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A review by kathleenww
Imagined London: A Tour of the World's Greatest Fictional City by Anna Quindlen
4.0
Sweet little gem of a book. Anna Quindlen has a fondness for the London she's experienced through much of the classic English lit she's read throughout her life, beginning in her childhood. I share that fondness myself. So this book is a magical mystery tour for readers and lovers of London!
Quindlen visits London (finally as an adult) and revisits much of what she's read while she's there. Heavy on Dickens, Waugh and Trollope, there is plenty here for everyone. I myself love Forster and Austen (both mentioned), and there is a smattering of Shakespeare, Maugham, James (PD and Henry), Eliot(both George and TS), Chaucer, Browning, Woolf...she covers many a haunt..you may not have read them all, but even if you haven't, you will be encouraged to after this travelogue.
Quindlen's ramblings about her most favorite literary city and telling and warm, even when the city is not so friendly itself. She is obviously quite fond of the place, and reading this gave me even more of a hankering to visit there. It also added a few authors and books to my TBR pile. Charming, quirky adn quick, this book also shows off the immense talent of Quindlen as author and journalist, able to really express a feeling in one short sentence. I love her use of unusual and archaic language, which in the writings of others might come off as pretentious or overly scholarly, but in Quindlen's work, seems natural and the vocabulary of a great reader. I truly admire that. Neat little book.
Quindlen visits London (finally as an adult) and revisits much of what she's read while she's there. Heavy on Dickens, Waugh and Trollope, there is plenty here for everyone. I myself love Forster and Austen (both mentioned), and there is a smattering of Shakespeare, Maugham, James (PD and Henry), Eliot(both George and TS), Chaucer, Browning, Woolf...she covers many a haunt..you may not have read them all, but even if you haven't, you will be encouraged to after this travelogue.
Quindlen's ramblings about her most favorite literary city and telling and warm, even when the city is not so friendly itself. She is obviously quite fond of the place, and reading this gave me even more of a hankering to visit there. It also added a few authors and books to my TBR pile. Charming, quirky adn quick, this book also shows off the immense talent of Quindlen as author and journalist, able to really express a feeling in one short sentence. I love her use of unusual and archaic language, which in the writings of others might come off as pretentious or overly scholarly, but in Quindlen's work, seems natural and the vocabulary of a great reader. I truly admire that. Neat little book.