d savvy they were? I have a couple of these “brain crushes” as my friends and I call them. The first is Simon Schama. He’s English, and currently he’s a history professor at Columbia. My introduction to Schama came via the BBC’s amazing A History of Britain. First I watched it, all the while lulled by that amazing voice. Then I read it, struggling to curl with the multiple over-sized volumes. Schama’s insights into what can be deadly dull and dry topics were riveting in both forms. He quickly went from flavor du jour to comfort food status.
Then came his book Rough Crossings: Britain, the Slaves and the American Revolution. As I had just begun research into the history of free blacks in England and France, the appearanc
e of this book was eerily timely. Schama brought an entire forgotten episode of American history to light.
Recently, on BBC America, I’ve discovered his series about art: Simon Schama's Power of Art. The episode on Bernini entranced me. I’ve watched it over a dozen times. The one on Jacques-Louis David enraged me. Ruining my enjoyment of his art.
Then came his book Rough Crossings: Britain, the Slaves and the American Revolution. As I had just begun research into the history of free blacks in England and France, the appearanc
e of this book was eerily timely. Schama brought an entire forgotten episode of American history to light.Recently, on BBC America, I’ve discovered his series about art: Simon Schama's Power of Art. The episode on Bernini entranced me. I’ve watched it over a dozen times. The one on Jacques-Louis David enraged me. Ruining my enjoyment of his art.
If you haven’t yet read or watched anything by this very talented historian, I can only recommend that you do so as quickly as NetFlix or Amazon can assist you.
Do any of you have “go to” historians whose every tome must be purchased and read over and over again?
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