"Hawthorn's Plausible Worlds is not only a good read, filled with all sorts of fascinating information, but a book that raises very large and interesting questions about the nature of explanation in the human sciences. I found his answers to these questions persuasive." Richard Rorty

"There is much about the intellectual armature of Plausible Worlds that will appeal to the practising historian....Few recent books have made me realise as keenly as has Hawthorn's how strong an incentive there is in us to deterministic thinking, and how comforting it is to see determinism rendered concrete as the shape of history. Those who wish to train themselves in the fortitude needed to resist this lure will find in Plausible Worlds much stimulation and encouragement." Gerald Strauss, Times Higher Education Supplement

"...wonderfully playful and intelligent book..." The London Review of Books

"With this elegant and engaging work Hawthorn has established himself as one of the major contributors to the philosophy of history in the late 20th century....As Hawthorn shows with clarity and rigor, knowledge and conjecture go hand in hand in understanding history. This book is not a call for Pyrrhonism but a defense of reasoned judgment." Choice

"...intriguing because the theoretical sections are suggestive and incisive....Hawthorn's learning is impressive and his objectives are worthy....Hawthorn makes valuable suggestions for avoiding determinism and for escaping from epistemological nonsense...." Ronald J. VanderMolen, The Historian

"This volume is a marvelously stimulating and thought-provoking work" American Historical Review