First Class by Christopher West
This delightfully playful history uses 36 of our most expressive, quirky, beautiful and sometimes baffling stamps to tell us the story of Britain, through Dickens and the potato famine to Thatcher and punk. Stamps tell a story. Since the Penny Black first burst on the scene in 1840, they have made and mirrored history as it happens - from the 'British Empire Exhibition' of 1924 to the Austerity Olympics of 1948, from the Coronation to the death of Diana, from the advent of computers to the new Millennium. Chris West is a stamp-obsessive. He has picked his favourites to tell hugely entertaining and idiosyncratic history. We learn about the Penny Lilac which united a nation in 1881; the controversial schoolboy-designed Edward VIII stamp of 1936; the day the Queen's head was nearly chopped off in 1966; the first non-white Briton to grace a stamp in 1982, and many more. Each lovingly-designed stamp is a vintage specimen and a tantalising window onto an era.
"Sometimes the simplest of ideas produces a gem of a book and this captivating history of 170 years of the postage stamp is really an excuse to examine British history" -- Sally Morris * Daily Mail *
"Entertaining nostalgia trip" * Express *
"Telling a nation's story through a selection of its stamps is an ingenious idea for a book, and Chris West has executed it with flair and imagination" * D J Taylor *
"Small but pefectly formed - 5 stars" -- Ceri Radford * The Telegraph *
"A splendid reminder of the philatelic glories of the past… These miniature gems are of the highest quality in design, subject choice and colour" -- David Driver * The Times *
"Entertaining nostalgia trip" * Express *
"Telling a nation's story through a selection of its stamps is an ingenious idea for a book, and Chris West has executed it with flair and imagination" * D J Taylor *
"Small but pefectly formed - 5 stars" -- Ceri Radford * The Telegraph *
"A splendid reminder of the philatelic glories of the past… These miniature gems are of the highest quality in design, subject choice and colour" -- David Driver * The Times *
Chris West wrote the bestselling business title The Beermat Entrepreneur. He also published a series of successful crime novels under another name. Having worked in the City and then in PR & marketing, he now teaches marketing to small businesses.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780224095471 |
| ISBN 10 | 0224095471 |
| Title | First Class |
| Author | Christopher West |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Vintage Publishing |
| Year published | 2013-10-03 |
| Number of pages | 272 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |