Incredible work done by Rowe. It's very easy to see why this book has won so many awards. Thoughtful, informative, and yet still relatively easy to understand, it's genuinely one of the best books on history I have read. 

I think my only note is that I do think it would have been very valuable to add a section on. how race was conceptualized during this time period. Particularly given that this is the time period when race was actually becoming a Thing™. However, this is 100% a book written for academics who probably already know that information, so I am torn as to whether or not it's a legit criticism of the book.