A History of Modern Britain

Andrew Marr's book is, if not a totally one-way glass facade, then certainly a pretty smeared window upon society that is clearly influenced by the naive, PC stupidity of those many refer to as the 'chattering classes'. Shallow and childlike. The professional intelligentsia, and their private armchair and public media imitators, will surely love it.

Excellent, compellint (1/1 people found this helpful)

Andrew Marr's 'History of Modern Britain' is a real tour de force - readable, entertaining and informative. The scholarship is obvious, but never detracts from the narrative. Marr covers all aspects of British history - economic, foreign relations, social - but always makes you feel you're following the narrative thread from 'then' to 'now': where we are now 'belongs'. Yet he also lets you think about how differently things might have turned out if some other set of circumstances had prevailed.
Excellent book, 'marred' (forgive the pun) only by sloppy editing, with frequent spelling mistakes and incorrect commas.

Pacy and very, very readable (1/1 people found this helpful)

This book's great advantage is that Marr was trained a journalist, not a historian. So his pace is rapid, his prose snappy and it doesn't get boring. Even in the boring bits.

This does focus a lot on the politics, but, unlike some other reviewers, I rather liked the divergences into fashion or food or theatre. I find that always brings history to life rather more than politicians in suits talking about things.

There are mistakes in the book that I spotted, which suggests there are likely to be rather more that I didn't. Sloppy, but not terminal. And let that not spoil too much what is an excellent run through the history of the last sixty years. If you are looking for an entertaining, single volume history that is readable throughout, this is the one.

Totally absorbing (1/2 people found this helpful)

Brilliant. Extremely well written with sentences that you want to re-read to relish the taste of them in your mouth. Well reserached and with interesting anecdotes as well as facts. Puts the late 20th century (and the first years of the 21st) into its historical context. I found it un-put-downable.

Interesting and entertaining if rather depressing... (2/3 people found this helpful)

I'm not much of a reader but has always had an interested in history and so this seemed to fit the bill for a book on modern history that would be readable and informative. And so it was. I was amazed by how little I know of Britain's recent history but it was interesting when I got to the 70s to note names appearing that I could remember being mentioned when I was a boy, but also a historical narrative of the 80s when I lived though it!

My only disappointment was the seemingly never-ending series of failures and disasters that seem to follow the historical journey of Britain - hardly a fault of the book but depressing all the same when it seemed there was hardly ever a political decision taken that didn't cost the country millions or was a missed opportunity to improve the lives of ordinary Britons. You're left wondering what sort of country we would be living in now if occasionally some politicians got it right for a change!

A History of Modern Britain

Andrew Marr

Reader Reviews:

A Superficial History of Modern Britain. (2/3 people found this helpful)

Excellent, compellint (1/1 people found this helpful)

Pacy and very, very readable (1/1 people found this helpful)

Totally absorbing (1/2 people found this helpful)

Interesting and entertaining if rather depressing... (2/3 people found this helpful)

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