The Diary of Samuel Pepys

The Modern Library Collection – a beautifully presented series of classic literature. Richard Le Gallienne’s elegant abridgment of the Diary captures the essential writings of Samuel Pepys (1633-1703), a remarkable man who witnessed the coronation of Charles II, the Great Plague of 1665, and the Great Fire of 1666. Originally scribbled in a cryptic shorthand, Pepys’s quotidian journal of life in Restoration London provides an astonishingly frank and diverting account of political intrigues; naval, church, and cultural affairs; and the sexual escapades and domestic strife of a man with a voracious, childlike appetite for living. “”As a human document the Diary is literally unique,”” notes Le Gallienne. “”It will have a still greater value for its historical importance.”” —- ISBN: 9780812970715