History Books

Book SynopsisHaving banished eastern Native peoples to lands west of the Mississippi, President Andrew Jackson's government by 1833 needed a new type of soldier to keep displaced Indians from returning home. And so the 1st Dragoons came into being. Will and John Gorenfeld tell their story in this book-length treatment of the force that became the US Cavalry.Trade ReviewThis is a wonderful account of the early, golden years of the 1st Dragoons, the regular army's first mounted regiment, which spent its formative years as restrained diplomats, peacekeepers, intermediaries, and even protectors of the Southern Plains tribes. It is also the honest account of the unit's surprising decline after its conquest of New Mexico and the departure of such superior officers as Stephen Watts Kearny. Grounded in a wealth of primary sources and extraordinary research, it is a gracefully written story."" - William P. MacKinnon, author of At Sword's Point: A Documentary History of the Utah War, Parts 1 and 2""Kearny's Dragoons Out West is the culmination of decades of research. The Gorenfelds have woven the definitive narrative on what has far too long been an overlooked aspect of frontier military history."" - John P. Langellier, author of US Dragoons, 1833 - 55""Finally, the storied 1st U.S. Dragoons have received historical treatment worthy of the regiment's distinguished service from its inception through the U.S.-Mexican War. The Gorenfelds have done an outstanding service to the field of U.S. military history."" - Durwood Ball, coeditor of Soldiers West: Biographies from the Military Frontier, Second Edition

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Book SynopsisDISCOVER THE MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMAN THAT ENGLISH HISTORY FORGOTPart of the ALL-NEW LADYBIRD EXPERT SERIES.- Who was Æthelflæd?- What role did she play in the founding of England?- How has her legacy lasted to this day?DISCOVER the epic history of England''s forgotten queen. Planting cities, sponsoring learning and defeating her people''s enemies, Æthelflæd laid the foundations of a kingdom that lasts to this day.Tom Holland''s Æthelflæd puts a spotlight on this formidable leader, pulling her out of the shadowy history of the dark ages.Trade ReviewA concise, appealing account from a leading name in the field * History Revealed *The artwork is gloriously retro, echoing the original Ladybird house style but containing completely up to date information. * Shiny New Books *

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Book SynopsisThe terror campaign by pro-Indonesian armed groups before, during, and after East Timor''s independence referendum in 1999 was a blatant challenge to the international community as many of the acts of murder, political intimidation, destruction, and mass deportation took place before the eyes of the world. Yet still the ultimate responsibility has been denied and obscured. Masters of Terror provides an authoritative analysis and documentation of the brutal operations carried out by the Indonesian army and its East Timorese allies. The authors carefully assemble detailed accounts of the actions of the major Indonesian officers and East Timorese militia commanders accused of gross human rights violations. This indispensable work explores a horrific frontal attack on democracy and calls for the establishment of an international tribunal for crimes against humanity in East Timor.Trade ReviewThese useful essays . . . analyze the politics of East Timor's human rights disaster . . . . Recommended. * CHOICE *Table of Contents1 Introduction 2 Masters of Terror: The Indonesian Findings 3 Full Report of the Investigative Commission into Human Rights Violations in East Timor 4 The Key Suspects: An Introduction 5 Crimes against Humanity in East Timor 1999:The Key Suspects 6 Practical Justice in Doe v. Lumintang: The Successful Useof Civil Remedies against "an Enemy of All Mankind" 7 Silent Witness: Australian Intelligence and East Timor

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Book SynopsisHow did early modern scholarsas exemplified by Leibnizsearch for their origins in the study of language?Who are the nations of Europe, and where did they come from? Early modern people were as curious about their origins as we are today. Lacking twenty-first-century DNA research, seventeenth-century scholars turned to languageetymology, vocabulary, and even grammatical structurefor evidence. The hope was that, in puzzling out the relationships between languages, the relationships between nations themselves would emerge, and on that basis one could determine the ancestral homeland of the nations that presently occupied Europe. In Leibniz Discovers Asia, Michael C. Carhart explores this early modern practice by focusing on philosopher, scientist, and mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, who developed a vast network of scholars and missionaries throughout Europe to acquire the linguistic data he needed. The success of his project was tied to the Jesuit search for an overland route tTable of ContentsList of IllustrationsConventions1. Grimaldi at the Gates of Muscovy (Fall 1689)2. Making the Worst of a Bad Assignment: Origines Guelficae and the Linguistic Project (Autumn 1690-Summer 1692)3. Building the Network (Winter 1691-Summer 1692)4. The Jesuit Search for an Overland Route to China (1685-1689)5. Seeking the Languages of Grand Tartary (August 1693-December 1694)6. Assembling Novissima Sinica (February-September 1695)7. Johan Gabriel Sparwenfeld and Gothic Origins (November 1695-December 1697)8. The Grand Embassy of Peter the Great (Summer-Fall 1697)9. The Jesuits of Paris and China (1689, November 1697-March 1698)10. The Foundations of Modern Historical Linguistics (1697-1716)AcknowledgmentsAppendix I. "Desiderata circa linguas quorundam populorum"Appendix II. Plan for a Moscow Academy of Sciences and ArtsNotesBibliographyIndex of LettersGeneral Index

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Book Synopsisaeo This early book by Habermas is in fact one of his most important works. aeo The concept of the public sphere is now very topical and is directly relevant to current debates about television, newspapers, and the role of the media in politics. aeo This early book by Habermas is in fact one of his most important works.Trade Review'Why is this such a vital study? Its significance rests in its analysis of one of the central notions on which both our political life and our political theories rest: 'public opinion'. Presidential candidates worry about it, the press talks about it, political scientists try to measure it, but Habermas is one of the few people to have actually sat down and tried to think about it, to ask what it means to have an 'opinion' that is not private, not idiosyncratic, but rather 'public'.' James Schmidt, Boston UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction by Thomas McCarthy. Part I. Preliminary Demarcation of a Type of Bourgeois Public Sphere. Part II. Social Structures of the Public Sphere. Part III. Political Functions of the Public Sphere. Part IV. The Bourgeois Public Sphere: Idea and Ideology. Part V. The Social-Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere. Part VI. The Transformation of the Public Sphere's Political Function. Notes. Index.

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Book SynopsisIn this major new book, Wolfgang Behringer surveys the phenomenon of witchcraft past and present. Drawing on the latest historical and anthropological findings, Behringer sheds new light on the history of European witchcraft, while demonstrating that witch-hunts are not simply part of the European past. Although witch-hunts have long since been outlawed in Europe, other societies have struggled with the idea that witchcraft does not exist. As Behringer shows, witch-hunts continue to pose a major problem in Africa and among tribal people in America, Asia and Australia. The belief that certain people are able to cause harm by supernatural powers endures throughout the world today.Wolfgang Behringer explores the idea of witchcraft as an anthropological phenomenon with a historical dimension, aiming to outline and to understand the meaning of large-scale witchcraft persecutions in early modern Europe and in present-day Africa. He deals systematically with the belief in witchcraTrade Review"An eye-opening accomplishment ... [Behringer's] careful and nuanced volume attests to the erstwhile human tendency, still tragically prominent, to succumb to paranoid fantasies about one's neighbours, colleagues and constituents: to accuse them of being in league with dark forces; to work to isolate, hound and even expunge them from the body politic." Journal of Genocide Research "Wolfgang Behringer establishes the importance of a truly global history of witchcraft. Setting aside familiar Western notions, he deploys a more comprehensive definition of witchcraft as the malicious use of evil magic. He brilliantly sketches the history of European witch-hunting and uses this to illuminate the twentieth-century struggle against witches in many parts of the post-colonial world such as South America, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea. This book marks a real advance in our understanding of witchcraft, and a remarkable and astute blending of anthropology with history." H. C. Erik Midelfort, University of Virginia "Witchcraft has recently been the subject of an enormous amount of research and yet some of its main issues still need reappraisal. This book makes a compelling case for re-examining witchcraft in a fundamental way by reconnecting the new historical scholarship with the discipline of anthropology and treating the subject in a world perspective and as a universal phenomenon. Already Europe's leading expert on the early modern witchcraft trials, Wolfgang Behringer not only gives us a superb overview of where our knowledge of them currently stands but takes us on a global tour of witchcraft in modern societies. Unexpectedly, we discover how much the European and non-European experience have had in common." Stuart Clark, University of Wales SwanseaTable of ContentsList of Illustrations. List of Tables. Preface. Chronology. List of Abbreviations.. 1. Introduction.. 2. The Belief in Witchcraft.. 3. The Persecution of Witches.. 4. The European Age of Witch-Hunting.. 5. Outlawing Witchcraft Persecution in Europe.. 6. Witch-Hunting in the 19th and 20th Centuries.. 7. Old and "New Witches".. 8. Epilogue. Notes. Bibliography. Index.

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Book SynopsisThe Cornwall Village Book is a celebration of the unique communities at the heart of a diverse and fascinating county. Compiled by the Cornwall Federation of Women's Institutes, it gathers together descriptions of 150 villages, recalling the history, people and events that make each one unique, and how their collective identity has shaped Cornwall as a county known for its rich cultural heritage. From the wild moorland landscapes to the picturesque harbour villages, this is truly a region of contrasting lives and communities. Despite the changes brought about by the modern age, these villages continue to thrive, providing a source of pride and delight to villagers and visitors alike. The Cornwall Village Book will appeal to those who have lived in the county all their lives and those visiting for the first time.

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Book SynopsisPicking up where Fanon left off, examining the negative influence of intellectual immigrants as facilitators of American imperialism.Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. Brown Skin, White Masks 2. On Comprador Intellectuals 3. Literature and Empire 4. The House Muslim Conclusion: Confusing the Colour Line Notes Index

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Book SynopsisFor the appendixes mentioned in the book, Click Here.In this innovative and ambitious global history, distinguished economic historian Amiya Kumar Bagchi critically analyzes the processes leading to the rise of the West since the sixteenth century to its current position as the most prosperous and powerful group of nations in the world. Integrating the history of armed conflict with the history of competition for trade, investment, and markets, Bagchi explores the human consequences for people both within and outside the region. He characterizes the emergence and operation of capitalism as a system driven by wars over resources and markets rather than one that genuinely operates on the principle of free markets. In tracing this history, he also charts what happened to the people who came under its sway during the last five centuries. Bagchi thus broadens our understanding of the nature and history of capitalism and challenges the fetishism of commodities that limits the perspective of most economic historians. The book also challenges the Eurocentrism that still underlies the conceptual framework of many mainstream historians, joining earlier narratives that chronicle the history of human beings as living persons rather than as puppets serving the abstract cause of economic growth. His unflinching examination of the human costs of developmentnot only in the colonial periphery but in the core nationsincludes not only economic processes and issues of inequality within and among nations but also the intertwining of economics and war-making on a world scale. The book also contributes to our knowledge of how and in what sequence human health has been shaped by public health care, sanitation, modern medicine, income levels and nutrition. Written with extraordinary range and depth, Perilous Passage will change the ways in which we think about many of the largest issues in world history and development.Trade ReviewA good deal that we have seen before is still or again relevant to today's global capitalism, and Bagchi usefully reminds us of how many of these parallels are harrowing rather than hopeful; one hopes this book will reach the people who believe the stories Bagchi debunks and enrich a vital set of debates. -- Kenneth L. Pomeranz, University of Chicago * Economic and Political Weekly *Explores the numerous ways the armed ascendancy of European capital has impacted the human development of the nonwhite dependencies of Europe and the Europeans themselves. Discusses human development and capitalist growth; capitalist competition and human development in Europe; the world beyond Europe in the age of the emergence of European dominance; and the antisystemic struggles, wars, and challenges to global capital. * Journal of Economic Literature *This stimulating synthesis . . . has an excellent bibliography, incorporates recent specialist work in global economic history, and is genuinely erudite. A valuable reference for all world historians . . . Highly recommended. * CHOICE *A hard-headed examination in facts and figures of how capitalism has insidiously but inexorably destroyed human happiness and ravaged our ecological system. . . . A compelling and thoughtful account with the lucidity of argument of someone compressing the essence of a lifetime's research into a philosophical framework. * The Statesman *Magisterial. . . . [Bagchi] presents a comprehensive comparative picture of the historical economic development of China, India, and Japan, and their relation to what happened in Europe and North America. It is hard to suggest another work that does this in as small a space, so clearly, and based on such extensive acquaintance with the empirical literature. . . . It is refreshing to have Bagchi’s voice added to the rather small list of important works on the origins and development of the modern world. . . . One can only hope that the book will have a wide international reading public. -- Immanuel Wallerstein, Fernand Braudel Center, Yale University * Monthly Review *Bagchi has written a great book, a history of human development as he calls it, which offers a fascinating account of global capitalism as it evolved over a period of four centuries. . . . Writing a 'grand history' as Bagchi has done will inevitably create controversy . . . but this does not in any way diminish the significance of this monumental history of the human costs of economic growth. * Development and Change *An ambitious work that essays to rethink the extent to which the transition to capitalism did not accomplish significant human development until well into the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. . . . Bagchi's 'human development' frame is one that stimulates and appropriately outrages. * Journal of World History *An impressive book that, in the tradition of world systems analysis and dependency theory, challenges Eurocentric understandings of capitalism. . . . This book makes an important contribution to that struggle. * Science & Society *[Bagchi] challenges Eurocentric views on the rise of capitalism and argues that Europeans gained a decisive advantage over China and India thanks only to the maturing of the machine-based Industrial Revolution in the nineteenth century. * International Review Of Social History *Amiya Kumar Bagchi's Perilous Passage is a book that deserves our attention in this historical moment. It is born of our moment and offers us crucial intellectual resources in our attempts to understand the beast we must confront. Perilous Passage is a global history and in many respects perhaps one of the first truly global histories of our epoch to appear. . . . Bagchi's Perilous Passage is a weapon in the intellectual arsenal of social justice activists everywhere. . . . Perilous Passage may contribute to the development of a newer kind of understanding that will allow us to begin undoing the layers of injustice, ecological destruction, and human immiseration such ascendancy has created. * Labour *A combative and spirited book telling the story of the economic emergence of the contemporary world in a radically different way from the standard accounts. It will not end debates, but begin them in a robust way, which surely is the function of fine 'alternative history.' -- Amartya Sen, Harvard UniversityTable of ContentsPart I: Conceptual Issues: Human Development and Capitalist Growth Chapter 1: The History of Human Development as the Subject of History Chapter 2: The Construction of the European Miracle Chapter 3: Profit Seeking under Actually Existing Capitalism and Human Development Part II: Capitalist Competition and Human Development in Europe Chapter 4: Combat for Dominance Among the Western European Countries Since the Sixteenth Century Chapter 5: Population Growth and Mortality Between the Sixteenth and Nineteenth Centuries: A First Look Chapter 6: The Netherlands: Rise and Fall of a Hegemonic Power Chapter 7: The Delayed Transition of Europe and North America to a Low-Mortality Regime Chapter 8: Literacy in Western Europe Since the Sixteenth Century Part III: Non-European Peoples in the Age of Emergence of European Dominance Chapter 9: Economic Development and the Quality of Life in China Between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries Chapter 10: India under Mughal Rule and After Chapter 11: Conducting Trade in Asia Before and After the European Advent Chapter 12: Reconsidering Japanese Exceptionalism Chapter 13: Capitalist Competition, Colonialism, and the Physical Well-Being of Non-European Peoples Chapter 14: The Civilizing Mission and Racialization: From the Native Americans to the Asians Chapter 15: The Civilizing Mission in Lands Taken by the European Settlers from the Original Inhabitants Chapter 16: Intercontinental Resource Flows Sustaining the Ascent of the European Powers Chapter 17: Colonial Tribute and Profits, 1870s Onward Chapter 18: Demographic Disasters in the Colonies and Semi-Colonies in the High Noon of European Colonialism Part IV: The Twentieth Century: Anti-Systematic Struggles, Wars, and Challenges to Global Capital Chapter 19: Setting the Stage for Megawars Chapter 20: Revolution, Nazism, Japanese Militarism and the Second World War Chapter 21: Imperialism and Wars in the Late Twentieth Century Chapter 22: Capitalism and Uneven Development in the Twentieth Century Chapter 23: Destruction and Renewal in the Global Order of Imperialism and Neoliberalism Chapter 24: Contradictions, Challenges, and Resistance

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Book SynopsisMargaret Chase Smith was the first woman in American history elected in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, the first politician to take a public stand against McCarthyism, and the first woman of a major political party to run for president of the United States. An American Stand: Senator Margaret Chase Smith and the Communist Menace, 1948-1972 explores her engagement with the masculine issue of national defense. An unyielding foe of global communism, this Republican senator was the first female Cold Warrior. During the Korean War, she voiced strident anti-communist rhetoric in her newspaper column. Her energetic support for nuclear superiority in the fifties and sixties caused Nikita Khrushchev to describe her as Satan in the guise of a woman. In the face of growing opposition to America''s involvement in Vietnam, Smith remained committed to a clear stand against violent communist expansion. This book examines the exposition of the communist menace and the Cold War as a Trade ReviewMargaret Chase Smith, the first woman elected to both the U.S. House and Senate, was a mainstay of American anticommunism in the 1950s and 1960s. Eric Crouse's well researched and discerning study of this formidable politician excels at describing the sources, limits, and actions of her determined anticommunist stance. Along the way he also sheds light on the complexities of American foreign policy at a complex time, no better indicated than in Margaret Chase Smith's public stand AGAINST the anticommunist demagoguery of Sen. Joseph McCarthy. This is a fine book. -- Mark A. Noll, University of Notre DameWith this book, Eric Crouse performs the essential craft of the historian in bringing to our attention the fascinating but too often forgotten figure of Margaret Chase Smith. Using extensive archival research and disciplinary insight, Crouse deftly portrays Smith in her multiple roles: a pioneering woman in the Senate, a principled anti-communist, a voice for ordinary Americans, and, above all, an American original. This book makes an invaluable contribution to scholarship on Cold War history, Congressional studies, anticommunism, and the American character. -- William Inboden, Legatum Institute, author of Religion and American Foreign Policy, 1945-1960 The Soul of ContainmentBased on thorough research, An American Stand outdistances other studies of Margaret Chase Smith in analyzing the foreign policy philosophy and stances of this remarkable senator. By presenting extensive historical context, Eric Crouse delivers a more balanced treatment of her fierce anti-Communism than previous historians. -- Mark Moyar, U.S. Marine Corps University, author of Triumph Forsaken: The Vietnam War, 1954-1965Crouse (Tyndale Univ. College, Canada) has produced a balanced, sympathetic account of Margaret Chase Smith, a moderate Republican anticommunist and the first woman to serve in both the US House and Senate. Crouse focuses on three main aspects of Smith's anticommunist activism: her support of the Korean War and the Vietnam War and, most interestingly, her opposition to the tactics of Joseph McCarthy in the early 1950s. Crouse succeeds where many scholars fail by presenting the views and arguments of both anticommunists and the American Left in a nuanced, sympathetic manner. He also admirably incorporates recent scholarship on the 'crimes of Communism' into his narrative, providing useful points of comparison between the anticommunist rhetoric of his subject and the realities of communist rule. A useful addition to the history of anticommunism in the US and of interest to historians of gender and 20th-century US politics. Summing Up: Recommended * CHOICE *Crouse skillfully weaves together Smith’s public statements as reported in the press and documented in government records, her letters to constituents in Maine and nationally, and her newspaper column 'Washington and You' and other public writings to demonstrate the constancy of her views on national security. . . .Crouse does an admirable job describing the sexist attacks that began as soon as Smith entered Congress and her responses to critics who doubted her abilities, interrogated the appropriateness of her positions, and even questioned her right to hold office. * New England Quarterly *Table of Contents1 Acknowledgments 2 Introduction Chapter 3 1 Rise to Political Standing Chapter 4 2 Red Menace Chapter 5 3 Korean War Chapter 6 4 Nuclear Credibility Chapter 7 5Vietnam War 8 Conclusion 9 Bibliography 10 Index

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Book SynopsisA New Statesman Book of the Year The wolf stands at the forefront of the debate about our impact on the natural world. In one of the most celebrated successes of modern conservation, it has been reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. What unfolds is a riveting multi-generational saga, at the centre of which is O-Six, a charismatic alpha female beloved by park rangers and amateur spotters alike. As elk numbers decline and the wolf population rises, those committed to restoring an iconic landscape clash with those fighting for a vanishing way of life; hunters stalk the park fringes and O-Six’s rivals seek to bring an end to her dominance of the stunningly beautiful Lamar Valley.Trade Review‘Deeply informed yet fast-paced and deftly structured…What ultimately makes this book so satisfying is that it is as much an account of the deep divisions within contemporary America as it is a tale about the world’s most enduring carnivore.' * New Statesman *‘Weaves together three narratives in one superb book…Blakeslee’s triumph is to tell all three stories with deep sympathy and insight.’ * New Statesman, Books of the Year *‘Blakeslee draws O-Six in novelistic…detail, using the conflicting insight and perspective of biologists, politicians, ranchers, environmentalists, lawyers, other animals, and hunters… Seeing a wolf is exceptionally rare, and this book is as close as most readers will come.’ * The New Yorker *‘Inspired by the most charismatic of animals, this is a story of dedication and determination, of conflict and passion and like all good stories it challenges your thoughts and fires up your emotions.’ -- Kate Humble‘Extraordinary…Blakeslee is a fine writer…Chilling and gripping by turns. The Wolf is a book that should be read, with care.’ * The National *‘The story of one wolf’s struggle to survive in the majestic Yellowstone National Park offers an ambitious look through the eyes of an endangered animal.’ * New York Times Book Review *‘The lives of the wolves in Yellowstone are often dramatic, but are full of touching, tender moments too, as Nate Blakeslee vividly writes in The Wolf.’ * Los Angeles Times *‘Gripping and fascinating! Wolf vs wolf, wolf vs man, man vs man.’ -- Margaret Atwood (via Twitter)‘Heartbreaking front-line coverage of our war on the wild… Blakeslee, hauntingly, gives the victims faces, families and stories. A quietly angry, aching, important book.’ -- Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast‘A compelling environmental drama of the reintroduction of wolves to the Rockies, as clear-sighted on human politics as it is on wolf politics. As wolf packs battle one another for control of precious territory, unknown to them another battle is taking place, between the wolves’ supporters and those who would eradicate them.’ -- Neil Ansell, author of Deep Country: Five Years in the Welsh Hills‘Wolves are neither gods nor demons. Real wolves are complex beings with personalities, ambitions, careers, and – thanks to us – more than their fair share of tragedy. The Wolf gives us true profiles of wolf lives lived in their actual families. And when humans get involved, the trajectory of their lives forever changes.’ -- Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel‘Blakeslee…brings the feeling of a celebrity biography to the story of the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone National Park and its aftermath… [He] escorts readers up close to interpack conflict as well as human enemies of wolf preservation.’ * Kirkus, starred review *‘Blakeslee gives us a very different sort of biography – the saga of a single female wolf, “the most famous wolf in the world,” and her exploits in Yellowstone National Park. It’s a startlingly intimate portrait of the intricate, loving, human-like interrelationships that govern wolves in the wild, as observed in real time by a cadre of dedicated wolf-watchers – in the end, a drama of lupine love, care, and grief.’ -- Erik Larson, author of The Devil in the White City and Dead Wake‘Wild, poignant, and compelling, The Wolf is an important, beautifully wrought book about animals, about values, and about living on this earth.’ -- Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief and Rin Tin Tin‘The Wolf is a transcendent tale of the American West. I loved the doggedness and depth of the reporting, the texture of the writing. There are echoes of Jack London everywhere. But above all I loved the wolf herself, a character like no other I have ever encountered.’ -- S. C. Gwynne, author of Empire of the Summer Moon and Rebel Yell‘An intimate and riveting book about America’s most iconic and embattled predator. Blakeslee moves effortlessly between the ancient drama of the wolf pack, and its modern human counterpart, the sometimes vicious, red state-blue state partisans whose battleground is the fate of the American wolf. A wonderful and welcome addition to the pantheon of nature literature.’ -- John Vaillant, author of The Tiger and The Golden Spruce

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Book Synopsis''Vibrant and illuminating ... [Dywer] tells a fascinating tale'' The Times''Refreshing scholarship Energetic, readable and filled with colourful detail Napoleon: Passion, Death and Resurrection is a thoroughly enjoyable book which divides well the reality of exile from the legend that sprang from it'' Literary ReviewThis meticulously researched study opens with Napoleon no longer in power, but instead a prisoner on the island of St Helena. This may have been a great fall from power, but Napoleon still held immense attraction. Every day, huge crowds would gather on the far shore in the hope of catching a glimpse of him. Philip Dwyer closes his ambitious trilogy exploring Napoleon's life, legacy and myth by moving from those first months of imprisonment, through the years of exile, up to death and then beyond, examining how the foundations of legend that had been laid by Napoleon during his lifetime continued to be built uTrade ReviewVibrant and illuminating ... [Dywer] tells a fascinating tale -- Lawrence James * The Times *Refreshing scholarship … Energetic, readable and filled with colourful detail … Napoleon: Passion, Death and Resurrection is a thoroughly enjoyable book which divides well the reality of exile from the legend that sprang from it -- Ambrogio A Caiani * Literary Review *Remarkable ... a satisfying, psychologically convincing account ... Even-handed and authoritative, this fascinating and highly enjoyable book will be an eye opener even to those who think they know the subject well -- Praise for 'Napoleon: The Path to Power 1769-1799' * Sunday Times *The work that Dwyer was placed on earth to write ... We are clearly in the presence of what will be a monumental work ... meticulously researched and well-written -- Praise for 'Napoleon: The Path to Power 1769-1799', Andrew Roberts * Literary Review *A very fine book, which explains Napoleon’s extraordinary rise to power and equally meteoric fall, with great erudition, skill and verve -- Praise for 'Citizen Emperor: Napoleon in Power 1799-1815' * Spectator *Exemplary scholarship ... A book of meticulous research and beautifully detailed descriptions of Napoleon’s military adventures, brings home the full horrific cost of the march on Russia -- Praise for 'Citizen Emperor: Napoleon in Power 1799-1815' * New Statesman *

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Book SynopsisThe Outer Hebrides lie 40 miles to the west of mainland Scotland, forming a barrier to the North Atlantic. Culturally distinct from early prehistory, the islands contain a wealth of historical and archaeological monuments, including the standing stones at Callanish, the magnificent St Clement’s church at Rodel as well as numerous brochs, castles, Pitish houses, croft houses and industrial and military buildings. In addition to descriptions of key historic sites from prehistory onwards and gazetteers covering every place of historical interest, this book also traces the development of the modern environment and landscape of the islands, enabling the visitor to appreciate the sites within their historical and cultural context.Trade Review'In short, this is an excellent and informative book, one which – I suspect – many people will carry in the glove compartment of their car while driving north or south through these islands’ -- Donald Murray, * Stornoway Gazette *'A well-researched guide covering all facets of island life… this book is perfect for anyone looking to diversify their knowledge of Scottish history' * Scottish Field *

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Book SynopsisA unique and accessible insight into the world's oldest writing system, revealing how ancient inscriptions lead to a new way of thinking about the past.

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Book SynopsisComplete with new photography of the cleaned and conserved objects, showing off the stunning and intricate decoration, this book provides a fascinating account of the history and the discovery of this remarkable hoard.

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Book SynopsisThis engaging book tells the story of ten of the world's most important currencies and reveals how each and every one of them has helped shape the world we live in.

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Book SynopsisThe Gayer-Anderson Cat has been one of the most admired objects at the British Museum since its arrival in 1947. This book presents a detailed description of the cat and a discussion of its possible meaning and role in ancient times.

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Book SynopsisSome of the finest speeches ever made have been spoken in Ireland. This book highlights 45 eminent and influential speeches, from Robert Emmet''s defiant speech from the dock on the eve of his execution, to Panti Bliss''s passionate 21st century oratory in support of gay marriage in Ireland. With a short biography of each speaker and highlights of their selected speech, this book features some of Ireland''s most inspiring and evocative speakers, from politics to the arts.

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Book SynopsisFrom the soldier''s eye view of combat to the broad social and economic structures which shaped campaigns and wars, ancient Greek warfare in all its aspects has been studied more intensively in the last few decades than ever before. This book ranges from the concrete details of conducting raids, battles and sieges to more theoretical questions about the causes, costs, and consequences of warfare in archaic and classical Greece. It argues that the Greek sources present a highly selective and idealised picture, too easily accepted by most modern scholars, and that a more critical study of the evidence leads to radically different conclusions about the Greek way of war.

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Book SynopsisDonald R. Morris was born in 1924 and grew up in New York City. In 1948 he graduated from the US Naval Academy at Annapolis. After serving on several destroyers, he went on to Naval Intelligence School and Russian language training and was detailed to the CIA in 1956. He remained with the CIA and continued in the Naval Reserve until 1972, when he retired as a Lieutenant Commander. He earned two battle stars in Korea and holds the Navy Commendation medal. His 17 years with the CIA were spent almost entirely in Soviet counter-espionage operations. He was stationed for lengthy periods in Berlin, Paris, Kinshasa (Zaire) and Vietnam. For many years Donald Morris was also a foreign affairs columnist for the Houston Post. In 1989 he formed the Trident Syndicate and published a weekly newsletter on current events and foreign affairs. He died in 2002.Trade ReviewSuperb -- Noel Mostert * New York Times *Mr. Morris is evidently incapable of being dull... Hemingway would have relished his vigorous way of bringing history to life * The Times *An accomplished volume, anatomising the achievement of Zulu nationhood and its destruction by the British at the high watermark of Victorian imperialism. * Observer *The book to end all books on the tragic confrontation between the assegai and the Gatling gun... Colourful yet commendably fair * Times Literary Supplement *This magnificent book is not only a history of the Zulus, the "Black Spartans", from their rise under Shaka to the deliberate destruction of the independent Zulu nation through the war forced on them by Sir Bartle Frere, but also a full-scale immensely knowledgeable account of British Colonial and military policy in relation to Southern Africa, and of the men who carried it out. * Punch *

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Book SynopsisA history that brings to life the real country house servantsTrade ReviewThis is Gosford Park as non-fiction, and utterly fascinating * Times Literary Supplement *'Entertaining saga of the class divide' * The Daily Express *'Intimate and absorbing study' * The Sunday Times *Architectural historian Masson brings alive the symbiotic relationship between the houses, their owners, and the workers. * Financial Times *'Musson is excellent on the changing face of service in the twentieth century' * Spectator *'Personal anecdotes bring this well-researched book to life' * Mail on Sunday *'A brilliantly readable book full of human history and entertaining anecdotes' * Lancashire Evening Post *'He retells the story at a cracking pace... we are reminded that all kinds of likely lads, including Chaucer, started out as paper pushers and cup bearers' * Guardian *'Packed with quotes from memoirs and letters, as well as first hand accounts, a fascinating social history' * BBC Who Do You Think You Are Magazine *'An ideal read' * Field Magazine *

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Book SynopsisFrom the acclaimed author of River Town comes a rare and authentic portrait - both intimate and epic - of twenty-first century China as it opens its doors to the worldTrade ReviewTo come across a Westerner patient enough and tolerant enough to try and understand the immense, exasperating and ultimately lovable entity that is China is always a pleasure. To encounter one that is as literate and sensitive as Peter Hessler is a joy * Simon Winchester *'One of the most profoundly original books about China' * The Economist *'A swirl of interconnecting stories and histories make up Peter Hessler's extraordinary, genre-defying second book' * Daily Telegraph *'Oracle Bones, the much anticipated follow-up to his acclaimed debut, River Town, lays bare a rapidly evolving China through his often bizarre encounters with the engines of its social changes.' * South China Morning Post *'Extensive travel around China with occasional flits back home to the U.S., combine with some fascinating speculation on the origins of Chinese civilisation and how the remote past impinges on the present' * China Review *'Dip into it ... You will be hooked' * International Herald Tribune *'A brilliant tapestry of ancient and modern China' * Spectator *'He ranges widely and, in doing so, illustrates how Chinese history accumulates' * Mick Herron, Geographical Magazine *'Valuable for its necklace of vignettes - poignant, comic, and weird ' * Jonathan Mirsky, Literary Review *'[An] extraordinary survey of contemporary China...really quite unforgettable' * The Observer *'If you read one book on Chinese modern culture, read this one' * Dimsum.co.uk *'Ingenious ... Stretches back in time as well as criss-crossing present-day China' * John Dugdale, Guardian *'Anyone who wants to begin to understand the complexities that are China, and their bitter-sweet and pregnant relationships with the West, should read this idiosyncratic, brilliant book' * Ross Leckie, The Times *'An impressive and moving account of the lives of ordinary people' * Clover Stroud, Sunday Telegraph / Travel *

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Book SynopsisIn June 1940, the German Army had brought the rest of Europe to its knees. ''Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world will move forward into broad, sunlit uplands,'' said Churchill. The future of Europe depended on Britain. A self-confident Herman Göring thought that it would be only a matter of weeks before his planes had forced Britain to surrender. The courage, resourcefulness and brilliant organisation of the RAF were to prove him wrong. By late September 1940, the RAF had proved invincible, thanks to the Vickers Supermarine Spitfire. It exceeded anything that any other air force possessed. RJ Mitchell, a shy and almost painfully modest engineer, was the genius behind the Spitfire. On the 5th March 1936, following its successful maiden flight, a legend was born. Prize-winning historian Leo McKinstry''s vivid history of the Spitfire brings together a rich Trade ReviewPraise for ROSEBERY: * . *Stunning ... As well as being meticulously researched, it is beautifully written and has tremendous pace * Literary Review *Absorbing ... McKinstry has here proved himself to be a first-class historical biographer * Mail on Sunday *With masterly skill and sympathy, Leo McKinstry resurrects him as the Hamlet of late Victorian England * Daily Mail *An authoritative and original biography which is also a riveting read' * Spectator *Superbly well-researched and well-written ... A truly first-class addition to the genre of Prime Ministerial biography * Sunday Telegraph *'An absolutely wonderful biography ... gripping and entertaining' * Evening Standard *'A first class biography, scholarly, judicious and always interesting' * Glasgow Herald *'Remarkable' * Country Life *'Judicious, well-researched and engrossing' * Sunday Times *'This is undoubtably the definitive biography of Rosebery. Written with elegance, clarity and well-judged colour' * Jonathan Parry, Times Literary Supplement *'It does a wonderful job of conjuring up the lost world of late Victorian politics' * Dominic Sandbrook, Daily Telegraph *'Admirable biography of a paradoxical figure whose tenure at No 10 was a disaster' * Jeremy Lewis, Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisA captivating compendium of rare and exquisite first-hand records of ocean voyages around the world and in different ages, providing a fascinating insight into exploration and adventure at sea.Trade Review'A captivating collection of exquisite first-hand records providing fascinating insights into exploration and adventure at sea' - Traveller'Beautiful … readers could easily be left with the impression that all 18th-century seafarers were also talented artists' - CNN Travel'Lewis-Jones’s book has everything from illustrated accounts of whaling voyages and naval battles to depictions of Kamchatkan kayakers and fluorescent sea slugs' - The Scotsman'Thrilling ... succeeds in illustrating not only the diversity of maritime sketchbooks but also how vital they were for their creators' - Times Literary Supplement'Magnificent first-hand accounts of the thrills and spills of sea exploration' - The Lady'The sort of book to curl up with … you will relish each turn of the page as you explore the nautical journeys … humorous, poignant and most definitely informative … this is a book to learn from and treasure' - Family Tree'Endlessly diverting and beautifully produced' - Daily Telegraph'A remarkable treasure chest' - Geographical'Gorgeously produced … a lovely present for anyone who’s fascinated by exploration' - Practical Boat Owner'Readers of this beautifully-produced volume will be far from miserable, and may even be inspired to keep their own journals and images of life' - Nautilus Telegraph'One of the most spectacular and fascinating books I have ever read. A real privilege! Superb' - Book Reviews Monthly'Remarkable' - Bookanista'Wide-ranging and beautifully illustrated' - Books of the Year, Spectator

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Book SynopsisWhen the Union Jack was hauled down over the Atlantic naval ports of Cobh, Berehaven and Lough Swilly in 1939, the Irish were jubilant. But in London, Churchhill brooded on the ''incomprehensible'' act of surrendering three of the Royal Navy''s finest ports when Europe was about to go to war.Eighteen months later, Churchill was talking of military action against Ireland. He demanded the return of the ports and the Irish made ready to defend their country against British as well as German invasion.In Northern Ireland, a Unionist Government vainly tried to introduce conscription. Along the west coast British submarines prowled the seas searching for German U-boats sheltering in the bays; British agents toured the villages of Donegal in search of fifth columnists while their German counterparts tried to make contact with the IRA.This is a fasinating study of Ireland during the Second World War.Anybody interested in Irish affairs will have to get Fisk''s book

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Book SynopsisThis book provides an exploration of how and why Scottish Highlanders, Punjabi Sikhs and Nepalese Gurkhas became linked as the British Empire's fiercest, most manly soldiers in nineteenth century discourses of martial races.' -- .Trade ReviewAn excellent book, lucid and fluent throughout. An impressive contribution to the history of military thought and an original addition to imperial studies -- .Table of ContentsIntroduction1. The transformation of the British and Indian Armies in the Rebellion of 18572. ‘Side by side in generous rivalry’: Highlanders, Sikhs and Gurkhas in the Rebellion3. A ‘question on which the safety of the Empire depends’: the European threat, recruiting, and the development of martial race ideology after 18704. ‘A power which a man should try to manage for himself’: military influence and martial race discourse in British popular culture5. Martial races: the Inter-imperial uses of a racially gendered language6. Representation versus experience: life as a martial race soldierConclusionBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisIn 1715 the German philosopher Leibniz warned his friend the Princess of Wales of the dangers posed to religion by Newton's ideas. The matter was referred to Newtonian scholar Samuel Clarke and thus began an exchange of papers that became a seminal document in the philosophy of science.

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Book SynopsisAn invaluable compendium of sources relating to the Great ExhibitionTable of ContentsIntroduction 1 Origins and organisation 2 Display 3 Nation, empire and ethnicity 4 Gender 5 Class 6 Afterlives Index

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Book SynopsisDescribes how German Philadelphians reinvented themselves in the early twentieth century. This book explores how many middle-class and Lutheran residents had redefined themselves in "old-stock"���' terms. It challenges historians to rethink the phenomenon of ethnic assimilation and to explore its complex relationship to American pluralism.Trade Review"This is a richly satisfying book. One puts it down feeling that everything relevant to the subject has been carefully looked into, judiciously considered, and set forth in a calm, clear, and illuminating manner... [The] book gives us much to think about and even more to admire."--Philip Gleason, American Historical Review "The book has tremendous merits for its sweeping arguments backed up by detailed documentation... [It] makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of early twentieth century German-America, and it enhances our understanding of the relationship between ethnicity, whiteness, and national identity in urban America."--Christiane Harzig, Central European HistoryTable of ContentsList of Illustrations ix List of Tables xi Acknowledgments xiii Introduction 1 Part One: 1900 Chapter One German Philadelphia: A Social Portrait 17 Chapter Two Two Neighborhoods 43 Part Two: Confronting Assimilation, 1900-1914 Chapter Three The Gendered Crisis of the Vereinswesen 79 Chapter Four Destinations: The Ambiguous Lure of Mass Commercial and Consumer Culture 95 Chapter Five Destinations: Fractured Whiteness, "American" Identity, and the "Old Stock" Opening 109 Chapter Six Resisting Assimilation: Middle-Class and Working-Class Approaches 130 Part Three: Storm, 1914-1919 Chapter Seven European War and Ethnic Mobilization 151 Chapter Eight Intervention, the Anti-German Panic, and the Fall of Public Germanness 171 Part Four: Reshaping Identities in the 1920s Chapter Nine An Ethnicity Subdued 197 Chapter Ten Changing Neighborhoods 213 Chapter Eleven Middle-Class Germans: American Identity and the "Stock" of "Our Forefathers" 232 Chapter Twelve Workers and Catholics: Toward the "White Ethnic" 246 Conclusion Pluralism, Nationalism, Race, and the Fate of German America 261 Appendix The Neighborhood Census Samples 283 Notes 291 Index 371

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Book SynopsisFrom the costly velvets and furs worn by kings to the undyed wools and rough linens of the peasantry, the clothing worn by the various classes in the Middle Ages played an integral role in medieval society. In addition to providing clues to status, profession, and/or geographic origin, textiles were a crucial element in the economies of many countries and cities. Much of what is known about medieval fashion is gleaned from the pages of manuscripts, which serve as a rich source of imagery. This volume provides a detailed look at both the actual fabrics and composition of medieval clothing as well as the period's attitude toward fashion through an exploration of illuminated manuscripts in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum. The last portion of the book is dedicated to the depiction of clothing in biblical times and the ancient world as seen through a medieval lens. Throughout, excerpts from literary sources of the period help shed light on the perceived role and function of fashion in daily life.

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Book SynopsisA pictorial history of these special cargo ships, now lost to the mists of time

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Book SynopsisA vivid exploration of the evolution of reading as an essential social and domestic activity during the eighteenth century Two centuries before the advent of radio, television, and motion pictures, books were a cherished form of popular entertainment and an integral component of domestic social life. In this fascinating and vivid history, Abigail Williams explores the ways in which shared reading shaped the lives and literary culture of the time, offering new perspectives on how books have been used by their readers, and the part they have played in middle-class homes and families. Drawing on marginalia, letters and diaries, library catalogues, elocution manuals, subscription lists, and more, Williams offers fresh and fascinating insights into reading, performance, and the history of middle-class home life.Trade Review“A lively survey. . . . Williams’s book is welcome because her research and insights make us conscious of how we, today, use books.”—John Sutherland, New York Times Book Review“Williams’s charming pageant of anecdotes, as revealed in diaries, letters and marginalia, conjures a world strikingly different from our own but surprisingly similar in many ways, a time when reading was on the rise and whole worlds sprang up around it.”—Washington Post“The inestimable value of Williams’s book is that it offers us, beyond the shrewd and apt commentary, new things to understand and to feel among the sheer diversity and number of its eloquent lives.”—Min Wild, Times Literary Supplement“This lively and original study, richly documented and happily free of jargon… has brought to life the story of how print worked on people in the past.”—Toby Barnard, Dublin Review of Books“The Social Life of Books ranges confidently and with fascinating detail over a great number of types of reading venues, reading materials, and readers.” —James Raven, American Historical Review“This book confidently explores a fascinating topic. Its strength lies in its sheer wealth of examples, especially the many cases recovered from provincial archives that freshly illustrate the habits and eccentricities of eighteenth-century readers. This is a book that any reader with an interest in the eighteenth century will enjoy and value.”—John Mullan, University College London"A comprehensive account, impressively documented and vividly illustrated, of the social history of reading, by an author whose own reading skills are matched by her brilliantly mastered erudition."—Claude Rawson, Maynard Mack Professor of English Emeritus, Yale University“The Social Life of Books is a magnificent, genuinely innovative achievement that will appeal not only to scholars of literature and book history, not only to historians, but to all lovers of books and reading.”—Markman Ellis, Queen Mary University of London “This is a magnificent achievement. Williams approaches the history of reading from a wide purview, offering research into the price of books, on literacy, and on circulating libraries, book shops, book clubs and other forms of book sharing, including book theft. It makes a very compelling case for the cultures of sociable reading in eighteenth-century Britain.”—Markman Ellis, Queen Mary University of London

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Book SynopsisWhat Hemingway's A Moveable Feast did for Paris in the 1920s, this charming yet undeceivable memoir does for Greenwich Village in the late 1940s. In 1946, Anatole Broyard was a dapper, earnest, fledgling avant-gardist, intoxicated by books, sex, and the neighborhood that offered both in such abundance. Stylish written, mercurially witty, imbued with insights that are both affectionate and astringent, this memoir offers an indelible portrait of a lost bohemia.   We see Broyard setting up his used bookstore on Cornelia Street—indulging in a dream that was for him as romantic as “living off the land or sailing around the world” while exercizing his libido with a protegee of Anais Nin and taking courses at the New School, where he deliberates on “the new trends in art, sex, and psychosis.” Along the way he encounters Delmore Schwartz, Caitlin and Dylan Thomas, William Gaddis, and other writers at the start of their careers. Written with ins

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Book SynopsisChronicles the origins, and afterlife of late imperial ideology. This title challenges the idea that Victorian empire was legitimated by liberal notions of progress and civilization. It examines how the Victorian legal scholar Henry Maine's sociotheoretic model of 'traditional' society laid the groundwork for the culturalist logic of late empire.Trade ReviewOne of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2010 "Mantena carefully situates [Henry] Maine in political debates of the Britain of his time. Her study features excellent accounts of the luminaries of liberal imperialism and their critics before turning to the writings of Maine, particularly his analysis of 'traditional societies' and the implications of that analysis for the revision of imperial law codes and for a new treatment of property... [A] striking debut."--Choice "It is Mantena's earnest engagement with the question of a liberal empire's invariable ends that will appeal to a set of readers well beyond the circle of political theorists, intellectual historians, and students of the British empire who are the target audience for this book, and for whom this book is necessary reading."--Ishita Pande, Economic & Political Weekly "[H]er book is enormously rich... Mantena's wide-ranging erudition amply bolsters her thesis ... [which] serves as an invaluable corrective to flattened, univocal, and static accounts of the relationship between liberalism and imperialism... She has written an extraordinary book that cannot be ignored."--Daniel I. O'Neill, Perspectives on Politics "Mantena's main thesis serves as an invaluable corrective to flattened, univocal, and static accounts of the relationship between liberalism and imperialism... Mantena has broken new intellectual ground in (he study of empire. Hers is a bold and novel argument that should become required reading for anyone interested in modern imperialism. In this sense, whether subsequent scholarly treatments of the topic concur with Mantena's argument in all respects is immaterial. She has written an extraordinary book that cannot be ignored."--Daniel I. O'Neill, Political Theory "Alibis of Empire is a sophisticated work of intellectual history... [D]eep analysis of Maine's work is the heart of the book, and Mantena undertakes it with great skill and confidence."--Mark Doyle, Canadian Journal of History "This will add much weight to current critiques of a resurgent imperialism, in America not least. The breadth of scholarship and depth of insight in her work is commendable."--Julia Stapleton, History of Political ThoughtTable of ContentsAcknowledgments ix INTRODUCTION: The Ideological Origins of Indirect Rule 1 CHAPTER ONE: The Crisis of Liberal Imperialism 21 CHAPTER TWO: Inventing Traditional Society: Empire and the Origins of Social Theory 56 CHAPTER THREE: Codification in the East andWest 89 CHAPTER FOUR: The Nineteenth-Century Debate on Property 119 CHAPTER FIVE: Native Society in Crisis: Conceptual Foundations of Indirect Rule 148 CODA: Liberalism and Empire Reconsidered 179 Notes 189 Bibliography 227 Index 255

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Book SynopsisAlong the Russian-Qing frontier in the nineteenth century, a new political space emerged, shaped by competing imperial and spiritual loyalties, cross-border economic and social ties, and revolution. David Brophy explores how a community of Central Asian Muslims responded to these historic changes by reinventing themselves as the Uyghur nation.Trade ReviewThis work on the Uyghurs, a 10-million strong Turkic Muslim minority residing mainly in Xinjiang in western China, is a welcome contribution to a recent rise in Uyghur studies…A remarkable account of a people searching for identity at the intersection of empire. -- M. Chakars * Choice *Nothing I have read in the last fifteen years comes close to this work in terms of intellectual breadth, rigorous analysis, and contribution to the field. This book will not only revolutionize thinking about the history of the Uyghur nation and the political history of Xinjiang during this period, it will set a new bar for future scholarship and inspire readers to think again about the processes, challenges, and opportunities within shifting political landscapes that lead to the creation of nations. -- Laura Newby, University of OxfordDrawing on sources in several languages, this book demonstrates how the idea of a Uyghur nation emerged in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Brophy shows how intellectuals in Taranchi and Kashgari communities along the Xinjiang–Russian border, inspired by academic writings on ancient Uyghurs, negotiated a new concept of Uyghur identity. This study is a valuable contribution to our understanding of the Uyghur national idea, and to Central Asian and Xinjiang studies. -- Ablet Kamalov, Institute of Oriental Studies, Almaty, KazakhstanUyghur Nation breaks new ground in the study of modern Xinjiang. David Brophy takes a transnational approach to the formation of a ‘Chinese’ ethnic group, offering a convincing account of the impact of tsarist and particularly Soviet institutions, evolutions, and interventions on the Qing and then Republican Chinese frontiers. He also demonstrates that the idea of a Uyghur nation had a conflicted, cross-border, twentieth-century history. Perhaps most important, he unites political, intellectual, social, religious, even economic history to create a story rooted in local conditions, not simple national or ethnic categories. He has written a strikingly original and impressive book. -- Jonathan Lipman, Mount Holyoke CollegeIn Uyghur Nation, Brophy transforms our understanding of the history of the Uyghurs. At the center of Brophy’s attention is the question of how the Muslims of Chinese Turkistan came to imagine themselves as Uyghur. He traces the emergence of Uyghurist discourse by placing Uyghur history firmly where it belongs—in the very center of Eurasia at the crossroads of three empires. Brophy relates the emergence of Uyghurist discourse to developments in Muslim societies of Xinjiang and beyond as they came to terms with pressures and influences from the Qing, the Russian, and the Ottoman empires. Prodigiously researched across many archives and in multiple languages, Uyghur Nation is a major work of transnational history that deserves a wide readership. -- Adeeb Khalid, Carleton CollegeDavid Brophy’s Uyghur Nation offers a fresh perspective on Uyghur history by using Russian, Chinese and Turkic sources to chart the development of the discourses that would ultimately produce the modern Uyghur identity… What is remarkable is that a ‘palimpsest of Islamic, Turkic and Soviet notions of national history and identity’ created by activists outside Xinjiang could have resonated so widely among Xinjiang’s diverse population. In this respect, the Uyghur case is probably unique, and David Brophy’s book thus deserves to be read by anyone with an interest in nation-building. -- Nick Holdstock * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisFrom earliest records to the present day, in one easy-to-read volume

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Book SynopsisKeys offers the first major study of the political and cultural ramifications of international sports competitions in the 1930s. Focusing on the U.S., Nazi Germany, and the Soviet Union, she examines the transformation of events like the Olympics and the World Cup from small-scale events to the expensive, political, global extravaganzas of today.

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Book SynopsisTells the history of how the United States government, along with private philanthropies like the Ford and Rockefeller foundations, aimed to win the hearts and bodies of rural Asia in the post World War II decades by crafting strategies to develop and modernize agriculture and the peasant's way of life.Trade ReviewBrilliant… Admirable… The Hungry World is an immensely important book… [Cullather] has performed a tremendous service, and written a book not just of interest but of lasting value in showing in detail and with great discernment just how new, and also how radical, development was when it first began to transform the ways powerful nations thought about everything from the specifics of warfighting (it is where the ‘hearts and minds’ doctrine was born, after all) to the broadest questions of national interest… If Cullather is right…then his account requires us to rewrite the diplomatic history of the second half of the twentieth century. The Hungry World is the invaluable beginning of that rewriting. -- David Rieff * The Nation *Cullather’s book amounts to a thorough, gracefully written debunking of what might be called the green revolution master narrative… Cullather’s brilliant, concise early chapter on the Green Revolution’s birth in Mexico anchors his broader argument… By the end of the Mexico chapter, Cullather has already shattered the green revolution myth and exposed it as something like a lunge, and a not very well thought-out one, to replace other societies’ farming systems with our own highly problematic one. -- Tom Philpott * Mother Jones *[This] is an utterly fascinating story—partially about the economics of famine, but mostly about the irrepressible postwar generation who genuinely believed American technology could win the battle for Asian hearts and minds, and stop communism in its tracks. -- Paul Grant * Books & Culture *The Hungry World furnishes a striking vantage on development policy, as well as on the decidedly mixed outcomes of American engagement with Asian politics. -- Katherine Maher * Bookforum *Nick Cullather’s exploration of the critical linkages between power politics, scientific and technical assistance, famine alarms and schemes to increase food production is one of the most original and engaging books to date on the impact of the cold war on the emerging states of the developing world. -- Michael Adas, author of Dominance by Design: Technological Imperatives and America’s Civilizing MissionNick Cullather’s pathbreaking book takes readers on a journey of understanding about the failures of the ‘development’ model so beloved by American policymakers from before the Cold War to the present. It may well become famous as a turning point about how to think about world poverty and to stimulate new answers to it. -- Lloyd Gardner, author of Three Kings: The Rise of an American Empire in the Middle East after World War IIA pioneering and transformative work that tracks the politics of hunger from the invention of the calorie to Asia’s Cold War ideological battlegrounds, The Hungry World explores, with a sharp, lively sense of irony, American scientists’ and policy-makers’ relentless and often futile efforts to transmute the conflictual politics of rural deprivation into a technocratic politics of agricultural production. -- Paul A. Kramer, author of The Blood of Government: Race, Empire, the United States and the PhilippinesFacing insurgencies, U.S. officials and expert advisers want to fight famine, alleviate hunger, and ameliorate the conditions on which terrorism thrives. Nick Cullather’s new book—thoughtful, erudite, provocative—is a vivid and timely explication of the hopes and disappointments of past efforts to modernize and develop. -- Melvyn Leffler, author of For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War

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Book SynopsisBruce Ackerman shows how the institutional dynamics of the last half-century have transformed the American presidency into a potential platform for political extremism, and proposes a series of reforms that will minimize, if not eliminate, the risks going forward.Trade ReviewAckerman makes a powerful case that the Executive’s reach has expanded by leaps and bounds over the last half century, due to factors internal and external to the presidency itself… The questions he raises regarding the threat of the American Executive to the republic are daunting. This fascinating book does an admirable job of laying them out. -- Bezalel Stern * The Rumpus *The nature of the power embodied in the U.S. presidency has evolved over the years, and if Bruce Ackerman’s The Decline and Fall of the American Republic is right, the results of that evolution are unfortunate. The contemporary view that tends to see the president as the center of our country’s government and the locus of its political power is something new and quite different from what was intended by the founders. Ackerman, a professor of law and political science at Yale who has written more than a dozen books on American politics, makes clear that his fear is not that the nation is in imminent danger of ceasing to exist as a country. What seems more likely is that its distinctively republican form of government could be lost, crushed under the weight of an unbalanced political structure. In particular, Ackerman worries that the office of the presidency will continue to grow in political influence in the coming years, opening possibilities for abuse of power if not outright despotism. -- Troy Jollimore * Boston Globe *Ackerman must be commended for the honesty and directness of his defense of constitutionalism, irrespective of the ‘sensitivities’ he quite obviously offends… The book has already made a significant impact in America where it has generated a robust debate over the ‘renewal’ of U.S. constitutionalism. -- Emilios Christodoulidis * Modern Law Review *The persuasiveness of [Ackerman’s] individual points varies, but the overall view is rather compelling. -- Matthew Yglesias * American Prospect *In his extraordinary new book, The Decline and Fall of the American Republic, Bruce Ackerman begins, quite literally, by condemning the ‘triumphalism’ that surrounds most discussion of the Constitution… I certainly agree that he has identified a genuine problem with our polity, and I admire him, not for the first time, in having the willingness to speak in tones that many of his more moderate and ‘reasonable’ colleagues in the legal academy will undoubtedly dismiss as overwrought. -- Sandy Levinson * Balkinization (blog) *Bruce Ackerman’s The Decline and Fall of the American Republic is a profoundly important constitutional wake-up call. It presents a powerful, multi-layered, yet highly accessible argument that the body politic faces the serious and unprecedented structural risk of presidential extremism and lawlessness—and a series of new checks and balances that offer the rare combination of pragmatism and originality. One hopes that the book will receive its just deserts by provoking a vigorous new constitutional debate not only among fellow academics but also, more importantly, among We the People. -- Stephen Gardbaum * Balkinization (blog) *Ackerman’s central contention is right on target—our constitutional system is in grave difficulty. He points to the right evidence, a recurrent series of crises linked to the exercise of presidential power: Watergate, Iran-Contra, and the illegalities of the Bush II administration. These crises must be taken seriously as objects of analysis as they are central to a proper understanding of where we stand. Ackerman is also right to claim that the constitutional triumphalism so pervasive in our political culture has gone stale. -- Stephen Griffin * Balkinization (blog) *Alarmist or alarming, The Decline and Fall of the American Republic is a serious attention-getter. Bruce Ackerman has adroitly woven recent changes in our institutional arrangements into a provocative argument that the expanding powers of the twenty-first-century presidency have put our constitutional order at risk. -- Joyce Appleby, University of California, Los Angeles, author of The Relentless RevolutionAt once audacious and plain spoken, Ackerman offers a fierce critique of democracy’s most dangerous adversary: the abuse of democratic power by democratically elected chief executives. -- Benjamin R. Barber, Demos, author of Jihad vs. McWorld and ConsumedIn The Decline and Fall of the American Republic, Bruce Ackerman, one of our nation’s most thoughtful and most influential constitutional theorists, sounds the alarm about the dangers posed by our ever-expanding executive authority. Those who care about the future of our nation should pay careful heed to Ackerman’s warning, as well as to his prescriptions for avoiding a constitutional disaster. -- Geoffrey R. Stone, University of Chicago Law School, author of Perilous Times

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Book SynopsisEnlightenment thinkers, searching for ancient models to understand contemporary affairs, were the first to critically interpret Alexander the Great's achievements. As Pierre Briant shows, in their minds Alexander was the first European: an empire builder who welcomed trade with the Orient and brought Western civilization to its oppressed peoples.Trade ReviewIn this important work, a great historian of classical antiquity returns to the European ‘long eighteenth century’ and its reconsideration of the crucial figure of Alexander as a forerunner of its own imperial ambitions and projects. With its vast erudition, and careful attention to minor as well as major figures from Montesquieu to Droysen and beyond, Pierre Briant’s book is nothing less than a tour de force, both as a contribution to the intellectual history of the Enlightenment in its global dimensions, as well as to the complex dialogue between ‘Moderns’ and ‘Ancients.’ It confirms once more that the life-trajectory of the Macedonian conqueror remains an inexhaustible cultural resource, whether in the Christian or indeed the Islamic world, from the Atlantic and Mediterranean to Bengal and the Malay Peninsula. This is a significant and weighty contribution to a real global intellectual history. -- Sanjay Subrahmanyam, University of California, Los AngelesThe First European is a work of exceptional quality and interest. Briant’s patient disentanglement of the relationship between Alexander the Great, Enlightenment historical thought and European imperialism in India and the Middle East sheds dramatic new light on all three fields…This is a truly remarkable forgotten chapter of European intellectual history, laid out with passion and integrity. Neither Alexander nor Napoleon will ever look quite the same again. -- Peter Thonemann * Wall Street Journal *

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Book SynopsisIt was common knowledge among American soldiers in Vietnam that women were sometimes brave and even ferocious fighters for the North. This text provides vivid accounts of training, deployment, strategy and tactics, propaganda, support services and torture involving women.Trade ReviewFrom the 'long-haired army' that carried provisions through the jungles at Dien Bien Phu to the female 'tunnel rats' at Cu Chi in the South, women were the unsung heroes of Vietnam's war of national liberation. Here, in this sympathetic and sometimes gripping account, is their untold story. - William J. Duiker, author of Ho Chi Minh: A Life ""It was common knowledge among American soldiers in Vietnam that women were sometimes brave and even ferocious fighters for the North. Now at last this fascinating story has been told in depth."" - Robert Olen Butler, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain ""As Taylor reveals, we don't see ourselves as victims but rather as victors and survivors, following in the footsteps of our ancestors."" - Le Ly Hayslip, author of When Heaven and Earth Changed Places ""A very valuable book for courses on the Vietnam War and in women's studies."" - Marilyn B. Young, author of The Vietnam War, 1945-1990 ""Taylor greatly enhances our understanding of the contributions of Vietnam's women, providing vivid accounts of training, deployment, strategy and tactics, propaganda activities, support services, imprisonment and torture, and other aspects of their involvement in the war. Recommended for all levels."" - Choice

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Book SynopsisA documentary and statistical foundation for Colossus Reborn. Its includes a roster of the senior command cadre during wartime, a description of the army's weaponry and equipment, and a listing of the Red Army's and NKVD's order of battle at six crucial points from June 22, 1941, through December 31, 1943.

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Book SynopsisDoes evidence show that Native Americas residing in Utah a thousand years ago lived among dinosaurs, depicting those creatures in their rock art? Did some of those same ancient Americans also encounter visitors from other planets, painting images of space-suited aliens on canyon walls? Have archaeologists discovered evidence that members of the Lost Tribes of Israel visited ancient America, leaving their mark by engraving the Ten Commandments in Hebrew on rocks in New Mexico? And Ohio? Is there archaeological evidence of ancient Celtic visitors to the New World in the form of messages etched in stone, megalithic monuments, and even the remnants of the villages in which they lived? Are American archaeologists covering up the remains of lost cities deeply ensconced in a secret cave in Arizona and in a subterranean chamber in Missouri? Finally, have archaeologists discovered the far western outpost of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, not in Egypt or even Africa, but in, of all places, California? Those questions and more are answered by archaeologist Ken Feder in Archaeological Oddities: A Field Guide to Forty Claims of Lost Civilizations, Ancient Visitors, and Other Strange Sites in North America that the above listed questions and others addressed in his book represent the equivalent of “fake news” about America’s ancient past. The forty sites he highlights are, in fact, fascinating and fun places to visit. Feder’s guide provides an entertaining summary of those forty sites along with the practical information you’ll need to visit them. This full-color book includes over 100 fascinating photographs.Trade ReviewFeder has written the indispensable travel guide to the most colorful blind-alleys and wacky dead-ends of North American archaeology. He knows the territory like nobody else, and he’s passionate about the subject with a delightful sense of humor. And along the way, you’ll learn a lot about real archaeology too. Buckle up and enjoy the ride. -- Brad Lepper, Senior Curator of Archaeology, Ohio History ConnectionKen Feder is an indefatigable archaeological traveler, blessed with insatiable curiosity. He takes us on an entertaining, at times funny, and always well informed excursion to forty archaeological sites where you can experience the often zany site of North American archaeology first hand. This nicely written, well illustrated book takes us on a delicious archaeological journey through a sumptuous array of oddities. It’s a delight. -- Brian Fagan, emeritus professor of anthropology, University of California, Santa BarbaraFeder's humorous commentary and honest presentation of facts make this a fun and informative read. Probably the best way to plan a unique trip to an unusual place in search of hidden messages, lost civilizations, and ancient aliens. -- Sara Head, host of Archaeology FantasiesFeder’s latest is a fascinating field guide to America’s imaginary past from an expert archaeological traveler who combines deep knowledge, a wicked sense of humor, and a thoughtful perspective on the many ways Americans envision ancient times. -- Jason Colavito, author of The Cult of Alien Gods: H.P. Lovecraft and Extraterrestrial Pop CultureFeder's excellent Archaeological Oddities is an oddity itself: an exhaustive guide to the spookiest archaeological sites in North America that provides real evidence. Readers who want the facts, dig in. Highly recommended. -- Jeb J. Card, assistant teaching professor, department of anthropology, Miami UniversityTable of ContentsPreface - What I Did on My Summer Vacations (and intersessions, Spring breaks, and too many long weekends to count) Chapter 1- Turn and Face the Strange Chapter 2- Here’s What We Know The Sites Ancient Visitors: Written Messages 1. Crack Cave, Comanche National Grassland, Colorado 2. Davenport Tablets, Davenport, Iowa 3. Dighton Rock, Berkley, Massachusetts 4. Westford Knight, Westford, Massachusetts 5. Michigan Relics, Michigan 6. Kensington Rune Stone, Alexandria, Minnesota 7. Los Lunas Decalogue Stone, Los Lunas, New Mexico 8. Newark Holy Stones, Newark, Ohio 9. Heavener Rune Stone, Heavener, Oklahoma 10. Bat Creek Stone, Loudon County, Tennessee 11. Grave Creek Stone, Moundsville, West Virginia Ancient Visitors: Stone Monuments 12. Acton Stone Chamber, Acton, Massachusetts 13. Upton Stone Chamber, Upton, Massachusetts 14. Peach Pond Chamber 15. Druid Hill, Lowell, Massachusetts 16. Balanced Rock, North Salem, New York 17. Newport Tower, Newport Rhode Island Ancient Visitors: Villages 18. Gungywamp, Groton, Connecticut 19. America’s Stonehenge/Mystery Hill, North Salem, Massachusetts 20. L’anse aux Meadow, Newfoundland, Canada Ancient Visitors: Aliens 21. Roswell Flying Saucer Crash Site, Roswell, New Mexico 22. Serpent Mound, Peebles, Ohio 23. Head of Sinbad, San Rafael Swell, Utah 24. Sego Canyon, Thompson Springs, Utah Lost Civilization 25. Tucson Artifacts, Tucson, Arizona 26. Grand Canyon Secret Cave, Grand Canyon, Arizona 27. Moberly Subterranean City, Moberly, Missouri 28. Burrows Cave, Illinois Biblical Proof? 29. The Cardiff Giant, Cooperstown, New York 30. Paluxy River Footprints, Glen Rose, Texas 31. Black Dragon Pictograph, San Rafael Swell, Utah 32. Kachina Bridge Pictograph, Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah New Age Antiquity 33. Palatki Cliff Dwelling, Sedona Arizona 34. Honanki Cliff Dwelling, Sedona, Arizona Unexpected Critter Depiction 35. Painted Rock Hairy Man Depictions, Tule Indian Reservation, Porterville, California Follies 36. Lost Egyptian City, Guadaupe, California 37. Carhenge, Alliance, Nebraska 38. The Dig, Governor’s Island, New York, New York 39. Columcille Megalithic Park, Bangor, Pennsylvania 40. Maryhill Stonehenge, Maryhill, Washington State

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Book SynopsisPlatonic Theology is the visionary and philosophical masterpiece of Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499), the Florentine scholar-philosopher-magus largely responsible for the Renaissance revival of Plato. This work, translated into English for the first time, is a key to understanding the art, thought, culture, and spirituality of the Renaissance.Trade ReviewAn aristocratic devotion to our culture continues to manifest itself even today in the most prestigious centers of study and thought. One has merely to look at the very recent (begun in 2001), rigorous and elegant humanistic series of Harvard University, with the original Latin text, English translation, introduction and notes. -- Vittore Branca * Il Sole 24 Ore *The editing and translation of Ficino's text has been done superbly well. Allen and Hankins have begun a work of scholarship of the highest calibre, whose continuation is eagerly awaited. * British Journal for the History of Philosophy *The Loeb Classical Library...has been of incalculable benefit to generations of scholars...It seems certain that the I Tatti Renaissance Library will serve a similar purpose for Renaissance Latin texts, and that, in addition to its obvious academic value, it will facilitate a broadening base of participation in Renaissance Studies...These books are to be lauded not only for their principles of inclusivity and accessibility, and for their rigorous scholarship, but also for their look and feel. Everything about them is attractive: the blue of their dust jackets and cloth covers, the restrained and elegant design, the clarity of the typesetting, the quality of the paper, and not least the sensible price. This is a new set of texts well worth collecting. -- Kate Lowe * Times Literary Supplement *Ficino set out to show that the ancient Neoplatonic philosophy embodied a "gentile theological tradition," one that complemented the Mosaic revelation to the Jews and prepared its devotees for the final truths of Christianity. Ficino worked in full knowledge of the internal complications of Neoplatonism. He wrote and argued in styles that ranged from the logical and synthetic to the poetic and evocative, as he struggled to find ways to prove that the universe was orderly and governed by a Creator and to lay out the place within it of the immortal human soul. -- Anthony T. Grafton * New York Review of Books *

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Book SynopsisIn one concise volume, Hagen Schulze brilliantly conveys the full sweep of German history, from the days of the Romans to the fall of the Berlin Wall. A lavish array of illustrations provides a lively counterpoint to Schulze's elegantly written narrative.Trade ReviewIn Germany: A New History, Hagen Schulze, an expert on the rise of German nationalism, has given us a concise summary of the story of the warlike tribes situated east of the Rhine and of their descendants up to the present day. But throughout this accessible survey of German history--which is punctuated by splendidly reproduced works of art--the author focuses on a key question: "Who are the Germans?" His answer, which sets this book apart from other general histories, emphasizes just how recently the identity of that group has developed...Germany: A New History is printed on art-book stock and contains 56 color illustrations and 59 halftones from the German Historical Museum in Berlin. These range from a panoramic painting of the 1683 siege of Vienna to paintings and propaganda art of the 1940s to more recent adverstisements and photos. Lengthy captions describe the contents and significance of most of these works. -- John E. Pluenneke * Business Week *[Schulze] march[es] briskly through the centuries to produce a highly engaging, compact volume that shouldn't scare off general readers...He has produced a lucid primer that is a valuable addition to a field crowded with dense, specialized volumes. Mark Twain once explained that he was writing a long letter because he didn't have the time to write a short one. Schulze clearly had the time, and used it well. -- Andrew Nagobski * Washington Post Book World *The virtues of the book...include both reliability and brevity. The text runs to 340 pages, but is so lavishly illustrated that nearly 100 of those pages are taken up with pictures and their captions. A summary of the whole of German history in 240-odd pages of words can give a valuable bird's-eye view...[Schulze] argues powerfully that today's Germany is unlike any of the Germanys of the past, that it can and should become a "normal" nation-state. -- Noel Malcolm * Sunday Telegraph *[Hagen Schulze provides] a clear summary of the major political, social and intellectual developments that shaped a nation...His overview of German culture is a model of clarity and perception. Moreover, his willingness to examine the fundamental, and often ambiguous, nature of German society is to be applauded, as is whole-hearted rejection of the vision of a Germany based around a single purpose or set of common values...This remains an impressive and well-conceived work which will no doubt inform and entertain for years to come. -- John Callow * Tribune *Schulze admirably succeeds in providing a concise overview of 2,000 years of German history...For informed general readers who wish to broaden their knowledge of European history, Schulze's well-organized and easily digested account will be ideal. -- Jay Freeman * Booklist *Schulze projects the 19th-century idea of Germany as a "delayed nation" on German history as a whole--an effective leitmotif for this balanced and beautifully written book. The narrative moves comfortably through the archaic principles of the Holy Roman Empire, the emergence of a Pan-German identity, the lack of "inner ties" within the Kaiser's empire, and the 'inner stability' of the Federal Republic. This view correctly emphasizes the country's social and economic transformation without neglecting Germany's larger European context...The author's grasp of historical possibility makes credible his concluding assertions about the "fundamental" differences between today's Germany and its earlier versions. Highly recommended for academic and public libraries. -- Zachary T. Irwin * Library Journal *Schulze has written a thoughtful, well-conceived short history of Germany...[It] is based on extensive reading of the recent scholarly historiography of German history on Schulze's own substantial work on twentieth-century German history...A Short History of Germany is especially good in its treatment of the last forty years of German history, and it has the distinct virtue of presenting a thoughtful evaluation of the consequences of the revolution of 1989-90 for the future construction of German national state. The book is also filled with many attractive and for the most part appropriately chosen illustrations, and it is written in an engaging style...It is filled with shrewd observations and analytical comments which raise it above the level of a mere chronological narrative...This is an elegant short narrative. -- John W. Boyer, University of ChicagoWith the aim of explaining what Germany represents and what ëit can and should be, "Schulze proposes ëto tell anew the story of German history." And quite a good story-teller he is...This book pursues two major aims: it wants to provide a concise history of modern Germany that emphasizes diversity, if primarily at the level of politics; it also hopes to reassure both Germans and their neighbors that history is not going to repeat itself...This [book] is a reliable and very readable history of Germany. -- Volker Berghahn, Columbia UniversityTable of ContentsPreface 1. The Roman Empire and German Lands (to 1400) 2. Transitions (1400-1648) 3. Twilight of the Empire (1648-1806) 4. The Birth of the German Nation (1806-1848) 5. Blood and Iron (1848-1871) 6. German Possibilities: A Digression 7. A Nation State in the Center of Europe (1871-1890) 8. Unification and the Dream of World Power (1890-1914) 9. The Great War and Its Aftermath (1914-1923) 10. Weimar: Brief Glory and Decline (1924-1933) 11. German Megalomania (1933-1942) 12. The End of the Third Reich and a New Beginning (1942-1949) 13. A Divided Nation (1949-1990) 14. Epilogue: What Is the German's Fatherland? Suggested Readings Illustration Credits Index

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