History of ideas Books

Book SynopsisFor centuries, fame and fortune was to be found in the west - in the New World of the Americas. Today, it is the east which calls out to those in search of adventure and riches. The region stretching from eastern Europe and sweeping right across Central Asia deep into China and India, is taking centre stage in international politics, commerce and culture - and is shaping the modern world. This region, the true centre of the earth, is obscure to many in the English-speaking world. Yet this is where civilization itself began, where the world's great religions were born and took root. The Silk Roads were no exotic series of connections, but networks that linked continents and oceans together. Along them flowed ideas, goods, disease and death. This was where empires were won - and where they were lost. As a new era emerges, the patterns of exchange are mirroring those that have criss-crossed Asia for millennia. The Silk Roads are rising again. A major reassessment of world history, The SilTrade ReviewThe axis of history writing seemed to shift east with Frankopan's sweeping history, which placed the Silk Road at the very centre of world events -- Books of the Decade * Sunday Times *Many books have been written which claim to be “A New History of the World”. This one fully deserves the title . . . It is difficult, in a short review, to do justice to a book so ambitious, so detailed and so fascinating as this one -- Gerald DeGroot * The Times *A book that roves as widely as the geography it describes, encompassing worlds as far removed as those of Herodotus and Saddam Hussein, Hammurabi and Hitler . . . It is a tribute to Frankopan’s scholarship and mastery of sources in multiple languages that he is as sure-footed on the ancient world as he is on the medieval and modern -- Justin Marozzi * Sunday Times *My book of the year: history on a grand scale, with a sweep of ambition that is rare . . . A remarkable book on many levels, and one that anyone would have been proud to write: a proper historical epic of dazzling range, ambition and achievement -- William Dalrymple * Observer *The most illuminating book of the year . . . A healthy antidote to Eurocentric accounts of history -- Books of the Year * Times Literary Supplement *Splendid . . . tightly researched . . . invigorating and profound with enough storytelling to excite the reader and enough fresh scholarship to satisfy the intellect . . . charismatic and essential -- Bettany Hughes * Daily Telegraph *A rare book that makes you question your assumptions about the world * Wall Street Journal *Dazzlingly good * Evening Standard *Based on astonishingly wide and deep reading and in all areas draws on the latest research . . . It is full of vivid and recondite details * Independent *Full of intriguing insights and fascinating details * Observer *With extraordinary erudition and a vivid style, he takes us on a dazzling tour of these parts from the rise of the first empires right through to the present * Open (Weekly) *Beautifully constructed, a terrific and exhilarating read and a new perspective on world history -- Averil Cameron * History Today *As well-written, entertaining, disturbing and exciting as a detective story * Svenska Dagbladet *A dazzling piece of historical writing * South China Morning Post *This book lives up to its claim to be a new history of the world because of its geopolitical paradigm shift . . . He is a Herodotus of the twenty first century * Irish Left Review *Monumental . . . prodigious . . . astonishing. Frankopan is an exhilarating companion for the journey along the routes which conveyed silk, slaves, ideas, religion, and disease, and around which today may hang the destiny of the world * Vanity Fair *An exceptional storyteller . . . Frankopan does a superb job of explaining the history that has led to this modern era of new Silk Roads running across “the spine of Asia.” . . . Frankopan’s book will be indispensable to anyone who wants to make sense of this union of past and present * Dallas Morning News *Sumptuous, intriguing and surprising -- Sir Paddy AshdownA big book like this would have taken the whole year to read if I had followed up every reference that piqued my interest -- Readers' Books of the Year 2016 * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisWhat does liberty entail? How have concepts of liberty changed over time? And what are the global consequences? This book surveys the history of rival views of liberty from antiquity to modern times, exploring when and why the concept of liberty as independence was superseded by the view that liberty is absence of restraint.

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Book SynopsisIn this dazzling history of the imagination, Patrick Harpur links together fields as far apart as Greek philosophy and depth psychology, Renaissance magic and tribal ritual, Romantic poetry and modern models of the Universe, to trace how myths have been used to make sense of the world. In so doing he uncovers that tradition which alchemists imagined as a Golden Chain of initiates, who passed their mysterious 'secret fire' down through the ages. As this inspiring book shows, the secret of this perennial wisdom is of an imaginative insight: a simple way of seeing that re-enchants our existence and restores us to our own true selves..."His flame-like knowledge is central to the urgent seriousness of this book; buy a copy before it vanishes." THE LONDON MAGAZINE ..."It would be hard to overestimate the value of Harpur's book or to praise it too highly." RESURGENCE MAGAZINE ..."Once we believed that truth was 'out there', now we hold that it's 'in here', but if Harpur is right then it lies in the line of vision between the two" THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY ..."Mr. Harpur links together fields as far apart as Greek philosophy and depth psychology, Renaissance magic and tribal ritual, Romantic poetry and the ecstasy of the shaman, to trace how societies over time have used myths to make sense of the world. Harpur leads us through history's secret chambers with such grace of language and insight that we forget the hour. I would make Harpur's book required reading for every student of philosophy, depth psychology, and history." DIANNE SKAFTE

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Book SynopsisSELECTED AS A 2018 SUMMER READ BY THE SUNDAY TIMES, OBSERVER, I-PAPER AND THE BIG ISSUE''Enormously entertaining'' SUNDAY TIMES''Fascinating'' NEW STATESMAN''Excoriating, brilliant'' ALI SMITH''Enthralling'' GUARDIAN''My number one contributor when it comes to US politics'' DAN SNOWThe American dream is dead,' Donald Trump said when announcing his candidacy for president in 2015. How would he revive it? By putting America First'. The American Dream' and America First' are two of the most loaded phrases in America today and also two of the most misunderstood. As divides within America widen, Sarah Churchwell looks to the past to reveal what the surprising history of these two phrases can tell us about today.Trade ReviewA ripping yarn ... Behold, America is an enthralling book ... Passionate, well-researched and comprehensive * Guardian *Excoriating, brilliant -- Ali Smith * Big Issue, Summer Reads *Enormously entertaining. Churchwell is a careful and sensitive reader, writes with great vigour and has a magpie’s eye for a revealing story -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times *A fascinating history of the two intersecting tropes of modern America * New Statesman *Lively and eminently readable … Churchwell has produced a timely and clearly argued book that makes a clear case for the intellectual parallels between the first third of the 20th century and our own * Financial Times *[An] enlightening new cultural history … The shadow of the 45th President hangs over all 300 pages of Behold, America, a book designed expressly to demonstrate just how that history rhymes with the present … While it is indeed a history of two phrases, Behold, America is also a history of the people who used them … An American in the UK, [Churchwell] has the benefit of an outside perspective on the country of her birth, which is prone to national self-delusions just as grand as Britain’s, if not more so. Behold, America punctures many of them * The i *The Trump administration has prompted a veritable landslide of books about the current state of US culture and politics. Literary journalist and professor Sarah Churchwell digs a little deeper than most, providing a thoughtful long view on a highly topical subject * BBC History Magazine, Summer Reads *Churchwell takes us on a whirlwind tour of the first decades of the 20th century … We hear the discordant voices of American reformers, immigrants, reactionaries and nativists, satirists and polemicists, Ku Klux Klansmen and ersatz Hitlers … Churchwell is well attuned to the nuances of the national conversation * Literary Review *The figure of Donald Trump looms over Sarah Churchwell’s new history of American national identity, which highlights the ugliest features of the country’s ingrained traditions of intolerance and bigotry. But it is the current president’s father, Fred, who first leaps off the page in a startling cameo appearance ... Churchwell is at her best when she relates in horrific detail the once commonplace public lynching of blacks, both in the North and in the South, and she is astute about the crackpot/booster strains in American culture * Spectator *Churchwell’s thorough, fascinating history of the birth of the America First movement uses the past to throw disturbing light on present-day politics in the US -- What to read in 2018 * i *Churchwell’s thoroughness in delineating America’s decade-by-decade bigotry through primary sources from speeches to newspapers to novels is a marvel. But it is more than a history lesson. She’s constructing the case for how the US elected Donald Trump, a catastrophe many of us struggle to understand * Prospect Magazine *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of Waterstones' Books of the Year 2020: Popular Science""Shortlisted for the Royal Society Insight Investment Prize for Science Books""One of the Financial Times' Summer Books of 2020: Science""One of the Financial Times' Best Books of 2020: Science""One of Symmetry Magazine's Top Physics Books of 2020""Many distinguished physicists have set out to explain their weird and wonderful world to lay readers but few have done so with the simple elegance of Al-Khalili, a physics professor at the University of Surrey best known for his radio and television programmes about science. He calls this book 'an ode to physics'; it is also an ode to joy in science."---Clive Cookson, Financial Times"Jim Al-Khalili's The World According to Physics is a thrilling ride . . . [it] makes cutting-edge physics easily understandable and makes it clear why he fell in love with the subject as a teenager."---Richard Webb, New Scientist"Broadcaster and quantum physicist Jim Al-Khalili is a superb guide to the fundamental principles of quantum theory, relativity and thermodynamics." * Mail on Sunday *"Al-Khalili shows how physics can enrich our understanding not just of the world around us, but of ourselves, too."---Hannah Shaddock, Radio Times"A deeply insightful exploration into reality itself."---Jonathan Wells, Gentleman's Journal"A fantastic book . . . [it] helped me to remember what I first loved about the subject."---Daniel Bennett, BBC Science Focus Podcast"A quantum physicist and BBC host introduces modern physics by explaining its fundamental concepts of space, time, energy, and matter, then describing the field’s three pillars—quantum theory, relativity, and thermodynamics." * Publishers Weekly *"This book is a refreshing, equations-free, occasionally philosophical take on what physics is all about that should appeal to physicists and the public alike." * Nature Astronomy *"Ever wanted to get into quantum physics, but been afraid to try? This book might be the answer. Bestselling author and BBC host Jim Al-Kahlili invites us to understand reality and the universe better as he explains modern physics to us."---Claire Handscombe, Book Riot"People should enjoy physics, says Al-Khalili, and you can’t help thinking as you are propelled along through the historical and familiar principles, as well as more recent and emerging ideas, that he is entirely correct. . . . The beauty of [Al-Khalili's] approach is that it keeps open the sense of wonder, discovery and possibility that is so attractive to the non-specialist reader."---Nick Smith, Engineering & Technology"Teachers will be able to mine Al-Khalili’s text for wonderful facts and examples that are scattered throughout the book. . . . Al-Khalili has melded his expertise in physics and as a science communicator to very good effect indeed."---Rick Marshall, Physics Education"Al-Khalili travels from the quantum to the cosmological in exploring the science of matter, energy, space and time that underlie all our everyday experiences and technologies."---Mike Perricone, Symmetry Magazine"This very insightful book illustrates why physics matters to everyone and calls on anyone and everyone to engage in the profound adventure of pursuing truth in the world around us."---Ali Kaya, Abakcus

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Book Synopsis"No one has done so much as Mr. Eliade to inform literature students in the West about 'primitive' and Oriental religions...Everyone who cares about the human adventure will find new information and new angles of vision."--Martin E. Marty, "New York Times Book Review"

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Book Synopsis“It has the power to wrench familiar aspects of history into new and surprising shapes.”—Laura Miller, SalonTrade Review"An impressively cohesive story that is full of delightful characters and fascinating details." -- Austin Chronicle"An inspiring read." -- New Scientist"A sprightly, stimulating and surprising study." -- The Scotsman"A magnificent overview of the history of knowledge production in the West." -- Times Higher Education

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Book SynopsisIn volume 2 of this monumental work, Mircea Eliade continues his magisterial progress through the history of religous ideas. The religions of ancient China, Brahmanism and Hinduism, Buddha and his contemporaries, Roman religion, Celtic and German religion, Judaism, the Hellenistic period, the Iranian syntheses, and the birth of Christianity - all are encompassed in this volume.

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Book SynopsisDan Heath (Author) Dan Heath is the #1 New York Times bestselling co-author/author of six books, including Made to Stick, Switch, and The Power of Moments. His books have sold over four million copies worldwide and been translated into thirty-five languages. Dan also hosts the award-winning podcast What It's Like To Be, which explores what it's like to walk in the shoes of people from different professions (a mystery novelist, a cattle rancher, a forensic accountant, and more). He lives in Durham, North Carolina.Chip Heath (Author) Chip Heath is a professor at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Chip and his brother, Dan, have written four New York Times bestselling books: Made to Stick, Switch, Decisive and The Power of Moments. He has helped over 530 start-ups refine and articulate their strategy and mission. Chip lives in California.Trade ReviewAn entertaining, practical guide to communication. * Financial Times *Smart, lively . . . such fun to read . . . Inspiring. * Guardian *Their analysis is peppered with memorable stories, images and facts . . . This book is a gift to anyone who needs to get a message across and make it stick. * New Statesman *This is great for anyone planning a speech or trying to get their message across at work. * Psychologies *Anyone interested in influencing others . . . can learn from this book. * The Washington Post *

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Book SynopsisHirschman maps the diffuse and treacherous world of reactionary rhetoric in which conservative public figures, thinkers, and polemicists have been arguing against progressive agendas and reforms for 200 years. Ultimately, he shows that progressives are apt to employ related rhetorical postures, which are as biased as their reactionary counterparts.Trade ReviewThe Rhetoric of Reaction is a study of the reactionary’s tool kit, identifying the standard objections to any and all proposals for reform… Hirschman’s work changes how you see the world. It illuminates yesterday, today, and tomorrow… There can be no question about his most characteristic [book]: The Rhetoric of Reaction. The sustained attack on intransigence, the bias in favor of hope, the delight in paradox, the insistence on the creative power of doubt—all these prove a lot of people wrong. -- Cass R. Sunstein * New York Review of Books *Albert Hirschman’s gift to intellectual history is his capacity to subsume complex ideas under simple—indeed smaller than bumper-sticker-size—labels. Mention the word exit at any gathering of social scientists, and everyone will free-associate with the idea that complex organizations and processes renew themselves because people will leave for opportunities elsewhere instead of remaining and fighting for change. Likewise not only with voice and loyalty but also with passions and interests. There is no contemporary social scientist anywhere in the world who has said more (profound) things in fewer (elegant) words than Albert Hirschman. New candidates for inclusion in the Hirschmanian lexicon are perversity, futility, and jeopardy… Hirschman is a master of our art. -- Alan Wolfe * Contemporary Sociology *Events, and the example of a thinker like Hirschman, make it possible at least to hope that the finer side of the Enlightenment—that is, a skeptical but optimistic engagement with the world as it is, as distinct from blindingly overexcited visions of how it might be, if only progressives would stop interfering with it—could soon have its day. -- Geoffrey Hawthorn * New Republic *Propelled by an ecumenical motive—to explain the ‘massive, stubborn, and exasperating otherness of others’, in this case conservative thinkers—and guided, as he himself muses, by ‘an inbred urge toward symmetry’, Albert Hirschman has written an enjoyable and profound book. He argues that a triplet of ‘rhetorical’ criticisms—perversity, futility, and jeopardy—‘has been unfailingly leveled’ by ‘reactionaries’ at each major progressive reform of the past 300 years—those T. H. Marshall identified with the advancement of civil, political and social rights of citizenship… Charmingly written, this book can benefit a diverse readership. -- Diego Gambetta * Times Higher Education Supplement *It is a marvelously intelligent and original and provocative volume, marked by Hirschman’s usual qualities of intellectual playfulness and deep commitment to liberal values… The reader has a sense of being in the presence of a brilliant mind and of a writer at the top of his form. -- Stanley Hoffmann, Harvard UniversityA brilliant and beautifully written book. It is breathtakingly simple, yet deep with implications… Hirschman provides a kind of Reader’s Guide to Reactionary Culture. -- Stephen Holmes, University of ChicagoTable of Contents* Preface *1. Two Hundred Years of Reactionary Rhetoric * Three Reactions and Three Reactionary Theses * A Note on the Term "Reaction" *2. The Perversity Thesis * The French Revolution and Proclamation of the Perverse Effect * Universal Suffrage and Its Alleged Perverse Effects * The Poor Laws and the Welfare State * Reflections on the Perversity Thesis *3. The Futility Thesis * Questioning the Extent of Change Wrought by the French Revolution: Tocqueville * Questioning the Extent of Change Likely to Follow from Universal Suffrage: Mosca and Pareto * Questioning the Extent to Which the Welfare State Delivers the Goods to the Poor * Reflections on the Futility Thesis *4. The Jeopardy Thesis * Democracy as a Threat to Liberty * The Welfare State as a Threat to Liberty and Democracy * Reflections on the Jeopardy Thesis *5. The Three Theses Compared and Combined * A Synoptic Table * The Comparative Influence of the Theses * Some Simple Interactions * A More Complex Interaction *6. From Reactionary to Progressive Rhetoric * The Synergy Illusion and the Imminent-Danger Thesis *"Having History on One's Side" * Counterparts of the Perversity Thesis *7. Beyond Intransigence * A Turnabout in Argument? * How Not to Argue in a Democracy * Notes * Acknowledgments * Index

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Book Synopsis'Every Scot should read it. Scotland now has the lively, provocative and positive history it deserves.' Irvine Welsh, Guardian A dramatic and intriguing history of how Scotland produced the institutions, beliefs and human character that have made the West into the most powerful culture in the world. Arthur Herman argues that Scotland's turbulent history, from William Wallace to the Presbyterian Lords of the Covenant, laid the foundations for 'the Scottish miracle'. Within one hundred years, the nation that began the eighteenth century dominated by the harsh and repressive Scottish Kirk had evolved into Europe's most literate society, producing an idea of modernity that has shaped much of civilisation as we know it. He follows the lives and work of thinkers such as Adam Smith and David Hume, writers such as Burns and Boswell, as well as architects, technicians and inventors, and traces their legacy into the twentieth century. Written with wit, erudition and clarity, The Scottish Enlightenment claims the Scots' rightful place in the history of the western world.Trade Review'Herman's book tells an exciting story with gusto … entertaining and illuminating.' Jenny Uglow, Sunday Times 'Stimulating. A work which deserves to be bought by any interested reader.' Noel Malcolm, Sunday Telegraph 'Compulsively readable.' Paul Henderson Scott, Sunday Herald 'Herman carries his thesis off with brio.' Arnold Kemp, Observer 'A sparkling book. Herman argues his case with an impressive accumulation of evidence.' New Statesman

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Book SynopsisThis unique and brilliant book is a history of human knowledge. Before the invention of printing, a trained memory was of vital importance. Based on a technique of impressing 'places' and 'images' on the mind, the ancient Greeks created an elaborate memory system which in turn was inherited by the Romans and passed into the European tradition, to be revived, in occult form, during the Renaissance. Frances Yates sheds light on Dante’s Divine Comedy, the form of the Shakespearian theatre and the history of ancient architecture; The Art of Memory is an invaluable contribution to aesthetics and psychology, and to the history of philosophy, of science and of literature.Trade ReviewFrances Yates is that rare thing, a truly thrilling scholar -- Michael Ratcliffe * The Times *One of those quite remarkable and unclassifiable books on the history of knowledge which suddenly makes sense of three or four issues in terms of one commanding metaphor -- Jonathan Miller * Observer *

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Book SynopsisBeyond its housing estates and identikit high streets there is another Britain. This is the Britain of mist-drenched forests and unpredictable sea-frets: of wraith-like fog banks, druidic mistletoe and peculiar creatures that lurk, half-unseen, in the undergrowth, tantalising and teasing just at the periphery of human vision. How have the remarkably persistent folkloric traditions of the British Isles formed and been formed by the identities and psyches of those who inhabit them? In her sparkling new history, Carolyne Larrington explores the diverse ways in which a myriad of imaginary and fantastical beings has moulded the cultural history of the nation. Fairies, elves and goblins here tread purposefully, sometimes malignly, over an eerie, preternatural landscape that also conceals brownies, selkies, trows, knockers, boggarts, land-wights, Jack o''Lanterns, Barguests, the sinister Nuckleavee, or water-horse, and even Black Shuck: terrifying hell-hound of the Norfolk coast with eyes

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Book SynopsisOriginally published almost 150 years ago, five parts of "The Idea of a University" - "University Teaching" and four selections from "University Subjects" - are reproduced here, along with five essays by contemporary scholars exploring the present day relevance of Newman's themes.

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Book SynopsisThomas Berry is one of the most eminent cultural historians of our time. Here he presents the culmination of his ideas and urges us to move from being a disrupting force on the Earth to a benign presence. This transition is the Great Work -- the most necessary and most ennobling work we will ever undertake. Berry's message is not one of doom but of hope. He reminds society of its function, particularly the universities and other educational institutions whose role is to guide students into an appreciation rather than an exploitation of the world around them. Berry is the leading spokesperson for the Earth, and his profound ecological insight illuminates the path we need to take in the realms of ethics, politics, economics, and education if both we and the planet are to survive.

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Book SynopsisA magnificent and timely examination of an age of fear, subversion, suppression and espionage, Adam Zamoyski explores the attempts of the governments of Europe to police the world in a struggle against obscure forces, seemingly dedicated to the overthrow of civilisation.The advent of the French Revolution confirmed the worst fears of the rulers of Europe. They saw their states as storm-tossed vessels battered by terrible waves coming from every quarter and threatened by horrific monsters from the deep. Rulers'' nerves were further unsettled by the voices of the Enlightenment, envisaging improvement only through a radical transformation of existing structures, with undeniable implications for the future role of the monarchy and the Church.Napoleon''s arrival on the European stage intensified these fears, and the changes he wrought across Europe fully justified them. Yet he also brought some comfort to those rulers who managed to survive: he had tamed the revolution in France and the hegTrade Review‘Vivid, terrifying and often quite funny … an interesting take on 1848 … this superbly drawn story is full of painful allegories’ The Times ‘Splendidly provocative … perceptive and often amusing … full of arresting details and sharp asides … Adam Zamoyski writes like a dancer at a court ball: gracious, patrician, masterful, sure-footed … Phantom Terror is a thumping great pleasure to read … history at its best’ Spectator ‘Scintillating and original’ Economist ‘We know the Napoleonic era well, but the Decades after Napoleon’s fall are often neglected. Adam Zamoyski covers those years, showing how fear of revolution caused the autocrats of Europe to repress freedom on an unprecedented scale’ Simon Sebag Montefiore, Mail on Sunday

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of Tyler Cowen's Best Non-Fiction Books of 2020""Lucid and scrupulously researched history."---Henry Hitchings, The Spectator"A comedy about preposterous or earnest characters at work in an essentially virtuous institution."---Matthew Sweet, History Today"I’ve greatly enjoyed reading Arts and Minds. . . . The book is clearly a labour of love, and is packed with interesting bits of information. . . . Anybody interested in the process of invention, diffusion and changing tastes will greatly enjoy reading this."---Diane Coyle, Enlightened Economist"[Arts and Minds] is simply a very good read. Anton avoids the trap of writing as if for a dissertation and laying on the jargon, and simply tells a rattling good story, full of eccentric characters and colourful detail."---Mike Paterson, London Historians' Blog"This enjoyable and interesting book tells the story of the Royal Society of Arts from its founding in 1754 to the present day. . . . Howes is to be thanked for a story so very well told."---Peter Stansky, Journal of Interdisciplinary History"[An] interesting, detailed history of the RSA, whose broad mission was and is hard to define. . . . Historians of different interests will find this book fascinating, and Benjamin Franklin, an early member, would be pleased by it." * Choice Reviews *"Well-researched. . . . a generally entertaining and illuminating story."---Susan Bennett, Journal of British Studies"[An] original and important contribution. It will inform any subsequent historiographical efforts to understand the precise ways in which liberal industrial capitalist values and practices came to achieve their hegemonic position within modern Britain’s wider social order."---Theodore Koditschek, Journal of Modern History"Howes is to be thanked for a story so very well told.—Peter Stanksy, Journal of Interdisciplinary History"

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Book SynopsisThis edition collects both volumes of Modernity Britain for the first timeFollowing Austerity Britain and Family Britain, the third volume in David Kynaston''s landmark social history of post-war Britain''Triumphant ... A historian of peerless sensitivity and curiosity about the lives of individuals'' Financial Times''This superb history captures the birth pangs of modern Britain ... It is a part of Kynaston's huge achievement that such moments of insight and pleasure should accompany what has become a monumental history of our recent past'' The Times____________________David Kynaston's history of post-war Britain has so far taken us from the radically reforming Labour governments of the late 1940s in Austerity Britain and through the growing prosperity of Family Britain's more placid 1950s. Now Modernity Britain 195762 sees the coming of a new Zeitgeist as Kynaston gets up close to a turbTrade ReviewThis superb history captures the birth pangs of modern Britain ... It is a part of Kynaston’s huge achievement that such moments of insight and pleasure should accompany what has become a monumental history of our recent past * The Times *Richly detailed series … Indefatigable, judicious, with a magpie’s eye for detail and a lovely grasp of tone and balance, David Kynaston is one of the great chroniclers of our modern story ... Every paragraph contains some glittering nugget * Sunday Times *Triumphant ... A historian of peerless sensitivity and curiosity about the lives of individuals. His method is to immerse first himself, then his readers, in a deep quotidian fabric of the time, making every strand visible before gradually lifting his gaze and revealing the wider pattern * Financial Times *This compelling history of the nation is wise, funny, impeccably researched and beautifully written ... Not for one second does his writing sag under the weight of his research: if you asked him to plod, he simply wouldn’t know how … This latest volume will be every bit as addictive as its predecessors … Like a great composer, Kynaston dots little melodies into the opening minutes which he later allows to swell into major themes … The best way to review this book would be to take a leaf from Lewis Carroll and map it all out, word for word. As it is, you’ll just have to save me the effort by reading it for yourself * Craig Brown, Mail on Sunday *An exciting read, containing moments of suspense and lengthy sections of analysis … Kynaston’s book makes salutary and urgent reading, suggesting that we might do well to live with half an eye on the Kynastons of the future * Lara Feigel, Observer *He is chewing his way through the giant lettuce-leaf of his chosen decades like a particularly thorough tortoise. Hares: watch out ... Kynaston is interested in getting the feel of life close up, and his range of sources is formidable * Spectator *Masterful ... Kynaston has an enviable ability to see both the trees and the wood, and patterns start to appear ... Kynaston’s project is already being acclaimed as one of the great achievements of modern history, and this fourth instalment, with its entrancing mix of entertainment, erudition and enlightenment, will enhance its status further * Daily Telegraph *The latest volume of Kynaston's history of post-war Britain chronicles an era of tumultuous cultural, political, and commercial change - Harold Macmillan's 'never had it so good' years. * The Mail on Sunday *

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Book Synopsis'There to fill the Sapiens-size hole in your life' Observer A groundbreaking global overview of philosophy, travelling the world to provide a wide-ranging map of human thought One of the great unexplained wonders of history is that philosophy flowered entirely separately in China, India and Ancient Greece at more or less the same time. These writings would have a profound impact on the development of distinctive cultures in different parts of the world. In How the World Thinks Julian Baggini sets out to expand our horizons, exploring the philosophies of Japan, India, China and the Muslim world, as well as the lesser-known oral traditions of Africa and Australia's first peoples. Interviewing thinkers from around the globe, Baggini asks questions such as: why is the West is more individualistic than the East? What makes secularism a less powerful force in the Islamic world than in Europe? And how has China resisted pressures for greater political freedom? Baggini shows that by gaining greater knowledge of how others think we take the first step to a greater understanding of ourselves. 'Terrific. The intellectual and spiritual generosity of this book makes it an essential text for our fractious and dangerously divided era' Richard Holloway, author of Stories We Tell Ourselves 'This bold fascinating book seeks to inhabit other philosophical traditions, with humility but without patronisingly exempting them from the critique he applies to ours... Deft [and] rigorous' Jane O'Grady, Financial TimesTrade ReviewThis bold fascinating book seeks to inhabit other philosophical traditions, with humility but without patronisingly exempting them from the critique he applies to ours... Deft [and] rigorous -- Jane O'Grady * Financial Times *There to fill the Sapiens-size hole in your life * Observer *Terrific. The intellectual and spiritual generosity of this book makes it an essential text for our fractious and dangerously divided era -- Richard HollowaySuch scope, and such lucid, lightly worn learning. Enlightening, perspective-shifting, mind-expanding - a superb tour through world philosophies with an erudite and friendly guide -- Sarah BakewellTimely and important...this is his best [book] to date... Enthralling... This ingenious and open-hearted book is about the art of living well, something the West's philosophy has often neglected -- Stuart Kelly * Scotland on Sunday *Fascinating and unexpected... a dazzling kaleidoscope... [Baggini] has a true gift for making the difficult accessible in lapidary prose... Worth reading and re-reading -- Marina Vaizey * Arts Desk *What I loved about Julian Baggini's How the World Thinks: A Global History of Philosophy was its spiritual and intellectual generosity, and the author's ability to engage sympathetically with philosophical traditions that do not conform to his own preferred rationalist approach -- Book of the Year selected by Richard Holloway * Tablet *If you've ever wondered why the West tends to reward individual success, why some religions prioritise speech and some silence, or what lessons can be drawn by comparing Vincent Van Gogh and Michael Winner, this is a book for you * History Revealed *One of the great philosophical popularisers of his age... Baggini summarises and explicates with the greatest precision, compression and élan -- Christopher Bray * Tablet *One of the great unexplained wonders of human history is that written philosophy flowered entirely separately in China, India and Ancient Greece at more or less the same time. These early philosophies have had a profound impact on the development of distinctive cultures in different parts of the world. Baggini also looks at the differences between east and west and different religions * Four Shires Magazine *Ground-breaking -- Sarah Dennis * Oxford Times *Eye-opening * Prospect *[For] a broader audience with no philosophical training... Baggini [...] is cheerful and wide-eyed, moving from one big idea to another like a food lover at an opulent buffet * TLS *Highly readable * Times Higher Education *A brilliantly accessible coalescence of thought and belief from around the world...A triumph of comparative philosophy with widespread relevance for the way we live today -- Book of the Month * Waterstones *There is also a need for books that explain non-Western philosophical traditions to the interested non-specialist. Julian Baggini's How The World Thinks is an excellent example of this genre * TLS *

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Book SynopsisTechnology is reshaping geopolitics, with winners and losers globally. "The Great Tech Game" highlights key drivers for nations to succeed, stressing strategic planning and new capabilities. It delves into managing state and non-state actors in the tech race and questions digital colonialism's inevitability.

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Book SynopsisLiberalism is under attack. From the rise of nationalism and populism to the decline of trust in institutions, liberals are facing unprecedented challenges. But what does it mean to be a liberal in the 21st Century? And how can we defend the values that we hold dear? In his new book, How to Be a Liberal, Ian Dunt provides a clear and concise guide to liberalism for the modern age. Drawing on his years of experience as a journalist and political commentator, Dunt argues that liberalism is not just a set of abstract principles, but a practical guide to living a good and meaningful life. In the book, Dunt covers a wide range of topics, including: What is liberalism and why is it important? The history of liberalism and its key thinkers The different types of liberalism and their strengths and weaknesses How to be a liberal in a world that is increasingly hostile to liberalism Dunt's writing is witty and engaging, and he makes complex ideas accessible to a general audience. He is also not afraid to tackle difficult topics, such as the challenges of multiculturalism and the rise of identity politics. But what makes How to Be a Liberal truly unique is Dunt's emphasis on the importance of humor and irony in the defense of liberalism. He argues that liberals need to learn to laugh at themselves and their opponents, and to avoid taking themselves too seriously. In one passage, Dunt writes: "Liberalism is not a religion. It is a set of ideas that are open to challenge and debate. Liberals should never be afraid to laugh at themselves or their own beliefs. In fact, I would argue that a sense of humor is essential for any liberal who wants to be effective in the world." Dunt's book is a timely and important contribution to the debate about liberalism in the 21st century. It is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand what it means to be a liberal today and how to defend the values that we hold dear.Trade Review‘A tour de force; a mighty trumpet blast for the forces of liberalism and enlightenment in the face of a global tide of ignorance and populism.’ – THE SECRET BARRISTER‘This is a history of ideas as it should be written – brilliant, vivid story-telling about the people who shaped liberalism, the challenges it has faced over the centuries, its commitment to the truth and why it’s now more important than ever to defend it.’ – CAROLINE LUCAS MP‘Dunt’s gift for making complicated issues comprehensible is second to none. Courageous.’ – JAMES O’BRIEN, LBC‘How To Be A Liberal is required reading for today’s political debates.’ – ANNE APPLEBAUM, TWILIGHT OF DEMOCRACY ‘Clear-eyed and hard-headed. His defence of liberalism is political writing at its most urgent and engaging.’ – NICK COHEN, OBSERVER COLUMNIST‘A phenomenal history from a truly big mind.’ – DAVID SCHNEIDER, THE DEATH OF STALIN'When in the course of human events it falls on us to resist, this makes a welcome guidebook.' – KIRKUS'He describes liberalism as “an enormous, boisterous, confounding bloody thing,” and writes passionately in its favour, as a counterweight to ignorance and populism. This book is required reading for anyone interested in politics and philosophy.' – PROSPECT'All of Ian Dunt’s How to be a Liberal is essential reading, but the chapter on Harriet Taylor and John Stuart Mill is blistering, eye-opening stuff.' – Shakespeare & Company bookstore, https://twitter.com/Shakespeare_Co/status/1332266783303151617 Table of ContentsTODAY. Reveals the six lies behind the rise of nationalism in the Republican Party in the USA, the Conservative Party in Great Britain, the Bharatiya Janata Party in India, Likud in Israel, the Alliance for Brazil in Brazil, PDP–Laban in the Philippines, Fidesz in Hungary and the Lega in Italy 1. BIRTH. The origin of independent thought in the mind of philosopher René Descartes, who realised Cogito, ergo sum: 'I think therefore I am'. Mentions Meditations on First Philosophy and Discourse on the Method, and Nicolaus Copernicus' On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres. 2. AWAKENING. In the English Civil War period, radicals started to outline three political thoughts that challenged the established order. They were freedom of religious conscience, the notion of the individual, and the notion of doubt. These three ideas would become central to liberalism 3. THE THREE REVOLUTIONS. Liberalism was moulded in the furnace of three revolutions in the 18th century: The Glorious Revolution in England, the American Revolution and the French Revolution THE GLORIOUS REVOLUTION THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION THE FRENCH REVOLUTION 4. CONSTANT. The womanising dissolute 18th Century Swiss philosopher Benjamin Constant established the political rights of the individual and warned of the tyranny of an over-mighty government in Napoleonic France 5. HARRIET AND JOHN. Harriet Taylor and John Stuart Mill had a deep love affair and laid the groundwork for the development of modern liberalism, including championing a minority cause in 19th Century Victorian England: the right of women to vote. They wrote The Enfranchisement of Women and On Liberty 6. DEATH. The Dreyfuss Affair in France, the extermination of peasants in Ukraine's Holodomor, and the genocide against Jews in Nazi Germany showed what happened when nationalism when tyrants could channel the 'will of the people' over the rights of the individual protected by liberalism 7. NEW WORLD ORDER. After the catastrophe of the Second World War, liberal democracies in the West built a new post-war, rights-based liberal world order designed to guarantee peace and individual rights. Economically John Maynard Keynes triumphed over Friedrich Hayek 8. BELONGING. One flaw in liberalism was the lack of recognition of the identity felt by individuals, whether nationality or religion. The English writer George Orwell and philosopher Isaiah Berlin averred the importance of this sense of belonging in their writings and ultimately in liberalism 9. CRASH. The post-war liberal world order crashed with oil crisis stagflation in the 1970s when Hayek's small state philosophy took root in US governments, leading to bank deregulation on Wall Street (and likewise in the UK under Margaret Thatcher) - leading eventually to 2008 global financial crash 10. IDENTITY WAR. Liberalism had largely been devised by white men, and women and ethnic groups carved out a separate identity that put the group ahead of the individual. 'This was no longer the politics of how to change the world. It was the politics of who you were.' 11. ANTI-TRUTH. Just as liberalism faced multiple threats from the resurgence of nationalism, the rise of identity politics and the financial crash, people’s ability to use reason diminished with the rise of social media. Now everyone was the arbiter of their own truth. Facts became opinions. 12. THE NEW NATIONALISM. 1. Hungary, where Victor Urban used fear of foreigners to dismantle the free media and democratic institutions of Hungary. 2. The rise of Donald Trump who degraded the idea of independent facts. 3 Brexit Britain where nationalist propaganda trumped a nation's interests 13. THE OTHER. How nationalists in Italy, Britain, the US and elsewhere have seized on a supposed threat to their countries from other people to whip up dissent and to crack down on immigration and the rights of individuals, harming democracy and liberal values TOMORROW. The big problem with liberalism has been complacency that it would eventually triumph around the world. The answer is for liberals to fight for their democratic values. Joe Biden's election as US President offers hope for a kinder, better future SORRY & THANK YOU. Acknowledgements and apologies. Mentions Ronald Dworkin, TH Green, François Guizot, Leonard Hobhouse, Wilhelm von Humboldt, Immanuel Kant, Robert Nozick, Martha Nussbaum, Karl Popper, John Rawls, Friedrich Schiller and Alexis de Tocqueville. FURTHER READING. An extensive list of books that hold the keys to liberalism, including Liberalism: The Life of an Idea by Edmund Fawcett and Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Also recommended is Toby Buckle’s Political Philosophy podcast. 'You owe it to yourself to read On Liberty' INDEX. The As start: Act of Union, Acxiom, Adam, adaptive preference, advertising, African Americans, aggregate demand, agitators, Agreement of the People, Akhmatova, Aktion T-4 programme, algorithms, alternative facts...

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Book Synopsis‘Immensely learned and ambitious…seam-bursting eclecticism and polymathic brio… This is by any standards a significant book and its author deserves high praise.’ Literary Review To imagine – to see that which is not there – is the startling ability that has fuelled human development and innovation through the centuries. As a species we stand alone in our remarkable capacity to refashion the world after the pictures in our minds. Traversing the realms of science, politics, religion, culture, philosophy and history, Felipe Fernández-Armesto reveals the thrilling and disquieting tales of our imaginative leaps. Through groundbreaking insights in cognitive science, he explores how and why we have ideas in the first place, providing a tantalising glimpse into who we are and what we might yet accomplish. Fernández-Armesto shows that bad ideas are often more influential than good ones; that the oldest recoverable thoughts include some of the best; that ideas of Western origin often issued from exchanges with the wider world; and that the pace of innovative thinking is under threat.Trade Review‘Immensely learned and ambitious…seam-bursting eclecticism and polymathic brio…This is by any standards a significant book and its author deserves high praise.’ * Literary Review *‘It is hard to do justice to the grand sweep of this book and the intriguing detail with which it abounds. If this is a book about ideas, there is one on every other page… brilliantly stimulating.’ * New Statesman *‘What we get here is an urbane and civilised observer, broad in his sympathies, mildly distrustful of religion, very distrustful of certainties and enthusiastic about pluralism. You may not always agree with him, but he’s very good company.’ * Evening Standard, Book of the Week *‘He is never less than stimulating. As a product himself of the liberal and sceptical decades of the later 20th century, there is a sense in his writing not of tenacious advocacy but a certain playfulness. All ideas – including his own – are stabs at understanding, part of the process that defines our species, the perennial urge to make sense of the world around us.’ * Spectator *‘A stimulating history of how the imagination interacted with its sibling psychological faculties – emotion, perception and reason – to shape the history of human mental life.’ * Wall Street Journal *‘Beginning with cognitive science, this global survey sweeps through leaps of thought from prehistory to today – a journey from unification to uncertainty, lit by minds such as China’s fourth-century-BC master of paradox Hui Shi and paradigm-smashing mathematician Henri Poincaré. Today, Fernández-Armesto argues, the trend is shifting as our homogenized “global culture” threatens the very exchanges that spark heroic ideas.’ * Barbara Kiser, Nature *‘[An] idiosyncratic, wide-ranging intellectual history…thought-provoking stuff.’ * BBC History Magazine *‘A bracing account of the central roles imagination, memory and language have played in human development around the world…Fernández-Armesto has the measure of just about everything…studded with pungent apophthegms and mordant aphorisms. Few pages go by without the reader smiling or, occasionally, laughing.’ * The Tablet *‘…a triumph. Preternaturally erudite, always intelligible, often witty, Out of Our Minds should be essential reading not just for historians of ideas, but for all readers interested in the human past.’ -- Niall Ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow, the Hoover Institution, Stanford‘Brilliant and profound, Out of Our Minds is a masterly survey of humanity’s unique imaginative leaps, from hominid cannibalism to our current global convergence. Fernández-Armesto is the leading practitioner of big history, and here he takes on no less than the entire span of human history. Gone are the great men, replaced instead by the ideas – good and bad – that have made us human. Written with his trademark panache and wry humour, this book challenges every assumption you’ve ever had about who we are and where we came from.’ -- Jerry Brotton, Professor of Renaissance Studies, Queen Mary University of London, and author of A History of the World in 12 Maps‘A sparkling account of how imagination and ideas have shaped the strange history of Homo sapiens over more than two hundred thousand years.’ -- David Christian, author of Origin Story‘With its majestic sweep, this refreshing book covers a great many subjects with considerable authority. Felipe Fernández-Armesto is a gifted writer, guiding the reader through subtleties without failing to illustrate his complex ideas with a telling example.’ -- Daniel Lord Smail, Frank B. Baird, Jr. Professor of History, Harvard University

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Book SynopsisA lively, practical, first-of-its-kind guide to understanding cold, clinical data and harnessing it to tell a persuasive story.__________How many hours' worth of songs are on your Spotify Wrapped this year?How much is your commute time really worth?How do you work out how likely you are to get Covid based on the official statistics?How do your viewing hours track against the most popular shows on Netflix?Whether you're interested in global problems like climate change, running a business, or just grasping how few people have washed their hands between visiting the bathroom and touching you, this book will help math-lovers and math-haters alike translate the numbers that illuminate our world.Until very recently, most languages had no words for numbers greater than five - anything from six to infinity was known as 'lots'. While the numbers in our world have become increasingly complex, our brains are stuck in the past. Yet the ability to communicate and understand numbers has never mattered more. How can we more effectively translate numbers and stats - so fundamental to the next big idea - to make data come to life?Drawing on years of research into making ideas stick, Chip Heath and Karla Starr outline six critical principles that will give anyone the tools to communicate numbers with more transparency and meaning. Using concepts such as simplicity, concreteness and familiarity, they show us how to transform hard numbers into their most engaging form, allowing us to bring more data, more naturally, into decisions in our schools, our workplaces and our society.Trade ReviewConcise, breezy and pragmatic. * Wall Street Journal *A unique popular math book... [that] delivers a painless, ingenious education in how to communicate statistics and numbers to people who find them confusing... Packed with tables, anecdotes, and amusing facts, the narrative makes math accessible.... Astute advice for businesspeople and educators. * Kirkus Review *

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Book Synopsis'Bracingly intelligent ... a wonderful read' Guardian 'Incredibly timely ... presented [with] wonderful elegance and clarity' Irish Times Based on the History Of Ideas podcast series by Talking Politics host David Runciman, Confronting Leviathan explores some of the most important thinkers and prominent ideas lying behind modern politics - from Hobbes to Gandhi, from democracy to patriarchy, and from revolution to lock down. While explaining the most important and often-cited ideas of thinkers such as Constant, De Tocqueville, Marx and Engels, Hayek, MacKinnon and Fukuyama, David Runciman shows how crises - revolutions, wars, depressions, pandemics - generated these new ways of political thinking. This is a history of ideas to help make sense of what's happening today.Trade ReviewBracingly intelligent ... a wonderful read -- Mark Mazower * Guardian *Incredibly timely ... wonderful elegance and clarity through which complex ideas are presented ... That the book helps make thinking about the state enjoyable is just the least of its many exceptional qualities -- Paschal Donohoe * Irish Times *A brilliant introduction for anyone looking to engage with political debates beyond the headlines ... Excellent -- Joshua Pugh Ginn * Herald *A studiously accessible work * Times Higher Education *Praise for How Democracy Ends: Presented in pellucid prose free of the jargon of academic political science, it is a strikingly readable and richly learned contribution to understanding the world today...one of the most luminously intelligent books on politics to have been published for many years. -- John Gray * New Statesman *Full of intriguing new lines of thought -- Gideon Rachman * FT *Clear-headed, compact and timely * Irish Times *Refreshingly free of received and rehearsed wisdoms, Runciman doesn't tiptoe around sacred cows and invites us to take part in that most adult way of thinking: to examine contradictory ideas in tandem and ponder what the dissonance amounts to. . . . [H]e argues lucidly, persuasively, even exhilaratingly at times. The nightly news will never appear exactly the same again * Australian *Refreshingly, rather than a knicker-twisting diatribe about Trump and Brexit, Runciman offers a thoughtful analysis about what popular democracy means, and its alternatives -- Katrina Gulliver * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisQuadratic equations, Pythagoras’ theorem, imaginary numbers, and pi — you may remember studying these at school, but did anyone ever explain why? Never fear — bestselling science writer, and your new favourite maths teacher, Michael Brooks, is here to help. In The Maths That Made Us, Brooks reminds us of the wonders of numbers: how they enabled explorers to travel far across the seas and astronomers to map the heavens; how they won wars and halted the HIV epidemic; how they are responsible for the design of your home and almost everything in it, down to the smartphone in your pocket. His clear explanations of the maths that built our world, along with stories about where it came from and how it shaped human history, will engage and delight. From ancient Egyptian priests to the Apollo astronauts, and Babylonian tax collectors to juggling robots, join Brooks and his extraordinarily eccentric cast of characters in discovering how maths made us who we are today.Trade Review‘At school, many of us wondered about the point of geometry, calculus, and algebra. Brooks shows how the childhood question “What’s the point of this?” can be reframed: esoteric concepts such as imaginary numbers, cryptography, and the semi-mystical digits of pi are revealed to be the essential building blocks of the 21st century.’ -- Liz Else and Simon Ings * New Scientist *‘An alternative textbook that suggests a new way of thinking about maths, and a more congenial way of teaching it — as not simply an abstract science but as a cultural achievement, an indelible and indispensable part of human history.’ -- Lola Seaton * New Statesman *‘How brilliant of Michael Brooks to be able to reignite my almost-forgotten childhood love of mathematics. Written with beauty, style, and care for the history as well as for the science. A tour de force.’ -- Angela Saini, author of Superior: the return of race science‘Michael Brooks has written the formula that reduces to near zero any sense that maths could be a dull subject to study. [The Maths That Made Us] brings to life in accessible, lively terms how maths helps us navigate pandemics, space travel, and encrypted apps — all while celebrating the complicated and fascinating characters, from Euclid to Florence Nightingale, who have pushed our knowledge forward. Why isn’t school maths taught like this?’ -- David Rowan, founding editor-in-chief of WIRED UK and author of Non-Bullshit Innovation‘In this thrilling, colourful, and deeply researched book, Michael Brooks tells the epic story of how mathematics has driven human progress, spanning millennia to trace the numerical innovations — from geometry and algebra to the mind-bending landscapes of imaginary numbers and extra dimensions — that have woven our history and shape our lives today. Along the way, he explores the passions and intrigues of the people behind the numbers, transforming mathematics from dry equations into a gripping drama. This is maths as you’ve never experienced it: inspiring, fun, and utterly human.’ -- Jo Marchant, author of The Human Cosmos‘Michael Brooks has a rare gift for making science come to life, and in this book he is at his best, fusing mathematics with storytelling as he takes us on an exhilarating sweep through human history. [The Maths That Made Us] shows just how deeply numbers have propelled the advance of civilisation. And it does so with enormous narrative brio and good cheer. This is a serious — but seriously readable — history which I enjoyed from the first page to the last.’ -- Dan Jones, New York Times bestselling historian‘A friendly, readable account of the huge influence that mathematics has had on human civilisation. If you’ve ever wondered what the maths you did at school was for, and what it has done for us, you’ll find the answer here. Michael Brooks’s enthusiasm for the beauty and utility of the subject shines from every page.’ -- Ian Stewart, author of What’s the Use?‘From Fermat’s last theorem to quantum computers, pi to probability, slides rules to golden ratios, [The Maths That Made Us] is no mere bluffer’s guide, but a rich introduction to the elegance and importance of mathematics. Michael Brooks shows what a global and multicultural task it has been, ever since prehistory, to figure out how we can benefit from quantification and calculation. He shows that maths is not just, as Eugene Wigner said, unreasonably effective for understanding the world, but also unfathomably wonderful in its own right.’ -- Philip Ball, science writer and author of Beyond Weird‘Suddenly it all makes sense. This brilliant book shows maths as something concrete, real, and crucial to our lives, rather than some dry, abstract code designed to make school kids’ lives miserable.’ -- Charlie Higson, actor, comedian, and author of the Enemy series‘Michael Brooks has written both a lively history of civilisation, and a delightful introduction to the power of mathematics. Either would be an achievement, but to do both simultaneously is a wonder.’ -- Tim Harford, author of How To Make the World Add Up‘If you love maths, you’ll enjoy this book. But if you’re a little scared of maths (as I am), you’ll adore [The Maths That Made Us]. Michael Brooks knows how to tell the hidden stories behind numbers, formulas, and logarithms.’ -- Andrea Wulf, author of The Invention of Nature‘Mathematics is quite unique in that even much earlier results do not change with the passing of time. This book is not only a passionate love letter to mathematics, it offers an important lesson in the appreciation of mathematics, and of its crucial role in humanity’s history.’ -- Mario Livio, astrophysicist, and author of Galileo and The Science Deniers‘A more or less chronological history and compelling case that advances in mathematics provided the foundation for the advance of civilisation … An unabashed lover of mathematics, Brooks refuses to take the traditional pop writer’s pledge to eschew equations. Most readers will follow his description of ancient navigation across the Mediterranean and the birth of linear perspective in Renaissance Italy, but when he turns his attention to calculus, logarithms, statistics, and cryptography, there is no shortage of complex equation … Not a mathematics-is-fun romp but a serious, persuasive effort to describe how its discoveries paralleled human progress.’ * Kirkus Reviews *‘An enviably good history of how ideas in mathematics have shaped (and been shaped by) the progress of civilisation.’ -- Tim Harford, author of How To Make the World Add Up‘What is the driving force behind the development of human civilisation? In this unique and surprising book, Michael Brooks makes the case that it is the growth and progress of mathematics — and he does it in a way that will be interesting to the mathematical and math-phobic alike! As entertaining as it is informative, [The Maths That Made Us] takes us on a journey through the ages, demonstrating how mathematics played a crucial role in the evolution of how we live. Not since Jared Diamond’s Guns, Germs, and Steel has there been such an insightful and compelling analysis of how we got here.’ -- Leonard Mlodinow, New York Times bestselling author of The Drunkard’s Walk‘Moving from ancient Egyptian priests to a hobbyist who solved a mapmaking puzzle that confounded NASA and the US Geological Survey, science writer Brooks aims to persuade readers that mathematics was one of the great innovations that made civilisation happen.’ -- Barbara Hoffert * Library Journal *‘He begins by diligently explaining the basics of algebra, arithmetic, calculus, and geometry, and introducing key figures in math’s history … Brooks uses the work of these thinkers to break down the math behind facets of everyday life: he describes the statistics that underlie life expectancies; the equations that allow scientists to understand the cosmos; and the imaginary numbers that give guitar amplifiers their power … It’s a show-stopping paean to the wonder of numbers.’ * Publishers Weekly, starred review *‘Ambitious.’ -- Tom Gatti * New Statesman *

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Book SynopsisSarah Bakewell had a wandering childhood, growing up on the "hippie trail" through Asia and in Australia. She studied philosophy at the University of Essex, and worked for many years as a curator of early printed books at the Wellcome Library, London, before becoming a full-time writer. Her books include How to Live: a life of Montaigne, which won the Duff Cooper Prize and the US National Book Critics Circle Prize, and At the Existentialist Café, a New York Times Ten Best Books of 2016. She was also among the winners of the 2018 Windham-Campbell Literature Prize. She still has a tendency to wander, but is mostly to be found either in London or in Italy with her wife and their family of dogs and chickens.www.sarahbakewell.com

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Book Synopsis'A writer of genius' - William Dalrymple'Remarkable' - Kwame Anthony Appiah'Utterly captivating' - Anthony DoerrCan anyone really own a culture? This magnificent account argues that the story of global civilisations is one of mixing, sharing, and borrowing.It shows how art forms have crisscrossed continents over centuries to produce masterpieces. From Nefertiti's lost city and the Islamic Golden Age to twentieth century Nigerian theatre and Modernist poetry, Martin Puchner explores how contact between different peoples has driven artistic innovation in every era - whilst cultural policing and purism have more often undermined the very societies they tried to protect.Travelling through Classical Greece, Ashoka's India, Tang dynasty China, and many other epochs, this triumphal new history reveals the crossing points which have not only inspired the humanities, but which have made us human.Trade Review'Eminently readable ... The book's great strength lies in its ability to swoop deftly and lightly between things that may be familiar to us in themselves, but which we might be tempted to separate out in our attempts to form a picture of the world.' -- Edward Wilson-Lee * The Times Literary Supplement *'A breakneck, utterly captivating survey of threads of cultural transmission-how ideas, stories, and songs-survive, change, vanish, get borrowed, refined, coopted, and grafted through time ... I underlined sentences on every page.' -- Anthony Doerr'Compellingly written' * Financial Times *'A remarkable book.' -- Kwame Anthony Appiah'Martin Puchner has exceptional and invaluable gifts: intellectual fearlessness, dazzling erudition, trenchancy tempered by breadth of mind, and a humanist's eye for minute evidence that illumines huge problems.' -- Felipe Fernandez-Armesto'Well written, nuanced and light in style, spinning a series of historical narratives in an erudite and engaging way' -- Marguerite Johnson * The Conversation *'Fearless and exhilaratingly erudite, Martin Puchner's panoramic tour of human culture across the millennia is a riveting page-turner.' -- Amy Chua'A writer of genius' -- William Dalrymple'Elegantly written and full of erudite lore, this vibrant history illuminates the inveterate human yearning for expression.' * Publishers Weekly *'A thoughtful, generous vision of human creativity across centuries of culture.' * Kirkus *'Fluent and engaging.' -- Boyd Tonkin * Wall Street Journal *'A mighty, polymathic work . . . [by] a master storyteller -- Chris Vognar * Boston Globe *'A forceful rebuke to those who argue that culture can be owned by groups, nations, religions or races. . . . [by] an adept storyteller.' -- Ismail Muhammad * New York Times *'Jaunty and readable but never lacking in depth, Culture hops through countries and eras to deliver a resonant argument.' -- Lauren Puckett-Pope * Elle *'Cultures develop by sharing, borrowing, and collaborating--but also by conquest, appropriation, and theft. Martin Puchner's timely book takes us on a breathtaking tour of world history, reminding us that as we judge the past, one day we, too, will be judged, and that when we ignore or try to erase our cultural heritage, we are only impoverishing ourselves' -- Louis Menand * Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Metaphysical Club *'Puchner creates a perfectly balanced and incisively abridged version of the story of human culture. Ultimately, this is an examination of the making and transport of ideas, which is always an interaction between old and new. Each chapter builds a new layer, adding to the depth and complexity, while Puchner also provides a global who's who of cultural diffusion' * Booklist *'So many books these days are described as being 'sweeping histories'; Culture, which promises in its subtitle to take us from our most primitive artistic impulses all the way to the machinery of modern-day fandom. But what intrigues me most about Puchner's latest isn't its scope - it's its driving question: 'What good are the arts?' In my more hopeless moments, this question bubbles up inside me, and I'm chomping at the bit to hear Puchner's answer, grounded in history and informed by cultures around the world' -- Sophia Stewart

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Book SynopsisThis book introduces students and professional historians to the main areas of concern in the history of emotions and its intersection with emotion research in other disciplines. It discusses how the emotions intersect with other lines of historical research relating to power, practice, society and morality. The revised and fully updated second edition of the book demonstrates the field’s centrality to historiographical practice, as well as the importance of this kind of historical work for general interdisciplinary understandings of the value and the meaning of human experience.Table of ContentsPreface to the second editionIntroduction1 Historians and emotions2 Words and concepts3 Communities, regimes and styles4 Power, politics and violence5 Practice and expression6 Experience, senses and the brain7 Spaces, places and objects8 MoralityConclusionIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of FiveBooks' Best Philosophy Books of 2019""Aphorisms come at us in so many forms and from so many periods that one might think an academic study of aphorisms would aim to give them a family tree . . . . But Andrew Hui’s new study, A Theory of the Aphorism: From Confucius to Twitter, does something oddly and interestingly different . . . . Once the reader accepts [his] more expansive and sombre definition of the aphorism, much of interest follows."---Adam Gopnik, New Yorker"In A Theory of the Aphorism: From Confucius to Twitter, Andrew Hui makes a lot out of a little . . . . If you have a hankering for infinity, eternity, or inexhaustibility, this is a book for you."---Willis Goth Regier, World Literature Today"Lovers of aphorisms will derive huge pleasure from this elegant and informative book." * Paradigm Explorer *"This ambitious book explores some 2500 years of literature in under 250 pages to establish a theory of the aphorism. . . . Just as aphorisms rest on authority, not argument, so too Hui sidelines the systematic in favor of more aphoristic pursuits: to observe, pronounce, and artfully describe."---Stephen Kidd, Bryn Mawr Classical Review"In my view, this book is groundbreaking. There’s an assumption in the way philosophy is often taught—in the West at least—that aphorisms are a quirky, awkward bit of philosophy that we’ll admit is there but we won’t focus on. I think it’s time other philosophers started thinking seriously about how aphorisms work. . . . It’s a really interesting and entertaining book."---Nigel Warburton, Five Books"For anyone concerned with the humanities and their future within and without the academy [A Theory of the Aphorism] should prove compelling."---Lachlan Mackinnon, Times Literary Supplement"In my view, this book is groundbreaking. There should be a lot of other books about aphorisms because it’s such a rich area."---Nigel Warburton, FiveBooks"Like aphorism itself, Hui’s book is not bogged down with systematic argumentation, but rather proceeds in short sections that often end aphoristically. . . . Just as aphorisms rest on authority, not argument, so too Hui sidelines the systematic in favor of more aphoristic pursuits: to observe, pronounce, and artfully describe."---Stephen Kidd, Bryn Mawr Classical Review"This book offers an engaging look at the aphorism, the shortest and perhaps most dismissed of literary forms. . . . A splendid, thought-provoking book." * Choice *"A book through which Hui proposes a new reading of the aphorism and its history up to the present time, including social media platforms such as Twitter."---Petru Moldovan, Gnosis: Journal of Gnostic Studies

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Book Synopsis''TOM PHILLIPS IS A VERY CLEVER, VERY FUNNY MAN'' Greg JennerThis is a book about TRUTH - and all the ingenious ways, throughout history, that we''ve managed to avoid it.We live in a ''post-truth'' age, we''re told. The US has a president who openly lies on a daily basis (or who doesn''t even know what''s true, and doesn''t care). The internet has turned our everyday lives into a misinformation battleground. People don''t trust experts any more.But was there ever really a golden age of truth-telling? As the editor of the UK''s leading independent fact-checker, Tom Phillips deals with complete bollocks every day. Here, he tells the story of how we humans have spent history lying to each other - and ourselves - and asks an important question: how can humanity move towards a truthier future?PRAISE FOR HUMANS: A BRIEF HISTORY OF HOW WE F*CKED IT ALL UP:''F*cking brilliant'' Sarah Knight, The Life-ChaTrade ReviewFor Tom Phillips and HUMANS:In dark times, it's reassuring to learn that we've always been a bunch of clueless f*cking nitwits -- Stuart Heritage * Don't Be a Dick, Pete *A light-touch history of moments when humans have got it spectacularly wrong... Both readable and entertaining * Telegraph *If you find yourself looking at the news and wondering how humanity has got so many things wrong, over and over again, this book is a very funny answer to just that question' -- Mark Watson, comedian

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Book SynopsisA global history of free speech, from the ancient world to today.Hailed as the "first freedom," free speech is the bedrock of democracy. But it is a challenging principle, subject to erosion in times of upheaval. Today, in democracies and authoritarian states around the world, it is on the retreat.In Free Speech, Jacob Mchangama traces the riveting legal, political, and cultural history of this idea. Through captivating stories of free speech's many defenders - from the ancient Athenian orator Demosthenes and the ninth-century freethinker al-Razi, to Mary Wollstonecraft, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and modern-day digital activists - Mchangama demonstrates how the free exchange of ideas underlies all intellectual achievement and has enabled the advancement of both freedom and equality worldwide. Yet the desire to restrict speech is also a constant, and he explores how even its champions can be led down this path when the rise of new and contrarian voices challenge power and privilege of all kinds.Meticulously researched, deeply humane and provocative, Free Speech challenges us all to recognise how much we have gained from this principle - and how much we stand to lose without it.Trade ReviewJacob Mchangama's history of the world's strangest, best idea is the definitive account we have been waiting for. It teems with valuable insights, lively characters, and the author's passion for the cause he has done so much to advance. Mchangama brings to life the ancient struggles which established free speech and also the modern dangers which embattle it. Free Speech is that rare book which will impress scholars as much as it entertains readers, all while telling the world's most improbable success story -- Jonathan Rauch, author of The Constitution of KnowledgeFreedom of speech has emerged as a major issue of this decade, but most of the discussion consists of outrages over speech or the repression of speech. Missing is the intellectual background: What does free speech really mean? What is its history? How has it played out in world events? Why should we defend it? Jacob Mchangama lays out this context with deep erudition, strong writing, and a light touch -- Steven Pinker, Johnstone Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and the author of Enlightenment Now and RationalityThe best history of free speech ever written and the best defense of free speech ever made. Jacob Mchangama never loses sight of the trouble freedom causes but always keeps in mind that lack of freedom creates horrors -- P.J. O’RourkeIn Free Speech, Jacob Mchangama presents a compelling case for the unique, universal, enduring importance of free and equal speech for all people, regardless of their particular identities or ideologies. This fascinating account, of magisterial scope, demonstrates the constant liberating and equalizing force of free speech, throughout history and around the world. It also documents the constant censorial pressures, including many that reflect positive aims, and their inevitable suppression of full and equal human rights -- Nadine Strossen, Former National President, American Civil Liberties UnionA lot of people now claim that free speech is a danger to democracy or social inclusion. In this vital book, which is as entertaining as it is erudite, Jacob Mchangama shows why that is dead wrong. Drawing on both historical analysis and normative argument, he makes a compelling case for why anyone who cares about liberty or justice must defend free speech -- Yascha Mounk, author of The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure and associate professor at Johns Hopkins UniversityJacob Mchangama's panoramic exploration of the history of free speech offers a vivid, highly readable account of how today's most pitched battles over free speech reflect tensions and impulses that are as old as history itself. Mchangama persuasively dismantles the persistent claims, common to every era and technological evolution, that unprecedented new threats warrant expanded constraints on speech. This indispensable book is a must for both defenders of free speech and, even more so, for those entertaining the notion that free speech should or must be traded away in order to advance other public goods -- Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America and author of Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All (2020)Mchangama has written an insightful, nicely woven history that provides a coherent picture of how free speech has developed globally . . . With accessible and engaging writing, Mchangama's book is a highly recommended intellectual history -- Library Journal, Starred Review[Free Speech makes] a persuasive argument that free discourse is essential to democracy, breaking down systems of oppression, and challenging existing social hierarchies . . . Readers on both the right and the left seeking insights into modern day debates over free speech will welcome this evenhanded and wide ranging history -- Publishers WeeklyThis outstanding book gets it in one: free speech, as that right and privilege has been fought for and exercised as a key component of our always fragile democracies, is currently experiencing the greatest threat imaginable. To learn exactly how and why, and what we can do to eliminate or minimise this threat, everyone needs to read this deeply researched and powerfully written, truly global history covering everything from the face-to-face world of the ancient Greeks to our own, very different world of anonymous digital media -- Paul Cartledge, A.G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture, emeritus, University of CambridgeScholarly in its erudition, but also immensely readable . . . Free speech is not a fashionable value - often perceived in 2022 as an outright threat to modern notions of social justice. This superb book is a corrective to that intellectual and cultural wrong turn and, as such, deserves as wide a readership as possible -- Matt d’Ancona, Tortoise Media[Free Speech] is not only a broad and deep global history of free speech - from antiquity to the Reformation to our current social-media era - but an argument for its enduring power and necessity.The book shows just how old the current arguments over free speech are - and how often they have been made over the centuries -- Daniel Sharp, Areo MagazineFascinating and ultimately rewarding -- David Waywell, ReactionA soaring global account of free speech's origins and fortunes. Readers interested in the past and future of this embattled right should rush to purchase a copy . . . Among volumes dedicated to our 'first freedom,' it will not soon be surpassed -- National ReviewMchangama, a Danish lawyer, has been an important voice for liberty over the last decade . . . His book is an excellent guide for anyone who wants to know why free speech matters -- Reason[A] 500-page door-stopper, which combines a history of free speech with a persuasive case for its defence . . . [Mchangama] succeeds magnificently -- The SpectatorAn impressive book on a subject of vital importance -- Daniel Ben-Ami[Mchangama's] conclusions, presented in a crisp and confident march through Western history, are sobering -- The EconomistExcellent history of free speech here . . . principled, literate and deeply knowledgeable -- Ian Dunt, iNews

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Book SynopsisThe No. 1 Sunday Times and international bestseller - a major reassessment of world history in light of the economic and political renaissance in the re-emerging east For centuries, fame and fortune was to be found in the west in the New World of the Americas. Today, it is the east which calls out to those in search of adventure and riches. The region stretching from eastern Europe and sweeping right across Central Asia deep into China and India, is taking centre stage in international politics, commerce and culture and is shaping the modern world. This region, the true centre of the earth, is obscure to many in the English-speaking world. Yet this is where civilization itself began, where the world's great religions were born and took root. The Silk Roads were no exotic series of connections, but networks that linked continents and oceans together. Along them flowed ideas, goods, disease and death. This was where empires were won and where they were lost. As a new eTrade ReviewBrilliant and fearlessly wide-ranging … undaunted by the complexity of the material, and the scale of the subject he has taken on, Frankopan marches briskly through the centuries, disguising his erudition with an enviable lightness of touch, enlivening his narrative with a beautifully constructed web of anecdotes and insights, backed up by an impressively wide-ranging scholarly apparatus of footnotes drawing on works in multiple languages … This is history on a grand scale, with a sweep and ambition that is rare … a remarkable book on many levels, a proper historical epic of dazzling range and achievement -- William Dalrymple, Books of the Year * Guardian *Breathtaking and addictively readable - History Book of the Year * Daily Telegraph *Many books have been written which claim to be “A New History of the World”. This one fully deserves the title…It is difficult, in a short review, to do justice to a book so ambitious, so detailed and so fascinating as this one -- Gerald DeGroot * The Times *The author’s gift for vividness is reminiscent of Jan Morris, while his command of revealing facts or fancies is not far short of Gibbon’s -- Felipe Fernández Armesto * Literary Review *A book that roves as widely as the geography it describes, encompassing worlds as far removed as those of Herodotus and Saddam Hussein, Hammurabi and Hitler…It is a tribute to Frankopan’s scholarship and mastery of sources in multiple languages that he is as sure-footed on the ancient world as he is on the medieval and modern -- Justin Marozzi * The Sunday Times *Splendid ... tightly researched ... invigorating and profound [with] enough storytelling to excite the reader and enough fresh scholarship to satisfy the intellect...charismatic and essential -- Dr Bettany Hughes * Daily Telegraph *The Silk Roads, which covers several continents and many centuries, is based on astonishingly wide and deep reading and in all areas draws on the latest research...it is full of vivid and recondite details * Independent *This is, to put it mildly, an ambitious book...Frankopan writes with clarity and memorable detail * Economist *Timely … it deserves a place by the library fireplace * Country Life *Dazzlingly good ... [Frankopan blends] deep scholarly skill with a real literary talent -- Dan Jones * Evening Standard *Bold and ambitious * Tablet *Full of intriguing insights and fascinating details -- Anthony Sattin * Observer *With extraordinary erudition and a vivid style, [Frankopan] takes us on a dazzling tour ... from the rise of the first empires right through to the present * Open (Weekly) *It’s the details that win it. Did you know that Attila’s Huns wore coats made from mouse skin? * Sunday Express *[Frankopan] tells a good story … with great panache. [The Silk Roads] is full of enthralling anecdotal details … Frankopan’s research is impeccable. The Silk Roads is based on information from sources in well over a dozen languages. It has a sweeping canvas and covers more than 2,000 years of history …[an] exhilarating rollercoaster ride * New Delhi Business Standard *Hugely ambitious in its scope * China Today *A compelling narrative and is jam-packed with stories. It contains numerous snippets of information that shed new light on major world events * China Daily *Essential reading * MoneyWeek *A compelling political, economic and social history that is as much about how we will live as how we once did * World Travel Guide *Beautifully constructed, a terrific and exhilarating read and a new perspective on world history -- Averil Cameron * History Today *An often exhilarating tour of 2,000 years of history ... Frankopan upends the usual world-history narrative oriented around ancient Rome and Greece and the irrepressible rise of Europe ... In The Silk Roads, Peter Frankopan has provided a bracing wake up call. * The National AE *As incongruous it may seem to call an intensely-researched 600-page tome with 100 pages of footnotes a romp, The Silk Roads is a fluent, page-turning gallop through the roughly 2500 years from ancient Persia and Alexander the Great to the present day ... If one had to choose an up-to-date volume from which to glean an overview of world history, this might well be it * Asian Review of Books *As well-written, entertaining, disturbing and exciting as a detective story * Svenska Dagbladet *Frankopan handles his material deftly and has an eye for telling details...a clear theme is that globalisation is not a new phenomenon. This is essential reading * Prosper Magazine *A dazzling piece of historical writing * South China Morning Post *The most illuminating book of the year ... A healthy antidote to Eurocentric accounts of history [and] an impressive, if depressing account of the disastrous Western interventions in Central Asia -- Books of the Year * Times Literary Supplement *A very well-written and wide-ranging study, founded on reading of staggering breadth and depth ... Strikingly up to date. The author has used the most recent scholarship to impressive effect ... And he is evidently constantly rethinking in the light of new scholarship ... The book is full of fascinating insights ... No one could read it without learning a great deal, or without having their conception of the course of history radically challenged * Times Literary Supplement *Frankopan casts his net widely in this work of dizzying breadth and ambition ... Frankopan approaches his craft with an acerbic wit, and his epochal perspective throws the foibles of the modern age into sharp relief * Publisher's Weekly *This book lives up to its claim to be a new history of the world because of its geopolitical paradigm shift … He is a Herodotus of the twenty first century * Irish Left Review *Breathtaking … inverts received wisdom … superb history charts mankind’s flirtation with global disaster * New Zealand Herald *Enticing, sometimes enchanting … An exceptionally, eclectically, eccentrically wide range of subjects * Sydney Morning Herald *A thumping good read * Sunday Times, South Africa *Frankopan shows that even in ancient times trade and culture bound distant people togethers ... A rare book that makes you question your assumptions about the world * Wall Street Journal *'Superb … Peter Frankopan is an exceptional storyteller … The lands of the Silk Roads are of renewed importance, and Frankopan’s book will be indispensable to anyone who wants to make sense of this union of past and present * Dallas Morning News *Sumptuous, intriguing and surprising -- Sir Paddy Ashdowne * The Week *‘Magisterial’ -- Books of the Year * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisThe Passion of the Western Mind is a complete guide to Western civilisation and the philosophical ideas that have shaped our world view. From Plato to Hegel, from Augustine to Nietzsche, from Copernicus to Freud, Richard Tarnas described profound philosophical concepts simply, but without simplifying them.Ten years in the making, The Passion of the Western Mind was hailed as an instant classic on publication. In it, Tarnas provides a compelling account of the evolution of the Western mind and its changing conception of reality. Advances on several fronts - in philosophy, psychology, religous studies and the history of science - have shed new light on this remarkable evolution and Tarnas draws together these advances to set forth a new perspective for understanding out culture's intellectual and spiritual history. The result is a complete liberal education in a single volume.Trade ReviewI have never read a book about the ways in which we think that was clearer or more exciting -- John CleeseQuite brilliant * Guardian *[This] magnificent critical survey, with its inherent respect for both the 'West's mainstream high culture' and the 'radically changing world' of the 1990s, offers a new breakthrough for lay and scholarly readers alike... Allows readers to grasp the big picture of Western culture as if for the first time * San Francisco Chronicle *30,000 years of Western thought distilled into a powerful, enthralling narrative * Sydney Morning Herald *An extraordinary work of scholarship. It not only places the history of Western thought in perspective, but offers new insights concerning the evolution of our thinking and the future of the whole human enterprise -- John E. Mack, winner of the Pulitzer Prize

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Book Synopsis"The Radical Enlightenment" was a set of ideas which helped lay the foundations of the modern world on the basis of equality, democracy, secularism, and universality. This study by cultural historian, Jonathan Israel, shows how Spinoza and his thought set the intellectual current towards the political revolutions of the later 18th century.Trade ReviewThe tributes which Israel has received for Radical Enlightenment are thoroughly merited; this book will become a modern classic upon the subject. * David J. Sturdy, Cultural and Social History 2004-2006 *Deserves to be widely read because it is an example of ground-breaking vastly well-informed and thoroughly new history * David Horspool, The Guardian *The scholarship is breathtaking. Israel has read everything, absorbed every nuance, followed up every byway ... Five years from now, our views of the Enlightenment will have been enormously influenced by Israel. * Peter Watson, New Statesman *There is much to praise in Israel's majestic account of the Enlightenment and his detective work in placing Spinoza at the heart of it. * A.C. Grayling, FT Weekend *Magnificent and magisterial, Radical Enlightenment will undoubtedly be one of truly great historical works of the decade. * John Adamson, Sunday Telegraph *We have gained a much more detailed and fine-grained view of the sheer diversity and intellectual creativity not just amongst those who may have been influenced by Spinoza, but also amongst their critics, and those who may be deemed part of either the moderate Enlightenment or even a Counter-Enlightenment. * Professor Thomas Munck, Reviews in History *Table of ContentsI. THE 'RADICAL ENLIGHTENMENT'; II. THE RISE OF PHILOSOPHICAL RADICALISM; III. EUROPE AND THE 'NEW' INTELLECTUAL CONTROVERSIES 1680-1720; IV. THE INTELLECTUAL COUNTER-OFFENSIVE; V. THE CLANDESTINE PROGRESS OF THE RADICAL ENLIGHTENMENT 1680-1750

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Book SynopsisQueen Boudica, leader of the Iceni, revolted against the Romans in AD60 only to have her efforts avenged by a humiliated Roman army. This lively and fascinating book examines in detail the evidence and theories which surround these events.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Chapter 1 Sources; Chapter 2 The Opposing Forces and the State of Britain 54 BC; Chapter 3 Britain between the Invasions 54 BC—AD 43; Chapter 4 The Conquest of AD 43; Chapter 5 The Storm Breaks AD 60; Chapter 6 The Evidence from the Ground; Chapter 7 The Trail of Destruction;

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Book SynopsisThis lively and accessible introduction to Plato focuses on the philosophy and argument of his writings, drawing the reader into Plato''s way of doing philosophy, and the general themes of his thinking. This is not a book to leave the reader standing in the outer court of introduction and background information, but leads directly into Plato''s argument. It looks at Plato as a thinker grappling with philosophical problems in a variety of ways, rather than a philosopher with a fully worked-out system. It includes a brief account of Plato''s life and the various interpretations that have been drawn from the sparse remains of information. It stresses the importance of the founding of the Academy and the conception of philosophy as a subject. Julia Annas discusses Plato''s style of writing: his use of the dialogue form, his use of what we today call fiction, and his philosophical transformation of myths. She also looks at his discussions of love and philosophy, his attitude to women, and to homosexual love, explores Plato''s claim that virtue is sufficient for happiness, and touches on his arguments for the immortality of the soul and his ideas about the nature of the universe.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Table of Contents1. Arguing with Plato ; 2. Plato's name, and other matters ; 3. Drama, fiction and the elusive author ; 4. Love, sex, gender and philosophy ; 5. Vitue in me and in my society ; 6. My soul and myself ; 7. The nature of things

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Book SynopsisThough he was a prolific writer and an original thinker of vast erudition, Jung lacked a gift for clear exposition and his ideas are less widely appreciated than they deserve. In this concise introduction, Anthony Stevens explains clearly the basic concepts of Jungian psychology: the collective unconscious, complex, archetype, shadow, persona, anima, animus, and the individuation of the Self. He examines Jung''s views on such disparate subjects as myth, religion, alchemy, `sychronicity'', and the psychology of gender differences, and he devotes separate chapters to the stages of life, Jung''s theory of psychological types, the interpretation of dreams, the practice of Jungian analysis, and to the unjust allegation that Jung was a Nazi sympathizer. Finally, he argues that Jung''s visionary powers and profound spirituality have helped many to find an alternative set of values to the arid materialism prevailing in Western society.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade Reviewoffers a concise introduction to Jungian psychology, covering everything from the collective unconscious and the archetype to the theories of synchronicity and individuation. * Ken McGoogan, Calgary Herald *Table of ContentsList of illustrations ; 1. The man and his psychology ; 2. Archetypes and the collective unconsious ; 3. The stages of life ; 4. Psychological types ; 5. Dreams ; 6. Therapy ; 7. Jung's alleged anti-Semitism ; 8. The summing-up ; Further reading ; Index

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Book SynopsisThe powerful, beautiful and chilling sequel to the bestselling Straw Dogs''By nature volatile and discordant, the human animal looks to silence for relief from being itself while other creatures enjoy silence as their birthright''Why do humans seek meaning to life? How do our imaginations leap into worlds so far beyond our actual reality? In this chilling and beautiful sequel to Straw Dogs, John Gray explores how we decorate our existence with countless fictions, twisting and turning to avoid acknowledging that we too are animals. Drawing on an extraordinary array of writers who are mesmerized by extremity, from Ballard to Conrad, Gray makes us re-imagine our place in the world.Trade ReviewThe Silence of Animals is a new kind of book from Gray, a sort of poetic reverie on the human state, on the state, that is, of the human animal ... He blends lyricism with wisdom, humour with admonition, nay-saying with affirmation, making in the process a marvellous statement of what it is to be both an animal and a human in the strange, terrifying and exquisite world into which we straw dogs find ourselves thrown -- John Banville * Guardian *Interesting, original and memorable ... The Silence of Animals is a beautifully written book, the product of a strongly questioning mind. It is effectively an anthology with detailed commentary, setting out one rich and suggestive episode after another -- Philip Hensher * Spectator *A secular prophet, sensationally truth-telling, clear-sighted and unperturbed by the illusions under which the rest of us labour ... what's more unexpected is how beautifully the unbearable quality of that desperation is evoked -- Shahidha Bari * Times Higher Education *Full of richness ... a pleasure to read -- Jane Shilling * Daily Telegraph *He takes down utopians of various stripes and then starts wiggling the dentist's drill in the liberal molar ... In Gray's book, it's humanity that is the problem: we need to get over ourselves -- Sam Leith * Sunday Times *For all its dark thrills, Gray's aria of negativity is intended to prepare the reader for a revelation. "Nothingness," he writes, "may be our most precious possession" -- Talitha Stevenson * Evening Standard *

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