The Isles

A book of great scope and ambition, The Isles is also a judicious and nuanced one: it takes seriously the mutually constitutive aspects of the long, entangled history of the peoples of Britain and Ireland while not losing sight of points of difference and conflict. The environment, too, is an active player in Bellany's telling, and he is equally comfortable explicating climate data as he is a government proclamation or popular ballad. Innovatively conceived, elegantly written, and welcoming to a broad range of readers, The Isles is a tremendous achievement." - Brendan Kane, University of Connecticut