Book review: The British Are Coming by Rick Atkinson

The British Are Coming: The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777 by Rick Atkinson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A friend gave this book to my husband, but I borrowed it (temporarily, of course) because it looked so interesting. There are generally two types of history books–a narrative history or an agenda-driven history. This is a narrative history.
The second thing I will say about this book is that it is dense. (Which should go without saying since it is 800 pages (including index and bibliography) and covers only 3 years of the Revolutionary War.) It is the first in a planned trilogy.
Finally, I will say if this is a period in history that interests you, this book is a must read. The author uses a plethora of primary sources, and he is skilled at describing both battles–in detail including the location of trees and the weather–and the overall strategy. People get short shrift in this tome, but if you want to know more about the major players of either the American or British side, there are plenty of biographies available. But if what you want is a timeline of the events of the Revolutionary War, how they unfolded, and why they unfolded the way they did, this is definitely the book for you.
Now I’m off to read something light and frothy…but I highly recommend this book!




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Book review: The Attenbury Emeralds by Jill Paton Walsh

The Attenbury Emeralds (Lord Peter Wimsey/Harriet Vane, #3)

The Attenbury Emeralds by Jill Paton Walsh

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I love the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries written by Dorothy Sayers. Jill Paton Walsh has continued the series ably although without as much of the quirky spark as the original series. This particular book is fascinating in that it starts with a case that Lord Peter solved many years ago that is connected to a case brought to Lord Peter and Harriet over thirty years later. The original story was an interesting mystery whose clues are worth paying attention to if you want to solve the current mystery.
And while these books do not have quite the same originality or flavor of the originals, they are a more than adequate substitute, and I have enjoyed them very much. One more in the series to go!



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