Discussing The Professor and the Madman

Our in-person discussion will take place on Sunday, March 4, but please add your own commentary in the comments section of this post.

Here are a few broad questions to get you started (but feel free to talk about whatever you want about the book):

1. Overall reaction to the book, the writing, the history involved?
2. What other works does this book make you think of?
3. Most of these book club discussions have spent time exploring the differences between popular and scholarly history. Where does this book fit and what impact does that have on the way you read and evaluate it?
4. What field(s) of history does this work touch on?
   
5. What is the significance of this work?
6. Would you read other works by Simon Winchester?
7. Favorite part of the book?
8. Most irritating part of the book?
9. Compare this book to other history texts you've read in terms of quality, readability and historical argument.
   

Please, feel free to add your own comments, answers, and questions below. Thanks!