Given the enormous number of books on London, our list is necessarily a very selective one. The recommendations we've made are in print and in paperback. Publishers are detailed with the British publisher first, separated by an oblique slash from the US publisher, in cases where both exist. Where books are published in only one of these countries, UK or US follows the publisher's name; where the book is published by the same company in both countries, the name of the company appears just once. UP designates University Press. If you want to find the cheapest copy to buy online, try
www.bookbrain.co.uk.
Travel, journals and memoirs
James Boswell
,
London Journal
(Edinburgh UP). Boswell's diary, written in 1762-3 when he was lodging in Downing Street, is remarkably candid about his frequent dealings with the city's prostitutes, and a fascinating insight into...
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History, society and politics
Angus Calder
,
The Myth of the Blitz
(Pimlico, UK). A timely antidote to the backs-against-the-wall, "London can take it" tone of most books on this period. Calder dwells instead on the capital's internees - Communists,...
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Art, architecture and archeology
Felix Barker and Ralph Hyde
,
London As It Might Have Been
(John Murray). A richly illustrated book on the weird and wonderful plans that never quite made it from the drawing board.
Samantha Hardingham
,
London: A...
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London in fiction
Peter Ackroyd
,
English Music
(Penguin, UK);
Hawksmoor
(Penguin, UK);
The House of Doctor Dee
(Penguin, UK);
The Great Fire of London
(Penguin, UK);
Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem
...
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