When the Earth was Flat is among the first writings of its kind to depict the 1980s and 1990s as something entirely remote from readers of today. Although many carry memories of the 20th century within them, these are shown as distorted and largely inaccessible even to the bearers. Through lighthearted depictions of family life and homeschooling before the internet, Almanzar brings alive a wealth of nostalgia and a longing for a time that has been lost. He does this under the guise of one of the book’s major themes, that of home education.