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Colton's Time Machine: Jefferson, Adams, Franklin (Book #3)
Colton's Time Machine: Jefferson, Adams, Franklin (Book #3)
Rebecca Massey | 2019 | Children, Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics
Are you a history fan? Do you want a fun and enjoyable way to teach history lessons to your children or even your students? Well, Colton's Time Machine will help you with this. I have read and checked out "Colton's Time Machine: Jefferson, Adams, and Franklin" by Rebecca Massey.

Colton and his friends go on adventures to meet three historical figures. Each one is detailed and done well. Children will learn a bit of history about Thomas Jefferson, John Adam, and Benjamin Franklin. The way Colton deals with some of the antics the dragons do. It is enjoyable and teachable to any child or children. Children will be smiling and learning history lessons through the book; Not all but some American critical historical events.

Each chapter is separated for each prominent historical figure. The pictures are bright and fun to look at. It seems like Colton is teaching some dragons about sharing and asking to use things. There seem to be some life lessons through the book as well as some history.

Teachers and parents alike will want to add this series to their classroom or even their child or children's bookshelves. This series is a spin-off to Colton's Pocket Dragons. Suitable for children to learn about American history and the importance of democracy.
  
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Deborah (162 KP) rated Queen's Gambit in Books

Dec 21, 2018  
QG
Queen's Gambit
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This wasn't a bad début novel by any means and it seems that lots of people really enjoyed it. I didn't dislike it, I actually found it a pleasant read, but it was also fairly undemanding. You might want that from a book sometimes or you may want something a bit more challenging. It may be that there are so many historical novels out there and of these ones about the Tudors top the leaderboard by a mile, so for me, a Tudor historical novel needs to really outstandingly good to make it stand out from the crowd. I also read a fair bit of 'proper' history (i.e. non-fiction books), so perhaps I know too much for there to be any surprises awaiting me? I do tend to get riled by bizarre deviations from historical fact.

Anyway, the novel deals with part of the life of Katherine Parr, last wife of Henry VIII, starting with the death of her second husband and continuing just past her own demise. I suppose an historical novel will give the author more leeway to explain real events and there is a sort of expectation that a book should be a nice tidy package, explaining everything within its covers. I don't really feel that Fremantle does this with the Parr/Seymour relationship. It's not easy to see why an intelligent woman could be taken in by a man like this anyway, but in the book it was as if Katherine actually was attracted to him against her will, so the relationship never sat quite happily for me. The other main protagonist is a woman called Dorothy (Dot) Fownten, who acts very much as a maidservant to Katherine, and her stepdaughter, Meg Neville. I was interested to learn that Dot was a real historical character, but so little is known of her that Fremantle has had the liberty of embroidering her story.

As I said, not a bad book. Good if you want something fairly undemanding, such as a beach read. I suspect it will appeal to fans of Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir, but those who prefer Penman may find it a little lacking.
  
The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
2004 | Drama
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
A historically beautiful film
This film should be seen in its historical context, how Che Guevara became the man that he was. A young Guevara decided to travel across the country in his bike, after becoming a doctor, and understanding the problems that locals in the rural areas faced. It's subtle, poignant and rather beautiful. Gael Garcia Bernal is wonderful.
  
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Dean (6927 KP) rated Bathory (2008) in Movies

Aug 16, 2017  
Bathory (2008)
Bathory (2008)
2008 | Biography, Drama, History
4
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Anna Friel (0 more)
Very slow paced (0 more)
What should have been a very interesting story on a historical figure becomes quite a slow and boring story. A lot of it is folktale but it centres on the story of a Countess who liked to bathe in blood to keep her youthful looks. She might have been responsible for the disappearance of hundreds of young women.
  
Sword and Scimitar
Sword and Scimitar
Simon Scarrow | 2013 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Well written action (0 more)
The romantic and intrigue (0 more)
A Brilliant Read
Aside from the romance and the fairly surprising twist this book is a brilliantly written historical fiction based around real life events, the main characters are interesting and the action is fantastically written, this is a book I have read several times and is still very much a page turner for me.
  
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Ransom Riggs | 2013 | Children, Young Adult (YA)
8
7.9 (128 Ratings)
Book Rating
Interesting concept. Its like a fantasy novel for children. Historical references were neat. Read an interview with the author and he used the pictures to build the story around them. Thus, they fit into the story perfectly. At times, they seemed forced upon the story though. Kept my attention and was pretty light reading. The movie version will be interesting also.