Johnson's Life of London: The People Who Made the City that Made the World
Boris Johnson
Johnson's Life of London: The People Who Made the City that Made the World
Boris Johnson believes that in order to understand London one has to know about its past. The heart and spirit of London lies in its people, in the range of its cultures. Through its diversity and energy, London provides an environment which empowers people to create, the impetus to invent. Boris Johnson’s new book explores this cross current of influences between Westminster and the City, between the politicians and the wealth creators, over many centuries from Boudacea to the Rolling Stones. Johnson’s book provides a chronological story of London but is written in the form of a relay race of biographies – some very famous figures, some more obscure. He ranges from the Romans to one of the author’s predecessors as mayor, Dick Whittington; from John Wilkes (a strong upholder of the freedom of the press) to J.W. Turner; from Chaucer to Gandhi, and through to modern times.
2.8 out of 5 based on 4 reviews
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Omniscore:
|
| Classification |
Non-fiction |
| Genre |
History |
| Format |
Hardback |
| Pages |
304 |
| RRP |
£20.00 |
| Date of Publication |
October 2011 |
| ISBN |
978-0007418930 |
| Publisher |
HarperPress |
| |
Boris Johnson believes that in order to understand London one has to know about its past. The heart and spirit of London lies in its people, in the range of its cultures. Through its diversity and energy, London provides an environment which empowers people to create, the impetus to invent. Boris Johnson’s new book explores this cross current of influences between Westminster and the City, between the politicians and the wealth creators, over many centuries from Boudacea to the Rolling Stones. Johnson’s book provides a chronological story of London but is written in the form of a relay race of biographies – some very famous figures, some more obscure. He ranges from the Romans to one of the author’s predecessors as mayor, Dick Whittington; from John Wilkes (a strong upholder of the freedom of the press) to J.W. Turner; from Chaucer to Gandhi, and through to modern times.
Read an extract from the book | Telegraph
Reviews
The Spectator
Mark Mason
"The quality of the writing is Shard-high ... The Borisisms are there (the Lord Mayor who ignored the Great Fire is a ‘municipal mugwump’), as are the gags ... There’s substance, too. Many of the chapters — for instance those on Churchill and Boris’s namesake Samuel — resist easy caricature to paint complex pictures of flawed humans. The portrait that really stands out, though, is the one of John Wilkes."
26/11/2011
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The Evening Standard
AN Wilson
"Every page is the coded plea: "Boris for Mayor". That said, it would be a churlish reader who derived no pleasure from this romp through London's history."
03/11/2011
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The Independent
Boyd Tonkin
"Trivial and derivative it may be, but Johnson's sketchbook diverts as well as annoys."
18/11/2011
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The Sunday Times
Christopher Hart
"Much as he likes himself, Boris Johnson remains dangerously likeable, even in such a shoddy book as this ... But the book also makes clear that all he really believes in are ambition, power, fame and fun. Why not title the book Johnson’s Life of Boris: The People Who Made the City that Made Me Mayor?"
13/11/2011
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