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Dr. Johnson's London
 
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Dr. Johnson's London [Audio Download]

by Liza Picard (Author), Fiona Shaw (Narrator)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
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Product details

  • Audio Download
  • Listening Length: 6 hours and 25 minutes
  • Program Type: Audiobook
  • Version: Abridged
  • Publisher: Orion Publishing Group Limited
  • Audible Release Date: 9 Oct 2007
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B002SQ9DWU
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)

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Product Description

Like its popular and acclaimed predecessor, Restoration London, this book is the result of the author's passionate interest in the practical details of the everyday life of our ancestors, so often ignored in more conventional history books.

Based on every possible contemporary source (diaries, almanacs, newspapers, advice books, memoirs, government papers and reports), Liza Picard examines every aspect of life in London: the streets, houses and gardens; cooking, housework, laundry, and shopping; clothes and jewellery, cosmetics and hairdressing; medicine, sex, hobbies, education, and etiquette; religion and popular beliefs; law and crime. This book spans the years 1740 to 1770, starting when the gin craze was gaining ground and ending when the East Coast of America was still British.

©2000 Liza Picard; (P)1999 Orion Publishing Group Ltd
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
A vivid, disgusting, harrowing, charming evocation of London life just 250 years and a lightyear away.

If the press gangs and smallpox did't get you, then the medicine would. Find out how many Londoners died of "lethargy" or "grief". Smell the sewers, taste the powdered chalk in the milk. It makes todays health scares seem utterly banal.

Fascination stuff. A history book that you don't tire of after five chapters. Buy it and curl up in front of the fire this Christmas.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By quippe TOP 1000 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
This is a fascinating and well-researched book that gives you interesting snippets about how life was lived between 1740 and 1770. Particularly interesting is her use of first hand accounts of daily life in the time, told by foreign visitors, who must have viewed the customs as strangely as we do looking back.

My main criticism is that the subject matter is perhaps too broad, which means that Picard barely scratches the surface of some of the most interesting topics - transport, the lives of the wealthy, shopping etc - but her book is good enough to encourage the reader to conduct their own research into these areas.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
Generally when I have bought books like this in the past I have started reading enthusiastically only to find myself losing interest due to the dry nature of the prose. Thankfully I have presevered & been rewarded with this fantastic read. From start to finish it is a fascinating journey through a smelly, vibrant, dangerous and totally foreign London.

It gives a real feel of time and place and kept me gripped from start to finish. It also made me thankful for 21st century plumbing and the demise of the press gang!

If you have any interest in history at all then this is an excellent light and entertaining read.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Fascinating look at everyday life in the mid 18th century but doesn't...
"When a man is tired of London he is tired of life;
for there is in London all that life can afford"
Samuel Johnson

Liza Picard is a lawyer by training who,... Read more
Published 2 months ago by H. M. Holt
Comprehensive
I had the others in this series. This was bought to complete the set. I enjoyed it least - less witty, more obviously academic - a good, readable overview of London life.
Published 5 months ago by RoseJane
Dr. Johnson's London.
This is a historical review of London from the mid 18th Century.A city tour of the time,the streets,lighting,shops,new developments,the traffic and the buildings (slums,small... Read more
Published 9 months ago by J R Best
Brilliant social history!
I really enjoy Liza Picard's books on London's social history - easy to pick up and put down due to the many sub-headings. Her personal remarks also add a little humour!
Published on 13 Sep 2009 by Karen Alldritt
Mid 18th Century Potted Social History of London
I love this book! It is both informative and entertaining - the author's asides are delicious and will have you laughing out loud. Read more
Published on 6 July 2009 by jisi2044
London 1740-1770
I stumbled on Liza Picard's books quite by chance. After looking at the publishing date in some of the books it is apparent some of them have been around for several years. Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2008 by J. Chippindale
Excellent - and a good read
I have enjoyed this book. It is valuable whether you are researching 18th century English history, of whether you just want to immerse yourself in the atmosphere and activities of... Read more
Published on 15 Jan 2008 by Robert
London 1740-1770
I stumbled on Liza Picard's books quite by chance. After looking at the publishing date in some of the books it is apparent some of them have been around for several years. Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2006 by J. Chippindale
Excellent Introduction to a wonderful age of history
Liza Picard has effectively captured the spirit of an age of contrasts - at once modern, sometimes dramatically so in matters of commerce and the media - and yet still medieval in... Read more
Published on 12 July 2005
Engaging, but ultimately lightweight
I was looking forward to this book and, to some extent, enjoyed reading it. However, I've a few criticisms. Read more
Published on 20 May 2003 by Mr. Andrew Dennis
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