HADRIAN’S WALL OPERATIONS MANUAL

FROM CONSTRUCTION TO WORLD HERITAGE SITE

A CURIOUS ADDITION TO AN ESTABLISHED AND ENTERTAINING RANGE OF PUBLICATIONS Author: Simon Forty Publisher: Haynes Publishing Price: £22.99

Hadrian’s Wall follows in a long line of Haynes titles, which started as genuine owner’s manuals for cars such as the Austin Healey and then branched out into subjects as diverse as fighter jets, tanks and nuclear submarines. More recently, the line has entered the word of fictional vehicles, including the publication of a workshop manual for the Millennium Falcon.

The focus on Hadrian’s Wall does not seem to sit comfortably within this series, as the cutaway diagrams and in-depth detail on highly technical subjects that are the hallmark of the series are not relevant here. The subject material is undoubtedly worthy of study, and the book is perfectly competent as a guide to the construction and history of the wall, but it fails to entertain like the more fanciful titles in the range.

Nonetheless, the subject is tackled in the meticulous manner which fans of the series are familiar with, including sections of the wall dealt with one by one, accompanied by sweeping aerial photographs. Detailed descriptions of the Roman army and their conquest of Britain bring the book to life, but these are necessarily brief and focus remains on the wall itself.

For a committed enthusiast of Roman history, or someone with a special interest in Hadrian’s Wall, this will no doubt be a useful book, but it does not attract the eye or pass the time in the way that other titles in the range have taught us to expect.

“THE SUBJECT IS TACKLED IN THE METICULOUS MANNER WHICH FANS OF THE SERIES ARE FAMILIAR WITH, INCLUDING SECTIONS OF THE WALL DEALT WITH ONE BY ONE, ACCOMPANIED BY SWEEPING AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS”