European history: medieval period, middle ages Books

Book SynopsisBeatrice''s Last Smile is a sweeping narrative history of the medieval west from the beginning of the third century to the beginning of the sixteenth. This book focuses on slow formation of Latin Christendom over a millennium in the aftermath of the disintegration of the western Roman Empire.Beatrice''s Last Smile is a sweeping narrative history of the medieval west from the beginning of the third century to the beginning of the sixteenth. The reader travels from the Mediterranean to the North Sea, from the Nile to the Volga, from north Africa to the central Asia, until finally ending in the Americas. Through a focus on slow formation of Latin Christendom over a millennium in the aftermath of the disintegration of the western Roman Empire, Beatrice''s Last Smile is a history of holiness which includes Judaism and the revelations of Muhammad. The narrative moves from the violence within fifth-century Britain and Gaul to the Hundred Years War between England and France, from the plague oTrade ReviewBeatrices Last Smile is undeniably well-researched. Pegg includes often marginalised groups, such as women and Jews, and the chapters on the later Middle Ages from the Albigensian Crusade to the Black Death are a particular highlight * Helen Carr, The Spectator *A fast-paced, cinematic, and sometimes wild ride through the Middle Ages. Expertly told vignettes, penetrating character studies, engaging walks through literary works, and periodic penetrating historical analyses-there is no other introduction to the Middle Ages quite like Beatrice's Last Smile. The book's countless short stories hang together in an intricate, delicate narrative structure, revealing a world of deep flaws and tremendous beauty and creating a reading experience that is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally resonant. * Jay Rubenstein, author of Nebuchadnezzar's Dream *Mark Gregory Pegg offers a fresh, coherent, and entirely original vision of the western Middle Ages. The intensity of his engagement with a remarkable range and variety of primary sources, the boldness of his design, and the vigour of his prose combine the pace of a spirited charger with the depth and clarity of a timeless mosaic. * R. I. Moore, Professor Emeritus of History, Newcastle University *In some of the most beautiful word portraits I have ever read, Mark Gregory Pegg has crafted a history of the West (the later Roman Empire through the end of the Middle Ages) that will captivate readers. With precision and delicacy, the pages come alive with the spiritual yearnings of people so like ourselves in their desire for the good life and yet so different in how they conceived it and thought to achieve it. This book was almost impossible to put down. It is one of the major accomplishments of modern historical scholarship and in every way a tour de force. Pegg is the real thing, a genuine magister, and Beatrice's Last Smile is a masterpiece. * William C. Jordan, Dayton-Stockton Professor of History, Princeton University *The inclusion of such obscure figures is one of the greatest strengths of this book; accounts of little-known lives nestle alongside the stories of famous men such as Charlamagne and Chaucer. * Katherine Harvey, Church Times *Ambitious and luminous... This book is warmly recommended... Beatrice's Last Smile communicates a world connected to ours, yet brilliantly, beguilingly, strange. * TLS *

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Book SynopsisA NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERWINNER OF THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON MEDAL FOR MILITARY HISTORYSHORTLISTED FOR THE GILDER LEHRMAN PRIZE FOR MILITARY HISTORY''A masterpiece. It puts all previous single-volume works of the conflict in the shade'' Saul David, The TimesA bold new approach to the Second World War from one of Britain''s foremost military historiansRichard Overy sets out in Blood and Ruins to recast the way in which we view the Second World War and its origins and aftermath. He argues that this was the ''great imperial war'', a violent end to almost a century of global imperial expansion which reached its peak in the ambitions of Italy, Germany and Japan in the 1930s and early 1940s, before descending into the largest and costliest war in human history and the end, after 1945, of all territorial empires.How war on a huge scale was fought, supplied, paid for, supported by mass mobilization and mTrade ReviewMajestic and original ... Overy has written many fine books, but Blood and Ruins is his masterpiece. At almost 1,000 pages, it puts all previous single-volume works of the conflict in the shade. -- Saul David * The Times *This book is Richard Overy's magnum opus (in every sense of the phrase) ... It would be difficult to overstate the brilliance with which argument and insight are interwoven in a fast-paced narrative ... Extraordinarily compelling, and written with remarkable fluency. -- John Darwin * Times Literary Supplement *Monumental... [A] vast and detailed study that is surely the finest single-volume history of World War Two. * Wall Street Journal *This is a magnificent book that reflects the deep scholarship and humane judgment of a magisterial historian. * The Economist *Let's praise Overy's stupendous achievement. Anybody interested in the why and how of boundless violence in the 20th century should make space for Blood and Ruins on his or her shelf. It will help you to grasp and revisit the carnage of 1931-45 as the largest event in human history. This book is not Eurocentric, but truly geocentric ... it is history at its best. -- Josef Joffe * New York Times *Richard Overy has produced one of the most stunning accounts of the Second World War and the events that led up to it. -- Simon Heffer * Daily Telegraph Books of the Year 2021 *A magisterial new history ... remarkable in span, depth and scholarship, impressive in sweep and vision, that rightly sees WW2 as starting in China in 1931 and recasts the conflict as a distorted sequel to an earlier epoch. -- Simon Sebag Montefiore * Aspects of History *A truly global view of World War II ... perhaps the single most comprehensive account of the Second World War yet to appear in one volume. You might think that by reading extensively, you could construct a book like this one. You could not ... Richard Overy has done a signal service with this compellingly written, impressively researched book. -- Rana Mitter * The Critic *Recasting World War Two as the logical continuation of decades of imperial growth and territorial ambition, this new exploration of the conflict is expansive in its geographical and chronological scope. Yet it never loses sight of the very human cost of that ambition ... A weighty, important take from a leading author in the field. * History Revealed *His masterly synthesis of the war's vast literature and sources has never been bettered. ... it is unflagging and consistently illuminating. -- Geoffrey Roberts * Irish Times *Dazzling ... Overy's reframing of WWII as the last gasp of imperialism is astute and incisive. WWII buffs should consider this a must-read. * Publishers Weekly *A whopping, fact-packed grand overview. * The Times *In this impressively detailed and innovative account of the 1930s and the Second World War, Overy frames the events leading up to the conflict as a last-ditch attempt to shore up or remake empires. * Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisAn extraordinary history of French lives under occupation in the First and Second World Wars, this is an intimate, unforgettable meditation on the strange mixture of compromise and betrayal, collaboration and resistance that marks defeat, written by one of the greatest historians of France.''A splendid book for comprehending human kind ... Cobb has a strong sense of how ordinary life has to go on, even through disasters, and a sensitivity for what it was like at the time, matched by a gift for the telling phrase'' Economist ''Prophet of the past, Richard Cobb is a visionary'' New York Review of Books''His France - urban, northern, provincial, pedestrian, noisy, unpuritanical, festive - was in contrast to, and predicated upon, another France: bureaucratic, official, suburban, safe'' Julian BarnesTrade ReviewRichard Cobb is a visionary. His books will take you on an extraordinary intellectual and emotional journey. * The New York Review of Books *His France - urban, northern, provincial, pedestrian, noisy, unpuritanical, festive - was in contrast to, and predicated upon, another France: bureaucratic, official, suburban, safe, rule - crazy, scared. -- Julian BarnesCobb was a true historian of life 'from below', using archival evidence to bring alive the reality - and the suffering - of ordinary people's existence. -- Geoffrey Wheatcroft * New Statesman *

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Book SynopsisDiscover the 12 crucial moments in Britain''s past that will answer the greatest questions for our future in this richly insightful and fascinating history''A richly entertaining canter through the country''s past. Engrossing'' INDEPENDENT___________What is Britain?Where lie its boundaries?Why are they always changing?Are we a small island or a big idea?What will we look like next?In Small Island: 12 Maps that Explain the History of Britain, Philip Parker answers these and other crucial questions about this country and its peoples.By pondering our intertwined geography and history, he shows how the past has made Britain and how we might yet shape its future.Trade ReviewCharting the formation and then break-up of British rule, Small Island provides a richly entertaining canter through the country's past. An engrossing book, offering stimulating observations about our cultural evolution as well as predictions for Britain's future. * Independent *His rather bouncy style makes this a perfect book for a summer read that informs, engages and entertains * Great British Life *

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Book SynopsisA Sunday Times Book of the Year ''Three and a half millennia of British Maritime history, from the Middle Bronze Age to the early 20th century ... This book is written with passion and sympathy. It will live with me for a very long time'' Francis Pryor, author of The FensIf Britain''s maritime history were embodied in a single ship, she would have a prehistoric prow, a mast plucked from a Victorian steamship, the hull of a modest fishing vessel, the propeller of an ocean liner and an anchor made of stone. We might call her Asunder, and, fantastical though she is, we could in fact find her today, scattered in fragments across the country''s creeks and coastlines. In his moving and original new history, Tom Nancollas goes in search of eleven relics that together tell the story of Britain at sea. From the swallowtail prow of a Bronze Age vessel to a stone ship moored at a Baroque quayside, each one illuminates a distinct phase of our adventures upon the waves; each brings us close to the people, places and vessels that made a maritime nation. Weaving together stories of great naval architects and unsung shipwrights, fishermen and merchants, shipwrecks and superstition, pilgrimage, trade and war, The Ship Asunder celebrates the richness of Britain''s seafaring tradition in all its glory and tragedy, triumph and disaster, and asks how we might best memorialize it as it vanishes from our shores.Trade ReviewElegantly combining a tour of Britain's ports, coasts and islands with a tour of an imaginary ship that contains fragments acquired across the centuries, Tom Nancollas has written an enchanting and thoughtful account of Britain's rich maritime heritage. -- David Abulafia, author of The Great Sea and The Boundless SeaTom Nancollas takes us aboard eleven historic vessels, covering three and a half millennia of British Maritime history, from the Middle Bronze Age to the early 20th century. Each ship has its own story to tell, which Tom brings to life with astonishing clarity. This book is written with passion and sympathy. It will live with me for a very long time. -- Francis Pryor, author of The FensA fascinating voyage of discovery * Spectator *Vivid... Poignant... Nancollas tells fine tales, rich with that sherrycask fragrance of a world so immediate, yet so very long ago * Tablet *The Ship Asunder is a first-class book. It is superbly readable and entirely serious, questioning not just how Britain thinks of its maritime past, and indeed itself, but how history is written, understood and enacted. It is a work of experiential historiography, if you like - and a delight * Times Literary Supplement *Fizzing with enthusiasm, Nancollas travels the country, exploring the stories of prows, masts, figureheads and propellers and visiting the sites of dockyards and ropehouses ... Sailors and landlubbers alike should love it * The Sunday Times Books of the Year *A gem of a book * The Times *

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Book SynopsisBrought to you by Penguin.Discover who we are and how we got here by pre-ordering comedian and student of history David Mitchell''s UNRULY: A History of England''s Kings and Queens - a thoughtful, funny exploration of the founding fathers and mothers of England, and subsequently Britain.Think you know your kings and queens? Think again.In UNRULY, David Mitchell explores how England''s monarchs, while acting as feared rulers firmly guiding their subjects'' destinies, were in reality a bunch of lucky sods who were mostly as silly and weird in real life as they appear today in their portraits.Taking us right back to King Arthur (spoiler: he didn''t exist), David tells the founding story of post-Roman England right up to the reign of Elizabeth I (spoiler: she dies). It''s a tale of narcissists, inadequate self-control, excessive beheadings, middle-management insurrection, uncivil wars, and at least one total Cnut, as the population evolved from having their crops nicked by the thug with the largest armed gang to bowing and paying taxes to a divinely anointed king.How this happened, who it happened to and why it matters in modern Britain are all questions David answers with brilliance, wit and the full erudition of a man who once studied history - and won''t let it off the hook for the mess it''s made.A funny book about a serious subject, UNRULY is for anyone who has ever wondered how we got here - and who is to blame.Read by David Mitchell.2023 David Mitchell (P)2023 Penguin AudioTrade ReviewUnruly is part Horrible Histories part jolly romp guided by Alan Bennett. Perhaps this is how history should be done: not by patient scholars, but by free-swearing actor-comedians cramming more ideas and jokes into their pages than many professionals have committed to print in their careers. * Guardian *Full of jokes and canny insights, 100 per cent sparkier and more revernt than your school textbooks * I *An enjoyable, rollicking read, definitely not a conventional history book * Sunday Times *I don’t think anyone other than David Mitchell could have written this book. It’s clever, funny and makes you think quite differently about history we thought we knew * DAN SNOW, HISTORIAN AND BROADCASTER *By turns fascinating and funny - there is a jewel of an insight or a refreshing blast of clarifying wit on every page. David brings a delightfully contrary and hilariously cantankerous eye to the history of the English Monarchy. Informative, illuminating and very very funny * JESSE ARMSTRONG, CREATOR OF SUCCESSION AND PEEP SHOW *Mitchell clearly knows his history, with a book that owes as much to Monty Python as it does to Simon Schama * Andrew Marr *A Peep Show history of England * Sunday Times *Clever, amusing, gloriously bizarre and razor sharp. Mitchell - a funny man and a skilled historian - tells stories that are interesting and fun. His rants alone are worth the price of the book. And amid all the jokes and delightful nonsense, Mitchell sneaks in a serious message about English identity. Here is Horrible Histories for grownups - stripped of their finery, devoid of reverence, UNRULY's monarchs emerge as mortals with ordinary flaws. I learnt a lot and laughed a lot, and people who have never before picked up a history book will read and enjoy this one. That's an accomplishment * Gerard DeGroot, The Times *Chatty, irreverent and liberally sprinkled with gags and opinions. Horrible Histories with added swearing. * Guardian *I can’t recommend this book enough. Very funny and interesting, it is above all a proper work of history * Charlie Higson *A Punch-and-Judy show of awful people doing terrible things to one another. There is refreshing candour in how it calls out the bastards, bullies and brats who have donned England’s highest-carat hats. Above all, it’s a funny read, playful and well-meaning . . . told in a fizzing and indignant style, rammed with entertaining tangents. A sleek rod of Mitchell, fired from a rail gun, passing straight through the reader’s skull * Daily Telegraph *Who knew a history of England's rulers could be this hilarious? A brilliantly entertaining romp through monarchs. * i *Provocative, energeticlly comical, unortodox. Stuffed full of comical scenes and anecdotes, which only an author with a fine sense of the absurd could give us. * Mail on Sunday *A riotously funny romp through one thousand or so years of English history. I cannot remember the last time I laughed as much as I did listening to Unruly. Mitchell’s take on history is unremittingly funny as well as insightful. There are so many exquisite turns of phrase. I had to stop listening whilst cooking for fear I’d drop red-hot pans, I was shaking with laughter so much. * Entertainment Focus *I relished a crash course in English history with comedian David Mitchell’s ambitious Unruly. * Daily Express, Books of the Year *A historical tour of English rulers in a book that is like no history lesson you've had to endure before. A semi-serious book full of weird and wonderful spectacle, scandal, and brutality. * Luxury London *He brings his typically wry style to an exploration of England's monarchy * History Revealed *

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE CUNDHILL HISTORY PRIZE 2017 SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOLFSON HISTORY PRIZE 2017, THE PUSHKIN HOUSE RUSSIAN BOOK PRIZE 2017 AND THE LONGMAN-HISTORY TODAY BOOK PRIZE 2017THE TIMES, SPECTATOR, BBC HISTORY and TLS BOOKS OF THE YEAR''Masterful, gripping ... filled with astonishing, vivid and heartbreaking stories of crime and punishment, of redemption, love and terrifying violence. It has an amazing cast of despots, murderers, whores and heroes. It''s a wonderful read'' Simon Sebag MontefioreIt was known as ''the vast prison without a roof''. From the beginning of the nineteenth century to the Russian Revolution, the tsarist regime exiled more than one million prisoners and their families beyond the Ural Mountains to Siberia. The House of the Dead, brings to life both the brutal realities of an inhuman system and the tragic and inspiring fates of those who endured it. This is the vividly told hisTrade ReviewExcellent... an expansive work that neatly manages to combine a broad history of the Romanovs' Gulag with heart-rending tales of the plights of individual prisoners -- Douglas Smith * Literary Review *A splendid example of academic scholarship for a public audience. Yet even though he is an impressively calm and sober narrator, the injustices and atrocities pile up on every page. -- Dominic Sandbrook * The Sunday Times *An absolutely fascinating book, rich in fact and anecdote. -- David Aaronovitch * The Times *In many ways Siberia truly was a House of the Dead - as Daniel Beer, who borrows the title of Fyodor Dostoevsky's prison novel for his masterful new study, recounts in horrific and gripping detail. Because of its far greater scale and brutality, the Soviet gulag has eclipsed the memory of the Tsarist penal system in the popular imagination. Beer redresses that imbalance by bringing the voices of the million-plus victims of katorga vividly to life. -- Owen Matthews * Spectator *Although Beer's subject is grim, his writing is not. Grace notes of metaphor elevate The House of the Dead above standard histories; it is also ground-breaking and moving -- Oliver Bullough * The Telegraph *If the scale of the Siberian penal exile inspires a sense of dreadful awe, then the detail is tragic, heart-breaking and marked with individual horror. The vast, Steppe-like sweep of Daniel Beer's work is impressive, sustaining a narrative that ranges from 1801 to 1917, and involves more than one million exiled souls into an area that is one and a half times bigger than the continent of Europe ... An extraordinary, powerful and important story -- Hugh MacDonald * Herald *[This] masterly new history of the tsarist exile system... makes a compelling case for placing Siberia right at the centre of 19th-century Russian-and, indeed, European-history. But for students of Soviet and even post-Soviet Russia it holds lessons, too. Many of the country's modern pathologies can be traced back to this grand tsarist experiment-to its tensions, its traumas and its abject failures. * Economist *Daniel Beer's The House of the Dead is a detailed, rich and powerful account of the inhumane system of imprisonment and exile in Tsarist Siberia that shows how little changed between Tsarism and Stalinism. Both were built on the bones of ordinary Russians -- Neil Robinson * Irish Examiner *An eye-opening, haunting work that delineates how a vast imperial penal system crumbled from its rotten core * Kirkus Reviews *Impeccably researched, beautifully written -- Donald Rayfield * Guardian *Masterful, gripping and deeply researched. It's filled with astonishing, vivid and heartbreaking stories of crime and punishment, of redemption, love and terrifying violence. It has an amazing cast of despots, murderers, whores and heroes, and takes place in godforsaken mines, Arctic villages and beautiful taiga. It's a wonderful read. -- Simon Sebag Montefiore * BBC History Magazine *The wretched existence of those banished to Russia's freezing expanses east of the Urals is vividly described in this excellent study... if you want to read the most remarkable recent study of Siberian exile under the Tsars, [read] Beer -- Paul Dukes * History Today *Daniel Beer's The House of the Dead: Siberian exile under the Tsars (Allen Lane) is both a gripping read and an extraordinary feat of scholarly analysis, delivered with the scope and empathy of a novelist - appositely, as both Dostoevsky and Chekhov are part of Siberia's story. The microhistories as well as the grand narrative illuminate a terrible swathe of Russian (and Polish) history. -- Roy Foster * TLS *

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Book SynopsisTHE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER ''Magnificent, vivid, moving, superb'' Max Hastings, Sunday Times______________This is the closest you will ever get to war - the taste, the smell, the noise and the fearThe Normandy Landings that took place on D-Day involved by far the largest invasion fleet ever known. The scale of the undertaking was awesome and what followed was some of the most cunning and ferocious fighting of the war. As casualties mounted, so too did the tensions between the principal commanders on both sides. Meanwhile, French civilians caught in the middle of these battlefields or under Allied bombing endured terrible suffering. Even the joys of Liberation had their darker side.Antony Beevor''s inimitably gripping narrative conveys the true experience of war. He lands the reader on the beach alongside the heroes whose stories he so masterfully renders in their full terrifying glory.______________''A thrilling story, with all Beevor''s narrative mastery'' Chris Patten, Financial Times''Beevor''s D-Day has all the qualities that have made his earlier works so successful: an eye for telling and unusual detail, an ability to make complex events understandable, and a wonderful graphic style'' Ian Kershaw, Guardian, Books of the Year''D-Day''s phenomenal success is both understandable and justified'' James Holland''D-Day is a triumph . . . on almost every page there''s some little detail that sticks in the mind or tweaks the heart. This is a terrific, inspiring, heart-breaking book'' Sam Leith, Daily MailTrade ReviewA knockout reassessment of one of the Second World War's great set-piece battles. Swoops from the vicious close-quarter fighting in the hedgerows to the petrified French onlookers and onwards to the political leaders wrestling with monumental decisions * Sunday Times *Beevor has succeeded brilliantly. D-Day can sit proudly alongside his other masterworks on Stalingrad and the fall of Berlin. Superbly brings the events of that summer to life again -- Patrick Bishop * Daily Telegraph *As near as possible to experiencing what it was like to be there. . . It is almost impossible for a reader not to get caught up in the excitement -- Giles Foden * Guardian *Impeccable, splendid, thoroughly researched and gripping. Beevor is master of narrative, expertly blending the grand sweep with the telling anecdote -- Dominic Sandbrook * Observer *Beevor can be credited with single-handedly transforming the reputation of military history -- David Edgar * Guardian *His singular ability to make huge historical events accessible to a general audience recalls the golden age of British narrative history, whose giants include Gibbon, Macaulay and Carlyle -- Boyd Tonkin * Independent *

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Book Synopsis''Majestic. Truly gripping'' Andrew RobertsThe Battle of the Atlantic was the single most important - and longest - campaign of the Second World War. If Britain lost this vital supply route it lost the war. In Jonathan Dimbleby''s brilliant and dramatic new account we see how this epic struggle for maritime mastery played out, from the politicians and admirals to the men on and under the sea and their families waiting at home. Filled with haunting and hair-raising stories of chases, ambushes, sinkings, stalkings, disasters and rescues, The Battle of the Atlantic is a monumental work of history as it was lived and fought.''Recounts the horror and humanity of life on those perilous oceans'' Independent''Dimbleby moves with skill from scene to scene, eavesdropping on the great statesmen like Churchill, the merchant seamen who carried out their orders, the U-boat commanders who tried to sink them and the families of those who lost theTrade ReviewThis is an exceptionally vivid account of one of the critical campaigns of the Second World War by a masterly writer -- Max HastingsWinston Churchill famously described the Battle of the Atlantic as 'a war of groping and drowning, a war of ambuscade and stratagem, a war of science and seamanship' and no book depicts all of those myriad aspects better than Jonathan Dimbleby's majestic overview. His judgments can sometimes be harsh and are bound to be controversial, but they are backed up with wide reading, diligent scholarship and cogent argument. This is a truly gripping account of a campaign that the author rightly puts epicentral to the Allied victory in the Second World War. * Andrew Roberts, author of 'Masters and Commanders' *A fascinating story written with bite and grip of one of the most crucial showdowns of the twentieth century - of a victory wrung out of the unforgiving Atlantic swell by sailors and airmen using the best technology and Intelligence that those on land could provide. How close-run it was and the price of losing would have been catastrophe, defeat and darkness. Compelling -- Lord Peter Hennessy, author of 'The Silent Deep'Jonathan Dimbleby's second volume on the Second World War is even better than its predecessor. The Battle of the Atlantic is a gripping account of the Allies' hard-won victory at sea. Dimbleby has delivered a masterful narrative that challenges many of the received views about this often overlooked conflict that foretold the defeat of Nazism. -- Amanda ForemanExcellent on the characters of individual commanders . . . But perhaps the book's greatest strength is its analysis of the strategic side of the battle. Regularly switching from vivid coverage of individual encounters at sea, the narrative reveals the intense discussions that took place at the highest levels to decide naval policy, especially among Churchill, Roosevelt and their military advisers. It is [the] controversial assertion, backed by solid research and a readable style, that makes this book so compelling. -- Leo McKinstry * Wall Street Journal *Starred review. "A gripping history overflowing with anecdotes and enough calamity, misery, explosions, and individual valor for a Hollywood disaster epic." * Kirkus *A gripping read and a great contribution to the history of the Second World War. The author realizes his immense ambition of bringing out the human aspects of the drama at every level, from the heads of state to the crews in the Atlantic, while also bringing important nuances to received views on the struggle against the U-boats, and, indeed, on Churchill's war leadership. An epic account. * Peter Padfield, author of 'War Beneath the Sea: Submarine Conflict 1939-1945', and biographies of Dönitz, Himmler and Hess *In this refreshing book Jonathan Dimbleby skilfully weaves together front line accounts and high policy discussions to provide a gripping and accessible new account of the most important campaign of the Second World War against Germany. * Professor Eric Grove, author of 'The Royal Navy since 1815' *The epic Battle of the Atlantic can only really be understood when set against the strategic context of the time. This highly engaging history does this by combining gripping accounts of the tactics and operational fortunes of the Germans and the Allies in this bitterest of battles with an authoritative review of the strategic thinking that helps explain their motives and their responses at the highest national level, and that shows why victory was so important for both sides. * Professor Geoff Till, author of 'The Development of British Naval Thinking' *Dimbleby makes a convincing case that of all the campaigns of WWII, the struggle for dominance over the North Atlantic was the most important . . . The history of the battle for the Atlantic is well documented, but Dimbleby's work, with its emphasis on the strategic importance of the battle, is an excellent addition to the story, and expert historians as well as general readers can enjoy this effort * Publishers Weekly *Dimbleby's incisive, gripping narrative uniquely places the campaign in the context of the entire war as it recounts the horror and humanity of life on those perilous oceans. -- Richard Blackmore * The Independent *The strength of the book is its vivid evocation of dramatic events -- Robert Tombs * The Times *The Battle of the Atlantic is a wonderfully readable mix of vivid personal stories and the penetrating questions that you wish someone had put to Churchill -- Bronwen Maddox, Editor-in-Chief of Prospect MagazineDimbleby captures the savagery of the fighting and of the sea itself... he has tackled the complexities in a very accessible way; but more importantly he has woven a compelling narrative of the people who fought, directed and ultimately decided our fate -- Admiral Lord WestI liked Jonathan Dimbleby's The Battle of the Atlantic and was gobsmacked to learn that the Germans read British radio messages much better than we read theirs. Air Ministry obstinacy (in failing to release aircraft from futile area bombing for anti-submarine patrols) nearly cost Britain the war -- Matt Ridley * Books of the Year 2015 *Fascinating * Richard and Judy *I am chilled to the bone and beyond ... the most extraordinary story ... absolutely fascinating -- Vanessa FeltzAn accessible and anecdotal account of the battle and the men who waged it, full of colour and surprising detail -- Charlotte Heathcote * Daily Express *Fascinating, thought-provoking and entertaining. Explodes a number of self-serving myths * Andrew Roberts (on 'Destiny in the Desert: The Road to El Alamein') *Fresh and provocative * Peter Snow (on 'Destiny in the Desert') *A wonderfully incisive, superbly written history. What Dimbleby has nailed so brilliantly is what so many war historians miss: the big picture * Saul David (on 'Destiny in the Desert') *

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Book Synopsis''One of the great social historians of our time. No one else makes history this fun'' Amanda Foreman''How Was It For You? subtly but powerfully subverts complacent male assumptions about a legendary decade'' David Kynaston--------------------------------A feeling that we could do whatever we liked swept through us in the 60s . . .The sixties: a decade of space travel, utopian dreams and - above all - sexual revolution. It liberated a generation. But mostly men.Meet dollybird Mavis, debutante Kristina, bunny girl Patsy, industrial campaigner Mary and countercultural Caroline. From Carnaby Street to Merseyside, white gloves to Black is Beautiful, their stories illustrate a turbulent power struggle, throwing an unsparing spotlight on morals, drugs, race, bomb culture and sex.This is a moving, shocking book about tearing up the world and starting again. It''s about peace, love and psychedelia, but also misogynyTrade ReviewVirginia Nicholson is one of the great social historians of our time, and How Was It For You? is another jewel in her crown. No one else makes makes history this fun -- Amanda ForemanThey say that if you remember the 1960s you weren't really there. But if you really weren't, then the next best thing is to read this fascinating book. With the meticulous attention worthy of a Vidal Sassoon haircut, Virginia Nicholson has shaped her dazzling kaleidoscope of facts, feelings and observations, into a razor-sharp account of the women who lived through that tumultuous decade -- Juliet NicolsonEssential reading for all those who lived through it, and for those who came after -- Marina Lewycka, author of A Short History of Tractors in UkrainianIntimate, immersive, often moving, How Was It For You? subtly but powerfully subverts complacent male assumptions about a legendary decade -- David KynastonHow Was It For You? brings it all back. As always Virginia Nicholson's book is full of fascinating history and fascinating new material. It makes it feel like the Sixties have never been away, which they never have been, as far as I'm concerned. Wonderful -- Hunter DaviesA hugely ambitious, kaleidoscope of a book, written in a sympathetic but also hard-headed tone that captures squalor and tragedy as well as glamour -- Richard Vinen, author of The Long '68Virginia Nicholson's social history of the lives of women during the 1960s is an absorbing study of an extraordinary age. Beautifully written and intensively researched, it covers a wide range of characters and many levels of society, uncovering with remarkable perspicacity a world of rebellion and change. I am sure How Was It for You? will remain a vital study for many years to come -- Selina HastingsWritten with verve, wit and empathy, this account of the 1960s skilfully interweaves the lives of individual women with broader social and cultural changes. Virginia Nicholson nudges the reader to reconsider the well- beaten tracks and to reflect upon out-of-the-way experiences. Best of all How Was It For You? neither idealises nor excoriates the bouncy, controversial decade -- Sheila RowbothamEvery baby boomer should read this great and wonderfully revelatory book if only to shout, 'Ah yes, that's exactly what it was like for me!' -- Anne Sebba, author of Les ParisiennesFor those of us who missed the 60's, Virginia Nicholson catapults this era to roaring, authentic life. Rich with intimate voices and a keen edged analysis of the public perceptions at work, this book brilliantly evokes the struggle between the urgent change and the heavily freighted forces of tradition that defined this singularly compelling decade. Read it. It is unputdownable -- Priya ParmarA tremendous achievement... a triumph of research and organisation - but also of sympathy * Observer on Millions Like Us *An important and humane book of female social history * The Times on Perfect Wives in Ideal Homes *A ground-breaking book, richly nuanced with titbits of information, insight and understanding * Daily Mail on Singled Out *Virginia Nicholson is the outstanding recorder of British lives in the twentieth century. She has told us how it was for British women - and therefore of course for men and children - in the twentieth century. The formidable research and sympathetic understanding of so many different lives make this account of the 1960s - that swinging, sexy, revolutionary decade - the most vivid and moving of all her works. A fascinating decade, a fascinating book -- Carmen Callil, author of Bad FaithI loved this. Yes, the 1960s were good fun, sometimes. But Virginia Nicholson forensically unpicks what "promiscuity" really meant for flower-chicks, fearful of seeming un-cool. They were perpetuating a society as patriarchal and phallocentric as ever - even in the counter-culture. I was there, and she's right. Amazingly right about so many things. Roll on the 1970s when things did change - but that's for another of her excellent books -- Valerie Grove, author of Laurie LeeSparklingly readable . . . Having read Nicholson's magisterial and sensuous overview of the decade, I feel I'm floating above the Sixties (a bit like Lucy in the Sky) and looking down on them with a new understanding -- Ysenda Maxtone Graham * The Times *The stories are terrific -- Rosie Boycott * Financial Times *This vivid comprehensive study brought so many memories flooding back to me! It's a treat for those of us who were around in the sixties, and delightfully instructive for those who weren't -- Dame Jacqueline WilsonSparkling . . . there is a wonderfully diverse range of voices . . . we have a long way to go, but reading this book made me grateful for how far we have come * The Sunday Times *Clever . . . absorbing * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisThis title paints a portrait of Henry I, son of William the Conqueror. The author vividly describes Henry's life and reign in a time of fundamental change in the Anglo-Norman world.Trade Review"The product of a lifetime's research, a monument to its author's scholarship and teaching alike, this book gives us a Henry I to relish as well as to reconsider... thorough and readable." T.N. Bisson, English Historical Review "A deeply learned, readable, and witty biography, which provides a new assessment of an important reign... a marvelous book." Marjorie Chibnall, Albion "A magisterial biography." Publishers Weekly "A work of outstanding scholarship." Fred A. Cazel, History: Reviews of New Books "A valuable volume, destined to be the standard biography." Expository Times

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Book SynopsisBased on a close examination of letters, diaries and account books, this study offers an insight into the intimate and everyday lives of genteel women and transforms our understanding of the position of women in this period.Trade Review"The most important thing in English feminist history in the last ten years." Roy Porter; "The Gentleman's Daughter is the most important work of social history since Lawrence Stone's Family, Sex and Marriage. From now on, any historian writing about 18th-century women will have to address the arguments in Vickery's book... It is the first book to bring out into the open the debate about separate spheres. It succeeds on two levels, first as an academic argument of the highest order, and second as a fascinating and enjoyable read. Serious history is rarely this fun." Amanda Foreman, The Times; "Innovative, expertly researched and luminous in style." Linda Colley, London Review of Books; "Amanda Vickery's new history of women in Georgian England offers a revolutionary reinterpretation of the accepted script, both an academic triumph and a spell-binding read" Julie Wheelwright, The Independent

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Book SynopsisThe Danube cuts across and connects central Europe, flowing through and alongside ten countries: Romania, Ukraine, Moldova, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and Germany. Travelling its full length from east to west, the author embarks on a year-long journey that leads to a new perspective on Europe today.Trade Review“A review can’t encompass the majestic canvas of Thorpe’s book. Wise, thoughtful, unprejudiced and consistently absorbing, it is also beautifully written.”—Miranda Seymour, Literary Review -- Miranda Seymour * Literary Review *“In this leisurely amalgam of travelogue and history, Nick Thorpe . . . has done the Danube and its ancient people proud.”—Ian Thomson, Sunday Telegraph -- Ian Thomson * The Sunday Telegraph *“Thorpe is a keen conversationalist who lets the multiple voices of riparian communities emerge on their own. The writing is graceful and the descriptions of landscape and, especially, birds are at times magnificent.”—Charles King, Times Literary Supplement -- Charles King * Times Literary Supplement *“A review can’t encompass the majestic canvas of Thorpe’s book. Wise, thoughtful, unprejudiced and consistently absorbing, it is also beautifully written . . . Thorpe’s inspired images quicken and animate the story of the dark and dreaming river to which he committed a well—spent year of travelling.”—Miranda Seymour, Literary Review -- Miranda Seymour * Literary Review *‘Early on, Thorpe asks whether, just as Herodotus labelled Egypt “the gift of the Nile”, Europe could likewise be called “the gift of the Danube”, with culture, religion, trade and people moving back and forth along its length. It’s a thought-provoking question, especially as you follow Thorpe on his meandering, enlightening journey.’—Kit Gillet, Geographical Magazine -- Kit Gillet * Geographical Magazine *‘Thorpe is a very good listener, offering wonderful portraits of the people he meets, particularly in the east. A vivid mix of geography, myths, natural history and human lives.’—P D Smith, The Guardian -- P D Smith * The Guardian *‘This book...leaves one in awe of the richness of the cultures of central Europe and with a longing for the humble pleasure of washing down a plate of fried pikeperch with a glass of Romanian white wine.’—Tom Moriarty, The Irish Times -- Tom Moriarity * Irish Times *‘A vivid mix of geography, myths, natural history and human lives.’—The Observer * The Observer *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review'Thomas Mitchell has written a clear, lively and instructive account of the world’s first democracy in ancient Athens. He has mastered the latest scholarship in the field and put it to good use in interpreting the ancient sources and demonstrating its character and importance in shaping democratic thought and institutions throughout the millennia. The acuteness and balance of his judgments do justice to the strengths and weaknesses of such a regime, even as his belief in democracy ancient and modern enlivens analysis. All is set forth in an engaging style that will bring pleasure as well as enlightenment to his grateful readers.' - Donald Kagan, author of The Peloponnesian War'The story of democracy in classical Athens continues to be a story that raises acute questions about the principles and practices of democracies today. Thomas Mitchell's book explores that story with a light touch deeply embedded in the testimony of ancient writers and the research of modern scholars, offering an introduction that reveals the importance of understanding what Athenians thought about what they were doing, as well as the importance of what they were doing. This is the ideal foundation on which to build a critical appreciation of what Athenian democracy involved.' - Robin Osborne, author of Greece in the Making 1200–479 BC 'Democracy’s Beginning combines careful research with a passionate conviction in the potential of true democracy, as a form of government and as a way of life. Thomas Mitchell presents the full story of the rule of the people in ancient Athens, from early beginnings, through the imperial era of Pericles, to the culmination of participatory citizenship in the age of Plato and Aristotle. He warns us of the dangers of over-enthusiastic democratic foreign policy and notes the failings of Greek treatment women, slaves, and foreigners. But all the while he focuses our attention on how government of, for and by the people once did — and might again — produce a fairer, freer and more equal society.' - Josiah Ober, author of The Rise and Fall of Classical Greece"Lucid, sophisticated and elegant, Mitchell's fresh contribution to the field makes Athenian political history come alive and really matter. While its specific focus is on ancient Athens, the book never loses sight of how the study of the Athenian democracy enriches our understanding of modern democracies, and it leaves one with a sense of how the study of historical antecedents might help guide how we organize our societies in our own, and future, time."—Ralph Rosen, University of Pennsylvania'Democratic deficit is on everyone's lips these days, but Thomas Mitchell's lively and comprehensive new study harks back to the days of democratic surplus, when democracy - both the word and the thing - was young. Reading Democracy's Begnnining should be an inspiriting as well as an invigorating experience.' - Paul Cartledge, author of Ancient Greece: A History in Eleven Cities

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Dickson has written what is probably the most important work on Irish towns ever published. . . . The First Irish Cities is scholarly, authoritative, elegantly written, beautifully illustrated, and a delight to read.”—Leslie Clarkson, Familia“A very valuable and intriguing resource that answered many questions and gave satisfying explanations.”—Flicka Small, Estudios Irlandeses“Stylishly written and impeccably well researched.”—JP O’Malley, Irish Independent“This is a book that operates on a number of levels. For some readers the pleasure will be in excavating nuggets of information on particular places—and thanks to Dickson’s mastery of the evidence there are many gems to be discovered. . . . Whichever category you fall into, you will find enlightenment and entertainment in this volume.”—Raymond Gillespie, Irish Times“Highly original, well-researched and elegantly written. . . . Transforms our understanding of many important questions.”—Eugenio Biagini, author of British Democracy and Irish Nationalism 1876–1906“This is the book we have been waiting for. Dickson provides the first comprehensive overview of the great age of Irish urban development, in all its complexity and variety.”—Sean Connolly, author of Divided Kingdom“Exemplary. The study of Irish urban history has been until now patchy. Dickson’s work significantly reduces this scholarly deficit.”—Jim Smyth, emeritus professor, University of Notre Dame“Drawing on his magisterial knowledge of all facets of eighteenth-century Ireland, Dickson unpicks the country’s anomalous urban histories—stemming from the extraordinary mid-century growth spurts that created cities comparable to their great European and British counterparts.”—Finola O’Kane, professor, University College Dublin

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Book SynopsisThe first complete history of Southwark, London’s stubbornly independent community over the ThamesTrade Review“A fascinating journey into a part of London which has been unjustly and unaccountably neglected – until now. Entertaining, informative and full of surprises. I loved it.”—Adrian Tinniswood, author of Noble Ambitions“A fascinating plunge into Southwark's past, ranging from Roman mosaics to the Tate Modern, bear-baiting to Borough Market. Essential reading for anyone interested in the evolution of modern London.”—Lee Jackson, author of Dickensland“No part of London has a more fascinating history than the ancient Borough of Southwark, yet no part of London has been more unjustly neglected. Margaret Willes puts matters right in this immensely readable book. It deserves pride of place on every Londoner’s bookshelves.”—Jerry White, author of Mansions of Misery“A compelling history of one of the most vibrant areas of London. A must-read for anyone who wants to find out about Southwark and its relationship with the City.”—Margarette Lincoln, author of London and the Seventeenth Century

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Book SynopsisAn exhilarating chronicle of the ruling families of France and England, showing how two dynasties formed one extraordinary storyTrade Review“Catherine Hanley’s engaging account of England and France during the 12th and 13th centuries covers a turbulent period bookended by the accession of Henry I (after the suspicious death of his brother William Rufus) and the marriage of Edward II to Isabella of France (she would later be implicated in his murder). Much of what comes in between reads like the plot of a soap opera peopled by larger-than-life characters.”—Katherine Harvey, Sunday Times“Written with verve and based on impeccable scholarship, Two Houses, Two Kingdoms is peppered with human stories about the struggle to maintain a dynasty.”—Helen Carr, Times Literary Supplement“Epic in scope but intimate in focus, this is an authoritative overview of a pivotal period in the development of both nations.”—BBC History Revealed“Enormous fun. . . . Hanley’s book contains many lively vignettes. . . . Hanley is also excellent on medieval warfare, obviously a passion, and very good on the few women who were far more than ciphers.”—Claudia Gold, Literary Review“Dr Hanley is undoubtedly an impressive historian, who also writes the occasional medieval murder mystery. This book might be said to represent middle ground. It’s a tremendously good read, and for those who wish to delve deeper, there are extensive footnotes and a full bibliography.”—David Robinson, Country Life“Parts of the story Hanley relates will be familiar. . . . Other events may surprise and Hanley’s eye for narrative detail vividly brings them to life. . . . For those seeking an overview of the relationship between France and England that examines the fluctuating fortunes, both person and political, of their ruling families, Hanley’s book is the place to start.”—Emily Joan Ward, History Today“Catherine Hanley knows the twelfth and thirteenth centuries like the back of her hand. In Two Houses, Two Kingdoms she brings vividly to life an extraordinary cast of characters, the men and women through whom the kingdoms of England and France took shape, telling their story with wit, wisdom, and formidable scholarship.”—Helen Castor, author of She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth“People make history, but never alone. Hanley brings to life the royal families of England and France in this exciting period, through their interactions as close bedfellows (literally), brothers (and sisters) in arms, petulant rivals, and bitter enemies.”—Anne Curry, author of Henry V: From Playboy Prince to Warrior King“Hanley has created a rich tapestry that tells the story of two kingdoms whose rulers bucked against the fundamental truth that their histories and futures were woven together. . . . This book creates a picture of kingdoms like siblings, connected but destined to be at war. A must-read for anyone interested in the entwined stories of medieval kingdoms and dynasties.”—Matt Lewis, author of Richard III: Loyalty Binds Me

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Book SynopsisPAUL DOUGLAS LOCKHART is Associate Professor of History at Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio. He is a specialist in the history of early modern Scandinavia, and his previous publications include Denmark in the Thirty Years' War (1996).

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Book SynopsisFrom medieval Runnymede to twentieth-century Jarrow, from King Alfred to George Orwell by way of John Lilburne and Mary Wollstonecraft, a rich and colourful thread of radicalism runs through a thousand years of British history. In this fascinating study, Edward Vallance traces a national tendency towards revolution, irreverence and reform wherever it surfaces and in all its variety. He unveils the British people who fought and died for religious freedom, universal suffrage, justice and liberty - and shows why, now more than ever, their heroic achievements must be celebrated. Beginning with Magna Carta, Vallance subjects the touchstones of British radicalism to rigorous scrutiny. He evokes the figureheads of radical action, real and mythic - Robin Hood and Captain Swing, Wat Tyler, Ned Ludd, Thomas Paine and Emmeline Pankhurst - and the popular movements that bore them. Lollards and Levellers, Diggers, Ranters and Chartists, each has its membership, principles and objectives

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Book SynopsisFor readers of Graham Robb and Simon Schama, this elegantly written, vivid chronicle of Paris during the Belle Epoque brings to life some of best-known characters and buildings of the era, and shows how closely the fears and anxieties of the early 19th century mirror our own today

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Book Synopsis''Brilliant, hilarious... My book of the year'' INDIA KNIGHT''A wonderful book'' CRAIG BROWN, Mail on Sunday''Funny, bloodcurdling and moving'' Daily MailThe cruel teachers. The pashes on other girls. The gossip. The giggles. The awful food. The homesickness. The friendships made for life. The shivering cold. Games of lacrosse, and cricket. ''The girls'' boarding school! What a ripe theme for the most observant verbal artist in our midst today - the absurdly undersung Ysenda Maxtone Graham, who has the beadiness and nosiness of the best investigative reporter, the wit of Jane Austen and a take on life which is like no one else''s. This book has been my constant companion ever since it appeared'' A.N. WILSON, Evening StandardTrade ReviewBrilliant, hilarious... My book of the year * India Knight *Funny, bloodcurdling and moving... this will make old boarding-school girls sigh with nostalgia, and everyone else sigh with relief at having avoided the experience * Daily Mail *The girls' boarding school! What a ripe theme for the most observant verbal artist in our midst today - the absurdly underrated and undersung Ysenda Maxtone Graham, who has the beadiness and nosiness of the best investigative reporter, the wit of Jane Austen and a take on life which is like no one else's. This book has been my constant companion ever since it appeared a few months ago * Evening Standard *A rich read... Ysenda Maxtone Graham has drawn aside the curtain on the hermetic, arcane world of the mid-twentieth-century girls' boarding school, which we all believed to be weird, but few of us - unless we were there - realized was as eccentric, hilariously funny, cruel, terrifying, snobbish, rapturous and emotionally intense as the profoundly outlandish environment portrayed in these pages... Terms & Conditions is a funny, vivid and excruciating book, which has left me filled with admiration for the brave, damaged survivors of this lost world * The Times *If you think the St Trinian's films were fictitious, then this wonderful book will surely convince you that they were documentaries * Mail on Sunday *Sparklingly good * Evening Standard *This vivid, vivacious and poignant look at how boarding school life used to be is as engaging as it is educational -- Eithne Farry * Sunday Express *A scintillating history of the mid-twentieth century girls' boarding school... this is by far the most entertaining book I have read this year -- D.J. Taylor * Oldie *This vivid study of life at girls' boarding schools between 1939 and 1979 is both hilarious and poignant * Country Life *

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Book SynopsisThe Routledge Handbook of British Politics and Society conducts a rigorous, innovative and distinctive analysis of the relationship between British politics and society, emphasizing that the UK is now far from a monolithic, and unshifting, entity. Examining the subject matter with unrivalled breadth and depth, it highlights and interrogates key contemporary debates on the future of the UK, the nature of ''Britishness'', and the merits of multiculturalism, as well as contemporary criticisms of traditional institutions and the nature of representative democracy itself. Including contributions from key authors in their respective fields who bring their authority to bear on the task of outlining the current state of the art in British Studies, the book provides a fresh examination of the contrasts and the continuities across the whole field of British Politics and Society, while setting out agendas for future research. The Routledge Handbook of British PolTrade Review"This is a particularly timely publication which deserves to be taken seriously. The key aspects of British politics are analysed in a rigorous and systematic way by leading experts. I wish it well."Kevin Hickson, University of Liverpool, UK."Not much is certain or fixed in British politics any longer. This book draws on a wide range of intellectual sources and different kinds of expertise to make sense of what is going on. The authors provide an essential and illuminating guide to political change in modern Britain."Andrew Gamble, University of Sheffield, UK."Comprehensive but approachable, this wide-ranging collection deserves to be read by anyone wanting to understand the UK's ever-changing political landscape."Tim Bale, Queen Mary University of London, UK."This is a particularly timely publication which deserves to be taken seriously. The key aspects of British politics are analysed in a rigorous and systematic way by leading experts. I wish it well."Kevin Hickson, University of Liverpool, UK."Not much is certain or fixed in British politics any longer. This book draws on a wide range of intellectual sources and different kinds of expertise to make sense of what is going on. The authors provide an essential and illuminating guide to political change in modern Britain."Andrew Gamble, University of Sheffield, UK."Comprehensive but approachable, this wide-ranging collection deserves to be read by anyone wanting to understand the UK's ever-changing political landscape."Tim Bale, Queen Mary University of London, UK.Table of ContentsIntroduction Part I: Institutions and Practice 1. The Core Executive 2. The Civil Service 3. UK Parliament 4. The Judiciary 5. Political Parties in Britain 6. Elections and Voting 7. Media 8. Politics and the Police: Recent developments in police governance and current issues surrounding police service delivery in England and Wales Part II: Issues 9. Britain in the World 10. Economic Policy 11. Social Policy Part III: Politics and Society 12. Gender and Political Representation 13. Ethnic Diversity 14. Politics in England 15. England: The North-South Divide 16. Scotland: Society and Culture 17. Scottish and UK Politics: Convergence and Divergence 18. Wales: Culture and Society 19. Politics in Wales since Devolution 20. The Politics of Northern Ireland 21. Northern Ireland: Society and culture

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Book SynopsisA comprehensive resource that helps candidates tackle the intricacies of the relationship between Hitler and his lieutenants and the power structure of the Nazi state. This book has been written for Edexcel and with the right level of depth for A2.Table of ContentsHow to use this book Introduction The ideological state The establishment of the Nazi State The Hitler state The terror state The propaganda state The foreign Policy state: expansion and war The racial state: anti-Semitism Constant and opposition to the state The party stage The economic state Society A2 Assessment Nazi documents Bibliography Glossary Index

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Book Synopsis"A must for anyone interested in the Roman Empire and its impact on world history. " -Tony Robinson star of Blackadder and Time Team. This entertaining and informative guide introduces readers to the amazing world of ancient Rome and its emperors, epic wars, awesome architecture, heroes, and villains.Table of ContentsIntroduction 1 Part I: Romans – The Big Boys of the Ancient World 7 Chapter 1: The Romans: Shaping Their World and Ours 9 Chapter 2: It’s the Cash That Counts: Roman Social Classes 29 Chapter 3: Stairway to the Stars: The Greasy Path to Power 47 Chapter 4: Rural Bliss – Roman Dreamland 61 Chapter 5: When We Were Soldiers 71 Part II: Living the Good Life 87 Chapter 6: The Urban Jungle 89 Chapter 7: Making the Roman Machine Work 103 Chapter 8: Entertainments: Epic and Domestic 121 Chapter 9: Divine Intervention 143 Part III: The Rise of Rome 165 Chapter 10: Kings? No, Maybe Not – Republicans 167 Chapter 11: This Town Isn’t Big Enough for All of Us – Seizing Italy 185 Chapter 12: Carthage and the First Two Punic Wars 199 Chapter 13: While We’re at It – Let’s Conquer Everywhere Else, Too 215 Part IV: When Romans Ruled the World 225 Chapter 14: Reform and Civil War 227 Chapter 15: Daggers Drawn – The Fall of the Republic 255 Chapter 16: Augustus and the Caesars – Plots, Perverts, and Paranoia 271 Chapter 17: The Five Good Emperors 303 Part V: Throwing the Empire Away 317 Chapter 18: More Civil War, Auctioning the Empire, and Paranoid Lunatics 319 Chapter 19: The Age of the Thug – The Third Century’s Soldier Emperors 331 Chapter 20: East Is East and West Is West: Diocletian and Constantine 347 Chapter 21: The Barbarians Are Coming! The End of Rome 369 Part VI: The Part of Tens 389 Chapter 22: Ten Turning Points in Roman History 391 Chapter 23: Ten Interesting and Occasionally Good Romans 395 Chapter 24: Ten (Mostly) Bad Romans 401 Chapter 25: Ten of Rome’s Greatest Enemies 407 Chapter 26: Ten (or So) Great Roman Places to Visit 413 Index 419

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Book SynopsisThe gripping stories of the most colourful and formidable characters to challenge the might of Rome. Until recently, it was assumed that Rome carried the torch of civilization into the barbarian darkness, bringing law, architecture, and literature to conquered peoples. The alternative view now suggests that many of Rome's enemies - the Celts, Hebrews, and Phoenicians, for example - were developing civilizations in their own right before obliteration at the Roman sword. Indeed, as Philip Matyszak argues, had Rome not crushed rivals so completely, the drop into the Dark Ages might not have occurred; at Rome's collapse, no other powerful civilizations remained to absorb the impact. This engrossing book looks at the growth and eventual demise of Rome from the viewpoint of those vanquished by Rome. They varied from the highly cultivated Greeks and Egyptians to wild and rebellious Britons and Germans, to the Asiatic empires of the Persians and Parthians. Their leaders were driven by ambition, vindictive hatred, fear, political calculation, or naked greed. Some fought to preserve their heritage, some for personal survival, and others from a warrior's love of battle. Defying the might of Rome was a dangerous business, and few of the men and women described here died in their beds. Some, like Vercingetorix and Jugurtha, were captured, exhibited in triumph, and then, while their conquerors sat down to a festive dinner, killed in the dungeons below. Rather than face such an end, some of Rome's greatest adversaries, including Hannibal, Boudicca, and Cleopatra, killed themselves. Here is the reality behind legends such as Spartacus the gladiator, and the stories of Shapur the conqueror and Mithridates the connoisseur of poisons. Some enemies of Rome were noble heroes, others were murdering villains, but each has a unique and fascinating story.Trade Review'Pacy and compelling ... Matyzak tells the stories stylishly and well' - Sunday Times'A highly readable gallop through a number of major military crises in Roman history ... good, clear, narrative style' - Sunday Telegraph'An easy book to dip into ... accurate and entertaining' - BBC HistoryTable of ContentsIntroduction Part I Hannibal Philip V Viriathus Jugurtha Part II Mithridates Spartacus Vercingetorix Orodes Cleopatra Arminius Part III Boudicca Josephus Decebalus Part IV Shapur Zenobia Alaric Attila Epilogue

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Book SynopsisMany of us were put off history by the dry and dreary way it was taught at school. Back then ''The Origins of the Industrial Revolution'' somehow seemed less compelling than the chance to test the bold claim on Timothy Johnson''s ''Shatterproof'' ruler.But here at last is a chance to have a good laugh and learn all that stuff you feel you really ought to know by now...In this ''Horrible History for Grown Ups'' you can read how Anglo-Saxon liberals struggled to be positive about immigration; ''Look I think we have to try and respect the religious customs of our new Viking friends - oi, he''s nicked my bloody ox!''Discover how England''s peculiar class system was established by some snobby French nobles whose posh descendents still have wine cellars and second homes in the Dordogne today. And explore the complex socio-economic reasons why Britain''s kings were the first in Europe to be brought to heel; (because the Stuarts were such a useless bunch of untalented, incompetent, arrogant, upper-class thickoes that Parliament didn''t have much choice.)A book about then that is also incisive and illuminating about now, ''2000 Years of Upper Class Idiots in Charge'', is an hilarious, informative and cantankerous journey through Britain'' fascinating and bizarre history.As entertaining as a witch burning, and a lot more laughs.

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Book SynopsisAt the end of the Second World War some of the highest ranking members of the Nazi party escaped from justice. Some of them are names that have resonated deeply in twentieth-century history - Eichmann, Mengele, Martin Bormann and Klaus Barbie - not just for the monstrosity of their crimes, but also because of the shadowy nature of their post-war existence, holed up in the depths of Latin America, always one step ahead of their pursuers. The nature of their escape was as gripping as any good thriller. They were aided and abetted by corrupt Catholic priests in the Vatican, they travelled down secret ''rat lines'', hid in foreboding castles high in the Austrian alps, and were taken in by shady Argentine secret agents. The attempts to bring them to justice are no less dramatic, with vengeful Holocaust survivors, inept politicians, and daring plots to kidnap or assassinate the fugitives. Guy Walters has travelled the world in pursuit of the real account of how the Nazis eTrade ReviewFirst-rate -- Max Hastings * Sunday Times *It is gripping and well documented, and deserves a lasting place among histories of the war. * Telegraph *The stuff of thrillers ... An enthralling book and a sobering one. * Patrick Bishop *Absorbing and thoroughly gripping . . . Walters proves emphatically that the reality of Nazi hunting is far more fascinating than the myth. -- James HollandHunting Evil is a model of meticulous, courageous and pathbreaking scholarship * Literary Review *

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Book SynopsisAcclaimed for its penetration, balance and insight, Modern Greece tells the story of Greece and the Greek people from the founding of Constantinople to the late twentieth century.''Very readable, very informative.'' Sunday Times

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Book SynopsisElizabeth I came to the throne at a time of insecurity and unrest. Rivals threatened her reign; England was a Protestant island, isolated in a sea of Catholic countries. Spain plotted an invasion, but Elizabeth''s Secretary, Francis Walsingham, was prepared to do whatever it took to protect her.He ran a network of agents in England and Europe who provided him with information about invasions or assassination plots. He recruited likely young men and ''turned'' others. He encourage Elizabeth to make war against the Catholic Irish rebels, with extreme brutality and oversaw the execution of Mary Queen of Scots.The Queen''s Agent is a story of secret agents, cryptic codes and ingenious plots, set in a turbulent period of England''s history. It is also the story of a man devoted to his queen, sacrificing his every waking hour to save the threatened English state.

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Book SynopsisCromwell spent only nine months of his eventful life in Ireland, yet he stands accused there of war crimes, religious persecution and ethnic cleansing. In a century of unrelenting, bloody warfare and religious persecution throughout Europe, Cromwell was, in many ways, a product of his times. As commander-in-chief of the army in Ireland, however, the responsibilities for the excesses of the military must be laid firmly at his door, while the harsh nature of the post-war settlement also bears his personal imprint. A warrior of Christ, somewhat like the crusaders of medieval Europe, he acted as God''s executioner, convinced throughout the horrors of the legitimacy of his cause, and striving to build a better world for the chosen few.

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Book SynopsisOf the countries that remained neutral during the Second World War, none was more controversial than Ireland, with accusations of betrayal and hypocrisy poisoning the media. Whereas previous histories of Ireland in the war years have focused on high politics, That Neutral Island brings to life the atmosphere of a country forced to live under rationing, heavy censorship and the threat of invasion. It unearths the motivations of those thousands who left Ireland to fight in the British forces and shows how ordinary people tried to make sense of the Nazi threat through the lens of antagonism towards Britain.Trade Review"'Revelatory.' Irish Times"

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Book SynopsisWhen Rachel Polonsky went to live in Moscow, she found an apartment block in Romanov Street, once a residence of the Soviet elite. One of those ghostly neighbours was Stalin''s henchman Vyacheslav Molotov. In his former apartment, Rachel Polonsky discovered his library and an old magic lantern. Molotov - ruthless apparatchik, participant in the collectivizations and the Great Purge - was also an ardent bibliophile.Molotov''s library and his magic lantern became the prisms through which Rachel Polonsky renewed her vision of Russia. She visited cities and landscapes associated with the books in the library - Chekhov, Dostoevsky, Pushkin, Akhmatova and many less well-known figures. Some were sent to the Gulag by the man who collected their books.

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Book SynopsisThe Irish Revolution - the war between the British authorities and the newly-formed IRA - was the first successful revolt anywhere against the British Empire. This is a vividly-written, compelling narrative placing events in Ireland in the wider context of a world in turmoil after the ending of a global war: one that saw the collapse of empires and the rise of fascist Italy and communist Russia. Walsh shows how developments in Europe and America had a profound effect on Ireland, influencing the attitudes and expectations of combatants and civilians. Walsh also brings to life what Irish people who were not fully involved in the fighting were doing - the plays they went to, the exciting films they watched in the new cinemas, the books they read and the work they did. The freedom from Britain that most of them wanted was, when it came, a bitter disappointment to a generation aware of the promise of modernity.

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Book SynopsisDickensian London is brought to real and vivid life in this Wolfson History Prize-shortlisted portrait by a rising-star historian and New Generation Thinker.Trade Review‘Rich in research… a telling account’ Martin Chilton, Independent (Books of the Month)'Compellingly written, utterly captivating... Jensen’s book is stuffed to bursting with original voices and sources alongside his well-crafted expert analysis… every page of Vagabonds rings with the thrum and bass of a city that saw itself as the centre of the world' Fern Riddell, BBC History magazine'Vagabonds is a collection of exquisite stories. Open the cover and a beguiling crowd of characters run amok... Jensen gives these past lives a monument, a dignity and recognition they deserve. Jensen is the real deal; I’ve never encountered a historian quite like him’ Gerard de Groot, The Times (Book of the Year)'Jensen’s fascinating, delightfully readable book is animated by a formidable passion for recovering the stories of some of metropolitan London’s poorest, most precarious, but also most creative people, a passion that is all too rare in accounts of the period... Vagabonds narrates their lives with a sympathy and sensitivity that is often moving' Matthew Beaumont, author of Nightwalking: A Nocturnal History of London'A very readable and historically well researched picture of the nineteenth-century poor' Gareth Stedman Jones, Professor of the History of Ideas, Queen Mary University of London, and author of Outcast London'Not only a notable accumulation, from original sources, of the horrors of survival on the streets of nineteenth-century London, but a devastating exposure of pseudo-charity as a form of coercive policing. A vigorous and necessary account made timely by the widening chasm between obscene wealth and dire poverty in our contemporary metropolis' Iain Sinclair, author of The Last London'Oskar Jensen's Vagabonds is an elegantly-written and vivid account of the people that lived and worked in Georgian and Victorian London. Jensen doesn't just present these hitherto marginalised figures on the page; like a delightful sorcerer, he brings them back to life' Tomiwa Owolade, award-winning author of This is Not America‘Oskar Jensen has coaxed out of the archives a vast range of original voices of the street poor of London. With great sensitivity and scholarly rigour, he ensures that, once again, we hear the lived experiences of those who lived and died on the margins of metropolitan life’ Sarah Wise, author of The Blackest Streets and Inconvenient People'Superb... Writing with an elegance and emotional intelligence that exceeds many novels, he presents us with the lives of beggars (children and adults), match sellers, buskers, milkmaids, pickpockets, prostitutes and the odd famous actor... We are left with the sense that despite poverty, monotony and grinding hard work, these people’s human spirit, optimism and humour helped them triumph over their surroundings... This book provides an invaluable source to anyone setting their fiction in this world, which is also an immensely entertaining and informative read in its own right. One of the best history books I have read recently' The Historical Novel Society

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Book SynopsisThis book tells the story of the Irish past in graphic cartography, beautifully rendered and augmented by an authoritative text. It is an essential reference tool for any student of Irish history. This new edition covers recent momentous events such as the transformative boom and bust of the Republic''s economy and the extraordinary course of developments in Northern Ireland that resulted in the power-sharing administration of the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Fein.

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Book SynopsisOtto Dov Kulka''s memoir of a childhood spent in Auschwitz is a literary feat of astounding emotional power, exploring the permanent and indelible marks left by the HolocaustWinner of the JEWISH QUARTERLY-WINGATE PRIZE 2014As a child, the distinguished historian Otto Dov Kulka was sent first to the ghetto of Theresienstadt and then to Auschwitz. As one of the few survivors he has spent much of his life studying Nazism and the Holocaust, but always as a discipline requiring the greatest coldness and objectivity, with his personal story set to one side. But he has remained haunted by specific memories and images, thoughts he has been unable to shake off.Translated by Ralph Mandel.''The greatest book on Auschwitz since Primo Levi ... Kulka has achieved the impossible'' - the panel of Judges, Jewish Quarterly-Wingate PrizeTrade ReviewThe greatest book on Auschwitz since Primo Levi ... Kulka has achieved the impossible: a mythological and strangely beautiful new language for living with Auschwitz ... a book as mighty as it is modestOf the many accounts of survival in the Nazi concentration camps - Jewish and non-Jewish - few approach Otto Dov Kulka's for the quality of its writing and attempt to understand the nature of contemporary barbarism ... one of the essential books of our age; not since Primo Levi's The Periodic Table has there been such a powerful holocaust memoir ... the writing, at times trance-like, creates an extraordinary sense of communion and intimacy with the reader ... in pained but lucid prose Kulka seeks to understand how his memory processed the trauma of Auschwitz * Telegraph *'A poetic masterpiece unlike anything else written on the subject' * Telegraph BOOKS OF THE YEAR *This is one of the most remarkable testimonies to inhumanity that I know. The deeply moving recollections of Dov Kulka's boyhood years in Auschwitz, interwoven with reflections of elegiac, poetic quality, vividly convey the horror of the death-camp, the trauma of family and friends, and the indelible imprint left on the memory of a young boy who became a distinguished historian of the Holocaust. An extraordinarily important work which needs to be readAstonishing ... [Landscapes] is, quite simply, extraordinary ... a sort of Modernist precipitate of a historical work, something strange and powerful formed from, but separate to, the solution of history ... I can't see how this book could be bettered * Times Higher Education *Almost unclassifiable ... Nothing else I have read comes close to this profound examination of what the Holocaust means ... [Kulka's] journey strikes me as a quest similar to the attempt to describe the face of God or the structure of the universe. They are too vast and too mysterious. Not that this stops us, or this author, from trying * New Statesman *Primo Levi's testimony, it is often said, is that of a chemist: clear, cool, precise, distant. So with Kulka's work: this is the product of a master historian - ironic, probing, present in the past, able to connect the particular with the cosmic. His memory is in the service of deep historical understanding, rendered in evocative prose that is here eloquently translated from Hebrew * Guardian *Beautiful, startling ... This is a great book: read it. And be grateful - its publication is, in every possible sense, a miracle ... It is the strange and shocking paradox, this child's world constructed in such proximity to death, that makes the book so startling and so beautiful. Every incident is, in effect, seen twice: through the eyes of the historian and the eyes of a boy ... This is not history, it is something else... his words enter the wider sphere of literature * Sunday Times *Kulka's reflections have an unsettling rawness ... yet even in Auschwitz, there are moments of protest, black humour and beauty ... This is a grave, poetic and horrifying account of the Holocaust which does not so much revisit the Auschwitz of the past, but the Auschwitz of Kulka's inner world * Independent *This is not so much a book about Auschwitz as one about coming to terms with the shock of survival ... Amid fragmentary, digressive impressions are images of terrible poetic concreteness ... What, ultimately, makes Kulka's book unlike any other first-hand account written about the camps is the authenticity of its vision of an 11-year-old boy... He has done the rest of us - and the world - so great a kindness by writing his book ... offer[ing] the barest glint of sunlight amid a thunderous darkness * Financial Times *A book of moments, hauntings and dreams ... it is unremitting and touches us all [with] a hallucinatory power * The Times *Otto Dov Kulka's brief, beautiful and unsettling Landscapes of the Metropolis of Death brings together childhood memories of Auschwitz with the reflections of a historian who has spent his life working on the Holocaust: a masterly interrogation of memory and the limitations of historical detachment * Times Literary Supplement BOOKS OF THE YEAR *A historian's memoir of Auschwitz, without sentimentality and almost without outrage, since it is an examination of a place where all human reactions are inadequate ... an overwhelming testimony to the human love of truth * Guardian *For the first time, [Kulka] has turned his academic eye inward to explore as unflinchingly as possible the ways in which his childhood encounter with Auschwitz has affected him. Landscapes of the Metropolis of Death makes for deeply disturbing but ultimately very rewarding reading, and is unlike any Holocaust memoir I have ever come across ... The book is not a memoir in the conventional sense, but an extraordinary collection of some of the memories, ideas and dreams that make up Kulka's internal landscape * Telegraph *In this short, powerful memoir, every word tells its story * Daily Mail *The term memoir barely seems adequate to the introspective, often poetic, sometimes hallucinatory moments that [Landscapes] captures ... such an important contribution to the literature on the Holocaust ... [it] unsettles presuppositions about the camp and its lasting psychological effects so thoroughly that even a reader steeped in the Holocaust canon is likely to experience a sense of defamiliarisation * Sydney Review of Books *Otto Dov Kulka's name should be as well known as Primo Levi's as a supreme writer of personal experience of the hell of Auschwitz. But his Landscapes of the Metropolis of Death is unlike any other Holocaust writing because it faithfully reproduces the sensibility of the eleven year old boy that Kulka was at the time. So, unnervingly there are blue skies and daring games and actual school classes along with the smell of the smoke of incinerated bodies. More than other writing except Levi's Kulka's book, excavated with great pain via his attempted therapy of memory, sets you, the reader there. It is an imperishable achievement born of strength of mind and body and a kind of glowing inner vitality that I was lucky enough to encounter when I met him a few years ago. Profound scholar, extraordinary writer some part of him remained miraculously boyish in his warm vitality. -- Simon Schama

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Book SynopsisSELECTED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2019 BY THE GUARDIAN, DAILY MAIL, SUNDAY TIMES, DAILY TELEGRAPH AND BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE ''A gripping, complex and sensational story, told with calm narrative command ... With insight and skill, Penn cuts through the thickets of history to find the heart of these heartless decades'' Hilary MantelThe gripping new history by the author of the acclaimed bestseller Winter KingIt is 1461 and England is crippled by civil war. One freezing morning, a teenage boy wins a battle in the Welsh marches, and claims the crown. He is Edward IV, first king of the usurping house of York... Thomas Penn''s brilliant new telling of the wars of the roses takes us inside a conflict that fractured the nation for more than three decades. During this time, the house of York came to dominate England. At its heart were three charismatic brothers - Edward, George and Richard - who became the figureheTrade ReviewA gripping, complex and sensational story, told with calm narrative command. It's a story we think we know - but most accounts leave the personnel as frozen as portraits in stained glass. Here, the three York brothers spring to ferocious life, and you need strong nerves to meet them. With insight and skill, Penn cuts through the thickets of history to find the heart of these heartless decades. -- Hilary MantelThe Brothers York is not just a magisterial work of sublime scholarship, it's a pure page-turner. I couldn't put it down. The wonderful thing about Thomas Penn is that he makes some of the most familiar stories in English history feel fresh and exciting. -- Amanda ForemanAn immense, sinewy political thriller. Thomas Penn has the enviable skill of presenting hard research with a light touch. The Brothers York is savage, exciting, blisteringly good. -- Jessie Childs, author of God's TraitorsAn epic orgy of colour and character: there are soldiers and townsmen, poets and pirates, battlefield massacres and hidden murders ... One of the great strengths of Brothers York is the attention paid to the European stage. -- Leanda de Lisle * The Times *A rip-roaring account ... Pacy, engrossing and evocative in its details (of feasts and jousts as well as battles and diplomatic skulduggery), it engages the reader's emotions as well as intellect. -- Chris Given-Wilson * Times Literary Supplement *Superb. The tragedy and brutality of the Wars of the Roses jumps out from every page of Penn's book ... An impressive and engaging read. -- Kate Maltby * Financial Times *Thrilling, pacy ... Brings a novelist's verve to his telling of events ... Penn's history of betrayal, backstabbing and paranoia strikes notes that still resonate today. -- John Gallagher * The Guardian *Fresh and lively narrative swagger ... Peppered with delightful, telling anecdotes and details. Some are comical and others grisly, but all breathe life into their subject ... Perhaps the greatest strength of Penn's entertaining book is his understanding of the warping effects of European affairs on English domestic stability. -- Dan Jones * The Sunday Times *Epic, racy, breaks new ground ... Penn combines a keen sense of time, place, circumstance and anecdote with a firm grasp of human psychology, of the macabre, the comic and the tragic, and - perhaps as important as any of these - an instinct for the rhythm of a sentence. -- John Guy * London Review of Books *An exceptionally detailed and absorbing narrative history with a gallantly sustained human touch ... Penn's Yorkist England is an excellent place to take an exciting, and instructive, holiday from 2019. -- Minoo Dinshaw * The Telegraph *Gripping, richly contextualised and meticulously researched ... a vital corrective to the ongoing, polarising battle over Richard III's legacy. -- Marcus Nevitt * The Spectator *

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Book SynopsisFrom Partition to Brexit provides an authoritative and accessible analysis of how successive Irish governments have tried to overcome the challenges presented by the division of Ireland, including the decades-long conflict that claimed thousands of lives.Trade Review'Enthralling, insightful and meticulously researched. Anyone who wants to understand how successive Irish Governments have engaged with Northern Ireland should read it.'Bertie Ahern, Taoiseach, 1997-2008, key negotiator of the Good Friday and St Andrews Agreements ‘Brilliant, lucid and thought-provoking - required reading for anyone who wants to understand relations between these islands and the importance of the Border.’David McCullagh. Presenter of the current affairs television programme Prime Time, and Political Correspondent with RTÉ News‘successfully expose[s] … the true extent of the [Irish Government’s] ambivalences and inconsistencies, using an impressive wealth of archival material in both Britain and Ireland unavailable to an earlier generation of researchers.’Diarmaid Ferriter, Irish Times, 5 January 2019‘The book is superb for anyone who wants to know why Ireland is where it is now and how the two parts of Ireland have treated each other for nigh on to a century.’Frank MacGabhann, Irish Examiner, 23 February 2019‘Ó Beacháin has broken new ground and provided a useful map for a generation of political scientists and historians.’Seán Donlon (former Secretary-General of the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs), History Ireland, March-April 2019'Ó Beachain’s familiarity with the subject and impressive archival research deserves recognition for composing a text that is both enjoyable and informative … This book offers a concise and engaging narrative of the evolution of Irish government policy towards Northern Ireland … Ó Beacháin’s sharp wit and eye for an entertaining quotation penetrates the weighty subject matter with great success'Aaron Ó Maonaigh, The Irish Story‘Donnacha Ó Beacháin’s lively, illuminating and occasionally tendentious study…provides not only a new perspective on the history of Northern Ireland, but also a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings and identity crises of the Irish government itself… It is particularly valuable for explaining the path that Dublin took from impotent onlooker to key participant in the peace process, and for the clarity with which it explains the competing pressures shaping Dublin’s policies at key moments. It will be essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the full sweep of Northern Ireland’s troubled near-century of existence.’Professor Mark Doyle, Middle Tennessee State University, USA, Irish Studies Review, June 2019'Ó Beacháin has made good use of governmental papers and political party archives and he has conducted interviews with a wide range of Irish and British politicians. He has marshalled these sources into a text that is admirably clear and informative … Brexit has raised profound questions regarding the relationship between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, as well as the relationship between Ireland and Britain. How the Irish government attempts to answer these questions will play a part in shaping the futures of both Ireland and the United Kingdom. Given the fine manner in which Ó Beacháin has explained the Northern Ireland policies of successive Irish governments, he would be ideally placed to write the next chapter of that history.'Small States and TerritoriesOne of the most striking features of Ó Beacháin’s timely overview is his assured tone on a particularly contentious topic. This reflects his experience in researching and writing on the complex, multi-faceted problem of the partition of Ireland that has afflicted the country, as well as its abettor, Britain, for 100 years. This is a work of mature assessment and often unexpected nuance. His preface and introduction contain very useful guidance on terminology, political parties and key themes for anyone reading themselves into the subject. Given the extraordinary breadth of the topic, it is to be expected that a volume of this nature would have something of the character of a synthesis. From Partition to Brexit does indeed comprise an amalgam of sources and its fresh take is rooted in the careful selection of items for the author’s skilful assessment.Studi irlandesi -- .Table of ContentsIntroduction: Parties and policy making in Ireland 1 The politics of partition, 1920–19322 De Valera’s Northern Ireland policy, 1932–19483 Failed campaigns, 1948–19694 War, 1969–1974 5 In fear of Armageddon, 1974–19796 Totality of relationships, 1980–1992 7 The age of consent, 1992–2018ConclusionAppendix 1: A century of government in Ireland, 1919–2018Appendix 2: Key personalities BibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisJet, a hard, black, shiny gen, closely related to coal, has been fashioned into jewellery and trinkets for generations, but during the Victorian period, when the ritual surrounding death and the long mourning of Queen Victoria made black fashionable, jet became hugely popular. This book traces the history of jet and the Whitby jet industry.

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Book SynopsisIn the century before the great famine of the late 1840s, the Irish people, and the poor especially, became increasingly dependent on the potato for their food. So when potato blight struck, causing the tubers to rot in the ground, they suffered a grievous loss. Thus began a catastrophe in which approximately one million people lost their lives and many more left Ireland for North America, changing the country forever. During and after this terrible human crisis, the British government was bitterly accused of not averting the disaster or offering enough aid. Some even believed that the Whig government''s policies were tantamount to genocide against the Irish population. James Donnelly''s account looks closely at the political and social consequences of the great Irish potato famine and explores the way that natural disasters and government responses to them can alter the destiny of nations.Trade ReviewThis is unquestionably the most comprehensive single account of the Irish catastrophe... -- Professor Peter Gray... many historians have written excellent books about the great Irish famine ... Donnelly's is the best and most comprehensive of them all. -- Kerby Miller, Middlebush Professor of HistoryJames Donnelly's book is likely to become the classic account of the Great Famine, and the first port of call for both students and general readers. -- Professor Peter Gray

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Book SynopsisToday's village of Kinver first made an appearance in 736 AD as Cynibre. Despite being close to the Black Country and having a flourishing iron working industry from the seventeenth century to the mid-nineteenth century, the village avoided the spread of industry and housing. Even today much of the village lies within a conservation area and is surrounded by green belt land. The neighbouring village of Enville, its hall the seat of the former Earls of Stamford and Warrington, has also escaped the seemingly relentless spread of suburbia, and has retained its unspoilt individuality. Chapters cover canals and rivers, pubs, prominent properties, churches, the Kinver Light Railway and tourism. This attractive volume will evoke nostalgic memories for many people, and will give pleasure to residents and visitors alike.

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Book SynopsisA new, paperback edition of Fiona Rule's fascinating history of the city beneath London's streets

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Book SynopsisNancy Marie Brown lays to rest the hoary myth that Viking society was ruled by men and celebrates the dramatic lives of female Viking warriorsTrade ReviewMagnificent. It captured me from the very first page! -- Pat Shipman, author of The InvadersOnce again, Brown brings Viking history to vivid, unexpected life – and in the process, turns what we thought we knew about Norse culture on its head. Superb -- Scott Weidensaul, author of A World on the WingA complex, important and delightful addition to women’s history. Introduces us to a broader version of the Viking world -- Pamela D. Toler, author of Women WarriorsThis amazing book offers nothing less than a paradigm shift … Carefully researched and beautifully written, this journey into the distant past has a lot to offer for current discussions of gender bending, the instability of scholarly “facts”, the dynamics of misogyny and the legacy of slavery -- Gísli Pálsson, author of The Man Who Stole HimselfA much-needed alternative retelling ... refreshing and thought-provoking -- Marianne Moen, author of The Gendered LandscapeEngrossing ... Brown engages the reader fully with her storytelling and with her unique point of view -- William R. Short, author of Viking Weapons and Combat Techniques

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Book Synopsis''Scurrilous, scandalous and frequently disgusting. I absolutely loved it'' James O''Brien Twitter hero James Felton brings you the painfully funny history of Britain you were never taught at school, fully illustrated and chronicling 52 of the most ludicrous, weird and downright ''baddie'' things we Brits* have done to the world since time immemorial - before conveniently forgetting all about them, of course. Including:- Starting wars with China when they didn''t buy enough of our class A drugs- Inventing a law so we didn''t have to return objects we''d blatantly stolen from other countries- Casually creating muzzles for women- Almost going to war over a crime committed by a pig- And a brand new chapter just for the paperback!52 TIMES BRITAIN WAS A BELLEND will complete your knowledge of this sceptred isle in ways you never expected. So if you''ve ever wondered how we put the ''Great'' in ''Great BritTrade ReviewScurrilous, scandalous and frequently disgusting. I absolutely loved it * James O'Brien *James never fails to make me laugh and then think, then laugh some more * Dermot O'Leary *Awfully hilarious about the hilariously awful. Confirms everything everyone whispers behind our backs, except funnier * Danny Wallace *James Felton makes me laugh like a bellend * Robert Webb *Warning: may provoke huge laughs and some feelings of shame * David Schneider *James Felton makes me laugh every day - get into him * Marina Hyde *James Felton is a national treasure. Although having read this book, I'm not sure that's a good thing -- Fred DeliciousBrilliant and hilarious. The perfect book for a nation built on arseholes * Emma Kennedy *

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