The Essential Handbook of Victorian Entertaining

by Autumn Stephens

An illustrated collection of amusing, authentic Victorian manners. Pick up the correct fork and dig into this delicious collection of Victorian society's weird, crazy and strange rules concerning dinner parties, teas, luncheons, social calls, overnight visits and more! Copiously illustrated with authentic line drawings by noted artists from the Victorian period.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

Paperback

First published April 10, 2005

Reviews

[EJ Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

This bok offers a quick primer on the fundamentals of English Victorian dining and entertainment. Not quite substantive enough to offer a critical or scholarly look at the manners of the period, it nevertheless does a good job of offering an overview on the basics of dining and partying in the late 19th century.

These rules seem to be drawn mostly from social handbooks and periodicals from the period, although provenance is never really discussed. Most of the book emphasizes meals, ranging from low tea to a high banquet, but the section about parties at home, especially the parlor games, is a great deal of fun.

The Essential Handbook of Victorian Entertaining is harmed by the fact that it is often marketed as a "humor" title. Unless one finds the mannerisms of the period inherently humorous, there simply isn't anything terrible funny in this volume. Based upon the cover illustrations, one might be mislead into thinking that the work is a parody, but it is not: it is a very straightforward guide to entertainment which one might almost be able to use today.

I would recommend The Essential Handbook of Victorian Entertainment to those generally interested in the ways and manners of the 19th century; sadly, its lack of critical notes renders it rather useless as an academic source for the period for all but the most general surveys. It might also be an unusual read for fans of period romance novels who would like to see how it was "really" done

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This handbook is a brief refresher on the etiquette that governed Victorian entertaining. However it was completely lacking in citations and references, rendering it an unreliable source and more of a casual read for amusement.

[Sarah Dykes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very amusing

[Becky Everhart · Rating 4 out of 5]

The worst thing I can probably say about this book is that it isn't long enough! That and the cover seems to be from too far ahead in time with so much skin showing. the illustrations within are lovely. The book is filled with interesting little tidbits about navigating the Victorian-era social sphere. I like how the topics are broken down to include pages aimed towards hostesses and guests. The faux pas information can be just as informative/entertaining as the information about what one is supposed to do. I would recommend this book to those who would like to learn a bit more about the Victorian era. This book made very nice before-bed reading, as it was interesting while still being pleasant and light. the games section was quite amusing. We have played "Poor Pussy" at several Girl Scout events, so that was a nice hit of nostalgia.

[Nikoleta · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was marvelous and witty. The drawings were also super cute and sassy.
-Longer review coming soon.-