Nudism in a Cold Climate: The Visual Culture of Naturists in Mid-20th Century Britain

Dr. Pollen has put together a fascinating look at British naturist history. Her perspective as a non-naturist allows her to be critical and analytical in way that provides insights a naturist author may not have. I bought two for my shelf!

Excellent book. Highly recommend

This book gives a detailed overview about the creation of nudist clubs and magazines in the 1920s and their progression up until the 1970s. It was a well-written book. Not at all as academic as I'd imagined it to be. I enjoyed learning about the original ideals of Naturist (sunlight, vegetarianism and fitness).. and shocked to discover some of the hidden motives behind the promotion of perfect looking bodies.

A brilliant book written from the perspective of a non naturist.We have been naturists for over thirty years and have seen naturism change ,for the better ,and this book explains some of the odd entrenched ideals we came across in the past .

Not a bad history and commentary on the Naturist Movement in Britain, but it misses the real motivation and passion which has driven it, because the author is not a naturist and doesn't even appear to have tried it. It is therefore a largely document based piece of research and opinion, and a bit dry and academic as a result. So, of passing interest, but not something which keeps you turning the pages. Though I am a naturist myself, I nearly gave up before the end as it seemed a bit irrelevant.Maybe I didn't like the undercurrent of feminism in the writing which implies a mistrust of men's motivations much of the time. Not quite "all men are rapists", but a bit "all men are voyeurs". The women are usually thought of as doing it mostly to please their men.The photographs are interesting from a historical point of view, but all in black & white. Colour was available from the early '50s but is ignored for reasons not given. The result is rather dowdy and lacking in attraction.The narrative stops in the early '70s and the subsequent half century is covered in a few pages of an 'afterword'. This is a major flaw, as the developments during that time are large. Nudism in other places than in the UK is almost wholly ignored.