London: A History Book

This comprehensive history of London offers a clearly written and reasonably concise overview of the great city's history, from its founding by invading Romans to its recent status as an international city. Francis Sheppard presupposes that the reader has a general understanding of English history, yet London is not by any means written for specialists. Sheppard takes the reader from the mania for building exhibited by the Romans (including sophisticated bridges across the Thames) through subsequent invasions, plagues, fires, rebellions, and riots in a lucid chronological narrative. Sheppard's authoritative historical research is leavened with tasty tidbits, including descriptions of tavern life, theatrical events, and a seemingly endless supply of royal intrigue. From ancient Londinium through the London of Chaucer, Dickens, and Churchill, the city's long history is given a treatment both responsible and highly readable. While London: A History is naturally most interesting to Anglophiles, it's worth noting that Sheppard also succeeds in demonstrating the pervasive influence London has had on other cities and societies, so that the history of London is revealed as an essential part of the history of Western civilization. --Robert McNamaraRead More