How to Be a Victorian: A Dawn-To-Dusk Guide to Victorian Life

Ruth Goodman, you are a marvel! You don't just write about an era long gone but you've lived it, worn the clothes, MADE the clothes and then written about it in a fascinatingly entertaining way!Being over seventy now my grandparents were Victorians and I've always hankered after knowing what life was really like for them, now, thanks entirely to Ms Goodman I do know and I just wish I still had my grandmothers to chat with!Of all the books I've ever read about life in Victorian times this is far and away the best and anyone who has a child at school who may be at the point of studying the period, this is the book to get for them!BRILLIANT!

I think this book is really good - but that is the way I intend to use it. I can understand the complaints of people who reviewed it having read it from cover to cover. I am doing a small history of the GP surgery and nuggets of information about Victorian schools and education will fit in exactly, especially as the local primary school will be given the internet version.Having found that, I went on to dip ito other pages, the few line images catching my interest, and I found it fascinating.I am not the kind of person who ever reads a book from cover to cover - this, although Penguin sized is actually quite thick with nearly 500 pages which don't open flat- might make it less comfortable to hold as opposed to putting it on a flat surface. The paper has a 'traditional weight and a yellow tinge.The fact that the author is a known expert through her TV programmes made me think it is aurhorative.I saved some money by buying a 'new' copy. That's what the copy looks like, and it arrived several days early despite the NY holiday. without paying any additional fee.The reduction of1 * is simply because I didn't see it as perfect - more or bigger line drawings , but I am very pleased I got a copy and given it's price perhaps i am being over optimistic!

I bought this book primarily for research purposes to complement my genealogy/social history studies, but it is so engagingly written that I am happily reading it all the way through before going back to take notes and pursue leads. Moreover, I am relating parts of it to family and friends and spiking their interest too. Thanks, Ruth Goodman, for bringing history alive!

Being a fan of Ruth Goodman from TV i was hoping that this book would provide any questions or curiosity i had about Victorian life. It didnt let me down, i discovered more than i had hoped for. A thoroughly enjoyable, exciting but also tragic insight into Victorian life. We owe alot to the people who paved the way to the life we have today. Thanks Ruth.

Absolutely loving this book - almost finished and am already feeling the sadness! So clearly written, informative as well as entertaining, and being a HUGE fan of Ruth I'm hearing it all in her voice, complete with little laughs, but with the earnest delivery so familiar from all her 'Farm' etc, series. This book is chock-full of both practical and interesting snippets, descriptions of everyday life for the masses, and glimpses into higher living too. I am desperate for Ruth to write an Edwardian version!