Assumptions about readers shape a historian's choice of examples

Numbers can support different arguments depending on which figures an author selects and how they are presented. Access to raw data still leaves the problem of interpreting it and checking personal bias. Alex Clarke identifies his own assumption that readers need technical terms and background explained. That approach can make books accessible while favoring events that are easier to explain. Other events can then receive less attention even when they matter. Recognizing that preference creates a reason to find better ways to explain the neglected examples.