Status
Available
Collection
Publication
New York : A.A. Knopf, c2007.
Description
An analysis of the study of the past and its implications in the Western world, from ancient times to the present day, looks at the work of individual historians and how they presented the past in terms of their perspectives, beliefs, and historical periods.
User reviews
LibraryThing member jrcovey
I have just one regret at reading this ambitious survey of 2500 years of the practice of history—my only contact with almost all of the historians surveyed has been through this book. That's nothing against John Burrow, who admirably covers an enormous range of work here, without imposing any
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kind of strained overall narrative. But it does leave me thinking that it's a shame how dependent we've become on this kind of work. We're not going to read 20 ancient great historians, 10 more medievals, and 30-some more moderns, in their entirety... not in our lifetimes, most of us. I'll be lucky if I make it to the end of my twice-started Herodotus. So, until I win the lottery or buy that reading chair on my retirement, there's books like this. Show Less
Awards
Cundill History Prize (Longlist — 2009)