Cycling: The Craze of the Hour

Found on The Shelves of The London Library #1

by Charles Spencer (Contributor), Barry Pain, Jerome K. Jerome

Directly you are in motion you will feel quite helpless, and experience a sensation of being run away with, and it will seem as if the machine were trying to throw you off

Cycling: The Craze of the Hour is part of 'Found on the Shelves', published with The London Library. The books in this series have been chosen to give a fascinating insight into the treasures that can be found while browsing in The London Library. Now celebrating its 175th anniversary, with over 17 miles of shelving and more than a million books, The London Library has become an unrivalled archive of the modes, manners and thoughts of each generation which has helped to form it.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

96 pages, Paperback

Published May 5, 2016

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Charles^^^^^^Spencer (6^)

Reviews

[Kris (My Novelesque Life) · Rating 4 out of 5]

CYCLING: THE CRAZE OF THE HOUR Written by Charles Spencer
2017; Pushkin Press/Steerforth Press
(Review Not on Blog)

I love vintage historical books like this - vintage guidebooks are so entertaining!!! Even if you are not into cycling this is a fun book, and also very short.

***I received an eARC from EDELWEISS***

[Laurent De Maertelaer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Erg leuk boekje over de begindagen van de fiets. Start met een gedetailleerd uitgeschreven cursus over hoe op een hoge bie te stappen, gevolgd door een medisch essay over de mogelijke gevaren van het te gretig fietsen en eindigt met 2 korte verhalen van enerzijds Barry Pain en Jerome K. Jerome.
Knappe reeks van de Pushkin Press ('Found on the shelves'), die een eigenzinnige selectie voorstelt uit de meer dan 1 miljoen boeken van de London Library. Smaakt zeker naar meer en de verzamelaar in mij weet nu al dat ik ze allemaal zal lezen. Zo snel mogelijk, als het even kan.

[Joseph Spuckler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cycling: The Craze of the Hour by Various Authors from Pushkin Press is a collection of four short articles on the bicycle craze that became in the late 1800s, that would never last. The first article describes the process of riding the modern bicycle. Not what one expects when thinking of a modern bicycle. The Penny-farthing with the giant front wheels were the first modern bikes. The method of learning to ride is covered in detail. This was a time when adults were learning to ride rather than children. Most adults today know how to balance even if they hadn’t ridden a bike since childhood. Back then balancing on two wheels was a novelty. The awkward shape of the bike looked intimidating but was necessary because the front wheel was direct drive. There were no gears; one rotation of the pedals equaled one rotation of the front wheel. The larger the front wheel was, the easier the pedaling was.

Just as now health and nutrition were part of cycling culture. One author recommends something that sounds like a modern Atkins diet -- plenty of meat and light on the starches. A doctor warns of the dangers of cycling. One would think one hundred years ago people would have lead a more active life than they do now. Many of the couch potato comforts and sedentary entertainment didn’t exist. Still, there were warnings of elevating one’s blood pressure to the point of bursting veins and internal hemorrhaging. The stories are well written and from popular authors of the time. These stories take the reader into the era of more recognizable bicycles as well as adding a little humor. A nice collection to look back and see what cycling was over a hundred years ago.

The reviewer is a life long cyclist and a professional bicycle mechanic.

[Chelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very cute little read!

[Jiana Sabeh · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an interesting snapshot of history.

[Maire · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very charming book for the bike enthusiast

[Theediscerning · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent little time-waster, but I decided in the end to not buy this for a cycling friend of mine. The chief section is an essay from mid-Victorian times about how to get on and off, and to ride, a 'modern' bicycle, and even to ride it lying back prone on the spring, using neither hands nor feet. Hmmm… Still, a doctor is on hand – one who decides that the whole thing is bad for your heart, and ruinous to most people who try it. Barry Pain and Jerome K Jerome provide whimsical fictional diversions – the former the better, the latter perhaps more full-on jokey but inconsequential in that it just drops to a halt rather than goes anywhere in particular; and a fifth promised piece, courtesy of Punch magazine, just never shows itself. One to find in the more cultured charity shops in future – I wouldn't think, however whimsical it might be, and however archly its naivety can be received now, it would last long in the mind.

[Eileen Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book full of anecdotes and instruction on the sport of cycling and how to do it!
Great fun.
I was given a digital copy of this book by the publisher Pushkin Press via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review.

[Roy · Rating 3 out of 5]

As this is part of a series of novelty publications featuring selections from The London Library's collections, it should be read as a document of the prevalent thought and social mores of its time, in this case circa late nineteenth century (and one short piece of fiction from 1905). In that sense, the book achieves its objective.

For example: "... as the race-horse is highest development of that noble animal, so the racing bicycle is the best form of machine for speed ..." There are also portions dedicated to talking about how to ride without using your hands and feet, and also how cycling leads to heart disease. (Yes, I shit you not.)

Mildly diverting, and not a total waste of time if you've got a little time to kill.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of getting glimpses into different books through these essays, but they didn't hold my attention and I don't think my cyclist husband would enjoy this book either.

I received an ARC from NetGalley.

[Matt Heavner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun to read this small collection of short pieces about bicycles from 1890s and 1900s.