• Author
  • Book
  • Story behind the book
  • Media Links
  • Reviews
Jenny Pope and Kirsty Gillon

Jenny Pope and Kirsty Gillon

About

Jenny is a high school teacher, teacher leader of professional development, currently studying her doctorate on teacher leadership

Kirsty is a high school teacher, teacher leader of professional development currently studying her Masters on inquiry learning in the classroom.


The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

0.0
0 ratings

Description

<p>Emerging from the long shadow cast by his formidable father, Harold Godwineson showed himself to be a worthy successor to the Earldom of Wessex. In the following twelve years, he became the King's most trusted advisor, practically taking the reins of government into his own hands. And on Edward the Confessor's death, Harold Godwineson mounted the throne—the first king of England not of royal blood. Yet Harold was only a man, and his rise in fortune was not blameless. Like any person aspiring to power, he made choices he wasn't particularly proud of. Unfortunately, those closest to him sometimes paid the price of his fame.<br /><br />This is a story of Godwine's family as told from the viewpoint of Harold and his younger brothers. Queen Editha, known for her Vita Ædwardi Regis, originally commissioned a work to memorialize the deeds of her family, but after the Conquest historians tell us she abandoned this project and concentrated on her husband, the less dangerous subject. In THE SONS OF GODWINE and FATAL RIVALRY, I am telling the story as it might have survived had she collected and passed on the memoirs of her tragic brothers.<br /><br />This book is part two of The Last Great Saxon Earls series. Book one, GODWINE KINGMAKER, depicted the rise and fall of the first Earl of Wessex who came to power under Canute and rose to preeminence at the beginning of Edward the Confessor's reign. Unfortunately, Godwine's misguided efforts to champion his eldest son Swegn recoiled on the whole family, contributing to their outlawry and Queen Editha's disgrace. Their exile only lasted one year and they returned victorious to London, though it was obvious that Harold's career was just beginning as his father's journey was coming to an end.<br /><br />Harold's siblings were all overshadowed by their famous brother; in their memoirs we see remarks tinged sometimes with admiration, sometimes with skepticism, and in Tostig's case, with jealousy. We see a Harold who is ambitious, self-assured, sometimes egocentric, imperfect, yet heroic. His own story is all about Harold, but his brothers see things a little differently. Throughout, their observations are purely subjective, and witnessing events through their eyes gives us an insider’s perspective.<br /><br />Harold was his mother's favorite, confident enough to rise above petty sibling rivalry but Tostig, next in line, was not so lucky. Harold would have been surprised by Tostig's vindictiveness, if he had ever given his brother a second thought. And that was the problem. Tostig's love/hate relationship with Harold would eventually destroy everything they worked for, leaving the country open to foreign conquest. This subplot comes to a crisis in book three of the series, FATAL RIVALRY.</p>

Story Behind The Book

We are two successful high school teachers who decided to write everything that we know about teaching. We filtered our classroom experiences through the lens of an exciting new 21st century curriculum. Filled with practical tips, templates, recent research into brain-friendly teaching, and imbued with a fun sense of humor, this very readable book took 18 months to write. The result has been success beyond anything we originally contemplated. This is the book the high school teachers have been waiting for...

Media Links

Reviews

<p style="margin:0cm 0cm 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-converted-space"><strong><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:10pt;"> </span></strong></span><span><strong><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:10pt;">*“Not only a practical and useful book but a hilarious read as</span></strong></span><strong><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:10pt;"> <span>well”</span></span></strong><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:10pt;"><br /><span><span> </span>Cindy Wynn, HOD Science, Western Springs College</span><br /><br /><span><strong><span> </span>*“With so many features, this is a must have book for any first</strong></span><strong> <span>year</span> <span>teacher”*</span></strong><br /><span><span> </span>Cheryl Harvey, Beginning Teacher Facilitator, Team Solutions</span><br /><br /><span><strong>*“'Do Less. Do it Better' , a fabulous book packed with</strong></span><strong> <span>everything you</span> <span><span> </span>need to know about teaching the new curriculum. I'm a first year teacher and I can't recommend it highly enough&quot;*</span></strong><br /><span>English Online Forum</span><br /><br /><span><strong><span> </span>*“May I please order more copies of your book.  The previous</strong></span><strong> <span>ones</span> <span>have been</span> <span>paid the ultimate compliment of “vanishing” from the library</span> <span>in</span> <span>our</span> <span>staffroom.  Thanks again for a terrifically valuable book.”</span></strong><br /><span>Jim Kenny,</span><span>  </span><span>Onehunga High School*</span></span><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:8pt;"><br /><br /></span><span><strong><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:10pt;">Do Less. Do it Better* is now on the* required reading list *at</span></strong></span><strong><span style="color:#000000;line-height:115%;font-family:Arial, 'sans-serif';font-size:10pt;"> <span>the University of Auckland’s College of Educatio</span>n</span></strong></p>