History of ideas Books

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Book Synopsis''Bristles with provocative insights into the tangled liaisons of sex and self'' Times Higher EducationIn the third volume of his acclaimed examination of sexuality in modern Western society, Foucault investigates the Golden Age of Rome to reveal a decisive break from the classical Greek version of sexual pleasure. Exploring the moral reflections of philosophers and physicians of the era, he identifies a growing anxiety over sexual activity and its consequences. At the core of this transformation Foucault found the principles of the ''care of the self'': the belief that the self is an object of knowledge to be cultivated over time, and the implications this has for ethics and behaviour.''Magnificent ... Foucault''s great achievement is to illuminate an entire and cohesive body of thought. It is brilliantly done'' Daily TelegraphTrade Review'A magnificent treasure-trove ... Foucault's great achievement is to illuminate an entire and cohesive body of thought. It is brilliantly done' * Daily Telegraph *

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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 SynopsisTrade ReviewThe most innovative and influential French thinker of the contemporary era -- Sudhir Hazareesingh * Guardian *Nearly 35 years after his death, Foucault remains a vital reference point, and his History of Sexuality remains required reading ... The appearance of the fourth volume is itself the most significant event in the world of Foucault scholarship in 20 years ... Essential * Los Angeles Review of Books *

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Book SynopsisHow do we use our mental images of the present to reconstruct our past? Maurice Halbwachs (1877-1945) addressed this question for the first time in his work on collective memory, which established him as a major figure in the history of sociology. This volume, the first comprehensive English-language translation of Halbwach's writings on the social construction of memory, fills a major gap in the literature on the sociology of knowledge. Halbwachs' primary thesis is that human memory can only function within a collective context. Collective memory, Halbwachs asserts, is always selective; various groups of people have different collective memories, which in turn give rise to different modes of behavior. Halbwachs shows, for example, how pilgrims to the Holy Land over the centuries evoked very different images of the events of Jesus' life; how wealthy old families in France have a memory of the past that diverges sharply from that of the nouveaux riches; and how working class construct

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Book SynopsisAN ECONOMIST, GUARDIAN AND NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR A gripping narrative of the intertwined lives of the four philosophers whose ideas reshaped the twentieth centuryThe year is 1919. Walter Benjamin flees his overbearing father to scrape a living as a critic. Ludwig Wittgenstein, scion of one of Europe''s wealthiest families, signs away his inheritance, seeking spiritual clarity. Martin Heidegger renounces his faith and aligns his fortunes with Husserl''s phenomenological school. Ernst Cassirer sketches a new schema of human culture on a cramped Berlin tram. The stage is set for a great intellectual drama. Over the next decade the lives and thought of this quartet will converge and intertwine, as each gains world-historical significance, between them remaking philosophy.Time of the Magicians brings to life this miraculous burst of intellectual creativity, unparalleled in philosophy''s history, and with it an entire era, from post-war exuberance to economic crisis and the emergence of National Socialism. With great art, Wolfram Eilenberger traces the paths of these titanic figures through the tumult. He captures their personalities as well as their achievements, and illuminates with singular clarity the philosophies each embodied as well as espoused. It becomes an intellectual adventure story, a captivating journey through the greatest revolution in Western thought told through its four protagonists, each with their own penetrating gaze and answer to the question which has animated philosophy from the very beginning: What are we?Trade ReviewA tremendous feat of scholarship but also a technical masterpiece, knitting together the four men's love lives, money troubles, ontological anxieties and the wider ferment of the Weimar republic with uncommon dexterity -- Oliver Moody * The Times *Splendid, highly entertaining, attentive -- Jonathan Derbyshire * Financial Times *Magnificent, elegantly composed and beautifully narrated -- David Motadel * The Times Literary Supplement *Eilenberger's survey of high thoughts and low politics among German-language philosophers of the 1920s is a salutary tale for today, not just a gripping panorama of century-old dreams and feuds * Economist *Accessible and deeply human ... He draws these four intellectual magi out of the shadows of their writings -- John Kaag * The New York Times *Like any great story, Eilenberger's is not made up, but retrieved. Events have a way of narrating themselves when they encounter a gifted storyteller -- Costica Bradatan * Los Angeles Review of Books *A book of riches - full of stories as well as ideas, all brought together with a fine light touch -- Sarah Bakewell

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Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERFascinating.' HILARY MANTELTerrific.' NEW SCIENTISTGripping.' FINANCIAL TIMES''Stunning.'' PATRICK RADDEN KEEFEWhat if you had a vision that something terrible was going to happen?A train crash, a department store fire, an assassination.What if you could share your vision, and prevent a disaster?In 1966, John Barker, a British psychiatrist working in an outdated British mental hospital, established the Premonitions Bureau to investigate this very idea. He would find a network of curious correspondents, and among them two highly gifted percipients'. Together, they predicted calamities and international incidents with uncanny accuracy. And then, they gave Barker their most disturbing warning: that he was about to die.Sam Knight''s book The Premonitions Bureau was a Sunday Times Bestseller w/c 07-05-2022Trade Review'Strange and gripping . . . the most hardened sceptic can't fail to be electrified by the stories.' - Guardian'Knight's writing is so lucid and wryly authoritative that it never fails to hold you . . . A brilliant book, by turns disarming, thought-provoking and spooky.' - Irish Independent

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Book SynopsisThis book looks to fill the blue hole' in Global History by studying the role of the oceans themselves in the creation, development, reproduction and adaptation of knowledge across the Atlantic world. It shows how globalisation and the growth of maritime knowledge served to reinforce one another, and demonstrates how and why maritime history should be put firmly at the heart of global history. Exploring the dynamics of globalisation, knowledge-making and European expansion, Global Ocean of Knowledge takes a transnational approach and transgresses the traditional border between the early modern and modern periods. It focuses on three main periodisations, which correspond with major transformations in the globalisation of the Atlantic World, and analyses how and to what extent globalisation forces from above and from below influenced the development and exchange of knowledge. Davids distinguishes three forms of globalising forces from above'; imperial, commercial and religious, alTrade ReviewThis third volume focuses on the Atlantic world, detailing the factors driving globalization and the development, spread, and growth of knowledge and technology—but with a continuous focus on the effect of the maritime environment on how specific knowledge and technologies developed ... This work is a valuable addition to scholarship on the Atlantic world and globalization studies. * CHOICE *The study is based on a broad source [of] literature base and stands out positively from the work of numerous Anglo-Saxon historians ... Global Ocean of Knowledge is an excellent overview and reference work for all those interested in the history of ... the Atlantic world. * Zeitschrift fur Historische Forschung (Bloomsbury Translation) *Karel Davids has written a landmark book about globalization, maritime history, knowledge making, and the experience of Europeans at sea. * James E. McClellan III, Professor Emeritus, Stevens Institute of Technology, USA *‘I am impressed by the ambition, breadth of coverage and scholarly depth of the work, and welcome the specific aim of instilling a long overdue maritime element into the wider literature on globalization, global history and Atlantic history. Reading the introduction and conclusion before delving into the core six chapters, the historiographical contribution and argument of the book are well laid out and persuasive.’ * David J Starkey, Wilson Family Professor of Maritime History, University of Hull, UK *'[This is] an excellent manuscript by an outstanding scholar about the creation, development, reproduction and adaptation of knowledge across the Atlantic Ocean and how that affected its adjacent spaces. The subject of the book is outstandingly framed by a broad historiographical debate that brings together multiple strands of up-to-date research and excellent consideration of the development of those diverse debates over time. This positioning of the manuscript in such a broad historiographical context makes it attractive to students, specialists and a broad range of historians and educated readers’ * Catia Antunes, Professor of History of Global Economic Networks, Leiden University, The Netherlands *Bringing to bear his masterful understanding of ways knowledge about all aspects of the sea grew, Karel Davids shows how that understanding shaped and was shaped by the forces of globalisation in lands bordering the Atlantic, in the process revealing the complex interplay of varied mechanisms, personal and institutional, which helped people conquer the ocean and creating a book undoubtedly worth reading. * Richard W. Unger, Professor Emeritus, University of British Columbia, Canada *The striking advances in the capability to collect and share maritime knowledge during the 18th century are cogently and elegantly analysed by Karel Davids in this comprehensive and well-argued volume on the Atlantic world. Using a transnational and cross-disciplinary approach, he moves with agility across different national historiographies and approaches and delivers his important analysis with a lightness of touch and a clarity of exposition and argument which will grip readers’ attention. * Maria Fusaro, Professor of Social and Economic History, University of Exeter, UK *Table of Contents1. Introduction: Globalization, Maritime Knowledge and the Atlantic world PART I Globalizing Forces and the Growth of Maritime Knowledge in the Atlantic World, c.1660-1730 Introduction: Globalisation between c.1660 and 1730 2. Globalising Forces and the Growth of Maritime Knowledge 3. Growing Maritime Knowledge and Globalisation PART II Maritime knowledge and Globalisation in the Atlantic World, c. 1730-1800 Introduction: Globalisation Between c.1730 and 1800 4. Maritime Knowledge Aiding Globalisation 5. Globalising Forces and the Growth of Maritime Knowledge Machines, Infrastructures and the Circulation of Maritime Knowledge Part III The Reshaping of the Atlantic World and the Collectivisation of Maritime Knowledge, c. 1800-1860 Introduction: Globalisation Between c.1800 and 1860 6. Maritime Knowledge Aiding Globalisation 7. Globalising Forces and the Collectivisation of Maritime Knowledge Conclusion

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Book SynopsisTHE TIMES BEST IDEAS BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2024 'A splendid book: economical, invigorating and surprising' The Times'He has that gift, both as a podcaster and as a writer, to illuminate abstruse and abstract ideas with human charm' ObserverIn this bold new follow-up to Confronting Leviathan, David Runciman unmasks modern politics and reveals the great men and women of ideas behind it.What can Samuel Butler's ideas teach us about the oddity of how we choose to organise our societies? How did Frederick Douglass not only expose the horrors of slavery, but champion a new approach to abolishing it? Why should we tolerate snobbery, betrayal and hypocrisy, as Judith Shklar suggested? And what does Friedrich Nietzsche predict for our future?From Rousseau to Rawls, fascism to feminism and pleasure to anarchy, this is a mind-bending tour through the history of ideas which will forever change your view of politics today.

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Book SynopsisRandall Sullivan was a contributing editor to Rolling Stone for over twenty years. He is the author of Graveyard of the Pacific, Dead Wrong, The Price of Experience, LAbyrinth, The Miracle Detective, and Untouchable. His work has been published in, among many other places, Esquire, Outside, Men's Journal, Washington Post, and the Guardian. He lives in Oregon.

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Book SynopsisWhat is ''nothing''? What remains when you take all the matter away? Can empty space - a void - exist? This Very Short Introduction explores the science and the history of the elusive void: from Aristotle who insisted that the vacuum was impossible, via the theories of Newton and Einstein, to our very latest discoveries and why they can tell us extraordinary things about the cosmos. Frank Close tells the story of how scientists have explored the elusive void, and the rich discoveries that they have made there. He takes the reader on a lively and accessible history through ancient ideas and cultural superstitions to the frontiers of current research. He describes how scientists discovered that the vacuum is filled with fields; how Newton, Mach, and Einstein grappled with the nature of space and time; and how the mysterious ''aether'' that was long ago supposed to permeate the void may now be making a comeback with the latest research into the ''Higgs field''. We now know that the vacuum is far from being empty - it seethes with virtual particles and antiparticles that erupt spontaneously into being, and it also may contain hidden dimensions that we were previously unaware of. These new discoveries may provide answers to some of cosmology''s most fundamental questions: what lies outside the universe, and, if there was once nothing, then how did the universe begin? 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 ReviewReview from previous edition All in all, this book makes for some fascinating reading. * Chemistry World, Dennis Rouvray. *An accessible and entertaining read for layperson and scientist alike. * Physics World *The Void is well worth reading. * Robert Cailliau. CERN Courier. *It covers very complicated concepts in a mostly accessible way. * Lawrence Rudnick, Nature *A fascinating subject covered by a fascinating book. * Marcus Chown, Focus *Table of Contents1. Much Ado About Nothing ; 2. How Empty is an Atom? ; 3. Space ; 4. Waves in What? ; 5. Travelling on a Light Beam ; 6. The Cost of Free Space ; 7. The Infinite Sea ; 8. The Higgs Vacuum ; 9. The New Void ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisPoliticians, judges, and citizens commonly use the phrase rule of law to describe some good that flows from a legal system. But what precisely is that good? Even in Aristotle''s time, there was no agreement on either its nature, and on whether it counted as an unqualified good. Even now, a core rule-of-law aspiration is that law can constrain how power is flexed. But how or when? Disagreement persists as to whether the rule of law is a matter of how law is used or why it is deployed. In consequence, the World Bank, the leaders of Singapore''s one-party state, and the Communist Party in China can all offer their own spins on the concept.By charting these disagreements and showing the overlap and the conflicts between different understandings of the concept, Aziz Z. Huq shows how the rule of law can still be used as an important tool for framing and evaluating the goals and functions of a legal system. He traces the idea''s historical origins from ancient Greece to the constitutional theorist Albert Venn Dicey to the economist and political philosopher Friedrich Hayek. And he explores how that value is coming under pressure from terrorist threats, macroeconomic crisis, pandemics, autocratic populism, and climate change.

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Book SynopsisVery Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Emotions are complex mental states that resist reduction. They are visceral reactions but also beliefs about the world. They are spontaneous outbursts but also culturally learned performances. They are intimate and private and yet gain their substance and significance only from interpersonal and social frameworks. And just as our emotions in any given moment display this complex structure, so their history is plural rather than singular. The history of emotions is where the history of ideas meets the history of the body, and where the history of subjectivity meets social and cultural history.In this Very Short Introduction, Thomas Dixon traces the historical ancestries of feelings ranging from sorrow, melancholy, rage, and terror to cheerfulness, enthusiasm, sympathy, and love. The picture that emerges is a complex one, showing how the states we group together today as the emotions are the product of long and varied historTable of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements List of illustrations 1: The pulse of the past 2: A map of woe 3: From passions to emojis 4: Terror and the pursuit of happiness 5: All the rages 6: Looking for love References and further reading Index

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Book SynopsisTravelling through time from Ancient Egypt to today, A History of Love and Hate in 21 Statues unpicks the past, illuminates the present and offers a new perspective on the future through these controversial symbols of our identity.Trade Review'Fascinating analysis. A great read.’ Julia Hartley-Brewer, TalkRADIO TV Breakfast Show"An innovative and compelling examination of the fundamental DNA of humanity - our talent for creation and destruction." ROBIN MORGAN, award-winning journalist & former editor of The Sunday Times Magazine“This book considers why statues, and their removal, continue to provoke strong emotions. It also tells us the stories of 21 acts of statue destruction, why they took place, and what they tell us about our view of the past.” BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE'An enjoyable survey of historical antagonism, and a welcome alternative perspective on a flashpoint in the culture wars' Dominic Selwood, TLS Table of ContentsIntroduction: Lone and Level Sands Hatshepsut (Thebes, Egypt) Nero (Colchester, UK) Athena (Palmyra, Syria) The Buddhas of Bamiyan (Bamiyan, Afghanistan) Hecate (Constantinople, Byzantine Empire) Our Lady of Caversham (Caversham, UK) Huitzilopochtli (Tenochtitlan, Mexico) Confucius (Qufu, China) Louis XV (Paris, France) Felix Mendelssohn (Leipzig, Germany) The Confederate Monument (Portsmouth, Virginia, USA) Sir John A. Macdonald (Montreal, Canada) Edward Colston (Bristol, UK) Christopher Columbus (Caracas, Venezuela) Cecil Rhodes (Cape Town, South Africa) George Washington (Portland, Oregon, USA) Joseph Stalin (Budapest, Hungary) Yagan (Perth, Australia) Saddam Hussein (Baghdad, Iraq) B.R. Ambedkar (Vederanyam, India) Frederick Douglass (Rochester, New York, USA) Epilogue: Khaled al-Asaad Acknowledgements Notes Bibliography Index

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Book Synopsis'Exceptionally interesting' - Alain de Botton'Fascinating ... You'll never again view your own world in quite the same way. A delight to read' - Ian Stewart'A book that will transform how you understand human behaviour' - Thomas EriksonCan physics change your life? It already has.In The Art of Physics, Zahaan Bharmal explains eight ideas from physics that have transformed his view of everyday life and will do the same for you.Far from being abstract, he argues, physics can help us answer very human questions, questions like: Why are some relationships unstable, while others last a lifetime? Why does inequality persist? And why do we all make so many irrational decisions?Drawing on quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, chaos and complexity theory, materials science and more, The Art of Physics reveals the hidden, surprising, and sometimes beautiful ways in

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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 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 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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Book SynopsisIn his writings, David Hume set out to bridge the gap between the learned world of the academy and the marketplace of polite society. This collection, drawing largely on his Essays Moral, Political, and Literary (1776 edition), which was even more popular than his famous Treatise of Human Nature, comprehensively shows how far he succeeded.From `Of Essay Writing'' to `Of the Rise and Progress of the Arts and Sciences'' Hume embraces a staggering range of social, cultural, political, demographic, and historical concerns. With the scope typical of the Scottish Enlightenment, he charts the state of civil society, manners, morals, and taste, and the development of political economy in the mid-eighteenth century. These essays represent not only those areas where Hume''s arguments are revealingly typical of his day, but also where he is strikingly innovative in a period already famous for its great thinkers. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World''s Classics has made available the Trade ReviewThis reviewer found Copley and Edgar's edition to be the easiest to read, and as such it may be appropriate for less experienced students of Hume's work. * Scottish Tradition *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Note on the Text ; Select Bibliography ; Chronology ; 1. Of Essay Writing ; 2. Of the Middle Station of Life ; 3. Of the Delicacy of Taste and Passion ; 4. That Politics may be Reduced to a Science ; 5. Of the First Principles of Government ; 6. Of the Origin of Government ; 7. Of the Parties of Great Britain ; 8. Of Superstition and Enthusiasm ; 9. Of the Dignity or Meanness of Human Nature ; 10. Of Civil Liberty ; 11. Of the Rise and Progress of the Arts and Sciences ; 12. The Epicurean ; 13. The Stoic ; 14. The Platonist ; 15. The Sceptic ; 16. Of National Characters ; 17. Of Tragedy ; 18. Of the Standard of Taste ; 19. Of Commerce ; 20. Of Refinement in the Arts ; 21. Of Interest ; 22. Of the Balance of Trade ; 23. Of Public Credit ; 24. Of Some Remarkable Customs ; 25. Of the Populousness of Ancient Nations ; 26. Of the Original Contract ; 27. Of the Protestant Succession ; 28. Idea of a Perfect Commonwealth ; 29. On Suicide ; 30. On the Immortality of the Soul

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Book SynopsisMonty was just like any other dog. A scruffy and irascible Maltese terrier, he enjoyed barking at pugs and sniffing at trees. But after yet another dramatic confrontation with the local Rottweiler, Anthony McGowan realises it’s high time he and Monty had a chat about what makes him a good or a bad dog. And they don’t stop at ethics. Taking his cue from Monty’s canine antics, McGowan leads us on an enlightening jaunt through the world of philosophy. Will Kant convince Monty to stop stealing cheesecake? How long will they put up with Socrates poking holes in every argument? Do they have free will to pursue answers to these questions? Join the dutiful duo as they set out to uncover who – if anyone – has the right end of the ethical stick and can tell us how best to live one’s life. But there is also a shadow over their conversations. Monty is not well… And so towards the end the biggest questions raise their heads: is there a God? Does life have a meaning? By the time of their last walk together, Monty – and the reader – will find that they have not just solved a few philosophical puzzles, but absorbed much of the history of Western philosophy.Trade Review‘Anthony McGowan’s How to Teach Philosophy to Your Dog is a delightful, quirky book that deserves a wide readership and may well get it… A witty, enjoyable book that gently introduces some serious philosophy, with plenty of smiles along the way’ * Nigel Warburton, Five Books *'For essential reading on both the meaning of dogs and the meaning of life, I can recommend Anthony McGowan’s wonderful book How to Teach Philosophy to Your Dog, a series of conversations he had with his dog, Monty, while out walking together. The final chapter is a touching meditation on death and the existence – or not – of God, that takes in everything from Aristotle to Schopenhauer and leaves you suspecting dogs might already have had many of the answers all along. There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio / Than are dreamed of in your philosophy.' -- Guardian‘Anthony McGowan’s wonderful survey of philosophy… Hugely entertaining and accessible, there can’t have been more delightful exponents of Socratic dialogue than McGowan and Monty, his scruffy and evidently delightful Maltese terrier.’ -- Tom Holland, Best Books of the Year, New Statesman'I loved loved loved this book. Genuinely profound as well as very funny.' * Alex Preston, via Twitter *‘Filled with sparkling insights, a joy from start to finish. In turns witty, brilliant and irreverent, McGowan explains nothing less than the meaning of life – to his dog. If only we were all as lucky as Monty to go for long walks with the author…’ -- Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads'McGowan playfully explores philosophy in this amusing collection of imaginary dialogues conducted with his Maltese terrier, Monty. Readers who have never roamed the paths of philosophy before, or who could use a return trip, will appreciate this enjoyable tour from a friendly guide and his loyal companion.' -- Publishers Weekly'An accessible, amusing guide to key philosophical questions...Perfect for novice philosophers.' * Idler *‘Readable, funny but enlightening…accessible and illuminating.’ * Church of England Newspaper *‘This is the most entertaining and accessible introduction to philosophy I have read. I doubt there can ever have been more delightful exponents of Socratic dialogue than McGowan and Monty, his dog.’ -- Tom Holland‘There is no sharper, funnier, cleverer writer in Britain today.’ -- Robert Twigger, author of Micromastery'A charming, informative, unique introduction to Western philosophy.' * Kirkus *

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Book SynopsisHow new is atheism?Long before the Enlightenment sowed seeds of disbelief in a deeply Christian Europe, atheism was a matter of serious public debate in the Greek world. But history is written by those who prevail, so the lively free-thinking voices of antiquity were mostly suppressed. Tim Whitmarsh brings to life the origins of the secular values at the heart of the modern state, and reveals how atheism and doubt, far from being modern phenomena, have intrigued the human imagination for thousands of years.

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Book Synopsis''Astonishing ... enjoy its riches slowly, and savour every generous, erudite and undogmatic page'' Boyd Tonkin, Financial Times''We English men have wits,'' wrote the clergyman Ralph Lever in 1573, and, ''we have also framed unto ourselves a language.''Witcraft is a fresh and brilliant history of how philosophy became established in English. It presents a new form of philosophical storytelling and challenges what Jonathan Rée calls the ''condescending smugness'' of traditional histories of philosophy. Rée tells the story of philosophy as it was lived and practised, embedded in its time and place, by men and women from many walks of life, engaged with the debates and culture of their age. And, by focusing on the rich history of works in English, including translations, he shows them to be quite as colourful, diverse, inventive and cosmopolitan as their continental counterparts.Witcraft offers new and compelling intellectual portraits not only of celebrated British and American philosophers, such as Hume, Emerson, Mill and James, but also of the remarkable philosophical work of literary authors, such as William Hazlitt and George Eliot, as well as a carnival of overlooked characters - priests and poets, teachers, servants and crofters, thinking for themselves and reaching their own conclusions about religion, politics, art and everything else.The book adopts a novel structure, examining its subject at fifty-year intervals from the sixteenth century to the twentieth. Researched over decades and illuminated by quotations from extensive archival material, it is a book full of stories and personalities as well as ideas, and shows philosophy springing from the life around it. Witcraft overturns the established orthodoxies of the history of philosophy, and celebrates the diversity, vitality and inventiveness of philosophical thought.Trade ReviewRée spans a vast ocean of ideas. He introduces us to their shapers and breakers, and gently captains us in 50-year stretches across the seas of English-language thought with astonishing skill as both map-maker and way-finder ... enjoy its riches slowly, and savour every generous, erudite and undogmatic page -- Boyd Tonkin * Financial Times *Rée's book may well be the most fun we've ever had with anglophone philosophy -- Stuart Jeffries * Spectator *Dead philosophers, and indeed dead philosophies, here feel alive, and integrated with the rest of history -- Nakul Krishna * Daily Telegraph *Witcraft is the story of philosophy in English told in a new way, narrated with relish and considerable wit -- Jonathan Egid * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisIn the century since its birth, the crossword has evolved into the world''s most popular intellectual pastime: a unique form of wordplay, the codes and conventions of which are open to anyone masochistic enough to get addicted. In Two Girls, One on Each Knee, Alan Connor celebrates the wit, ingenuity and frustration of setting and solving puzzles. From the beaches of D-Day to the imaginary worlds of three-dimensional crosswords, to the British school teachers and journalists who turned the form into the fiendish sport it is today, encompassing the most challenging clues, particular tricks, the world''s greatest setters and famous solvers, PG Wodehouse and the torturers of the Spanish Inquisition, this is an ingenious book for lovers of this very particular form of wordplay.Trade ReviewAlan Connor's charming, fascinating history . . . is as elegantly sprinkled with surprising gems as the most satisfying crossword . . . thoroughly, consistently entertaining . . . In a single, gloriously decipherable chapter he lays out with perfect clarity the entire range of rules and devices through which cryptic clues work their magic * Sunday Times *It is witty, charming, encyclopaedic and highly readable - and it can be read in any order. Take a chapter or a paragraph, a puzzle or a clue. In each the reader will find something to intrigue and delight. * Spectator *Two Girls is a lovingly crafted little book, from the table of contents - where chapter titles are hidden in a crossword designed by the great Araucaria - to the index, which skips from "I give up, see frustration" via "primness in American crosswords", to finish with "zookeepers, beleaguered". * The Times *A lovingly crafted little book . . . Connor's wry, good-natured tone and his commitment to the serious business of play make him the perfect guide to a great pastime as it approaches its 100th birthday * Daily Telegraph *Connor writes with great flair . . . it is nice to dip in and out of his entertaining essays * Church Times *An ideal stocking filler * Metro *The brilliant new book on crosswords that delivers fun galore whether you're a doer or a duffer * Mail on Sunday *There is something to entertain even the most infrequent dabbler * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisThis ambitious and thought-provoking new work offers an overarching analysis of decision-making in all walks of life.

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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 SynopsisIn his Enquiry Edmund Burke overturned the Platonic tradition in aesthetics and replaced metaphysics with psychology. His revolutions in method and sensibility influenced later philosophers and literary and artistic movements from the Gothic novel to Romanticism and beyond. This new edition guides the reader through Burke's arguments.Trade ReviewBurke's 'Enquiry' is essential reading on aesthetics. Paul Guyer's new edition helps the reader get the most out of the text, with a clear and thought-provoking introduction and excellent notes. * Minerva, Lucia Marchini *

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Book SynopsisFor nineteenth-century Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt, the Italian Renaissance was nothing less than the beginning of the modern world - a world in which flourishing individualism and the competition for fame radically transformed science, the arts, and politics. In this landmark work he depicts the Italian city-states of Florence, Venice and Rome as providing the seeds of a new form of society, and traces the rise of the creative individual, from Dante to Michelangelo. A fascinating description of an era of cultural transition, this nineteenth-century masterpiece was to become the most influential interpretation of the Italian Renaissance, and anticipated ideas such as Nietzsche's concept of the 'Ubermensch' in its portrayal of an age of genius.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history Trade Review“The greatest single book on the history of Italy between 1350 and 1550.”—Hajo Holborn

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Book SynopsisSteven Johnson''s Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities and Software is a fascinating look at how self-organising systems are changing the world. Why do people cluster together in neighborhoods? How do internet communities spring up from nowhere? Why is a brain conscious even though no single neuron is? What causes a media frenzy?The answer, as Steven Johnson''s groundbreaking book shows, is emergence: change that occurs from the bottom up. When enough individual elements interact and organize themselves, the result is collective intelligence - even though no-one is in charge. It is a phenomenon that exists at every level of experience, and will revolutionize the way we see the world. ''Exhilarating'' J.G. Ballard ''A dizzying, dazzling romp through fields as disparate as urban planning, computer-game design, neurology and control theory'' Economist ''Mind-expanding ... intelligent, witty and tremenTable of ContentsPart one: The myth of the ant queen. Part two: Street level; the pattern match; listening to feedback; control artist. Part three: The mind readers; see what happens.

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Book SynopsisFrom Steven Johnson, the bestselling author of Where Good Ideas Come From, comes How We Got to Now, the companion book to his six-part BBC One television series exploring the power and the legacy of great ideas.How did photography bring about social reform? What connects refrigeration to Hollywood? And how did our battle against dirt help create smartphones? In this story of ingenious breakthroughs and unsung heroes, Steven Johnson explores the essential innovations that changed the world and how we live in it.'A new Steven Johnson book is something not to be missed. The author has become the leading writer on how inventions happen' Daniel Finkelstein, The Times, Books of the Year'Graceful and compelling ... you'll find yourself exhilarated' The New York Times Book Review'Readable, entertaining, and a challenge to any jaded sensibility that has become inured to the everyday miracles all around us' Peter Forbes, Guardian'This nimble history of invention . . .is a many-layered delight' Nature

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Book SynopsisMore than ever before, the Renaissance stands as one of the defining moments in world history. Between 1400 and 1600, European perceptions of society, culture, politics and even humanity itself emerged in ways that continue to affect not only Europe but the entire world. This wide-ranging exploration of the Renaissance sees the period as a time of unprecedented intellectual excitement and cultural experimentation and interaction on a global scale, alongside a darker side of religion, intolerance, slavery, and massive inequality of wealth and status. It guides the reader through the key issues that defined the period, from its art, architecture, and literature, to advancements in the fields of science, trade, and travel. In its incisive account of the complexities of the political and religious upheavals of the period, the book argues that Europe''s reciprocal relationship with its eastern neighbours offers us a timely perspective on the Renaissance that still has much to teach us todayTrade ReviewReview from previous edition a young Turk who likes to entertain . . . Brotton's book is full of arts and crafts . . .engaging and alluring . . .This is a Renaissance you can touch and feel * Sunday Times *energetic and committed agenda * Financial Times *offers some impressive fresh evidence * Independent *this is a Renaissance you can touch and feel * Felipe Fernandez-Armesto *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. A global Renaissance ; 2. The humanist script ; 3. Church and state ; 4. Brave New Worlds ; 5. Science and Philosophy ; 6. Rewriting the Renaissance ; Timeline ; Further Reading ; Index

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Book SynopsisTHE PERFECT GIFT FOR ALL BIBLIOMANIACS A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, SPECTATOR AND DAILY MAIL A WATERSTONES BEST POPULAR SCIENCE BOOK Plunge into this rich and thought-provoking A-Z compendium to discover how our fixations have taken shape, from the Middle Ages to the present day, as bestselling author Kate Summerscale deftly traces the threads between the past and present, the psychological and social, the personal and the political. 'Fascinating' Malcolm Gaskill, author of the No. 1 bestseller The Ruin of All Witches 'Fascinating' Observer 'An endlessly intriguing book ... All the bibliomanes (book nutters) I know will love it' Daily MailTrade ReviewFascinating ... Summerscale uses the same talent for elaborating on psychological tics that made her non-fiction thriller The Suspicions Of Mr. Whicher a top bestseller * Mail on Sunday *This fascinating compendium traces phobias and manias through their rich social, cultural and medical history -- Hannah Beckerman * Observer *An endlessly intriguing book * Daily Mail *Magnificent -- Marcus BerkmannThought-provoking, eloquent and entertaining * Fortean Times *Endlessly fascinating. It's a tantalising glimpse into the labyrinth of the human unconscious -- The TabletAmusing and oddly unsettling * The Times *Fascinating ... Phobias and manias create a magical space between us and the world -- Malcolm Gaskill, author of the No. 1 bestseller The Ruin of All WitchesWe are all, in some way or other, plagued by fears and desires beyond our control ... Fascinating, beautifully written and thoroughly researched * Irish Times *Thought-provoking and such fun -- Ian Mortimer, bestselling author of The Time Traveller's GuidesA fascinating book -- David CrystalA new book from Summerscale is always a treat. She does vast amounts of research, and then manages to let go of it, and take flight in prose that is both forensic and conversational ... Her sub-title - 'A History of the World in 99 Obsessions' - might echo Neil MacGregor, but this reads more like a book by Oliver Sacks, with dashes of Roald Dahl * Spectator *An intriguing guide to human fixations * Guardian *Fascinating... Exquisitely detailed and consistently insightful, this is an entertaining guide to humanity's compulsions * Publishers Weekly *99 hard-to-stop-reading histories ... from the familiar (homophobia) to surprising fears of eggs, hair, silence and everything (pantophobia) * Chicago Tribune *Informative, witty, and unique ... Summerscale, author of The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher and other well-regarded books, lists 99 fears and compulsions, and the result is a peculiarly engaging book * Kirkus *

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Book SynopsisThe Right and the Good, a classic of twentieth-century philosophy by the great scholar Sir David Ross, is now presented in a new edition. Ross''s book, originally published in 1930, is the pinnacle of ethical intuitionism, which was the dominant moral theory in British philosophy for much of the nineteenth and early twentieth century. The central concern of the book is with rightness and goodness, and their relation. Ross argues against notable rival ethical theories. The right act, he held, cannot be derived from the moral value of the motive from which it is done. Furthermore, rightness is not wholly determined by the value of the consequences of one''s action, whether this value is some benefit for the agent, or some agent-neutral good. Rather, the right act is determined by a plurality of self-evident prima facie duties. Ross portrayed rightness and goodness as simple non-natural properties. Philip Stratton-Lake, a leading expert on Ross, provides a substantial new Introduction, in which he discusses the central themes of The Right and the Good and clears up some common misunderstandings. A new bibliography and index are also included, along with editorial notes which aim to clarify certain points and indicate where Ross later changed his mind on particular issues. Intuitionism is now enjoying a considerable revival, and this new edition provides the context for a proper understanding of Ross''s great work.Trade ReviewReview from previous edition Ross's The Right and the Good remains a classic statement of the idea that moral philosophy should place respect for the variety of moral phenomena above the urge for systematic unification. We still have much to learn from it. * Charles Larmore, Columbia University *Table of ContentsIntroduction and bibliography ; 1. The Meaning of 'Right' ; 2. What Makes Right Acts Right? ; Appendix 1 Rights ; Appendix 2 Punishment ; 3. The Meaning of 'Good' ; 4. The Nature of Goodness ; 5. What Things are Good? ; 6. Degrees of Goodness ; 7. Moral Goodness ; Index

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Book SynopsisBooker wining novelist, playwright, essayist, poet and critic - even admirers rarely know John Berger in all his literary incarnations. This collection of essays takes a look at his career. Berger's wide-ranging essays emphasise the continuities that have underpinned more than 40 years of tireless intellectual inquiry and political engagement.

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Book SynopsisFrom the New York Times bestselling author of Lost in Translation comes an illustrated manifesto and an interactive guide to reclaiming the wonder of the everyday through mindful activities, creative exercises and heart-warming stories.In a world that sometimes moves too fast, Ella Frances Sanders is on a mission to remind us all to slow down and find beauty in the ordinary as a balm for the soul. Part meditation, part self-help guide and part interactive journal, Everything, Beautiful invites us to rethink what 'beauty' can be, why it matters and how we can find it all around us if we just stop to look. It is a reminder that each day all of us are surrounded by beauty that can't be bought: spiderwebs only seen in the sunlight, the greenish glow of a fox's eyes watching in the dark, or the comforting screech of the train that takes you to your many futures.Filled with thoughtful, intimate and brilliant insights, inspirational quotes, breathtaking illustrations and space for readers of all ages to write, draw and reflect on their own ideas of beauty, Everything, Beautiful is the perfect book for everyone who wants to reclaim a sense of wonder in their everyday lives.Trade ReviewFilled with captivating stories, prompts, hand-lettered quotes, and illustrations, Sanders' book expands our perspective to include those imperfect, messy, and even heartbreaking moments in this new definition of beauty. * Mindful Magazine *[A] sweet outing ... The full-colour illustrations are charmingly stylized, prioritizing mood over realism and successfully evoking the wonder in the banal. The result offers a whimsical and winsome reconsideration of the mundane * Publishers Weekly *A collection of words you never knew you needed before * Huffington Post for 'Lost in Translation' *Charming illustrations and sheer linguistic delight * Maria Popova, Brain Pickings, for 'Lost in Translation' *A fantastic collection of words without English counterparts * Entertainment Weekly, for 'Lost in Translation' *Words you never knew you needed but now can't live without * Saga Magazine, for 'Lost in Translation' *A charming collection of idioms that get lost in translation ... these are the sayings that you learn when immersed in a culture. From the bleak to the romantic and straight-up weird, each one is explained in words and pictures-perfectly outlining the sometimes hard-to-comprehend concepts. There are too many favorites to list. * Cool Hunting, for 'Speaking in Tongues' *Ell Frances Sanders ... unlocks phrases that are unusual and delightful to the ears and, through charming illustrations, easy on the eyes * Fathom, for 'Speaking in Tongues' *... will make you think, laugh and discover situations you never knew there was a word for * Elle Canada for 'Lost in Translation' *A charming little book with delightful illustrations * The San Fransisco Chronicle, for 'Speaking in Tongues' *

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Book SynopsisThe world of work is full of ideas. Some are even useful, shaping the work we do and the way we do it. But it can often be hard to sort the wheat from the chaff. When ideas really do break new ground and change the way we think about what we do and how, they can help all of us to be better, happier and more productive. The trick is to know which ones offer the most reliable guide, and how they can be adapted and deployed to best effect. By summarizing and explaining the best of this thinking, 50 Ideas that Changed the World of Work is both digest and route map, an invaluable and insightful guide to navigating the world of work today.

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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 SynopsisThis sweeping history of classical economics shows how the work ethic has been used both to oppress workers and to liberate them. Today''s neoliberalism offers an oppressive version of the work ethic. However, the work ethic also offers resources for reorganizing the economy on behalf of ordinary people--Trade Review'Hijacked is an important and fascinating book that tells the spellbinding story of the struggle between conservatives and progressives over the Protestant work ethic. Nobody matches Anderson's distinctive combination of historical, political, and philosophical insight.' Stephen Darwall, author of Modern Moral Philosophy: From Grotius to Kant'This critical examination of the Protestant work ethic and its evolution in social and economic theory outlines the challenges of preserving rewarding and purposeful work in liberal economies where free market capitalism has eroded both aspirations and capabilities, undermining the intrinsic dignity and meaning of work.' Richard Donkin, author of The History of Work'Most of us will spend a significant part of our lives at work. But work conditions differ radically and the working poor often face brutal and dehumanizing workplaces. In this brilliant book, Anderson uncovers the role of a skewed version of the work ethic in shaping these harsh conditions. This skewed version turned the values of industry, prudence, and frugality against workers, while leaving the predatory and idle rich off the hook. Not only does Anderson offer a subtle diagnosis of the origins of today's stigmatization and deprivation of the poor, but she offers creative ideas for reclaiming the work ethic in the service of democracy. Her superb analysis, connecting political philosophy with both history and political economy, will stimulate wide debate.' Debra Satz, coauthor of Economic Analysis, Moral Philosophy, and Public Policy'As rigorous as it is approachable, this poignant plea for worker dignity contextualizes one of today's most salient economic issues.' Publishers Weekly'If we arm ourselves with Elizabeth Anderson's superb history of the work ethic, we obtain a powerful lens with which to explore at a perfect time - during party conference season - how different visions of work form the beating heart of ideological struggle.' Morning StarTable of ContentsPreface; 1. The dual nature of the Protestant work ethic and the birth of utilitarianism; 2. Locke and the progressive work ethic; 3. How conservatives hijacked the work ethic and turned it against workers; 4. Welfare reform, famine, and the ideology of the conservative work ethic; 5. The progressive work ethic (1): Smith, Ricardo, and Ricardian socialists; 6. The progressive work ethic (2): J. S. Mill; 7. The progressive work ethic (3): Marx; 8. Social democracy as the culmination of the progressive work ethic; 9. Hijacked again: Neoliberalism as the return of the conservative work ethic; 10. Conclusion: What should the work ethic mean for us today?; Acknowledgments; Major works cited; Notes; Index.

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Book SynopsisFor more than two centuries, our political life has been divided between a party of progress and a party of conservation. In The Great Debate , Yuval Levin explores the origins of the left/right divide by examining the views of the men who best represented each side of that debate at its outset: Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine. In a ground-breaking exploration of the roots of our political order, Levin shows that American partisanship originated in the debates over the French Revolution, fueled by the fiery rhetoric of these ideological titans. Levin masterfully shows how Burke''s and Paine''s differing views, a reforming conservatism and a restoring progressivism, continue to shape our current political discourse,on issues ranging from abortion to welfare, education, economics, and beyond. Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand Washington''s often acrimonious rifts, The Great Debate offers a profound examination of what conservatism, liberalism, and the debate between them truly amount to.Trade Review"Yuval Levin, whose sharp thinking was honed at the University of Chicago's Committee on Social Thought...is one of conservatism's most sophisticated and measured explicators." -George F. Will, Washington Post "The Great Debate's architecture is clever and intellectually persuasive... A thoughtful introduction to this famous paradigmatic opposition." -Washington Post "Levin enters into another great debate that riles academia: between historians insisting upon the uniqueness and specificity of events, which defy abstractions and generalizations, and philosophers impatient with the ephemera and contingency of events, which do not rise to the level of truth and certainty. Here too he rises to the occasion, satisfying the scruples of historians and philosophers alike. From a debate raged about an event centuries ago, he deduces truths that illuminate some of our most vexing political and social problems today." -Weekly Standard "A judicious, nuanced, and accessible precis that reveals both Burke and Paine to be complicated and compelling thinkers. This sympathetic treatment of the two men, in turn, allows Levin to paint an intellectual picture of right and left that is more gray than black and white, something all too rare today." -Democracy Journal "[Has] potential to have long-lasting impact on a reader... Levin's book forces the reader to stop and create space for thought and reflection, and does not spoon-feed easy answers or applications to today's politics. It does, however, raise serious questions about whether the new obsession with 'data-based' decision-making, the Nate Silver-ization of journalism and politics, could be taken too far if we come to believe that everything in public life can be answered by the scientific method. It also poses significant queries worth grappling with for those rightly concerned about the growing gap between rich and poor. Levin echoes Burke's challenge to reformers to proceed with caution, and with humility." -Huffington Post "The Great Debate's excellent writing about 18th-century history and political theory will inform and educate readers." -Washington Independent Review of Books "In this rigorous yet accessible work, Levin contextualizes the positions of British philosopher Edmund Burke, who has been viewed as both the founder of modern conservatism and an example of classical liberalism, and Thomas Paine, the author of several classic political texts, including Common Sense and The Rights of Man." -Shelf Awareness "Levin's critique of liberalism is powerful and to be expected. But what makes his book much more interesting is his truly trenchant critique of his fellow conservatives as well. And it is a critique well-taken. I'd be much tougher on them, but this book is a tonic for a new discourse." -Andrew Sullivan, The Dish "Must-read primer on America's ideological faultline...[a] wonderful new book...a readable intellectual history that fairly crackles with contemporary relevance. The must-read book of the year for conservatives--especially those conservatives who are profoundly and genuinely baffled by the declining popularity of the GOP as a national party." -American Conservative's State of the Union Blog "Mr. Levin, the editor of the journal National Affairs and a former aide to both Speaker Gingrich and President George W. Bush, provides a valuable service by dusting off the writings of Burke and Paine and by clearly, concisely, and accessibly summarizing them in a way that highlights their relevance to contemporary politics and policy... The monarchist Burke and the religious skeptic Paine, an early supporter of the bloody French revolution, would seem to be unlikely models for today's American politicians of either party. But Mr. Levin has made a convincing case that, 200 years later, we can still learn from both men." -New York Sun "Two seminal thinkers anticipate the modern split between progressives and conservatives in this insightful study of 18th-century political theory. National Affairs editor Levin presents a lucid analysis of the ideological confrontation between Paine...and Burke...he succeeds in establishing the continued relevance of Burke's thought and prescient critique of revolutionary excesses." --Publishers Weekly "Making intricate contrasts between Paine and Burke throughout, Levin perceptively demonstrates the philosophical routes to liberalism and conservatism for politics-minded readers." --Booklist "The Great Debate brilliantly brings out the richness of the tradition underlying our politics. It reminds us that politics is an intellectually serious thing that deserves better than the shallowness and cynicism that fills our political conversations. It reminds us that the right and left are each rooted in a desire to see politics serve the cause of human flourishing, even if they understand that cause very differently. And by the way, Burke was right." --Peggy Noonan, columnist, The Wall Street Journal "Yuval Levin's lucid and learned investigation of our origins is not only a study in the history of ideas, it is also a summons to first principles. Like Burke and Paine, Levin believes that philosophies are buried in the shabbiness of politics. His book is both clarifying and complicating: he writes sympathetically about both sides of the heroic disputation that he describes, and so his book will have the salutary effect of shattering ideological complacence. In our infamously polarized climate, The Great Debate may even be a public service." --Leon Wieseltier "The Great Debate is an exciting, narrative adventure in the contest of ideas. With two world-shaking revolutions as background, Levin brilliantly explains how two great minds shaped the broad debate between left and right that still governs our political debates today." --William J. Bennett, former Secretary of Education and author of America: The Last Best Hope "The polarized character of contemporary American politics is widely noted, yet the intellectual origins of the division between right and left remain obscure. In his deeply historically informed and elegantly argued book, Yuval Levin casts a brilliant light on the matter. It is a work of lasting significance that will instruct liberals and conservatives alike on their intellectual heritage." --Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions, Princeton UniversityTable of ContentsOne. Two Lives in the Arena Two. Nature and History Three. Justice and Order Four. Choice and Obligation Five. Reason and Prescription Six. Revolution and Reform Seven. Generations and the Living

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Book SynopsisContemporary capitalism produces more and more money, debt, and inequality. These three trends have a common cause: the privilege of private banks to create money by means of accounting - by the stroke of a key. Why was this privilege not addressed politically for so long - and who benefited from it? At the heart of the answer lies the realization that the power to create money has been hidden by the way we commonly think and talk about capitalism. The book traces the omission of money creation from theories of capitalism and maps its consequences. By expanding the manoeuvring space for the banks to use their privilege, the capitalist countries have financed a transformation of the economy known as financialization. As a result, the real economy and private households became a debt supplier to a monetary system whose returns accumulate at the top. It is not simply "the markets" but money itself that transfers economic benefits from the masses to a minority. Increasing inequality of income and wealth can therefore only be combated if one does not only correct distributive results of markets-redistribution-, but addresses predistribution: the modalities of money creation.Trade ReviewIn the money-creation privilege of private banks, Aaron Sahr discovers a precarious mechanism of inequality reinforcement to which the regulation of capitalist economic activity has paid far too little attention to date. -- Hanno Pahl, University of Bonn, Germany * Neue soziologische Beiträge zur Kapitalismusanalyse: Ein Einblick. In: Soziologische Revue 42 (3), S. 405–417. DOI: 10.1515/srsr-2019-0050 *Sahr has successfully identified the structures that privilege so few and put so many at a disadvantage. The way in which the author presents these issues, unravels the connections and structures, and elucidates the illegitimacy of the money-production privilege adds up to an outstanding piece of sociological scholarship. -- Stefan Freichel * Monetative Blog *The uncontrolled creation of money by private banks should interest us all, because it creates a permanent redistribution from the poor to the rich, says the highly interesting 'Keystroke Capitalism'. -- Mathias Sonne * Information (Newspaper), DK *This book an accessible synthesis of a good deal of the literature, with interesting although by no means final political ideas. -- Wolfgang StreeckAaron Sahr's book provides a highly accessible synthesis of the state of knowledge on modern money and how it affects the political economy. Readers learn about the nature of fiat money and fiat credit and their contribution the financialization of contemporary capitalism, the conflicts it generates, and the consequences for the state and public policy. -- Wolfgang StreeckWhy and how did a company with a huge cash pile in the bank - Apple Inc - set out to borrow $17 billion in 2013? How did the world's billionaire class accumulate $418 trillion US dollars - an amount five times world income - in the blink of an eye? The answers can be found in this admirably accessible book on the way the globalised, private financial system generates 'keystroke wealth' and 'keystroke capital gains' - but also its nemesis - 'keystroke debt'. A must-read for all those fretting about the likely next crisis in the evolution of financialised capitalism. -- Ann Pettifor

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Book SynopsisHow to Be Perfect meets The Daily Stoic in this witty, entertaining, highly giftable compendium of quotidian wisdomTrade Review'A tour de force of philosophical frivolity that enlightens as well as entertains' Philosophy Now

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Book Synopsis'A fascinating, comprehensive study that forces us to think again about what law is, and why it matters ... For those who want to understand why human society has emerged as it has, this is essential reading' Rana Mitter, author of China's Good War The laws now enforced throughout the world are almost all modelled on systems developed in Europe in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. During two hundred years of colonial rule, Europeans exported their laws everywhere they could. But they weren't filling a void: in many places, they displaced traditions that were already ancient when Vasco Da Gama first arrived in India. Where, then, did it all begin? And what has law been and done over the course of human history? In The Rule of Laws, pioneering anthropologist Fernanda Pirie traces the development of the world's great legal systems - Chinese, Indian, Roman, and Islamic - and the innumerable smaller traditions they inspired.Trade ReviewFascinating, insightful and gripping, The Rule of Laws provides a comprehensive exploration of the history underpinning our modern legal systems. A triumph -- The Secret BarristerAn ambitious account of the rise and fall of the world's great legal systems ... richly informative and consistently thought-provoking .. Fernanda Pirie's work will command, and deserve, a wide readership -- Jonathan Sumption * TLS *Exceptionally rich -- Andrew Stark * Wall Street Journal *The Rule of Laws offers a pathbreaking and stimulating account of how societies across different regions and epochs drew upon secular, sacred, and scholarly traditions to create laws that organized the lives of their citizens ... This expansive narrative challenges what we think we know about legal history and the assumptions we make about law's future -- Edward J. Watts, author * Mortal Republic: How Rome Fell into Tyranny *The Rule of Laws is a fascinating, comprehensive study that forces us to think again about what law is, and why it matters ... For those who want to understand why human society has emerged as it has, this is essential reading -- Rana Mitter, author * China's Good War *In the exploration of Big questions concerning the law, legality, legal traditions and suchlike, [The Rule of Laws] will occupy an important position. It asks some fundamental questions, including where did the concept of law - and thence of the rule of law - originate? ... A vast canvas ... magisterial * The Commonwealth Lawyer *Agile [and] convincing ... A valuable study for students of the law and its evolution over the millennia * Kirkus *In this panoramic history, Pirie tells the story of the rise and fall of systems of law across the civilizations, empires, and societies of the ancient and modern world ... Pirie argues that if the history of law has a common theme, it is that laws are not simply rules -- G. John Ikenberry * Foreign Affairs *An intriguing synthesis of the history of global legal codes and their origins -- Jeffrey Meyer * Library Journal *The Rule of Laws is a great overview of the history of law, covering four millennia and many different societies ... accessible to a wide readership. It dispels ideas that our current Western form of law is natural and by doing so, give us the liberty to question how it can be used or altered to make the world a better place. It also leaves us with the idea that it can be taken away * Open Letters Review *

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Book SynopsisA Waterstones Best Book of 2020The theory of evolution by natural selection did not spring fully formed and unprecedented from the brain of Charles Darwin. Rather it has been examined and debated by philosophers the world over for thousands of years.This lively history traces the evolution of the idea of evolution, showing how it has changed and been changed by different societies over time. It will put ''Darwin's Dangerous Idea'' into its proper context, showing how it built on what went before and how it was developed in the twentieth century, through an understanding of genetics and the biochemical basis evolution. None of this diminishes the achievement of Darwin himself in perceiving the way evolution works at the level of individuals and species, but his contribution was one link in a chain that extends back into antiquity, and is still being forged today.Trade ReviewPraise for John and Mary Gribbin: ‘Elegant and meticulously researched … this is a most enjoyable book’ The Observatory ‘Mary and John Gribbin write with great clarity’ Guardian ‘Precise yet mysterious … as beautiful as a poem and as exciting as a novel’ Sunday Times ‘Immensely readable’ The Times

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Book SynopsisA wonderfully written and entertaining book which places Britain under the microscope and asks who we are today and how we've changed as a nation.Entertaining and absorbing' The Sunday Times In 1841 there were 734 female midwives working in Britain, along with 9 artificial eye makers, 20 peg makers, 6 stamp makers and 1 bee dealer. Fast forward nearly two centuries and there are 51,000 midwives working in the UK and not an eye maker in sight! For the past two centuries, the National Census has been monitoring the behaviour of the British: our work-lives, homes lives and strange cultural habits. With questions on occupation, housing, religion, travel and family, the Census is a snapshot of a country at any given epoch, and its findings have informed the economy, politics and every other national matter for decades that followed.Now, for the first time ever, the Census findings of the past two centuries are collected in to a wonderfully written and entertaining book which places BritainTrade Review'This book feels like an early stocking filler. It is entertaining and absorbing… the statistical detail can be illuminating.’ The Sunday Times ‘A statistical history of Britain fit for the census year…short, readable and rigorous.’ The Financial Times

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Book SynopsisHe becomes everyman's guide to everything exciting in the history of ideas' New York Review of BooksIsaiah Berlin was one of the leading thinkers of the twentieth century, and one of the finest writers. The Proper Study Of Mankind selects some of his best essays in which his insights both illuminate the past and offer a key to the burning issues of today.The full (and enormous) range of his work is represented here, from the exposition of his most distinctive doctrine - pluralism - to studies of Machiavelli, Tolstoy, Churchill and Roosevelt. In these pages he encapsulates the principal movements that characterise the modern age: romanticism, historicism, Fascism, relativism, irrationalism and nationalism. His ideas are always tied to the people who conceived them, so that abstractions are brought alive. EDITED BY HENRY HARDY AND ROGER HAUSHEER AND WITH A NEW FOREWORD BY ANDREW MARRTrade ReviewHe speaks with such infectious energy that he sweeps us up and carries us with him into territory that had seemed inaccessible. He becomes everyman's guide to everything exciting in the history of ideas * New York Review of Books *A restatement of liberalism in a form by which the world could live * Observer *His uniqueness can be very well sampled in this admirable selection... Large as it is, it can serve only to stimulate the appetite * Evening Standard *The pleasure in reading Berlin lies in the clarity of the argument, in the laying out of his monumental sentences and paragraphs each of which is complete in itself while part of the greater and seemingly irrefutable whole which is gradually and massively revealed * Observer *

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Book SynopsisRich with tales of discovery from Galileo to general relativity, a stimulating and timely analysis of how science works and why we need it. ''The best introduction to the scientific enterprise that I know. A wonderful and important book'' David Wootton, author of The Invention of Science It is only in the last three centuries that the formidable knowledge-making machine we call modern science has transformed our way of life and our vision of the universe - two thousand years after the invention of law, philosophy, drama and mathematics. Why did we take so long to invent science? And how has it proved to be so powerful? The Knowledge Machine gives a radical answer, exploring how science calls on its practitioners to do something apparently irrational: strip away all previous knowledge - such as theological, metaphysical or political beliefs - and channel unprecedented energy into observation and experiment. In timesTrade ReviewThe best introduction to the scientific enterprise that I know. Its brevity and simplicity cannot conceal the boldness of its conception, the extraordinary scope of its ambition. A wonderful and important book. -- David Wootton, author of The Invention of ScienceA stylish and accessible investigation into the nature of the scientific method. -- Nigel Warburton * Philosophy Bites *This elegant book takes us to the heart of the scientific enterprise. -- David Papineau, King's College London, author of Knowing the ScoreThis book is a delight to read, richly illustrated with wonderfully told incidents from the history of natural science. -- Nancy Cartwright, University of California San DiegoPowerful, bracingly argued and important. There is something here for everyone -- for the expert, who will be challenged to rethink what science really is; for the layperson, who will rejoice in Strevens's deft and witty storytelling; and for the student, who will find a friendly and authoritative guide to Newton, Einstein, Popper, Kuhn, and all that. -- Jim Holt, author of 'Why Does the World Exist?'Beautifully lucid and accessible. A rare achievement, it is entertaining and edifying all at once. -- Paul Boghassian, New York UniversityAn engaging must-read. -- Manjit Kumar, author of QuantumThe most stunningly illuminating book of the last several decades regarding the all-important scientific enterprise. Not only profoundly insightful but rollicking good fun. -- Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Plato at the GoogleplexAs thrilling to read as it is important. Captivating. -- Nathan Heller, New Yorker staff writer

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Book SynopsisChosen as a Book of the Year by The Times, Daily Telegraph, TLS, BBC History Magazine and Tablet''Compulsive, brilliantly clear and superbly well-written, it''s a charismatic evocation of another world'' Ian Mortimer, author of The Time Traveller''s Guide to Medieval EnglandThe Middle Ages were a time of wonder. They gave us the first universities, the first eyeglasses and the first mechanical clocks as medieval thinkers sought to understand the world around them, from the passing of the seasons to the stars in the sky. In this book, we walk the path of medieval science with a real-life guide, a fourteenth-century monk named John of Westwyk - inventor, astrologer, crusader - who was educated in England''s grandest monastery and exiled to a clifftop priory. Following the traces of his life, we learn to see the natural world through Brother John''s eyes: navigating by the stars, multiplying Roman numerals, curing disease and tTrade ReviewStunning: both exquisitely written and so very clever. By following the life of one little-known monk, John of Westwyk, Falk opens up for us the sophisticated and utterly different ways in which people in the Middle Ages thought and makes us question our assumptions about the medieval past. -- Suzannah Lipscomb * BBC History Magazine Books of the Year *Turns our understanding of medieval science on its head ... Falk shows how scientific inquiries central to the Renaissance actually began generations earlier than we thought, and despite our perception of the church as the enemy of science, those intellectual pioneers were often monks * The Telegraph Books of the Year *As fascinating as it is exquisitely written . . . the range of mathematics, astronomy, and engineering is impressive. More impressive still is the elegance with which Falk tells the tale -- Tom Whipple * Times Books of the Year *Remarkable ... a book that illuminates not just the visionaries of the past but also the troubled state of anti-intellectualism in the modern world * Financial Times *"Might it change minds?" is my criterion. The Light Ages might. Seb Falk's dazzling study of a late-medieval scientist is an uncontainably tentacular monograph, reaching from a windswept cell at Tynemouth, where John of Westwyck built an astrolabe, to penetrate unexplored recesses of the history and philosophy of science, and extending across Christendom into the cultures that surrounded and informed it. Falk excises errors about the Middle Ages without filleting their enchantment -- Felipe Fernández-Armesto * TLS Books of the Year *Unambiguously and successfully an antidote to the cliché of the 'Dark Ages' as a millennium of stagnation and regression . . . Falk's approach is to explain the things we share with our medieval forebears and the things we differ on: to reveal how they saw the universe * Literary Review *Riveting. . . a brilliant study of medieval astronomy and learning . . . I agree with Falk. We need to give more respect to the giants of the Middle Ages on whose shoulders we stand * Spectator *Fascinating . . . the Dark Ages were anything but dark; Falk's book is a lucid and eloquent reproof to anyone who says otherwise * Prospect *Seb Falk lays out the wonders of medieval science. . . The mechanical clock, spectacles, advances in navigation, a grasp of tides and currents - these were among the achievements of the Middle Ages * The Economist *A wonderful book, as at home bringing to life the obscure details of a Hertfordshire monk as it is explicating the infinite reaches of space and time. Required reading for anyone who thinks that the Middle Ages were a dark age -- Tom Holland, author of DominionCompulsive, brilliantly clear, and superbly well-written, The Light Ages is more than just a very good book on medieval science: it's a charismatic evocation of another world. Seb Falk uses the monk John of Westwyk to weld us into the medieval ways of imagining as well as thinking. And there are surprises galore for everyone, no matter how knowledgeable they may think they are. I can't recommend it highly enough -- Ian Mortimer, author of The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval EnglandIf you think the term 'medieval science' is a contradiction then you should read this hugely enlightening and important book -- Jim Al-Khalili, Author of The World According to PhysicsLike a fictional scientist cloning dinosaurs from wisps of DNA, Seb Falk takes barely surviving fragments of evidence about an almost forgotten astronomer in a storm-chilled, clifftop cell to conjure the vast, teeming world of scientific research, practice and invention in the late Middle Ages. Profoundly scholarly, wonderfully lucid and grippingly vivid, The Light Ages will awe the pedants and delight the public -- Felipe Fernández-Armesto, author of Out of Our MindsSeb Falk has framed a fascinating book around his personal quest to understand how scientific thinking flourished. The Light Ages reveals the intellectual sophistication that flourished against a backdrop of ritual and liturgy. It offers for most of us a novel perspective on a 'dark' historical era, and should fascinate a wide readership -- Lord Martin Rees, author of On the FutureLong before the word 'scientist' was coined, John of Westwyk devised a precision instrument to explore the universe and our place in it. Falk recreates the schooling of this ordinary (if gadget-obsessed) medieval monk in loving detail. There's a world of science on every page -- Nancy Marie Brown, author of The Abacus and the Cross

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Book SynopsisThis book is about four cornerstones of modern thought that were put in place by people living in the ancient Mediterranean world. It covers approximately 2,000 years in time (from ca. 1000 BCE to 1000 CE) and spatially moves from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Mesopotamia (roughly, modern Iraq), through Greece and Rome, to the new Germanic states growing in what is now western Europe. The four ideas, as author H. A. Drake proposes, are monotheism, the idea that there is only one god, not many; individual rights, the idea that there is a limit to what the state can order us to do; naturalized citizenship, the idea that the full rights and privileges of citizenship can be extended to people who have no birthright to them; and creation of a standard by which to judge the performance of states. It is easy, now, to take these ideas for granted. For believers, it seems obvious that only a singular, omnipotent deity can account for the splendour of the universe. Similarly, the common n

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