Author:Martin Pugh
Bounded by the Great War on one side and by the looming shadow of the Second World War on the other, the inter-war period has characteristically been portrayed as a time of great and unrelenting depression. In Martin Pugh's lively and thought-provoking book, however, the acclaimed historian vividly shows how the British people reacted to the privations of wartime by indulging in leisure and entertainment activities of all kinds - from dancing and cinema going to smoking, football pools and paid holidays.
He explodes the myths of a nation of unwed women, revealing that in the 1930s the institution of marriage was reaching its heyday, and points to a rise in real incomes, improvements in diet and health and the spread of cheap luxuries. The result is an extraordinary, engaging work of history that presents us with a fresh perspective and brings out both the strangeness and the familiarity of this point in time.
Skilfully evoked, vividly captured social history
—— MetroPugh is one of the most well-respected, diligent and honest scholars working in British history today. This book deserves to be read
—— Gerard DeGroot , Scotland on SundayA beguiling and often thought-provoking book
—— Glasgow HeraldA lively, tactile history of inter-war Britain
—— The TimesA fascinating and entertaining read. The detail alone is impressive
—— ScotsmanComprehensive, vivid and highly readable ... richly textured [and] absorbing
—— Sunday TelegraphA wide-ranging study of a fascinating period, We Danced All Night is also a good reference book... vividly evokes a time when tinned and processed food was really quite the thing, and the height of suburban sophistication was a new Tudorbethan house
—— Times Literary SupplementThis is a provocative and entertaining thesis and he does thorough justice to it in a lively account of social life in all its aspects - from divorce and drunkenness to holiday jaunts and health
—— Richard Overy , Literary ReviewAs Pugh moves from one topic to the next, one has the sense of dirty windows being cleaned, revealing remarkably new views
—— Daily ExpressA highly readable account of a foreign country where they really did do things differently.
—— Brandon Robshaw , Independent on SundayLively and accessible
—— WBQRappaport exhumes the last days of the Romanovs and, relying on archival sources and neglected memoirs, tries to offer the most up-to-date account possible... Vivid...
—— Scotland on SundayEminently readable but still fastidiously researched, no compromising on scholarly or evidence-based investigation... There is a very powerful sense that you are reading the words of someone who is witnessing the sights and sounds of the place first hand, is returning to primary sources and conjuring up the atmosphere with an accomplished writer's eye. The trouble with reading any book about the Romanovs is the sure and certain knowledge of how it will end, yet despite this the book feels fresh and spell-binding ... Compelling reading
—— dovegreyreader.comUtterly absorbing, a really good read, sensitive and balanced and surely the definitive last word on the subject
—— Dr Harry Shukman, Emeritus Fellow of Modern Russian History, St Antony’s College OxfordRappaport narrates her story in an original fashion, focusing on the final two weeks inside the Ipatiev House before the murders
—— Times Literary SupplementBrilliantly shows how history is never simple but always enthralling when written with this style
—— The BooksellerExtraordinary and powerful ... Having uncovered enlightening new sources, Rappaport has produced a highly accessible account of the last 14 days in the lives of the former tsar Nicholas, his wife Alexandra and their children
—— Western Daily PressRiveting account of turbulence, social upheaval and murder in early 20th-century Russia, which draws on new evidence uncovered in the icy, remote city where Tsar Nicholas and his family met their bloody deaths. Juxtaposing fascinating domestic details with analysis of the international political scene, the author strips away the romance of their incarceration and the mythology surrounding their murders to reveal an extraordinary human situation and its seismic worldwide repercussions
—— Sainsbury’s MagazineRappaport precisely imagines those last few days ... As the pages turn quickly towards an end that is never in doubt, a picture emerges of a devout, loving and rather commonplace family
—— Waterstone’s Books QuarterlyThe great strength of Rappaport's book is her tight focus on the royal family's final three months in the Iaptiev House... She has told the human story, and the truly appalling tale of what man can do to man
—— Independent (Ireland)A tragic and thrilling account ... Ekaterinburg is really a twofold triumph for Helen Rappaport ... On top of the impressive level of research that Rappaport has conducted in order to produce Ekaterinburg, she also has an excellent and engaging writing style and succeeds in maintaining the tension and mood throughout ... Gritty and compelling
—— suite101.com