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169 reviews for:
The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I's Dream
Charles Spencer
3.9 AVERAGE
169 reviews for:
The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I's Dream
Charles Spencer
3.9 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Minor: Gore, Violence
This is excellent work by Charles Spencer. There is enough detail to understand the context, characters and events whilst being able to avoid being bogged down by detail. I usually enjoy the detail as it helps cement the subject matter and establishes the reasons ‘why’. Especially for why historical figures did what they did, which is extremely important as often in their times they were left with little choice against the options and expectations of the times. I felt Spencer has enabled me to understand what kind of man and king Henry I was, a strong and decent one for what the Norman period required. The significance of the death of William Eatheling is explained and the ramifications in this fascinating book. A great book and I will revisit in the future.
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
adventurous
informative
fast-paced
Enjoyable to read but it doesn't really make a point. It just tells the story of Henry I to Henry II
I just really enjoyed this. Well written, engaging and I believe well researched this looked at the White Ship disaster, what came before and the ramifications of the disaster itself. A great read all round.
Enjoyable read about the sinking of the White Ship and its effect on the Anglo-Norman realm of Henry I. There's a lot of good background information about the rise of Henry's ancestors from Rollo to William the Conqueror and Henry's own fraught ascension to the throne before tackling the sinking of the White Ship and the succession crisis thereafter.
Tends to veer off into the weeds somewhat at times with an addiction to context, most notably through the middle portion of the book, as the author seeks to explain the background around everyone mentioned even the most minor of characters.
Still it's a well told and ultimately interesting read
Tends to veer off into the weeds somewhat at times with an addiction to context, most notably through the middle portion of the book, as the author seeks to explain the background around everyone mentioned even the most minor of characters.
Still it's a well told and ultimately interesting read
I gave up at 39%. I had somehow got the idea that this would be a fictionalized story about the sinking of The White Ship and the consequences it had for England, but this is very much non-fiction about William the Conqueror, Henry I, his son William, Queen Matilda and many other people and their relationships, and I just couldn't focus on it. Charles Spencer has clearly done his research and my giving up is not his fault - it was just the wrong book at the wrong time for me. I think I need to read this, rather than listen to it.
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
adventurous
dark
informative
tense
fast-paced