{"title":"Simon Wenham","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"hobbs-of-henley-book-simon-wenham-9781445696607","title":"Hobbs of Henley","description":"Hobbs of Henley is not only one of the best-known businesses in Henley-on-Thames, it also boasts one of the most exclusive and recognisable fleets of boats plying the river today.Simon Wenham's illustrated history, written to mark the firm's 150th anniversary, shows how the descendants of a Hambleden family, living by the Thames in the seventeenth century, went on to found this now prominent business, growing it from a waterside pub in the Victorian period to one of the largest operators on the river with bases in a number of locations. It sheds light on over a century of social change and demonstrates how the fortunes of the firm were closely tied to the world-famous regatta, as well as the ever-fluctuating demand for leisure. It also traces the considerable contribution that the Hobbs family made, not only in helping thousands of people each year to enjoy the beauty of the Thames, but in shaping the development of Henley in the modern era.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49574714310929,"sku":"GOR012209472","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1445696606.jpg?v=1761140895"},{"product_id":"pleasure-boating-on-the-thames-book-simon-wenham-9780750958332","title":"Pleasure Boating on the Thames","description":"THE RIVER THAMES above London underwent a dramatic transformation during the Victorian period, from a great commercial highway into a vast conduit of pleasure. Pleasure Boating on the Thames traces these changes through the history of the firm that did more than any other on the waterway to popularise recreational boating. Salter Bros began as a small boat-building enterprise in Oxford and went on to gain worldwide fame, not only as the leading racing boat constructor, but also as one of the largest rental craft and passenger boat operators in the country.Simon Wenham's illustrated history sheds light on over 150 years of social change, how leisure developed on the waterway (including the rise of camping), as well as how a family firm coped with the changes brought about by industrialisation - a business that, today, still carries thousands of passengers a year.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49579098702097,"sku":"GOR008172038","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ LIKE_NEW \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":51681277477137,"sku":"GOR010998563","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0750958332.jpg?v=1767869078"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-simon-wenham.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}