Deborah Smith

The James Losh Diaries, 1802-1833 Deborah Smith

Diaries offer us the rare privilege of seeing the world through someone else's eyes, and James Losh's writings spanning the period 1802 to 1833 do just that. To describe them simply as "weather diaries" is, however, to overlook the wider range of his critical and always informed eye. Assuredly, weather is the main focus, but he sees other, broader, political and social events refracted through that meteorological prism. Living through, and being active in, the great age of reform of the early nineteenth century, Losh's insight, the social milieu in which he lived and his active political life provide a fascinating and highly personal narrative. For too long these diaries have been a neglected source. This oversight is now remedied by this book.