For the Guardian he named a top ten list of literary diarists, including:Samuel Pepys (1633-1703)Read about another entry on the list.
The most famous of all English diarists, Samuel Pepys, began his diary in 1660, just before he secured a position as clerk of the acts to the navy board, and brought it to an end nine years later because he believed (mistakenly) that his eyesight was deteriorating so badly that he risked blindness. His contemporary, John Evelyn, occasionally has the edge on the big historical events – Evelyn's account of the the Great Fire of London, for example, is more descriptive – but Pepys feels a truer creature of the restoration era, relishing the capital's bawdy taverns, coffee houses and reopened playhouses.
The Diary of Samuel Pepys is among Tony Benn's six best books and Claire Tomalin's five most important books.
--Marshal Zeringue
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