Out in Jan
Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley.
This book uses my favorite Terry Pratchett quote. You know, the one about fire and man.
Yep, that one. Now you want to read it don’t you?
So, I don’t have to say anything else, do I?
Oh, alright.
Deary’s book lists crimes committed by the little people. These include women who murdered their husbands (who sometimes deserved it), Dick Turpin (who wasn’t hot), the Fairy Flag (you’re understand when you read it), the morality of the Fairy Flag among other stories.
There is also the wonderment of a why is there always just one survivor. Though that girl who ran ten miles while injured was bad ass.
The history is done tongue in cheek, but actually does raise some good points. Like did the Stuarts kill Shakespeare? (Seriously, it doesn’t really ask that question, but he did die during the Stuarts, so anything is possible).
There are even sports. I knew Chaucer was a bit of a football hooligan but there is a bunch of other football stories that seem to indicate that English fans have calmed down a bit. There is a bit about assassinations. The one about the Egyptians.
Like the mention of Turpin above, some of the cases are famous, for instance Mary Ann Cotton, but most are not as popular or well known. So, there are little gems -such as what some women did to the dead members of an army as well as letting you know what the difference between blackmail and settlement is. This is important for your future.
And the quotes. Oh, the wonderful quotes. Learning history should always be this fun.
