It’s very big, very long, about 650 pages. But, above all else, it is just the most coruscatingly enjoyable read. All sorts of themes that have enriched and influenced Judaism over the centuries are in the book. Why are Jews always being excluded? Why are they a peripatetic race? How do they take root in society? Societies partially exclude them, which means they’re more active in commerce than they are in government, and so on. It is a rolling, extraordinary tapestry of bizarre stories. And that’s a compliment, by the way, not a criticism. Some of us were joking that rather than being called Belonging: the Story of the Jews, it ought to be called Belonging: the Story of Some Jews. The book is essentially a series of the most colourful anecdotes. His prose crackles with wit, insight, and a sort of rather original articulacy. “Simon Schama, when he’s on form, is pretty well one of the most exciting writers we have today. What he does is to create a richer picture for the reader.” Read more. Adopting an interpretive technique I think is fitting for the subject matter. And since we’re talking about art, so much comes down to interpretation. You have to use words, images, metaphors to kiss the past alive-and that is exactly what Schama does. He writes a book at once about a Dutch hero (and Rembrandt’s competition with Rubens, the Flemish master) and about Dutch history with the authority of a native…You have to remember: the only way to write about history or about a fabulous figure like Rembrandt is by being a storyteller.

It’s a real accomplishment of cultural empathy, and of course of bringing another time alive. He goes very far with some of his speculations, but I find it marvellous that Schama can do this about a foreign country-one that he didn’t even grow up in. You can smell the paint, the poor quality of the air above Amsterdam’s canals, centuries ago…Rembrandt’s Eyes reads almost like a novel.

Reading Schama is like stepping into a time machine. He has guts…He goes all the way, with all the senses engaged. “I chose this book because Simon Schama is such a wonderful writer. Foreign Policy & International Relations.

Citizens by simon schama