Lively and engaging political intrigue, with surprisingly contemporary parallels.
Parliamentary machinations leading to the English Civil War.
In historian Healey’s thoroughly researched and compelling account, England in 1641 was jammed between choices for parliament or king; two Houses (the Lords and the Commons); and wars with Scotland and Ireland. This is the prelude to the country’s civil war, now regarded as either the last of the wars of religion or the first modern revolution—albeit fewer peasants and pitchforks and more revolt within a political elite dominated by nobles. The crux of the dispute was over “Remonstrances,” a series of objections to Charles the First’s desire for absolute rule. Paramount among these were Parliament’s right to assemble and whether bishops should be allowed to sit in the House of Lords. No issue arose without provoking opposition. “Ship money,” a levy on coastal communities to fund the Royal Navy, was a classic example. The king tried to extend the levy to inland counties without parliamentary consent. This galvanized such opposition that when Charles and his army turned up at Parliament searching for five members whom Charles regarded as traitors, they had already fled downriver. They’d been tipped off by Lucy Hay, close companion to the queen and one of history’s great eavesdroppers. It is to Healey’s credit that, while giving a detailed discussion of the complex arguments, he also evokes the many colorful characters involved. Alongside a king who teeters between pomposity and timidity, a queen who sells her jewelry in exile, and the humble-born Sir John Bankes, stuck “between a sow’s ear and the silken purse,” readers are treated to a portrait of a smoke-, smog-, and mud-filled London, together with its inhabitants. Water poets and priggish Puritans may dominate, but who can forget a particular candidate for Constable of the Tower: Thomas Lunsford, who was “heavily in debt, rarely seen at church. Some said he was a cannibal.”
Lively and engaging political intrigue, with surprisingly contemporary parallels.Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025
ISBN: 9780593803080
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
Harari delivers yet another tour de force.
A highly instructive exploration of “current affairs and…the immediate future of human societies.”
Having produced an international bestseller about human origins (Sapiens, 2015, etc.) and avoided the sophomore jinx writing about our destiny (Homo Deus, 2017), Harari (History/Hebrew Univ. of Jerusalem) proves that he has not lost his touch, casting a brilliantly insightful eye on today’s myriad crises, from Trump to terrorism, Brexit to big data. As the author emphasizes, “humans think in stories rather than in facts, numbers, or equations, and the simpler the story, the better. Every person, group, and nation has its own tales and myths.” Three grand stories once predicted the future. World War II eliminated the fascist story but stimulated communism for a few decades until its collapse. The liberal story—think democracy, free markets, and globalism—reigned supreme for a decade until the 20th-century nasties—dictators, populists, and nationalists—came back in style. They promote jingoism over international cooperation, vilify the opposition, demonize immigrants and rival nations, and then win elections. “A bit like the Soviet elites in the 1980s,” writes Harari, “liberals don’t understand how history deviates from its preordained course, and they lack an alternative prism through which to interpret reality.” The author certainly understands, and in 21 painfully astute essays, he delivers his take on where our increasingly “post-truth” world is headed. Human ingenuity, which enables us to control the outside world, may soon re-engineer our insides, extend life, and guide our thoughts. Science-fiction movies get the future wrong, if only because they have happy endings. Most readers will find Harari’s narrative deliciously reasonable, including his explanation of the stories (not actually true but rational) of those who elect dictators, populists, and nationalists. His remedies for wildly disruptive technology (biotech, infotech) and its consequences (climate change, mass unemployment) ring true, provided nations act with more good sense than they have shown throughout history.
Harari delivers yet another tour de force.Pub Date: Sept. 4, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-525-51217-2
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Spiegel & Grau
Review Posted Online: June 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2018
A rousing, suspenseful adventure tale.
A harrowing expedition to Antarctica, recounted by Departures senior features editor Sancton, who has reported from every continent on the planet.
On Aug. 16, 1897, the steam whaler Belgica set off from Belgium with young Adrien de Gerlache as commandant. Thus begins Sancton’s riveting history of exploration, ingenuity, and survival. The commandant’s inexperienced, often unruly crew, half non-Belgian, included scientists, a rookie engineer, and first mate Roald Amundsen, who would later become a celebrated polar explorer. After loading a half ton of explosive tonite, the ship set sail with 23 crew members and two cats. In Rio de Janeiro, they were joined by Dr. Frederick Cook, a young, shameless huckster who had accompanied Robert Peary as a surgeon and ethnologist on an expedition to northern Greenland. In Punta Arenas, four seamen were removed for insubordination, and rats snuck onboard. In Tierra del Fuego, the ship ran aground for a while. Sancton evokes a calm anxiety as he chronicles the ship’s journey south. On Jan. 19, 1898, near the South Shetland Islands, the crew spotted the first icebergs. Rough waves swept someone overboard. Days later, they saw Antarctica in the distance. Glory was “finally within reach.” The author describes the discovery and naming of new lands and the work of the scientists gathering specimens. The ship continued through a perilous, ice-littered sea, as the commandant was anxious to reach a record-setting latitude. On March 6, the Belgica became icebound. The crew did everything they could to prepare for a dark, below-freezing winter, but they were wracked with despair, suffering headaches, insomnia, dizziness, and later, madness—all vividly capture by Sancton. The sun returned on July 22, and by March 1899, they were able to escape the ice. With a cast of intriguing characters and drama galore, this history reads like fiction and will thrill fans of Endurance and In the Kingdom of Ice.
A rousing, suspenseful adventure tale.Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-984824-33-2
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Jan. 29, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
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