Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader greatly enjoyed Simon Schama’s book Citizens. It is a wonderfully readable and engaging book that follows the course of the French Revolution. (He gifted it to the Big Hominid years ago, but he isn’t sure that the Big Hominid has read it yet. Not his field really.)

Your Maximum Leader also owns Simon Schama’s History of Britain on DVD. It is eminently viewable and engaging to historian and non-historian alike.

Rembrandt’s Eyes has been recommended to your Maximum Leader - but he’s never bought or read it.

Your Maximum Leader has always thought that Simon Schama is a rare find. He is a historian who is a good writer. Most popular “Historians” would be dismissed by “Professional Historians” as “Journalists” or “Popular Writers.” David McCollough is the first person to fall into that appellation. Ask lots of historians in the academy and they would tell you that McCollough is not a historian but a writer of history. Schama is a professional historian who can write. But also Schama has a feel for the larger picture. This talent is evinced in the History of Britain where he moves his narrative along by carefully chosen vignettes that capture the essence of his message.

Why is your Maximum Leader blogging this? Well, Schama is well-written up in today’s Washington Post and he wanted to set up the link before passing it along. The Post bit is a good read. You should check it out.

Carry on.