AD We all know that Welsh history is my true love here on the Hisdoryan blog, so when The History Press kindly offered me the chance to review the new book THE LITTLE HISTORY OF WALES by Mark Lawson-Jones I jumped at the chance quicker than the time it takes for Gareth Bale to score a goal!
From food to famous faces and everything in between, The Little History of Wales bills itself as the definitive guide to weird and wonderful Welsh trivia, compiled with wit, affection and an eye for the absurd.
Its is an intriguing, fast-paced, fact-packed compendium of places, people and history in Wales. Here we find out about the country’s food, sports, eccentric inhabitants, famous sons and daughters and literally hundreds of wacky facts (plus some authentically bizarre bits of historic trivia).
You know I love my Welsh history books, so I was very intrigued to see what The Little History of Wales was all about.
Its very much a compendium of facts (and I do love a good compendium-style book, especially this one about the historic pubs of Wales). My friend asked me how would I describe the book and I summed it up as ‘If someone was doing a Welsh citizenship test, this is the book I would give them‘.
Its a great overview ( I was particularly impressed by the history section – the author has done a great job of providing a good overview of a long and complex history) and would be great for a Welsh history beginner, but for someone like me this is very much a light read which didn’t tell me anything new. (If you’re after more in-depth Welsh history books, then check out this blog post here)
BUT if you want to introduce someone to the wonderful world of Welsh history, then I would recommend this book. Its not going to overwhelm a beginner, but hopefully it will pique their interest to learn more!
A reference book and a quirky guide, The Little Book of Wales can be dipped into time and again to reveal something new about the people, the heritage, the secrets and the enduring fascination of Wales.
Like this post? Or looking for some more in-depth books about Welsh history? Then you need to check out this blog post.