Christopher Hart
Seek and Ye Shall Find
Shapely Ankle Preferr’d: A History of the Lonely Hearts Ad
By Francesca Beauman
Chatto and Windus 207pp £12.99
Francesca Beauman’s new book, a thoroughly original history of lonely hearts adverts, is elegant, witty, wise and utterly delightful. It offers hours of NSA adult fun, and most definitely has a GSOH.
The first ad of which we have evidence appeared in 1695, in a pamphlet published at the Golden Fleece on the corner of Gracechurch Street and Eastcheap. Among the offers of an Arabian stallion and a second-hand bed, there was also a gentleman of thirty years of age looking for ‘a young Gentlewoman that has a fortune of 3000l.’ Multiply this by at least 100, perhaps 1,000, and you can see this young man had ambition.
Almost immediately, spoof versions appeared. In fact they can be traced back earlier than the genuine article. For instance in 1660 there appeared a pun-stuffed appeal from a widow, ‘plump, fresh, free and willing’, on the lookout for any man who will ‘present the true picture of his
Sign Up to our newsletter
Receive free articles, highlights from the archive, news, details of prizes, and much more.@Lit_Review
Follow Literary Review on Twitter
Twitter Feed
Are iPhones ruining children's lives? A prominent American psychologist thinks so.
@tiffanyjenkins is not so sure:
Tiffany Jenkins - The Smartphone Pandemic
Tiffany Jenkins: The Smartphone Pandemic - The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an...
literaryreview.co.uk
India's 'festival of democracy', or general election, begins next month. Like every good festival, it looks likely to have its fair share of murders and arrests.
@OwenBennettJon probes the state of democracy in India:
Owen Bennett-Jones - New Delhi Confidential
Owen Bennett-Jones: New Delhi Confidential - The Incarcerations: BK-16 and the Search for Democracy in India by Alpa Shah
literaryreview.co.uk
Where is the world's newest narcostate and why is it thriving?
@AdamBrookesWord investigates Asia's meth mecca.
Adam Brookes - Meth Comes to Myanmar
Adam Brookes: Meth Comes to Myanmar - Narcotopia: In Search of the Asian Drug Cartel That Outwitted the CIA by Patrick Winn
literaryreview.co.uk