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This engaging account places Australia's history in a global context, drawing on sources from the United States, Britain, South Africa, and Canada. Acclaimed historian Frank Welsh traces the history of the land from scattered convict settlements to the formation of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901 and on to today's thriving independent nation, exposing many national myths in the process.

Australia is one of the world's most quickly developed modern nations, leaping to prosperous independence from its English colonizers in the span of a generation. This book also explores the dark side of Australia's history: the long-continued "White Australia" policy, which bedeviled foreign policy for more than a century, reflected in Australia's enthusiastic support for the Vietnam War; the still-tortured official relationship with the Aboriginal peoples; the subordination of women; and the flaws in the constitution. Welsh also examines Australia's uneasy relationship with its Asian neighbors, and its isolation from traditional allies Britain and the United States.

Customer Reviews (4)

History of the Land Down Under
In just over two centuries, Australia has gone from being a penal colony to being one of the most successful nations on earth.Frank Welsh traces this journey in "Australia:A New History of the Great Southern Land".The book opens with a series of maps that show Australia's gradual development, and Welsh emphasizes the vast geography of the nation and its impact on development (the rail line connecting the south to the north was not complete until 2003!).

The author recalls the exploration of the continent, early settlements, and the struggle to form a democratic government.Welsh discusses the world wars and other events of the twentieth century, as well as the important social and economic developments of the last few decades.At the end of the book, there is an appendix with lists of Australian prime ministers and governors of the states of Australia.

The one main drawback of the book is that the author embraces some of the hoariest Leftist misnomers about the Cold War in general and the Vietnam War in particular, but in general the book is a solid history of Australia.

A Solid And Thorough History
"Australia: A New History of the Great Southern Land" by Frank Welsh is a very good attempt at providing a complete and concise history of Australia from a perspective of Europeans, and from the point where Europeans became aware of it and decided to colonize it.Of course, it isn't possible to provide much in the way of history from the aboriginal people who have lived there for 40,000 years or so, and that will forever be our loss.

The first chapter covers the growing awareness of the Southern land by the different countries of Europe.This is followed by several chapters detailing the colonization, first of New South Wales and the proceeding to other parts of the continent and Tasmania.Welsh does a good job of discussing the formation of each of the colonies and how they developed, and their need to be joined, but as well the resistance to joining which had to be overcome.The next significant period is that of Federation and its development as a nation as it moved from relying almost exclusively on Great Britain to more reliance on the United States.

Mr. Welsh does a thorough job covering events, politics, social attitudes, international relations, and key figures throughout the history.It is interesting to see Australia develop from a continent which nobody was very interested in initially, to a penal colony, to a group of colonies, to a commonwealth, and finally to a significant Western power which is physically closer to Asia and Eastern cultures than it is the West.This provides a unique and unusual dynamic to the country.On the cultural front, there is also significant development from one thought of as criminal, to one which was very racist for the majority of its history, but has in the last half-century become amazingly diverse and open to different cultures, ideas, and people.

From a personal perspective, I can add that it is interesting that, while there is still evidence of the prior racism here, it seems to have left far fewer scars than have been left in the U.S., though I must admit that there is still a lot of the country which I have left to experience.Nevertheless, the progress in diversity and attitude is amazing to see, as both Melbourne and Sydney are very international cities, and even the often thought of as backward Tasmania does a good job of promoting the positive aspects of different cultures and being open to them.

Welsh's history of Australia was published in 2004, so it is missing the last five years, and the transition from John Howard and the Liberal party to Kevin Rudd and the Labor party.However, other than that, the only problem I found was a rather minor statement that Reagan had been elected President in 1979 (it was in fact 1980), and the error is hardly significant to the point being made.The writing is a bit dry in places, but it does have excellent notes and a good bibliography as well.I can't rate this as high as Hughes "The Fatal Shore" or Keneally's "A Commonwealth of Thieves", but then again neither of them provides a complete history of the country, and so they do a better job in their area of focus.

A Major, Balanced, Historical Work
Frank Welsh has written an extremely well written, witty, scholarly, balanced and very long work on the history of Australia. The footnotes are excellent for further research and with the bibliography are almost one hundred pages long! The illustrations are ok, and the maps are useful but could have been somewhat better; many of the places mentioned do not appear.

Th author's balance of view deserves praise.Although I might describe myself as a "Battler" and Welsh I suspect is a "Chardonnay Socialist" the coverage of contemporary issues is fairly presented.

Welsh rejects the "PC" approach in covering relations with the Aborigenes; the mis-treatment of whom while unconscionable has been over-emphasized... "It should be recorded, remembered, regretted, and accorded only their proper place." The author rejects historical post-modernism, and supports the Windschuttle school of historical accuracy in dealing with the Aborigenes.The approach to settlement is less histrionic than that of Hughes, particularly on Irish political prisoners.

The weakest part of the book is a lengthy description of the process be which "representative" and then "responsible" governments were established; almost one hundred tedious pages as each of the six states are dealt with.This is more than balanced by descriptions of the Melbourne-Sydney rivalries and how regionalism led to a chaotic train system of three different gauges.

The strongest parts of the book are those that deal with economic issues; the economic problems that Australia faced in the 1880's are similar to the crisis America has to deal with today. Particularly usefull was the discussion of post World War 2 Australia; handicapped by inept leaders and manipulative allies it faced problems in Indonesia and New Guinea. (Yet Welsh shows less sympathy for the Caribbean problems of America) The issues in contemporary Australia such as the Liberal Party moving to the right, reversing the economic welfare state and of Labor and immigration issues are well covered.

Mr Welsh is at his weakest when he makes references to America; for example the New York riots of July 1863 were Draft Riots, and although having a strong racial undercurrent, were not a response to the 10 month
earlier Emancipation Proclamation as he asserts.

This is a must read for anyone interested in the [political and economic history of Australia.

Way Down Under
This book is far too detailed (too much information) with facts not needed by a non-historian reader.It is very hard to read and boring.I donated it to the local library after struggling through 100 pages. ... Read more

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In 1890, more than 100,000 Welsh-born immigrants resided in the United States. A majority of them were skilled laborers from the coal mines of Wales who had been recruited by American mining companies. Readily accepted by American society, Welsh immigrants experienced a unique process of acculturation. In the first history of this exceptional community, Ronald Lewis explores how Welsh immigrants made a significant contribution to the development of the American coal industry and how their rapid and successful assimilation affected Welsh American culture.

Lewis describes how Welsh immigrants brought their national churches, fraternal orders and societies, love of literature and music, and, most important, their own language. Yet unlike eastern and southern Europeans and the Irish, the Welsh—even with their "foreign" ways—encountered no apparent hostility from the Americans. Often within a single generation, Welsh cultural institutions would begin to fade and a new "Welsh American" identity developed.

True to the perspective of the Welsh themselves, Lewis's analysis adopts a transnational view of immigration, examining the maintenance of Welsh coal-mining culture in the United States and in Wales. By focusing on Welsh coal miners, Welsh Americans illuminates how Americanization occurred among a distinct group of skilled immigrants and demonstrates the diversity of the labor migrations to a rapidly industrializing America. ... Read more

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This book is part of the Our Name in History series, a collection of fascinating facts and statistics, alongside short historical commentary, created to tell the story of previous generations who have shared this name.The information in this book is a compendium of research and data pulled from census records, military records, ships' logs, immigrant and port records, as well as other reputable sources. Topics include:

• Name Meaning and Origin
• Immigration Patterns and Census Detail
• Family Lifestyles
• Military Service History
• Comprehensive Source Guide, for future research

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In 1842 a "barren island" was reluctantly ceded by China to an unenthusiastic Britain. "Hong Kong", grumbled Palmerston, "will never be a mart of trade". But from the outset the new colony prospered, its early growth owing much to the energy and resourcefulness of opium traders, who soon diversified in more respectable directions. In 1859 the Kowloon Peninsula was sold to Britain, and in 1898 a further area of the mainland, the "New Territories", was leased to Britain for 99 years - the arrangement from which the present difficulties spring. Despite its extraordinary economic success, which has made it one of the world's leading commercial centres, Hong Kong has never quite shaken off the raffishness of its early days. It has continued to be a source of embarrassment to British governments, and now, as its enforced return to China approaches, its future is the focus of worldwide attention and speculation. This work is an evocation of Hong Kong and the characters of those who shaped it, from its buccaneering origins to its post-war growth. ... Read more

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This is the fifth volume in a pioneering series of authoritative studies on the social history of the Welsh language. It contains twenty-two chapters, all written by acknowledged experts in the field, dealing with the status of the Welsh language in a wide range of social domains, including agriculture and industry, education, religion, politics, law and culture. Although bureaucrats, Celtophobes and some of the upwardly mobile Welsh-speaking bourgeoisie were reluctant to promote the interests of the native tongue, these clearly exerted enormous potential for Welsh to become, both numerically and socially, a powerful influence in several contested domains. The series 'A Social History of the Welsh Language', the fruits of the second major research project of the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies of the University of Wales, will interest and intrigue the general public as well as specialists in the field and help readers to familiarise themselves with the history of a language which, over the centuries, has been an integral part of the everyday life of the Welsh people and their sense of nationhood. ... Read more

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The 1891 census was the first to collect information about the language spoken by the people of Wales, and is therefore a particularly reliable source for historians analyzing the socio-economic structure of Weslh- and English-language ability and the process of language change in Wales at the end of the 19th century. This study concentrates on 20 communities, chosen for their geographical, economic and linguistic characteristics which in 1891, accounted for about 5 per cent of the total population of Wales. For each of the selected areas, a detailed picture of the socio-economic pattern of language use has been constructed by examining a range of social variables, such as age, sex, relation to head of household, place of birth and occupation, in relation to the language spoken. Intergenerational language shift, the linguistic influence of extra-family members, and the effects of mixed marriages on language change are investigated, and particular consideration is given to migration streams and the presence of incoming strangers and returning kin. ... Read more

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A sweeping history of Hong Kong, Britain's last colony, documents court intrigues of London and Peking, the heyday of the British Empire, economic development, its role as a refuge from mainland Chinese communism, and the 1997 return to Chinese sovereignty. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Scholarly
I'm very impressed with how well researched this book is, considering that the author is not a native Hong Konger. Having said that, I do agree with the editorial statement that "The narrative is focused almost entirely on British rather than Chinese interests."

This is a pretty massive paperback, 652 pages from end to end including a very thick index, bibliography and notes. It's definitely very substantial and meaty. It is however not easy reading, the prose is somewhat formal but well written. Usually subsisting on a diet of easy to read thrillers, I had to mentally change gears to absorb it.

Going back to that editorial statement, this book is really a strategic history of Hong Kong. It starts way back from how the Chinese and British governments began on their journey to cross paths in the Ching dynasty and onto the Opium Wars. Then it goes on to how Foreign office obtained the island and then follows the history of Hong Kong through the service of it's British governors up to the present.

The history of Hong Kong is too vast be contained in one book. So for those who want to read about the history of Hong Kong from the British point of view this is a very informative and interesting book. Remarkable that this book wasn't written by a British historian or British ex-HK civil servant but an ex-banker! Fascinating reading and recommended.

Great Read but Traditional Outlook
This book provides a good source for the origins of Hong Kong and tells a fascinating story. It is especially good in detail in pre 1945 history with more than 2/3 of the book dedicated to that time period.
What bothered me about this book was the readiness of the author of accepting Nationalist assumptions of the origin of states. Writing about the time after 1962, Welsh says: "China had regained what could be regarded as her historic boundaries, with major exceptions of Taiwan and Hong Kong, and was willing to allow negotiations for the restoration of these to take their course without more pressure" (p. 444) The assumption of historic borders, though, is problematic. Tibet and Xinjiang have been rather recent additions to what is today the People's Republic of China. Taiwan only became a province under the Qing dynasty. During World War II, Mao Zedong even considered independence for Taiwan. It was Chiang Kai-shek's brutal conquest of the island that changed the equation. In the end, Welsh should be aware that countries are a mere creation of humans and are bound to change over time.

One with Nineveh and Tyre Redux
One is old enough to remember the British Empire during the period between 1945 and the devaluation of sterling in 1967, as a young, inquisitive, American, and when I visited London in 1973, I was duly impressed, as was Henry James in 1880, by the sooty *gravitas* of that great city as if it was still dreaming of Hong Kong, and palm and pine.

But much water has passed under London bridge since then. The past year or so, my commercial affairs have taken me to two dying embers of the British Empire, Suva in Fiji and Hong Kong, now a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. Welsh¡¯s book is invaluable on Hong Kong.

Dying? Dead. Suva is today a province in fact if not in law of Australia and Frank Welsh's book makes it very clear that Hong Kong never was British. It's always been a Chinese city with a vast Chinese majority.

The British overlordship was curiously meaningless, and, if I read Welsh's book alright, it has serious lessons for any American still so foolish as to support Bush's idiotic attempt at reconquista in Iraq.

For in weak piping times of peace, there is, it seems, and at least in the UK and in America, dominated as they are, and rightfully so, by formidable females, no shortage of men who come upon a mad desire for military folly nel mezzo de camin, as a midlife crisis.

Precisely when the generation that had actually braved shot and shell at Waterloo was beginning to succumb to age and strong drink, ambitious and unscrupulous politicians, it is clear from Welsh, decided it was time, in Marx's sense, to resolve a few contradictions with gun-powder.

The Opium wars resulted even as today the Iraq wars have been the folly of choice.

Like the Iraq wars, the Opium wars had a curious two-phase structure. The first war was limited by what the impossible French would call considerations of humanity on both sides. British commanders set specific limited goals and the Chinese mandarins actually expressed, more than once, concern for the welfare of white colonies in Guangdong factories and in Macau.

In the 1840s, neither side in other words quite fit the demonizing caricature and one is reminded of the fact that Tariq Azis, now in American clink, is an Iraqi Christian (a damnably inconvenient fact well-concealed by the idiot American news media) who endeavored to limit the first war for nothing more, and nothing less, than considerations of humanity (for ¡°let us not speak falsely now the hour is much too late¡±)¡­even as Bush the elder (and a genuine coalition) could not stomach a drive on Baghdad.

Iraqi physicians and soldiers in April of 2003 protected Jessica Lynch until her rescue for nothing more, and nothing less, than considerations of humanity.

In the Guangdong region, British commanders demanded extra-territorality because the Mandarins would, they said, impose savage and un-Christian punishments on Britishers, and the British wanted to impose condign Christian punishments including the cat of nine tails, hanging, and abandonment at town¡¯s end to starve.

The second war, and the subsequent Elgin mission, were thanks to Palmerston (the evil genius of the entire affair) less informed on the Chinese side by Mencius¡¯ benign philosophy, or what the unspeakable French would call considerations, de l¡¯humanite. And as a result, by the time of Elgin¡¯s violation of China, beastliness erupted on both sides: the scent of blood was in the air as it is today in Najaf.

Britain received as its prize a humid gaggle of mountainous islands, and, as soon as it was known that money was to be made, millions of Chinese swarmed in, who in fact made Hong Kong the great city it is today. Hong Kong never really benefited Britain. Any more than Iraq, so far, has been a net benefit to the sharpers and criminals who lured America into hell has been anything more than bloody and expensive folly, did Hong Kong benefit Britain. For as Welsh notes, Britain¡¯s trade with little Holland has always exceeded its trade with China.

Indeed, I am reminded, reading of British trade¡¯s misadventures in Hong Kong and in China, of the hapless Indian touts at Tsim Sha Shue, who attempt to interest one in a fine ¡°British tailored¡± wool suit. This is usually in 100+ Fahrenheit when one is covered in sweat, where the very thought of worsted is the worst thing in the world. One says to the tout with a grin, nemestay, sahib, knowing that he is just trying to get by; but one wonders who signs on for fine British tailoring in the tropics other than mad dogs and Englishmen.

Welsh is most amusing on, and most unimpressed by, Thatcher who like a tropical storm visited Hong Kong and China in the 1980s, making silly noises about treating Hong Kong as Britain treated the Falklands while her generals and admirals had kittens. Britain had, of course, no real leverage.

Britain exhibited le perfide Anglais and nauseating hypocrisy. It extracted a series of promises from the Chinese leadership without being in the least able to enforce China¡¯s conformity to them. In the one area where Britain had leverage, the issuance of passports to Chinese inhabitants, Britain simply stonewalled: one can¡¯t have more wogs, especially hard-working wogs.

But China does keep more or less to her 1997 commitments in order perhaps to lure Taiwan into ¡°one country, two systems¡± and Hong Kong flourishes as before with today, it seems, at least one Brooks Brothers outlet per capita¡­offering wear appropriate to the noonday sun. For China, much depends on dinner and Hong Kong is a meal ticket.

All¡¯s well, that ends well, so far. But clearly the Opium wars and the grab of Hong Kong began Britain¡¯s slow decline into the tragicomic opera of today. For it was shortly after the Arrow nonsense that Germany began to beat Britain atcommerce.

Perhaps Iraq is America¡¯s paredon in the same way.

A spirited history
Frank Welsh has written a magnificent history of Hong Kong: His account of nearly two centuries of British rule is comprehensive, spirited, fair and funny. Welsh obviously enjoyed writing this book, and his energy and enthusiasm are contagious. I loved his concise, blunt and often hilarious assessments of the rogues, eccentrics, incompetents and occasional heroes who governed or otherwise played major roles in Hong Kong: Gov. John Bowring "possessed almost every gift but that of common sense.'' "It might have been possible to find a man more unsuited to be a Colonial Governor than John Pope Hennessey,'' Welsh writes, "but it would not have been easy.'' Welsh admits that he writes from an Anglo perspective, and he is sympathetic to Hong Kong's British colonial rulers. But he is not blind to their snobbish, condescending and sometimes plainly racist attitudes toward the ethnic Chinese they ruled. To this reader, Welsh's argument that the Opium War wasn't really about opium isn't convincing, but his defense of the so-called "unequal treaties" between China and Britain is. Welsh sometimes wades too far into the minutiae of diplomacy and politics, and he too readily assumes the reader's familiarity with 18th century British history and personalities. But these are quibbles; in fact, the weaknesses are the flipside of one of the book's great strengths: It strives to put events in Hong Kong in a broader historical perspective, explaining the political backdrop in Britain or mainland China. One of Welsh's recurring themes struck this reader as particularly timely: the shameful degree to which Hong Kong's business elites, be they British or Chinese, put their narrow interest in profit above the public interest. In the 19th century, Hong Kong moneymen, worried about losing tenants and facing higher costs, opposed efforts to improve public sanitation and fight disease by tearing down squalid, congested tenement buildings. Today, they argue alongside the communist leadership in Beijing against any expansion of democracy in Hong Kong - fearful no doubt that a democratically accountable government might look twice at their privileges and dodgy business practices. Overall, this is a fine book and belongs on the shelf of anyone interested in the history of Hong Kong or indeed of Great Britain.

Definitely Worth the Time
Although a little 'dry' at times, this was a thoroughly enjoyable read. Frank Welsh's analysis of the development of this incredible city, its history and culture is fantastic. What caught my attention was in the Introduction when he remarked that Hong Kong was never a British colony but a Chinese colony administered by the British. From there on, he had my attention. ... Read more

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The third volume in a series of studies on the social history of the Welsh language. This text aims to deepen the understanding of the relationship between the Welsh language and community in the 19th century by revealing parallels and contrasts evident at regional or local level. ... Read more

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This volume brings together Wendy Davies' pioneering early studies on the text of the "Book of Llan Dav" alongside later pieces which explore the place of Wales in the wider world of the early middle ages. The Llandaff studies have provoked much subsequent comment: readers will find it helpful to reconsider what the author actually said about arguably the most significant surviving text for early medieval Welsh history - as opposed to the several published interpretations of what she is supposed to have said. The later work includes much-cited papers on the Latin charter tradition of the Celtic world and on 'Celtic' women; as well as studies of the so-called Celtic church and of the distinctiveness of Celtic saints - in all of which Welsh evidence makes a particularly important contribution. It also includes recent pieces on the environment and economy of early medieval Wales, which highlight some of the crucial new evidence provided by archaeology as well as historiographical issues that attract much current interest.Overall, the author has sought to make Welsh evidence accessible to scholars with interests in other parts of the middle ages and to ensure that Wales plays a part in broader surveys of early medieval Europe. ... Read more

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On his way into Parliament on February 2, 1990, F. W. de Klerk turned to his wife Marike and said, referring to his forthcoming speech: "South Africa will never be the same again after this." Did white South Africa crack, or did its leadership yield sufficiently and just in time to avert a revolution? The transformation has been called a miracle, belying gloomy predictions of race war in which the white minority circled the wagons and fought to the last drop of blood. Why did it happen?

InThe Rise and Fall of Apartheid, David Welsh views the topic against the backdrop of a long history of conflict spanning apartheid's rise and demise, and the liberation movement's suppression and subsequent resurrection. His view is that the movement away from apartheid to majority rule would have taken far longer and been much bloodier were it not for the changes undergone by Afrikaner nationalism itself.

There were turning points, such as the Soweto Uprising of 1976, but few believed that the transition from white domination to inclusive democracy would occur as soon -- and as relatively peacefully -- as it did. In effect, however, a multitude of different factors led the African National Congress and the National Party to see that neither side could win the conflict on its own terms.

Utterly dissimilar in background, culture, beliefs, and political style, Nelson Mandela and F. W. de Klerk were an unlikely pair of liberators. But both soon recognized that they were dependent on each other to steer the transformation process through to its conclusion.

Reconsiderations in Southern African History

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Customer Reviews (1)

Unique and informative
I've never read anything quite like this book.Carefully researched and full of great information, but also a page-turner that even manages to succeed at humor, despite the subject matter.I'ved owned this book for years and I still take it off the shelf regularly.Truth is stranger than fiction, and this book does a great job of reminding us.The companion volume,"Medical Histories of Union Generals" is not as readable (though still quite good). ... Read more

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Between 1066 and 1282 two quite different societies were juxtaposedalong the Welsh Marches: a feudally-based Anglo-Norman one, and aCeltic Welsh one. It has been conventional to consider the formerto have been more sophisticated and developed than the latter but, in fact, the situation was more complex, and during more than two centuries of attacks and campaigns each society borrowed from the other.
This book is the first comparative study of the two military systems. It considers issues pertinent to the entire border region, and, indeed, to other medieval marches. Specific topics examined include: the nature of Welsh military service, Welsh tactics and the English response,the development and functioning of Clun (a representative border castlery), the local command in Shropshire and the so-called `wardens' of the March, and the extent to which Welsh military customs influenced those of the Marchesand of England. ... Read more

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The regiment was raised in February 1915 and its 1st Battalion went to France in Augusat 1915 to join the Guards Division which was then being formed. A very good history incorporating nominal roll of all WOs, NCOs and men who served with it, noting casua ... Read more

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There have been many books on early modernist poetry, not so many on its various sequels, and still fewer on the currents and cross-currents of poetry since World War II. Until now there has been no single comprehensive history of British and American poetry throughout the half century from the mid-1920s to the recent past. This David Perkins is uniquely equipped to provide; only a critic as well informed as he in the whole range of twentieth-century poetry could offer a lucid, coherent, and structured account of so diverse a body of work.

Perkins devotes major discussions to the later careers of the first Modernist poets, such as Eliot, Pound, Stevens, and Williams, and to their immediate followers in the United States, E. E. Cummings, Archibald MacLeish, and Hart Crane; to W. H. Auden, Dylan Thomas, and the period style of the 1930s; to the emergence of the New Criticism and of a poetry reflecting its tenets in William Empson, John Crowe Ransom, Allen Tate, John Berryman, and Robert Lowell, and to the reaction against this style; to postwar Great Britain from Philip Larkin and the "Movement" in the 1950s to Ted Hughes, Charles Tomlinson, and Geoffrey Hill; to the theory and style of "open form" in Charles Olson and Robert Duncan; to Allen Ginsberg and the Beat poetry of the 1960s; to the poetry of women's experience in Sylvia Plath and Adrienne Rich; to the work of Black poets from Robert Hayden and Gwendolyn Brooks to Amiri Baraka; and to Elizabeth Bishop, W. S. Merwin, A. R. Ammons, John Ashbery, and James Merrill.

Perkins discusses some 160 poets, mentioning many others more briefly, and does not hesitate to explain, to criticize, to admire, to render judgments. He clarifies the complex interrelations of individuals, groups, and movements and the contexts in which the poets worked: not only the predecessors and contemporaries they responded to but the journals that published them, the expectations of the audience, changing premises about poetry, the writings of critics, developments in other arts, and the momentous events of political and social history. Readers seeking guidance through the maze of postwar poetry will find the second half of the book especially illuminating.

Customer Reviews (4)

Accessible to NonPoets
I love poetry. Books like "History of Modern Poetry: Modernism and After" fill my bookshelves. I eat this stuff up. But one thing a lot of poetry books do is mush up the sense of it all in the hope of appealing to the academics. Since most regularly published poets are professors in English departments, it works out, but it creates a great divide between the laity and the academic.

What David Perkins has done is explain the basic chronology of poets periods. This is neither an encyclopedia of terms nor an anthology of great poems. Instead, Perkins takes a period, affiliates the poets major within that period and explains their context and importance.

He keeps it simple without talking down to the reader.

Essentially, it is a collection of intelligent essays. Some are topical, like "The Postwar Period" while others are poet-specific, like "W. H. Auden."

Perkins writes clearly. It isn't trying to impress you, but he is trying to help you understand Eliot and onward.

I read it for personal growth, but it would make a solid textbook, in tandem with Perkins' other volume covering the previous eras.

I fully recommend "History of Modern Poetry: Modernism and After" by David Perkins.

Anthony Trendl

A Must Have for Serious Readers of Poetry
This book (the first volume) is over 600 pages.And they are 600 pages chock full of intelligent analyses and overviews of all the poetic schools in Britian and the US since the 1890s.This book is fascinating in its content and a joy to read because of Perkins' clear and humane style.It is amazing that one person can know so much.But don't let that intimidate you.This book will do wonders for your working knowledge of American and British poetry.

excellent introduction to modern poetry
David Perkins's "History of Modern Poetry" gives the reader the essentials of the modernist movement, from its beginnings as a reaction against the outworn Romantic era to the poetry of Ashbery, Ammons, and Merrill in our own age.Brevity is a virtue here:Perkins states the essentials of a poet's life only and so escapes the common error of overinterpretation which most critics commit.The series also pays attention to minor poets who do not rank highly today and past movements in journals and anthology editing so as to provide us with a complete picture of what the past century of poetry has consisted.Highly recommended.

excellent introduction to modern poetry
David Perkins's "History of Modern Poetry" gives the reader the essentials of the modernist movement, from its beginnings as a reaction against the outworn Romantic era to the poetry of Ashbery, Ammons, and Merrill in our own age.Brevity is a virtue here:Perkins states the essentials of a poet's life only and so escapes the common error of overinterpretation which most critics commit.The series also pays attention to minor poets who do not rank highly today and past movements in journals and anthology editing so as to provide us with a complete picture of what the past century of poetry has consisted.Highly recommended. ... Read more

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The manger or Macy's? Americans might well wonder which is the real shrine of Christmas as they take part each year in a melange of churchgoing, shopping, and family gatherings, often wondering whether our culture has commercialized the season beyond repair. But, as Penne Restad demonstrates, Christmas has always been an an ambiguous combination of solemnity and frenzy.

Christmas in America presents us with a fascinating reflection of our changing society by displaying how we have celebrated this holiday from colonial times to the present. While the early Puritans in New England primly denounced any festivities, city dwellers flooded the streets in raucous demonstrations, and Virginians hunted, danced, and feasted. Unwrapping the hidden messages in such time-honored traditions as the Christmas tree, gift-giving, and family dinners, Restad brilliantly reveals how Christmas has evolved into an unescapable presence in contemporary culture.

Brimming with insight and colorful detail, Christmas in America shows what our celebrations tell us about our culture and ourselves. From Clement Clarke Moore's poem "Twas the Night Before Christmas" to the box-office smash Home Alone, Restad's marvelous book offers much to delight and consider. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Christmas USA
This is probably one of the best reference books on the subject I have ever read.

We learn that our emerging nation didn't always take kindly to the celebration of Christmas.The Puritans saw it as a pagan ritual and so were, well, puritanical about it.

Boston even levied a ban on Christmas.

You learn some things that upset your preconceived notions on the holiday.

Some of these are:

Santa Claus - his origins in this country are influenced by a political cartoonist and a soft drink.

The Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremonies - The first one was not where most would guess.

How Christmas was celebrated - forget reverent gatherings at churches and think more shotguns and booze.

You also learn some surprises about A Visit From St. Nicholas, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and how this nation took the holiday to heart once it realized you could make a buck.

All in all a really fun read.

Christmas in America: A History

Great Resource, but a Little Bit of a Dry Read
Like much of American History, how we celebrate Christmas today and what we "believe" about its historical importance to the United States is based on either myth or marketing or both. Penne L. Restad has written an important history of this most sacred holiday over the past 300 years that will set the record straight for anyone who dares to question the status quo.

Some of what you will learn from this book includes the fact that 200 plus years ago, most Christians in America did not celebrate Christmas for various reasons from its debauched history in England to the fact that Christ was not born on December 25; the Founding Fathers did not pay much attention to Christmas, even holding Congress on Christmas Day (again, because of its importance in England) though loosely based on centuries of myth and storytelling, the modern Santa Claus is the product of corporate marketing; Christmas in America did not gain national importance until after the Civil War as way to unite a torn nation.

Though this book is an important resource on a prominant aspect of American History, and a must read for those who wish to fully understand the Christmas holiday and all of its trappings, be warned that this is a bit of a dry read; not because Restad is a bad writer, but the coupling of her historian's approach to the topic and the shear abundance of information, this book suffers a little in the narrative.

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A Guide to my Book Rating System:

1 star = The wood pulp would have been better utilized as toilet paper.
2 stars = Don't bother, clean your bathroom instead.
3 stars = Wasn't a waste of time, but it was time wasted.
4 stars = Good book, but not life altering.
5 stars = This book changed my world in at least some small way.

Nothing new
I am returning this book---it didn't have anything to tell me that I didn't already know.

Serious students of the Holidays phenomenon take note:
Restad knows her stuff and doesn't hesitate to engage controversial aspects of the season.This is part of an ongoing conversation, and should be read in dialogue with the (in my mind) better book, The Battle for Christmas by Nissenbaum.However, Restad's book is an excellent one for anyone who seeks to understand the "whys" of the cultural traditions that bombard us.As well as get some handle on the "hows" of doing things differently in your own life.

America's values and conflicts as seen through Christmas.
Author Penne Restad has written an excellent historical account of how the evolution of Christmas in America since colonial times parallels the evolution of the American collective mind.Going beyond the celebration ofthe Nativity of Jesus Christ, America's favorite holiday has been molded inthe last 300 years by the idiosyncracies and anxieties of the Americanpeople, these being reflected, for example, in gift-giving customs, the useof evergreen trees, or more poignantly in the nation's portrayal of SantaClaus.I was truly fascinated with the wealth of information Ms. Restadpresented in this serious, objective book.Think for a moment thatChristmas was not observed universally in America until well into thenineteenth century, especially after the Civil War; before then, a ratherlukewarm observance of the holiday was not public and basically wasdetermined by religious and ethnic background (a reflection of the dayswhen our country's idea of nationhood was still in its formative stage). The book also covers in detail the changes Christmas brought to thecelebrations of Thanksgiving and New Year's Day.Ms. Restad's narrative ofour celebration of Christmas brings to light the complexities of theAmerican psyche; we become enmeshed in conflicts between the sacred andprofane, the spiritual and material (the celebration of Christmas in theantebellum South could not escape the dichotomy of freedom and slavery aswell).Even as it prompts us to confront and come to terms with theseconflicts, "Christmas in America: A History" also acknowledgesthe feeling of generosity, good will, and universal brotherhood the holidayinspires in us as a people; it is a work of great scholarship. ... Read more

Product Description
The definitive guide to these imposing structures. ... Read more