The American Henry James's descriptions of the countryside, monuments, universities, cathedrals, castles, customs and manners of the English are filled with elegant charm and good humour. Here he delights in the hidden corners of ancient Chester streets, marvels at the drunken jollity of Epsom Derby day and savours the calm shadows of Glastonbury abbey, in a hymn to stained-glass windows, crumbling cottages, Norman towers, weather-beaten gables and the English genius.