Product description Few historians have done more to change the way we see the past than Eric Hobsbawm. From his early books on the Industrial Revolution and European empires, to his magnificent study of the "short twentieth century," The Age of Extremes, Hobsbawm has come to be known as one of the finest practitioners of his craft. Available now for the first time in an affordable paperback edition, On History brings together his most important essays on the study and practice of history. Ranging from early considerations of "history from below" and the "progress" of history, to recent debate on the relevance of studying the past, On History is an essential work from one of our preeminent thinkers Review Eric Hobsbawn surveys the writings of modern historians with the magisterial gaze of a man who has seen both the rise of Hitler and the fall of Communism.... The insights and convictions of this book draw less on the author's theory than on his vast experience. -- The New York Times Book Review, Allen D. Boyer Occasion for celebration. -- Library Journal Thoughtful and knowledgeable... tempered with the sophistication and insights of an erudite and influential historian. -- Los Angeles Times From The Washington Post What distinguishes Hobsbawm . . . is his ability to describe, make sense of, and provoke debate about the changing nature of the modern world as a whole.