Noteworthy News #3: History Hit: Tutankhamen and the Valley of the Kings

 

I didn't have a review this week as I'm currently reading two books, one of which is an 800 page Penman epic and I'm nowhere near finished with my shorter book either. So I wanted to shift gears from reviewing and post some noteworthy news. In thinking about something interesting I've run across lately, I wanted to give a mention to the series on the podcast, History Hit, about the Valley of the Kings and the discovery of Tutankhamen's tomb. I have listened to the first episode and it is an award winning series with four episodes total. As work has been crazy in February I have been doing more listening and less reading. But that's okay because this series is so good! 

Dan Snow narrates and visits on the 100th anniversary (I'm a bit behind as this series debuted last year in 2022) and the podcast replayed it this past November. He takes you on a journey down the Nile in Luxor to the burial chambers of the pharaohs and tells the history of the Valley of the Kings. He covers the story of the archaeologists involved and gives the history behind how they made their discoveries.

The next four episodes will delve more into the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb, his life, and legacy. I plan to finish these in March and look forward to more from this amazing podcast. It has so much original content you just can't find anywhere else. Perfect for history lovers everywhere!

Noteworthy News #2: My Favorite History Podcasts

 

This has been a very busy week and I haven't had a lot of time to read. I returned to school and teaching after two relaxing weeks off and it's been a whirlwind of activity. So needless to say my posts this week have been lacking. But that doesn't mean I'm not still going through searches for new books and new content. I'm currently reading about four different books and really need to narrow my focus for my next review. 

In thinking about adding to this idea of "noteworthy news" in the book/history world, I want to post about things I enjoy that might be of value to others who share my same interests. This week I kept coming back to podcasts. When I'm short on time and energy podcasts are my go to thing that keep me informed while not requiring too much of my time. I wrote a post on audiobooks and how they aren't my favorite way to read but sometimes I do cave and listen to them. But podcasts are short and very focused in content and if you listen to one episode it doesn't commit you to hours and hours of time like a book would. Also, I just love to read rather than listen to a book.

While I do listen to a lot of political podcasts, that isn't what my blog is ever going to be geared toward....but I wanted to list my favorite history podcasts and promote them because I would be lost without them and they are a huge guilty pleasure! I have so much admiration for the people who host them and all the work they put into informing me. 

So in no particular order here are my absolute favorite history podcasts and I hope you find something useful if you try one of them out. I have linked the host website with the pictures of the podcast. These are also ones that have lots of content and seem to be solid with factual information. 

1.THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND hosted by David Crowther

This was the first podcast I ever listened to and I learned so much in chronological order about England. Running from Ancient Roman times to present day, Crowther is still going strong and is currently in the 1600's time period. His website is fantastic with so many resources. Also, he is really funny, sometimes adding his adult children to the mix and having them act out certain moments in Shakespeare or reading historical documents. He can be sarcastic and keeps me laughing.

2.GONE MEDIEVAL hosted by Matt Lewis, Cat Jarman, and Eleanor Janega

This podcast is not chronological but rather topical. It is fun to scroll through the offerings and just pick a moment in history or a person I want to hear about. Each episode runs about 45 minutes on average and they pack a lot into that time. Each host has their own unique style and I have found some are more to my liking than others but all have spoken about some very interesting topics. For those of us that love history of the Medieval period, this show is amazing!

3.HISTORY OF THE CRUSADES  hosted by Sharyn Eastbaugh

I started listening to this podcast because I wanted to try a topic I knew absolutely nothing about. Eastbaugh does a fabulous job of starting with that idea in mind. She gives you a backstory and slowly fills in the relevant details so you understand how the Crusades began and why. I have listened to many episodes twice now and after finishing the whole show's content I have a wonderful grasp of the timeline of it all. It led me to so many great books and historical fiction about topics within the Crusader period. It is a fantastic show. 

4. REVOLUTIONS  hosted by Mike Duncan

This podcast is a little more serious and requires some concentration. Some background knowledge going in helps too. Duncan does assume you know nothing and fills in the gaps, but his style is more detailed and involves some deep thinking. So if you are looking to just zone out this isn't the one for you. However, if you really want to get to the root causes of how revolutions begin and develop you can't find a better place. Each episode is related to an overall country's revolution so it's like a mini-series on one particular area of the world before ending and moving on to another topic. I haven't listened to them all but picked the ones that I thought would be to my interest. They are arranged by seasons and topics too which helps to narrow things down and find what you want. Sadly, he posted his last episode on December 25, 2022. After nine years he is signing off to do new things. I'm glad we can still access them. He also hosted another podcast first, The History of Rome which I haven't tried yet. 

5. HISTORY HIT hosted by Dan Snow

Unfortunately, this podcast is not entirely free so I haven't been able to listen to everything I would like to. It is similar to Gone Medieval, which is connected with them.  But History Hit charges for some of their episodes. They have really great content though and I listen to the free stuff and the option is always there to pay for the things you'd really be interested in. It's a great show. There's also a free trial you can take advantage of and their website is chock full of great things to experience as well. 

6. THE CIVIL WAR  hosted by Rich and Tracy Youngdahl

This podcast is run by husband and wife team Rich and Tracy who live in Colorado. They are adorable and you can tell they love sharing their knowledge with the world together. I haven't listened in a long time but when I did I learned so much and really need to check back in and see if they've added anything recently. Tracy is from Arkansas and Rich is from Pennsylvania so they each bring their unique perspectives about the North and the South into the show. They also try to give the facts fairly and neutrally. Of course the topic of slavery is not glossed over, but they do a good job of trying to explain the thinking of the time and the causes of the war in detail so you come away with a solid understanding of the era. Highly recommended if you need to start from scratch learning about the Civil War. It covers the many years leading up to the war and each battle and all the political and social ramifications through Reconstruction. 

Noteworthy News #1: The Missing Princes Project

 

I have been wanting a place to post things I've come across that might not fall into the book review or book accumulation category. This might be an author I heard on a podcast, a book advertised online that is already out but I haven't read yet, or just an article that covers a topic related to history or books that looked interesting. So this is my first blog entry titled, "Noteworthy News." If I hear or read something noteworthy that I want to share I'll do it here. Likely it will involve history or mysteries as that is what I love the most!

I have been listening to the podcast Gone Medieval with various guests that centers around, of course, all things Medieval. Yesterday's episode was titled, "Princes in the Tower: New Evidence Revealed" and Philippa Langley was interviewed about her years of research and subsequent book on the subject. I was fascinated to learn that she was the driving force behind the search and eventual discovery of Richard III's body and that this set off a desire for her to prove whether or not he was involved in the death of his nephews. Many people think Richard was unfairly targeted by men of his time and by Shakespeare and made into the villain in this story without the goods to back it up. The Tudor version of him as the evil Uncle has stayed with him for centuries. 

In her interview for the podcast she explains how she spent four years just putting together a timeline of events and trying to determine if there was any reason to believe the princes had died in Richard's care. She talked about the enormous amount of research she compiled and how overwhelming it all was to keep track of. Her book, published just today, November 17th, details the hunt for the truth. It is called The Princes in the Tower: Solving History's Greatest Cold Case. She worked with police to find out how they conduct cold case investigations, and spent hours reading archival material related to the story. It was called, "The Missing Princes Project" and is the first attempt to use forensic science to really dig into the facts. 

I found all of this so interesting and informative and while I may not get a chance soon to add this to my TBR pile, the podcast interview summed it up enough to give me an idea of the contents of the book. It is obviously a well researched new theory behind a very old unsolved mystery. There were some unique documents uncovered that I won't give away here but either go listen to the podcast episode or read the book and you will be surprised at what was uncovered.