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Penning Poison A history of anonymous letters

Cockayne, Emily
Heftet / 2025 / Engelsk

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780198795063
Publisert
2025-09-25
Utgiver
Oxford University Press
Vekt
278 gr
Høyde
195 mm
Bredde
128 mm
Dybde
22 mm
Aldersnivå
G, 01
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Heftet
Antall sider
320

Forfatter
Cockayne, Emily

Biografisk notat

Emily Cockayne is Associate Professor in Early Modern History at the University of East Anglia. The author of several well-known books, including Hubbub (2007; second edition 2020), Cheek by Jowl. A History of Neighbours (2012), and Rummage (2020), Emily's research ranges freely across modern English social and cultural history. It is characterized by extensive primary research, immersion, and a delight in sleuthing.

Penning Poison A history of anonymous letters

Cockayne, Emily
Heftet / 2025 / Engelsk
Cockayne, Emily
Heftet / 2025 / Engelsk
Nettpris:
220,-
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Kommer i salg 25.09.2025
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Review from previous edition A well-researched and wide-ranging survey of a fascinating and murky area in the history of letters.

Miranda Seymour, Financial Times

Gripping...full of one engaging story after another

Jonathan Self, Country Life

Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity.

Emma Griffin, President of the Royal Historical Society

Se alle

As Emily Cockayne shows in this fascinating history, harassment by anonymous letters has often escalated into criminal proceedings in Britain. Cockayne has an eye for the telling details of everyday life, and her sensitivity to motive and human frailty allows her to see things that the detectives who investigated these cases in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries missed.

Christopher Hilliard, author of The Littlehampton Libels: A Miscarriage of Justice and a Mystery about Words in 1920s England

This book is a great fit for libraries and for private readers who have an interest in such true crime mysteries.

Anna Faktorovich, Pennsylvania Literary Journal

A diligent and fascinating study of a pervasive social phenomenon.

Stephen Bates, Literary Review

[A] fascinating account, not just of poison pen letters themselves, but also of the evolution of the necessary postal networks, technology, forensics and policing. Whether you find the realisation refreshing or dispiriting, it appears that the anxieties of the internet age are merely today's version of a longstanding, spiteful tradition.

Henrietta McKervey, Irish Independent

Emily Cockayne has done a tremendous job in charting [poison pen letters]...the examples contained within are very real, and show that anyone who receives a nameless note from out of the blue is bound to find it at the very least unsettling, if not chillingly sinister.

Alex Johnson, The Idler

Wonderful...If the subject of her book is poison, then Cockayne's treatment of it is the antidote.

Sophie Nicholls, The Critic

[A] revealing history of poison pen letters.

New Statesman

Emily Cockayne takes the reader through the history of the anonymous letter writing from 1760 to 1939, romping through gossip, tip-offs, threats, obscenity, libels and more. They are by turn frightening, scandalous and bizarre, and make for a thrilling read as Cockayne writes with an academic's attention to detail and a novelist's lightness of touch.

Ettie Neil-Gallacher, The Field

An entertaining and original social history of Britain.

Tony Barber, Financial Times

Positively bulging with evidence.

Dennis Duncan, Washington Post

Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity.

Emma Griffin, LitHub

Fascinating but also subtly affecting ... Penning Poison reveals, there is nothing new under the sun-or between the lines.

Anna Mundow, Wall Street Journal

A lively survey of the practice of sending anonymous letters ... By examining individual cases - the how, when, where and, most important, why - Cockayne has produced something thought-provoking and humane. The opposite of a poison-pen letter, really.

Sadie Stein, New York Times

Penning Poison is a painstaking, energetic history.

Min Wild, Times Literary Supplement

Accusatory, libellous, or just bizarre, Penning Poison unveils the history of anonymous letter-writing. 'er at number 14 is dirty Receiving an unexpected and unsigned note is a disconcerting experience. In Penning Poison, Emily Cockayne traces the stories of such letters to all corners of English society over the period 1760-1939. She uncovers scandal, deception, class enmity, personal tragedy, and great loneliness. Some messages were accusatory, some libellous, others bizarre. Technology, new postal networks, forensic techniques, and the emergence of professional police all influence the phenomenon of poison letter campaigns. This book puts the letters back into their local and psychology context, extending the work of detectives, to discover who may have written them and why. Emily Cockayne explores the reasons and motivations for the creation and delivery of these missives and the effect on recipients - with some blasé, others driven to madness. Small communities hit by letter campaigns became places of suspicion and paranoia. By examining the ways in which these letters spread anxiety in the past Anonymous Letters grapples with the question of how nasty messages can turn into an epidemic. The book recovers many lost stories about how we used to write to one another, finding that perhaps the anxieties of our internet age are not as new as we think.
Les mer
This book is about anonymity, emotion, and detection. Gathering surviving anonymous letters penned in England between 1760-1939 together, it identifies possible authors and explores the impact they had on individuals and communities, charting how developments in postal services, detection, and the media influenced writers and their targets.
Les mer
Introduction: Dear Madam 1: Gossip - Major Eliot's maiden sisters 2: Tip-offs - Undermined coalmasters in Staffordshire 3: Threats - Lord Dorington's in danger 4: Obscenity - Peer's perversion uncovered 5: Libels - 'er at number 14 is dirty 6: Detectives say 7: Media - Herbert Austin robs men's brains 8: Local stories - And Winifred Simner sows discontentConclusion - unsignedReferencesBibliography
Les mer
"Review from previous edition A well-researched and wide-ranging survey of a fascinating and murky area in the history of letters." - Miranda Seymour, Financial Times"Gripping...full of one engaging story after another" - Jonathan Self, Country Life"Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity." - Emma Griffin, President of the Royal Historical Society"As Emily Cockayne shows in this fascinating history, harassment by anonymous letters has often escalated into criminal proceedings in Britain. Cockayne has an eye for the telling details of everyday life, and her sensitivity to motive and human frailty allows her to see things that the detectives who investigated these cases in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries missed." - Christopher Hilliard, author of The Littlehampton Libels: A Miscarriage of Justice and a Mystery about Words in 1920s England"This book is a great fit for libraries and for private readers who have an interest in such true crime mysteries." - Anna Faktorovich, Pennsylvania Literary Journal"A diligent and fascinating study of a pervasive social phenomenon." - Stephen Bates, Literary Review"[A] fascinating account, not just of poison pen letters themselves, but also of the evolution of the necessary postal networks, technology, forensics and policing. Whether you find the realisation refreshing or dispiriting, it appears that the anxieties of the internet age are merely today's version of a longstanding, spiteful tradition." - Henrietta McKervey, Irish Independent"Emily Cockayne has done a tremendous job in charting [poison pen letters]...the examples contained within are very real, and show that anyone who receives a nameless note from out of the blue is bound to find it at the very least unsettling, if not chillingly sinister." - Alex Johnson, The Idler"Wonderful...If the subject of her book is poison, then Cockayne's treatment of it is the antidote." - Sophie Nicholls, The Critic"[A] revealing history of poison pen letters." - New Statesman"Emily Cockayne takes the reader through the history of the anonymous letter writing from 1760 to 1939, romping through gossip, tip-offs, threats, obscenity, libels and more. They are by turn frightening, scandalous and bizarre, and make for a thrilling read as Cockayne writes with an academic's attention to detail and a novelist's lightness of touch." - Ettie Neil-Gallacher, The Field"An entertaining and original social history of Britain." - Tony Barber, Financial Times"Positively bulging with evidence." - Dennis Duncan, Washington Post"Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity." - Emma Griffin, LitHub"Fascinating but also subtly affecting ... Penning Poison reveals, there is nothing new under the sun-or between the lines." - Anna Mundow, Wall Street Journal"A lively survey of the practice of sending anonymous letters ... By examining individual cases - the how, when, where and, most important, why - Cockayne has produced something thought-provoking and humane. The opposite of a poison-pen letter, really." - Sadie Stein, New York Times"Penning Poison is a painstaking, energetic history." - Min Wild, Times Literary Supplement
Les mer
Emily Cockayne is Associate Professor in Early Modern History at the University of East Anglia. The author of several well-known books, including Hubbub (2007; second edition 2020), Cheek by Jowl. A History of Neighbours (2012), and Rummage (2020), Emily's research ranges freely across modern English social and cultural history. It is characterized by extensive primary research, immersion, and a delight in sleuthing.
Les mer
Includes the Littlehampton Libels, the subject of the 2023 film Wicked Little Letters starring Olivia Coleman on NetflixAuthor is consultant on the film Wicked Little LettersWritten by Emily Cockayne the author of best selling titles Hubbub and RummageTakes the reader through developments from 1760 to 1939, revealing how writing anonymously changed over time, and how the work of detection kept in step with these changesFocuses on specific contextualised case studies, examining their consequences in a way that sheds light on more modern forms of hate disseminationExamines the interrelationships between communities, the law, and media representationIncludes photographs of letters never before reproduced, introducing a cache of new material culture into the study of libel and policing
Les mer

Relaterte produkter

Review from previous edition A well-researched and wide-ranging survey of a fascinating and murky area in the history of letters.

Miranda Seymour, Financial Times

Gripping...full of one engaging story after another

Jonathan Self, Country Life

Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity.

Emma Griffin, President of the Royal Historical Society

Se alle

As Emily Cockayne shows in this fascinating history, harassment by anonymous letters has often escalated into criminal proceedings in Britain. Cockayne has an eye for the telling details of everyday life, and her sensitivity to motive and human frailty allows her to see things that the detectives who investigated these cases in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries missed.

Christopher Hilliard, author of The Littlehampton Libels: A Miscarriage of Justice and a Mystery about Words in 1920s England

This book is a great fit for libraries and for private readers who have an interest in such true crime mysteries.

Anna Faktorovich, Pennsylvania Literary Journal

A diligent and fascinating study of a pervasive social phenomenon.

Stephen Bates, Literary Review

[A] fascinating account, not just of poison pen letters themselves, but also of the evolution of the necessary postal networks, technology, forensics and policing. Whether you find the realisation refreshing or dispiriting, it appears that the anxieties of the internet age are merely today's version of a longstanding, spiteful tradition.

Henrietta McKervey, Irish Independent

Emily Cockayne has done a tremendous job in charting [poison pen letters]...the examples contained within are very real, and show that anyone who receives a nameless note from out of the blue is bound to find it at the very least unsettling, if not chillingly sinister.

Alex Johnson, The Idler

Wonderful...If the subject of her book is poison, then Cockayne's treatment of it is the antidote.

Sophie Nicholls, The Critic

[A] revealing history of poison pen letters.

New Statesman

Emily Cockayne takes the reader through the history of the anonymous letter writing from 1760 to 1939, romping through gossip, tip-offs, threats, obscenity, libels and more. They are by turn frightening, scandalous and bizarre, and make for a thrilling read as Cockayne writes with an academic's attention to detail and a novelist's lightness of touch.

Ettie Neil-Gallacher, The Field

An entertaining and original social history of Britain.

Tony Barber, Financial Times

Positively bulging with evidence.

Dennis Duncan, Washington Post

Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity.

Emma Griffin, LitHub

Fascinating but also subtly affecting ... Penning Poison reveals, there is nothing new under the sun-or between the lines.

Anna Mundow, Wall Street Journal

A lively survey of the practice of sending anonymous letters ... By examining individual cases - the how, when, where and, most important, why - Cockayne has produced something thought-provoking and humane. The opposite of a poison-pen letter, really.

Sadie Stein, New York Times

Penning Poison is a painstaking, energetic history.

Min Wild, Times Literary Supplement

Accusatory, libellous, or just bizarre, Penning Poison unveils the history of anonymous letter-writing. 'er at number 14 is dirty Receiving an unexpected and unsigned note is a disconcerting experience. In Penning Poison, Emily Cockayne traces the stories of such letters to all corners of English society over the period 1760-1939. She uncovers scandal, deception, class enmity, personal tragedy, and great loneliness. Some messages were accusatory, some libellous, others bizarre. Technology, new postal networks, forensic techniques, and the emergence of professional police all influence the phenomenon of poison letter campaigns. This book puts the letters back into their local and psychology context, extending the work of detectives, to discover who may have written them and why. Emily Cockayne explores the reasons and motivations for the creation and delivery of these missives and the effect on recipients - with some blasé, others driven to madness. Small communities hit by letter campaigns became places of suspicion and paranoia. By examining the ways in which these letters spread anxiety in the past Anonymous Letters grapples with the question of how nasty messages can turn into an epidemic. The book recovers many lost stories about how we used to write to one another, finding that perhaps the anxieties of our internet age are not as new as we think.
Les mer
This book is about anonymity, emotion, and detection. Gathering surviving anonymous letters penned in England between 1760-1939 together, it identifies possible authors and explores the impact they had on individuals and communities, charting how developments in postal services, detection, and the media influenced writers and their targets.
Les mer
Introduction: Dear Madam 1: Gossip - Major Eliot's maiden sisters 2: Tip-offs - Undermined coalmasters in Staffordshire 3: Threats - Lord Dorington's in danger 4: Obscenity - Peer's perversion uncovered 5: Libels - 'er at number 14 is dirty 6: Detectives say 7: Media - Herbert Austin robs men's brains 8: Local stories - And Winifred Simner sows discontentConclusion - unsignedReferencesBibliography
Les mer
"Review from previous edition A well-researched and wide-ranging survey of a fascinating and murky area in the history of letters." - Miranda Seymour, Financial Times"Gripping...full of one engaging story after another" - Jonathan Self, Country Life"Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity." - Emma Griffin, President of the Royal Historical Society"As Emily Cockayne shows in this fascinating history, harassment by anonymous letters has often escalated into criminal proceedings in Britain. Cockayne has an eye for the telling details of everyday life, and her sensitivity to motive and human frailty allows her to see things that the detectives who investigated these cases in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries missed." - Christopher Hilliard, author of The Littlehampton Libels: A Miscarriage of Justice and a Mystery about Words in 1920s England"This book is a great fit for libraries and for private readers who have an interest in such true crime mysteries." - Anna Faktorovich, Pennsylvania Literary Journal"A diligent and fascinating study of a pervasive social phenomenon." - Stephen Bates, Literary Review"[A] fascinating account, not just of poison pen letters themselves, but also of the evolution of the necessary postal networks, technology, forensics and policing. Whether you find the realisation refreshing or dispiriting, it appears that the anxieties of the internet age are merely today's version of a longstanding, spiteful tradition." - Henrietta McKervey, Irish Independent"Emily Cockayne has done a tremendous job in charting [poison pen letters]...the examples contained within are very real, and show that anyone who receives a nameless note from out of the blue is bound to find it at the very least unsettling, if not chillingly sinister." - Alex Johnson, The Idler"Wonderful...If the subject of her book is poison, then Cockayne's treatment of it is the antidote." - Sophie Nicholls, The Critic"[A] revealing history of poison pen letters." - New Statesman"Emily Cockayne takes the reader through the history of the anonymous letter writing from 1760 to 1939, romping through gossip, tip-offs, threats, obscenity, libels and more. They are by turn frightening, scandalous and bizarre, and make for a thrilling read as Cockayne writes with an academic's attention to detail and a novelist's lightness of touch." - Ettie Neil-Gallacher, The Field"An entertaining and original social history of Britain." - Tony Barber, Financial Times"Positively bulging with evidence." - Dennis Duncan, Washington Post"Emily Cockayne, one of the leading social historians of our times, has written a truly original history of anonymous letter writing. With her unparalleled skills of exploration and empathy, she has provided a brilliant and beautifully written account of neglected phenomenon in all its social complexity." - Emma Griffin, LitHub"Fascinating but also subtly affecting ... Penning Poison reveals, there is nothing new under the sun-or between the lines." - Anna Mundow, Wall Street Journal"A lively survey of the practice of sending anonymous letters ... By examining individual cases - the how, when, where and, most important, why - Cockayne has produced something thought-provoking and humane. The opposite of a poison-pen letter, really." - Sadie Stein, New York Times"Penning Poison is a painstaking, energetic history." - Min Wild, Times Literary Supplement
Les mer
Emily Cockayne is Associate Professor in Early Modern History at the University of East Anglia. The author of several well-known books, including Hubbub (2007; second edition 2020), Cheek by Jowl. A History of Neighbours (2012), and Rummage (2020), Emily's research ranges freely across modern English social and cultural history. It is characterized by extensive primary research, immersion, and a delight in sleuthing.
Les mer
Includes the Littlehampton Libels, the subject of the 2023 film Wicked Little Letters starring Olivia Coleman on NetflixAuthor is consultant on the film Wicked Little LettersWritten by Emily Cockayne the author of best selling titles Hubbub and RummageTakes the reader through developments from 1760 to 1939, revealing how writing anonymously changed over time, and how the work of detection kept in step with these changesFocuses on specific contextualised case studies, examining their consequences in a way that sheds light on more modern forms of hate disseminationExamines the interrelationships between communities, the law, and media representationIncludes photographs of letters never before reproduced, introducing a cache of new material culture into the study of libel and policing
Les mer

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780198795063
Publisert
2025-09-25
Utgiver
Oxford University Press
Vekt
278 gr
Høyde
195 mm
Bredde
128 mm
Dybde
22 mm
Aldersnivå
G, 01
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Heftet
Antall sider
320

Forfatter
Cockayne, Emily

Biografisk notat

Emily Cockayne is Associate Professor in Early Modern History at the University of East Anglia. The author of several well-known books, including Hubbub (2007; second edition 2020), Cheek by Jowl. A History of Neighbours (2012), and Rummage (2020), Emily's research ranges freely across modern English social and cultural history. It is characterized by extensive primary research, immersion, and a delight in sleuthing.

Relaterte produkter