Austerity Britain, 1945-1951 (Tales of a New Jerusalem) [Paperback]

`Few historians have the power to make you feel you actually inhabit the times they are writing about. Kynaston does. Crowding the pages of this exhaustive look at post-war Britain with hundreds of voices from all walks of life, he summons up the spirit of the age with precision and generosity' --Sunday Times, Book of the Decade

'This is a classic; buy at least three copies - one for yourself and two to give to friends and family' John Charmley, Guardian 'The book is a marvel ... the fullest, deepest and most balanced history of our times' Sunday Telegraph 'What a treat we have in store *****' Craig Brown's Book of the Week, Mail on Sunday 'A wonderfully illuminating picture of the way we were' Roy Hattersley, The Times

Even readers who can remember the years Kynaston writes about will
find they are continually surprised by the richness and diversity of his
material. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Austerity Britain kicks off a series by the same author that will
end in 1979, with the election of Margaret Thatcher. What a treat we have
in store. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

One of the greatest and most enduring publishing ventures for
generations. It is very hard to praise the author too highly... this book
is both a history and a triumphant work of art.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

This is a classic; buy at least three copies - one for yourself
and two to give to friends and family... [A] fascinating book. Kynaston's
eye for the telling quotation enables him to fix the spirit of the age with
just the right tone. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

This is social history fashioned into narrative on the grand scale
... Austerity Britain is an outstanding portrait of an age. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

As social history, Austerity Britain brings off the very difficult
trick of combining chronological flow and themed discussion into a seamless
narrative. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

A wonderfully illuminating picture of the way we were. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

A must-read history, an intimate picture of a country trying to
pick itself up after the war... A colossal undertaking and a magnificent
history' Sue Baker, Book of the Month,
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

For the first time, the Sunday Times bestseller Austerity Britain is available in one complete paperback volume. Coursing through Austerity Britain is an astonishing variety of voices - vivid, unselfconscious, and unaware of what the future holds. A Chingford housewife endures the tribulations of rationing; a retired schoolteacher observes during a royal visit how well-fed the Queen looks; a pernickety civil servant in Bristol is oblivious to anyone's troubles but his own. An array of working-class witnesses describe how life in post-war Britain is, with little regard for liberal niceties or the feelings of their 'betters'. Many of these voices will stay with the reader in future volumes, jostling alongside well-known figures like John Arlott (here making his first radio broadcast, still in police uniform), Glenda Jackson (taking the 11+) and Doris Lessing, newly arrived from Africa, struck by the levelling poverty of postwar Britain. David Kynaston weaves a sophisticated narrative of how the victorious 1945 Labour government shaped the political, economic and social landscape for the next three decades.Deeply researched, often amusing and always intensely entertaining and readable, the first volume of David Kynaston's ambitious history offers an entirely fresh perspective on Britain during those six momentous years.

David Kynaston was born in Aldershot in 1951. He has been a professional historian since 1973 and has written fifteen books, including The City of London (1994-2001), a widely acclaimed four-volume history, and W.G.'s Birthday Party, an account of the Gentleman vs. the Players at Lord's in July 1898. He is currently a visiting professor at Kingston University.