Fiery & Furious People

*Chosen as a Book of the Year by The Times, History Today and the Sunday Telegraph* Wonderfully entertaining, comprehensive and astute. The Times Genuinely hard to put down. BBC History MagazineFrom murder to duelling, highway robbery to mugging: the darker side of English life explored.Spanning some seven centuries, A Fiery & Furious People traces the subtle shifts that have taken place both in the nature of violence and in people s attitudes to it. How could football be regarded at one moment as a raucous pastime that should be banned, and the next as a respectable sport that should be encouraged? When did the serial killer first make an appearance? What gave rise to particular types of violent criminal - medieval outlaws, Victorian garrotters and what made them dwindle and then vanish? Above all, Professor James Sharpe hones in on a single, fascinating question: has the country that has experienced so much turmoil naturally prone to violence or are we, in fact, becoming a gentler nation? Wonderful . . . A fascinating and rare example of a beautifully crafted scholarly work. Times Higher Education Sweeping and ambitious . . . A humane and clear-eyed guide to a series of intractable and timely questions. Observer Deeply researched, thoughtfully considered and vividly written . . . Read it. History Today Magisterial . . . The outlaw s song has surely never been better rendered. Times Literary Supplement