This is a nimble and enjoyable first novel published in 2003. It asks a familiar question, "Can you like an unlikeable character?" The plot twist is fairly easy to anticipate, but handled adroitly enough to provide a complex denoument. The conceit is in the author's quotations from John Donne's poetry and their relation to the story.

This a thoughtful series a of essays, academic papers, and lectures/speeches about the science and philosophy of historiography. Some of the middle essays are a bit intense because he discusses the intersection of writing history, economics, sociology, and anthropology. The beginning and ending sections are much more friendly to those of us outside academia. I found it a very worthwhile and inspiring read.