Aubrey's Brief Lives

by John Aubrey and John Buchanan-Brown

Book Overview

"Writing is, among things, the place where we can help ourselves cope with the dark parts of our living." --John AubreyBrief Lives--Chiefly of Contemporaries, set down by John Aubrey, between the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140430792
• ISBN13: 9780140430790
• Release Date: October 1982
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Length: 388 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A superb book for learning history and appreciating style

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.

Early gossip columnist

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.

A Fine Edition of a Classic

"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.