num_pages: 144
description: Like all good diaries, Adelaide Pountney's The Diary of a Victorian Lady: Scenes from her Daily Life 1864-1865 gives its readers the chance to imagine the life of its author between the lines: the daily round of walks and shopping, "visiting"and churchgoing, home- making and charity work. In addition, Pountney's Diary invites us to dwell in the vivid sketches which illustrate her entries: tiny, but detailed, drawings conjuring the world of a well-to- do Victorian woman.  Recently discovered (in an attic) by her great niece, Pountney's diaries run from 1863 to 1870. A mine of information and images, this edition covers two years while the family was living in Leamington Spa and Devon. Whatever she's doing--shopping for curtains or having her hair cut, buying fish (or fruit or fowl) or having her photograph taken--Adelaide gives it a picture. "Made late by mad bulls," she notes, on March 7, 1864, sketching her flight from a commotion which threatens from the margins of the page. "A man Mama admired" is the (intriguing) caption to the drawing of a solitary figure on May 20: one example of the kind of detail which turns this book into a fascinating document of everyday life. --Vicky Lebeau
language: English
title: The diary of a Victorian lady: Scenes from her daily life, 1864-1865
titlecomplete: The diary of a Victorian lady: Scenes from her daily life, 1864-1865
genres: Nonfiction
ratings_count: 16
publisher: Excellent Press