Book

Worsley, Lucy.

If walls could talk : an intimate history of the home / Lucy Worsley.

New York : Walker, 2012.

xv, 351 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 25 cm

"Why did the flushing toilet take two centuries to catch on? Why did Samuel Pepys never give his mistresses an orgasm? Why did medieval people sleep sitting up? When were the two "dirty centuries"? Why did gas lighting cause Victorian ladies to faint? Why, for centuries, did people fear fruit? All these questions will be answered in this juicy, smelly, and truly intimate history of home life. Lucy Worsley takes us through the bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen, covering the architectural history of each room, but concentrating on what people actually did in bed, in the bath, at the table, and at the stove. From sauce-stirring to breast-feeding, teeth-cleaning to masturbation, getting dressed to getting married, this book will make you see your home with new eyes."--Publisher.

Households -- England -- History.

Families -- England -- History.

Architecture, Domestic -- England -- History.

Originally published: London : Faber & Faber, 2011.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 330-336) and index.

An intimate history of the bedroom. A history of the bed ; Being born ; Was breast always best? ; Knickers ; Praying, reading, and keeping secrets ; Sick ; Sex ; Conception ; Deviant sex and masturbation ; Venereal disease ; What to wear in bed ; Sleeping with the king ; A history of sleep ; Murdered in our beds -- An intimate history of the bathroom. The fall of bathing-- ; --and its resurrection ; The bathroom is born ; Don't forget to brush your teeth ; An apology for beards ; War paint ; The whole world is a toilet ; The wonders of sewers ; A history of toilet paper ; Menstruation -- An intimate history of the living room. Sitting comfortably ; A history of clutter ; Heat and light ; 'Speaking' to the servants ; So who vacuums your living room? ; Sitting up straight ; A bright, polite smile ; Kissing and courtship ; Dying (and attending your own funeral) -- An intimate history of the kitchen. Why men used to do the cooking ; The kitchen comes in from the cold ; The pungent power of pongs ; Stirring and scrubbing and breaking your back ; Cool ; Peckish ; Trying new foods (and drinks, and drugs) ; Chewing, swallowing, burping, and farting ; Raising your elbow ; The political consequences of sauces ; Were they all drunk all the time? ; The wretched washing-up -- What we can learn from the past.

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