Sooo....wanna know who's who in the hierarchy of the Anglican church (you need this if you read Trollope, my little sweetie)? Would ya like to learn all those card games they played way back when people actually faced one another IN PERSON when playing a game? Care about old food, fashion, and socia

It's not exactly everything one needs to know about nineteenth-century England, but it does a fine job at hitting upon most of the little knowledge gaps that can crop up for modern readers of Dickens, Hardy, Trollope, Austen, and their contemporaries. Particularly devoted readers of such Brit Lit ma

i love shit like this. nothing pleases me more than to know the proper table setting for a victorian outdoor tea (though you wouldn't know it to watch me eat). regardless of that, sadly, this book (which i read immediately before it) did not help me understand what the damned peasants in "the return

I'm astonished by how well the author knows the details of Victorian literature, which aids greatly in contextualizing his explanations. All in all a great overview, also the Victorians sucked ASS.

This is an amazing resource for anyone who enjoys 19th century English literature. I made a mistake by sitting down and trying to read it cover to cover (well... the first section, at least - not the wonderful glossary). There is so much information packed in this book that reading it straight throu

This book is a broad survey of how life was led in England over the course of the nineteenth century. It addresses both material and social arrangements, with a few dips into economics and history.

As you might imagine from such a broad mandate, it treats its many subjects shallowly; nevertheless it

Anyone that is interested in the classic 19th century British novels, novels centered on 19th century British life, or 19th century British history would be greatly assisted by possession of a copy of this little book. It is a relatively short volume that reads like a combination almanac, compendium

Maybe 2.5. This book has a lot of useful and interesting information in, but it's presented in a very dry way. It reads more like a textbook than anything else. I also take slight issue with the amount of novels it spoils, and the fact it fails to distinguish between words, concepts and traditions t

A fun and informative book, but occasionally a little disjointed. Daniel Pool, an American lawyer by training, a lover of British novels by avocation, really digs into the the customs, mores and behaviors of Nineteenth Century Englanders. He illustrates his discussion of elaborate balls, courting ri

Covering the span of 19th century England, the author shared bits and pieces of what life would have been like if you lived back then. All I knew is that as a woman, I very much appreciate living now. Pretty much, if you were not a member of the peerage and/or royalty, you had a difficult life. And