A Rhyming History of Britain: 55 B.C.-A.D. 1966

by James Muirden, David Eccles (Illustrator)

This cheerful poem has been written
To tell the history of Britain;
For People puzzled by the Past―
If this means YOU, here's help at last!

From Celts to Churchill, it relates
(With all the most Important Dates)
Our country's convoluted course . . .
Why Richard hollered for a horse;
Why Eleanor was such a catch;
Why no one liked the Spanish Match;
The pros and cons of Laissez Faire;
Smart Georgian ladies' underwear;
Why Charles the Second went to plays;
Why Queen Jane reigned for just nine days;
The causes of the Irish trouble;
The bursting of the South Sea Bubble;
That giant glasshouse in Hyde Park;
The First World War's igniting spark . . . Brought up with the iambic pentameters of Hilaire Belloc's Cautionary Verses ringing in his ears, James Muirden has written his rhyming history of Britain in an equally simple and entertaining form. Charmingly irreverent, magically humorous yet rigorously accurate, and delightfully illustrated by David Eccles, this is the perfect gift for any Anglophile.

Genres: History, Poetry, Nonfiction, Humor, Politics

213 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

James Muirden has written some thirty books on astronomy and space, in addition to A "Rhyming History of Britain" and "Shakespeare Well-Versed." He has also been a film reviewer and telescope maker. He lives with his wife and children in Devon, England.

Reviews

[Mills]

The trouble with Muirden's Rhyming History
As I could not help but see
Is that its subject is so broad
That you may find yourself quite bored.
Even the best author could not possibly
Narrate two thousand years in complete jollity.

The rhymes themselves are not terrible
But some make my rushed ones seem quite credible.
Two hundred pages of such simple rhyme
Have made my thoughts somewhat unkind
(When I can truly think that is
and give my mental rhymes a miss).

And on that note, I must conclude
Before this review becomes too skewed.
Although I thought it could have been better
And I got bored by its poetic meter
(That was a cheat, I do confess,
But still I want to express)
That I found the History rather fun
If a little overdone.

[Kirsti]

Delightful. The illustrations are wonderfully funny--Boudicca parking her chariot outside the houses of Parliament and arguing with a meter maid, the first coin issued by the Bank of England having the motto "HA HA LOADSAMONEY 1694."

About Elizabeth I:

Elizabeth could not forget
The fate her mother Anne had met
Through misplaced trust: right from the start,
She kept her inmost thoughts apart.
Her steadily improving skill
In hiding all her hand, until
She saw what suits her rivals held,
Was virtually unparalleled.
One special card she kept well back:
Herself, the strongest in the pack.
While monarchs thought they had the chance,
She'd be the one who made them dance.

[Victoria]

In college I took a British history class and the teacher would often quote from this book. When I found it, I had to get it and am not disapointed I did. I find it very humerous. It does take longer to read because I like to look things up to understand the history better as I go along and there is ALOT of history crammed into each page.

[Tilly]

6/10! I found this book to be fairly bias and stereotypical. It included a lot of information which was fairly bias and general towards each monarch. There was also not much information regarding the queens and women, with a lot more information towards the kings and men. I did learn some more about the history of Britain and the little pictures around the text were quite cute and interesting. As this book was written in the early 2000’s, there is some language in it which would not be used today. It may just be my opinion, but I also found it not to be very interesting and engaging (that may just be because I find poems to be fairly uninteresting).

[Emily Foster]

This book was sentimental for me because I received it from my grandma years ago when she thought of me for being born in England. I learned a lot about UK history from this, but I wish it would have continued to at least the year 2000 and not ended in 1966. I also find it difficult to keep up with poetry, so i had to take occasional breaks from this book. However, it was a nice read and perfect to bring with me on my trip to England and Scotland!

[heresy]

this was fun! had the vibe of the horrible histories books but for adults. i found it significantly easier to follow in the periods i already knew quite a bit about, but i suppose when you’re trying to write the history of 2000 years in a 200 page poem it is quite difficult to make everything completely clear. still! i was entertained.

[Kathryn]

A fun overview of Britain's history... The drawings are great!

[Jonny Brick]

You know how Lin-Manuel Miranda set American history to rap? James does a similar thing but in rhyming couplets. A great book for those who love British history AND verse.

[Hilary]

Good fun - entertaining and provides a quick revision!

[Laff]

Desperately dated (Japs?) and contrived.

[Kevin de Ataíde]

Very entertaining, short history of Britain. In verse!

[Laura]

I chose this book because I thought its rhymes would help me learn British history, but it absolutely did not work. There are so many damned royals named Charles, Edward, William, James, or Henry, it's just impossible to keep them and their role in history straight. Now, aside from not sticking in my head at all, the book was fine. In fact, it was pretty fun to read. So good for general fun reading, but probably not for learning/retaining info.

[Carole]

If you already know something of the history of Britain it might be fun to read these rhymes but I had been hoping to learn about British History and this book just trots out names of kings and their reigns. About half way through I couldn't bear to read it anymore and briefly skimmed to the end. This one is going back to the charity shop.

[Julie (jjmachshev)]

If you ever get a chance to pick this up...then do so!! It was written by a Brit so occasionally you need to remember British pronunciation, but I can STILL remember whole pieces of this book...

Vastly entertaining and educational at the same time.

[Chanel Earl]

It is amazing how much history can be crammed into one book. I think I need to read it again, and pay attention to the facts instead of the peotry. It is easy to get lost in the couplets. They are so well written and interesting.

[Carrie]

This was a fun book. The only downsides were that there is so much history it is hard to grasp it all while letting the rhythm of the poem flow. Also, sometimes the rhythm would through me off because it would be consistent and then not. But it is a great concept!

[Serena]

It takes a few minutes to get into the book, rhyming history that it is. Once you do, it is fun. (And you're stuck with a kind of sing-songy rhythm in your head). The history seems pretty accurate, and it is a fun way to get through 2021 years of history!

[Rima]

A lot of people might wonder why anyone would read a poetic history of England. The reason why some do? This book is really funny!

[Vicki]

Very fun!

[Kate]

clever, interesting with lots of great illustrations.

[May]

Interesting way to write history's cliffnotes ;)

[Mary]

Fast, silly, and memorable, it gives you a good overview of British history. I'd recommend it as prerequisite to Churchill's volumes.

[Jazz M]

Fun little.book. Would be great as a quirky dinner guest gift. Also good for kids studying history, like horrible histories.

[DelGal]

Too hard to follow and felt forced at times.

[Vanessa]

a pretty good rhyming history to keep track of.

[Jamie]

A fun little book about the history of Britain all told in prose. I was actually able to sit and read this for long lengths of time.

[Jake Cooper]

The meter, rhyme, and illustrations are all top notch, but, given my paltry British history knowledge, the names/dates/etc were too disconnected for me to follow.

[Jo]

Fun and funny, great to read bit by bit. Love the illustrations.

[Alexander Holbrook]

'For children of all ages' in every sense. A wide eyed and often wickedly funny dissection of the last thousand years of Britannia, with no frills attached.

[Katie]

I can't stop my thoughts from rhyming.