Victorian London cover art

Victorian London

The Life of a City, 1840-1870

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Victorian London

By: Liza Picard
Narrated by: Anton Lesser
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About this listen

 Like her previous books, this book is the result of the author's passionate interest in the realities of everyday life, and the conditions in which most people lived, so often left out of history books.

This period of mid-Victorian London encompasses a huge range of subjects: Victoria's wedding and the place of the royals in popular esteem; how the very poor lived, the underworld, prostitution, crime, prisons and transportation; the public utilities, Bazalgette on sewers and road design, Chadwick on pollution and sanitation; private charities, Peabody, Burdett Coutts, and workhouses; new terraced housing and transport, trains, omnibuses, and the Underground; furniture and decor; families and the position of women; the prosperous middle classes and their new shops, e.g. Peter Jones, Harrods; entertaining and servants, food and drink; unlimited liability and bankruptcy; the rich, the marriage market, taxes and anti-semitism; the Empire, recruitment and press-gangs.

The period begins with the closing of the Fleet and Marshalsea prisons and ends with the first (steam-operated) Underground trains and the first Gilbert & Sullivan. All the splendours and horrors of Victorian life will be vividly recalled.

©2005 Liza Picard (P)2005 Orion Publishing Group Ltd. 19th Century Europe Great Britain Modern England Transportation Ireland

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Critic reviews

"Reading her book is like gazing at one of those energetic, crowded canvanses by the Victorian painter William Powell Frith." ( Evening Standard)
All stars
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Fascinating, enjoyable and entertaining listen.

Another ten pointless words to meet a word count minimum.

Fascinating

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Good narration & an exellent insight into Victorian Social history in London - highly recomended

Victorian London

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well written and read. well researched. glad we are not living in these times. highly recommended for any social history fans.

Very engaging

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this book gives a real insight to the grime of everyday life in victorian london to the extent that you can almost taste it especially the description of dogs turd used in the tanneries at bermodsy, the book drtaws you into the depths of london giving real insight into housing education and sanitation in victorian london

victorian london

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A good book with a good narrator = a good reading experience. This book has provided me with " I didn't know......" moments of discovery, further understand and most importantly I knew that moments. Would I recommend this book? Yes I would.

What about that!

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This is a wonderful supplement to any reading of Victorian fiction - here is the background. Though the book depends perhaps a little too much on one or two particular sources (hence four stars, not five), this is vivacious, informative, and fascinating. It is beautifully read - Anton Lesser imparts the most complex information is a way which makes it all easy to follow.

Puts Dickens in a very real context

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Loved every chapter, every word. Anton’s voice is softer than butter and the book is utterly absorbing. Loved it.

Fabulous as it is fascinating!

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This is a wonderful supplement to any reading of Victorian fiction - here is the background. Though the book depends perhaps a little too much on one or two particular sources (hence four stars, not five), this is vivacious, informative, and fascinating. It is beautifully read - Anton Lesser imparts the most complex information is a way which makes it all easy to follow.

Puts Dickens in a very real context

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Unable to stop listening. Beautiful narration and full of interesting detail about life in Victorian times.

Absolutely Fascinating

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I was surprised out how much I enjoyed this book and that it kept my attention. Some of the subjects will alittle dryer than others and not as interesting, but overall really enjoyed it.

Enjoyed it!

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