Essays of Elia, Charles Lamb

Reader, in thy passage from the Bank- where thou hast been receiving thy half-yearly dividends (supposing thou art a lean annuitant like myself)- to the Flower Pot, to secure a place for Dalston, or Shacklewell,- didst thou never observe a melancholy looking, handsome, brick and stone edifice, to the left- where Threadneedle-street abuts upon Bishopsgate?


Charles Lamb (1775-1834) worked as a clerk at the East India Company, but he also wrote these essays, under the name "Elia." He writes about a wide variety of subjects, from roast pig to April Fool's Day. As you can see, he writes in an old style, which can a little off-putting, and a lot of his references went over my head, but he can be funny sometimes, and I enjoyed reading about the different topics. I heard about Charles Lamb from Anne Fadiman's At Large and At Small, and I have to say that I like Anne Fadiman better; she's easier to get through. But it was interesting to read the language that Charles Lamb used. Lamb also wrote Tales From Shakespeare in collaboration with his sister Mary.

Read Essays of Elia:

• if you like essays
• if you like Charles Lamb
• if you don't mind a bit of dense writing

341 pages.

Very Good! I would recommend this book!