Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behavior

Honestly, I'm completely shocked just how much I enjoyed this book. Written in a conversational and witty tone, Kate goes in depth on seemingly every social mannerism of English society, and manages to make it absolutely fascinating. Reading this book, I felt at times a total outsider peeking in with a microscope, and at other times a distant relative visiting a family reunion and realizing just how much we all have in common. Kate can get a bit preachy at times, especially when she's speaking about anyone not out to have fun, but it's easy to forgive her and move on as she provides an endless supply of interesting insights that made me reflect on my own culture as much as the English. To think I never would have heard of this book if I hadn't of stumbled across it on a random shelf of books in an Airbnb host's living room in London.

Kate Fox provides a great read for those who are trying to understand the English and their culture. From how to start a conversation all the way to what not to say, Fox provides all the rules and examples ensuring there is no confusion on how to interact. Throughout the book there is a lot of humour added as that is a big component of the English culture. The book itself is broken down into two major sections. The first is conversation codes and how one should go about interacting with the English whether it be at the pub, the race course, in the work situation or even a London cab. The second part is on behaviour which delves into another area of the English culture touching on class codes, rules of play, sex, religion etc. Fortunately I have lived in the UK twice in my life and a lot of these aspects I have picked up over time. The book is very long and at times goes a little overboard in description. For the person coming to England for the first time, this is a one stop shop book in getting up to speed with the English. Three key takeaways from the book: 1. The weather is the first go-to conversation topic in most situations. Always agree with the weather call and do not criticise the English weather. Note television shows is the second go-to conversation topic 2. National average for watching television is 4 hours a day (including online viewing) …. Wow! 3. There are 50,000 pubs in England, frequented by three quarters of the adult population. One third of those are regulars visiting the pub at least once a week

Sociology without jargon. I would give it ten stars if I could. A must if you are going to England and just good fun if you’re staying home.

Invaluable guide to understanding the English. I lived in England for two years from early 1979 through 1980. I so wish I'd had this book back then. Reading it decades after having lived there explained a lot about the behaviors I'd observed but did not fully understand. Reading this book gave me innumerable "Aha" moments. If you are going to England to live or even just to visit, you should study this book and take it with you. Highly recommend

Occasionally perceptive but incredibly repetitive.

Interesting but tedious. It's a sociological study conducted by an actual anthropologist. I was frustrated by the first couple of chapters which give a detailed account of the methodology of the study. I was much more interested in actually learning about the habits of the English so, after a while, I skimmed ahead to get to that part. Once there, the book continues to be very detailed and exacting (though often humorous and interesting, as well). As a traveler going to the UK on vacation I was more interested in a general overview of the British character than the sort of detailed analysis found here. So, my main complaint is that the book was something different than what I was looking for. But if you want a thorough, detailed examination this book may satisfy. Still, I have to wonder just how valid and up to date all these details are. With such a well-qualified and diligent author it seems foolish to pose such a question. But from my limited experience it doesn't seem that the British are quite so constrained and uniform in behavior as described here.

Delicious book. I've never been to England. But I read a lot about the whole English thing. At first, looking at the book cover I guessed it was about language. I riffled thorugh a few pages and for some reasn it got me. It seems to me a king of book we do not find all the time. The authour writes in a pleasant way, and despite being a long book, it is a good long one. I'm a bit in an English mood, now, so I couldn't express my admiration better.

As an expat living in the US since the 80s, and living a completely American style lifestyle, this made me laugh and opened my eyes to some of my own behavior. It is wordy but since us Brits are fairly complex it's probably necessary. One of the reviewers asked how relevant it was today, I would say that as she states that ways of expressing may change but habits never do. I found myself at the check out of a supermarket and mentioning the weather and when the cashier disagreed with me found myself somehow offended. Now I know that's completely normal. I would recommend anyone interested in the English to read this book, and even to people who have English friends in the US, to get an incite into our sometimes odd but totally lovable behavior. ha ha!

Divertido, interesante, un buen libro para entender porque tu ex britanico era tan rarito 🤣

toll geschriebenes Buch, sehr lustig und informativ. Super auch für alle Hobby-Linguisten, denn es ist schon allein ein Genuss, den Satzbau und das reichhaltige Vokabular zu lesen - sozusagen ein kleiner Auffrischungskurs in englischer Grammatik, viel besser als jeder englischsprachige Roman, den man sonst so nebenbei wegliest....

An excellent read! Witty, insightful and full of humour. A must for anyone moving to the UK or to laugh at yourself if you are a Brit (sorry, mean English!)

Livre pour les cours. Bonne qualité.

Das Buch schildert in amüsanter Weise die Ansichten, Stimmungslagen und Befindlichkeiten der Engländer. Es ist ein fesselndes Buch, dass sehr anschaulich Einblicke in die besondere Psyche der Engländer gewährt. Ein Muss für Liebhaber der englischen Sprache und Kultur!