Friday, January 4, 2013

Beginning ~ under London

 London Under: The Secret History Beneath the Streets ~ by Peter Ackroyd, 2011, history (England)
"A vast concourse of people, buried deep within the clay of the Eocene period, move beneath your feet in underground trains.  Rooms and corridors have been created for the settlement of thousands of people in the event of calamity.You are also treading on the city of the past, all of its history from the prehistoric settlers to the present day packed within 24 feet of earthen fabric.  The past is beneath us.  It exists still as the companion of the present city."
The lower photo on this cover is actually on the back cover of my library copy, with a less interesting photo on the front.  Read more about the book in my Library Loot post, which says that under London you'll find...
"...original springs and streams and Roman amphitheaters to Victorian sewers, gang hideouts, and modern tube stations."


Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.
Click here for today's Mister Linky.

7 comments:

Laurel-Rain Snow said...

Very intriguing....thanks for sharing, and enjoy!

Here's MY FRIDAY MEMES POST

Amber said...

Sort of creepy when you think about, but fascinating at the same time.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing that excerpt! I think I've seen this book in passing but I never thought about picking it up. Might have to take a look at it again, hope you're enjoying it

Here's my Book Beginning on Friday =)

sinn said...

That's neat! Thanks for sharing!

Here's my book beginning:
http://www.sinnfulbooks.com/2013/01/book-beginnings.html

sinn @ sinnful books

Gilion at Rose City Reader said...

This sounds really good! I read one of his novels once and enjoyed it. I'll keep an eye out for his non-fiction.

Thanks for participating in the first 2013 Book Beginnings!

Anonymous said...

Loved this book! I hope you enjoy it. Ackroyd is so good at linking up historical events with each other and putting small stuff into the bigger picture - like when he talks about the Underground train system being conceived and developed by a man who was born before the French Revolution - which brings what seems like the distant past very close! There's another relatively recent book called Underground London by Stephen Smith which is less dense but equally interesting...

Joy said...

I'm still enjoying this. My mother-in-law is finding it a bit creepy....

Joy's Book Blog