Live Like A Tudor
Claire Saunders, illustrated by Mia Underwood
Button Books

Primary age readers with an interest in history can step back in time, at the invitation of eleven year old Mary who lives with her family in an English manor house and has a sister who is a maid of honour to Queen Elizabeth 1st.

The latest in the ‘Live Like A … ‘ series covers a wealth of topics including the jobs people did, family life and childhood, education (the poorest children were not even taught at home but had to work instead), religion, trade and exploration when the seeds of the transatlantic slave trade were sewn.

There are spreads on a typical Tudor village, a look at a townhouse both inside and out,

health and medicine, crime and punishment, games, sports and entertainment and fashion as worn by workers and nobles. In Elizabethan England, those who were able to a afford it wore a ruff and so doing was a sign that you were sewn sufficiently wealthy not to have to undertake any hard physical tasks and had servants to look after your ruffs, some of which were very elaborate. One of the craft activities in the book gives step by step instructions to make a ruff and matching cuffs.

Did you know that England’s first theatre was built in 1576 in London and was soon followed by others including the Globe Theatre where William Shakespeare’s play were performed?

Tudor Christmases were celebrated across twelve days and readers can join young Mary and her family and discover what they might have done.

The final spread asks “Could you have lived like a Tudor? and the author poses several questions to discuss. There’s also a glossary.

An engaging book that helps bring the era to life; it’s worth adding to to KS2 class collections, and to home bookshelves if you have a child interested in the past.