In my opinion, this book deserves much praise for presenting an important, but almost completely ignored perspective on the Civil War. The military history is used only as a backdrop in this book. The focus instead is on the political history of the Confederacy. The book opens with the whirlwind in which the southern states seceded from the union and tells the story of the Confederate constitutional convention and of how Jefferson Davis became the Confederate President. The remainder focuses on the politics of the Confederate government. Among the many ironies is how a government that started focusing on "states rights" after suffering through much paralysis, saw the states… Read more
This is a wonderful introduction to Irish history. Don't expect lots of details on any particular subject as this is a fairly short book considering the scope of the topic (only about 250 pages). The author states in the preface that the goal is to introduce newcomers to Irish history, and in that it does a wonderful job. The focus is primarily on political history and stretches from prehistoric Ireland to the present day. There's a "Further Reading" section at the end of the book recommending a broad range of other books for those wanting more detail on specific aspects of Irish history.
Don't let the title keep you from reading this book. While it does trumpet the achievements of the Scottish people, it is primarily a history of the Scottish enlightenment and its impact on the world. Indeed, it was a remarkable period with a lasting influence. Among the products of this era were Adam Smith, David Hume, and Edward Gibbon. While it is a book of history, as the title suggests, it is a popular history so don't expect lots of footnotes. It is very well written and kept my interest from start to finish.
