Simon Heffer
This Dissected Isle
Irrepressible Adventures with Britannia: Personalities, Politics and Culture in Britain
By Wm Roger Louis (ed)
I B Tauris 400pp £37 order from our bookshop
The British Studies seminar at the University of Texas has been running for nearly forty years, and this is the eighth collection of lectures given to it. Since recycling is all the rage, some of the contents of this volume may be familiar to readers of various literary periodicals in which they have appeared as articles. But most of the book, which consists of lectures given between 2011 and 2013, is fresh and, more than that, stimulating.
Students participating in the seminars receive an eclectic picture of Britain. While there are some obvious subjects (Prince Albert, Sherlock Holmes, Margaret Thatcher), it is the less obvious ones that are most appealing: Andrew Roberts (an Africa expert, not to be confused with the political and military historian of the
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
'The eight years he has spent in solitary confinement have had a devastating impact on his mental health ... human rights organisations believe his detention is punishment for his critical views.'
@lucyjpop on the Egyptian activist and poet Ahmed Douma.
https://literaryreview.co.uk/ahmed-douma
'We nipped down Mount Pleasant ... me marvelling at London all over again because the back of a Vespa gives you the everyday world like nothing else can.'
Ali Smith writes this month's diary.
https://literaryreview.co.uk/temple-of-vespa
We were saddened to hear of the recent passing of the novelist Elspeth Barker, a valued contributor to Literary Review over the years. (1/2)