A review by christinecc
The Story of the Country House: A History of Places and People by Clive Aslet

informative lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

Clive Aslet's "Story of the Country House" is the perfect relaxing audiobook. Aslet has a gift for taking us from topic to topic, often in chronological order but not necessarily. I don't know much at all about architecture, and my history of England knowledge is a little spotty, but it didn't matter at all. Aslet gives laymen just enough information to follow along, without any trouble, and with vivid and memorable descriptions of places I will probably never see in person. We learn about eccentric designs, how much our view of the English country house has been shaped by the Edwardian view (to the detriment of other periods preceding it), and how aspects we take for granted today were actually notable developments in house design. (For example: hallways. Imagine walking through every room in the house to get to the other side. It works in a museum but it never struck me how inconvenient that must have been in daily life. By today's standards, anyway.)

And on the subject of vivid descriptions, may I just say that there could not possibly be an audiobook narrator more suited to this book than Simon Vance. He has narrated many excellent books before, but "The Story of the Country House" feels like a natural choice for the person who narrated Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast series full of winding staircases, architectural follies, and plush interiors that belie a long, stony history.

Recommended for anyone with even a casual interest in English history, the idealized English country house, or the way architecture can teach us about how people's everyday lives have changed (or not changed) over time.

Thank you to Tantor Audio and Netgalley for me a free advance review copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.