Completely Hygienic! 
Who would have thought there was so much to learn about toilets and bathroom culture? This is a great primer for those who wonder just how people did bathe and perform 'ablutions' before the days of indoor plumbing and water-trapped toilets for all (or at least those of us in western countries). Written in 1960, it assumes a bit more familiarity than most of us have with English-style boilers and toilets, and more knowledge of history than the average high school graduate would have today. The language is a bit old-school, but in a descriptive fashion, and is never difficult to follow. It does contain several quotes in French and Latin without translations, but they are short, and not essential to the enjoyment of the book. Clean & Decent is at its best when sharing tidbits and historical anecdotes (such as story of a householder how discovered that his royal houseguests had used his hallways, landings and cellars for their toilets). In the Penguin Classic History edition, an old fashioned font has been used, which, along with numerous black and white illustrations (not all of them very well produced or labelled, unfortunately), gives the book a great "old fashioned" feel. It is sometimes uneven in its technical data. Some diagrams have quite full explanations, and others none at all. However, it never pretends to be a technical book, and provides a very extensive bibliography for anyone who's interested in the how-to's. Some diagrams and drawings also suffer in reproduction, and aren't very clear. The arrangement of the book isn't very intuitive, and it seems to jump back and forth in time, but then, so did humanity's knowledge of and desire for hygiene. This is enjoyable light reading, especially for anyone interested in 'every day' history who wonders just how people went about at least one aspect of their daily business. It will also provide you with a never-ending supply of did-you-know's. While it's a shame that it wasn't revised and updated to include those other fascinating periods in bathrooms - the 50's and 60's - it's publication as a reprint of the original makes it a great piece of literary history on it's own.
January 24, 2003 | |
