Classics in the Slums by Jonathan Rose is mostly about reading among the “working classes” (servants, millworkers, coalminers, etc.) in Britain in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. I was pleasantly surprised to read about fellow readers who seemingly needed to read as much as I do.

The Workers’ Educational Association, founded in 1903 (and still a going concern today), brought university-level adult courses in literature, history, science, and economics to the mill towns. The students were intensely dedicated: they had to be, given the realities of their lives. One pottery engineer recorded that, over a 26-week period, he worked an average of 74.5 hours per week, then wrote 14 essays for his WEA course, and also delivered a total of 25 lectures to various other classes.

The WEA offered no grades, no degrees, and no vocational courses. The only motive for study was the disinterested pursuit of learning, and the students vehemently rejected any kind of occupational training.

They just loved the books.