London: The Novel - Softcover

Rutherfurd, Edward

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0345455681 ISBN 13: 9780345455680

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 2002

Synopsis

“A TOUR DE FORCE . . . London tracks the history of the English capital from the days of the Celts until the present time. . . . Breathtaking.”—The Orlando Sentinel

A master of epic historical fiction, Edward Rutherford gives us a sweeping novel of London, a glorious pageant spanning two thousand years. He brings this vibrant city's long and noble history alive through his saga of ever-shifting fortunes, fates, and intrigues of a half-dozen families, from the age of Julius Caesar to the twentieth century. Generation after generation, these families embody the passion, struggle, wealth, and verve of the greatest city in the Old World.

Praise for London

“Remarkable . . . The invasion by Julius Caesar’s legions in 54 B.C. . . . The rise of chivalry and the Crusades . . . The building of the Globe theatre . . . and the coming of the Industrial Revolution. . . . What a delightful way to get the feel of London and of English history. . . . We witness first-hand the lust of Henry VIII. We overhear Geoffrey Chaucer deciding to write The Canterbury Tales. . . . Each episode is a punchy tale made up of bite-size chunks ending in tiny cliffhangers.”—The New York Times

“Hold-your-breath suspense, buccaneering adventure, and passionate tales of love and war.”—The Times (London)

“Fascinating . . . A sprawling epic.”—San Francisco Chronicle

About this title

Review:

Edward Rutherfurd belongs to the James Michener school: he writes big, sprawling history-by- the-pound. His novel, London, stretches two millennia all the way from Roman times to the present. The author places his vignettes at the most dramatic moments of that city's history, leaping from Caesar's invasion to the Norman Conquest to the Great Fire to (of course) the Blitz, with many stops in between. London is ambitious, and students of English history will eat it up. The author doesn't skimp on historical detail, and that's a signal pleasure of the book. Ultimately, though, the structure of the novel determines the lion's share of its success. Rutherfurd is a good storyteller and each vignette makes for a good story; however, he has given himself the inevitable task of beginning what amounts to a new book every 40 pages or so. Just as one begins to warm to the characters, they are hurried off the stage. You can't read London without a scorecard—but that's part of the fun.

From the Publisher:

Last summer, I was searching for the perfect book to take with me to the beach. I wanted something big and juicy that I could savor throughout my week-long vacation. At my husband's urging, I chose LONDON by Edward Rutherford. At first, I was sceptical about this book because, unlike my husband, I'm not a big history lover. I found, however, that this book was a perfect blend of drama AND history. The story, which includes an immense cast of characters, was extremely engrossing, and the historical detail made the story all the more rich and enjoyable. I couldn't have picked a better book to read!

An added benefit of this book was that it inspired yet another vacation -- this time to -- you guessed it -- London. In addition to a wonderful read, this book serves as a great travel guide. Rutherford spent many hours researching the book in the Museum of London, so that was our first stop. But then we branched out and toured the entire city with LONDON in hand. I'd lived in London some years ago and never had much interest in the City of London, but now I wanted to take a closer look. LONDON is filled with maps, so you can use these as your guide to check out how the city has changed over time (from Roman & Saxon to Medieval & Tudor, to Georgian & Victorian, to present day). It's really fascinating!

-- Jennifer Richards
Ballantine Books Publicity

About this edition

• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0345455681
• ISBN 13: 9780345455680
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 1152