The Athenaeum

“An elegant, authoritative, and consistently readable account of a significant institution…Particularly interesting in this beautifully produced and magnificently illustrated book is Wheeler's narration of the Athenaeum during the two world wars.”—Francis O’Gorman, Archiv für das Studium der neueren Sprachen und Literaturen

‘Wheeler plays at the top of his game in this history of a national institution, and in his account of the brilliant intellects, the innovators, the dissidents and the world authorities who have been its members over the course of two centuries.’—Richard Davenport-Hines

‘A scholarly account, by an insider, of a private London club, an establishment niche which allows for eccentricity.  The membership has always included enough of the most eminent people of the time, from politicians to poets, to create a discreet safe haven where private and public life converge. Wheeler reveals the Athenaeum as a significant funny-bone in the anatomy of Britain.’—Victoria Glendinning