'This is an excellently nuanced book ...an impressive first book'Keith Laybourn, History'An exemplary piece of social and cultural history: meticulously researched, cogently argued, imaginative in its approach. It deserves to be afforded major intellectual currency not just in British film studies but also in the social history of working-class life and practices'James Chapman, Journal of British Cinema and Television'Essential reading for anybody interested in 1930s British society', Daniel Hucker, Gender and History'James makes a convincing argument for the distinctiveness and complexity of working-class taste in this period. He also offers a compelling view of the importance of working-class consumer preference in shaping the provision of film and literature in working-class communities'Andrew August, Labour History Review