Dr. Johnson's London

By: Liza Picard

Narrated by: Fiona Shaw

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

Critic reviews

"Picard's writing is engaging and lucid, Fiona Shaw narrates with enthusiasm, and the book has been thoughtfully abridged." ( The Times)

charming

I find mrs. Picard to be a very charming writer I especially liked her original title that was also narrated by herself, but of the ones narrated by others I specially like this one.

Delightful, entertaining, unbiased, and upbeat

A wonderful and informative account even for those who have studied the era. One emerges not with mere anecdotes, but with a real sense for these years. Also, a fantastic narrator who adds to this work with a perfectly judged humor and liveliness