The Invention of Comfort

"Riveting... A solid contribution to the literature on the cultural impact of gentility, refinement, and the 'baubles of Britain' in England and its colonial possessions."

"Crowley provides a masterly search and survey that no historian of material culture should miss, and every curious reader should consider."

"A comprehensive and tight study... a valuable contribution to the field, [and] one that is enjoyable to read."

"The sheer range of evidence, the interweaving of themes, and the overall strength of the argument mean [this] is an ideal book for specialists and students alike."

"The Invention of Comfort is an important and thought-provoking book that challenges our understanding of why people live that way they do."

"This is a powerful book, full of startling information and valuable insights."

"This is a grand panorama that stretches from medieval times through the antebellum years and covers a geographic area from England to the West Indies and then some. Crowley makes a successful case for the 'invention' of comfort and especially for the cultural influences on that process."

"Crowley invites his readers to follow him upon an engaging and meticulously detailed tour of the living spaces of English people."

"Good books cross lines drawn in the sand by others. Terrific books scatter the sand and redraw the lines. John E. Crowley's The Invention of Comfort is one of the latter... A masterful and sweeping interpretation of material culture evidence that asks important historical questions."

"Every page offers interesting detail, worthwhile insights, and useful connections—the illustrations are a major contribution in themselves... It will be a standard reference work in material culture studies."