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A History of London
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
8 posts | 1 read | 1 to read
Presents a comprehensive history of London - the incredibly unique and complicated city - from the fires and plundering of latterday Londinium to the frenetic art, music and politics of London.
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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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1000 oversized pages that, I swear, get longer as the book progresses. I read half in Dec 2019 when I was able to visit London. Picked it up again Dec 2020 and finally finished. As a review - it‘s incredibly detailed And thorough. Fascinating throughout, but the interesting bits get more sparse as it goes forward and spends more time on regional government, housing and roads. Also, I‘m sad how much inner London lost during and _after_ WWII.

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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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Not how I planned to spend London, but girl child has the flu. She‘s resting, I‘m in a lounge.

(The text: Thus, when cholera reached the capital in July 1866 it was spread efficiently along the [East London Water] Company‘s pipes, and killed 4,276 East Londoners... It was this disaster that prompted [Dr. John] Simon to hope that ‘for a population to be thus poisoned by its own excrement will some day be deemed ignominious and intolerable‘.)

Amiable Ugh! Hope she feels better soon! It sucks to be sick on holiday. :( 4y
Lcsmcat I‘m sorry, for both of you! Hope she feels better soon. 4y
Tamra Shoot. 😑 I hope she feels better soon! 4y
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Crazeedi Get well daughter so you can enjoy London! Hugs!😘 4y
Graywacke @Amiable @Lcsmcat @Tamra @Crazeedi Thanks guys. Doctor says 7 days. 😕 We aren‘t here that long... 4y
Lcsmcat How‘s the kiddo? 4y
Graywacke @Lcsmcat she was out 4 days. Last day is today. She felt ok-ish last night (huge change. She‘s been in bed, sometimes in tears from pain). So maybe today she can do some stuff. So good... well, other issues due to plans dependent on healthy kids... well... 4y
Lcsmcat @Graywacke I‘m glad she‘s on the mend, but so sorry that y‘all‘s vacation got messed up. 4y
Liz_M Oh no, how terrible to be sick away from the comforts of home! I'm glad you've been able to get care in London and even happier to hear your daughter is on the mend. 4y
Graywacke @Lcsmcat and @Liz_M thanks both. And, yeah, all that. 4y
43 likes10 comments
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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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Next stop

Lcsmcat Are you spending Christmas in England? 4y
Graywacke @Lcsmcat yes! (Well, or a 🕎) Family vacation for an all too short week. 4y
Lcsmcat I was there in ‘74. Christmas Day we were in Salisbury, but we had several weeks in London first. And there was a lot going on - Music, theater, etc. Have fun! 4y
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Graywacke @Lcsmcat Thanks! I‘m excited. (I was here for about 2 days in ... 1987?... as a teenager with my mom. Don‘t remember seeing much then... 😐 ) 4y
Lcsmcat @Graywacke That‘s a long way to go for 2 days! I‘m glad you have more time this go round. 4y
Tanisha_A Lovely! Enjoy. ❤️ 4y
jewright Enjoy! I was there in 2005. I‘m dying to go back sometime. 4y
Graywacke @Lcsmcat oye - my mother planned a whirlwind tour of England/Wales/Scotland all in one week. So we a tiny bit of a lot stuff. 🙄 - she meant well...😁 🤷🏻‍♂️ 4y
Graywacke @Tanisha_A @jewright Thanks! Kinda ecstatic to be here. Walking around Westminster. Wow 4y
batsy Fabulous! Enjoy your trip 💕 4y
BarbaraBB Enjoy💜 4y
Graywacke @batsy @BarbaraBB Thanks! It was a good day. Now I‘m so ... 😴 4y
45 likes12 comments
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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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“as a sort of human zoo, where visitors could pay a few pence to bait the chained inmates.”

Really? !! 😳

Lauraandherbooks Things that were accepted as normal we would be outraged now 4y
Riveted_Reader_Melissa That‘s horrible!😢 4y
Leftcoastzen 😳 4y
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tournevis Yep! That where the phrase "It's Beldam out there!" Cpmes from. 4y
julesG @tournevis Yep! Bedlam definitely was a human zoo. 4y
batsy The level of dehumanisation 😔 4y
Graywacke @Lauraandherbooks @Riveted_Reader_Melissa @Leftcoastzen @tournevis @julesG @batsy yes, yes, that, yes, apparently...wow, and well, yeah! 🙂😕 crazy stuff, crazy world. (edited) 4y
Suet624 Oh boy, that hurts my heart. 4y
Graywacke @Suet624 yeah...just...yes. 4y
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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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Shakespeare was a sluggard...
#shakespearereadalong

Riveted_Reader_Melissa 😂. And maybe his rarity of new play production made his more in demand and/or memorable. Maybe he‘s only remember by history because he was a sluggard. 4y
Graywacke @Riveted_Reader_Melissa 🙂 I hadn‘t thought 1.5 plays a year was a sluggish pace, but 10 plays a year for Dekker!, or who knows what Thomas Heywood‘s pace was. Wonder what these rushed jobs were like. (edited) 4y
jewright That is awesome! 4y
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Graywacke @jewright Right! Imagine what one must be like, churning out a play a month for production... 4y
jewright @Graywacke It had to impact the quality, or they were very, very similar. 4y
Graywacke @jewright maybe they were like Saturday Night Live skits ?? 4y
39 likes6 comments
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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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16 hours to home from Doha. Hopefully this little book will keep me busy.

BarbaraBB Great pic. Have a safe trip! 4y
Cinfhen Safe travels 4y
batsy Safe travels! Book looks interesting! 4y
readordierachel Seems like that could keep you busy for a while. Good journey! 4y
Graywacke @BarbaraBB @Cinfhen @batsy @readordierachel thanks guys! 🙂... ready to done with ✈️ ... 😓😴... (But it‘s fun learning a little about Henry iv, v & vi and thinking about Shakespeare. H vi doesn‘t come out well) 4y
49 likes5 comments
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Graywacke
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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New books 😍
(kitty approves)

vivastory These all sound phenomenal 4y
LauraJ New kitty is gorgeous! 4y
Sace I recognize that Cather book! That's the same edition I bought. I'm looking forward to the next discussion. 4y
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Graywacke @vivastory I‘m looking forward to them! Nabokov is my 2020 theme. Cather is for the @catherbuddyread And London is...well, for an upcoming London visit! 4y
Graywacke @LauraJ old kitty, new books. She‘s a wonderful tiny little thing. Cuddly especially in winter. Good for reading! 4y
Graywacke @Sace 👍 me too! ☺️ (I need a bit of patience till January.) 4y
Billypar Ooh great choice of 2020 theme! I haven't read those Nabokov's- I'll keep an eye out for your reviews. 4y
Graywacke @Billypar: I have a plan, just the Russian language novels (which I'll read in English). If it works: January: Mary, February: King, Queen, Knave, March: The Luzhin Defense, April: The Eye, May: Glory, June: Laughter in the Dark (Kamera Obskura), July: Despair, August: Invitation to a Beheading, September : The Gift, October: The Enchanter, November: The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, December: - a chance to catch up? 4y
Billypar Very nice! I loved both Invitation to a Beheading and Real Life of Sebastian Knight. Good luck with it! 4y
Graywacke @Billypar Oh, good! I know nothing about any of this, and have never read him. But I'm really looking forward to them. 4y
Billypar If you're not completely sick of him by the end of the year, you should read Pale Fire in 2021 - my personal favorite. 4y
arubabookwoman Pale Fire is my favorite too, but Ada is a close second. 4y
Graywacke @Billypar @arubabookwoman 2021 🙂 Pale Fire is what I hear the most positive things about, but don‘t know anything about it other than that (edited) 4y
arubabookwoman It can be a difficult read, though it‘s very funny, because it‘s written as a long poem with footnotes, and the “story” is in the footnotes. I first read it in a college class, and I‘m not sure I would have gotten it without that assistance. My daughter just read it with a book group at the 92nd Street Y in NYC, and she found it hard. I‘ve reread it 2x since college. 4y
Graywacke @arubabookwoman good warning! And sounds like a terrific class. My worry with Nabokov is if I will manage to get it. Might need some help with these novels. 4y
Billypar @arubabookwoman I would have loved to read Pale Fire in a college class (and I should definitely reread it). It was challenging in the 'what does it mean?' way, but I had the toughest time with Lolita and Ada, even though they were well worth it. I found those challenging on a sentence level, but @Graywacke not sure if that holds true for his other work to the same degree. 4y
Graywacke @Billypar Lolita and Ada? Hmm Thanks for these comments. Good to know. 👍 4y
Liz_M @Graywacke And for Lolita the audio by Jeremy Irons is brilliant! 4y
Graywacke @Liz_M hmm. Has appeal...I was planning to read it, but 2021 is a long way away yet. Audio isn‘t a bad idea for me 4y
49 likes19 comments
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DreesReads
A History of London | Stephen Inwood
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My haul from Recycle Books--only 2 books, but over 1600 pages! My husband also picked up something I considered, so there's that too lol.