Book Review: "Sicily"

Partially to help me get back into the habit of writing regularly, I've decided to include book reviews on here. Today I'll be reviewing "Sicily: An Island at the Crossroads of History" by John Julius Norwich.

The book was released in July 2015 and was published by Random House. You can get it on Amazon Here . The hardback edition which I am basing this review on is 332 pages long, not counting the preface, introduction, and a brief bibliography and index.

The author, whose full name is John Julius Cooper, 2nd Viscount Norwich, reminds me of those history authors you sometimes read who were writing in the early 20th Century. Members of the British aristocracy who sometimes had little or no training in historiography, they were a group who were usually writing about famous ancestors, military affairs, or the places they had traveled and were often extremely prominent public figures. Examples would include people like Winston Churchill (who wrote numerous political and military histories and biographies), Captain B.H. Liddell Hart (a military history author whose strategic and tactical theories continue to influence military doctrine today), and Lady Elizabeth Longford (a biographer primarily of the British Monarchy and Victorian personalities). Norwich comes from an equally prominent background; his family was founded by one of the illegitimate children of King William IV, his father was a famous diplomat and politician from the British Conservative Party, and his mother was a famous actress, socialite, and author. Norwich himself has led an interesting life; in addition to his work as a prominent diplomat, he is a member of the House of Lords, has appeared on numerous television programs, and has a bibliography that covers a dizzying number of topics ranging from the history of the Byzantine empire to British architecture.

"Sicily" attempts to tell the history of the Italian island of Sicily, beginning with the Ancient Greek colonies located there and ending at the close of the Second World War. Obviously covering more than 2,600 years of history in less than 350 pages is quite ambitious, but as as a very basic overview I think the book is a success. It primarily covers the "big" history of the Island, particularly it's various monarchs and other notable figures. Strangely, he seems to focus most heavily on the Norman period, a couple of 19th century monarchs, and the island's role in Italian unification. The entire Roman, Sub-Roman, Byzantine, and Arab periods are covered in a single chapter, while the Norman Kingdom gets two full chapters and parts of two others. As one might expect the later on in history we get, the more Norwich covers, but I would have liked to have read more about the period between the Greeks and and early modern era!

The book's greatest failing is it's emphasis on top-down history, an issue encountered in many histories written today. Especially in later chapters, Norwich focuses almost exclusively on royal families, diplomats, generals, clergymen, and a handful of "lovable rogues" like mafiosos. The female perspectives we get are all foreign-born aristocrats, and of lower class peoples we read very little, except about their suffering and exploitation at the hands of those in power. While it's understandable in that these groups, especially the rural poor, left behind little to no literary evidence, I would have liked to see a little more information pulled form archaeology and even folk history.

The narrative is well-written and, from what I can tell, well researched despite the relatively sparse bibliography. I found it difficult to put down, and in parts it read as much like an excellent novel as it did like a history. The only quibble I have here is Norwich's tendency to go off on tangents throughout, but I easily forgave these as they were usually short and always entertaining.

 I found the book fascinating. I picked it up solely on a whim a few months ago but just got around to finishing it. If you are looking for a brief introduction to the history of the island of Sicily, I think you will be hard-pressed to find a better work. Apart from its history under the Greeks and Romans and its role in World War II, I knew very little about the island but now feel that I have a solid, if not expansive, grounding in its history. It's a great jumping off point if you want to get deeper into the subject of Italian history, a subject I'd never really thought much about (apart from, as always, the Romans). If you plan on visiting southern Italy anytime in your life, I'd also recommend the book to just about anyone. Despite its size it is a quick read, and it frequently describes the history of some of the region's primary tourist sites in enough detail to impress and annoy the people on your tour group. While not perfect, the book is interesting, and as a popular history and a very brief summary, I consider it a smashing success.

Let me know if you like this format, if you'd prefer more in-depth reviews for shorter snippets. Thanks!