In The Making of Modern Britain, Andrew Marr paints a fascinating portrait of life in Britain during the first half of the twentieth century as the country recovered from the grand wreckage of the British Empire.
Between the death of Queen Victoria and the end of the Second World War, the nation was shaken by war and peace. The two wars were the worst we had ever known and the episodes of peace among the most turbulent and surprising. As the political forum moved from Edwardian smoking rooms to an increasingly democratic Westminster, the people of Britain experimented with extreme ideas as they struggled to answer the question 'How should we live?' Socialism? Fascism? Feminism? Meanwhile, the Suffragette movement was taking shape as the popularity of the music hall soared. It was also a time that witnessed the birth of the media as we know it today and the beginnings of the welfare state.
Beyond trenches, flappers and Spitfires, this is a story of strange cults and economic madness, of revolutionaries and heroic inventors, sexual experiments and raucous stage heroines. From organic food to drugs, nightclubs and celebrities to package holidays, crooked bankers to sleazy politicians, the echoes of today's Britain can be heard throughout.
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"Fascinating book with some eye opening discussions on how the UK changed between 1900 and 1945. There is no doubt that the first 45 years of last century is still having a huge impact on the way we live today. The changes that happened during those years are just a radical as the changes that happened in the 1600s. For anyone interested in history this book is well worth reading." — James (4 out of 5 stars)
"Fascinating book with some eye opening discussions on how the UK changed between 1900 and 1945. There is no doubt that the first 45 years of last century is still having a huge impact on the way we live today. The changes that happened during those years are just a radical as the changes that happened in the 1600s. For anyone interested in history this book is well worth reading."
" Andrew Marr has a gift for making a compelling read out of dry facts, and bringing out the personalities involved. An interesting and enjoyable read. "
" Fast-paced, documentary style writing by Andrew Marr. Thoroughly enjoyed this book, although I personally believe his other tome, A History of Modern Britain, is slightly more entertaining. "
" The only thing I could fault this on the whole very entertaining and readable history of modern Britain on was that at times it read more as a biography of Churchill than what it actually was. One cannot deny that Churchill did indeed have a massive role in the period, but some of the lesser important periods of his life were covered in such detail that I wondered if nothing else could have been going on the same time that would have made for a widened study. "
" This is a book on history, yet, almost as if it were a thriller, I found I couldn't put it down. If you're looking for an accessible read about Britain from Queen Victoria to VE day try this. "
" Comprehensive and very readable. Definitely intend to read the next installment. "
" Thoroughly enjoyable and very informative. I learned so much about the Edwardian and 'entre deux guerres' periods. Names that were to me just names now have meaning. Such a disregarded period of our history. I liked the way Marr used themes to pull things together into a good narrative process. "
" Highly readable and good for filling in the embarrassing gaps in one's understanding caused by giving up history at age 13 and being a nerdy scientist "
" A very good account Victoria to the 2nd world war, Andrew Marr makes it a very easy read. "
" To understand life and culture of the British today one needs to thoroughly enjoy reading her past. Andrew Marr brings history to life, and sometimes kicking! "
" Ace. Well written, accessible, covers political, economic and cultural developments over time, avoiding teleology. Layman's history at its best. "
" One to re-visit as it covers a particularly chunky part of British History. As someone who gave up History at school aged 14 it was a good way to get back into it after so long and I will be picking this up again in the futures. "
" cheating slightly, I'm listening to the audio book! "
" Another excellent book from Andrew Marr. As good as A History of Modern Britain. Well written and very informative. As good as the TV programme but without Andrew doing his accents!! "
" Excellent. A very readable account of the first 50 years of the 20th Century in Britain. Told me a huge amoint I never knew about the forces that shaped my country. "
" I loved this book - Marr writes in a conversational way making it easy to absorb facts and interetsing bits of trivia - a thoroughly good read. "
" I wish this book had been a series of shorter books--it read like the author was trying to cover too much, so was not able to give much detail about many really interesting events/people. I'm now motivated to read more about the 1900-1945 period, though! "
" I liked the general style of this, it had some great details about the development of Britain during this time, but it did get quite dry in places - which I suppose is inevitable. It was just a bit disappointing, as the vast majority of this is engaging and informative. "
" A very interesting period in our history and made very accessible and easily understood by Andrew Marr. "
" a pleasant, gossipy account of Britain for the death of Victoria to the end of the second world war. It was written after (and I read it after) reading his history of Britain in the more recent period. "
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