Great Harry: The Extravagant Life of Henry VIII

Posted on by Carolly Erickson
Great Harry The Extravagant Life of Henry VIII Against the lively backdrop of the Tudor world with all its splendors and squalors author Carolly Erickson gives us an unforgettable human portrait of Henry VIII one of history s most complex and fa

Against the lively backdrop of the Tudor world, with all its splendors and squalors, author Carolly Erickson gives us an unforgettable human portrait of Henry VIII one of history s most complex and fascinating men Based on voluminous records of the period, Erickson s story of Henry s life covers his troubled youth, his triumphant early reign, and his agonizing old age.

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Great Harry: The Extravagant Life of Henry VIII

  1. Distinguished historian Carolly Erickson is the author of The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette, The First Elizabeth, Great Catherine, Alexandra and many other prize winning works of fiction and nonfiction She lives in Hawaiicmillan author caroll

597 Reply to “Great Harry: The Extravagant Life of Henry VIII”

  1. I m a junkie when it comes to Tudor England what a nerd I really enjoyed this book, and had a hard time putting it down Much of the information I already knew, but it was told in an accessible, story like way that drew me in One night I read it in the bath and when I got out my husband asked How was your 2 hour bath I said Great Henry has been married 3 times, and killed 2 of those wives It has been a busy 2 hours.

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  2. Another tremendous biography by Ms Erickson Like Bloody Mary, Great Harry is a vibrant, engaging portrait of life in 1500s England, both the intrigue and lavish splendor of the court, and the violence, ignorance, and squalor of the poor Ms Erickson is a master storyteller King Henry VIII is convincing portrayed as a highly intelligent and ambitious though flawed ruler, who is here shown in all his facets and stages charismatic, handsome, idealistic and beloved in his youth, irascible, peevish, a [...]

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  4. a few observations so far this sounds weird, but the consistency of the paper is unpleasant it s rough but not very thick with old books the pages are thick, but these pages are thin and for some reason it irks me and distracts me from the content i would have liked it if it included chapter titles it includes exerpts of poems that henry wrote which hint at what the chapter will cover but sometimes that s not enough there s a beautiful map of england at the beginning of the book there s also a m [...]

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  5. A well written biography at least to a lay person The author s style makes it easy to follow and remember described dates and events.

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  7. Oh, myI remember it as being very detailed but got through it although it took me foreverwell, not f o r e v e r.

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  8. What truly motivated this man He is an enigma composed of selfishness, lust, duty, and greatness We will never really know what he was thinking, but it is fun to puzzle over it.

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  10. Togs home listening.Very chatty like a late night conversation on the verandah and that cannot be bad now can it This is cram packed with Henry s own poetry and full details on clothes domestic procedures but if you are looking for an introduction into Henry this would not be good For me, it is a wonderful read.An example of the lines this runs along Apparently it was a good idea for getting rid of bad breath to sleep with one s mouth open and wear a cap with a hole cut into the crown, which wou [...]

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  11. Erickson, as usual, demonstrates her extensive knowledge of Tudor era England and her research capabilities with amazing details of every day life All while using her easy and engaging narrative style to bring one of England s most notorious monarchs Perhaps not for Professional Historians this book instead reads like a novel uses an enjoyable tone that makes it easier for amateur or hobbyist historians to relate to while keeping the reader s attention.Full of details about life and habits of T [...]

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  12. Reread for a paper on the Tudor period in my British Literature class I have to admit I enjoy this author s books While there are multiple books out there on the subject, I did find a few things that while familiar to me since I had read the book before, I do not remember reading about them in other books I am a huge fan of books about the Tudor dynasty and these biographies got me started many years ago in wanting to know , and eventually leading me to become a history major Are there newer boo [...]

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  13. I ve been reading this periodically for years after I took an SMU adult education class I think before I met Kyle or maybe shortly thereafter , but recently have been reading steadily trying to keep up with Showtime s series The Tudors as kind of a fact check The book is exceedingly detailed in its description of Henry s life But while this detail is clearly the greatest asset of this book, it can sometimes be a liability That is, it spends a lot of time describing clothes, the possessions of t [...]

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  14. As usual, the book is better than the movie or in this case, the Showtime series I guess Showtime was worried that people wouldn t believe that H8 was one of the most talented along with his mastery of the martial arts and horsemanship, he was an accomplished musician and even better dancer and intelligent he could debate theology and the details of things like ship construction with the greatest of minds kings ever, so they whittled him down to size and dumbed down the story for easy digesting [...]

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  15. Biografia molto approfondita di uno dei miei personaggi storici preferiti Avrei preferito che venissero approfondite alcune situazioni, in particolare ho trovato che gli ultimi tre matrimoni sia stati affrontati in maniera pi superficiale rispetto ai precedenti, ma come si dice, non si pu avere tutto nella vita

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  16. Summary The Life of King Henry VIIIReview It s a little bit academic for me Which is why I stopped like 60 pages in But I did learn a lot about King Henry VIII and life before his reign he was just being crowned when I stopped I think that it would be a great book for people who are studying King Henry VIII seriously, but a little bit too difficult for the casual reader.

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  17. As a biography of Henry VIII, this was a good follow up to my recent reading of Allison Weir s bio of Elizabeth of York, his mother Some of the characters and certainly the times overlapped It was a bit dry, but so much of his current legacy ignores his significant contribution to England s history in favor of the prurient details of his multiple marriages.

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  18. Come al solito, la Erickson non delude Racconta gli aspetti salienti e i dettagli della vita di Enrico VIII senza escludere il suo interesse cavalleresco per le battaglie e le sue riforme religiose Non la consiglio come prima biografia del genere perch i riferimenti a duchi, conti, intrighi politici sono maggiori rispetti ad altre biografie che ho letto Ma a parte questo, un ottima lettura.

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  19. A better title would have been fat head harry I did not enjoy any part of this book too shallow, too little detail of the really important facts of the times A bore from beginning to end SO DRY

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  20. Carolly Erickson stands among the best and most accessible of the Tudor biographers, with Antonia Fraser and Allison Wier She presents the chronology in such a way that the human characters shine through This book is no exception.

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  26. The minor characters are the most interesting in this book I ve read this twice, the first time in September 2006.

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  27. The subtitle of this book is The Extravagant Life of Henry VIII While it profiles his many marriages, the focus is certainly on the lifestyle he and his court enjoyed during his reign.

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