Conn Iggulden & Hal Iggulden
The Dangerous Book for Boys
Published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF
www.harpercollins.co.uk
Published by HarperCollinsPublishers 2006
Copyright © Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden 2006
Cover Design © HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2008
Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden assert the moral right to be identified as the authors of this work
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
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Source ISBN: 9780007232741
Ebook Edition © DECEMBER 2013 ISBN: 9780007444403
Version: 2017-08-18
To all of those people who said ‘You have to include …’ until we had to avoid telling anyone else about the book for fear of the extra chapters. Particular thanks to Bernard Cornwell, whose advice helped us through a difficult time and Paul D’Urso, a good father and a good friend.
‘Don’t worry about genius and don’t worry about not being clever. Trust rather to hard work, perseverance, and determination. The best motto for a long march is “Don’t grumble. Plug on. ”
‘You hold your future in your own hands. Never waver in this belief. Don’t swagger. The boy who swaggers – like the man who swaggers – has little else that he can do. He is a cheap-Jack crying his own paltry wares. It is the empty tin that rattles most. Be honest. Be loyal. Be kind. Remember that the hardest thing to acquire is the faculty of being unselfish. As a quality it is one of the finest attributes of manliness.
‘Love the sea, the ringing beach and the open downs.
‘Keep clean, body and mind.’
– Sir Frederick Treves, Bart, KCVO, CB, Sergeant in Ordinary to HM the King, Surgeon in Ordinary to HRH Prince of Wales, written at 6 Wimpole Street, Cavendish Square, London, on 2 September 1903, on the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Boy’s Own Paper
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Epigraph
I Didn’t Have this Book When I Was a Boy
Essential Kit
The Greatest Paper Plane in the World
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
The Five Knots Every Boy Should Know
Questions About the World – Part One:
Why is A Summer Day Longer Than A Winter Day?
Why is it Hotter at The Equator?
What is A Vacuum?
What is Latitude and Longitude?
How do You Tell The Age of A Tree?
Making a Battery
Conkers
Catapults
Fossils
Building a Treehouse
The Laws of Football
Dinosaurs
Making a Bow and Arrow
Understanding Grammar – Part One
Table Football
Fishing
Timers and Tripwires
Kings and Queens of England and Scotland
Famous Battles – Part One:
Thermopylae
Cannae
Caesar’s Invasions of Britain
Hastings
Crécy
The Laws of Rugby Union and Rugby League
Spies – Codes and Ciphers
Making Crystals
Extraordinary Stories – Part One: Scott of the Antarctic
Making a Go-Cart
Insects and Spiders
Juggling
Questions about the World – Part Two:
How do We Measure The Earth’s Circumference?
Why Does A Day Have Twenty-Four Hours?
How Far Away Are The Stars?
Why is The Sky Blue?
Why Can’t We See The Other Side of The Moon?
What Causes The Tides?
Astronomy
Making a Paper Hat, Boat and Waterbomb
The Laws of Cricket
Understanding Grammar – Part Two
Girls
Marbling Paper
Cloud Formations
Famous Battles – Part Two:
Waterloo,
Balaclava,
Rorke’s Drift,
the Somme
Making Cloth Fireproof
First Aid
The Commonwealth
Maps of Changing Britain – Roman Britain to the Norman Conquest
Extraordinary Stories – Part Two: Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson
Building a Workbench
The Steady-Hand Tin
Five Pen and Paper Games
The Golden Age of Piracy
A Simple Electromagnet
Secret Inks
Sampling Shakespeare
Extraordinary Stories – Part Three: Touching the Void
Grinding an Italic Nib
Navigation
Naval Flag Codes
The Patron Saints of Britain
The Moon
Skimming Stones
Pinhole Projector
Charting the Universe
Dog Tricks
Wrapping a Parcel in Brown Paper and String
Star Maps: What You See When You Look Up …
Making a Periscope
Five Poems Every Boy Should Know
Coin Tricks
Light
Latin Phrases Every Boy Should Know
How to Play Poker
Extraordinary Stories – Part Four: Douglas Bader
Marbles
A Brief History of Artillery
The Origin of Words
The Solar System: A Quick Reference Guide
The Ten Commandments
Common British Trees
Extraordinary Stories – Part Five: Robert the Bruce
Hunting and Cooking a Rabbit
The Game of Chess
Tanning a Skin
The British Empire (1497–1997)
Growing Sunflowers
Questions about the World – Part Three:
How do Ships Sail Against The Wind?
Where Does Cork Come From?
What Causes The Wind?
What is Chalk?
Role-Playing Games
Understanding Grammar – Part Three
Seven Modern Wonders of the World
Books Every Boy Should Read
Imperial/Metric Conversion Table
Illustration Credits
Also by the Author
About the Publisher
I Didn’t Have This When I Was A Boy
In this age of video games and mobile phones, there must still be a place for knots, treehouses and stories of incredible courage. The one thing that we always say about childhood is that we seemed to have more time back then. This book will help you recapture those Sunday afternoons and long summers – because they’re still long if you know how to look at them.
Boyhood is all about curiosity and men and boys can enjoy stories of Scott of the Antarctic and Joe Simpson in Touching the Void as much as they can raid a shed for the bits to make an electromagnet, or grow a crystal, build a go-cart and learn how to find north in the dark. You’ll find famous battles in these pages, insects and dinosaurs – as well as essential Shakespeare quotes, how to cut flint heads for a bow and arrow and instructions on making the best paper aeroplane in the world.
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