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£12.99
Published
16 June 2021
PB
9781910400999
Ebook
Press Release
Coming soon.
 

In his bestselling, internationally-acclaimed The Shortest History of Germany, Hawes told the story of a nation in 240 invigorating pages, tracing the roots of today’s challenges back to the first encounters with Rome. In The Shortest History of England, he takes the same approach to his homeland. As he journeys from Caesar to Brexit via Conquest, Empire and World War, he discovers an England very different to the standard vision. Our stable island fortress, stubbornly independent, the begetter of parliaments and globe-spanning empires, is riven by an ancient fault-line that predates even the Romans; its fate has ever been bound up with that of its neighbours, whether we like it or not; and – for the past 1,000 years – it has harboured a class system like nowhere else on Earth. There has never been a better time to understand why England is the way it is – and there is no better guide.

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Old Street Publishing The Shortest History of England

In his bestselling, internationally-acclaimed The Shortest History of Germany, Hawes told the story of a nation in 240 invigorating pages, tracing the roots of today’s challenges back to the first encounters with Rome. In The Shortest History of England, he takes the same approach to his homeland. As he journeys from Caesar to Brexit via Conquest, Empire and World War, he discovers an England very different to the standard vision. Our stable island fortress, stubbornly independent, the begetter of parliaments and globe-spanning empires, is riven by an ancient fault-line that predates even the Romans; its fate has ever been bound up with that of its neighbours, whether we like it or not; and – for the past 1,000 years – it has harboured a class system like nowhere else on Earth. There has never been a better time to understand why England is the way it is – and there is no better guide.

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12.99
 
 

'No one writes history as well as James Hawes or uses the past to make sense of the present so skillfully. This is an urgent and electrifying work that takes you to the heart of England's sickness. Do yourself a favour and read it.'
—Nick Cohen

 
 
  • ‘Comprehensive and vivid… I don’t know of a better short history of this great country.'
    —Philip Pullman
  • ‘A sparkling little book, which really does begin at the beginning…might be slipped into a prime ministerial red box.’
    —Standpoint
  • ‘Excellent… Hawes knows what he’s on about and his conclusions are measured, but he favours clear, concise prose over dense academese. He has a sense of humour, and a sharp eye for similarities between then and now.’
    —Spectator
  • 'An engaging, informative sprint through the story of our little island' —Independent
  • 'Thorough and absorbing… steps back from the current madness with admirable clarity' —New European
  • 'At last a chance to get to grips with the entire history of England, and all in a few hours'
    —Mail on Sunday
  • 'A vivid, super-charged tour through British history, showing that many of the tensions of today have been present throughout'
    —John Kampfner
  • 'I've read 100s of books on English history but this is the first one that clearly explains the North/South divide. Everyone who lives here should read it.' —Christopher Fowler, author of the Bryant & May mysteries
  • 'Such a thought-provoking read… The maps and charts are so useful'
    —Dan Jackson, author of _The Northumbrians_s
 
 
James Hawes

James Hawes has published six novels with Jonathan Cape. Speak for England (2005) predicted Brexit; it has been adapted for the screen by Andrew Davies, though not yet filmed. His previous book, The Shortest History of Germany, was the bestselling history title of 2018. He is currently working on The Making of Us, a landmark BBC documentary series telling the story of British creativity, due to be broadcast in early 2022.