Nice to have a continuous history of England but it's clearly very abridged and misses a lot. ( )

I thought the pacing in this book was great, as it gives a fast-moving account of the history of England and doesn't linger too long in any one time period. However, the intended audience is clearly not novices. A lot of it would only resonate if you already have a working knowledge of a lot of the politics and wars in British history.
Also, I think I was expecting more of a social history, but instead it was centered on politics, foreign affairs, and economics.

Thanks to NetGalley and The Experiment for this digital review copy. ( )

Well, what did I expect. Trying hard to find a historical red line for England, too hard maybe. Necessarily, it can only touch upon matters in passing, no matter how relevant and no matter how complex their context. Nothing for a reader without any prior knowledge, and hardly a reasonable read for someone who has.

The Shortest History of England by James Hawes is a remarkably thorough history considering its size. Enjoyable and informative for both historians and those simply curious.

Before everyone gets up in arms, when I include historians in who would enjoy the book, I don't mean because there is going to be new material for them. But historians, both professional and amateur, tend to focus and specialize. In doing so we can easily lose sight of the bigger picture. This work serves to help keep things in context while also keeping it short. For those who simply want a general idea of the history of England, this is ideal both because it is brief and because it offers substantial notes and a bibliography so the reader can delve deeper into whatever period or events they find most interesting.

While this is not exclusively a social history, which it never claimed to be, it does include social and cultural changes alongside the political and military. Again, with the notes and bib, a reader is well armed to explore the history that appeals to them.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. ( )

A work of this length leaves a lot out, but as a high-level chronology of England from pre-Roman times to Brexit it is impressive and highly readable. If you buy the author's focus on the island's millennia long divide between North and South, the narrative is quite convincing. ( )