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A must read for any student of African history

Revisado: 10-03-21

Not because it is the most scientific, or the best narrated (far from it), but because it it is the most bold and sweeping in its claims. Chiekh Anta Diop laid bare hundreds of tiny prejudices which I held as a European-educated scholar and forced me to re-examine each one in turn. Sometimes, based on evidence uncovered in the last 50 years (particularly in Sumer and the Indus Valley), I disagreed with him. Just as often, I agreed. The issue of race in history is still fraught. We could do worse than return to these words for a fresh perspective.

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Extraordinary.

Revisado: 09-01-21

Perhaps the best history of the ancient world ever written. It is well researched and insightful without taking itself too seriously, as so many of these books do. Beautiful.

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An extraordinary but flawed history

Revisado: 07-26-19

The authors despise Mao. This is appropriate, given Mao’s history, but it does render the book somewhat unpleasant at times. Despite that, the background research and narrative are EXTRAORDINARY. Worth the read, despite drawbacks.

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An extraordinary history

Revisado: 06-16-19

This is one of the best books I have ever read. Hitchcock is thoughtful and fair to Eisenhower, teasing out strengths and weaknesses with only a necessary degree of editorializing and with a wonderful mix of facts and narrative. And the man—every American should know more about Eisenhower and the presidency which shaped the Cold War.

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Long and Rambling, but Extraordinary

Revisado: 05-24-19

It takes persistence, but it’s entirely worth the wait. Rushdie takes us on an epic exploration of the human psyche, encompassing ideas of religion, sectarianism, skepticism, belief, compromise, victory, defeat, death, love, and sorrow. It’s magic realism with a British-Indian twist, and it’s a damn fine book.

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A Difficult, Beautiful, Touching Review

Revisado: 01-18-19

Proust makes me want to weep and tear my hair out. He is alternately brilliant and self-centered, expansive and small-minded, full of life and utterly hopeless. The story of Swann and Odette is the centerpiece of this book, but it is Proust’s descriptions of the thoughts and feelings of the first-person narrator, a boy, which shall stay in my memory more than the rest. A magnificent experience.

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Surprised and delighted

Revisado: 09-26-18

In listening to the brief extract introducing this book, I thought it might be shallow or un-rigorous. Nothing could be further from the truth. As an ‘Anglo-Saxon’-type, I was surprised and delighted by the author’s fair treatment of French history and culture. And by everything I learned. 100% recommend.

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A masterpiece

Revisado: 08-04-18

One of those books which leaves you stunned, silent. A book which inspired insight and honesty in self introspection. A book which forced me to face myself and the world in their terrible, wonderful complexity. I wish it were the full book, yet the dramatization has its own poignancy.

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Good, But Less Revolutionary Than Expected

Revisado: 03-11-18

I liked this book. But from the reviews of friends and others, I was prepared to love it. I did not. A great deal of the book is devoted to evolutionary theorizing, which is probably interesting to many but feels tangential from the main point. The tone attempts to be nonpartisan but still feels like it’s talking down to conservatives. The 6 pillars of morality are fascinating and there is some good analysis built on them, but as with most theories the author seems to take it a little too seriously and thus gets caught up in trying to explain the world through his theory’s lens. Overall, the book feels pedantic and redundant, without a great deal to offer in constructive criticism other than a few calls to be more respectful and empathetic to the ‘other side’.

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Really Old, Still Good

Revisado: 12-31-17

Aristotle is certainly a product of his age. He is obsessed with logical consistency, sexist, pro-slavery, and mildly anti-democratic. Yet for all that, there is so much—so very much—we can learn from this classic. The relation of pleasure to happiness, the importance of honor, the imperfection of human beings—a worthwhile read.

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