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The Edwardians: Biography of the Edwardian Age
Edwardian Britain is the quintessential age of nostalgia, often seen as the last long summer afternoon before the cataclysmic changes of the twentieth century began to take form. The class system remained rigidly in place and thousands were employed in domestic service. The habits and sports of the aristocracy were an everyday indulgence. But it was an age of invention as well as tradition. It saw the first widespread use of the motor car, the first aeroplane and the first use of the telegraph. It was also a time of vastly improved education and the public appetite for authors such as Conan Doyle, Rudyard Kipling and E. M. Forster was increased by greater literacy. There were signs too, of the corner history was soon to turn, with the problematic Boer War hinting at a new British weakness overseas and the drive for Votes for Women and Home Rule for Ireland pushing the boundaries of the social and political landscape. In this major work of history, Roy Hattersley has been given exclusive access to many new documents to produce this magisterial new appraisal of a legendary age.
520 pages, Paperback
First published October 14, 2004
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Roy Hattersley
49 books11 followersRoy Sydney George Hattersley, British Politian and author.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
October 13, 2021
Any older Brits reading this review will undoubtedly recognise Roy Hattersley’s name, but for those not in that category, in his day he was a well-known UK politician, who was Deputy Leader of the Labour Party during the 1980s. I wondered whether his political views might colour this history to some extent, but those fears were unfounded. In my opinion, he gives a very fair assessment of the politics and the political leaders of the period.
In the UK the Edwardian period is generally seen as a hiatus between the restless energy of Victorian Britain and the First World War, a sort of lazy Sunday afternoon that ended when 1914 arrived as the worst Monday morning ever. Hattersley argues that this impression is misleading and that in the UK, the period was one of intense political, social, cultural and technological change.
On the whole I agree with his assessment. The Liberal Government’s “People’s Budget” of 1909 introduced a huge range of social welfare measures for the first time in Britain. Hattersley argues that this level of Government intervention was a decisive move away from the Victorian philosophy that the business of Government was limited to protecting the country from foreign invasion and maintaining law and order within its own borders. The People’s Budget resulted in a major constitutional crisis when the unelected House of Lords sought to block it.
The issue of Irish Home Rule brought to the UK to the brink of civil war in 1913-14, whilst female suffrage was another massive controversy. I found the chapter on the Suffragettes one of the most interesting, both in terms of why female suffrage was resisted for so long, and from a gossipy angle, in the way it described the characters of some of the leading figures. I hadn’t known for example, that the 20-something Sylvia Pankhurst had a passionate affair with the 50-something Keir Hardie, who was a married man with 4 children. Hattersley reckons Hardie had a weakness for “the company of lively young women” and notes that his “susceptibilities have not been included in the miasma of myth and legend which surround him as the first Labour Member of Parliament and first Leader of the Party…”
In terms of technology, the era saw the attainment of the long-cherished dream of powered flight, and was the first period in which the motor car had a significant impact.
Hattersley devotes a chapter to nearly every aspect of Edwardian society in Britain, although in some of these I didn’t feel his argument was as strong in terms of the era being a period of revolutionary change. I found the chapter on religion quite good. He argued that in Victorian times the priority of the Churches was to encourage adherence to the will of God, whilst in the Edwardian era there was a philosophical shift towards the Churches serving humanity and campaigning against social evils.
There are chapters covering drama and poetry/literature, of obvious interest to this reader as a GR member. Of the books he discusses though, I have only read one, Conrad’s The Secret Agent.
Despite the book’s comprehensive scope, I found that much of it was written in a dry and encyclopaedic style. There were occasional flashes that I liked – for example, Liberal PM Henry Campbell-Bannerman was described as “always dangerously susceptible to rational argument,” but much of the book was a struggle to get through. The appeal of this book is limited strictly to those with an interest in British history, but I’m not sure I would entirely recommend it even to that audience.
In the UK the Edwardian period is generally seen as a hiatus between the restless energy of Victorian Britain and the First World War, a sort of lazy Sunday afternoon that ended when 1914 arrived as the worst Monday morning ever. Hattersley argues that this impression is misleading and that in the UK, the period was one of intense political, social, cultural and technological change.
On the whole I agree with his assessment. The Liberal Government’s “People’s Budget” of 1909 introduced a huge range of social welfare measures for the first time in Britain. Hattersley argues that this level of Government intervention was a decisive move away from the Victorian philosophy that the business of Government was limited to protecting the country from foreign invasion and maintaining law and order within its own borders. The People’s Budget resulted in a major constitutional crisis when the unelected House of Lords sought to block it.
The issue of Irish Home Rule brought to the UK to the brink of civil war in 1913-14, whilst female suffrage was another massive controversy. I found the chapter on the Suffragettes one of the most interesting, both in terms of why female suffrage was resisted for so long, and from a gossipy angle, in the way it described the characters of some of the leading figures. I hadn’t known for example, that the 20-something Sylvia Pankhurst had a passionate affair with the 50-something Keir Hardie, who was a married man with 4 children. Hattersley reckons Hardie had a weakness for “the company of lively young women” and notes that his “susceptibilities have not been included in the miasma of myth and legend which surround him as the first Labour Member of Parliament and first Leader of the Party…”
In terms of technology, the era saw the attainment of the long-cherished dream of powered flight, and was the first period in which the motor car had a significant impact.
Hattersley devotes a chapter to nearly every aspect of Edwardian society in Britain, although in some of these I didn’t feel his argument was as strong in terms of the era being a period of revolutionary change. I found the chapter on religion quite good. He argued that in Victorian times the priority of the Churches was to encourage adherence to the will of God, whilst in the Edwardian era there was a philosophical shift towards the Churches serving humanity and campaigning against social evils.
There are chapters covering drama and poetry/literature, of obvious interest to this reader as a GR member. Of the books he discusses though, I have only read one, Conrad’s The Secret Agent.
Despite the book’s comprehensive scope, I found that much of it was written in a dry and encyclopaedic style. There were occasional flashes that I liked – for example, Liberal PM Henry Campbell-Bannerman was described as “always dangerously susceptible to rational argument,” but much of the book was a struggle to get through. The appeal of this book is limited strictly to those with an interest in British history, but I’m not sure I would entirely recommend it even to that audience.
October 28, 2015
Painfully dull.
This book started off all right, but it quickly slid into the trap of so many historical non-fiction: it became incredibly dry very quickly. There was little to liven it up; it lacked those interesting details that make history come alive and convince the reader that this was life as lived by real people, not just an endless recitation of facts. Some things were massively oversimplified--the chapter on women's suffrage was particularly disappointing. He's clearly a fan of Cristobel Pankhurst, because she's pretty much the only suffragette he focused on. Even her mother, Emmaline, who was very important in her own right, was barely mentioned. Hattersley also seems to assume that the reader is coming to the book with a fairly wide-ranging knowledge of some pretty random subjects, like early 20th century theatre and architecture, because he glosses over a lot of things in those chapters that could use a bit more explanation.
This book started off all right, but it quickly slid into the trap of so many historical non-fiction: it became incredibly dry very quickly. There was little to liven it up; it lacked those interesting details that make history come alive and convince the reader that this was life as lived by real people, not just an endless recitation of facts. Some things were massively oversimplified--the chapter on women's suffrage was particularly disappointing. He's clearly a fan of Cristobel Pankhurst, because she's pretty much the only suffragette he focused on. Even her mother, Emmaline, who was very important in her own right, was barely mentioned. Hattersley also seems to assume that the reader is coming to the book with a fairly wide-ranging knowledge of some pretty random subjects, like early 20th century theatre and architecture, because he glosses over a lot of things in those chapters that could use a bit more explanation.
December 2, 2019
Not the most riveting of books. A bit too dry and academic. Not what I expected after the introduction, which was lighter and more anecdotal. Still, it covers all the basics and as a single volume account of an age it is perfectly adequate. I guess I was more educated than entertained. The best books do both.
July 27, 2015
I found the first 2/3 of the book a bit tedious. It was all politics and much of it was newer to me than Hattersley probably expected from his readers. It was very detailed. The last 1/3 of the book dealt with the more social side of Edwardian life. The rising professionalism of sports, journalism, exploration--these were of more interest to me and I found them more readable in general. I wouldn't recommend the book to someone without a strong interest in (and knowledge of) British politics.
June 6, 2011
I will probably not finish this, but I am enjoying it so far. Nice little tidbits of what one could call gossip. I have read quite a bit about the Boer War but Roy Hattersley is giving me a fresh insight into it, writing as he does from a British political perspective. I do find the different Prime Ministers a little confusing. As he says, popular myth has this period as one of halcyon sun-drenched days whereas it was a period of great change which set the agenda for the next half century.
February 14, 2018
Well-written, entertaining and full of information and analysis. I believe it justifies the author's contention that the Edwardian period was not a dull interlude, but in fact was the genesis of Modern Britain.
July 18, 2009
This is a thoroughly researched, well written historical account. A pleasure to read.
November 24, 2014
A good immensely readable survey of a fascinating decade by Roy Hattersley. He adds perspective from his life as a Labour politician which perhaps differentiates his account from many of the others.
January 14, 2019
This book was a slow read but absolutely fascinating. Hattersley, takes the reader and places him/her in the society of the Edwardian era. He examines so many aspects of that pre-war time: political, religious, social mores, inventions, sports and the list goes on. He captures the spirit and introduces the reader to all the key players and events in Great Britain at this time, all under the reign of Edward VII.
October 28, 2025
Others have noted that this one can be a bit dry and "academic" (as an academic, I can assure you, this book is not academic, even if it is dry), but I think the problem is that it falls between two stools. I know very little about the politics of the time, and found those chapters absolutely impenetrable, which was a disappointment, because the chapters on the royal family made the republican in me want to throw up, in a bad way, not in the good, watch the car-crash kind of way, and I was holding out hope for the chapters about real people.
On the other hand, the social-political history chapters (where I had a firmer handle on who these people were) were almost embarrassingly bad. To take one example, Hattersley talks about 'Marx's Erfurt programme,' (page 222). Karl Marx: 1818-1883. Erfurt Program: 1891. Not even Marx was so domineering that he was writing party programs from the grave. That Hattersley was a Labour Party deputy, but has this understanding of the history of social democracy, might help to explain the Labour Party's performance during the 1980s. The chapter on the suffragettes was better than most, because focused so heavily on the Pankhursts, and thus assumes less knowledge from the readers. On the other hand, the suffrage movement was a lot bigger than the Pankhursts, and some of Hattersley's judgements are astonishing. His distaste for 'militancy' is particularly odd, since he suggests the suffrage movement would have been better off without it. How, exactly, women (or any disenfranchised people) were meant to get the vote without militancy is a puzzle to me.
The chapters on literature reveal only Hattersley's appalling preferences. The whole thing could just be summed up as 'Virginia Woolf was wrong about everything. Arnold Bennett will live forever, like his characters.' The concluding chapters on newspapers could surely only interest professionals.
Finally, Hattersley is tediously oppositional to "his" side. Any Labour heroes get cut down to size. The suffrage movement was mostly cranks. Churchill, by contrast, comes out reasonably well, and the Liberal leaders are clearly the heroes of the story. Those are perfectly reasonable positions to take, if they are argued for. Here, it's just stated, often quite snarkily. You think this guy was a hero of the working classes? Well, he was an adulterer! Take that! I mean, really?
So, if you know a lot about something, you'll find Hattersley's chapters filled with errors and misjudgements. If you don't know anything about something, you'll find his chapters on that topic incomprehensible. That's a shame. (It's possible, of course, that the chapters about the royals and the politicians are impeccably true and judicious, and I just don't know enough about the era to grasp that. I hope that's true).
Nonetheless, there's good stuff here, and since I picked it up for a couple of dollars, I'm not complaining too much.
On the other hand, the social-political history chapters (where I had a firmer handle on who these people were) were almost embarrassingly bad. To take one example, Hattersley talks about 'Marx's Erfurt programme,' (page 222). Karl Marx: 1818-1883. Erfurt Program: 1891. Not even Marx was so domineering that he was writing party programs from the grave. That Hattersley was a Labour Party deputy, but has this understanding of the history of social democracy, might help to explain the Labour Party's performance during the 1980s. The chapter on the suffragettes was better than most, because focused so heavily on the Pankhursts, and thus assumes less knowledge from the readers. On the other hand, the suffrage movement was a lot bigger than the Pankhursts, and some of Hattersley's judgements are astonishing. His distaste for 'militancy' is particularly odd, since he suggests the suffrage movement would have been better off without it. How, exactly, women (or any disenfranchised people) were meant to get the vote without militancy is a puzzle to me.
The chapters on literature reveal only Hattersley's appalling preferences. The whole thing could just be summed up as 'Virginia Woolf was wrong about everything. Arnold Bennett will live forever, like his characters.' The concluding chapters on newspapers could surely only interest professionals.
Finally, Hattersley is tediously oppositional to "his" side. Any Labour heroes get cut down to size. The suffrage movement was mostly cranks. Churchill, by contrast, comes out reasonably well, and the Liberal leaders are clearly the heroes of the story. Those are perfectly reasonable positions to take, if they are argued for. Here, it's just stated, often quite snarkily. You think this guy was a hero of the working classes? Well, he was an adulterer! Take that! I mean, really?
So, if you know a lot about something, you'll find Hattersley's chapters filled with errors and misjudgements. If you don't know anything about something, you'll find his chapters on that topic incomprehensible. That's a shame. (It's possible, of course, that the chapters about the royals and the politicians are impeccably true and judicious, and I just don't know enough about the era to grasp that. I hope that's true).
Nonetheless, there's good stuff here, and since I picked it up for a couple of dollars, I'm not complaining too much.
February 20, 2025
I found it strange to be reading a proper book again, after having my focus compromised by too much doom scrolling and social media. Hattersley organises his coverage of Edwardian times by topic, each chapter being a thoroughly researched treasure trove of quotes and examples, followed through thematically and chronologically. As I was reading the book in dead tree format, I largely resisted the temptation to go off on web searches, except for finding out a bit more about T H Green.
I read The Edwardians because I suspected this was a pivotal time in shaping British society, and also because I think we can learn more useful lessons for our times from a time of relative peace, without the ructions and reactions of wartime. And this did transpire generally, the progress gained by reasonable people debating and compromising did give me faith for the democratic method in our times.
I read Hattersley in the Guardian for many years, back before it kicked out the feminists and Jews, and I always really liked his measured, authoritative but light style. He doesn’t disappoint here, and is a pleasure to read. A couple of the chapters get heavily into parliamentary events, obviously of great interest to Hattersley, but a bit heavy for the general reader, otherwise this is a great walk through the early days of the movements that shaped modern Britain, including sports, universal suffrage, science, economics, religion, literature and arts, the welfare state and the media.
For the modern reader we might expect Hattersley to put more of an encompassing theory around it all, but actually I’m glad he doesn’t. It all ends with World War I kicking off, which is a bit of a dampener for everybody.
I read The Edwardians because I suspected this was a pivotal time in shaping British society, and also because I think we can learn more useful lessons for our times from a time of relative peace, without the ructions and reactions of wartime. And this did transpire generally, the progress gained by reasonable people debating and compromising did give me faith for the democratic method in our times.
I read Hattersley in the Guardian for many years, back before it kicked out the feminists and Jews, and I always really liked his measured, authoritative but light style. He doesn’t disappoint here, and is a pleasure to read. A couple of the chapters get heavily into parliamentary events, obviously of great interest to Hattersley, but a bit heavy for the general reader, otherwise this is a great walk through the early days of the movements that shaped modern Britain, including sports, universal suffrage, science, economics, religion, literature and arts, the welfare state and the media.
For the modern reader we might expect Hattersley to put more of an encompassing theory around it all, but actually I’m glad he doesn’t. It all ends with World War I kicking off, which is a bit of a dampener for everybody.
February 6, 2024
A mixed bag
`The Edwardians' by former Labour MP Roy Hattersley describes the period in England between 1900 and 1914. England is after Queen Victoria's death at the zenith of its power and seems to rest on its laurels. Hattersley makes a convincing case that our perception of the period as one of quiet and silence before the storm of the First World War is incorrect. The Edwardian era was turbulent in its own right and formed the basis for our 21st century social democracy in England.
The first part of `The Edwardians' is mainly a very detailed description of parliamentary debates and is only interesting for students of parliamentary history. I found these chapters tedious, the topics obscure and debates incomprehensible. Fortunately the second part of the book addresses, amongst others, women voting rights, the arms race with Germany, the expeditions of Scott and Shackleton, the invention of the car and aeroplane and the development of spare time and sports. These chapters are more appealing for a casual, non-English reader as I am.
In summary, `The Edwardians' seems to be written for two completely different audiences and Hattersley's writing style is not always accessible. Only the second part was worthwhile reading for me.
`The Edwardians' by former Labour MP Roy Hattersley describes the period in England between 1900 and 1914. England is after Queen Victoria's death at the zenith of its power and seems to rest on its laurels. Hattersley makes a convincing case that our perception of the period as one of quiet and silence before the storm of the First World War is incorrect. The Edwardian era was turbulent in its own right and formed the basis for our 21st century social democracy in England.
The first part of `The Edwardians' is mainly a very detailed description of parliamentary debates and is only interesting for students of parliamentary history. I found these chapters tedious, the topics obscure and debates incomprehensible. Fortunately the second part of the book addresses, amongst others, women voting rights, the arms race with Germany, the expeditions of Scott and Shackleton, the invention of the car and aeroplane and the development of spare time and sports. These chapters are more appealing for a casual, non-English reader as I am.
In summary, `The Edwardians' seems to be written for two completely different audiences and Hattersley's writing style is not always accessible. Only the second part was worthwhile reading for me.
June 7, 2025
Retired British politician Roy Hattersley’s take on Britain’s long first decade of the 20th century, 1901 to 1914. He argues that the popular view of the era “as a long and leisurely afternoon” is dead wrong. Instead, this is when the modern world began. Well, that’s a big maybe. Changes in politics, society, the arts and the economy had been percolating along all throughout Victoria’s reign. For example, the clipping of the House of Lords’ powers was simply more a continuation of the democratization, or embourgeoisement, of politics that had been going on since before the first Reform Act. Contra Hattersley, the real break was the Great War. Not a novel take, but World War I killed off the 19th century ethos, and the Edwardians were its final exemplars.
Not surprising for a former MP, the author dives into the political maneuvering of the time, and I’m sure his experiences color his judgments of his predecessors. The book is well rounded with coverage of social and economic conditions, along with the arts. No surprises and only minor errors.
Not surprising for a former MP, the author dives into the political maneuvering of the time, and I’m sure his experiences color his judgments of his predecessors. The book is well rounded with coverage of social and economic conditions, along with the arts. No surprises and only minor errors.
December 4, 2021
A solid overview of the relatively short Edwardian era in the UK, bookended by the death of Queen Victoria in 1901 and the outbreak of war in 1914.
Ably composed by Labour grandee, Roy Hattersley, the near 500 pages do clip by at a good pace, covering all the major events and developments of the decade and a half. Depending on your own interests, some sections will grip more than others - I struggled through Hattersley's rundown of the good and the bad of Edwardian theatre productions, but thoroughly enjoyed his overview of British automobile and aeroplane development.
The book grows in strength as it builds towards its conclusion, drawing together the narrative of British-German competition in technology with that of the military conflict that would eventually engulf the two countries, Europe, and much of the world.
A very worthwhile, if far from groundbreaking, primer on the Edwardian era.
Ably composed by Labour grandee, Roy Hattersley, the near 500 pages do clip by at a good pace, covering all the major events and developments of the decade and a half. Depending on your own interests, some sections will grip more than others - I struggled through Hattersley's rundown of the good and the bad of Edwardian theatre productions, but thoroughly enjoyed his overview of British automobile and aeroplane development.
The book grows in strength as it builds towards its conclusion, drawing together the narrative of British-German competition in technology with that of the military conflict that would eventually engulf the two countries, Europe, and much of the world.
A very worthwhile, if far from groundbreaking, primer on the Edwardian era.
July 11, 2020
An excellent look into the Edwardian era, covering mainly the political and socio-economic development of the time. Hattersley does this in a objective, readable way. Many aspects of Edwardian life are covered including but not limited to transport, education, religion and exploration. Through this book I learnt many things I had not know before.
An excellent book which I would recommend to anyone interested in the Edwardian era.
An excellent book which I would recommend to anyone interested in the Edwardian era.
April 8, 2021
If you are looking for a good social history of the Edwardian era you will find that at least half the book is about politics and what happened in the House of Commons. The first chapter about the end of the Victorianm era and the sections on the arts, the poor, votes for women etc are well worth reading but unless you are really interested in politics, and one would expect Hattersley to be enthusiastic about this, I would skip p;ages 85-197 of this 500 page book.
June 30, 2017
Some interesting chapters - the sort of book where it's best to dip in and out of chapters. I found that overall it was a bit too focused on politics (and I generally am very interested in politics) and didn't give great insight into people's daily lives. That said, it's well researched and detailed and useful in my own research.
March 9, 2021
Really enjoyed the chapters on Sport, Newspapers and invention! The Edwardian world feels so near and so far!
I can imagine some people getting a bit lost in the political stuff, there were quite a few prime ministers in a short period of time. Fortunately for me I’m in the middle of a podcast series on all of the prime ministers which really helped me with this.
I can imagine some people getting a bit lost in the political stuff, there were quite a few prime ministers in a short period of time. Fortunately for me I’m in the middle of a podcast series on all of the prime ministers which really helped me with this.
March 16, 2023
I enjoyed reading some of the chapters but not all. The author has broken the book down into subject matter which made it rather disjointed. I felt I was not really able to get an overall picture of the period.
I have previously read the biography of Winston Churchill by the same author which was a much better read.
If you are interested in the period, particularly the politics and international relationships of the period, I would suggest Dreadnaught by Robert K Massie.
I have previously read the biography of Winston Churchill by the same author which was a much better read.
If you are interested in the period, particularly the politics and international relationships of the period, I would suggest Dreadnaught by Robert K Massie.
February 24, 2017
Well written and informative, but I struggled to get through it and found much of it very dry. I was disappointed that there were not many of the original diary entries, I had hoped for far more of Rowland Evans' diary.
March 6, 2019
At points an interesting and informative book about a period often forgotten and there is much to interest the reader. However on occasions the subject or subject matter can become dry.
Still I recommend a read.
Still I recommend a read.
December 25, 2019
Absolutely fascinating: the Edwardian age encompasses flight, the motor car, the suffragete movement, the build up to WW1, the advent of the turbine engine and dreadnought, the race to the south pole, the changing communications & media and a multiplicity of absorbing events engagingly illustrated.
August 15, 2020
Good survey but sometimes rather laboured
As you would expect political developments are covered in considerable depth, but other matters are not neglected such as the Church and the Arts rather well, but politics take pride of place. Roy Hattersley writes well.
As you would expect political developments are covered in considerable depth, but other matters are not neglected such as the Church and the Arts rather well, but politics take pride of place. Roy Hattersley writes well.
April 21, 2022
There are many moments where it ventures into TMI/minutiae territory...but it's written with a breathless enthusiasm that carries the reader effortlessly through its pages. It's always enjoyable when the author's love of their work seeps out of the pages and is shared by the reader.
Read
May 3, 2022Easy reading comprehensive account of all aspects of Edwardian life. That was a period when all manner of new inventions came into general use - wireless, motor cars and consumer goods of all types. Not to forget huge advances in medicine. Well recommended!
January 17, 2024
I always enjoy reading Hattersley. I love this period of UK history and this is a really good read!
June 2, 2024
This is worthy but plodding. I had a go at it because I had met the aithor many years ago: but, to be honest, my school textbook covering the same period was more readable.
August 15, 2024
Apart from a few typos and factual errors, an excellent read. With the interesting perspective of an experienced politician.
January 14, 2010
The Edwardian era has often been seen as a 'golden age' but this potted history tells a more turbulent tale about a time when literature, science and politics were turned on their heads and the strait-laced Victorian era ended. Hattersley draws upon previously unpublished diaries and letters so it is a useful addition to any bookshelf dedicated to politics and British social history. Amongst other interesting trivia we learn about Mrs Alice Keppel, mistress of Edward VII, ancestress of the late Princess Diana.
(Lord) Roy Hattersley, former Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, is a respected British politician and writer who knew a number of the leading politicians he writes about (Lloyd George, Churchill). As A C Grayling commented in The Independenton Sunday it is: 'A handsome book...written with style, grace and wit.'
(Lord) Roy Hattersley, former Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, is a respected British politician and writer who knew a number of the leading politicians he writes about (Lloyd George, Churchill). As A C Grayling commented in The Independenton Sunday it is: 'A handsome book...written with style, grace and wit.'
June 30, 2013
A very well written, rather high-brow history of the Edwardian period. As could be expected from this author, the writing leans heavily on the political events of the period; these sections (at least half the book) are detailed and contain fascinating titbits about the major personalities. Some of the sections on the cultural life of the period do seem to be a little weaker, and there is a tendancy to bring these back around to political aspects of censorship etc, rather than focusing on artistic aspects of the subjects. The writing is stylish and highly enjoyable to read, and provides insight into a period of transition.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews