We think of a home as following a certain design to include kitchen, living room, bathroom, and bedroom. It wasn’t always this way.
In If Walls Could Talk: An Intimate History of the Home, Chief Curator of Historic Royal Palaces Lucy Worsley tears down the walls to provide an intimate look at the evolution of the home from a rudimentary living space to that place comprising those distinct spaces that we’ve come to expect. These rooms are commonplace today, but in earlier times, the home was much different.
With Worsley as our guide, we glance into these rooms, focusing not only on how they came to be, but also what’s in them and what people do in them.
Worsley details sleeping arrangements when bedrooms and beds weren’t yet a constant, dodgy personal hygiene throughout the centuries, and the idea of a “bathroom” – a distinct room set aside for very distinct purposes -- as a relatively modern one. The kitchen says much about food safety and gender relations, and the living room came into the picture as people had more “leisure” time to spend in it and more money to spend on it.
Obviously, she details much more than this. The depth of Worsley’s research is always impressive and the result, always illuminating.
She introduces what she refers to as “trivial details” that can be used to “chart revolutionary changes in society.” These trivial facts are often fascinating, concerning not only Great Britain, but at times America as well. Many also hold clues as to the origin of phrases like “upper crust” or “chairman of the board,” which provide an interesting backstory if one appreciates the evolution of language.
One complaint here if this can be considered a complaint (more likely, dashed wishful thinking) …
When Worsley speaks about history, she is animated and enthusiastic. The tone of the narrator for Worsley’s audiobook could be described as “perfectly lovely,” as the Brits say, but without Worsley’s passion for the subject, which seems out of sorts when listening to what Worsley has written. One doubts anyone could be as enthusiastic as Worsley, which is why it would have been nice had she narrated the book herself.
In any event, If Walls Could Talk is an exhaustively researched and insightful work and is highly recommended for fans of history.
Availability: eBook & eAudiobook in cloudLibrary Rating: *** Stars (I liked it) Reviewer: Katina, Area Librarian
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GENRE: History Writing WRITING STYLE: Accessible LOCATION: England SUBJECTS: Cooking; Etiquette; Fashion; Health; Home; Houses; Social Classes