One Hot Summer: Dickens, Darwin, Disraeli, and the Great Stink of 1858

Description

London, 1858. Noteworthy for its broiling summer months and the related stench of the sewage-filled Thames River, the year is otherwise little remembered. Ashton reveals that thanks to significant, if unrecognized, turning points the months from May to August turned out to be a summer of consequence. She mines Victorian letters and gossip, diaries, court records, newspapers, and other contemporary sources to uncover historically crucial moments in the lives of three protagonists: Charles Dickens, Charles Darwin, and Benjamin Disraeli. Invisible threads of connection among Londoners at every social level in 1858 bring the celebrated city and its citizens vibrantly to life. 1858 in history. Moments of consequence The rise of Disraeli Medicine and marriage Literature and art May 1858. Dickens in distress Derby Day Marriage mischief June 1858, part I. Darwin and the pursuit of science Dickens dissolves his marriage Midsummer madness Meltdown in Clubland June 1858, part II. The silver Thames Queen Victoria, Cruiser, and the Great Eastern Crinolineomania More marriage troubles Darwin's dilemma July 1858. Darwin in distress "Mad" wives and vengeful husbands Disraeli tames the Thames Rothschild enters the Commons at last July-August 1858. Hot heads at the Garrick Club Dickens on tour The exploits of Dickens's Mr Stryver Disraeli's whitebait dinner The aftermath of the hot summer. The fallout from the Garrick Club affair Success and embarrassment for Dickens The end of the Robinson case Darwin triumphant Epilogue. The year in pantomime One hot summer's consequences