History is used to give context and meaning, including change over time. This volume builds upon the work that began on ‘historical consciousness’ in 2001 at the University of British Columbia. The discipline of history has been studied first as a progression of national narratives and then as a professionalization, with scientific accountability, scrutiny of evidence and archival sources. Yet, according to the author, these methods of study are but a mere portion of the discipline and thus a critical take on historiography emerged. Seixas discusses collective memory and how the change in historiography has affected our notions of the past. He also discusses ‘memory studies’ and how they have affected the field of history in multiple arenas such as schools, museums, archives, etc. Collective memory and ‘historical consciousness,’ apparently very similar, are different which is quite evident in the work of German historians, even though they have varying definitions of the term. Seixas purports that ‘historical consciousness’ has the same tenets as collective memory yet it brings to bear the problems associated with the modern practices of historiography and the varying memory practices due to cultural practices, time periods etc. He is aligned with the definition of historical consciousness as defined in the journal History and Memory:”‘the area in which collective memory, the writing of history and other modes of shaping images of the past in the public mind merge.” Seixas concludes with a discussion of the five principles needed to enhance the theorization of ‘historical consciousness,’ the relationship between/among: academic and public history; theory, empirical research and practice; the comparative imperative; need for value commitments; and historicizing the study of historical consciousness.