SKU: 41209570476

The Alienation Effect: How Central European Emigres Transformed The British Twentieth Century

Sale price$73.80 Regular price$82.00
Save 10%

Shipping Estimate
USA
  • USA
  • CAN

Ships within 48 hours · Estimated delivery Jul 12 - Jul 17

Promo Codes Available:

For Your Every Summer RSVP, with Code: SUMMER15

Description

The Alienation Effect: How Central European Emigres Transformed The British Twentieth CenturyThe Alienation Effect: How Central European Emigres Transformed The British Twentieth Century 'Dazzling The remarkable story of how British culture was transformed by emigre architects, filmmakers and writers' Guardian Britain. Made in Europe. In the 1930s, tens of thousands of central Europeans sought sanctuary from fascism in Britain. While the rainy, seemingly quaint island they discovered on arrival was a far cry from the dynamism of Weimar Berlin

The Alienation Effect: How Central European Emigres Transformed The British Twentieth Century

'Dazzling ... The remarkable story of how British culture was transformed by emigre architects, filmmakers and writers' Guardian

Britain. Made in Europe.

In the 1930s, tens of thousands of central Europeans sought sanctuary from fascism in Britain. While the rainy, seemingly quaint island they discovered on arrival was a far cry from the dynamism of Weimar Berlin or Red Vienna, it was safe, and it became home. Yet the emigres had not arrived alone: they brought with them new and radical ideas, and as they began to rebuild their lives and livelihoods, they transformed the face of Britain forever.

Drawing on an immense cast of artists and intellectuals, including celebrated figures like Erno Goldfinger, forgotten luminaries like Ruth Glass, and a host of larger-than-life visionaries and charlatans, the historian Owen Hatherley argues that in the resulting clash between European modernism and British moderation, our imaginations were fundamentally realigned and remade for the better. In casting what Bertolt Brecht called, in a new German word, a Verfremdungseffekt, an ‘alienation effect’, on Britain, the aliens made us all a little bit alien too.
Provocative, entertaining and meticulously researched, The Alienation Effect opens our eyes to the influence of the emigres all around us – many of our most quintessentially British icons are the product of this culture clash – and entreats us to remember and renew our proud national tradition of asylum.

'Owen Hatherley turns to a gentler kind of insurgency in The Alienation Effect – a group biography of the architects, designers and directors from Mitteleuropa who washed up on Britain’s shores in the middle of the last century. We already know the assimilated conservatives – Friedrich Hayek and Karl Popper – but Hatherley gives us the forgotten radicals who put concrete into our skyline and shook us out of our complacency' - Guardian, Best History and Politics Books 2025

'Impassioned and erudite, Hatherley writes with panache and never becomes flat-footedly ideological... In drawing attention to a hugely important yet neglected phenomenon that has shaped our culture for better and worse, this is a genuinely important study that deserves to win prizes' - Telegraph

'Meticulously researched... Hatherley is an exhilarating guide' - Financial Times

'Hatherley writes with wit throughout as he charts the tragic and comic turns of the lives of emigres with a warm familiarity and affection. With his sharp eye for what lies beneath the mundane, he reveals how Central Europeans influenced the everyday apparatus of British cultural life... The Alienation Effect reveals just how tightly the foreign is woven into the fabric of the familiar' - Times Literary Supplement

'The radicalism of the emigres, Hatherley convincingly shows, has been concealed by the manipulations of national memory... Aby Warburg’s credo was Kulturwissenschaft, a scientific approach to cultural studies that turned on connections and juxtapositions. Hatherley is a worthy heir to that tradition, and he has a canny eye for lineages. His potted genealogies are dazzling performances in concision, effortlessly gliding from the new brutalism of his home patch of Camberwell, London, through the works of art historian Rudolf Wittkower to the 15th-century Renaissance humanist Leon Battista Alberti – all in a single page' - Guardian

'Hatherley, whose background is in writing about architecture, moves with confidence through the fields of film, typography and art. The book is thick with information, sometimes resembling the gazetteers or guides he has previously written... It’s often acute, informative, passionate and witty, a sometimes moving tribute to achievements in the face of adversity, and an essential antidote to crude theories of national identity' - Observer

'Hatherley offers a set of vivid and consistently stimulating portraits of individual artists and thinkers… This is an admirable book, ambitious in its scope and very readable… Hatherley proves himself a fair-minded historian, capable of intellectual generosity even towards people and traditions he deplores… This book will stimulate readers' - New Statesman

'Encyclopaedic... Fascinating' - Spectator

'A combination of jewel-like detail and panoramic sweep… Arresting… This monumental work secures for Hatherley his place in the tradition of English writers who have moralized about architecture, a lineage stretching from John Ruskin to Ian Nairn and, yes, Pevsner… A passionate, erudite book' - Jacobin

SPECIFICATIONS:

Author:Owen Hatherly - Оуэн Хатерли

Publisher:Penguin

Language:English

Publication Date:2026

Number of pages:608 pst

Format:Paperback

Width:128 mm / 5'

Height:198 mm / 7,8'

Weight:424 g

ISBN:9780141989778

Shipping Notes
  • Free Standard Shipping on $100+ Orders to the USA.
  • Except Preorder products are shipped in 48 hours.
  • Delivery to the USA:
  1. Standard Shipping : 3-10 business days
  • If time is of the essence, please consider selecting expedited delivery for faster service.
Exchange/Return Notes
  • We offer a 30-day return/exchange service after receiving.
  • Final sale items are not eligible for returns or exchanges.
  • To process your return/exchange, please contact us at [email protected]
  • Please click here for more details>>> Return & Exchange Policy
SKU: 41209570476

Discover Niche Categories That Outsell

Top-Converting Item to Boost Your Average Order

4.7 ★★★★★
Based on 534 reviews
Sort
Highest Rating
Newest First
Oldest First
Product Reviews
O
Verified Purchase
Olga
Natrona Heights, US
★★★★★ 5
Excellent product at a very good price. I will buy it again.
This is an excellent product at a fair price. The cream creates a barrier that protects the skin, while mosturizes it. leaves hands very soft, and it doesn't feel greasy. I know that this is a favorite brand (Avene) in France, and Amazon offers it at a very good price. I will buy it again, from Amazon. I bought it this year in Paris, and it was more expensive there.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2015
A
Verified Purchase
armine arakelian
Lake Worth, US
★★★★★ 1
Drying formula and smell bad
Smell so bad and made my hands dry instead of moisturizing. The formula is watery. Maybe it’s fake or expired I am not sure.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2025
C
Verified Purchase
christine
Houston, US
★★★★★ 5
Saved my skin barrier!!
I rarely write reviews, but this product truly deserves it. I have sensitive, dry skin with mild to moderate rosacea that became even more fragile after chemotherapy. While trying to repair my skin barrier, I overdid it with actives and completely wrecked my skin — it was red, raw, burning, and peeling. I turned to ChatGPT for help, and this Avene Cicalfate+ was one of the top recommendations. I started using it about three weeks ago, and wow — the difference is incredible! My skin has healed beautifully. The redness is dramatically reduced, the irritation is gone, and my skin feels soft, smooth, and calm again. The texture is soft and luxurious without being sticky. I love that there’s no noticeable scent, which is perfect for sensitive skin. It arrived well packaged and intact. For the results it delivers, I consider it an amazing value and will absolutely repurchase again and again. If you’re on the fence about trying this, go for it — it truly rescued and revived my skin barrier. This is now a permanent part of my routine and 100% a holy grail product for me!
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2025
G
Verified Purchase
Gracie Galvan
Lowell, US
★★★★★ 5
Hydrating and Powerful Barrier Repair Serum!💧
This serum has been life-changing in calming and restoring my skin barrier. It absorbs quickly, feels lightweight, and instantly soothes irritation without feeling greasy. I’ve noticed my skin looks healthier and more balanced after just a few uses. It’s gentle enough for sensitive skin and works especially well when my skin barrier feels compromised. It is also fragrance-free, which I always appreciate! Trust me, it’s well worth the money!
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2025
O
Verified Purchase
Oc
Dallas, US
★★★★★ 5
Works as created.
Have been using for a few weeks and have noticed 15% improvement in skin and issues. I did notice a difference in the first 24 hours as advertised. It is suggested need a full month I think to see the true results. At 50 I have pre menopausal skin issues- the redness & inflammation, acne, tightness and sensitivity. It is helping in addition to the other Avene skin products that come in the trial box for sensitive or SOS skin box trial size I think ot is called. This has made a difference. It is easy to apply. I use morning and night. It is different from the Cicalfate + Cream. I use that also as needed. I am happy and recommend it. The price is higher than what I spend. But I wanted to try it to see of i need more than just what was in the Avene sensitive skin trial size box they have. My skin is really red and irritated so the $40 for the bottle is was willing to try because it's painful on my face.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2026

recommand products