanda Craig, The Times "Marshall's books gave thousands of juvenile readers, of whom I was one, their first taste and thirst for narrative history." David McKie, The Guardian --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Surprisingly little is known about the life of Henrietta Elizabeth Marshall. She is thought to have been born in 1867, but the date of her death is unknown. She concealed her gender using the initials H. E. in her writing. Her most widely read book, Our Island Story, was first published in 1905 and went through many editions. She penned several other books including Our Empire Story and King's and Things, the latter of which was also recently republished by Galore Park. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 552 pages
• Publisher: Yesterday's Classics (December 19, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1599150565
• ISBN-13: 978-1599150567
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,359,519 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Puts the "story" back into "history"!, December 26, 2004

By 

Penny Lane (France) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scotland's Story (Hardcover)

This delightful book recounts the history of Scotland in language simple enough for a child to understand and appreciate, yet colourful and detailed enough to provide an accurate and comprehensive treatment of this vast subject. It transports the reader to another world, of mighty rulers, daring knights and heroic princes. It is so riveting that I read it three times in a row when I was seven, and remember it fondly to this day...

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Read-Alouds, March 7, 2006

By 

E. Tesone (POK, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scotland's Story (Yesterday's Classics) (Paperback)

Scotland's Story is simply wonderful! It's an old classic that's finally available again at a reasonable price. Marshall writes for children, and my K- and 2nd grader have loved these stories, but I've been equally enthralled. She begins with legends of the earliest Scots, and becomes more authoritative as she gains the ground of documented events. Read about Macbeth and Macduff, Malcolm Canmore, the beloved William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, all the Jameses, Mary-Queen of Scots, and on up through their Union to England, the last of the Stewarts (a line birthed with a wonderful tale in the early part of the book), and into the 19th century a bit. The chapters are not especially long, but even so are broken up into short sections for quick, easy read-alouds. We're ordering this book, as renewing it from the library is getting tiresome....and it's one we want to add to our library!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring children's history, June 27, 2007

By 

L. Beasley (Warrenton, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scotland's Story (Yesterday's Classics) (Paperback)

I picked up Scotland's Story because I loved Marshall's Our Island Story (about Britain) so much. Like that history, Scotland's Story is a personality-centric history: Each chapter tells the unfolding tale of Scotland through an episode (real or legendary; Marshall always indicates when something is not precisely factual) in the life of a famous Scot. There is just enough fact to educate and just enough fantasy to entice a young mind.

One important caveat: The story of Scotland--and every other nation, no doubt--is rarely one of sweetness and light. This is a story of one battle and war and imprisonment after another. Nevertheless, Marshall never forgets her audience, the upper elementary-aged child (although my 4-year-old has thoroughly enjoyed both Our Island Story and Scotland's Story, with occasional on-the-fly editing from Mommy). Another top pick: Naxos Audiobooks' unabridged Our Island Story on audio CD, surprisingly one of my daughter's favorite listens.