Totally Chaotic History: Roman Britain Gets Rowdy
Greg Jenner with Dr Emma South, illustrated by Rikin Parekh
Walker Books

Greg Jennings is a sure winner when it comes to bringing historical information to primary age children. Here, as with the previous book in this series, he is joined by an expert in the period, in this instance Dr Emma Southon whose discussions with the author, their banter and especially the Accuracy Alarm interjections add to the entertainment value for readers. These alarms introduce the important idea that information relating to history cannot be assumed to be fully accurate, certainty and historical accounts are often open for debate.

Now most people know that Gaius Julius Caesar was the first ever Roman to land on the shores of Britain (Britannia as the Romans called it). However, less know that he came and went, then returned a year later in 54 BCE and even that wasn’t a great success as invasions go. Indeed it wasn’t until the arrival on the scene of Emperor Claudius (who took just sixteen days to out perform Caesar), that despite the valiant efforts of Caractacus, Britain was largely conquered, though that took a few years.

The whistle stop ride through Roman Britain continues with the murder of Emperor Claudius by his wife, the rebellion of Queen Boudica who is eventually defeated in the Battle of Watling Street, the construction of Hadrian’s Hall (122CE),

the crowning of Constantine the Great, who then in 313CE makes Christianity legal in the Roman Empire, all the way through to 409CE when the Romans left Britain for ever.

Your brain will probably be in a spin by the time you reach the end of this book but you’ll have had a great deal of fun along the way and learned (or in my case re-learned) a fair bit of ancient history too. Rikin Parekh makes the book even more enjoyable with his zany cartoon-style illustrations.

One that KS2 readers will battle over I suspect.