31 March 1966: The book is necessary for all who worship London,though they fall dead from apoplexy reading itNairns London, by Ian Nairn (Penguin Books, or 8s 6d).
In his preface Mr Nairn states scrupulously that this is not a “normal guide,” but rather “simply my personal view of the best things in London. What I am after is character, or personality, and essence.” The book is composed of paragraphs of appreciation of single building or areas,of commentary. There are no maps at all, but references to the “A-Z or to the Ordnance Survey are given. For “straightforward general information, and the reader is referred to the “Blue Guide” and for architectural facts to Pevsner,which is objective enough (though the rucksack may be getting on the heavy side).
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Source: theguardian.com