The author admits right off that he is not an art historian, and that is great! Consequently, no art history jargon, none of the timid, second-guessing common in art history writing – just the facts which are known. And in Hals’ case, there aren’t a lot of facts, so Nadler offers a lot of information about Harlem, where Hal’s principally lived, and information about the other cities which were important art centers and about the political and religious situations during the period of Hals’ long life. There is not a lot of conjecture or theory, and this reader felt that he got a good accounting of the subject. This could be a good beginning to a college course on 17th Century Dutch painting.