Disclaimer: Arc via NetgalleyAs I was finishing this book, my friend asked me why anyone should care about a king who has been dead for hundreds of years. It’s a fair question. And there is no real easy answer. Why did Philippa Langley care so much that she pretty much pushed for the dig herself? I’m sure she could tell you, but at the same time, her answer most likely wouldn’t fully cover the question. History is fascinating because the past is both knowable and unknowable. Certain things are given but other things are subjected to a degree of wonder, what if, and truth seeking. Richard III is one those. Perhaps if he wasn’t surrounded by a murder charge, we wouldn’t care as much. Who doesn’t like a good unsolvable mystery? I should not that I am a quasi Richardian. I do not think he was a saint. I want to think that he didn’t kill his nephews, but I am not a die hard. I should also note that in addition to reading this book about the discovery of Richard III’s bones, I also watched the special about it. It’s been on in the US on the Smithsonian channel. This book gives alternates between chapters about the dig and about Richard III’s biography. In many ways the television show does a disservice to Ms. Langley. In the television program, she comes across as overly emotional, too involved. In the book, where one discovers and sees how much time, money, and effort she has invested in the product, it is easier to understand why she gets emotional. In the television show, she comes across as the total outsider, someone with little scholarly knowledge, but passion. In the book, the passion is present, but Langley’s scholarly chops are out. Her writing style is knowledgeable and accessible. She admits that she doesn’t know the scientific side of the dig and even acknowledges that her feelings about where the body was come across as silly. In many ways, she is a far more human person in the writing of this book. Additionally, I have to give Ms. Langley a large amount of credit because of her acceptable or choice of a co-writer. Langley and Jones agree about many things in regards to Richard III, but there is one key area in which they vastly disagree. This area of contention, the fate of the Princes in the Tower, is dealt with rather well in the appendices to the book. Having two co-authors with such different views actually does the book a rather good service. One, it shows it is quite possible to disagree with someone and still respect them (Langley clearly respects Jones and vice versa) and two, makes the book into more than the Richard is the maligned saint (to be fair to Langley and Jones, neither one seems to subscribe that view). The more I think about this book, the more I am willing to give it four stars. When the first rating level came into to my mind, I was thinking three stars. This was largely due to the fact that Jones points out that some contemporary writers of Richard III flatter him and only demonize him after Henry Tudor takes the throne. He suggests the change was to curry favor with Henry VII. My question is, then why isn’t the flattery of Richard III an attempt to curry favor with him? Usually this type of thing bugs me no end. When Jones first mentions the credulity issue, he doesn’t bring this point up, but he does later in the book. Late inclusion is not as good as right there, but at least the issue is raised. Additionally, the inclusion of the two opposing viewpoints gives this book a more unbiased slant then first glance suggests. It, therefore, will appeal to both sides of the Richard III as murderer debate. I should note that the galley I read did not have pictures, but these seem to be included for the final product. What I really liked was the timelines at the beginning of the book, not only of Richard III in history but also of the church where he was buried and the dig itself. The inclusion of and a detailed timeline was a wonderful idea. The only thing I would add to this boo would be a listing of abbreviations with full names. Langley goes into some detail about her work to raise money for the dig. She doesn’t over do it and the section is interesting, but there are many abbreviations for groups and sometimes it was hard to keep straight (compounded by the fact it is harder to flip back reading a computerized galley). Highly recommended. I will be buying a copy.
Chris' Fish Place
Thoughts on things, mostly books.
Disclaimer: Arc via NetgalleyAs I was finishing this book, my friend asked me why anyone should care about a king who has been dead for hundreds of years. It’s a fair question. And there is no real easy answer. Why did Philippa Langley care so much that she pretty much pushed for the dig herself? I’m sure she could tell you, but at the same time, her answer most likely wouldn’t fully cover the question. History is fascinating because the past is both knowable and unknowable. Certain things are given but other things are subjected to a degree of wonder, what if, and truth seeking. Richard III is one those. Perhaps if he wasn’t surrounded by a murder charge, we wouldn’t care as much. Who doesn’t like a good unsolvable mystery? I should not that I am a quasi Richardian. I do not think he was a saint. I want to think that he didn’t kill his nephews, but I am not a die hard. I should also note that in addition to reading this book about the discovery of Richard III’s bones, I also watched the special about it. It’s been on in the US on the Smithsonian channel. This book gives alternates between chapters about the dig and about Richard III’s biography. In many ways the television show does a disservice to Ms. Langley. In the television program, she comes across as overly emotional, too involved. In the book, where one discovers and sees how much time, money, and effort she has invested in the product, it is easier to understand why she gets emotional. In the television show, she comes across as the total outsider, someone with little scholarly knowledge, but passion. In the book, the passion is present, but Langley’s scholarly chops are out. Her writing style is knowledgeable and accessible. She admits that she doesn’t know the scientific side of the dig and even acknowledges that her feelings about where the body was come across as silly. In many ways, she is a far more human person in the writing of this book. Additionally, I have to give Ms. Langley a large amount of credit because of her acceptable or choice of a co-writer. Langley and Jones agree about many things in regards to Richard III, but there is one key area in which they vastly disagree. This area of contention, the fate of the Princes in the Tower, is dealt with rather well in the appendices to the book. Having two co-authors with such different views actually does the book a rather good service. One, it shows it is quite possible to disagree with someone and still respect them (Langley clearly respects Jones and vice versa) and two, makes the book into more than the Richard is the maligned saint (to be fair to Langley and Jones, neither one seems to subscribe that view). The more I think about this book, the more I am willing to give it four stars. When the first rating level came into to my mind, I was thinking three stars. This was largely due to the fact that Jones points out that some contemporary writers of Richard III flatter him and only demonize him after Henry Tudor takes the throne. He suggests the change was to curry favor with Henry VII. My question is, then why isn’t the flattery of Richard III an attempt to curry favor with him? Usually this type of thing bugs me no end. When Jones first mentions the credulity issue, he doesn’t bring this point up, but he does later in the book. Late inclusion is not as good as right there, but at least the issue is raised. Additionally, the inclusion of the two opposing viewpoints gives this book a more unbiased slant then first glance suggests. It, therefore, will appeal to both sides of the Richard III as murderer debate. I should note that the galley I read did not have pictures, but these seem to be included for the final product. What I really liked was the timelines at the beginning of the book, not only of Richard III in history but also of the church where he was buried and the dig itself. The inclusion of and a detailed timeline was a wonderful idea. The only thing I would add to this boo would be a listing of abbreviations with full names. Langley goes into some detail about her work to raise money for the dig. She doesn’t over do it and the section is interesting, but there are many abbreviations for groups and sometimes it was hard to keep straight (compounded by the fact it is harder to flip back reading a computerized galley). Highly recommended. I will be buying a copy.
