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A review by thenovelbook
The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides with Samuel Johnson, LL.D. by James Boswell
2.0
Two friends went on a tour of Scotland in the 1770s. One of them was the Englishman Samuel Johnson, the compiler of the first great dictionary of the English language. The other was the Scotchman James Boswell, good friend and later biographer of Johnson. Both kept a record of their trip. It has been said that their journals differ because Johnson studied Scotland, and Boswell studied Johnson.
So far I’ve only read Boswell’s account, and it’s true it mostly serves as a vehicle for describing Johnson’s conversation. There’s a whole lot of 18th-century name-dropping, most of which didn’t mean much to me. But I learned a few things, and found the occasional humorous passage. Check out my Kindle highlights for examples.
This was my second pick for Georgianuary 2020.
So far I’ve only read Boswell’s account, and it’s true it mostly serves as a vehicle for describing Johnson’s conversation. There’s a whole lot of 18th-century name-dropping, most of which didn’t mean much to me. But I learned a few things, and found the occasional humorous passage. Check out my Kindle highlights for examples.
This was my second pick for Georgianuary 2020.