The whole ferment of the Elizabethan age and the vigor of the century that followed come alive in these "brief portraits" that have been looted by scholars for centuries. Here are Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Thomas More, Shakespeare, Milton, Marvel, and countless others, who in these pages become not abstract names from a history book, but flesh and blood characters. Brief Lives was written by John Aubrey (1626-1697), the greatest gossip columnist of the seventeenth century: a hanger-on among the rich and famous who left posterity a sprawling collection of notes, anecdotes, and morsels of gossip that the editor has sutured together into a series of unforgettable portraits. These men flawed, vain, ambitious, vulnerable are more alive and kicking in these pages than in any formal history. As Edmund Wilson writes in his introduction, "I have never read anything else that makes me feel in quite the same way what it must have been like to live then."
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fine Edition of a Classic,
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This review is from: Aubrey's Brief Lives (Nonpareil Books, No 77) (Paperback)
"Brief Lives" has always been a delight, but it was Oliver Lawson Dick's scholarly editing that revealed Aubrey's genius. And Lawson Dick's Introduction, "The Life and Times of John Aubrey", is a miracle of synthesis and compression: certainly one of the finest biographical essays ever written. This Nonpareil Books edition is sumptuous - a joy to read in these days cheap, quickly produced paperbacks.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A superb book for learning history and appreciating style,
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This review is from: Aubrey's Brief Lives (Nonpareil Books, No 77) (Paperback)
This collection of short narrative portraits of famous and semi-famous people by a recognized scientist and author is among the most interesting reading you'll enjoy. His information is detailed and personal and Aubrey's writing style is a fine pattern for modern readers as well.
I recommend this book without question.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Early gossip columnist,
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This review is from: Aubrey's Brief Lives (Nonpareil Books, No 77) (Paperback)
Lives of the rich and famous recorded a time when there were no libel laws meant that even the dirt that wasnt fit to print could be disseminated, whether true or not. It still makes fascinating reading.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
WHEN Arch-Bishop Abbot's Mother (a poor Cloath-worker's Wife in Gilford) was with Child of him, she did long for a Jack or Pike, and she dreamt that if she should Eat a Jack, her Son in her Belly should be a great Man. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
hye nonny nonny noe, civill warres, great deale Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Sir John, Sir William, King Charles, Queen Elizabeth, King James, Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Thomas, Trinity College, Christ Church, Royal Society, Civil War, Bishop of Sarum, Lord Chancellor, Ben Johnson, Earle of Dorset, Earle of Pembroke, Royall Societie, Sir Kenelme, Thomas Hobbes, Church of England, Earl of Pembroke, Sir Jonas, Edmund Wyld, Lord Falkland, Prince of Wales New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
WHEN Arch-Bishop Abbot's Mother (a poor Cloath-worker's Wife in Gilford) was with Child of him, she did long for a Jack or Pike, and she dreamt that if she should Eat a Jack, her Son in her Belly should be a great Man. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
hye nonny nonny noe, civill warres, great deale Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Sir John, Sir William, King Charles, Queen Elizabeth, King James, Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Thomas, Trinity College, Christ Church, Royal Society, Civil War, Bishop of Sarum, Lord Chancellor, Ben Johnson, Earle of Dorset, Earle of Pembroke, Royall Societie, Sir Kenelme, Thomas Hobbes, Church of England, Earl of Pembroke, Sir Jonas, Edmund Wyld, Lord Falkland, Prince of Wales New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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100
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