English Parish Churches by Edwin Smith, Olive Cook, and Graham Hutton

English Parish Churches by Edwin Smith, Olive Cook, and Graham Hutton

The late Sir John Betjeman described this volume as "a gem of a book ... condensed knowledge without being stodgy, affectionate without being mawkish." From the Saxon simplicity of the little church of St Lawrence at Bradford-on-Avon to the late victorian splendour of Holy Trinity, Sloane Street, London, Edwin Smith's photographs of parish churches eiptomize English history and the English way of life. Graham Hutton's enthusiastic texts set the buildings in their social and historical context, while Olive Cook, Edwin Smith's widow, provides illuminating notes to the pictures. "A feast to the eye, a pleasure to read and an incentive to seek out the architectural treasures that one has hitherto missed." (The Times) "A fine memorial to a man whose affectionate and discerning eye always managed to capture the essence and the Englishness of the churches that gave him so much pleasure." (Country Life)