Confinement by Jessica Cox* – The Hidden History of Maternal Bodies in Nineteenth-Century Britain – is such an interesting book. I’ve read about sexuality in Victorian Britain, but this book is dedicated to childbirth. The author is a mother of three, and she makes a…
The Ingenious Victorians by John Wade – Weird and Wonderful Ideas from the Age of Innovation is such a good book. I loved everything about it, the stories, the drawings, especially as they are intertwined with the text and so many of them, offering a…
Imagining Roman Britain by Virginia Hoselitz – Royal Historical Society Studies in History New Series – offers a very good overview of how Victorians saw their past. The book focuses on the mid-19th century, so around 1840s to 1850s, but goes beyond that period when…
I found Lady of the House by Charlotte Furness* a relaxing read. It follows the lives of three amazing women, who lived in early 19th century. Furness tried to showcase the lives of wealthy women through three case studies: Harriet Leveson-Gower, Countess Granville; Lady Mary…
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway by Anthony Dawson* – An Operating History – is such a fascinating book. It has short chapters, but filled with well researched details, on various topics. The book includes loads of primary sources and paints a vivid picture of some…
The Diary of Jack the Ripper by Shirley Harrison – The Chilling Confessions of James Maybrick – is a long book, but well worth reading. Check my notes on where the picture was taken. The book also contains the reproduction in full of the diary…
I wanted to read How Britain Shaped the Manufacturing World by Philip Hamlyn Williams* because I studied economic history last year and I liked the subject a lot. On top of that the author’s great grandfather exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1851. That made…
Victorian Fashions for Women by Fiona Kay, Neil Storey* is a fascinating book on Victorian fashion. It has 70 photos and those pictures offer a good insight into how fashion evolved. I like that the photos are both spread out in the book and also…
Mrs Maybrick by Victoria Blake is the second book I read on this case. Earlier this month I finished a long and more recent book on Mrs Maybrick, which was a disappointment, but which made me curious to read more. So I reserved this book…
Did she kill him by Kate Colquhoun – a Victorian tale of deception, adultery and arsenic – is the second book I read by her, with the first one being Mr Briggs’ Hat, the story of the first murder on the railways in Britain. The…
Mr Briggs’ Hat by Kate Colquhoun – A Sensational Account of Britain’s First Railway Murder – is a comprehensive account of the first murder in a train, which happened in the First-Class carriage, in 1864. It was shocking and fuelled Victorian fears of what new…
The Gregs of Styal by Mary B Rose is a short book I read about the owners of Quarry Bank Mill, for an university assignment I’m doing. The book is interesting, but I don’t think many would be interested in it, especially as it was…
Sex and Sexuality in Victorian Britain by Violet Fenn* is a short, but really fascinating book. I like that she started by tackling the most controversial views, such as age of consent, which was 12. While now we have very different views, we should always…
The Making of Modern Woman by Lynn Abrams sounded like an interesting book, from the list recommended for my studies. While I was reading it, the book seemed good, with a few assumptions which I don’t necessarily think they added anything to the book, until…
How to Be a Victorian by Ruth Goodman, isn’t that the title of a fascinating book? I think it is. I’ve read How To Be a Tudor by her two years ago and it was great. Her book offers a different view into the everyday…
The Victorian Catalogue by Dorothy Bosomworth – Of Household Goods: A Complete Compendium Of Over Five Thousand Items To Furnish And Decorate The Victorian Home. I was at the Hall I’m volunteering when a colleague brought in this book from the Hall’s library. I was…