The History of Scotland for Children

by Fiona Macdonald

Scotland's history

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Scotland

Paperback

First published June 1, 2004

About the author

Fiona Macdonald studied history at Cambridge University and at the University of East Anglia. She has taught in schools, adult education and university, and is the author of numerous books for children on historical topics.

Reviews

[Oz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Quite outdated now, and while the ancient history sections seem pretty accurate, the modern sections are very politically biased. The section on our devolved government, for example, is titled “Unpopular Parliament” – something quite at odds with the majority belief. "The parliament has been criticised for feeble policies, petty squabbles, and poor financial management" by whom? Especially when considered next to Westminster, where MPs can’t get through a single sentence without jeering from the opposition, Holyrood is quite civil. I’d consider this interesting at least in how it shows how the other side thinks, but in a history textbook for children? It makes no gesture towards other (objectively more popular, if polls are to be believed) opinions – not what you want in a teacher.

[Bob Shepherd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. Simple, well illustrated, informative.

[Giki · Rating 5 out of 5]

well thought out and well presented this book is full of illustration that really catch the kids interest. It covers Scottish history from the last ice age until the end of the 20th century. A wide range of topics are covered and there is certainly much in here that I did not know about. There are a large number of interesting illustrations (the battle scenes are very popular) and the text is divided into short topics so does not look daunting and encourages independent reading. The language used is straightforward but does not talk down to young readers - we are very happy with this book.

[Jp · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think that this is a very good book to read if you want to know the Scottish history.

[Eileen May · Rating 1 out of 5]

POLITICAL PROPAGANDA aimed at Scotland's children! AWFUL.
Fake facts, libellous comments and inacccurate "facts"
WHO IS this writer?