This was just okay It is essentially a biography of the hotel over 400 years so is suitable for history geeks as well as fans of Shrewsbury and the Lion hotel This hotel s golden age in the 18th century was as a stagecoach hotel so we learn a lot about stagecoaches and that era. A good bit of the older history after the introductory portion which was a bit dry is vivid and well drawn I was captivated by the history of how Royal Mail started and of the stagecoach era I had no idea of some of the day to day practicalities that the author brought to life so well The history of road maintenance in the 15th and 16th centuries was unexpected and quite bizarre to read about it a real gem Seeing how drastically travel times changed over the years was eye opening and made me quite grateful for today s speed and comfort Travel from Shrewsbury to London took 12 days in 1730 but I would expect to make that journey today in just a few hours. Charles Darwin lived in Shrewsbury and took a stagecoach from The Lion to London for his assignment on the Beagle The reader is thus treated to a real behind the scenes version of Darwin s adventure which was fascinating Fans of Charles Dickens are also treated to stories about his stays Even though I ve read a biography on Dickens I hadn t realised what a bizarre and revolutionary idea it was at the time for him to travel and perform readings of his work which the author depicted and explained very well. World famous musicians athletes politicians and many have stayed or performed at this hotel and we are treated to a great number of stories of various people through the centuries These vignettes are fascinating insights into those times and a great source of dinner party conversations Unfortunately I found the history of the 20th century lacking This was the portion in living memory where the author was able to interview people still alive to get those stories so it was all the disappointing There is a chapter on the celebrities who have stayed at The Lion in the 20th century which is mostly a bulleted list of names with very few stories There is a chapter about ghostly goings on which falls very flat with dry short paragraphs quite unlike the rest of the book The last third of the book was a disappointing ending from a strong start full of fascinating stories. I heard the author speak once he s a very good speaker He had copies of this book for sale with him that day so I bought one though I knew nothing about this hotel or Shrewsbury I do recommend any history geek to read the first two thirds of the book and luxuriate in the vignettes there that bring so many different times to life so vividly 9780950813714
| Four centuries at the Lion Hotel, Shrewsbury By John Butterworth |
| 0950813710 |
| 9780950813714 |
| English |
| 108 |
| Paperback |
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