Audiobooks by Ruth Goodman

The Domestic Revolution: How the Introduction of Coal into Victorian Homes Changed Everything

'The queen of living history' (Lucy Worsley) returns with an immersive account of how English women sparked a worldwide revolution-from their own kitchens. No single invention epitomizes the Victorian era more than the black cast-iron range. Aware that the twenty-first-century has reduced it to a quaint relic, Ruth Goodman was determined to prove that the hot coal stove provided so much more than morning tea: it might even have kick-started the Industrial Revolution. Wielding the wit and passion seen in How to Be a Victorian, Goodman traces the tectonic shift from wood to coal in the mid-sixteenth century-from sooty trials and errors during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I to the totally smog-clouded reign of Queen Victoria. A pattern of innovation emerges as the women stoking these fires also stoked new global industries: from better soap to clean smudges to new ingredients for cooking. Laced with uproarious anecdotes of Goodman's own experience managing a coal-fired household, this fascinating book shines a hot light on the power of domestic necessity.

Ruth Goodman (Author), Jennifer M. Dixon (Narrator)

Audiobook

How to be a Victorian

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of How to be a Victorian by Ruth Goodman, read by Patience Tomlinson. How to be a Victorian - a time traveller's guide to Victorian Britain by the BBC's Ruth Goodman We know what life was like for Victoria and Albert. But what was it like for a commoner like you or me? How did it feel to cook with coal and wash with tea leaves? Drink beer for breakfast and clean your teeth with cuttlefish? Dress in whalebone and feed opium to the baby? Surviving everyday life came down to the gritty details, the small necessities and tricks of living. Drawing on Ruth's unique first-hand experience, gained from living on a Victorian farm for a year, this book will teach you everything you need to know about 19th century living. If you liked A Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England or If Walls Could Talk, you will love this book.

Ruth Goodman (Author), Patience Tomlinson (Narrator)

Audiobook

How to Behave Badly in Renaissance Britain

Historian and popular BBC TV presenter Ruth Goodman, author of How to Be a Tudor, offers up a history of Renaissance Britain - the offensive language, insulting gestures, insolent behaviour, brawling and scandal of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries - with practical tips on just how to horrify the Tudor neighbours.From royalty to peasantry, every age has its bad eggs, those who break all the rules and rub everyone up the wrong way. But their niggling, anti-social and irritating ways not only tell us about what upset people, but also what mattered to them, how their society functioned and what kind of world they lived in.In this brilliantly nitty-gritty exploration of real life in the Tudor and Stuart age, you will discover:- how to choose the perfect insult, whether it be draggletail, varlet, flap, saucy fellow, strumpet, ninny-hammer or stinkard- why quoting Shakespeare was very poor form- the politics behind men kissing each other on the lips- why flashing the inside of your hat could repulse someone- the best way to mock accents, preachers, soldiers and pretty much everything else besidesRuth Goodman draws upon advice books and manuals, court cases and sermons, drama and imagery to outline bad behaviour from the gauche to the galling, the subtle to the outrageous. It is a celebration of drunkards, scolds, harridans and cross dressers in a time when calling a man a fool could get someone killed, and cursing wasn't just rude, it worked!'Ruth is the queen of living history - long may she reign!'Lucy Worsley

Ruth Goodman (Author), Ruth Goodman (Narrator)

Audiobook

Full Steam Ahead

The Age of Railways was an era of extraordinary change which utterly transformed every aspect of British life - from trade and transportation to health and recreation. Full Steam Ahead will reveal how the world we live in today was entirely shaped by the rail network, charting the glorious evolution of rail transportation and how it left its mark on every aspect of life, landscape and culture. Peter Ginn and Ruth Goodman brilliantly bring this revolution to life in their trademark style which engages and captivates. They explore the everyday lives and the intangible ephemeral history that makes up the stories of the people who built, worked and were affected by the railways. From the very first steam railways to the infrastructure that is still used in part today, they look at the men, women and children who lived and sometimes died constructing Britain's railway heritage. Immersing themselves in the story of how the railways made us what we are today, the authors uncover compelling social history along the way, exploring the railway's impact on everything from food and medicine to warfare and the class system. They tell the stories of the historic characters whose lives were changed by this radical mode of transport, describing the wider social history and geography of each particular region of Britain. As they trace the emergence of the Industrial Revolution across the country, the authors discover a hidden layer of social history, using rail transportation as a backdrop to reveal Britain's radical change in social attitudes and culture across the 19th and early 20th centuries, including the rise of the working class, women's rights, industrial growth, economic decline, warfare and the birth of the great British holiday. Beautifully illustrated with photographs and artwork throughout, Full Steam Ahead is a passionate, charming and insightful look at Britain through the lens of one of its most momentous eras.

Peter Ginn, Ruth Goodman (Author), Peter Ginn, Ruth Goodman (Narrator)

Audiobook

How to Be a Tudor: A Dawn-to-Dusk Guide to Tudor Life

Ruth Goodman (Author), Heather Wilds (Narrator)

Audiobook