"We know much more about the court and the country in early modern England than we do about urban society and life. What Tittler . . . does successfully in this fine and innovative book is to tell us about this relatively hidden England and to give it a human face by discussing specific individual lives."--Paul S. Seaver, Stanford University
"This brief book will enhance Robert Tittler's reputation as a sensitive interpreter of the early modern English urban experience. . . . All of the stories are interesting and well told. . . . Robert Tittler has written a short, but fascinating book on English urban life from about 1540 to 1640. Everyone interested in early modern England will profit from reading it."--Renaissance Quarterly

Robert Tittler is Professor of History at Concordia University, Montreal. His most recent book is The Reformation and the Towns in England: Politics and Political Culture, c. 1540-1640.