Ackroyd, Peter. London: the Biography. Anchor, 2003.
Reason read: So when I think of London, I think of Lady Diana. Her funeral was in the month of September. Read in her memory.
The word thorough does not do London: the Biography justice. Think of it as a chronology of London’s biggest events from 54 BC to 2000 AD. It is an explanation and examination of culture, architecture, religion, invention, society, education, slang, literature, food, immigration, sanitation, crime, entertainment, commerce, economics, weather… I could go on. There are a lot of opinions about this book floating around. Someone said it took them six months to read it. Someone else said you have to read it before visiting London, while someone else suggested using London: the Biography as a walking guide. Good luck carrying the thing around. It’s heavy!
London is the book to read if you want to know what Charles Dickens thought about London cats or the pervasive fog; what Daniel Defoe thought about the poor, the prison system, or London’s suburbs; or Samuel Johnson’s thoughts on public intoxication or witnessing a well-attended execution in a courtyard. Ackroyd’s meticulous research has uncovered those opinions and more. You will learn about the Great Fire of 1666 and how no one knew how it started; yet it burned for five days straight. You will hear stories about the infamous London fog and how a man could get lost in the ominous mist. Speaking of ominous, penal and criminal behaviors are discussed at great length. I particularly liked the man who couldn’t stay imprisoned. Time and time again he found ways to escape.
Quote to quote, “The beard was long but the rebellion was short” (p 54).
Natalie connection: Ackroyd quotes the same poem Natalie Merchant used to name her album for and about children, Leave Your Sleep.
Author fact: I have already read two Ackroyd books. Next up are stories about the Thames River, Albion, and Troy.
Book trivia: I liked the map of London from 1800 compared to the map of London from “modern times.”
Playlist: “My Shadow is My Only Friend”, “I Wonder What it Fells Like to be Poor”, Handel’s water music, Beethoven, and Chopin.
BookLust Twist: from Book Lust To Go in the chapter called “Entering England” (p 73).
~*LunaSea*~ 