Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
I first heard of this book through an interview with the author on NPR. I’m glad I read it, although I’d give it closer to 3 1/2 stars if I could. It is an interesting work of everyday archaeology. The style, however both works for it and against it: it’s very conversational, and leans into unstated drama, especially at the end of anecdotes. Some of them are just great, like the story of Doves Press type or the process for getting finds evaluated by the British Museum. What I didn’t like boils down to style issues. YMMV. Still, a really good book for lovers of history and I recommend it wholeheartedly.
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
Transcendent. A meandering combination of memoir, history, ecology, archaeology, and so much more that takes a mudlark's path from the tidal head of the Thames out to the Estuary where it meets the sea. Full of rich observations of the tiny details that make up the human lives that have characterized the Thames for the past few thousand years, at least, and the objects that they leave behind in the mud to be discovered. Full of easy prose that makes you feel like you're walking alongside her, mudlarking yourself and discovering new things along that meandering journey. Highly recommend.
I really wish half stars were an option, because this is certainly a firm 4.5. I am scaling up to a 5, because after a bit of a slow start it firmly pulled me in and it was an absolute pleasure to read. I could *see* so much of what she describes, locations and theoretical events. The last few pages left me wanting a sequel or some sort of continuation, just to not have to leave this world.. Very satisfying!
There were a lot of neat little tidbits here, and it was definitely interesting to hear how Maiklem sort of fell into mudlarking as a hobby and obsession; her voice comes through very well and she sounds very relatable, especially to someone like me, who loves imagining the past lives of the places and things around me. I can certainly feel the wonder of finding some long-lost everyday object and imagining the person who would have used it in Roman times, or Tudor times, or Victorian times, or whenever.
My biggest complaint is that I would have liked to see more of the actual history of the things she finds; she'll give little bits here and there, but the most in-depth she ever goes is with her own imaginings. We don't get a lot of the research it seems like she does on at least some pieces, and I would have liked more of that. I also would have loved some pictures. This could easily be a coffee-table book with big pictures of the pieces she's found and period drawings showing what they looked like whole or how they would have been used, and it would have been a great help because I definitely found myself often wanting to stop and Google what things looked like (or occasionally even what they were; whether it's a British-American language barrier or just lack of historical knowledge on my part, I sometimes had no idea).
All that said, this was definitely an enjoyable read. If you're someone like me who enjoys daydreaming about what the things around you would have been like in generations past, you'll probably find something here to appreciate.
My biggest complaint is that I would have liked to see more of the actual history of the things she finds; she'll give little bits here and there, but the most in-depth she ever goes is with her own imaginings. We don't get a lot of the research it seems like she does on at least some pieces, and I would have liked more of that. I also would have loved some pictures. This could easily be a coffee-table book with big pictures of the pieces she's found and period drawings showing what they looked like whole or how they would have been used, and it would have been a great help because I definitely found myself often wanting to stop and Google what things looked like (or occasionally even what they were; whether it's a British-American language barrier or just lack of historical knowledge on my part, I sometimes had no idea).
All that said, this was definitely an enjoyable read. If you're someone like me who enjoys daydreaming about what the things around you would have been like in generations past, you'll probably find something here to appreciate.
informative
absolutely loved this book. wonderful everyday history and fascinating things from all along the thames
This book should not have taken me so long but it got so dull at times that I could not keep going. Still, I’m giving it three stars because the history of each place was really interesting. I cannot for the life of me understand why the author did not include photos from her collection. What a missed opportunity.