This book is a look at 12 theories/methods of historiography. The included chapters cover empiricism, Marxism, psychohistory, the Annales, historical sociology, quantitative history, anthropology/ethnohistory, historical narrative, oral history, gender history, postcolonial, and poststructuralism/postmodern history.

In the first section of each chapter, Green and Troup offer a short explanatory discourse on each theory/method, following with a short example. The book is at time dense with some theories described more clearly than others. Where most historical works utilize a combination of theories and methods, this book serves as a good framework for understanding foundational concepts in historiography. This book is generally utilized in post-graduate level history classes.