The Thames: A Cultural History

by Mick Sinclair

Through quiet meadows, rolling hills, leafy suburbia, industrial sites, and a changing London riverside, Mick Sinclair tracks the Thames from source to sea, documenting internationally-known landmarks such as Tower Bridge and Windsor Castle and revealing lesser known features such as Godstow Abbey, Canvey Island, the Sanford Lasher, and George Orwell's tranquil grave.

Genres: History

288 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2006

Reviews

[Jill H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The River Thames is one of the most famous (and mispronounced) rivers in the world....not the longest or the deepest but possibly the most history laden of all rivers. This book takes the reader on a tour of the river from its source to the sea and through the ages. Sprinkled with drawings and photos, both classic and modern, it touches on the historic edifices on its banks to the social, shipping and military events connected to the river. Easy to read and most entertaining, I would recommend it to the armchair traveler or to those who have seen the historic river.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

My grandmother was born in Gravesend, Kent, and immigrated to the US at about 7 years old. She never got to return to England, but was always nostalgic for it. A few years back, I had the opportunity to visit Gravesend on a trip to the UK and I felt that I understood her a little better for having done so. Sadly, the segment about Gravesend in this book is only 1 page long and comes at the very end. It talks about the gravesite of Pocahontas, which I visited while there.

This book interested me because of my connection to the Thames river as well as its place in the popular images of England. I did enjoy it, but found myself wishing for a lot more photos to accompany the discussions of locations along the way. I realize that the book is part of a series on the landscape of imagination, but I wished I didn't have to try to imagine the buildings described quite frequently as I read. My othef frustration was with the copy editing. There were frequent sentences where the inclusion or omission of a preposition would have saved me rereading to make sense. At different times, I wondered if this was just because of the differences in usage between British and American English, but I read enough British books that I don't see how that could be.

All in all, an informative read, although I think it would be more enjoyable for someone who is much more familiar with the area and doesn't get as frustrated by lack of illustrations or photos.