Covering the period 1830 to 1901, this is a treasure chest. It not only contains a huge sampling of both prose and poetry, but places them into an historical context.

The introduction to the book gives the reader a broad sweep of what was going on in those seventy odd years (such as the decline of Victorian values, industrialisation, suffrage), and several mini essays throughout provide introductions to the writers and their concerns.

The samples work well: a section from Hard Times convinced me to read the full novel, and I discovered a wonderful essay by George Eliot. Highly recommended.