The Immortal Dinner by Penelope Hughes-Hallett
Between Christmas and new year of 1817 the eccentric painter, B.R. Haydon, gave a famous dinner party. His guests included three of the greatest literary stars of the age: the poets John Keats and William Wordsworth and the essayist and wit Charles Lamb. They recited poetry, took part in ridiculous antics, indulged in high-minded discussions - with such displays of brilliance that the party became known as the Immortal Dinner. Penelope Hughes-Hallett celebrates this famous evening, setting it against a backdrop of change, reflected in the preoccupations of the illustrious diners. A compelling and sympathetic picture emerges of these rare spirits and the age which created them.
A colourful portrait of a pivotal moment in England's cultural and social history * Observer *
An absorbing account.. a fascinating re-creation of an evening and a world * BBC History Magazine *
A book of great charm... [lets] the reader feel that he is present at the memorable occassion * Independent on Sunday *
Popular history at its most delicious * Economist *
The biographical equivalent of the world in a grain of sand... an interesting and erudite account of a wonderful evening -- Peter Ackroyd * The Times *
An absorbing account.. a fascinating re-creation of an evening and a world * BBC History Magazine *
A book of great charm... [lets] the reader feel that he is present at the memorable occassion * Independent on Sunday *
Popular history at its most delicious * Economist *
The biographical equivalent of the world in a grain of sand... an interesting and erudite account of a wonderful evening -- Peter Ackroyd * The Times *
Penelope Hughes-Hallett was born in 1927 and spent her childhood at Steventon, Hampshire, where Jane Austen was brought up. Her books include 'My Dear Cassandra': Illustrated Letters of Jane Austen and Home at Grasmere: The Wordsworths and the Lakes. She was a tutor and lecturer with the Open University, subsequently becoming one of its governors, a patron of the Wordsworth Trust and trustee of the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation. She died in 2010.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780099563723 |
| ISBN 10 | 009956372X |
| Title | The Immortal Dinner |
| Author | Penelope Hughes-Hallett |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Vintage Publishing |
| Year published | 2012-05-03 |
| Number of pages | 352 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |