Simon Schama is University Professor of Art History and History at Columbia University and the prize-winning author of seventeen books, including The Embarrassment of Riches, Citizens, Landscape and Memory, Rembrandt's Eyes, the History of Britain trilogy and The Story of the Jews. He is a contributing editor of the Financial Times and his award-winning television work as writer and presenter for the BBC includes the fifteen-part A History of Britain and the eight-part, Emmy-winning Power of Art.
"Marvelously rich and eloquent...Entertaining...Wonderfully learned
and perceptive." --The New York Times Book Review
"[Schama's] sinewy prose is everywhere enlivened by an illuminating
wit and fueled by a relentless and joyful curiosity...You get the
impression he will venture anywhere, intellectually speaking, in
pursuit of his historical prey...He's a scintillating guide." --The
Globe and Mail
"Fascinating...A potpourri of biography, art history and much else,
skillfully blended and handsomely illustrated...Insightful."
--Maclean's
Schama presents a wide-ranging meditation on the role of nature in Western civilization from ancient times to the present. The previous books by Schama (humanities, Columbia Univ.) include The Embarassment of Riches (LJ 5/15/87) and Citizens (LJ 4/1/89). In the present work, he argues persuasively that Europeans and Americans have been shaped by nature as much as they themselves have shaped nature. Schama discusses the impact of sacred or mysterious rivers, forests, and mountains in forging the Western imagination. Individuals discussed include the expected (e.g., Henry David Thoreau) as well as some surprises (e.g., Louis XIV and Hitler). The fact that nature has had a huge impact on Western history is not a startling new revelation, but Schama is a marvelous writer and an impressive scholar. He brings together familiar and not-so-familiar stories to create a fresh reappraisal of more than 2000 years of history. Highly recommended.‘T.J. Schaeper, St. Bonaventure Univ., N.Y.
"Marvelously rich and eloquent...Entertaining...Wonderfully learned
and perceptive." --The New York Times Book Review
"[Schama's] sinewy prose is everywhere enlivened by an
illuminating wit and fueled by a relentless and joyful
curiosity...You get the impression he will venture anywhere,
intellectually speaking, in pursuit of his historical prey...He's a
scintillating guide." --The Globe and Mail
"Fascinating...A potpourri of biography, art history and
much else, skillfully blended and handsomely
illustrated...Insightful." --Maclean's
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