Villages of Britain
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Product Description
Product Description
Villages of Britain is the history of the countryside, told through five hundred of its most noteworthy settlements. Many of Britain's villages are known for their loveliness, of course, but their role in shaping the nation over the centuries is relatively untold, drowned out by the metropolitan bias of history. A consummate storyteller, Clive Aslet deftly weaves the worlds of agriculture, politics, the arts, industry, folklore, science, ecology, fashion and religion into one irresistible volume. The Bedfordshire works that a century ago manufactured half a billion bricks a year; the Cheshire municipality striving to become the country's first carbon-neutral community; the Derbyshire estate where the cottages represent the gamut of European architecture; the Gloucestershire community founded by Tolstoyans, who still live by anarchic principles; the Leicestershire town where pub walls are embedded with Jurassic-era fossils; the Morayshire settlement where Hogmanay is celebrated eleven days late; the Pembrokeshire fishing hamlet that inspired Dylan Thomas; the Somerset village that was built on the back of the trade in Peruvian bird droppings; the Suffolk village that is rejecting modernity by reconstructing a windmill for grinding flour; the Surrey woodland that fosters Europe's most ancient trees - all these are places that have made a unique contribution to the narrative of this country. Follow Clive Aslet in visiting all five hundred villages, and you will have experienced the history of these islands from a uniquely rural perspective.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I received this book as an early Christmas present, because I had enjoyed Aslet's earlier "Landmarks" book. Readers of that book won't be surprised at the breadth of erudition, quirkiness, unexpectedness etc, all managing somehow to be thoroughly entertaining as well. I wasn't sure that a countrywide selection of villages would offer similar opportunities, but I was wrong about that. The subtitle says: "the 500 villages that made the countryside", which is a big claim. But it's a fair one, I think. You really do begin to see, as village after village is offered to your eye, how their individual stories add to a much larger, over-arching story of the country and the countryside.
Don't try to take it with you on your travels: much better keep it by your bedside, to read a little every evening. As for villages you actually visit, you can use the book's individual entries to illuminate them equally well before or after you trip.
This book will be a long-term friend.
Don't try to take it with you on your travels: much better keep it by your bedside, to read a little every evening. As for villages you actually visit, you can use the book's individual entries to illuminate them equally well before or after you trip.
This book will be a long-term friend.
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Yet another seasonal shelf-buster in the current hot genre, British History. Yes it's another "list" book and you sense that the author was looking for an excuse to travel the highways and byways of Britain and write a book on the exercise. And to my surprise this actually works with loads of snippets of interesting information described in a bright and breezy style. To be fair the concept that some of these villages "made" the countryside is strained at times, as the author tries to make the concept fit in with his peregrinations, but on the whole if you are after another chunky volume to dip into on a cold wet winter's evening, then you can add this one to your list.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I really enjoyed this book. It's such a unique idea to tell the stroy of British history through the villages that shape the countryside, and the stories are incredibly satisfying to read. If, like me, you like a village then this couldn't be a more perfect book for you. And it helps that it looks very handsome of course! 5 stars and highly recommended. *****
Most Recent Customer Reviews
No real story here
The apparent intention of this book (given the sub title "The 500 villages that made the countryside) is to tell so coherent story of rural Britain. Read more
Published 5 months ago by SCM
an uninteresting book
unfortunately i feel this book was written as a pot boiler and not written from the heart.a rich vein of material was overlooked and the subjects were drearily trotted out but the... Read more
Published 18 months ago by docdeath
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