Strangers and Intimates

Jenkins’s history of private life is more urgent than ever … Lucid and elegant * Telegraph *A brilliantly original line of investigation, taking the reader on an epic journey through the ages … endlessly fascinating and full of surprises – Alice Loxton, author of EighteenWell written and always provocative – David Aaronovitch * The Observer *Amidst all the current narrow technological determinism, it is refreshing - and empowering - to read such a nuanced, thoughtful history of this slippery concept – Kate Fox, author of Watching the EnglishFrom Tudor Treason Trials to Monica Lewinsky and beyond, this book brilliantly deploys the author’s deep knowledge of literature, political ideas, as well as the history of law and of leisure … a tour de force – David Abulafia, author of The Boundless SeaFrom Thomas More and Oliver Cromwell to Jennicam, Big Brother and Monica Lewinsky … one of the most thought-provoking books I’ve read in years – Adrian Tinniswood, author of The Power and the GloryAn impassioned argument … Jenkins deploys an array of lively anecdotes to make her case. [Strangers and Intimates] is a far-reaching - occasionally dizzying - book * The Financial Times *Essential reading for all those seeking to understand the dynamics of the current privacy crisis, and why it matters that solutions are found – David Vincent, author of A History of SolitudeA highly engaging read, timely, and impressively broad in its scope * Literary Review *A stimulating history * New Statesman *Jenkins delivers a substantial but still nimble exploration of the modern notion of ‘private life’ … An eye-opening study of the value of keeping some things unseen * Publishers Weekly *

Dr Tiffany Jenkins is a writer, cultural historian and broadcaster. She is the author of the acclaimed Keeping Their Marbles: How Treasures of the Past Ended Up in Museums and Why They Should Stay There. She’s a former honorary fellow in the History of Art at the University of Edinburgh and a former visiting fellow in the Department of Law at the London School of Economics. She wrote and presented the BBC Radio 4 series ‘A History of Secrecy’ and ‘Contracts of Silence’, about the rise of non-disclosure agreements, and has appeared regularly as a critic on Saturday Review and Front Row. Her opinion pieces have appeared in The Guardian, The Observer, the Financial Times, the Scotsman and The Spectator. She divides her time between London and Sussex. Strangers and Intimates is her third book.