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Title: The English: A Portrait of a People by Jeremy Paxman ISBN: 1-58567-042-1 Publisher: Overlook Press Pub. Date: 06 July, 2000 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.14 (22 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Spot On
Comment: As an American, I probably shouldn't be commenting on this book, but having lived in England for the past 5 years, I know that when a bunch of English write in to [negitivly review] a book about the English, it's probably because the book hits too close to home. To be fair, the book is really about previous generations of English (especially those who lived through the Empire and WWII) and scarcely applies to the current generation (who could hardly be accused of being uninterested in sex, for example). The book is far less cliche-ridden than Bryson's Notes from a Small Island and much more positive than Theroux's Kingdom by the Sea. There are some truly interesting and obscure (to the non-English) discussions here, like those on English intellectuals and the Church of England. The chapter on Funny Foreigners is hilarious. All in all, I think this is a subject worth exploring - it does mean something to be English - and I think that Paxman has done a more thoughtful and thorough job than anyone else I've seen.
Rating: 3
Summary: Well written, but not quite meaningful
Comment: Well, the style is very good indeed. It is quite evident that he comes from what he calls "The breed", but the insular character of "The English" gives a very unbiased view of what an English is. I could write another version of it, I think he was not successful in taking distance from the subject and in some cases not only minimises some facts about ordinary English life, in other cases he has not got a wider view from other cultures on how The English is seen from abroad.
I would suggest Mr. Paxman to travel a bit more accross Europe at least...
Rating: 4
Summary: How to understand the English psyche
Comment: I'd never read anything by Paxman before, so like other reviewers, I wondered how academic this might be. In fact, contrary to the reviews on the flyleaf, I didn't find it as funny as they suggested it might be.
But I was not disappointed but delighted. I didn't want some flippant lightweight humourous prose, but I got a very well researched book with some funny bits.
I've recommended it to Americans who don't understand the English psyche.
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Title: The Xenophobe's Guide to the English by Antony Miall, David Milsted ISBN: 1902825268 Publisher: Globe Pequot Pr Pub. Date: 01 April, 1999 List Price(USD): $6.95 |
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Title: Imagining the New Britain by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown ISBN: 0415931126 Publisher: Brunner-Routledge Pub. Date: 01 April, 2001 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson ISBN: 0380727501 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 01 May, 1997 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: I'm a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America After 20 Years Away by Bill Bryson ISBN: 076790382X Publisher: Broadway Books Pub. Date: 06 June, 2000 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: London: The Biography by PETER ACKROYD ISBN: 0385497717 Publisher: Anchor Pub. Date: 08 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
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