Historical geography Books
Cambridge University Press Romes World The Peutinger Map Reconsidered
Book SynopsisThe Peutinger Map is the only map of the Roman world to come down to us from antiquity. Today it is among the treasures of the Austrian National Library in Vienna. Richard Talbert's study presented in Rome's World: The Peutinger Map Reconsidered offers a long-overdue reinterpretation and appreciation of the map as a masterpiece of both mapmaking and imperial Roman ideology. Here, the ancient world's traditional span, from the Atlantic to India, is dramatically remolded; lands and routes take pride of place, whereas seas are compressed. Talbert posits that the map's true purpose was not to assist travelers along Rome's highways, but rather to celebrate the restoration of peace and order by Diocletian's Tetrarchy. Such creative cartography, he shows, influenced the development of medieval mapmaking. With the aid of digital technology, this book enables readers to engage with the Peutinger Map in all of its fascinating immensity more closely than ever before.Trade Review'The great strength of Talbert's book is that it argues - at times almost despite itself - for an imaginative non-cartographical viewing of the Peutinger Table.' The Times Literary Supplement'This book is a very rich, detailed and inspiring study. In combination with the supporting online materials, it will undoubtedly stimulate further research on and debate about the Peutinger Map.' Bryn Mawr Classical Review'… deserves our gratitude for having made the TP [Peutinger Map] digitally accessible to the scholarly community and for having provided a detailed commentary.' Bulletin of the American Society of PapyrologistsTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. The surviving copy: history, publication, scholarship; 2. The surviving copy: the material object and its palaeography; 3. Design and character of the map; 4. Recovery of the original map from the surviving copy; 5. The original map; Conclusion: the map's place in classical and medieval cartography.
£29.44
Cambridge University Press The Last of the Arctic Voyages Volume 1 Being a Narrative of the Expedition in HMS EMAssistanceEM under the Library Collection Polar Exploration
Book SynopsisWhen the experienced Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin (1786â1847) was put in command of an expedition in 1845 to search for the elusive North-West Passage he had the backing of the Admiralty and was equipped with two specially-adapted ships and a three-year supply of provisions. Franklin was last seen by whalers in Baffin Bay in July 1845. When the expedition failed to return in 1848, enormous resources were mobilised to try to discover its fate. In 1852 H.M.S. 'Assistance' was sent to lead another search mission. It was captained by Edward Belcher (1799â1877), who eventually took the decision to abandon four ships in the pack-ice. He recounts his unsuccessful adventure, defending his actions against critics, in this illustrated two-volume book, first published in 1855, which also includes scientific contributions. Volume 1 describes Belcher's outward journey, Arctic animals such as walruses and whales, and the effects of extreme cold.Table of ContentsPreface; Preliminary; 1. At sea; 2. Anchor at Upernavik; 3. Native dogs; 4. Frozen in; 5. Retreat; 6. The 'Assistance'; 7. Transit telescope; 8. Short days; 9. Rise of temperature; 10. The cairn; 11. Inconvenient elevation; 12. Hamilton Depot; 13. Open water; 14. First symptom of winter.
£36.09
Cambridge University Press The Last of the Arctic Voyages Volume 2 Being a Narrative of the Expedition in HMS Assistance Being a Narrative of the Expedition in HMS Library Collection Polar Exploration
Book SynopsisWhen the experienced Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin (1786â1847) was put in command of an expedition in 1845 to search for the elusive North-West Passage he had the backing of the Admiralty and was equipped with two specially-adapted ships and a three-year supply of provisions. Franklin was last seen by whalers in Baffin Bay in July 1845. When the expedition failed to return in 1848, enormous resources were mobilised to try to discover its fate. In 1852 H.M.S. 'Assistance' was sent to lead another search mission. It was captained by Edward Belcher (1799â1877), who recounts his unsuccessful adventure in this illustrated two-volume book, first published in 1855. Volume 2 covers, and attempts to justify, Belcher's much-criticised decision to abandon four ships in the pack-ice. It also contains Belcher's views on reports of cannibalism among Franklin's crew, as well as scientific observations and a fascinating list of provisions.Table of Contents1. Return of Osborn; 2. Moor in-shore; 3. Run of the ice; 4. Increase of temperature; 5. Land reached; 6. Dangers of autumn; 7. Lifting of the ship; 8. Thaw; 9. Import of instructions; Appendix.
£37.99
Cambridge University Press Farthest North
Book SynopsisOriginally published in 1897, this two-volume work chronicles the expedition of Norwegian scientist Fridtjof Nansen (18611930), who came closer than any previous explorer to the North Pole. Nansen's boat was deliberately driven into pack-ice off Siberia in order to drift north; the expedition later resorted to sleds and kayaks.Table of Contents1. Introduction; 2. Preparations and equipment; 3. The start; 4. Farewell to Norway; 5. Voyage through the Kara Sea; 6. The winter night; 7. The spring and summer of 1894; 8. Second autumn in the ice.
£46.54
Cambridge University Press Farthest North
Book SynopsisOriginally published in 1897, this two-volume work chronicles the expedition of Norwegian scientist Fridtjof Nansen (18611930), who came closer than any previous explorer to the North Pole. Nansen's boat was deliberately driven into pack-ice off Siberia in order to drift north; the expedition later resorted to sleds and kayaks.Table of Contents1. We prepare for the sledge expedition; 2. The New Year, 1895; 3. We make a start; 4. We say good-bye to the Fram; 5. A hard struggle; 6. By sledge and kayak; 7. Land at last; 8. The New Year, 1896; 9. The journey southwards; Report of Captain Otto Sverdrup: 1. March 15th to June 22nd, 1895; 2. June 22nd to August 15th, 1895; 3. August 15th, 1895, to January 1st, 1896; 4. January 1st to May 17th, 1896; 5. The third summer; Conclusion.
£53.19
Cambridge University Press Journal of a Voyage for the Discovery of a NorthWest Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific
Book SynopsisThis account, published in 1821, describes the first of Parry's three voyages in search of the North-West Passage. Although unsuccessful, the experience gained, the scientific data collected, and the mapping of the islands in the region made it one of the most important Arctic expeditions up to that time.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Official instructions; 1. Passage across the Atlantic; 2. Entrance into Sir James Lancaster's Sound of Baffin; 3. Favourable appearance of an open westerly passage; 4. Further examination of Melville Island; 5. Precautions for securing the ships and stores; 6. First appearance of scurvy; 7. More temperate weather; 8. Journey across Melville Island to the northern shore, and return to the ships by a different route; 9. Occurrences at Winter Harbour in the early part of June; 10. Leave Winter Harbour; 11. Progress down the western coast of Baffin's Bay; Appendix.
£53.19
Cambridge University Press The Arctic Voyages of Adolf Erik Nordenskiold 18581879
Book SynopsisExplorer and geologist Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld (18321901) is best known as leader of the 187880 expedition in which the Eurasian continent was first circumnavigated via the North-East Passage. This book, first published in 1879, details Nordenskiöld's Arctic voyages prior to this expedition.Table of ContentsPreface; 1. The Nordenskiöld family: autobiographical sketch; 2. The Swedish Arctic expeditions of 1858 and 1861; 3. The Swedish Arctic Expedition of 1864; 4. The Swedish Polar expedition of 1868; 5. Expedition to Greenland; 6. The Swedish Polar Expedition of 1872–3; 7. Voyage to the Yenissej in 1875 and ascent of the river; 8. Second voyage to the Yenissej in 1876; 9. The North-East Passage Expedition, 1878–9; Appendix 1. Official report to the (Swedish) Royal Board of Health on the hygiene and care of the sick during the Swedish Polar Expedition, 1872–3 Dr Envall; Appendix 2. List of books and memoirs relating to the Swedish Arctic expeditions; Index.
£37.99
Cambridge University Press Vitus Bering
Book SynopsisPublished in Danish in 1885, and translated into English in 1889, this is a sympathetic biography of the great Danish explorer Vitus Bering (16811741). It describes his experiences in the Russian navy and his many voyages of exploration around Alaska and Siberia, including the ten-year-long Great Northern Expedition.Table of ContentsIntroduction to the American edition Frederick Schwatka; Translator's preface; Author's preface; Part I. Bering's First Expedition: 1. Russia and England in the work of Arctic exploration; 2. Bering's nativity; 3. Plans for Bering's first expedition; 4. Bering's knowledge of Siberian geography; 5. The building of the Gabriel; 6. The task assigned by Peter the Great accomplished; 7. Bering's winter at the fort; Part II. The Great Northern Expedition: 8. Bering's plans for a second expedition; 9. The Great Northern Expedition on its way through Siberia; 10. Delay of the expedition caused by the death of Lassenius and his command in the Arctic regions; 11. Final preparations for the Pacific expeditions; Part III. The Various Expeditions: 12. The Arctic expeditions; 13. The discovery of the Kurile Islands and Japan from the North; 14. Preparations for Bering's voyage of discovery to America; 15. The discovery of America from the East; 16. Bering's place of landing on the American coast; 17. Explorations along the American coast; 18. The discovery of the Aleutian Islands; 19. The stay on Bering Island; Appendix. Bering's report to the Admiralty from Okhotsk; Notes; Index.
£24.99
Cambridge University Press A Thousand Days in the Arctic Volume 2
Book SynopsisDescribed as 'a record of solid achievement in the face of hardship and difficulty', Jackson's 1899 account of his Arctic expedition describes a forbidding terrain of ice and snow. Volume 2 includes accounts of new lands, and a famous encounter with Nansen, as well as a substantial scientific appendix.Table of Contents22. The British Channel an open sea; 23. We discover new land; 24. At Cape Flora; 25. A man on the ice!; 26. The darkness of a third winter is upon us; 27. We prepare again for sledging; 28. Queen Victoria Sea and the North-West; 29. Water, water everywhere; 30. We lose our provisions; 31. How we kept the Queen's Jubilee; 32. Unexpected return of the expedition; 33. No Gillis Land; 34. Home again!; 35. Concerning scurvy; Appendix. Notes and descriptions of the eggs collected by Frederick G. Jackson and the Jackson–Harmsworth Polar expedition in Franz Josef Land, 1894 to 1897 F. W. Frohawk; Notes on the birds of Franz Josef Land seen by the Jackson–Harmsworth Polar expedition, 1894 to 1897 Frederick George Jackson; Botany of Franz Josef Land Harry Fisher; Notes on the meteorological observations in Franz Joseph Land of the Jackson–Harmsworth Polar expedition A. B. Armitage; Some results of meteorological observations made at Cope Flora, Franz Josef Land Mr Strachan; Tables; Remarks, etc.; Journal of Aurora; Short statement upon the geology of Franz Josef Land Reginald Koettlitz; Notes on a collection of rocks and fossils from Franz Josef Land, made by the Jackson–Harmsworth Polar expedition during 1894–1896 E. T. Newton, J. J. H. Teall; Absolute declinations at Cape Flora A. B. Armitage; Temperatures of soil, water, etc. H. Fisher; Tidal observations take at Cape Flora A. B. Armitage; Positions obtained by observations of [circled dot] on boat journey; Report on the flora of Franz Joseph Land from Cape Barents to Cape Neale H. Fisher; Synopsis of wind forces and direction for May, June, and July, 1895; Synopsis of wind forces; Positions of camps, etc., on sledging journey; Abstract of weather on sledge journey north, April 16th to May 13th, 1895; Index.
£41.79
Cambridge University Press Narrative of Travels in Europe Asia and Africa in the Seventeenth Century Volume 2 Cambridge Library Collection Travel Europe
Book SynopsisThis two-volume English translation of part of a longer narrative by the Ottoman Evliya Çelebi (1611c.1680) was published in 1834. It offers a fascinating assemblage of topics varying from the fountains of Istanbul to a journey to Georgia. Volume 2 includes Çelebi's description of the 1645 siege of Canea.Table of Contents1. Journey to Brussa; 2. Journey to Nicomedia; 3. Journey to Batum and Trebisonde; 4. Journey to Georgia and Mingrelia; 5. Journey to Azak (Assov.); 6. Journey to Crimea; 7. Expedition against Malta in the year 1055 (1645); 8. Journey to Erzerum; 9. Journey from Nakhshivan to Tabriz; 10. Journey from Tabriz to Erivan; 11. Journey to Georgia; 12. Journey to Erivan in the year 1057 (1647); 13. Journey to Baiburd, Janja, Isper, Tortum and Akchekala'a.
£30.99
Cambridge University Press Travels of Lady Hester Stanhope
Book SynopsisAdventurous and unconventional, Lady Hester Stanhope (17761839) left England to travel to the East in the early nineteenth century. This three-volume work, first published in 1846, was written by her physician Charles Meryon (17831877), who travelled with her for seven years before returning to England to complete his medical studies.Table of ContentsPreface; 1. Departure from England; 2. Zante; 3. Athens; 4. Procession of the Sultan to the mosque; 5. The author goes to Brusa; 6. Departure from Constantinople; 7. The author sets out for Smyrna; 8. Reception at Alexandria; 9. The author returns to Alexandria, in company with Mr Wynne and Mr McNamara; 10. Loss of journals; 11. Departure from Jerusalem; 12. Increased illness of Yusef; 13. Preparations for leaving Acre; 14. Departure from Acre; 15. Governor's visit; 16. Dayr el Kamar; Additional note.
£33.99
Cambridge University Press Narrative of the Voyage of HMS Herald d uring the
Book SynopsisBerthold Seemann (1825â71), a German-born botanist and traveller, published several scientific books and articles. He also composed music and in the 1860s he wrote three plays which enjoyed some success in Germany. In 1846 Seemann was appointed naturalist to the British ship HMS Herald, which was engaged in a hydrographical survey of the Pacific. In this two-volume work, published in 1853, the author recounts how he joined the Herald in Panama in 1847 and remained on board until 1851. The ship explored almost all of the West Coast of America and also sailed north into the Arctic seas. In Volume 1, Seemann arrives in Panama, only to find that the Herald is not yet in port; he uses the time to explore the Isthmus, the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, and in the process discovers a number of new plants.Table of ContentsPreface; 1. Departure from England; 2. Departure from Rio de Janeiro; 3. Papudo Bay; 4. The Galapagos Islands; 5. Boundary line of Nueva Granada; 6. City of Panama; 7. Cape Flattery rocks; 8. Cape Mendocina; 9. Siguantenejo; 10. Survey of the western coast of Nueva Granada; 11. Republic of Ecuador; 12. Loja; 13. Navon; 14. Guayaquil; 15. Survey of the coast of Darien; 16. Geographical position of the Isthmus of Panama; 17. Flora and fauna of the Isthmus of Panama; 18. Topographical description; 19. Inhabitants of the Isthmus; 20. The Indians of the Isthmus.
£30.99
Cambridge University Press Iceland
Book SynopsisDuring the nineteenth century, Iceland's spectacular landscapes and rich culture became an object of increasing interest in England. In this 1860 publication, Charles Forbes (182976), an officer in the Royal Navy, gives a detailed account of his own experiences of the island and its way of life.Table of Contents1. Prefatory; 2. The 'Leviathan'; 3. Physical glance at Iceland; 4. Thea, the maidservant; 5. To Thingvalla and back; 6. To Krisuvir and back; 7. Journey to Borgar Fiord; 8. Calm sabbath morn; 9. Utilegu-menn; 10. Reykholt to Snaefells Yökul; 11. To Snaefells Yökul; 12. Grundar Fiord to Reykholt; 13. Reykholt to geyser; 14. Early Icelandic notices of the geysers; 15. Geyser to Hekla; 16. Volcanic history of Iceland; 17. Of Saemundr the Learned; 18. Storuvellir, Hraungeroi, Reykir, Reykjavik; 19. Leisure for fishing and leave-taking.
£32.99
Cambridge University Press Narrative of an Expedition in HMS Terror
Book SynopsisFirst published in 1838, this account by the British naval officer Sir George Back (17961878) traces his ill-fated 18367 Arctic expedition aboard the bomb vessel HMS Terror, which became trapped in ice for ten months. This remains a vivid record of survival in the face of adversity.Table of ContentsPreliminary chapter; 1. Departure from England; 2. Steer for Southampton Island; 3. Lane of water discovered; 4. Extraordinary disruption; 5. Valentine's day; 6. Feast of loons; Appendix.
£37.99
Cambridge University Press Narrative of the Arctic Land Expedition to the Mouth of the Great Fish River and Along the Shores of the Arctic Ocean
Book SynopsisGeorge Back (17961878) initially volunteered to search for John Ross in the Canadian Arctic, but later explored the unknown Great Fish River down to the Arctic Ocean and west along the Arctic coast, travelling some 7,500 miles. This 1836 account is enhanced by engravings and appendices of scientific data.Table of ContentsPreliminary chapter; 1. Departure from England; 2. Commencement of the expedition; 3. Inquiries and embarrassments about the route; 4. Difficult and toilsome ascent of Hoar Frost River; 5. Digression concerning Hearne's route; 6. Continue our progress; 7. 'Le grand jeune homme'; 8. Exemplary conduct of Akaitcho; 9. Reflections; 10. Instructions to Mr McLeod upon our separation; 11. Gigantic boulders; 12. Exhilarating influence of a hunting excursion; Appendices; List of subscribers to the Arctic land expedition.
£44.64
Cambridge University Press My Life as an Explorer Cambridge Library Collection Polar Exploration
Book SynopsisThis 1927 autobiography, in English translation, traces the career of Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen (18721928), the first man to traverse the North-West Passage and to reach the South Pole. In a straightforward style, Amundsen discusses the many difficulties of an expedition, from finance and planning to dealing with danger and controversy.Table of Contents1. Early memories; 2. Ice-bound in the Antarctic; 3. The conquest of the Northwest passage; 4. The dash to the South pole; 5. In the grip of the northern ice pack; 6. Financial worries; 7. An airplane flight with Lincoln Ellsworth; 8. The transpolar flight of the Norge; 9. Concerning Mr Stefansson and others; 10. The serious business of exploration; 11. Problems of food and equipment; Appendix; Index.
£26.99
Cambridge University Press A Journey through England and Scotland to the Hebrides in 1784 A Revised Edition of the English Translation Edited with Notes and a Memoir of the British and Irish History 19th Century
Book SynopsisThe French geologist BarthÃlemy Faujas de Saint-Fond (1741â1819) abandoned the legal profession to pursue studies in natural history, working at the museum of natural history in Paris and as royal commissioner of mines. His enthusiasm for geology took him in 1784 to Britain, to investigate the basalt formations on the Hebridean island of Staffa described by Sir Joseph Banks in Pennant's Tour in Scotland (also reissued in this series). His subsequent account was published in France in 1797, and first translated into English in an abridged form in 1814. This two-volume annotated translation by the well-known geologist Sir Archibald Geikie (1835â1924), prefaced by a short biography of Faujas, was published in 1907. The work is interesting for its social as well as its geological observations. Volume 1 describes life in scientific circles in London, before recounting Faujas' journey to the Highlands of Scotland via Edinburgh and Glasgow.Table of ContentsPreface; Memoir of the author; 1. London; 2. Sir Joseph Banks' country-house; 3. Arts and manufactures; 4. Monument to the fire of London; 5. Departure for Scotland; 6. Newcastle; 7. Departure from Newcastle; 8. Doctor Swediaur; 9. Departure from Edinburgh; 10. Departure from Glasgow; 11. Departure from Inverary; 12. Departure from Dalmally; 13. Natural history of Oban.
£35.99
Cambridge University Press A Journey through England and Scotland to the Hebrides in 1784 A Revised Edition of the English Translation Edited with Notes and a Memoir of the British and Irish History 19th Century
Book SynopsisThe French geologist BarthÃlemy Faujas de Saint-Fond (1741â1819) abandoned the legal profession to pursue studies in natural history, working at the museum of natural history in Paris and as royal commissioner of mines. His enthusiasm for geology took him in 1784 to Britain, to investigate the basalt formations on the Hebridean island of Staffa described by Sir Joseph Banks in Pennant's Tour in Scotland (also reissued in this series). His subsequent account was published in France in 1797, and first translated into English in an abridged form in 1814. This two-volume annotated translation by the well-known geologist Sir Archibald Geikie (1835â1924), prefaced by a short biography of Faujas, was published in 1907. The work is interesting for its social as well as its geological observations. Volume 2 describes the geology and natural history of the Hebrides. On his return journey, Faujas also visits the geological marvels of Derbyshire.Table of Contents1. Departure from Oban to the Isle of Mull; 2. Journey from Aros of Torloisk; 3. Voyage to Staffa; 4. Description and natural history of the isle of Staffa; 5. Stay at Mr Maclean's; 6. Departure from Torloisk; 7. Natural history of the Isle of Mull; 8. The isle of Kerrera; 9. Departure from Oban; 10. Kenmore; 11. Perth; 12. St Andrews; 13. Departure from St Andrews; 14. Edinburgh; 15. Departure from Edinburgh; 16. Manchester; 17. Departure from Manchester; 18. Castleton; 19. Derby; 20. Departure from Derby; 21. Departure from Birmingham; Postscript; Index.
£34.99
Cambridge University Press Ruling the World
Book SynopsisRuling the World tells the story of how the largest and most diverse empire in history was governed, everywhere and all at once. Focusing on some of the most tumultuous years of Queen Victoria''s reign, Alan Lester, Kate Boehme and Peter Mitchell adopt an entirely new perspective to explain how the men in charge of the British Empire sought to manage simultaneous events across the globe. Using case studies including Canada, South Africa, the Caribbean, Australia, India and Afghanistan, they reveal how the empire represented a complex series of trade-offs between Parliament''s, colonial governors'', colonists'' and colonised peoples'' agendas. They also highlight the compromises that these men made as they adapted their ideals of freedom, civilization and liberalism to the realities of an empire imposed through violence and governed in the interests of Britons.Trade Review'Ruling the World will change our understanding of the British Empire and the societies that were formed and transformed under its rule. Strikingly, it brings alive both the actions of individuals and the broader sweep of imperial history. Never before has a focus on the actions of elite white men been so enlightening for understanding what the empire meant for the Indigenous peoples they sought to govern.' Ann Curthoys, co-author with Jessie Mitchell of Taking Liberty: Indigenous Rights and Settler Self-government in Colonial Australia, 1830–1890'A compelling analysis of how imperial government actually worked at three moments of crisis in the Victorian Empire. High aspirations clashed with geopolitical anxiety, and the pressure of lobbies at home and in the colonies: the recourse to violence was the default mode in a climate of entrenched racial prejudices. This is a major contribution to British imperial history.' John Darwin, author of Unfinished Empire: The Global Expansion of Britain'Ruling the World takes three snapshots of metropole and empire in 1838, 1857 and 1879 to illuminate the scale of the endeavours to promote and enforce, sometimes with great violence, varieties of freedom/unfreedom, British notions of white civilization, and liberal/illiberal governance on colonized others. An ambitious and engrossing read which insists on confronting the discriminatory and rapacious realities of empire.' Catherine Hall, author of Civilising Subjects: Metropole and Colony in the English Imagination 1830–1867'This excellent book considers these topics and many more in a sophisticated approach that echoes the finest work of earlier generations of historians whose research is often unknown to today's postmodernists and post-Saidian commentators. This is a superb contribution to imperial studies … Highly recommended.' R. D. Long, Choice'Ruling the World breathes new life into the history of British imperial administration.' Alex Middleton, University of OxfordTable of ContentsIntroduction; Part I. 1838: The Year of Freedom: 1. Setting the scene for emancipation; 2. Managing expectations; 3. Political freedom; 4. Settler liberties; 5. Free trade, famine and invasion; 6. Steam and opium; Conclusion to Part I: An empire of freedom?; Part II. 1857: The Year of Civilization: 7. Setting the scene: Hubris and crisis; 8. 'A struggle of life and death'; 9. A new imperial government; Conclusion to Part II: An empire of civilization?; Part III. 1879: The Year of Liberalism: 10. Liberal fathers and sons; 11. Imperialism; 12. Imperial wars and their aftermaths; Conclusion to Part III: A liberal empire?; Appendix. Cast of characters.
£25.64
HarperCollins Publishers Inc Pacific Silicon Chips and Surfboards Coral Reefs
Book SynopsisOne of Library Journal’s 10 Best Books of 2015Following his acclaimed Atlantic and The Men Who United the States, New York Times bestselling author Simon Winchester offers an enthralling biography of the Pacific Ocean and its role in the modern world, exploring our relationship with this imposing force of nature.As the Mediterranean shaped the classical world, and the Atlantic connected Europe to the New World, the Pacific Ocean defines our tomorrow. With China on the rise, so, too, are the American cities of the West coast, including Seattle, San Francisco, and the long cluster of towns down the Silicon Valley.Today, the Pacific is ascendant. Its geological history has long transformed us—tremendous earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis—but its human history, from a Western perspective, is quite young, beginning with Magellan’s sixteenth-century circumnavigation. It is a natural wonder whose most fascinating history is currently being made.In telling the story of the Pacific, Simon Winchester takes us from the Bering Strait to Cape Horn, the Yangtze River to the Panama Canal, and to the many small islands and archipelagos that lie in between. He observes the fall of a dictator in Manila, visits aboriginals in northern Queensland, and is jailed in Tierra del Fuego, the land at the end of the world. His journey encompasses a trip down the Alaska Highway, a stop at the isolated Pitcairn Islands, a trek across South Korea and a glimpse of its mysterious northern neighbor.Winchester’s personal experience is vast and his storytelling second to none. And his historical understanding of the region is formidable, making Pacific a paean to this magnificent sea of beauty, myth, and imagination that is transforming our lives.
£16.99
HarperCollins Publishers Inc Land
Book Synopsis“In many ways, Land combines bits and pieces of many of Winchester’s previous books into a satisfying, globe-trotting whole. . . . Winchester is, once again, a consummate guide.”—Boston GlobeThe author of The Professor and the Madman, The Map That Changed the World, and The Perfectionists explores the notion of property—bought, earned, or received; in Europe, Africa, North America, or the South Pacific—through human history, how it has shaped us and what it will mean for our future.Land—whether meadow or mountainside, desert or peat bog, parkland or pasture, suburb or city—is central to our existence. It quite literally underlies and underpins everything. Employing the keen intellect, insatiable curiosity, and narrative verve that are the foundations of his previous bestselling works, Simon Winchester examines what we human beings are doing—and have done—with the billions of acres that together make up the solid surface of our planet.Land: How the Hunger for Ownership Shaped the Modern World examines in depth how we acquire land, how we steward it, how and why we fight over it, and finally, how we can, and on occasion do, come to share it. Ultimately, Winchester confronts the essential question: who actually owns the world’s land—and why does it matter?
£14.99
Penguin Random House Australia The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its
Book SynopsisOne of the great works of American exploration literature, this account of a scientific expedition forced to survive famine, attacks, mutiny, and some of the most dangerous rapids known to man remains as fresh and exciting today as it was in 1874.The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons, recently ranked number four on Adventure magazine’s list of top 100 classics, is legendary pioneer John Wesley Powell’s first-person account of his crew’s unprecedented odyssey along the Green and Colorado Rivers and through the Grand Canyon. A bold foray into the heart of the American West’s final frontier, the expedition was achieved without benefit of modern river-running equipment, supplies, or a firm sense of the region’s perilous topography and the attitudes of the native inhabitants towards whites.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-sp
£16.15
Penguin Random House India The Origin Story of Indias States
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£15.26
The University of Chicago Press Mastering the Niger James MacQueens African
Book SynopsisExamines the inspirations and foundations for James MacQueen's geographical theory as well as its reception, arguing that Atlantic slavery and ideas for alternatives to it helped produce geographical knowledge, while geographical discourse informed the struggle over slavery.Trade Review"What Mastering the Niger achieves is hugely impressive as a contribution to the history of geographical thought, the history of slavery and abolitionism, and Atlantic history." (Robert Mayhew, University of Bristol)"
£999.99
The University of Chicago Press Cartophilia
Book SynopsisIn focusing on the power of "bottom-up" maps to transform modern European identities, the author argues that the history of cartography must expand beyond the study of elite maps and shift its emphasis to the democratization of cartography in the modern world.
£999.99
The University of Chicago Press Travels into Print
Book SynopsisIn eighteenth - and nineteenth-century Britain, books of travel and exploration were much more than simply the printed experiences of intrepid authors. This book takes readers on a journey into the nature of exploration.Table of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments Chapter One Exploration and Narrative: Travel, Writing, Publishing, and the House of Murray Chapter Two Undertaking Travel and Exploration: Motives and Practicalities Chapter Three Writing the Truth: Claims to Credibility in Exploration and Narrative Chapter Four Explorers Become Authors: Authorship and Authorization Chapter Five Making the Printed Work: Paratextual Material, Visual Images, and Book Production Chapter Six Travel Writing in the Marketplace Chapter Seven Assembling Words and Worlds Appendix Books of Non-European Travel and Exploration Published by John Murray between 1773 and 1859: By Date of First Imprint, with Notes on Edition History before 1901 Notes Bibliography Index
£999.99
The University of Chicago Press Geography and Revolution
Book SynopsisExamines the ways in which place and space matter in a variety of revolutionary situations. The authors assemble a set of essays that uncover not only the geography of revolutions but also the role of geography in revolutions.
£999.99
The Bodleian Library Lost Maps of the Caliphs Drawing the World in EleventhCentury Cairo
£999.99
University of Washington Press Pacific
Book SynopsisTrade Review"The printed quality of these rare illustrations meets the highest standards." * Choice *
£31.35
Little Brown and Company Theater of the World The Maps That Made History
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£29.75
WW Norton & Co Himalaya A Human History
Book SynopsisA magisterial history of the Himalaya: an epic story of peoples, cultures, and adventures among the world’s highest mountains.Trade Review"[Himalaya]is the fruit of an enormous amount of research. . . [Douglas’s] observations are sharp, and in many passages, his writing glows." -- Jeffrey Gettleman - New York Times Book Review"[An] ambitious, learned account….Douglas portrays a complex, populated landscape and an intricate patchwork of cultures. …His book seeks to reclaim humans from geography, and to recapture the lived experience of the Himalaya." -- Akash Kapur - New Yorker"The candor of Douglas’s telling shows us that in the Western mind Utopias were “simply orientalist fantasies projected on Himalaya.” His gripping storytelling achieves a summit at a vista overlooking the Himalayas in words that no photo could conjure." -- Christopher King - Air Mail"Douglas has achieved something more valuable than describe current events: he has examined the ancient origins of those events with a scholarly yet entertaining synthesis of hundreds of years of history." -- Victor Mallet - Financial Times"An extraordinarily rich and wide investigation into the exhilarating story of the Himalaya. Ed Douglas knows this story in his bones, from his travels and a wonderful range of scholarship, which leaves him perfectly placed to fill a huge gap in our view of how the world fits together." -- Michael Pye, author of The Edge of the World
£30.39
WW Norton & Co Shadowlands A Journey Through Britains Lost
Book SynopsisTrade Review"A beautifully written, intelligent book, and it is offered as a warning as well as a memorial." -- James McConnachie - Sunday Times"An eloquent tour of lost communities . . . [Green] disinters their rich history and reimagines the lives of those who walked their streets . . . By doing so, he makes tangible the tragedy of their loss and the threat we all face from the climate crisis. " -- P.D. Smith - Guardian"Fascinating . . . [A] sobering reminder of earthly transience . . . Shadowlands is a well-researched, highly readable history whose deepest import may be premonitory." -- Nat Segnit - Times Literary Supplement"Startling... Often playful in tone, Shadowlands nonetheless has a serious purpose... [It] offers an urgent reminder of what may lie ahead as a result of climate change and rising sea levels." -- Miranda Seymour - Financial Times"Consistently interesting [and] thought-provoking . . . Green’s passion and historical vision bursts from the page, summoning up the past in surround sound and sensual prose." -- Cal Flyn - The Times
£18.99
WW Norton & Co Himalaya
Book SynopsisA magisterial history of the Himalaya: an epic story of peoples, cultures, and adventures among the world’s highest mountains.Trade Review"[Himalaya] is the fruit of an enormous amount of research…[Douglas’s] observations are sharp, and in many passages, his writing glows." -- Jeffrey Gettleman - New York Times Book Review"[An] ambitious, learned account….Douglas portrays a complex, populated landscape and an intricate patchwork of cultures. …His book seeks to reclaim humans from geography, and to recapture the lived experience of the Himalaya." -- Akash Kapur - New Yorker"The candor of Douglas’s telling shows us that in the Western mind Utopias were 'simply orientalist fantasies projected on Himalaya.' His gripping storytelling achieves a summit at a vista overlooking the Himalayas in words that no photo could conjure." -- Christopher King - Air Mail"Douglas has achieved something more valuable than describe current events: he has examined the ancient origins of those events with a scholarly yet entertaining synthesis of hundreds of years of history." -- Victor Mallet - Financial Times"An extraordinarily rich and wide investigation into the exhilarating story of the Himalaya. Ed Douglas knows this story in his bones, from his travels and a wonderful range of scholarship, which leaves him perfectly placed to fill a huge gap in our view of how the world fits together." -- Michael Pye, author of The Edge of the World
£18.99
The University of Michigan Press A Student Commentary on Pausanias Book 1
Book SynopsisIntroduces the first book of Pausanias’ “Description of Greece” to students of Classical Greek. Pausanias’ second century CE work is the only surviving ancient description of the monuments and artwork of mainland Greece. Book 1 of the “Description” covers Athens, its demes, and Megara - that is, Attica, the heart of the ancient Greek world.
£999.99
The University of Michigan Press A Student Commentary on Pausanias Book 1
Book SynopsisIntroduces the first book of Pausanias’ “Description of Greece” to students of Classical Greek. Pausanias’ second century CE work is the only surviving ancient description of the monuments and artwork of mainland Greece. Book 1 of the “Description” covers Athens, its demes, and Megara - that is, Attica, the heart of the ancient Greek world.
£999.99
HarperCollins On This Spot An Expedition Back Through Time
£16.19
Johns Hopkins University Press The Rural Landscape
Book SynopsisCarrying the story of the rural landscape into our frantic era, he describes the bow wavewhere city life meets rural agriculture and plots the effect of recreation and its structures on the look of the land.Trade ReviewJohn Fraser Hart's study of the ever-changing rural landscape is a competent and richly illustrated account of human endeavour, charting patterns of land use across time and space, from the small cross-ploughed fields of Neolithic Britain to the vast wheat-producing plains of modern-day America. It reveals how history is continuously incorporated into the landscape. Times Literary Supplement Hart has a keen eye, a facile pen, and a love for conversation with people who live and work in such places. The result is an admirable and wide-ranging book. Agricultural History A wonderful record to have between two covers... well produced with photographs of exceptional clarity. The Times Higher Education SupplementTable of ContentsPreface and AcknowledgmentsChapter 1. Understanding LandscapesPart I: RocksChapter 2. The Surface of the LandChapter 3. Landscapes of MiningPart II: PlantsChapter 4. Plant LifeChapter 5. The Use of ForestsChapter 6. Cropping SystemsPart III: Land Division Chapter 7. Land Division in BritainChapter 8. Land Division in AmericaPart IV: Farm StructuresChapter 9. Fences and FieldsChapter 10. BarnsChapter 11. Other Farm StructuresChapter 12. Farm Size and Farm TenurePart IV: Small Towns and the Urban EdgeChapter 13. Small TownsChapter 14. The Long Shadow of the CityChapter 15. RecreationEpilogue: The Changing CountrysideFurther ReadingIndex
£51.50
Louisiana State University Press Draining New Orleans
Book SynopsisIn the first full-length book devoted to ‘the world’s toughest drainage problem’, renowned geographer Richard Campanella recounts the epic challenges and ingenious efforts to dewater the Crescent City.
£32.25
Random House USA Inc Underground
Book Synopsis
£15.30
Ohio University Press Water Brings No Harm Management Knowledge and
Book SynopsisWater Brings No Harm explores the history of community water management on Mount Kilimanjaro. Using the concept of waterscapes—describing how people “see” water and how physical resources intersect with beliefs, needs, and expectations—Bender argues that water conflicts should be understood as struggles between competing forms of knowledge.Trade Review“Water Brings No Harm uses the concept of waterscapes to explore the differing and changing relationships people have had to water on Mount Kilimanjaro. It convincingly shows how different groups (mountain peoples, European explorers, missionaries, colonial officials, settlers, post-colonial administrators, environmental activists, and scientists) have engaged with the mountain’s waters in different ways.… Detailed, thoughtful scholarship abounds.”“A pleasure to read, thanks to its straightforward, uncluttered prose and strong thematic continuity.” * International Journal of African Historical Studies *“Bender’s careful and detailed history of Kilimanjaro’s waterscapes makes a significant contribution to African environmental history.” * African Studies Review *
£56.10
MP-OSU Oregon State Universi Portland in Three Centuries The Place and the
Book SynopsisA compact and comprehensive history of Portland from first European contact to the twenty-first century, this book introduces the people who have shaped Oregon’s largest city. The expected politicians and business leaders appear, but Carl Abbott also highlights workers and immigrants, union members and dissenters, artists, and activists.
£999.99
Grolier Club Lives on the Mississippi
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£999.99
Random House USA Inc The English and Their History
Book Synopsis
£24.30
WW Norton & Co Shadowlands
Book SynopsisOne of Literary Hub's Most Anticipated Books of 2022 A “brilliant London historian” (BBC Radio) tells the story of Britain as never before—through its abandoned villages and towns.Trade Review"Beguiling…Shadowlands is not just a travelogue of scenic obsolescence. En route, the book offers us a gripping overview of humankind’s seemingly unstoppable evolution from primitive but harmless nomad to the rapacious bureaucrat in charge of civic planning in your neighborhood today." -- Elizabeth Lowry - Wall Street Journal"[Green] visits eight ruined British settlements…[S]uch lost places are not mere historical curios…they provide cautionary tales about sustainability." -- The New Yorker"In Matthew Green's Shadowlands, ruins offer a bittersweet therapy. They confer perspective on Green’s distress…and he becomes obsessed, even comforted, by absence itself, by failure…[An] arresting book." -- Colin Thubron - New York Review of Books"If you told me that British historian Matthew Green was some kind of delightful English Calvino who’d conjured up an odd fictional encyclopedia of disappeared cities, lost towns, and ghostly villages, I’d still want to read this book…[I]t is worth spending a little time with history’s stark examples of time’s dominion over us all." -- Jonny Diamond - Literary Hub"Through these slices of British history, Green has woven a moving exploration of impermanence, memory, and the hypnotic allure of the past." -- Sara Shreve - Library Journal (starred review)"Full of evocative imagery and fascinating lore, this vibrant account eulogizes the past and issues a stark warning for the future." -- Publishers Weekly"Shadowlands is so well researched, beautifully written, and packed with interesting detail. Matthew Green is both historian and prophet, offering a warning we need to pay attention to.… Alarming and valuable." -- Claire Tomalin, author of Charles Dickens: A Life"Superb. A beautifully written atlas of Ghost Britain, a summoning of places lost to memory, and a deft excavation of the void underlying myths of national identity." -- William Atkins, author of The Immeasurable World"A haunting, lyrical tour around the lost places of Britain." -- Charlotte Higgins, author of Under Another Sky"An exquisitely written, moving, and elegiac exploration of the dead ends and lost causes of history—a book to savor and cherish." -- Suzannah Lipscomb, author of The King Is Dead: The Last Will and Testament of Henry VIII"A beautiful book, truly original. Shadowlands is poetic history written with great literary flair, inqusitiveness, soul-searching and humanity…It is a marvelous achievement." -- Ian Mortimer, author of The Time Traveller’s Guide to Medieval England"A haunting work of resurrection, stinging in a perpetual present. Shamanic consciousness for the borderlands of memory." -- Iain Sinclair, author of The Last London
£15.19
£999.99
Chronicle Books The Phantom Atlas
Book SynopsisA breakout bestseller in the UK, The Phantom Atlas is a beautifully produced volume, packed with maps, illustrations, and stories of places, people, and creatures that never existed – a treat for fans of maps, history, and exploration.
£29.75
History Press Naming Gotham
Book Synopsis
£20.39
History Press Evolution of the Texas Plains
Book Synopsis
£20.39
