Why read Imagining England's Past?

Book cover of Imagining England's Past: Inspiration, Enchantment, Obsession

Book description

Imagining England's Past takes a long look at the country's invented histories, from the glamorous to the disturbing, from the eighth century to the present day.

England has long built its sense of self on visions of its past. What does it mean for medieval writers to summon King…

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European history

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Why read it?

1 author picked Imagining England's Past as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Charlotte Mullins

Author

I read an early proof of this book (it is published on 13 April 2023) and was hooked from the first page.

Owens opens with footfall on medieval castle stairs and the tread of time – only the stairs she walks on are seventeenth-century copies and are part of the ongoing mythologising of England’s past.

She covers King Arthur and the Crusades, Beowulf and Tennyson, Shell tourist guides, and the rebuilding of Coventry Cathedral. Her excellent earlier book Spirit of Place (Thames & Hudson) is focused more squarely on the British landscape but this new book connects to the…

From Charlotte's list on The best books on the British landscape, from deep time and archaeology to romanticism and radical art.