William Grimes,"Jolly Old London, But Definitely Not Prim and Proper," NY Times, 29 December, reviews Vic Gatrell, City of Laughter: Sex and Satire in Eighteenth-Century London.

Kathleen McGowan,"The Dawn of Ecology," Audubon Magazine, November/December, reviews The Humboldt Current: Nineteenth-Century Exploration and the Roots of American Environmentalism by Cornell's Aaron Sachs. Alexander von Humboldt's vision was more holistic than John Muir's environmentalism that ultimately prevailed in the United States, argues Sachs.

Just in time for the New Year, I've finished a major revamp of Cliopatria's History Blogroll. Among other things, it features 43 Ancient History Blogs, 38 Military History Blogs, and 36 in Pre-Modern History. Just scroll down. You're bound to find others with interests similar to your own. There are at least three food history blogs, for example: 18thC. Cuisine, Eat Your History, and The Old Foodie.

Finally, in Barbara O'Brien's"What Would Caesar Do?" Mahablog, 29 December, historian Joseph Ellis and others channel the thoughts of Julius Caesar, George Washington, Genghis Khan, and Abraham Lincoln about what they would do if they were responsibile for military operations in Iraq. Thanks to Jonathan Dresner for the tip.