I am no good at history. I'm fascinated by it, but when I try and learn it, it all just kind of swirls around my head in an interesting and informative way before dissolving into nothing. Try as I might, I will never be knowledgeable about What Happened When. The upside of this is that even at the mature'n'sensible age of 34 I can delight in the Horrible Histories series, which for most people of my age will just be a rehash of stuff they learned at school. For me, as for the kids it's aimed at, it actually can teach me stuff. The Horrible Histories and Horrible Sciences are the kind of books I would have loved as a kid - irreverent yet not patronising, ...  Read the complete review

One of the more recent books in the excellent Horrible Histories series, Loathesome London covers the history of England's capital as well as more general topics about life in Britain over the past 2,000 or so years - "the bad old days" as author Terry Deary puts it! Unlike most Horrible Histories books, Loathesome London does not specifically cover any one period in history, although the main focus of the book is London in Medieval times up to the late 19th century. Rather than a history book per se, this book is more of a collection of stories and anecdotes. Sort of like a 'best of' compilation, Deary has compiled an entertaining bunch ...  Read the complete review