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lindseysparks's review against another edition
Did not finish - I don't understand how you could write a book about France and England's relationship without talking about Agincourt and how you can make it boring. Keeping for reference only.
ikorkh's review against another edition
5.0
This book was recommended to me some time ago, and I purchased a copy, only to have it sit on my desk and daunt me with its girth for over a month. I've finally picked it up and made my way through it - which at times was a bit of an effort. In the end, I'm glad that I persevered. It was worth the struggle.
For anyone interested in history - military, economic, political, and cultural, this is an excellent read. The breadth of its scope is quite fantastic, and the ability of the text to go between grand historical currents to intimate observations of ordinary people of the time is fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed the concept of the two nations developing their cultural identities through the cross-channel opposition, and the ebb and flow of these cultural identities over the course of centuries.
At times, it does seem overwhelming. Names, dates, and events at times blur; though perhaps that is inevitable with any narrative of history, which, though it does not repeat itself, "often rhymes". The pace can be rather unrelenting; I would have loved to linger over certain periods or personalities and explore them in more detail, but that would make the book even more unwieldy.
Overall, I would recommend this to anyone interested in learning about the past, or in contextualizing the present. As long as they are not afraid of a serious time commitment.
For anyone interested in history - military, economic, political, and cultural, this is an excellent read. The breadth of its scope is quite fantastic, and the ability of the text to go between grand historical currents to intimate observations of ordinary people of the time is fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed the concept of the two nations developing their cultural identities through the cross-channel opposition, and the ebb and flow of these cultural identities over the course of centuries.
At times, it does seem overwhelming. Names, dates, and events at times blur; though perhaps that is inevitable with any narrative of history, which, though it does not repeat itself, "often rhymes". The pace can be rather unrelenting; I would have loved to linger over certain periods or personalities and explore them in more detail, but that would make the book even more unwieldy.
Overall, I would recommend this to anyone interested in learning about the past, or in contextualizing the present. As long as they are not afraid of a serious time commitment.
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