Ruth Goodman believes in getting her hands dirty. Drawing on her ownadventures living in re-created Victorian conditions, Goodman serves asour bustling and fanciful guide to nineteenth-century life. Proceeding fromdaybreak to bedtime, this charming, illustrative work celebrates the ordinary lives ofthe most perennially fascinating era of British history. From waking up to the rappingof a “knocker-upper man” on the window pane to lacing into a corset after a round ofcalisthenics, from slipping opium to the little ones to finally retiring to the bedroomfor the ideal combination of “love, consideration, control and pleasure,” the weird,wonderful, and somewhat gruesome intricacies of Victorian life are vividly renderedhere. How to Be a Victorian is an enchanting manual for the insatiably curious.