I was game for this book, an eclectic and conversational amble through the intricacies of history. However, the result is rather unremarkable and it is difficult to reason how or why the book was created. It is not the most engaging writing ("In the end I love history because it is such a marvellous combination of enlightening and fun." (pg. xiv)) and the book suffers from being adapted from a series of television lectures MacMillan delivered in Canada in 2015.

Because of the Canadian audience, there is an overemphasis on Canadian history (which, at least in the examples chosen, is just not that interesting), when the author's points would be better served by history that has been more influential in world affairs, such as British, American or European. Because of the lecture format, the tone is breezy and we never get more than an overview of what MacMillan wants to discuss. That can be fine on the lectern, but in a book, I yearned for depth.

A certain formula establishes itself, and not a very promising one: starting from a nebulous theme ('daring', 'curiosity', etc.) MacMillan delivers a series of seemingly arbitrary examples that she believes matches these themes (admitting, at more than one point, that she chose ones she just personally felt were 'interesting'). The examples are not examined critically; there is only a series of cut-and-paste info-dumps followed by brief and workmanlike summaries (usually one or two concluding paragraphs along the lines of 'these all demonstrate curiosity because…'). Anyone who knows anything about history knows this sort of structure wouldn't even pass muster as an undergrad essay.

Even as primer lectures these chapters would be inadequate, as they do not seem to approach their topics with any clear argument or rigour. By the end of this rambling book, the only conclusion reached is that 'history is complicated' (pg. 237). It is – and it becomes even more complicated when academics deliver cookie-cutter content that only sucks the inspiration out of the subject. MacMillan's book doesn't shit the bed, but it is very ordinary and I can't think of any reason to recommend it. ( )

This book is a printing of a series of essays. The author crafted words to be spoken to a live audience; not to be read by readers. And it shows; for example, there is no pulling together of any themes or conclusions. However, in Margaret MacMillan, we have an author who can really zoom in on people, and she is a great story teller.

From reading this book, I realize how much individual people affect history. Perhaps more so than they influence other fields. For example, if one particular scientist hadn't discovered something, chances are greater that another one would have relatively soon, at least in comparison to how history would have unfolded without some of the strong characters described in this book.

While I may quibble with some of the author's choices – Lady Simcoe pales in comparison to the other two women portrayed in the “Curiosity” chapter – I really enjoyed this book. ( )

A Series of Massey lectures aired on Canada's Public Broadcaster, about prominent historical figures of world history. There are not footnoted but are impressions created by the historian of the Versailles treaty and the build up to the First World War. A pleasant experience for the general reader with some pertinent remarks as to why history is pursued as a study. The sources and further reading appendix is a helpful guide. ( )

too many people to remember very much ( )