The Creation of Anne Boleyn

I really like history books, but most of them are stuck up their ass. I'm not a scholar, and I don't think scholarly work should be barred from me just because I haven't spent years in study. At the same time, I don't want things dumbed down to me. Finding that balance can be hard for writers of ‘pop' history– which invariably just means any history book you're unlikely to find in a classroom—either you suggest your readers are idiots, or you make a book too stuck up for the casual reader to understand.

Yes, I am a filthy history casual.

This book is for filthy history casuals. This isn't an insult, coming from me! It's a compliment! I wish more books were written like this! I wish more books had the guts to be humble, admit their biases, and look to modern culture as well as past history. I wish more books were interested in talking about the evolution of historical figures. I wish more books were interested in, quite frankly, telling the whole story, not just of the historical figure but of the figure's history.

This book isn't perfect. It loses steam after Anne dies (who doesn't?) and some of its pop-cultural observations are a little pithy or airy. But I'd rather have those than a book that ignores them entirely. This book is trying new and interesting things, and seriously interrogating the culture that springs up around history fans in a lively and engaging manner.

Susan Bordo can write. You would think that would stand out less when reviewing a book, but not in the history category, chock-full of dry, lifeless tomes. This book is a godsend, I highly recommend it. Even if you don't usually find Tudor history interesting (I sure don't), give this one a spin. You may be surprised. At the very least, you'll be entertained, which is, also, a compliment.