Book Review: LIONHEART, by Sharon Kay Penman

Lionheart, Sharon Kay Penman - http://www.amazon.com/Lionheart-Novel-Sharon-Kay-Penman/dp/0345517563
Lionheart, Sharon Kay Penman – http://www.amazon.com/Lionheart-Novel-Sharon-Kay-Penman/dp/0345517563

Medieval British History is my wheelhouse. I’m not an expert by any means, but learning about the English royalty is actually what first sparked my academic interest in history during high school. Who was the Black Prince and how did he get such an awesome moniker? How accurate were the popular tales about Richard I’s crusade? I just wanted to learn more, and I did throughout college.

Popular History

One oft-lamented aspect of the field of history by academics is the prevalence of popular history, particularly in film, television, and non/fiction. Popular history tends to take a wide, mass-appeal approach to the telling of history. The argument against these forms of history is that they are often more focused on a gripping narrative than on actual historical accuracy or objectivity. This is undeniable in many such works. Continue reading “Book Review: LIONHEART, by Sharon Kay Penman”

NaNo Update: I Need More Fantasy

I hit a weird snag in my NaNo novel on Wednesday, one I did not expect to hit after my record-shattering (for me) weekend. I got bored with my story. I was bored with Aston (he is so terribly naive, something I may have to fix in the editing process), I was bored with the section I was writing, and I was bored with Everfeld. I wrote 135 words, and I don’t even like most of them. I get it,  at least I wrote something. But I was not looking forward to coming home on Thursday and staring at the laptop screen again. Continue reading “NaNo Update: I Need More Fantasy”