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David Mitchell - Unruly (2nd Hand Paperback)
Synopsis
Subtitled : A History of England's Kings & Queens.
The Sunday Times Bestseller.
A seriously funny, seriously clever history of our early kings and queens by one of our favourite comedians and cultural commentators.
Think you know your kings and queens? Think again.
Taking us right back to King Arthur (spoiler: he didn't exist), Unruly tells the founding story of post-Roman England up to the reign of Elizabeth I (spoiler: she dies). It's a tale of narcissists, inadequate self-control, excessive beheadings, middle-management insurrection, uncivil wars, and at least one total Cnut.
How this happened, who it happened to and why it matters in modern Britain are all questions David Mitchell answers with brilliance, wit and the full erudition of a man who once studied history - and won't let it off the hook for the mess it's made.
Details
- Format : Standard 2nd Hand Paperback
- Condition : Very Good (Almost As New)
- Category : Non-Fiction - Britain
- Published : 2023 (This Edition 2024 - Penguin)
- ISBN : 9781405953191
- SKU : B003338
- PPC : SP400gm
- RRP : £10.99
- Quantity Available : 1 only.
External Reviews
"Unruly is part Horrible Histories part jolly romp guided by Alan Bennett. Perhaps this is how history should be done: not by patient scholars, but by free-swearing actor-comedians cramming more ideas and jokes into their pages than many professionals have committed to print in their careers." - The Guardian.
"Full of jokes and canny insights, 100 per cent sparkier and more irreverent than your school textbooks." - The i Newspaper.
"An enjoyable, rollicking read, definitely not a conventional history book." - Sunday Times.
"I don’t think anyone other than David Mitchell could have written this book. It’s clever, funny and makes you think quite differently about history we thought we knew." - Dan Snow.
"By turns fascinating and funny - there is a jewel of an insight or a refreshing blast of clarifying wit on every page. David brings a delightfully contrary and hilariously cantankerous eye to the history of the English Monarchy. Informative, illuminating and very very funny." - Jesse Anderson.
"Mitchell clearly knows his history, with a book that owes as much to Monty Python as it does to Simon Schama." - Andrew Marr.
"Clever, amusing, gloriously bizarre and razor sharp. Mitchell - a funny man and a skilled historian - tells stories that are interesting and fun. His rants alone are worth the price of the book. And amid all the jokes and delightful nonsense, Mitchell sneaks in a serious message about English identity. Here is Horrible Histories for grownups - stripped of their finery, devoid of reverence, UNRULY's monarchs emerge as mortals with ordinary flaws. I learnt a lot and laughed a lot, and people who have never before picked up a history book will read and enjoy this one. That's an accomplishment." - The Times.
"Chatty, irreverent and liberally sprinkled with gags and opinions. Horrible Histories with added swearing." - The Observer.
"I can’t recommend this book enough. Very funny and interesting, it is above all a proper work of history." - Charlie Higson.
The Author
David Mitchell is a BAFTA Award-winning actor, writer and comedian who has starred in many of the UK's best-loved TV shows, including Peep Show, That Mitchell and Webb Look and Upstart Crow. He is a team captain on Would I Lie to You? (BBC One), the host of The Unbelievable Truth on Radio 4 and one of the Observer's most popular columnists. Unruly: A History of England's Kings and Queens is his first history book.