Tiny Histories

by Dixe Wills

In 1831, 26-year-old Captain Robert FitzRoy advertised for a companion to join him on a voyage to South America. The ship was the HMS Beagle; the successful applicant the young Charles Darwin; the result of the voyage the theory of natural selection. This entertaining compendium of 40 historical anecdotes, whose topics include science, politics, food and literature, illustrates how seemingly insignificant events can alter the course of history.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, British Literature, Historical

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2017

About the author

Assuming for a moment that we are what we do, I’m an author and freelance non-flying travel journalist. I’ve written a number of genre-bending books and one or two that give librarians fewer dilemmas. My most recent work is Tiny Stations (AA) which is a journey through the penumbric world of Britain’s railway request stops. Prior to Tiny Stations, I penned Tiny Islands (AA) and Tiny Campsites (Punk). Before the mania for all things tiny struck me, I managed to knock out a few non-size-specific books, including The Z-Z of Great Britain, Places to Hide in England, Scotland and Wales, New World Order (Wills Weltordnung in its Bloomsbury Berlin edition) and, under the name Johnson P Johnson, The Armchair Naturalist (all Icon).

I write for the UK newspaper The Guardian, mainly on green travel. You can read my articles here. You might also find me popping up in other newspapers (though not ones owned by Rupert Murdoch or edited by Paul Dacre, you’ll be pleased to learn) and magazines, some of which you’ll find listed here. I host a monthly spoken word night-cum-pub quiz mash up called Stranger than Fiction that you really ought to come along to because it’s great fun and only costs six quid. I also have a cracking Isle of Dogs-based romcom script unjustly gathering dust in a cupboard. Is there no start to my talents?

Reviews

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book for dipping in and out of: I have been picking it up in idle moments and reading one or two episodes at a time and it is perfect for that approach. It's a collection of short pieces each of which tells, briefly, the story of an apparently inconsequential event that turned out to be hugely influential over British history.

For example, the very first episode tells us about Ealdor Byrhtnoth, a Saxon leader in 991, who was fighting off an invasion of Norwegians. Curiously, Byrhtnoth thought that defending a gap that meant just three of his men could hold off the entire Norwegian contingent was unfair, so he invited the whole opposing army out into the open so that they could have a fair fight. Only it wasn't fair because Byrhtnoth was massively outnumbered and, therefore, slaughtered. This set off a whole chain of events that led eventually to King Harold II's army arriving exhausted at Hastings and losing to William the Conqueror. And the rest, as they say, is history.

There are anecdotes about war, food, science, politics, music & literature and health & safety. The book is written in a light-hearted, easy to read way and it's an entertaining way to fill in some idle moments during the day.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Abandoned on page 21 of 224. This is supposed to be about tiny decisions that changed history.
The first one is about a battle on Northey Island. I happen to know about this particular battle already. Basically the Vikings are on the island and can’t get off to fight the Anglo-Saxons because of the narrowness of the causeway. The leader of the Anglo-Saxons agrees to let the Vikings come ashore to fight and then loses. The author says this is stupid as the Anglo-Saxons should have waited for reinforcements to arrive. However the Vikings had their boats with them and if not let ashore they would just have moved on and raided elsewhere. This is what the Anglo-Saxons were trying to avoid. The author then claims that if the Anglo-Saxons had won the battle the Vikings wouldn’t have continued raiding Britain. I don’t believe this to be true. The momentum of events in the period would have led to more raids whatever the result.
The second tiny decision is about the war of Jenkins’ ear. Here there is an incident where an English ship captain Jenkins has his ear cut off by a Spanish captain. Supposedly this leads to war. However the author himself states that it was a whole eight years later that the British used this event as an excuse to start a war with Spain. If the ear hadn’t been cut off the British would just have found another excuse for the war.
In both cases I didn’t feel the tiny decisions led to the results claimed.

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actually 2.5*, but I'm being nice.

This is a series of short historical vignettes across a variety of categories. Wills has a rather spiky sense of humour that can be a bit jarring if you don't precisely share his opinions. He is also rather constrained by the brief of the book to assign the events in the book rather more importance than they actually had. For example, he attributes the continuing Viking raids on Britain exclusively to a local Earl who unwisely agreed to sacrifice a defensive position for honour. This is shaky at best, outright misleading at worst. It is based on an account that is (and I suppose I should let it be known that I have only wikipedia and my own good sense here) widely-reckoned to be fictionalised, and assumes that repelling one group of Viking raiders would have put them off for good. Pretty much every story in the book has problems like this: assigning all the significance of the wider currents of history to a single event

Regardless, the stories are pretty interesting, and the book is an entertaining read.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dixe Wells specializes in the tiny. I’ve read another of his books about tiny islands around England. Very similar, easy to read, perfect for taking on a trip, leaving in your car or a trip to the waiting room at your doctor’s office. In this case the “histories” are supposed to describe events that changed British history. Some are not exactly what I’d call history changing events but they are usually fun to read about.

The book’s subtitle begins with “trivial events and trifling decisions,” which is pretty accurate. This is not “a horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse” stuff. A couple of the more interesting chapters are “Captain Robert FitzRoy is in need of a dinner companion” (Charles Darwin) and “A former colonel rides his motorcycle through a dip in the road” (T.H. Lawrence’s doctor after his fatal accident shows the need for helmets.

One example of an event that isn’t exactly earthshaking or left behind lasting contribution tells how 4 German men (Kraftwerk) made a 2 minute tv appearance and pointed the way towards electronic pop music. Not world changing.

[Plum-crazy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Tiny Histories" does just what it promises & recounts "trivial events & trifling decisions that changed British history". It's a series of short accounts, divided into different sections such as "Food", "Politics" & "Health & Safety", that show how an apparently inconsequential incident can often have a huge & unexpected impact, to the extent that our history could have taken a completely different course. I mean, can you imagine what our world today would be like if a farmer hadn't shot a potato eating pig way back in 1859? Bet you can't....

The chapters are short making it one of those books that's perfect for dipping in & out of. Some chapters are more interesting than others & for me, being close to Bradford, I was interested to learn that the people of the city briefly developed a taste for arsenic. Who knew that? (actually my hubby did when I told him. Huh - no-one likes a smart arse...)

[Paul Kearney · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Tiny Histories' Seemingly benign and chance events that vibrated to changed the world forever- Hitler was saved by British solider Henry Tandy in the first world war.
Howard Wilson only became PM, Because he demanded the BBC move step-toe and son, Out of its primetime slot the day of the election.
The South army had the first attack submarine, It successfully sunk the Housatonic in 1864 in the American civil war.
Vacca in Vaccine is Latin for cow, Because it was noticed milk maids didn't get small pox, And investigations created the first vaccine, Along with the first anti-vaxxer movement.

[Ronald Schoedel III · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun book to pick up from time to time, as it’s got dozens of standalone vignettes from history.

Ever think back on your life and wonder how things would be if x, y, or z had gone differently? This book brings together a bunch of seemingly coincidental events or trivial decisions taken, which in hindsight had monumental implications. Some seem more grounded in fact than others, whilst some seem like a bit of a stretch.

Wills is an entertaining author, whose trademark sense of humour is present throughout.

Very enjoyable read.

[Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d give this 3.5 stars.

It does have a lot of interesting stories and details, but also a lot of what feels like filler. I’m not sure the author had enough good quality material to justify an entire book, as a lot of what’s here could be discovered via Wikipedia or google. I probably found a third interesting and new, a third not very interesting, and a third I already knew.
Fine as throwaway fun, definitely a one and done read.

[Isla Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick and easy read. I liked that its separated into different sections for stories relating to different types of history, such as politics, war, food and health and safety.

Some of the stories are less interesting than others but their all quite short, rarely over 4 pages long and they make for a relatively diverting read.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

i enjoyed this what ifs book of , sometimes woes!! it is amazing when someone like this author digs and delves into historical events and finds out more about them, as its often the case that we are either brought up on or learn about them in a very limited way, and we thus then we think we know all about that particular event.

[Malcolm · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quirky collection of small moments in history that made a big difference. From deadly humbugs to the war of Jenkin's ear. A sort of light-hearted yet detailed 'Tipping Point'. Hope the author unearthed enough mayerial for a second volume.

[Gareth Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an odd book. Some of the “tiny histories” did have a huge impact on British History. Others, such as how Bird’s custard started, did not. Some are really interesting, others not but as each individual story is no more than 4 or 5 pages there’s always something else soon.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wills looks at various points in history that might have been small but ended up making a big impact on Britain's history. A mixed bag really as some of the tales were extremely interesting while others not so much. Well written and a good book to dip in and out of.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Majority of the stories are well presented and interestingly described, though a few reasonings are a bit far-fetched. Still, it's worth a read!

[Bookwormthings · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun book to dip in and out of.

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

A variety of topics, no entry is too long so it is very much a dip into book. Some topics were of little interest to me personally but I appreciate that it is for a wider audience than just me.

[Maya Bundy · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like a 3.5- loved the writing and the humour

[Mick Meyers · Rating 3 out of 5]

An I interesting read with some I didnt know that facts,not exactly correcting misapprehension about history but giving that extra detail,just to make it more interesting.

[Andrew Buchanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read... really enjoyed it, great fun and interesting

[Stuart Haining · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10 5% DHB. A surprisingly entertaining and funny tale of little known moments in history that have changed lives in the UK and occasionally around the planet for ever. Worth reading if on Offer.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amusing trip through British history.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating