Brilliant Isles

by James Hawes

Explore the history of the British isles through 80 extraordinary creations -- from Beowulf and the Bayeux Tapestry to Banksy, Stormzy, and beyond...
A companion book to the landmark BBC series,
BRILLIANT ISLES tells the story of these islands through art, music, buildings and literature -- the creations of visionaries, mavericks and rule-breakers who responded to their times and shaped the future. Whether read cover-to-cover or dipped into, this is a vibrant, surprising and witty guide to a unique culture, by one of our sharpest writers.

284 pages, Kindle Edition

Reviews

[Emma Dargue · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good. Short and snappy chapters about various aspects of art that have shaped britain. These include maps,sculpture,paintings/portraits as well as examples of film and literature in the form of books and plays. The only reason I have marked it 4 stars is because I would have liked longer chapters on some of the less well known objects.

[Steve Toms · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly recommended. As an enthusiastic reader of British history this book offers a different perspective offering new insights on almost every page. Its use of art to interpret history over a period of 2000 years creates unique insights. On the other hand discussion of artefacts defers somewhat to the context of their creation - an imbalance that could have been rectified by providing references to support further understanding. Instead references are provided to other works but without spelling out the relationship to the particular topic.

[Ian Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Accompanies the excellent BBC series, presents some very intuitive insights into British history through art contemporary to the period being discussed. The book consists of 2 page articles, including a black & white illustration. The televised version takes more time on each story and is better for it. The book is a handy summary.

[Chris Bookley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Potted.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting selection of artistic pieces to illustrate the history of the British Isles with incitful commentary.

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delicious history of the arts and language that grew into English/British.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating account of the history of Britian through the artistic, literary and cultural events and objects. I learnt a lot that I hadn't known before.

Hawes writes in a very engaging style and this kept me interested throughout the book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in British history, literature and art.