Living & Working in London: A Survival Handbook [Paperback]

Dan Finlay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 26, 2004 | Series: Living & Working in London

Fully updated and revised 2nd edition. Essential reading for anyone planning to live or work in London and the most up-to-date source of practical information available about everyday life. It's guaranteed to hasten your introduction to the London way of life and, most importantly, will save you time, trouble and money! The best-selling and most comprehensive book about living and working in London since it was first published in 1999, containing up to twice as much information as similar books!

Product Details

• Paperback: 420 pages
• Publisher: Survival Books, Ltd; 2nd Edition edition (August 26, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1901130428
• ISBN-13: 978-1901130423
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,183,673 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

88 of 88 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Some useful information, but severely lacking in many areas, May 29, 2006

By 

Geo - See all my reviews

This review is from: Living & Working in London: A Survival Handbook (Paperback)

I bought this book after accepting a job in London in 2005. After living in London for several months, I can now reflect on my relocation experience and say that this book only provided me with limited guidance.

This book attempts to provide a grand overview on the challenges that expatriates will face when they relocate to London. The book does present a broad overview of the many things expatriates need to do when relocating to London. For example, it does thoroughly explain the work permit and visa process, and it gives plenty of information on setting up utilities in a new home. It also provides some warnings about situations unique to London, such as the viscious, unregulated real estate market, and it provides some tourism information as well.

Additionally, the book provides multiple comparisons of the London boroughs, and the first section of the book provides summary information on each one. However, the summaries are frequently too short to provide a good overview of some of the more diverse boroughs, and some of the criticisms are overly harsh (as they were for Hammersmith and Fulham).

The book has a few major faults. The greatest major fault is that it fails to provide vital information needed for relocation. It does not explain how to solve the permanent housing / bank account / job paradox (where, to acquire one of these things, an individual must already have the other two). This alone significantly weakens the book. However, the book also does not provide information on other things as well. For example, it explains nothing about acquiring a credit card or building up a credit rating in the United Kingdom (which can be frustratingly difficult for a U.S. citizen). It provided some information on dentists, but it did not explain how to sign up with a dentist. It also does not explain U.K. taxes, which are very different from U.S. taxes. While this book does provide information on shopping, the shopping information is oriented towards tourists with high incomes, not residents with low or mid-level incomes.

Aside from the lack of information on important topics in this book, I also dislike it for already being out-of-date (or unfairly biased), even though it was published in 2004. Some of the criticisms of some boroughs are already out-of-date, possibly biased by older impressions from the last century. Many websites suggested by the book either have not been updated for months or are not functional. Also, the transportation information is woefully obsolete, as the Underground in particular has changed (and improved) significantly since the book's publication. I can only imagine that many sections of the book that I have not examined closely also provide dated information.

In conclusion, I would only recommend this book as a supplement to London relocation information rather than as a prime source of information. It simply fails to answer many crucial questions (especially questions about the residence/banking/job paradox), and too much of the information either seems biased or obsolete.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Some good information, but missing a lot of key tips, July 29, 2008

By 

L. Geilhufe - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Living and Working in London: A Survival Handbook (Living & Working in London) (Paperback)

I moved to London 7 months ago to continue my job with their London office and read this book before I moved. Although there is some helpful information about making the move, I feel that I could write an entire book with all the stuff this one left out. When browsing through the areas to live, they leave out many key areas and have some in there I still haven't heard of after living here. One big thing they left out was that most flats to rent in this city are either semi- or fully-furnished. This would've been great information to have before my husband and I moved all our stuff over here for a 2-year stint. They also have no helpful information on getting a work permit or UK visa. It really seems as though the writer of the book has not actually moved to London for work, but instead only done some research. There are so many other tips that I've learned along the way that I wish someone had told me beforehand that were completely left out of the book. I found at least 50% of the information completely irrelevant or unhelpful.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Potential Expatriate to London, April 27, 2008

By 

M. Ashanti "World Traveler" (New York City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Living and Working in London: A Survival Handbook (Living & Working in London) (Paperback)

Truly a well-written and informative piece of work that is helping to make the initial preparation for my potential relocation to London through a job transfer a little less nervous. I truly appreciate the breakdown of each borough as well as the additional resources (websites, contact info, maps) that aid in providing more detailed information. This is definately a great buy. This edition may be a little outdated in certain areas as there have been so many changes regarding the housing market and the regeneration of certain areas which I witnessed on my last trip to London in Sept. 2007. So I can't wait for the new edition to come out. Truly worth it though for the other information that would pretty much stay the same.