Starred Review
"Beccia ( Who Put the B in the Ballyhoo? ) lures tweens to examine history by exploding well-enshrined myths about European royals: Marie Antoinette never said, “Let them eat cake,” and Napoleon was in fact taller than the average northern European of his day. Her stylish mélange of witty illustrations—silhouettes with speech bubbles, dramatic tableaux, caricatures—and interactive text demands reader participation: rather than provide a historical narrative, the author presents statements as true-or-false quizzes, then theorizes why a rumor might have come to exist. Beccia's language achieves that fine line between appealing to kids and condescending to them: on the subject of bear-baiting, she writes, “Parents think today's video games are violent, but they should have seen what the Elizabethan kids did for fun.” The book runs heavy on Henry VIII, his wives and daughters, with fully 28 pages devoted to them; while this emphasis seems lopsided, it also allows Beccia to demonstrate a closer interpretation of specific events and to show how subjective history can be. Ages 9-12." -Publishers Weekly

"Nicely designed and fully illustrated…the book looks inviting and the lively text is consistently entertaining." -Booklist

"…energy and gleefully gossipy…its verve particularly recommends it as an entree into historiography and critical thinking." - The Bulletin

"A rich array of comically caricatured figures in elaborate period dress heightens the humor."-Kirkus Reviews

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