The Companion Guide to London

David Piper's Companion Guide to London is an established classic, lyrically written with undisguised enthusiasm, intimacy and affection. It traverses London from Regent's Park to Lambeth, from the Tower of London to Kensington, with excursions on the river and forays to outlying points of interest. Each chapter covers an area which can be comfortably walked in a day. Piper escorts the reader, drawing out the individual character of the district through history, literature, art and architecture and adding his own asides, always informed, always entertaining. This is an essential guide for those who really want to understand how London has become what she is, and makes a compelling read even for those nowhere near the capital.

DAVID PIPER was a former director of the National Portrait Gallery; FIONNUALA JERVIS, who revised the guide, has edited and contributed to numerous historical and art historical publications, and in the course of this revision has walked every step of the way in David Piper's footprints from her home in Kensington.