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Scottish History For Dummies
£15.60£18.00 (-13%)
Explore the fascinating history of Scotland in an easy-to-read guide Want to discover how a small country on the edge of Northern Europe packs an almighty historical punch? Scottish History For Dummies is your guide to the story of Scotland and its place within the historical narratives of Britain, Europe and the rest of the world. You’ll find out how Scotland rose from the ashes to forge its own destiny, understand the impact of Scottish historical figures such as William Wallace, Robert the Bruce and David Hume and be introduced to the wonderful world of Celtic religion, architecture and monuments. History can help us make connections with people and events, and it gives us an understanding of why the world is like it is today. Scottish History For Dummies pulls back the curtain on how the story of Scotland has shaped the world far beyond its borders. From its turbulent past to the present day, this informative guide sheds a new and timely light on the story of Scotland and its people. Dig into a wealth of fascinating facts on the Stone, Bronze and Iron ages Get to know how Scotland was built into an industrial economy by inventors, explorers and missionaries Discover the impact of the world wars on Scotland and how the country has responded to challenges created by them Find up-to-the-minute information on Scotland’s referendum on independence If you’re a lifelong learner looking for a fun, factual exploration of the grand scope of Scotland or a traveler wanting to make the most of your trip to this captivating country, Scottish History For Dummies has you covered.
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Additional information
| Publisher | 1st edition (29 Aug. 2014), For Dummies |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 336 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1118676157 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1118676158 |
| Dimensions | 18.8 x 2.03 x 23.62 cm |
by marion
This is a good way for people to learn about the history ofScotland. Accessible and interesting.
by Fenechs
The audio book version was horrendous to listen too. The factual errors such as mismatched dates within the book mentioned by a previous reviewer were annoying. However the biggest question is Why was a narrator selected who could not pronounce simple Scots placenames like Culloden, Dunfirmline and Ayr. These are just a few or many errors which rendered the book totally put-down-able.
by Historia
An excellent guide to Scottish history, in bite-sized chunks that give all the main themes, plus a lot of those lesser known facts that only a true academic of Scottish history could know. A top book for anyone wishing to know everything about Scotland over the past 1000 years.
by DhO
As a keen student of Scottish history and an admirer of the Dummies books I was looking forward to reading this offering. But I am left disappointed.
The scope of Dr Knox’s work is admirable: covering, as advertised, “from the Stone Age to today”. Alas the humorous tone of Dummies is lacking, but perhaps the plethora of exclamation marks to indicate where the reader should be chuckling put me off. Parenthesis is much in evidence too, e.g. “Mary was an attractive, tall (nearly 183 centimetres [6 feet]!)…”
More troubling though are the factual errors. For instance, the introduction tells us on page 1 that “Scotland has been a unitary state since 1470”, but seven pages later 1460 is quoted as the date when Norway ceded the Northern Isles. (In fact it was 1468). Agricola we are told was the son-in-law of Tacitus rather than the father-in-law. On page 103 we are told (correctly) that James II died in 1460; but by page 114 this becomes 1451. And then there’s the repeated references to coronation rather than royal inauguration and the addition of “for Scotland” to the office of secretary of state.
I suspect these errors are indicative of poor editing rather than scholarship as the indexing of the book leaves much to be desired as well.
It’s not all bad though. The final section giving ten places to visit, ten little-known people and ten Scottish inventions was very enjoyable.
by Morwenna
So easy to dip into – has filled a lot of gaps since I learnt Scottish history in school as a child. Just been on a road trip up the west coast and across central Scotland to Edinburgh, and it was invaluable.
by J
A few of the reviews reckon that the author doesn’t delve deep enough.
As a beginner to reading up on Scottish history I learnt a lot. Some of my common misconceptions were dispelled and I felt I had learnt a lot. This book is great as an introduction and the reader can go and delve further if he/she wants to but for me this was enough (for the moment).
Incidentally , it came in useful for a college project a few months later which saved me a lot of library/internet research time. I’m sure its a book I will refer to time and time again, even if just to remind myself of particular areas of history.
by Amazon Customer
Great book for follow up reference & easy read.
by Norman Hunter
I might have recieved a higher grade if I’d read this first but would an academic have accepted the honest truth