Selling in London (Selected British Essays)

Author: (British) Addison et al
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Features: The cover of the book is a copperplate engraving depicting a London scene, with the era of horse-drawn carriages, Big Ben, a gray sky, and a few floating clouds. The book includes the essays of fourteen writers from Addison and Steele to Woolf over two hundred years. Each author is preceded by an introduction written by the translator, highlighting the author's and their work's characteristics. From the immortal chapters of English prose, thirty-one selections are chosen, written by fourteen authors from the 18th to the 20th centuries. They vividly reflect the authors' unique calm and rich sentiments, as well as the humorous and slightly satirical context. The title is inspired by an 18th-century essay by Addison, which humorously describes the urban scenes and customs of the time, such as newspaper vendors, pastry sellers, and fire stations. The book features Lamb as a representative 19th-century writer, whose works record his discovery of a bittersweet joy and imagination as a busy office clerk. It also includes the works of Virginia Woolf, who, while pioneering stream-of-consciousness novels, wrote light-hearted essays that express her deep love and impressions of literature, becoming a unique gem in 20th-century English prose.