From among the long list of helpful books we've selected a few. Don't ignore the well known British authors: Dickens, the Brontes, Hardy, Austen, Stevenson, Delderfield, and even Conan Doyle are examples of writers who can give you insight into British culture. Shakespeare enlarges background, language, poets from Herrick to Auden highlight countryside and character.
Atlick, Richard D. To Be In England. Pleasurable reading for the student of English literature and England in general. Much affection for English ways and scenes.
Billington, Michael. Peggy Ashcroft. A sensitive and readable biography of one of the great actors in the modern British theatre.
Blythe, Ronald. Akenfield-Portrait of an English Village. Classic portrait of an East Anglia village in pre-labor party England: “an invaluable and horridly enjoyable corrective to the ...pub-and-quaintness notion of bucolic England.”
Bradford, Ernie. The Story of The Mary Rose. Salvage story of this ship: prime tourist attraction and a treasure of knowledge on Tudor life. The author “projects” a wonderful sense of excitement.
Brendon, Piers. Winston Churchill: A Biography. A refreshing portrait of this British legend.
Brittain, Vera. Testament of Youth. The best work on Britain in World War I.
Bryant, Arthur. The Lion and the Unicorn: A Historian's Testament. Dramatized history. This work is Bryant's reminiscences of England, English ways, and his own distinguished career.
Burke, John. Look Back on England. “Fascinating and informative journey into England's past... that lives visibly in the architecture, countryside and villages... rather than by studying dates, battles, and cumbersome facts.”
Cave, Richard Allen. New British Drama in Performance on the London Stage 1970-1985. The emphasis on performance gives the reader the broad picture of the total theatre experience.
Cohn, Ruby. Retreats from Realism in Recent English Drama. Cohn is the foremost American interpreter of English drama. She focuses on non-realism which is that aspect of drama most difficult for American students.
Erickson, Carolly. The First Elizabeth. Knowing something of Tudor-Stuart England (Henry VII, Henry VIII and Elizabeth I) is a must for understanding what you're going to see.
Findlater, Richard. ed. At the Royal Court. Engagingly written history of the theatre responsible for providing a stage for the most innovative work of the 20th century in England.
Forster, E. M. Howard's End. Read this novel for itself and its people--or to help you understand what many see as England's decline.
Frost, David and Jay, Anthony. The English. Witty and bizarre. Anecdotes and quotations on British eccentricities.
Gielgud, John.
Autobiographical works on a life in the theatre presented with charm, wit, and modesty. Acquaints one with the whole world of the theatre in the 20th century.
Hamilton, Ronald. Now I Remember: A Holiday History of Britain. “All the English History you'll ever need.”
Hance, Helen.
The correspondence relationship between an American and a British bookseller.
Hayman, Richard. British Theatre since 1955. A careful reassessment of various themes and approaches to theatre.
Herriott, James. The Best of James Herriot. Excerpts from All Creatures Great and Small, All Things Wise and Wonderful, The Lord God Made Them All by the veterinarian/author of Yorkshire whose books have been made into a widely popular TV series, St. Martin, 1983. His Yorkshire (1979) has many photos.
Hibbert, Christopher. London: The Biography of a City. “A delight to read or merely to peruse” with photos and maps showing London's growth from a “walled city-port to the sprawl” of today - “a mine of information and...nostalgic reminiscence.”
Holden, Anthony. Olivier. The best biography of England's late king of the theatre.
Innes, Christopher. Modern British Drama: 1890-1990. Each chapter is devoted to a study of one major dramatist.
Kennedy, David. Citizen Diplomacy: Responding to Questions About America. Collection of more than sixty questions frequently asked about America, with sample responses that are informative, balanced, and nonconfrontational.
Lawson, Andrew. Discover Unexpected London. Recommended highly by London aficionados.
Lee, Laurie. As I Walked out One Summer Morning. Informal work giving one a sense of things English.
McKenney, Ruth and Richard Bransten. Here's England. Generally regarded as the primary introduction.
Morgan, Kenneth O., ed. The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain. If you wish one good concise history, this is it: a readable, fast paced work for those with little history background.
Morton, H. V. Morton's Britain. The “In Search of” series of travel guides, classics written in the 1920s and the 1930s, have been culled for excerpts in this newer book, with updating editorial comments.
Muir, Richard. The Villages of England. A rich pictorial survey providing the feeling of each village's distinction.
National Geographic, ed. Discovering Britain and Ireland. “One of the loveliest...books on the British Isles to appear in a long time...animated but accurate text” plus photographs on the history, architecture, social customs, sights to see, etc.
Plumb, J. H. England in the Eighteenth Century. Recommended history by our often used British history professor.
Priestley, J. B. The English. A highly personal choice of subjects illustrating essentially English characteristics-biographical essays, chapters on the arts, England's future, etc.
Pritchett, V. S. London Perceived. Recommended for browsing, reading is urged (especially wonderful chapter 6!).
Richard, Ivor. We the British: An Inside Look at Foibles, Customs, Eccentricities, and Institutions. Former British Ambassador to the UN discusses the character of his country and compatriots through anecdotes, amusing incidents and unusual traditions.
Smith, Godfrey. The English Companion. An idiosyncratic guide to England and Englishness from A to Z. A "charming, witty and lively companion to English life, letters, and history" arranged alphabetically.
Toth, Susan Allen. My Love Affair with England. A collection of essays written at various times.
Warner, Sylvia. Townsend. Posthumous collection by a noted English author. Recollection of growing up in English society. Charming and very bright!
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