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  • A History of Britain: Volume 3

  • By: Simon Schama
  • Narrated by: Stephen Thorne
  • Length: 20 hrs and 38 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (586 ratings)
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A History of Britain: Volume 3 cover art

A History of Britain: Volume 3

By: Simon Schama
Narrated by: Stephen Thorne
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Summary

Timothy West reads the third and concluding volume of award-winning historian Simon Schama's compelling chronicle of the British Isles.

Here he illuminates the period from 1776 to 2000 through a variety of historical themes, including Victorian advances in technology and industry, women's increasing role in society, and the burgeoning British Empire which promised civilisation and material betterment for all. This volume also looks at key characters from the period, including Wordsworth, Burke, Queen Victoria, Churchill, and Orwell, whilst examining some lesser-known lives, such as Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the first woman doctor, and Mary Seacole, a Jamaican nurse in the Crimea. Finally, Schama reflects on the overwhelming presence of the past in the 20th century, and the struggle of our leaders to find a way of making a different national future.

©2012 Simon Schama (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about A History of Britain: Volume 3

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Excellent and thought-provoking perspective

Recounting history on such a large scale is always a matter of selection. I was satisfied by Schama's decision to focus on Churchill and Orwell to demonstrate the politics and dynamics of 20th century British history.

The leaps in time throughout the book were sometimes disorienting and this would probably not be the case in a printed work. However that small inconvenience was minor against the wealth of information and thought provided by the history. Certainly it gives me a context for further reading of the subject.

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10 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Meandering, narrow, irrelevant

Schama really goes off the deep end in this part of his series. While the narration is of course excellent, the actual content is so narrow and small in scale that you really do wonder if this is the same writer as that of the first two parts. Simon abandons the broad, historical perspective of the nation and it's happenings in favour of telling the stories of small irrelevent people , almost as if he is trying to waste your time. A terrible conclusion to an otherwise great series.

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9 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent

Rather than narrate the events of the last two centuries, Schama covers them through the eyes of famous people who experienced these times. Whilst he talks about Churchill and Victoria he also gives time to others such as Wordsworth and Orwell.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great & precise history of Britain

The account of the British history is a little brief from 3000 to the Romans but that is to be expected with the lack of evidence for this period. Schama writes brilliantly extracting the facts and important events and laying them out in a clear precise way. He weaves his way through legend and presents the facts as they are known today. The history has helped me to piece together and understand the lineage of British history to the beginning of the sixteen hundreds in a compelling and entertaining way and I am very grateful. Enjoy a well deserved 5 star audiobook.

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7 people found this helpful

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great history, great performance

I struggled a bit with all the details about India but it was more than made up for by all the Churchill and Orwell stuff.

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5 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Dry

Dry and inaccessible, I love history but this isn't the format to digest it. You just cannot focus on what is going on. Buy the book instead

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Quite a lot left out !

Great narration.... But too little description of too much. I now need to seek out more history books instead of my hope that this book would satisfy my historical curiosity.

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Very comprehensive. sometimes hard to follow

Very detailed but sometimes goes off on long tangents, which like the other volumes make it easy to miss bits. Assumes some prior knowledge of the history

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Another excellent book of Simon Schama

He has picked several moments from the 19th and 20th centuries. I like how he describes the common path of Churchill and Orwell, and India and Ireland!.
The way it is narrated is good too! Never gets annoying

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great stuff

Really excellent, if necessarily selective, history. It would have been interesting to hear about the African colonies and more post 1945. But a fascinating perspective nonetheless.

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1 person found this helpful