38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Had to keep reading!, 29 Nov 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: Making History (Paperback)
Having enjoyed both Stephen Fry's autobiography, 'Moab is my Washpot', and his first novel, 'The Liar', I expected 'Making History' to run along similar lines. How wrong I was!
I must admit, it took a few pages before I got into the story, but once I did, I couldn't stop reading it! This story is written in Stephen Fry's usual witty, rambling way, yet still manages to be a gripping read. The story's concept is that of an alternative present-day life brought about by the non-existance of Hitler. However, the way in which Fry blends events of a 'changed' history with those taking place in an alternative present, makes for a thought-provoking read. I found that I couldn't wait to find out the changes that had occurred as a result. A refreshingly different, non-boring way of learning modern history - great stuff!
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant, 11 Dec 2007
This was the first of SF's books I had read and didn't know what to expect. I started reading it and found the first couple of chapters hard to follow and couldn't see what the book was getting at. After about the 3rd chapter I found it difficult to put this book down and finished reading it in about a week. What a far fetched but excellent idea of fact/science fiction. Couldn't recommend it any more highly.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A good old bit of fun, 25 Nov 2006
Nazis. Gas chambers. Mass murder. Fun? OK that's an unusual quartet but it applies here. I read this because Stephen Fry is just a genial bloke with a sharp turn of phrase,... but with trepidation as the "what if Hitler had made a couple of different decisions" idea has been explored by so many people, it couldn't be original. Wrong! Somehow Mr Fry has used a hotchpotch of familiar ideas and merged them into an original story. OK, there are some easy ways to get out of difficult situations by blaming mysterious time travel "rules" (first seen in the original Star Trek - coincidentally Mr F is a fan I believe), but over all this is an appealing take on the "what if" idea. I certainly learned a lot about Herr Schicklgruber's pre WW2 years, and surpisingly this is the content, 3 years after reading the book, that has stuck with me. If you want to learn a little about history and enjoy a "ripping yarn" (SF is truly a Python of the 21st Century) at the same time, read this silly stuff.
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