The Books That Made Me Fall In Love With History - by H.M. Castor

When I think of the six wives of Henry VIII, in my mind’s eye I always see their faces arranged in a curious geometrical pattern – and not in chronological order, either. That’s because of this book cover:

It’s a 'Pitkin Pictorial' book from the early 1970s, and my family owned a copy when I was a child (I’ve just been joyfully reunited with the same edition courtesy of a second-hand bookshop). For me, not only will Catherine of Aragon be forever squashed under the weight of Anne Boleyn, with Jane Seymour to her right and Anne of Cleves diagonally above, but those particular six portraits are, in some quintessential way, those women for me, no matter what other portraits I've seen since (and notwithstanding the fact that the ‘Catherine Howard’ – the woman in black at the bottom right – has since been identified as the portrait of a different person entirely).

I loved these large-format Pitkin books as a child, and they did so much to ignite my love of history. Now, when I look at them, I’m slightly mystified as to why. Compared to many children’s history books in the shops today, they were very low-key. They didn’t have jokes or flaps, strip cartoons or stickers. I’m not even entirely sure that I read the (small print) text – or not all of it, at any rate. But I did read the picture labels, and the layout of the pictures themselves is imprinted so deeply on my memory that I know I must have stared at them for what added up to hours and hours.

I think the size of these books was important. They weren’t overwhelmingly long, as the ‘kings and queens since 1066’-type books needed to be; in fact they were thin enough to be held together by staples instead of a spine – as many picture books, indeed, were then. Just one subject per book, too (though the 6 wives came as a job lot). And plenty of beautiful colour paintings (how I pored over those costumes!).

The Henry VIII & Mary Queen of Scots books above are survivors from my childhood. (Interestingly, the Mary book, I’ve just noticed, isn’t a Pitkin book – it was published by Jarrold & Sons, but in almost identical style.) What haven’t survived the years – but I wish they had – are the Jackdaw folders I loved when I was just a bit older. Anyone remember them? Folders full of facsimile documents on a particular topic… and when I think of how we had to look at ‘gobbets’ for A-level History (a rather unappetising name given to extracts from historical documents, upon which we were required to comment) I realise what a bonus it would have been to’ve been given them in facsimile form in a decorated envelope – ah, presentation is all!

Books on history weren’t the only kind, though, that made me fall in love with the past when I was a child. Historical costumes were always a focus of fascination for me, and my sister had a book of fairytales illustrated sublimely by Severino Baraldi, who clothed his characters in beautiful medieval and renaissance outfits. 

Who couldn’t be beguiled by these?

(To see more of Severino Baraldi's gorgeous illustrations from the same book, click here.)

Similarly, the illustrations by Errol le Cain in my Picture Puffin edition of Perrault’s ‘Cinderella’ afforded me many, many hours of happy absorption, and though they contain a charmingly eccentric mix of costume styles, still they conjure a firmly historical world:

Just look at these footmen!

Later, when I was a teenager, historical fiction played its vital part in fanning the flames of my enthusiasm for history, most triumphantly in the form of ‘The Lymond Chronicles’ by Dorothy Dunnett: a series of six meaty novels set in the mid-16^th century which I adored (and still do). They are superbly-written, grippingly-paced books, erudite, hilarious, exciting & moving: astonishing, in my view, both as literary achievements and as pieces of scholarship. They have suffered, over the years, the indignity of some terrible covers (the editions I first owned were so bad that I even started buying duplicates once I saw some better covers had been issued), but if you spy them any time, in good jackets or bad, I would heartily recommend that you pounce on them if you haven’t read them, as they are ferociously good.

One of the better covers, covering up some of the dodgy ones!

(Sadly, Dorothy Dunnett is no longer with us - she died in 2001 - but it’s only recently that I’ve seen this lovely interview with her.) 

What were the books that first fired your enthusiasm for the past?

H.M. Castor's novel VIII - a new take on the life of Henry VIII - is published by Templar in the UK and by Penguin in Australia. It is now available in paperback, hardback & ebook format.

H.M. Castor's website is here.

Books featured in this post:
The Six Wives of Henry VIII by G.W.O. Woodward, published by Pitkin Pictorials.
Henry VIII by G.W.O. Woodward, published by Pitkin Pictorials.
Mary Queen of Scots by Rev. J.A. Carruth, published by Jarrold & Sons Ltd.
Magic Fairy Stories from Many Lands edited by Susan Taylor, illustrated by Severino Baraldi. Copyright Ward Lock Ltd.
Cinderella or The Little Glass Slipper by Charles Perrault, illustrated by Errol Le Cain. Text copyright Faber & Faber Ltd. Illustrations copyright Errol Le Cain. Published by Picture Puffins.
The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett, published by Michael Joseph Ltd.