STORY
Hunt for the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and the Wedding that Shocked Europe
by John Guy and Julia Fox
(Bloomsbury £30, 624pp)
She wasn't one of the most beautiful women in the world. A contemporary Venetian diarist described Anne Boleyn as having “unusually dark skin, a long neck and a wide mouth”. She wasn't voluptuous either, but rather had “flat breasts”. But she was lively and flirtatious, with dark, sparkling eyes that made the recipient of her gaze feel like they were the only ones who mattered.
This confidence drove a king crazy, wanting to break with the Pope in Rome – a 16th century Brexit – to annul his first marriage and marry her instead.
LR: Feisty: Claire Foy plays the ill-fated Anne Boleyn in Wolf Hall; Hunt for the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and the Wedding that Shook Europe by John Guy and Julia Fox (Bloomsbury £30, 624 pages)
The history of Henry VIII's court, with all its petty intrigues and high politics, is well known, but rarely has it been brought to life with as much verve and attention to detail as by the two historians John Guy and Julia Fox.
Her Anne is a surprisingly modern woman with ambitions to be more than just a docile royal consort. She wanted to have influence; about Henry, about religious reforms, about international politics.
And so she did, until she failed in her most important duty – to give a son and heir to her husband, whose Tudor dynasty was in doubt. And when he turned against her, her eyes flashed in vain, and at the age of 35 and after 1,000 days as queen, her head was lost in the Tower of London.
Kill Thatcher
by Rory Carroll
(Mudlark £25, 416pp)
Front: Margaret Thatcher and husband Denis after the IRA bomb in Brighton, 1984; Killing Thatcher by Rory Carroll (Mudlark £25, 416pp)
The mockery apparently hit home and unsettled the Iron Lady. The IRA had unsuccessfully tried to kill Margaret Thatcher with a bomb planted at the Grand Hotel in Brighton during the Tory party conference there in 1984.
She barely survived, but they later reminded her: “We only have to get lucky once; “You always have to be lucky.” One of her close associates said, “The quote stuck with her. “It was something you wouldn't forget.”
How close she came to death that October day is the focus of this careful and gripping reconstruction of the horrific IRA bombing campaign that culminated in the Brighton seafront hotel.
A few weeks earlier, Republican terrorist Patrick “Chancer” Magee from Belfast had checked into the hotel under a false name and hidden a bomb prepared for remote detonation in the bathroom of room 629.
When it exploded, it tore a torrent of destruction through ceiling after ceiling into the first floor Napoleon Suite, where it missed Thatcher by inches. If she had stayed on the toilet two minutes longer, she would have taken the full blow and almost certainly would have died. In such moments the story turns.
Once A King: The Lost Memoir of Edward VIII
by Jane Marguerite Tippett
(Hodder & Stoughton £25, 384pp)
LR: The Duke and Duchess of Windsor after the abdication; Once A King: The Lost Memoir of Edward VIII by Jane Marguerite Tippett (Hodder & Stoughton £25, 384pp)
The former king confessed his guilt. “I knew I was falling in love with another man’s wife and should have backed off.”
But he couldn't give her up because “Wallis brought something into my life that wasn't there before.” Rather than lose Mrs. Simpson, Edward VIII abdicated his throne in 1936, plunging Britain and its royal family into a crisis that they struggled to survive.
Ten years later, the current Duke of Windsor was persuaded to give his perspective on these momentous events to the American journalist Charles Murphy for Life magazine. Once he started talking, Edward didn't stop, and his memories, collected over four years, formed a unique insider account of the abdication.
Murphy later submitted his papers to Boston University, where they were unearthed by archivist and author Jane Marguerite Tippett – box after box of notes and memos, including Edward's own first drafts, scrawled on yellow legal pads.
Here was the authentic and unheard voice of the man who had once been king. It tells his story as he saw it, lived it and remembered it.
His flaws, weaknesses, naivety and mistakes are on full display, but so are his intelligence, his loyalty, his love and his determination. A captivating read that breaks new ground.
Emperor of Rome
Emperor of Rome by Mary Beard (Profile £30, 512 pages)
by Mary Beard
(Profile £30, 512 per person)
How did it feel to be one of the nearly 30 emperors who ruled Rome on a whim for 250 years, from the first Augustus, who ended the Republic and seceded in 27 BC? declared princeps until the last Alexander Severus, who was murdered by mutineers? Soldiers in 235 AD?
That is the daunting task that Cambridge classicist Mary Beard has set for herself in a follow-up to SPQR, her bestseller on the history of ancient Rome.
“Can we take a look at these real people in all their ordinary human diversity and fragility?” she asks. “What was it like to be the ruler in a courtly culture of deference, deception and dystopia?” What did it feel like to be the only person who knew that no one could ever be trusted if you told them the truth?
She paints a convincing portrait of these demigods, their barbarism, their weaknesses, their sexual excesses, the catamites who served them, the women and children who betrayed them, the bloodshed battles for succession when someone died, the constant fear of it Stabbed in the back. But also the exhausting hard work of governing, decision-making, travel, wars. Full of fascinating details and anecdotes.
The Weimar years: rise and fall 1918–1933
by Frank McDonough
(Apollo £35, 592 per person)
The Weimar Years: Rise and Fall 1918-1933 by Frank McDonough (Apollo £35, 592pp)
When a war comes to an end, there is a good chance that the circumstances and grievances that cause the next one have already arisen. This was certainly the case in 1918, as McDonough's in-depth analysis of the political, economic and social situation into which Germany was transforming with the unsatisfactory post-war settlement clearly shows.
The Weimar Republic was a democratic exercise that simply failed. The autocratic emperor was shown the door, but the system that replaced him was a nightmare of infighting and indecision.
Part of the reason for this was the ridiculous proliferation of political parties and a system of proportional representation that diluted power to the point where it could no longer be exercised. In 15 years there have been 20 different coalition governments under a succession of chancellors, lasting an average of just nine months.
Added to this was the economic chaos caused by the victorious Western nations, particularly France, demanding crippling reparations to punish Germany for going to war – and vengefully kicking the defeated country when it was already on the verge of war Kneeling was, and driving it into bankruptcy, poverty and inflation.
Politics took to the streets, and a previously unknown agitator named Adolf Hitler appeared to promote his concept of the Führer as the only solution – and the next war was a certainty.
Jobs for the girls
by Ysenda Maxtone Graham
(Abacus £22, 320pp)
Jobs For The Girls by Ysenda Maxtone Graham (Abacus £22, 320pp)
In the 1960s, Julia Wigan's father taught his three daughters Latin, a seemingly enlightened activity for a man of his generation. But his reason, he told them, was so that as grown women they “would have something to think about while doing the dishes.”
This was the prevailing attitude towards girls getting a good education and having a career. It didn't make much sense as 17-year-old Cicely McCulloch's father told her: “You're absolutely bedridden and getting married.”
According to this fascinating snapshot of women and work from around 1950 to 1990, such sexist attitudes were appalling but commonplace.
Through interviews with 200 women, social historian Ysenda Maxtone Graham reveals a world of blatant and uncompromising discrimination, limited horizons (hardly beyond secretarial work and nursing), low expectations, condescension, contempt and constant degradation, unequal pay and oppression, and occasional sexual exploitation.
The male prejudice is breathtaking. When Alison Keighley, a trainee doctor, asked a surgeon why there were so few women in surgery, he scoffed: “Because they are temperamentally and physiologically unsuitable.”
Some men felt humiliated when their wives went to work, as if their role as breadwinner was being questioned. But fortunately, these chauvinistic attitudes were to change with the end of the 20th century.
Babi Yar
by A. Anatoly Kuznetsov
(Vintage Classics £20, 528pp)
Babi Yar by A. Anatoli Kuznetsov (Vintage Classics £20, 528pp)
This first-hand story of a ravine on the outskirts of Kiev where mass killings took place is rightly hailed as a masterpiece. In its intimacy, imagery and immediacy, it leaves one in despair that such terrible atrocities were actually committed. That it is about Ukraine, a country and a people whose suffering continues to this day, makes it even more poignant.
Both Stalin and Hitler experienced their worst there long before Putin; Subjugation, starvation, slaughter. The historical failure of the people's resistance back then is the popular memory that drives their passionate resistance today.
This book was first published in the Soviet Union in 1961, but only after the Kremlin used events such as the deliberate famine of 1933, when Stalin confiscated the country's grain and starved five million people, to punish peasants who resisted the country's collectivization. brought to light to death.
Author Anatoly Kuznetsov had no choice but to submit to censorship if it was to be published at all, and in an abridged, pro-Soviet form, his book sold millions of copies, making him a prominent writer in Russia.
But he kept the original secretly and it was published in its entirety in the West in 1970. It is this text that has now been reprinted. Read this and cry.
ART
By Bel Mooney
Thunderclap
by Laura Cumming
(Chatto & Windus £25, 272pp)
Thunderclap by Laura Cumming (Chatto & Windus £25, 272pp)
Many people will have read Donna Tartt's blockbuster The Goldfinch without knowing the full story behind this mysterious, jewel-like trompe l'oeil painting depicting a life-sized bird chained to a strange birdhouse.
Laura Cumming cleverly links this work of art, the life and death of its young Dutch artist Carel Fabritius and the accidental destruction of a city with memories of her father, the Scottish artist James Cumming, who also died too early.
In her twenties, Cumming experienced a coup de foudre in front of a strange, obscure painting in the National Gallery by a little-known contemporary of Vermeer called Fabritius. He died at the age of 32 in the terrible gunpowder explosion on October 12, 1654 that devastated beautiful Delft.
Cumming takes this story, places it in the context of the Dutch Golden Age and reflects on the power of art to change lives. A fascinating, ambitious and loving mix of art history and personal memoir, this beautifully illustrated book invites reading and re-reading.
Monet: The Restless Vision
by Jackie Wullschläger
(Allen Lane £35, 576pp)
Monet: The Restless Vision by Jackie Wullschläger (Allen Lane £35, 576pp)
It is astonishing that there has never been an English biography of the 19th-century genius who revolutionized texture and light in painting. What would the history of modern art be without Claude Monet?
This beautiful study by esteemed art critic Jackie Wullschläger places the father of impressionism in the turmoil of late 19th-century France and the first two decades of the 20th century, revealing the upheavals of a complex personal life as he moved from naturalism to impressionism.
The book takes us from his privileged childhood through love, rejection and penniless struggle on the long road to Giverny – and to those famous, almost abstract water lilies. This critical and sensitive biography of a dynamic painter (and a somewhat miserly man) deserves awards.
A place in itself: The artist's studio 1400-1900
by Caroline Chapman
(Unicorn £25, 168pp)
A Place Apart: The Artist's Studio 1400-1900 by Caroline Chapman (Unicorn £25, 168pp)
Last year I stood in Rembrandt's top-floor studio in Amsterdam and imagined him painting his colors under that roof. His famous work The Artist in His Studio (painted when he was only 22) shows how images of artists' studios can convey profound truths about the work.
It's a fascinating genre, now collected and celebrated by Caroline Chapman. It is suitably handsome, showing and describing the studios and practices of famous artists from Leonardo to Vincent Van Gogh.
The cliché of the penniless artist toiling in a run-down attic was often the reality. But during the Renaissance, young artists learned their craft in busy workshops, while Michelangelo's “studio” for four years was the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Packed with information, anecdotes and analysis, this is a perfect gift for a dedicated art lover.
STOCKING FILLERS
By Mark Mason
Still a bit of bite in the celery
by Marcus Berkmann
(Abacus £16.99, 224 pages)
Still A Bit of Snap in the Celery by Marcus Berkmann (Abacus £16.99, 224 SP)
“If there was a human equivalent of WD40,” writes Marcus Berkmann, “life would be unimaginably improved.” In the early years of his age, starting at age six, Berkmann became an expert in the weaknesses of the mature male body. His knees are like “cookies,” and under my eyes I have “bags that could carry groceries.”
But he knows he's not really old yet. There's still that certain quickness mentioned in the title, and “You'll notice when you get really old because people will start describing you as 'spry.'” He also doesn't want to be 20 again: “Being young is a joke.” “I'm not young anymore, and I'm not a fool anymore, and I don't miss any state at all.”
This wonderful book is not only funny, it is also wise. Berkmann has found his way in life, and for my money it's awesome: “The older I get, the more I feel like laziness is to blame.” We've all proven ourselves, and if not, it's now a little late to try.”
Clear thinking obviously runs in his family. A few months ago, someone suggested Berkmann's mother go on a sugar-free diet. “I’m 91,” she replied, “and for me, a life without cake is a life not worth living.”
Have a little faith
by Reverend Kate Bottley
(Penguin £18.99, 240pp)
Have a Little Faith by Reverend Kate Bottley (Penguin £18.99, 240pp)
Reverend Kate Bottley first came to global attention when she and a couple whose wedding she was officiating staged a surprise “flash mob” dance during the service.
The video has been viewed millions of times on YouTube – you can see most of the community joining in, but my favorite moment comes at 1 minute and 35 seconds when two old ladies walk out in protest. Enough TV and radio producers disagreed with me that Bottley became that dreaded beast, the famous vicar. This book is a summary of her thoughts on religion, although there is still room to remind us that she is available for pantomime, that she met Kylie Minogue (twice) and that “I like a party on Strictly Come Dancing would organize.” .
That being said, there is a lot in the book that makes you think. I liked Bottley's awareness that taking the Bible literally makes you look stupid: there are instructions not to eat shrimp or wear mixed fibers, for example.
But whatever the source of their lessons, some of them applied to me, such as the need to “look down the hill” every now and then – to feel good about the things you've accomplished rather than about yourself to worry about the things you have achieved.” T. There is also a practical tip about dog collars: if I wear one, I can practically always secure a double seat on the train. I'm ordering one now.
Abroad in Japan: Ten Years in the Land of the Rising Sun
by Chris Broad
(Bantam £12.99, 320pp)
British graduate Chris Broad went to Japan to teach English but found fame with his YouTube videos explaining the country to Westerners. There's the KFC Christmas Day Feast, which costs 5,800 yen (around £30) for the full deal: whole chicken, fillets in red wine sauce, fries and Christmas cake. It's so popular that you'll need to pre-order it in October.
And if you can't manage to climb Mount Fuji to breathe in the legendary clear air at its peak, you can always buy a can of it.
LR: Abroad in Japan: Ten Years in the Land of the Rising Sun by Chris Broad (Bantam £12.99, 320pp); Abroad in Japan: Ten Years in the Land of the Rising Sun by Chris Broad (Bantam £12.99, 320pp)
Don't stop the music
by Justin Lewis
(Elliott & Thompson £16.99, 256 per person)
The deliciously simple conceit – pop facts from every day of the year – lets Lewis move widely and freely, to mesmerizing effect. Radio Caroline was named after JFK's daughter, Dolly Parton sells a dog clothing brand called Doggy Parton, and the Walker Brothers were not brothers. It wasn't until 1999 that the UK Top 40 saw a song called “Thursday's Child” (Thursday's Child by David Bowie – the rest of the week was covered by then). Brian Eno composed the start-up jingle for Windows 95 on a Mac, while Cliff Richard released his first single on the day Michael Jackson was born.
As always in the world of pop, there are some bizarre scenes. During a performance by the Bay City Rollers in 1975, their helicopter landed on an island in the middle of a lake in Leicestershire, whereupon 50,000 fans began wading through the water to reach them. Many had to be saved. “Meanwhile, Tony Blackburn, covering the event for BBC Radio 1, circles the action in a speedboat piloted by a man in a Womble costume.”
Half human
by Stan McMurtry
(Pressman House £11.99, 329 per person)
At his lowest point after the breakdown of a long marriage, protagonist Fergus can hardly believe his luck when he meets Jenny, the woman of his dreams. Completely overwhelmed, he never thought it was possible to experience love in this way and feels that his fate has completely changed. Our happy lovers quickly marry and find a holiday home in a charming village in the Kent countryside.
The place is dilapidated and needs a lot of work, but they are happy about it and excited to build a house together. Things couldn't be going better – apart from the occasional sounds of creaking floorboards upstairs, which they attribute to a friendly ghost.
When Fergus discovers an old diary hidden behind a bedroom wall, he begins to read. Written by Eliza, a young girl who lived in the cabin 150 years ago, it details several horrific local murders, and her house ghost suddenly seems less friendly. The horror increases the deeper Fergus delves into Eliza's diary, and it's not long before Jenny says she can't live there anymore. This spooky crime novel by Mac, the Mail's legendary cartoonist and novelist, writing here under his real name, is a gripping page-turner. Fabulous.
Review by Sara Lawrence