The Book of the Cheese


Read by Peter Yearsley

(3.8 stars; 4 reviews)

"Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese" is a pub on Fleet Street, London. It was rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1666, and has been frequented by many literary and historical characters. The book rambles through the pub's history, with many anecdotes and stories about its staff and customers. - Summary by Peter Yearsley (3 hr 0 min)

Chapters

Early History of Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese 11:29 Read by Peter Yearsley
Johnson and Goldsmith at the 'Cheese' 12:05 Read by Peter Yearsley
Relics and Art Treasures of the 'Cheese' 21:35 Read by Peter Yearsley
Mr Joseph Pennell and Lady Colin Campbell on the 'Cheese' 14:27 Read by Peter Yearsley
About the Pudding 7:41 Read by Peter Yearsley
The Bar 9:41 Read by Peter Yearsley
Club Life at the 'Cheese' 27:52 Read by Peter Yearsley
Dr Johnson's Homes and Haunts 2:59 Read by Peter Yearsley
The 'Cheese' and its Fare - a Great Fall in Pudding 8:45 Read by Peter Yearsley
Mr George Augustus Sala and Others on the 'Cheese' 7:06 Read by Peter Yearsley
The Press and the 'Cheese' 12:41 Read by Peter Yearsley
What the World Says of the 'Cheese' 24:46 Read by Peter Yearsley
The 'Cheshire Cheese' in Literature 18:53 Read by Peter Yearsley

Reviews


(3.5 stars)

Peter Yearsley does his best with this book. His reading is,as always, well-paced, clear and well-modulated and presents the text with sympathy. The text itself has need of all the help it can get. Peter Yearsley’s summary is gentle when it describes the text as “rambling “. It is that, but also achieves the remarkable feat of being simultaneously repetitive and contradictory! It is entirely unclear from the text on which days the steak pudding will feature as no less than three alternatives are provided. Reid’s method of writing by knitting together quotations concerning the Cheshire Cheese is the cause of the rambling, repetition and contradiction. A good editor would have tried to discipline the writer and encourage him to do a little more analysis to see if some light could be shed on the apparent contradictions - perhaps there were changes over time and considering the differences in light of time might have shown development in taste/service through the life of the tavern. The reader shares no blame in this. His work is excellent but the quality of his reading demonstrates how unworthy the text is , notwithstanding the fascination of the subject and the wonderful cast of characters.