Reviews for Historic Laredo An Illustrated History of Laredo and Webb County

The average rating for Historic Laredo An Illustrated History of Laredo and Webb County based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-08-23 00:00:00 Frank Mueller Junior This is a serviceable, if not terribly exciting, collection of essays about the development of the study of Russian history before the Revolution of 1917. Written during the 90s, it takes advantage of the period of greatest openness in terms of historical use of Russian archives and source materials; my Russianist friends tell me that under Putin this openness has swung back in the other direction, so that foreign historians have little access to government materials and Russians are extremely limited in what they can publish. It serves as a valuable introduction for modern historians seeking to understand how Russia has been understood in the past, and is generally free of the political biases that mar Cold-War-era historiography. Among the names this volume introduced me to are Solov’ev, Kliuchevskii, Kachenovskii, Kizevetter, and Tsamutali, all important contributors to the study of Russian histort. Of course, one also finds familiar names such as Miliukov and Lomonosov, but more recent historians such as Gerschenkron are scarcely mentioned – for more recent historiography, even of the Imperial era, it is necessary to look elsewhere. Several of the essays cover lesser-known historians in detail, and an entire section (three essays) is given over to Ukrainian historiography, so readers can be assured of encountering some highly specialized information, in addition the more “general” history given in the first section (nine essays). Contributors include Marc Raeff and Terence Emmons, who will be important for Russian history students to be familiar with as well. The standout essays for me were those about the “State School” of historians, Miliukov, and Adeeb Khalid’s contribution on “Modern Central Asian Consciousness.” Doubtless a historian who specialized in Russian history could give a more complete view of the strengths and weaknesses of specific pieces, but overall the work remains valuable over a decade since its publication, but will only be of real interest to graduate students and above.

Review # 2 was written on 2020-12-15 00:00:00 Maryellen Stamos Absolutely fantastic read, though oriented towards scholars/history students. Offers history from a new angle and its intricate details leaves your imagination wandering in the past. The chapter on Genocide nearly had me in tears - history is better than fiction because it is all the more real. Vinen is truly gold.