Monday, October 13, 2014

Necropolis: London and Its Dead (Catharine Arnold)


Continuing with the macabre, I picked up Catharine Arnold's Necropolis: London and Its Dead.  I put it down after reading 10%.  Read on to find out why.

Necropolis is sort of a history of burial customs in London from neolithic times to present day.  It also looks at things like mass burials, building on graveyards, and the realities of some aspects of the bygone ways.  I say 'sort of' history because the work had an anecdotal feel to it- the author presents some interesting stories and facts from history, but (in my opinion) made over-reached generalizations based off them.  This is a book by an amateur enthusiast rather than a proper historian, and it shows.  Interesting for some (it is a cool topic), but I'm sure there are better treatments elsewhere.

Rating: C

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