Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Victorian London | 2004 | Lee Jackson (British) | Buy |
| 2 | A Dictionary of Victorian London | 2006 | Lee Jackson (British) | Buy |
| 3 | Daily Life in Victorian London | 2011 | Lee Jackson (British) | Buy |
| 4 | Walking Dickens’ London | 2012 | Lee Jackson (British) | Buy |
| 5 | Dirty Old London | 2014 | Lee Jackson (British) | Buy |
| 6 | Palaces of Pleasure | 2019 | Lee Jackson (British) | Buy |
Lee Jackson’s nonfiction books are detailed histories of life in Victorian London, each taking on a different aspect of the city. Victorian London (2004) and A Dictionary of Victorian London (2006) provide broad overviews of the period, while Daily Life in Victorian London (2011) and Walking Dickens’ London (2012) offer more focused looks at everyday existence and the city as Charles Dickens knew it.
Dirty Old London (2014) is probably Jackson’s best-known nonfiction title. It examines the filth, smells, and sanitation problems that defined life in the 19th-century city, and how reformers gradually brought order to the chaos. Palaces of Pleasure (2019) takes a more entertaining angle, looking at the music halls, gin palaces, and department stores where Victorians went to enjoy themselves. Together, these six books form a thorough portrait of London in its most famous century.