The Jewel House

Elizabethan London and the Scientific Revolution

By: Deborah Harkness

Narrated by: Kate Reading

Length: 14 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Best-selling author Deborah E. Harkness explores the streets, shops, back alleys, and gardens of Elizabethan London, where a boisterous and diverse group of men and women shared a keen interest in the study of nature. These assorted merchants, gardeners, barber-surgeons, midwives, instrument makers, mathematics teachers, engineers, alchemists, and other experimenters, she contends, formed a patchwork scientific community whose practices set the stage for the Scientific Revolution. It was their collaborative, yet often contentious, ethos that helped to develop the ideals of modern scientific research. The Jewel House examines six particularly fascinating episodes of scientific inquiry and dispute in 16th-century London, bringing to life the individuals involved and the challenges they faced. These men and women experimented and invented, argued and competed, waged wars in the press, and struggled to understand the complexities of the natural world. Together, their stories illuminate the blind alleys and surprising twists and turns taken as medieval philosophy gave way to the empirical, experimental culture that became a hallmark of the Scientific Revolution.

©2007 Deborah E. Harkness (P)2014 Tantor

this is a boring book I would return it if Icould

this book is boring hasn't got a story to it, wish I could return it

Non-fiction about the development of science

This is non-fiction, no witches or vampires here, and relates the development of various scientific pursuits in 16th century London. Not gonna lie, it starts kinda slow, lots of unfamiliar names & dates, and the lovely British narration can be soporific. But it picks up, and by the end I was cursing at Francis Bacon and wishing I could return to the crazy streets of 1590s London, to hear the "pratling proud peasants" hawking cures in the market.

Not What I Expected

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I love Deborah's work but this was not what I expected. I couldn't even finish listening. I'm so disappointed.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The historical aspects are interesting. The presentation is so distracting I can't even tell you what I learned.

Any additional comments?

I wish I had read the reviews first. I feel like I wasted a credit.

not what I expected

after reading all souls trilogy, this is not what I expected but I enjoy history so it was a win

Both well structured and meandering

Despite loving the topic, I found this much harder to follow, much less get into, than other science histories that focus on one or a few big names. She starts off saying this book won’t mention big names. It does mention a lot of names, though, most with dates (some of which start with a mysterious “florowit”) that get tedious in audio. As does saying “mathematics” instead of “‘math”.
However, if you can get through the foggy gestalt, the topic is well divided into sections and there is a lot of good information about the time before what most of us think of as the scientific revolution.

Good Material, Not great presentation

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Very hard to listen to this reader for more than a short time, material is great but the reader is very uninspiring. I found the material more to the scholarly reference book rather than a non-fiction novel. You can see from this material how Deborah was able to use it in creating the Discovery of Witches series of books.

Would you recommend The Jewel House to your friends? Why or why not?

I think that reading the actual hard copy would be better as you could easily skip from part to part as it moves you. Many sections could be quickly skimmed and other read in detail depending on your interests.

Would you be willing to try another one of Kate Reading’s performances?

Based on this book I would not seek out other books read by this reader.

Do you think The Jewel House needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

This presents more like a reference book or a scholarly treatise, so unless Deborah has more research to present, this doesn't need any follow up.

Not a bad book, but a misleading description

What was most disappointing about Deborah E. Harkness’s story?

This was not so much a "story" as it was a history book.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

"A college lecture on the subject of "The Scientific Community of Historical London."

Any additional comments?

After reading Deborah Harkness series "All Souls" (which I LOVED) I expected this to be another historical fiction based in Elizabethan London which would have both an interesting story line, while also having factual components. I realize it is my fault for not doing more homework on the book, but this is not in fact the kind of book this is. It is truly a review of the "scientific" community of historical London. After reading the description I was expecting a story with multiple character viewpoints from different facets of the "scientific" community, how they interact with each other, and stories about their lives.

I was fairly disappointed as I was looking for a fiction, story-like book and this is more of a book of historical summaries. There is not truly a "story line" so there is nothing to truly get invested in as you listen. I liked the narrator but found my mind wandering a lot. This book is how I would picture a college lecture on the subject of "The Scientific Community of Historical London."

t was not a bad book, per say, it was just definitely not the type of book that I had expected.

Should have read reviews first!

What would have made The Jewel House better?

I love Deborah's work!!! And this was a little different, yes, but the real sticking point for me on this is the narrator... MY GOD its painful to listen to this.... and I had an English boss for 10 years so its not just that I am unfamiliar with the accent and tone/inflection.. Its just her voice and her speech pattern. It seems forced, I found I was spending too much time trying to concentrate on not being bothered by the choppy and forceful speech to actually enjoy the story.. I actually got a headache. I really hope Jennifer Ikeda takes care of the next series or I am not sure I will be able to listen!!!!

If you’ve listened to books by Deborah E. Harkness before, how does this one compare?

This pales in comparison to the other works. Content and performance wise...

Would you be willing to try another one of Kate Reading’s performances?

NO

Any additional comments?

Enough said.

An academic work, basis for Discovery of witches

The fact that this was initially put out by Yale's University Press, which ONLY puts out academic stuff, should give those of you who aren't really all that into history unless it's sugar coated in a love story, a moment of pause. For myself, I'm an academic with a Ph.d in the social sciences, who it was fascinating to read this. Didn't realize Harkness was a history professor, but when I read Discovery of Witches (after seeing the TV show) there was all sort of details in it that perked my "this chick knows her history" ears... and this book is the proof of it. Willing to bet it was her taking her Ph.D work and converting it into a book format (all the data, none of the theoretical analysis) for the broader market, which is sort of obligatory when you're a pFud .. or Piled higher and deeper... That said, fascinating reading that focuses NOT on the famous historians of the time but working class scientists and tradespeople whose work tends to get overlooked and lost in time.

Not What I Expected

What disappointed you about The Jewel House?

I had hoped this would be a story like other Deborah Harkness books - rather it is more like a scholarly dissertation on herbalism during Elizabethan times. If this is what you are interested in, then you will be happy because the book is thorough and well done - but it is not entertaining.