When a railway line opened in 1859, cutting through the hills of south-west Surrey on its way from London to Portsmouth, it presented an enticing new possibility. Now professional people could choose to live among heather-covered hilltops, with their wide views and wholesome air, while still having access to the facilities of the capital, only an hour and a half away by train from Haslemere. Many did so, following the example of the poet laureate himself, Alfred, Lord Tennyson. In this book, rich in detail and yet thoroughly readable, Bob Trotter tells of sixty-five other writers who chose to...