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The Great and the Terrible: The World's Most Glorious and Notorious Rulers and How They Got Their Names
This fun, quirky, and engaging fully illustrated history anthology features twenty-five amazing and terrifying rulers for middle grade readers to discover.
We've heard of Alexander the Great. We've heard of Ivan the Terrible. But what was so Great about Alexander? What was so Terrible about Ivan? Spanning centuries of history in a culturally diverse framework-from ancient India to nineteenth-century Hawaii, and with a balanced focus on notorious women rulers as well as male, The Great and the Terrible takes a humorous look at some of the most glorious and notorious figures in history through the lens of the nicknames they're remembered by.
While some of the characters mentioned here are more prominent in world history (Cyrus the Great introduced the world's first human rights charter), others are well known only within their own cultures. The Great and the Terrible gives middle-grade readers an opportunity to dip into the breadth of world history, sampling its cultural diversity and its stranger-than-fiction historical exploits, with a mix of the sensational and the serious. It helps to correct the imbalance in many history books that currently only focus on Western Civilization, shining the spotlight on achievements (and foibles) in many different cultures.
We've heard of Alexander the Great. We've heard of Ivan the Terrible. But what was so Great about Alexander? What was so Terrible about Ivan? Spanning centuries of history in a culturally diverse framework-from ancient India to nineteenth-century Hawaii, and with a balanced focus on notorious women rulers as well as male, The Great and the Terrible takes a humorous look at some of the most glorious and notorious figures in history through the lens of the nicknames they're remembered by.
While some of the characters mentioned here are more prominent in world history (Cyrus the Great introduced the world's first human rights charter), others are well known only within their own cultures. The Great and the Terrible gives middle-grade readers an opportunity to dip into the breadth of world history, sampling its cultural diversity and its stranger-than-fiction historical exploits, with a mix of the sensational and the serious. It helps to correct the imbalance in many history books that currently only focus on Western Civilization, shining the spotlight on achievements (and foibles) in many different cultures.
176 pages, Hardcover
Published September 15, 2020
2 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 6, 2021
Very fun and entertaining - and includes many rulers I wasn't already familiar with. One minor issue I had was that the bios didn't exactly flow. Included in each were intriguing sidebars and insets...but the placement of these completely messed with the text. Still super quick and enjoyable!
February 18, 2022
Fun and informative. I particularly liked the inclusion of what was going on in the world during the good rulers' reigns and the what living during the bad rulers' reigns might have been like. It added some fun global context. I enjoyed the sidebars of information, though I think they had more information than the actual text sometimes, so I feel that the formatting there was an interesting choice. All the same, the context added a lot. I also appreciated the caveats included in the bad rulers' section, saying that different records have different opinions of those rulers, and that it often depended on the biases of those writing the records.
However, the very first section is about Hatshepsut - awesome! - and in the "When Hatshepsut was Pharaoh" section, it says that "the chariot was the vehicle of choice in the civilized world," and I object strongly to the use of the word "civilized" in this context.
Overall, it's a great way for kids to learn about some fun historical facts about some interesting rulers. Might be a good hook for kids who need the entry into the subject.
However, the very first section is about Hatshepsut - awesome! - and in the "When Hatshepsut was Pharaoh" section, it says that "the chariot was the vehicle of choice in the civilized world," and I object strongly to the use of the word "civilized" in this context.
Overall, it's a great way for kids to learn about some fun historical facts about some interesting rulers. Might be a good hook for kids who need the entry into the subject.
June 30, 2021
I read 3/4 of this book, enough to get a sense of the lay out and selected subjects.
I found it entertaining and educational; however, I wished for a different method of organization. Instead of groupings of “Greats” and “Terrible” I would have preferred a chronological listing or geographical listing so the two categories intermingled. I also wanted a more consistent format for the text features included for each ruler. Overall a satisfactory introduction to famous and infamous leaders throughout history.
I found it entertaining and educational; however, I wished for a different method of organization. Instead of groupings of “Greats” and “Terrible” I would have preferred a chronological listing or geographical listing so the two categories intermingled. I also wanted a more consistent format for the text features included for each ruler. Overall a satisfactory introduction to famous and infamous leaders throughout history.
December 5, 2020
Very informative shining light on monarchs in the past and even trying to show the negative aspects of the "great" monarchs and being fair to some of the "terrible" monarchs. I do have to note I saw a mistake in the back when noting other terrible rulers, Yazdgerd was king from 399 to 420 AD. The book has him down as reigning in B.C.E. about 800 years before he was born.
September 8, 2022
THE GREAT AND THE TERRIBLE is about the best and worst people in history. This is divided into The Great and the Terrible - glorious leaders and notorious rules. Each section covers basic stats, what was so good (or terrible) about them, a little about their history, their legacy, and a little about what life was like during that time. Older elementary schoolers and middle schoolers will enjoy this brief and different way to approach history.
March 2, 2021
I didn't read this cover to cover, but I read enough to have the gist. Good for middle grade biography and history fans. Not a deep dive, but a fine introduction to rulers I hadn't necessarily heard of before. Does a good job with covering a wide variety of locations, rather than typical Euro-centric fare.
June 5, 2021
This is a wonderful book for people of all ages who enjoy learning about the great and the gruesomely terrible!
November 26, 2021
This is a beautifully illustrated book, with some fantastic information about some incredibly fascinating people (both men and women) throughout history. A fun read for all ages!
October 21, 2021
Pretty good I like learning about Bloody Mary definetly
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews