SlowRain reviewed Historic Macao by C. A. Montalto de Jesus
Review of 'Historic Macao' on Goodreads
4 stars
Not exactly targeting the general reader, this book assumes you have an understanding of politics, political maneuverings, trade, and shipping. While some concepts can be gleaned from the text, it helps if you do a little extra research. Even then, I'm not sure I fully understood everything in this book--but that may also have been because of the somewhat archaic language used.
Still, I enjoyed reading it and felt I learned a lot about the history of the colony. It's a fascinating place and one worthy of study. The author, however, is deeply biased, so I would caution readers to be aware of this and note when he is crossing the line into opinion. Also, I would recommend reading Charles Boxer's Fidalgos in the Far East first as an introduction to Macau, as Boxer's writing is easier to read and more objective. After reading that, dive into this one. There …
Not exactly targeting the general reader, this book assumes you have an understanding of politics, political maneuverings, trade, and shipping. While some concepts can be gleaned from the text, it helps if you do a little extra research. Even then, I'm not sure I fully understood everything in this book--but that may also have been because of the somewhat archaic language used.
Still, I enjoyed reading it and felt I learned a lot about the history of the colony. It's a fascinating place and one worthy of study. The author, however, is deeply biased, so I would caution readers to be aware of this and note when he is crossing the line into opinion. Also, I would recommend reading Charles Boxer's Fidalgos in the Far East first as an introduction to Macau, as Boxer's writing is easier to read and more objective. After reading that, dive into this one. There is some redundancy, but both books have a different enough focus that they actually compliment each other nicely.