Much loved Horrible Histories author Terry Deary examines why we keep having wars in his new book
“I enjoy finding out about new things and my style of writing is very much about ‘you won’t believe what I found out here’”
Sunderland born much loved Horrible Histories author Terry Deary has penned a new book which examines the key question ‘if wars are so bad, then why do we keep on having them?’”
Terry’s latest creation, which has been penned in his own inimitable humorous style, is entitled the ‘A History of the World in Ten Wars’.
As well as a chapter on the ‘20th century wars’, which Terry describes the Great War and WWII as “the same war with half-time in-between”, the book also looks at lesser known conflicts including the Greco-Persian War, Caesar’s Gallic Wars, and the Charlemagne's Wars.
Terry, who was born in Hendon and grew up in Seaburn, said: “I examine the concept of what war is good for, as if it wasn’t, surely we wouldn’t keep doing it.
“War has been a source of entertainment for centuries. Shakespeare wrote 38 plays and 26 of them included wars. Many of the movies we make are about wars, with this year’s blockbuster movie, The Odyssey, based around the Trojan War.
“I recently visited the Bayeux Tapestry in London, which has sold 80,000 tickets in one day. The tapestry is all about war. There’s images of people with their heads chopped off and houses being burnt, but there’s obviously an appetite to see it.
“There are so many things I learnt when writing this book and it’s good to be able to pass on not just the learning, but the excitement of some of the stories I unveiled.”
Within the book, Terry also examines the importance of war in terms technological development.
He explained: “People want to avoid direct combat and the risk of being killed, which goes back to the development of the bow and arrow. The Second World War saw the development of the first computer which was used to calculate the dropping of the atomic bomb.
“Future wars will be waged by drones, as we are seeing in Ukraine. Future wars will be determined by the best computer programmers.
“Both the first and second world wars saw massive advancements in aviation and medical care and there’s a strong case we wouldn’t have the level of development we have today without them.”
Terry enjoyed learning about the lesser known wars, and in particular the Thirty Years War which took place in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648.
Terry, who is a former pupil at what is now Monkwearmouth Academy, said: “This war resulted in millions of deaths, yet many people have never heard about it. Its’ the war which included the Three Musketeers. I enjoy finding out about new things and my style of writing is very much about ‘you won’t believe what I found out here’.
“The most interesting aspect of war is about the human stories. We’ve been having wars for 5,000 years and within the book I explore the World of Wars, why we keep doing it and where will it all end. Believe it or not, I come up with an answer.”
The book is due to be officially published on October 8. It will retail for £22 and can be purchased on Amazon or “at any good bookshop”.
Terry has sold over 38 million books in 45 languages. As he put it, “not bad for a Mackem”.