France who had renewed slavery under Napoleon. Hochschild explains that the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, which banned slavery in Britain and its colonies, only became possible thanks to the Reform Act 1832 which saw many long-held seats in the House of Commons replaced. Hochschild notes that the Abolition Act upset many abolitionists as it provided compensation for slave-owners. The Abolition Act took legal effect on August 1, 1838, granting full emancipation for all British slaves. Reception Critical response Bury the Chains received many positive reviews for its compelling and witty narrative, which according to The Daily Telegraphs Max Hastings, "never fails to hold the reader's attention." While most reviewers enjoyed Hochschild's "vivid" writing, the Chicago Reader called it "ingratiating" and the Journal of Social History felt it sometimes "descends into silliness". Hochschild does not gloss over the brutalities of slavery which can make the book difficult to read. Despite its dark subject matter, some reviewers commended Hochschild's account for being an ultimately "inspiring" one, focused on the courage of the abolitionists and celebrating their achievements. On the other hand, the Chicago Reader observed that in its attempt to be "uplifting", the book intentionally glosses over some of the less appealing implications of the abolitionist campaign. Publishers Weekly disagreed, giving Hochschild credit for highlighting the abolitionists' own shortcomings and mistakes. Among the few lukewarm reviews, the Chicago Reader was critical of what they perceived to be Hochschild's liberal beliefs clouding his objectivity as well as his dismissive attitude towards Christianity, particularly toward John Newton, who continued to captain slave ships after his conversion to Christianity. Academic journals were also not as receptive to the book. Reviewers in the Journal of Social History and the Journal of British Studies felt that Hochschild's anecdotal approach limits the book's ability to explain issues with greater depth. While the former still considered the book "a brilliant distillation of the most recent generation of scholarly research," the latter felt that even as a work of popular history, Bury the Chains could have been "more nuanced and sophisticated". Reviewers agreed that Hochschild's intent in writing Bury the Chains was to use the successful British abolitionist movement to inspire contemporary activists and provide them with a model from which to emulate. The New York Times'''s Marilynne Robinson felt his intent was an "honorable one", while NPR's Maureen Corrigan selected the book as one of her favorites of 2005