Tales of Two Londons: Stories From a Fractured City

by Claire Armitstead (Editor)

London today is embattled as rarely before in peacetime. On one side the city has flourished, cementing its standing as a world leader in business and culture. Infrastructure investment outstrips anywhere else in the UK, property prices have soared, technology and new media industries have burgeoned. On the other, poverty remains endemic, homelessness and the privations of low paid work are evident everywhere, gang violence is rampant, and the burnt-out hulk of the Grenfell Tower housing block stands as an ugly reminder that, even in the wealthiest areas, inequality can be so acute as to be murderous.

In these pages Claire Armitstead has drawn together a rich collection of fiction, reportage and poetry to capture the schisms defining the contemporary city. In a metropolis with nearly 40% of its population born outside the country, Tales of Two Londons eschews what Armitstead labels a “tyranny of tone,” emphasizing voices from beyond conventional arenas.

Here, alongside writers with established reputations, we find stories from hitherto unpublished immigrants and refugees, from people working with deprived youth in city, from Kurdish activists, and from tenants groups. Taken together, their stories portray the fabric of the city: its housing, its food, its pubs, its buses, even its graveyards. Above all, this scintillating anthology draws on the rich mélange of people who inhabit today’s London, both lamenting the unequal way the city treats them and celebrating the vibrant urban life their co-existence delivers.

Contributors: Akwaaba Writing Group, Arifa Akbar, Memed Aksoy, Omar Alfrouh, Sophie Baggott, Kinga Burger, Duncan Campbell, John Crace, Tom Dyckhoff, Travis Elborough, Inua Ellams, Jo Glanville, Stephen Griffith, Lynsey Hanley, Jonathan Jones, Nicolette Jones, Ben Judah, Sarah Maguire, David McKie, Rowan Moore, Daljit Nagra, Andrew O’Hagan, Ruth Padel, Michèle Roberts, Jacob Ross, Ferdous Sadat, Jane Shilling, Helen Simpson, Iain Sinclair, Ali Smith, Lisa Smith, Yomi Sode, Richard Norton-Taylor, Alex Rhys-Taylor, Ed Vulliamy, Ewa Winnicka and Penny Woolcock.

Genres: Nonfiction, London, History, Short Stories

292 pages, Paperback

First published March 27, 2018

About the author

Claire Armitstead was born in south London and spent her early years in northern Nigeria. She worked as a trainee reporter in South Wales, covering the Welsh valleys during the miners’ strike, before joining the Hampstead & Highgate Express as a theatre critic and sub-editor. She then moved to the Financial Times, and subsequently to the Guardian, where she has worked as arts editor, literary editor, head of books and most recently, Associate Editor (Culture). She presents the weekly Guardian Books podcast and is a regular speaker at festivals around the world. She has been a trustee of English PEN since 2013.

Reviews

[Mir]

[Conor Tannam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some beautiful poems and essays about my adopted home of London.

[harriet · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5*

[odew meow · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great collection of essays, but it's very inconsistent. Some are great, others are hard to understand due to a lack of context. Overall, a worthwhile read for a look into class, race, etc. within the Capital.

[reba]

Slowly read this beautiful anthology . I was leant it by a new friend and over 9 months, took my time with each entry as I was getting to know the city