Book Review: Making History, by Stephen Fry

Is it cool to say that I have an absolutely huge, huge, huge crush on Stephen Fry’s words? Just, wow. He truly is a master wordsmith, and in his  novel, ‘Making History’ he has used his supernatural lexicological skill to great advantage. ‘Making History’ is a funny, interesting and invigorating book that ponders the question: “If you can change something that occurred in history could you, would you, or would your interference even make that much of a difference?” I have this say, this book has left me feeling very philosophical, and I keep bringing up the topic with my friends because I really want to talk about it.

‘Making History’ begins with a rather pathetic young man who thinks he has finished his thesis. Also, his girlfriend has just left him because she thinks that History is no where near as important as Science, so how dare they give him a doctorate. (As a side note, I never really did like Michael’s girlfriend. As an aside to the aside, I don’t think you are supposed to.) Michael has a chance meeting with a physics professor who takes an interest in Michael’s paper. Every second chapter of the book follows the adventures of Michael.

Every other chapter of the book follows the adventures of Alois Hitler and his wife, Klara. Alois is an Austrian who hates the Germans, his wife and the world. He enjoys beating down the Germans, beating his wife, and drinking alcohol. His wife, Klara, gives him a son, called Adolf. Do you see where I am going with this? The reader watches Adolf Hitler as he grows up, and later when he is in the army and the people that he meets there who help cement his anti-semitic beliefs.

*Sigh*. That’s not a bad sigh, more of a weary sigh because I am at a loss as to how to explain the book further. I will try my best, but there may well be SPOILERS. I hate giving away any spoilers in a review, and I apologise in advance. You have been warned. Scroll down to keep reading. Or jump to the final paragraph for my final thoughts.

Image Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/8d/Stephen_Fry-_Making_History.jpg


Michael and the professor, Leo Zuckerman, discover a way to make an alteration in history. Just a minor alteration. They themselves cannot go back in time, but if they know the precise time and place of an event they can make a change. Michael’s girlfriend is working on a contraceptive for men. Unfortunately it permanently renders the said man sterile. Michael pilfers the drug and places it in the well of Adolf Hitler’s village, before Hitler has been conceived. Michael then must witness, and live with, the changes that he has made to history as a result of his actions.

What I love about this book is that it is not preachy in any way. It allows the reader to decide the difference between good and evil, helping and meddling. Fry writes with such intelligence that, even in incredulous situations, you cannot help but give it credit.

Michael and Leo are likeable characters. What is more, they are believable. They are not some over the top super heroes. Nor are they bumbling and foolish. They have personality and dimension.The character of Adolf Hitler also jumps off the page, and I cringed whenever I read the scenes that contained him. Fry really does capture the essence of such a disturbing person.

This is not the first time I have attempted to read this book. I tried several years ago and I couldn’t get into it. I think I was a little bit too young to understand the subtleties in Fry’s writing. Fry truly is a master with words, and you need a certain amount of maturity, I believe, to grasp the full meaning of his discourse.

I don’t know, people. This truly is a great book and I keep offering my copy of it to people to read. I really, thoroughly enjoyed it. But will you enjoy it? That’s the crux of the matter. If you are a fan of Stephen Fry’s and understand what he is about, then I can guarantee that you will enjoy this book. If you are like one of my friends and think Stephen Fry is an annoying pundit, you probably won’t enjoy this story. If you have delicate sensibilities, you won’t like this book. You need to go into it with an open, broad mind, there’s no doubt about that. I can’t say to you to buy this book, because it really depends on you. But it is definitely worth checking it out from a library near you.