The Anglo Files

A Field Guide to the British

By: Sarah Lyall

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Sarah Lyall, a reporter for the New York Times, moved to London in the mid-1990s and soon became known for her amusing and incisive dispatches on her adopted country. As she came to terms with its eccentric inhabitants (the English husband who never turned on the lights, the legislators who behaved like drunken frat boys, the hedgehog lovers, the people who extracted their own teeth), she found that she had a ringside seat at a singular transitional era in British life. The roller-coaster decade of Tony Blair's New Labor government was an increasingly materialistic time when old-world symbols of aristocratic privilege and stiff-upper-lip sensibility collided with modern consumerism, overwrought emotion, and a new (but still unsuccessful) effort to make the trains run on time. Appearing a half-century after Nancy Mitford's classic Noblesse Oblige, Lyall's book is a brilliantly witty account of 21st-century Britain that will be recognized as a contemporary classic.

©2008 Sarah Lyall (P)2008 Tantor

An American in the U.K.

As a English person living in the U.S. I was intrigued by the experiences of a writer who was doing the reverse. The author made many keen observations that were insightful and witty. It is always a shock to see ourselves as others see us! However, this recording is blighted by the narrator. Her attempts at English accents would make Dick Van Dyke in "Mary Poppins" sound positively Shakespearean. Also the production was littered with egregious mispronunciations which greatly diminished the enjoyment of the book. This is a situation that could so easily have been rectified.

Good narrator, negative view

I really don't mind seeing the seedy or unattractive parts of any country; I think that sugar coating things makes them unreal. However, while I bought the book with the hope that I would hear some of what I heard (insights into the English, some day-to-day realities of living there, their culture and their sociology) it seems like most of it is one massive whinge. She does make a point in the beginning of pointing out good things about the country, bringing fairness to her criticisms, but somehow when the book is done, I was left with a feeling of disgust towards the British. And I am a total Anglophile! Re-listening to try see if my first impression was accurate.

Funny and Interesting

What made the experience of listening to The Anglo Files the most enjoyable?

My daughter being married to a Brit made me interested in hearing more about England from an American perspective. It was presented in a humorous way.

What did you like best about this story?

Hearing about life and traditions in the UK.

What about Cassandra Campbell’s performance did you like?

Easy to listen to and gave the tales just the right humor.

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

The British picnics in the car.

Mildly Amusing But Not Much Substance

This is a humor book. Sorry. I mean humour book. One mustn't leave out the superfluous British extra letter. It gets a bit funnier than that, but not all that much; although I'll never forget the line about Britain being a "formerly industrialized nation". It has a few funny stories, but in no way does this book live up to its title "A Field Guide to the British." It's not that coherent.

Much of the material is narrow. In particular the large amount of content about Parliamentary reforms and the historical behavior of members of Parliament, especially those in the House of Lords.

Our British Cousins Must Be Fourth Cousins Once Removed

Their teeth are bad but getting better, the weather is grey the way they like it and their upper lips are a bit less stiff than before the turn of the Millennium. Generally, an interesting look at the British from an American’s point of view. Not much you didn’t already know if you’ve paid attention to things British but lots of interesting anecdotes enliven the telling. An easy, fast and amusing read.

Good Book; Amateurish Narration

The book is a witty, intelligent, insightful and very interesting take on the English. The narration is shockingly amateurish. The book dwells at length on the importance of correct pronunciation among certain classes in Britain, and yet the narrator mispronounces numerous words from Leonid (as in Brezhnev) to Glyndebourne. The combination of her borderline-arrogant tone with these embarrassing gaffes makes the book itself seem less intelligent than it really is.

Funny, Not Flattering

This is a critical, tongue in cheek look at contemporary British culture. Lyall is an American journalist who has lived in Britain for more than 20 years. She points to the usual stereotypes and attempts, rather unscientifically, to rationalize, justify and explain why they are true. Lyall covers bad teeth, bad weather, sexual dysfunction, the House of Lords debating the existence of UFOs, bad public healthcare, bad public schools, intense class division, economic stagnation, hedgehogs and cricket. While the book isn't laugh out loud funny, it is amusing so long as you are not offended by it or take it too seriously.

My grandparents were immigrants and my father, an only child, is very English in his character. Though his teeth and health are fine, even at 80, I know I inherited many attitudes and ideas that are British. So, while my wife and children look on in confusion as I find Monty Python brilliant, eat anything put in front of me and take bad weather in stride, I know I inherited these qualities from my British father. So, it's fun to read another Americans send up of the good people of our little island.

Again, this is a memoir, a series of stories and reflections on the author's personal experience. While she sights some statistics and no doubt emphasizes the bit of truth in many comic aspects of British society, I know that any 2,000 year old community of several million people are bound to have their issues. Immensely readable, fun, funny, though clearly a send up. I almost didn't make it through the first chapter explaining the homosexuality of most British men quoting P. G. Wodehouse and other expert sources (this is sarcasm). However, I am glad I did. I wanted a light read as a break from a series of heavier non-fiction historical studies of British monarchs. The "Anglo Files: A Field Guide to the British", was exactly what was called for. Did I mention you shouldn't take this too seriously?

A funny but sympathetic view of the Brits

Well-written memoir from an American woman married to a Brit who's lived there for many years. Her insights into British psyche are generally warm and funny. An interesting read.

Everything you wanted to know, but Afraid toask

If you think you might have been born on the wrong continent, you'll enjoy this book. Its informative and brutally honest.

Some good laughs for a transplanted American

Gave me insight to what seemed bizarre behaviour on my mum-in-law's part. I still can't get past not rinsing dishes after removing them from the dirty soapy water.

Would have started with a different chapter, as I almost gave up after an extended review of the sexual strangeness of British men. But then got into it once the topics went on to the House of Lords, cricket, and friendly neighbors.

Would recommend to any American looking to relocate, or just wanting to get insight into another culture that speaks the same language....kind of.