What does history really consists of? Centuries of people quietly going about their daily business – sleeping, eating, having sex, endeavouring to get comfortable.And where did all these normal activities take place? At home.This was the thought that inspired Bill Bryson to start a journey around the rooms of his own house, an 1851 Norfolk rectory, to consider how the ordinary things in life came … rectory, to consider how the ordinary things in life came to be. And what he discovered are surprising connections to anything from the Crystal Palace to the Eiffel Tower, from scurvy to body-snatching,from bedbugs to the Industrial Revolution, and just about everything else that has ever happened, resulting in one of the most entertaining and illuminating books ever written about the history of the way we live.
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Bryson is a transatlantic treasure!
Bill Bryson is always amusing and interesting.
This is a very informative book about everyday furnishings in and around people’s homes and how they evolved over the centuries. Bryson mentions that one huge English mansion had a room devoted entirely to cleaning bedpans.
Only Bill Bryson could make salt and pepper shakers interesting…
At Home is Bryson’s brilliant way of tweaking your interest in history, as he guides you room by room through his country home in Britain. Worth reading twice !
Super well researched with fascinating insights. He just such an excellent writer, no matter the genre.
Interesting history and entertaining as well. Bryson never disappoints and this is one of his best.
One of Bryson’s best and that’s saying a lot since I’ve never read a Bryson book I didn’t like. I have about 11 of his books and two more waiting to be read. Wonderful wordsmith!
This is one of the most interesting books I’ve ever read. It’s like a man walking through a house, actually a manor, and educating us on the history of everything it contains and the world and local events that led to its invention and its relationship to most everything around it. Mr. Bryson has a masterful writing style and a wit which makes …
One of my favorite Bryson books. I’m re-reading it and it’s just as engaging as the first time. A whimsical and historical examination of every day objects and rooms in a typical home.
Bill Bryson is always smart and surprising. I read this years ago and still remember so much.
All Bryson books are a must read for me!
Inimitable Bill Bryson. Packed with offbeat information, but absolutely readable
A fascinating history of the House and how it added its component parts such as bathroom, dining room and toilets. A long but interesting read by one of America’s low profile intellectuals.
This book is purportedly about the old English manor the author and his family own. It is, but to a marginal degree. The book is actually a historical primer, told with characteristic Bryson drollery, showing the many developments over the millenia, and especially in the last two centuries, that has created the contemporary level of comforts we …
So interesting that I read it twice, then bought a hard copy so I can easily page through whenever I want .
Bill Bryson has a gift for identifying things that we don’t think about but should: what’s the history behind all these household objects. Suddenly all these little objects that are so familiar to our daily routines gain a life and narrative of their own. Thanks again to Mr Bryson for hours of entertainment.
Bill Bryson can do no wrong as a writer. This room by room history of the home kept my attention and appealed to my desire to know the inside story on mundane things.
This book took you through an excellent history of England and how the people lived their lives.
A little disjointed, but funny and informative. Not as full of wry humor as some of Bryson:s books.