Jan Morris

1926 - 2020

Jan Morris, (born James Humphrey Morris,) is a Welsh historian, author and travel writer. She is particularly known for the Pax Britannica trilogy, a most evocative description of the British Empire.

I stumbled upon her trilogy when I purchased volume 2, Pax Britannica: The Climax of an Empire, in a musty second-hand bookstore in Vancouver, Canada. Or was it Victoria? Or Burnaby?

I was immediately enthralled by her writing style and her sentimental yet objective analysis of the empire. I soon purchased the remaining two volumes which are up till today, prized possessions on my bookshelf.

Jan Morris is a unique choice here because she was not a member of any academic faculty. However, her books have been easily accessible, lucidly written and timeless in literary beauty. She has been known as a wonderfully descriptive author.

In her later years, Morris turned her skilled penmanship to travel writings and has captured beautifully the essence of the many places she has visited, such as Oxford, Venice, Trieste, Hong Kong and New York city.

Read more about Jan Morris' Biography and her Bibliography here.