by Linda Colley
First published 2002
Lewis Namier sits in his Oxford study, surrounded by documents that will reshape how Britain understands its eighteenth century past. The Polish-born historian has spent decades building his reputation through meticulous research, but his revolutionary methods have made him enemies in the academic establishment. Namier battles colleagues who resist his analytical approach to parliamentary history while wrestling with his own identity as a Jewish immigrant in elite British circles. His marriage strains under the weight of his obsessive work habits and volatile temperament. As Namier pushes forward with his groundbreaking studies of political structure and motivation, he must confront the personal costs of his scholarly ambitions. The novel explores the tension between intellectual achievement and human connection through the eyes of a brilliant but difficult man who changed historical scholarship forever.
Genres: 20th-century, biographical-fiction, academia, academic
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: academic-rivalry, enemies-to-lovers
Setting: Oxford, Britain
Period: 18th Century
160 pages · Paperback · Pimlico