It is my belief that the most enjoyable of all scholarly historical works are those that are the least dry. Rather than present laying the bare statistics in a creakily dull manner like a nonagenarian lecturer with nothing to derail their monologue the best histories are those presented by the historians with a rich variety of expression and tone.
they are the historians who an make it feel, as you read their work, that they are comfortably ensconced in a club (of two, - you and them) sharing opinions between friends. One does not mean they should not be rigorous. Far from it, empiricism is King in the world o academically sound history after all! yet they must display imagination coupled with wit.
Surely anybody would rather read the work of an opinionated historian than a bland one? You need not agree wit them, but at least their style and presentation and potential zeal should lead you to think more deeply about their subject.
To that end in fact one would rather read controversial history than safe works, history with leaps of imagination and strong opinions, grounded in relevance and fact.
So please historians, be controversial, be opinionated, be argumentative and strong willed, and in return we should be prepared to listen to others, to be persuaded by sound evidence.
Finally though historians I ask this one thing of you above all others - be interesting!
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