What should economists be told about the past? A review article

The Australian economy in the long-run , edited by R. Maddock and I.W. McLean, is a recent and comprehensive attempt by a younger generation of economists and economic historians to view current economic problems against the broader background of the twentieth century Clearly the book was written with an audience of economists, largely undergraduate, in mind. The interesting questions, therefore, are: have the contributors provided an interpretation essentially different from that of the previous generation and has their intended audience been well served?