Captured the essence of their oeuvre

This is everything the Rest is History is in audiobook form, with a recap of podcast highlights and additional material over the physical book and podcast

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More than an edited version of the pod

I'm afraid this volume could safely be said to be light-weight compared with any other books the authors have published. Long-term listeners of the eponymous podcast would find all the content familiar but it's so much fun nonetheless. The bonus that makes this recording more than an edited version of the podcast include the conversations Holland and Sandbrook have in addition to what is written down in the print version, and some interesting, sometimes comical, sound effects.

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A real Tour de Force!

Tom, Dominic and the team knock it out of the park once again. Witty, engaging, plenty of in-jokes but not alienating for new listeners. And what impressions! Loved it.

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Disappointed

I love history and was quite excited to get this but I marked it as finished with 6 hours to go. The presenters simply got on my nerves with their silly comments. Was it written for children? Fir teenagers? I’m not sure if they knew who their audience was. The poor editing didn’t help. Some bits they seemed to have added in stood out a mile. Maybe they recorded some of it in a hotel room? Or maybe an occasional cheap mic? I’m sure it’s ok as a podcast - it seems popular in that format. But as a history book it just didn’t work for me. It’s probably my fault thinking it was a historical “book” rather than a piece of entertainment.

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Same as Podcast but without debate

Great chunks are directly taken from the Podcast.
Save the credit , not worth it.

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1 person found this helpful

The guys in full technicolour

Some truly magnificent impressions. This has to be so much better than reading the book.
It’s the podcast on steroids!

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Absolutely brilliant

Just as funny, educational and entertaining as the superb podcast, I loved this. A really interesting collection of historical subjects from around the world, very well read and the Da Vinci Code as written by renowned historian Dominic Sandbrook is one of the funniest things I've heard in a while. Can't wait for the next one (please!)

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Best in the business

If you like history and wanted to stay entertained theses guys are the very best!

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Utterly brilliant! -Misty Malverner

Just a simple, fantastic, brilliantly researched, tour of history. With the usual accents, commentary and joy that we have come to expect from their amazing podcast.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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2 people found this helpful

Genuinely, The Most Pleasant Surprise I’ve Had This Year! Magical.

Here’s a historical television reference for you, which sums up my experience perfectly: Mr Ben. The popular 1970’s children’s television animation in which the titular character would enter the same costume shop in each episode, be met by the assistant who, “magically appeared,” pick an outfit and, once having donned it in the dressing room, he would step through another door and into a magical adventure, themed around the outfit he’d chosen, be it an astronaut, a cowboy, a knight in armour, you get the idea.
Well, these guys don’t just tell you a bunch of stuff about an eclectic collection of historical periods that you didn’t already know, but they find such inventive, creative and imaginative ways to do it that it sticks in your head, along with the pronounced sensation of having been thoroughly entertained.
Through their deft use of satire, correspondence (some fictionalised), Top Trumps, sketches, hilarious impersonations and many other techniques, as engrossing as they are pitch perfect for the material in hand, they have found a way to draw in people with little knowledge of history by making it fun and interesting; whilst simultaneously rewarding the history buffs with too many references and gags to count that make you go, “Ah, I see what you did there. Clever.”
It genuinely made me feel like a kid again, going on these vastly different adventures, one after another, never quite knowing what to expect, often having those expectations subverted, and ultimately feeling just so glad that I took a chance on this book! A perfect Christmas gift, a perfect gift full stop. Even if you’re buying it for yourself, it feels like such a gift.
I’m off to listen to the sequel now. I’m just glad there’s MORE of this stuff out there!

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