If You Get Down About The State

I Could Not Do What I Do Without The Kindness, Consideration, Resourcefulness And Work Of Librarians, Particularly In Public Libraries... What Started Me Writing History Happened Because Of Some Curiosity That I Had About Some Photographs I'd Seen In The Library Of Congress.

I Often Think Of That When I Hear People Say That They Haven't Time To Read.

And Read… Read All The Time… Read As A Matter Of Principle, As A Matter Of Self-respect. Read As A Nourishing Staple Of Life.

On Christmas Morning When I Was A Child, My Mother Would Leave A Book Wrapped At The Foot Of The Bed, Which Was A Hint That Santa Had Come. It Was Also Her Way Of Keeping Us In Bed A Little Longer Before We Went Downstairs. So I've Always Associated Books With Happiness And Gifts. And They Are. I Can't Get Enough Of Them.

History Isn't Just What Happened, But What Happened To Whom And Why And What Would Have Been Different If The Cast Of Characters Had Been Different.