Reviews for Dots on the Map: Visiting Europe's Accidents of History

The average rating for Dots on the Map: Visiting Europe's Accidents of History based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-03-28 00:00:00 John Walker Over the last few years, I have become interested in learning more about the remaining colonies that still exist around the globe and small states as well. Thus, when I began reading Mr. Leckey's book, I was looking forward to learning a bit more about the micro-states of Europe. And, from this aspect, the author did not fail, as he provided a bit of history about each micro-state he visited, along with some of his encounters with both residents and tourists along the way. But, there are two problems with this book. First, the author appears to go out of his way to try and insult just about every other nation he can as he encounters tourists from across the globe; after a couple of chapters, this approach kind of got old. Also, the author spends excruciating time detailing his hikes in the foothills and mountains of each micro-state, so much so that perhaps the book should be retitled "Colin Leckey Hikes the Small States of Europe."

Review # 2 was written on 2013-09-15 00:00:00 Peggy Morrison I decided to read this one on holiday as we went to Monaco, one of the 'dots' that Leckey visits in his micro-state odyssey. He also visits Andorra, Vatican City, San Marino, Liechtenstein, Gibraltar and the Faroe Islands, and reports on his experiences in an easily readable, witty style that combines travelogue with potted histories of the countries. The historical aspects are the best bit of the book, and I learnt much about some oft over-looked nations. On the basis of Leckey's experiences I've gone off the idea of visiting Italy or those states within it, but I'm intrigued by the Faroes and Liechtenstein.