Book Review - The Anarchists by Roderick Kedward

 The Anarchists: the Men who Shocked an Era by Roderick Kedward

London: Library of the 20th Century, 1971            ISBN 0356037215

I love this series, and the others like it such as the Pan/Ballantine History of World War II - every time I see one of these I buy it. Short, pithy histories of a concept or period of history (in this case, both), written (usually) by an academic, and profusely illustrated. They are a great introductory work on a particular topic.

Anarchism is a hard one to nail in such a format, but Roderick Kedward has done a good job to lay out the basics of the concepts and history of the movement. He explains that the very nature of Anarchism, emphasizing individual choice and the hatred of the idea of government. He begins with the great Russians Kropotkin and Bakunin and then describes in some detail the anarchist outrages in Europe and the ideological battle between the individualists and the anarcho-syndicalists. 

His focus is on Western Europe - France, Italy and Spain in particular, but also with mentions of Russia and England. This book was published in 1971, and Kedward implies that anarchism had died as a political movement since World War II as Europe moved to a welfare state. He doesn't really discuss the phenomenon of 1968, and of course this book was published way before the resurgence of anarchist ideas in our current century.

As a brief introduction to the concept and history of the Anarchist idea, this book isn't bad - I'm sure you could pick it up for less than the price of a cup of coffee, and it's much more fulfilling.

Cheers for now, from

A View Over the Bell

Book Review - Troy by Stephen Fry

 Troy by Stephen Fry

[NC]*: Michael Joseph, 2020                                           ISBN: 9780241424599

I really enjoyed this book. Stephen Fry has, in his own inimitable style, retold one of the oldest stories - the story of Troy. To be clear, this is not a translation or retelling of The Iliad but rather a "complete" history of Troy and the Trojan War. Beginning with Zeus, Fry describes Ilus's founding of the city, the judgement of Paris, and the origins of most of the main players in the Trojan War. He helpfully provides references back to his previous two books Heroes and Mythos to help the reader untangle what is a complex genealogy.

The beauty of this book is not only that it gives the whole story of Troy from go to whoah, but that it is so easy to read. Fry's writing style is very similar to his speaking style, which reminds me of a cheery and avuncular uncle. He conveys a lot of information with a well-concealed erudition that doesn't look down on the reader, but brings him or her along on the journey. He provides an insight into the mindset and outlook of most of the major players, and well describes the different mores of the Mycenean Age, such as why it was so important to give the dead their proper rites. 

Unlike some modern re-telling of this story, Fry gives proper credence to the work of the Gods in the action, giving them their due, and effectively explaining how the Gods interacted with mortals and indeed how so many of the mortals were in fact descended from the Gods.

Along with the main part of the text, Fry has provided us with two useful appendices, dealing with the Gods and how they can be viewed as part of the story of Troy, and also on Homer and how The Iliad came down to us and why it is so important to the Western world. Along with a very useful glossary of the main actors in the story, Fry provides a useful timeline map and index, which all aid the reader in following along. This is one of those books that reads like it was whipped out in a couple of afternoons while Fry was on holiday, but is clearly the result of a lot of research, and thought into how it was constructed.

I have been impressed by this book - I will certainly be suggesting it to anyone who wants to know more of the story of Troy, especially if they are not the sort of person to immerse themselves in the classics. It's breezy and easy-to-read style make it the go-to tome for this subject.

Cheers for now, from

A View Over the Bell

* I have found the publication details of the particular edition of Troy that I have quite confusing. Michael Joseph is listed as publisher on the title page. The verso explains that MJ are a part of the Penguin Random House Group, but nowhere is there stated a city of publication - eight countries are mentioned as publications places for the Penguin Random House group, and there is a large logo for Penguin Random House UK, but the verso then goes on to state that my particular copy was printed in Australia by Griffin Press, again without a city of origin. So.....where was this published? Who knows! What I do know is that, as a bibliophile, I hope that this does NOT become a trend.....rant over....