RaveTimes Literary Supplement (UK)Finally, we now have a rich understanding of economic and social history, urbanization and urban culture, the growth of trade, the origins of empire and the history of gender ... Against this daunting background Jonathan Healey’s book is an impressive achievement. It focuses on the English political crises, setting them in an up-to-date social, intellectual and cultural context. Healey’s spare but engaging narrative is brought to life at every stage with individual experiences ... Perhaps Jonathan Healey’s book is a sign of shift of emphasis, of the beginnings of a return to a more explicit interest in the significance of that century for ours.
