History Books

Book Synopsis''Both pioneering and fundamental. This is the essential history of Ukraine, from one of the greatest Ukrainian thinkers and scholars.'' Timothy Snyder #1 New York Times and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of On Tyranny ''Ukrainian historian Yaroslav Hrytsak''s vivid, sweeping book lays bare the enduring pride that persuaded his countrymen to resist Russian aggression and offers grounds for hope.'' Luke Harding, Observer ''People and nations are forged in the fires of adversity.'' John Adams UKRAINE The Forging of a Nation delves into the events that led to the creation of Ukraine, examining crucial moments of Ukrainian and world history and how connected they have been, and continue to be, to this day.When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the world witnessed the ''creative, freewheeling, darkly humorous, and deeply resilient soc

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Book Synopsis**OVER HALF A MILLION COPIES SOLD****THE TIMES MEMOIR OF THE YEAR 2019**'The best royal book by miles . . . funny, gossipy and riveting'JANE RIDLEY, SPECTATOR'If your jaw doesn't drop at least three times every chapter, you've not been paying proper attention'SUNDAY TIMES'A captivating account of a life lived with resilience and grace'DAILY MAIL'The stoical Lady G writes with infectious joy and optimism'DAILY EXPRESS'The gossip is stupendous but it's also tremendously touching. It's one of those books that makes you long for bed so you can read more!'JILLY COOPER'I can't recommend it highly enough'LORRAINE KELLY'Gentle, wise, unpretentious, but above all inspiring'THE TIMES'A candid, witty and stylish memoir'MIRANDA SEYMOUR, FINANCIAL TIMES'Stalwart and disarmingly honest . . . emotion resonates through this delightful memoir'THE WALL STREET JOURNAL'Discretion and honour emerge as the hallmarks of Glenconner's career as a royal servant, culminating in this book which manages to be both candid and kind'GUARDIAN'I couldn't put it down. Funny and touching - like looking through a keyhole at a lost world.'RUPERT EVERETT~The remarkable life of Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret who was also a Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation. Anne Glenconner reveals the real events behind The Crown as well as her own life of drama, tragedy and courage, with the wonderful wit and extraordinary resilience which define her.Anne Glenconner has been close to the Royal Family since childhood. Eldest child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, she was, as a daughter, described as 'the greatest disappointment' by her family as she was unable to inherit. Her childhood home Holkham Hall is one of the grandest estates in England. Bordering Sandringham the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret were frequent playmates. From Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation to Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret, Lady Glenconner is a unique witness to royal history, as well as an extraordinary survivor of a generation of aristocratic women trapped without inheritance and burdened with social expectations. She married the charismatic but highly volatile Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who became the owner of Mustique. Together they turned the island into a paradise for the rich and famous, including Mick Jagger and David Bowie, and it became a favourite retreat for Princess Margaret. But beneath the glitz and glamour there has also lurked tragedy. On Lord Glenconner's death in 2010 he left his fortune to a former employee. And of their five children, two grown-up sons died, while a third son had to be nursed back from a coma by Anne, after having suffered a near fatal accident. Anne Glenconner writes with extraordinary wit, generosity and courage and she exposes what life was like in her gilded cage, revealing the role of her great friendship with Princess Margaret, and the freedom she can now finally enjoy in later life.Trade Review'Lady Glenconner's life story is a combination of royal magic, personal tragedy and resilient survival. With humour, courage and preternatural poise, she at last tells the story of her uniquely fascinating life' -- Tina Brown'I couldn't put it down. Funny and touching - like looking through a keyhole at a lost world' -- Rupert Everett'Anne Glenconner has written a remarkable memoir - containing, at last, a genuine portrait of Princess Margaret from one who knew her well. But this book is poignant too, and through the pages shine her courage and good-humoured acceptance of her demons and tragedies' -- Hugo Vickers'Remarkable . . . If your jaw doesn't drop at least three times every chapter, you've not been paying proper attention' * The Sunday Times *'A funny, sometimes tragic and disarmingly frank memoir . . . Lady in Waiting is gentle, wise, unpretentious, but above all inspiring' * The Times *'A startling, rare, beguiling insight into a lost world of royalty and celebrity with as many tears as there are titles' * Daily Express *'It's a total hoot - I couldn't put it down' -- Janet Street-Porter'Marvellous book . . . one's eyes were on stalks' -- Jan Moir * Daily Mail *'A romp of an autobiography' * The Times T2 *'[An] astounding memoir' -- India Knight * The Sunday Times Magazine *'A candid, witty and stylish memoir' -- Miranda Seymour * Financial Times *'An absolute hoot' * The Times *'This memoir made me laugh, wince, cry and gasp. For anyone who craves a bracing dose of the older generation's stiff upper lip, Anne Glenconner provides it.' -- Ysenda Maxtone Graham * Daily Mail *'Wonderful' -- Janice Turner * The Times *'The insider memoir of the year' -- Julian Glover * Evening Standard *'A remarkable life, remarkably told' * The Sunday Times *'It's impossible not to admire her fortitude . . . funny and sometimes dazzling' -- Rachel Cooke * Observer *'Rollicking . . . [Lady in Waiting] paints such a rich picture of the aristocracy it's impossible not to marvel at the institution, both in admiration and horror' * Sydney Morning Herald *'This outlandish memoir drips with royal tidbits . . . but it's also insightful on the more damaging aspects of being a member of the British aristocracy. Sobering - and terrific fun' * Metro *'The author reads her own words in indomitable fashion, and anyone who enjoyed Craig Brown's life of Glenconner's former employer, Ma'am Darling, will find this fascinating.' * Financial Times *'This year's Ma'am Darling - the perfect book to curl up on the sofa with.' * The i *'This riveting read will leave you open-mouthed and hungry for more.' * Sunday Post *'Fascinating and beautifully written . . . I can't recommend [Glenconner's] book high enough' * Spectator *'Captivating' -- Catherine Bennett * Observer *'Beyond admirable' -- Sophie Money-Coutts * Sunday Telegraph *'Lady in Waiting has made me laugh and cry several times. I raced through it in 4 days. Book heaven' -- Fearne Cotton'Riveting life' -- Craig Brown * Mail on Sunday *'Discretion and honour emerge as the hallmarks of Glenconner's career as a royal servant, culminating in this book which manages to be both candid and kind.' -- Kathryn Hughes * Guardian *'One of the most enjoyable books of 2019 . . . Anne Glenconner, now 87, captures a lost world in which she waited (with remarkable good grace) on Princess Margaret. Sometimes the best view of history is given by the minor characters' -- Allison Pearson * Sunday Telegraph *'Such a moving book' -- Bella Mackie'A riotous social document and a beautifully written account of a vivid life superbly lived' * The Critic *'Sparkling, endearing and alarming' * Times Literary Supplement *'[Lady in Waiting] has two things going for it: the first is that it is not what it seems; it is definitely not "a lavender sort of scented memoir" . . . Its other great strength is Glenconner herself' -- Hadley Freeman * Guardian *'Stalwart and disarmingly honest . . . emotion resonates through this delightful memoir' * The Wall Street Journal *'Lady Glenconner displays resilience of a different kind in her memoir about the astonishing ups and downs of her artistocratic life' * Mail on Sunday *'Funny, revelatory, poignant, occasionally jaw-dropping' * Sunday Times *'Anne Glenconner writes with wit, generosity and courage about her life in a gilded cage ... Fascinating!' * Platinum *'Finely drawn . . . Glenconner has an eye for detail' * London Review of Books *'The publishing sensation of 2019, this candid, wise, witty and gossip-filled memoir by Princess Margaret's 87-year-old former lady-in-waiting (and best friend) tells the true story behind the scenes in The Crown - and reminds us that, sometimes, it's the minor characters who give us the sharpest view of history' * Daily Telegraph *'A captivating account of a life lived with resilience and grace' * Daily Mail *'The stoical Lady G writes with infectious joy and optimism' * Daily Express *'If you're looking for something to read in lockdown, I can't recommend it highly enough' -- Lorraine Kelly'. . . tremendously touching. It's one of those books that make you long for bed so you can read more!' -- Jilly Cooper * Good Housekeeping *'This funny and touching read will allow you to take a peek inside the glamorous world and volatile life of an aristocrat' * Bella *

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Book SynopsisJacob Rees-Mogg is one of the most prominent and controversial figures in contemporary British politics. He is a man who divides opinion in his own party, in Parliament and across the country. An arch-Brexiteer with significant business interests and a large personal fortune, he has long been a vocal critic of the European Union and of Prime Minister Theresa May’s attempts to negotiate a Brexit deal. As chairman of the powerful anti-EU organisation the European Research Group, he has also been a thorn in the side of those seeking to dilute Brexit. While many people mock him for his impeccable manners and traditional attitudes – he has been dubbed `the Honourable Member for the eighteenth century’ – an equally great number applaud him for his apparent conviction politics. Undoubtedly, Rees-Mogg stands out among the current crop of MPs and his growing influence cannot be ignored. In this wide-ranging unauthorised biography of the Conservative Member of Parliament for North East Somerset, Michael Ashcroft, bestselling author of Call Me Dave: The Unauthorised Biography of David Cameron, turns his attention to one of the most intriguing politicians of our time.

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Book SynopsisWelcome to another round of history's most absurd stories and the timeless lessons that come with them. In More Lessons from History, Alex Deane has unearthed yet more bizarre tales that you certainly haven't heard before. If you're wondering how large, flightless birds might organise themselves against a military regiment, how you should respond to the glare of an international rugby player whose glass eye you just knocked out, exactly why carrots are orange, or whether the world's worst-run battleship ever ceased firing upon her comrades-in-arms, then look no further. In this second volume of his acclaimed series, Alex Deane reminds us that, throughout history, human nature has remained exactly the same, and the way that people responded to the most amusing, horrifying and convoluted of circumstances in the past can teach us everything we need to know about who we are today.

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Book SynopsisJames Bluemel is an Emmy and BAFTA award winning filmmaker. His landmark documentary series Exodus: the Journey to Europe and the follow up series, The Journey Continues were both broadcast on the BBC and PBS Frontline and charted the journeys of refugees as they fled their homes and tried to find asylum in Europe. Filmed over 4 years, it won the BAFTA for Director - Factual 2017.

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Book SynopsisHelen Lewis is a staff writer at The Atlantic, based in London, who writes about politics and culture. Her first book, Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights, was a Sunday Times bestseller and a Guardian, Telegraph and Financial Times book of the year. She is the writer and presenter of the BBC podcast series The New Gurus and Helen Lewis Has Left the Chat, and co-host of Radio 4's Kafka vs Orwell and Strong Message Here. She won the 2024 Kukula Award for excellence in non-fiction book reviewing.

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE EAST ANGLIAN BOOK AWARD 2023 'Exceptionally well-written and intelligent ... if you are interested in this remarkable microcosm of England, the book will grip you; if you aren't, it will make you realise that you jolly well should be.' Simon Heffer, Spectator 'A deeply sensitive and engaging portrait of a misunderstood county and its people' Financial Times 'A stellar performance' Jonathan Meades Essex. A county both famous and infamous: the stuff of tabloid headlines and reality television, consumer culture and right-wing politicians. England's dark id. But beyond the sensationalist headlines lies a strange and secret place with a rich history: of smugglers and private islands, artists and radicals, myths and legends. It's where the Peasants' Revolt began and the Empire Windrush docked. And - from political movements like Brexit to cultural events like TOWIE - where Essex leads, the rest of us often follow. Deeply researched and thoroughly engaging, The Invention of Essex shows that there is more to this fabled English county than meets the eye.Trade ReviewA deeply personal book .... part-memoir, part-travelogue and part-political tract .... a lucid and erudite guide, [Burrows] is good company * The Sunday Times *Exceptionally well-written and intelligent ... this is a thoughtful, atmospheric book of genuine insight and erudition ... if you are interested in this remarkable microcosm of England, the book will grip you; if you aren't, it will make you realise that you jolly well should be. -- Simon Heffer * Spectator *A journey out into strange territory ... Burrows does not disappoint * FT *[A] heartfelt evocation of the county ... appealingly conversational and unpretentious -- Andrew Motion * New Statesman *Richly researched and written with vim and humour, this book will change the way you see the infamous county * iPaper *Tim Burrows's new book celebrates the rich history and legacy of Essex * Daily Mail *Part-memoir, part-travelogue, and part-political tract ... thoughtful and erudite * The Week *Burrows is acute ... Essex deserves our attention * National *"Before Essex was a punchline, it was a dream," writes Tim Burrows, and he shows you the hopes and humanity of a county more often the subject of lazy stereotype. Thoroughly researched yet deeply personal, this book takes in marsh and factory, William Morris and TOWIE - all delivered with a friendly panache. -- Aditya ChakraborttyA love letter to a county whose variety and richness is so often overlooked because it fails to adhere to the dreary English ideal of picturesque gentility. Burrows digs deep. He meanders like a creek. Nothing is off limits. It's a stellar performance. The first picture caption sets the tone: 'Aerial view of mud' -- Jonathan MeadesAn exceptional book by a lucid and sharp-eyed writer with a personal stake in his story. Burrows has a winning way of combining solidarity with critical distance, and an invigorating habit of cutting through the cliches with one sympathetic blast after another. This is Essex for the 21st century but it's also a book about England, and all the better for the fact that it absolutely refuses to be an elegy -- Patrick Wright, author * The Sea View Has Me Again *Evocative and smart ... Essex is often a prism through which England is seen, whether in terms of housing, politics, art or land ... beautifully written, with intelligence and heart' -- Amy Liptrot, author * The Outrun *Tim Burrows is one of the finest and most humane writers on these islands. In The Invention of Essex he makes the familiar seem strange, and vice versa, by digging deep into his own life to tell the story of his native Essex with eloquence and verve. I can't see how anyone could fail to be delighted and enthralled by this passionate, erudite journey into the soul of the English South-East -- Alex Niven, author * The North Will Rise Again *Tim Burrows has written the most insightful, thorough, hilarious and at times poignant investigation of place, of people, of history and of belonging. I loved every page. The way Tim weaves his own family and experience into such a detailed and well-researched narrative of geography, sociology and history is masterful. I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in identity, landscape, family and the concept of home. This book deserves to do brilliantly well and will launch Burrows into the public consciousness as one of our great living writers. -- Nell Frizzell, author * Holding the Baby *A lively tour of a place everyone thinks they know, but seldom understand - and a great book about a built landscape of social mobility, both collective and individualistic - and how quickly one can curdle into the other before anyone has noticed -- Owen Hatherley, author * Red Metropolis: Socialism and the Government of London *This is a book about Essex people and how they created one of Britain's best-known and most distinctive counties. Many have moved from London, but once in Essex they have stayed there. Tim Burrows' sympathetic and vivid investigation of Essex's unique social landscape reveals that its historical roots are ancient and very modern: both are equally important. It's an addictive read -- Francis Pryor, author * The Fens: Discovering England's Ancient Depths *Burrows digs beneath the sensationalism and red-top headlines to paint a deeply sensitive and engaging portrait of a misunderstood county and its people -- 'The Books to Read in 2023' * Financial Times *A roam around the history of England's most infamous county, which dispels lazy myths and reveals a fascinating array of smugglers, radicals and movements. [Tim Burrows] passionately argues that there is much more to Essex than meets the eye * Bookseller *

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Book SynopsisA masterful history of the great dynasty of the Netherlands' Middle Ages. 'A sumptuous feast of a book' The Times, Books of the Year 'Thrillingly colourful and entertaining' Sunday Times 'A thrilling narrative of the brutal dazzlingly rich wildly ambitious duchy' Simon Sebag Montefiore 5 stars! Daily Telegraph 'A masterpiece' De Morgen 'A history book that reads like a thriller' Le Soir At the end of the fifteenth century, Burgundy was extinguished as an independent state. It had been a fabulously wealthy, turbulent region situated between France and Germany, with close links to the English kingdom. Torn apart by the dynastic struggles of early modern Europe, this extraordinary realm vanished from the map. But it became the cradle of what we now know as the Low Countries, modern Belgium and the Netherlands. This is the story of a thousand years, a compulsively readable narrative history of ambitious aristocrats, family dysfunction, treachery, savage battles, luxury and madness. It is about the decline of knightly ideals and the awakening of individualism and of cities, the struggle for dominance in the heart of northern Europe, bloody military campaigns and fatally bad marriages. It is also a remarkable cultural history, of great art and architecture and music emerging despite the violence and the chaos of the tension between rival dynasties.Trade ReviewBart Van Loo does something extremely difficult; he brings to life an illusion of a state in an unfamiliar world. And he does this with such verve and energy that you very nearly believe it * Literary Review *A thrilling narrative of the brutal dazzlingly rich wildly ambitious duchy that was the most advanced and sophisticated economy and the most extravagant flashy court of its time. Filled with flamboyant murderous and debauched dukes, courtesans, courtiers and maniacs, it is a total pleasure to read -- Simon Sebag Montefiore, Aspects of History, Books of the YearIn this perky popular history, a bestseller on mainland Europe, Bart Van Loo traces the steady rise and sudden end of the Burgundians, sprinkling his narrative with many entertaining asides * The Times *Bart van Loo is in top form. The Burgundians reads like a train and hits you like a sledgehammer. A masterpiece... He does not try to be a wise man or a moralist. What he does make clear is that that the history of early Dutch unification is one that came about both through excessive bloodshed and praiseworthy magnanimity. Mission accomplished' * De Morgen *History told – and well told, too – for those who value narrative at least as much as the finicky details of economics or treaty-making * Daily Telegraph *To narrate the legendary story of the dukes of Burgundy, you need a learned and visionary guide like Bart Van Loo... A masterful work' * Le Figaro *Suitably epic * BBC History Magazine *A sparkling history of the origins of the Low Countries... Van Loo arouses interest in the past among thousands of readers, spectators and listeners in an inimitable way' * The Low Countries *A pleasure to read from start to finish. How fortunate that Van Loo is not just a historian but also a writer. Truly spectacular! * Neue Züricher Zeitung *The political and the personal, economics and culture, belief and violence, success and failure, major developments and spicy details – it's all there. The Burgundians expertly draws on the latest scientific insights, but is also told with lightness and elegance' -- Frits van OostromThe formidable saga of our Burgundian origins. Over 650 pages that read like a great political adventure novel, a Game of Thrones soap opera where everything is true * La Libre Belgique *Full of cliff hangers and moving passages. Irresistible -- Herman PleijBart van Loo is back and emerges once again as a true storyteller. Van Loo is the perfect guide through the past. It is as if we are there * De Standaard *A history book that reads like a thriller * Le Soir *Colourful and multidimensional: a Belgian master storyteller * Kulturradio, SWR2 *Narrative history of the highest level... The author conjures the tastes, smells, colours and feelings of the past' * Kulturradio, WDR 3 *Thrillingly colourful and entertaining * Sunday Times *Most of us think of wine when we hear the word 'Burgundy', but Bart Van Loo uncovers a lost empire of mad dukes, strange delicacies and great wealth * The Times, Books of the Year *A worthwhile and satisfying read * Sunday Independent *A sumptuous feast of a book... Van Loo recreates the world of Ghent and Bruges in loving detail, a bustling, blood-soaked landscape of quays, merchants and money changers' * The Times, '21 best history books of 2021' *Lively, anecdotal unpicking of this fascinating but nebulous entity * New Statesman *Belgian historian Bart Van Loo tells its story in 'rollicking' style * The Week *Stuffed with elaborate feasts and bloody battles, Van Loo's thrillingly colourful and entertaining book has been an enormous success in his native Belgium and it's easy to see why * Sunday Times *

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisA story of survival - and of enduring hope in the face of unspeakablehardship - on an extraordinary journey, made by Peter, a boyof five, through war-torn Europe in 1944 and 45. Peter soon realisesthat this new adventure is really a nightmare, watching bombsfalling from the blue sky outside Vienna, and learning maths fromhis mother in Belsen.

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Book SynopsisAN ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR''A gripping investigation of Israel''s assassination policy'' Sunday Times''Remarkable'' Observer''Riveting'' Daily Mail''Compelling'' John le CarréWinner of 2018 National Jewish Book AwardRise and Kill First is the definitive book to read on Israel''s military history.From the very beginning of its statehood in 1948, the instinct to take every measure to defend the Jewish people has been hardwired into Israel''s DNA. This is the riveting inside account of the targeted assassinations that have been used countless times, on enemies large and small, sometimes in response to attacks against the Israeli people and sometimes pre-emptively. Rise and Kill First counts their successes, failures and the moral and political price exacted on those who carried out the missions which have shaped the Israeli nation, theTrade ReviewA thrilling narrative of extreme bravery and compromised morality * Economist, Books of the Year 2018 *Ronen Bergman has set out in incontestable detail the history and scale of Israel's use of extrajudicial killing as an instrument of defence and foreign policy. His material is stark and sensational, but he steers a steady course through it ... The result is a compelling read whatever your point of view. * John le Carré *A gripping investigation of Israel's assassination policy * Sunday Times *Riveting...Based on 1,000 interviews and vast numbers of leaked documents, his book often reads like a John le Carre novel. But it took considerable courage for him to publish it. * Daily Mail *A masterpiece! Only Ronen Bergman's extraordinary research could have achieved it * Christopher Andrew, author of 'The Defence of the Realm: The Authorised History of MI5' *Exciting, sometimes moving and always considered...Not only is Bergman's book a stunning feat of research and a riveting read, it is also testament to the author's personal courage -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times *With remarkable access to officials and reports, Ronen Bergman's revealing book lays bare Mossad's kill operations * Observer *The Israeli government did its best to prevent Bergman from writing this ...fascinating new book about the history of Israeli assassinations, published during Israel's seventieth anniversary year. Rise and Kill First not only sheds light on that most secretive of subjects, Israel's intelligence services, but also has wider significance: how and why a state uses extra-judicial killing, and the consequences of doing so. * TLS *You think the Krays were rough? Try the Mossad. This is an amalgam of the secret and often lethal special operations they carried out over the years. * Daily Express *Terrific ... It's easy to understand why Bergman's book is already a bestseller. It moves at a torrid pace and tells stories that would make Jason Bourne sit up and say 'Wow!' It is smart, thoughtful and balanced. * The New York Times Book Review *An exceptional work, a humane book about an incendiary subject * New York Times *This remarkable account of Israel's targeted-killing programs is the product of nearly eight years of research into what is arguably the most secretive and impenetrable intelligence community in the world. * The New Yorker *Authoritative . . . a chilling portrait * The Washington Post *Well-written and informative, Rise and Kill First is the best book so far written on this dramatic subject * Jewish Chronicle *Fascinating . . . In picturesque and gripping language, making use of careful, often ground-breaking research, Bergman presents a series of incidents from the history of the Mossad's assassination missions * Literary Review *Remarkable * Observer *A gripping investigation of Israel's assassination policy * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisA choose-your-own-adventure board game set in World War II occupied France, capturing the stakes and tension of espionage and resistance warfare.Darkness covers your approach as you alight on the riverbank. Swiftly, you hide the boat and shoulder your gear. The mission is clear: capture or kill your target; rendezvous at the extraction point; get out. You have two days. Nodding to your team, you set off toward the glowing lights of Vaillant.War Story: Occupied France is a cooperative narrative game for one to six players. Your team of covert operatives is all that stands between the infamous German officer Heidenreich and the systematic destruction of French Resistance forces in Morette. Through three replayable story missions, you must exploit the specialties of your chosen agents to uncover information, enlist allies, and obtain weaponry. Engage occupying forces on tactical encounter maps, where careless positioning could cost your agent

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Book SynopsisAlice Loxton is one of Britain's most exciting young historians. She has been a pioneer in bringing history to new audiences through social media, and has a total following of over 2 million across Instagram, TikTok and Twitter. She is an experienced writer and presenter, regularly presenting documentaries on History Hit, Channel 4 and the BBC. She is the author of Eighteen and the acclaimed book UPROAR: Scandal, Satire and Printmakers in Georgian London, nominated for Blackwell's Book of the Year.

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Book Synopsis''Hilarious, heartbreaking and utterly extraordinary.'' Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times Books of the YearSuperbly entertaining.' Financial TimesJaw-dropping.' Sunday TimesFascinating.' GuardianGripping.' The TimesTerrific . . . A page-turning history of imperial hubris and nemesis, deceit and delusion, love and betrayal on a grand scale.' Sunday TimesIn 1864, a young Austrian archduke by the name of Maximilian crossed the Atlantic to assume a faraway throne. He had been lured into the voyage by a duplicitous Napoleon III. Keen to spread his own interests abroad, the French emperor had promised Maximilian a hero's welcome. Instead, he walked into a bloody guerrilla war. With a head full of impractical ideals and a penchant for pomp and butterflies the new emperor' was singularly ill-equipped for what lay in store.This is the vivid history of this barely known, barely b

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Book SynopsisBizarre and quite brilliant.' Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday TimesThrilling.' Michael Burleigh, Sunday TelegraphFrancis Spufford has one of the most original minds in contemporary literature.' Nick HornbyThe Soviet Union was founded on a fairytale. It was built on 20th-century magic called ''the planned economy'', which was going to gush forth an abundance of good things that the penny-pinching lands of capitalism could never match. And just for a little while, in the heady years of the late 1950s, the magic seemed to be working.Red Plenty is about that moment in history, and how it came, and how it went away; about the brief era when, under the rash leadership of Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviet Union looked forward to a future of rich communists and envious capitalists, when Moscow would out-glitter Manhattan, every Lada would be better engineered than a Porsche and sputniks would lead the way to the stars. And it''s about the sc

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Book SynopsisArsenal is special. Its multicultural fandom reflects a changing city and a unique relationship with Black British popular culture. Thanks to its decades of fielding iconic Black players on the pitch and the storied and diverse histories of its terraces, Arsenal has emerged as a powerful symbol of what an organic and convivial multiculture can be.From the earliest hints in the late 1960s that something remarkable was happening, up to Arsenal''s ascendence as a global organisation, Black Arsenal is the first dedicated exploration of the club''s relationship to contemporary Black identity and culture. It sees the club''s affinity with Black identity transcend football and spread across cultures: in the media, music, fashion, politics and everyday social experiences. Explored through a combination of stunning photography and rare archival images, Black Arsenal examines how a new Black iconography emerged at Arsenal at key moments in British history that became cru

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Book Synopsis'These stories of witchcraft, true and vividly told, demonstrate the potent reality of belief in evil and how in any era or place fear can be weaponised and marginal people, mostly women, labelled as wicked and dangerous. Together they comprise not just a history of witchcraft but a cautionary tale’Malcolm Gaskill, author of The Ruin of All Witches   'Thought-provoking and timely... Searing'Jessie Childs, The Times   In Witchcraft,  Professor Marion Gibson uses thirteen significant trials to tell the global history of witchcraft and witch-hunts. As well as exploring the origins of witch-hunts through some of the most famous trials from the Middle Ages to the eighteenth century, it takes us in new and surprising directions.Three women were prosecuted under a version of the 1735 Witchcraft Act as recently as 2018.

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Book SynopsisA SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER ‘Tender, fascinating … Lucid and illuminating’ Robert Macfarlane Funerary rituals show us what people thought about mortality; how they felt about loss; what they believed came next. From Roman cremations and graveside feasts, to deviant burials with heads rearranged, from richly furnished Anglo Saxon graves to the first Christian burial grounds in Wales, Buried provides an alternative history of the first millennium in Britain. As she did with her pre-history of Britain in Ancestors, Professor Alice Roberts combines archaeological finds with cutting-edge DNA research and written history to shed fresh light on how people lived: by examining the stories of the dead.  

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Book SynopsisAs well as vividly exploring the tales, the author brings her expertise in the archaeology of the Iron Age and particularly shamanism to bear on the mythical worlds she describes, with evidence as diverse as the Gundestrup Cauldron and the famous bog bodies. She also asks how the myths survived the Christianization of Europe.Trade Review'A magical miscellany of myths' - The Times'A very scholarly but eminently readable and accessible guide to the Celtic myths' - Reference ReviewsTable of ContentsPrelude: The Celtic World: Space, Time and Evidence; 1 Word of Mouth: Making Myths; 2 The Myth Spinners; 3 A Plethora of Irish Spirits; 4 Enchanted Wales: A Magical Land; 5 The Champion’s Portion: Mythical Heroes; 6 Enchanting Animals and Edgy Beings; 7 Dangerous Liaisons: Monstrous Regiments of Women; 8 Land and Water: A Seethe of Spirits; 9 Heaven and Hell: Paradise and the Underworld; Finale: Paganism and Christianity: The Transformation of Myth

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Book Synopsis''Spying at its most captivating and intricate'' The Times''Deighton has woven an intricate and satisfying plot, peopled it with convincing characters and even given a new twist to the spy story. But then he is a master of the form'' Washington PostLong-suffering spy Bernard Samson has, against all the odds, enticed a Soviet agent to defect to London - but this proves to be the start of something even bigger. For he learns that there is treachery within his own Service, and no one is free from suspicion. To discover who really controls the game of spies, he must attempt a desperate gamble. As the Game, Set and Match trilogy reaches its shattering finale, who will make the winning move?A BERNARD SAMSON NOVELTrade ReviewOnce again Deighton has woven an intricate and satisfying plot, peopled it with convincing characters and even managed to give a new twist or two to the spy story. But then he is a master of the form. * Washington Post *Len Deighton is the Flaubert of the contemporary thriller writers. -- Michael Howard * Times Literary Supplement *Deighton's outstanding achievement is the nine-volume series chronicling the life and times of Bernard Samson ... Deighton's Samson trilogies are as much about the elusiveness of human interactions as espionage. Spying is not a secret world sealed off from ordinary life but an extension of the world we all live in. -- John Gray * New Statesman *Len Deighton's spy novels are so good they make me sad the Cold War is over. -- Malcolm GladwellThe self-conscious cool of Deighton's writing has dated in the best way possible ... Stone-cold Cold War classic. -- Toby Litt * The Guardian *

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Book Synopsis'A brilliantly written and incisive account of gay life' Colm Tóibín 'Each page made me yearn for the dance floor... I'm so glad that someone has written this definitive book about gay bars' Amelia Abraham, author of Queer Intentions Propulsive music and euphoric crowds; drag queens and go-go dancers; strobe lights, dark rooms and glory holes. Gay bars have long been sites of joy and solidarity, sexual expression and activism. But around the world, they are closing. Atherton Lin draws from his experiences of clubs, pubs and dives in London, San Francisco and Los Angeles - and a transatlantic romance that began late one restless night - to trace queer histories. An expansive and vivacious celebration of an institution, Gay Bar is also a stylish, intimate exploration of what these spaces mean, how they are changing and what we stand to lose when they close their doors. 'Essential' Vogue 'Expansive, exuberant and horny' AttitudeTrade ReviewA brilliantly written and incisive account of gay life in Los Angeles, San Francisco and London... Atherton Lin's book is a history lesson, a travelogue, but it is also a display of a rich sensibility, a kind of autobiography using bars as its thread -- Colm Tóibín * Guardian *I can't remember the last time I've been so happily surprised and enchanted by a book. An absolute tour de force -- Maggie Nelson, author of The ArgonautsEach page made me yearn for the dance floor and made me think about our need for queer spaces. I'm so glad that someone has written this definitive book about gay bars -- Amelia Abraham, author of Queer IntentionsSearching, erudite, and sexy. It wears its erudition with verve and grace, probing the past, the present, and the future of queer life while refusing easy binaries. Gay Bar is about pleasure, but is deeply serious too. One of the best books I have read in ages -- Katherine Angel, author of Daddy IssuesI am utterly blown away. We can never have enough complex, intersectional writing about queer experience, and this is a welcome, needed addition to the canon -- Niven Govinden, author of This Brutal HouseShot through with vibrant intellectual adrenalin. With keen original insight, Atherton Lin celebrates the gay bar as a site of ribald, sensuous and urgent resistance. A must-read for all -- Cathy Park Hong, author of Minor FeelingsLively and dirty, intellectual and gossipy, Gay Bar is the rare book that feels both like a guilty pleasure and like it is making you considerably smarter as you read. An important document of queer lives -- Michelle Tea, author of Black WavePainstakingly researched and tenderly written, Gay Bar marks queer bars as sites of resistance and reinvention. I longed for nothing more than to club hop with Atherton Lin -- Alex Espinoza, author of Cruising: An Intimate History of a Radical PastimeA book of rare dream-like power, an exacting anthropology of queer life through the lenses of London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Blackpool. Brainy, audacious, funny, vulnerable, and sexy -- Paul Lisicky, author of Later: My Life At the Edge of the WorldGay Bar exemplifies the multidimensionality Atherton Lin admires: it's at once erotically gamey and intellectually playful, combining soft porn with social theory, semen with semiotics... utterly unique -- Peter Conrad * Observer *Electric, immersive, and impossible to look away from... an illuminating, sexy, vibrant examination of place and identity * Buzzfeed *Playful, hilarious, arousing, shocking and challenging * The Face *Expansive, exuberant and horny * Attitude *A restless and intelligent cultural history of queer nightlife... Beautiful, and original * Parul Sehgal, New York Times *Gay Bar commemorates a way of life without reducing it to one thing or fixing it in time; rather, it revels in variety and incident * Edward Behrens, Literary Review *Gay Bar reads like a cult classic... Atherton Lin's writing vividly itches with the pulse, heat and chaos, the acceptance and rejection of gay nightlife * Paul Flynn, Evening Standard *

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Book SynopsisChinese New Year is right around the corner and Mai-Anne is so exciting to celebrate with her Grandmother, Nai Nai. Together they retell the story behind the Great Race. A beautifully illustrated introduction to the true meaning of Chinese New Year and family traditions for little ones.

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Book SynopsisA TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR''As brilliant a history of the Vikings as one could possibly hope to read'' Tom HollandThe ''Viking Age'' is traditionally held to begin in June 793 when Scandinavian raiders attacked the monastery of Lindisfarne in Northumbria, and to end in September 1066, when King Harald Hardrada of Norway died leading the charge against the English line at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. This book, the most wide-ranging and comprehensive assessment of the current state of our knowledge, takes a refreshingly different view. It shows that the Viking expansion began generations before the Lindisfarne raid, and traces Scandinavian history back centuries further to see how these people came to be who they were.The narrative ranges across the whole of the Viking diaspora, from Vinland on the eastern American seaboard to Constantinople and Uzbekistan, with contacts as far away as China. Based on the latest archaeology, it explores the complex origins of the Viking phenomenon and traces the seismic shifts in Scandinavian society that resulted from an economy geared to maritime war. Some of its most striking discoveries include the central role of slavery in Viking life and trade, and the previously unsuspected pirate communities and family migrations that were part of the Viking ''armies'' - not least in England.Especially, Neil Price takes us inside the Norse mind and spirit-world, and across their borders of identity and gender, to reveal startlingly different Vikings to the barbarian marauders of stereotype. He cuts through centuries of received wisdom to try to see the Vikings as they saw themselves - descendants of the first human couple, the Children of Ash and Elm. Healso reminds us of the simultaneous familiarity and strangeness of the past, of how much we cannot know, alongside the discoveries that change the landscape of our understanding. This is an eye-opening and surprisingly moving book.Trade ReviewEverybody thinks they know the Vikings, but Neil Price's magical book casts them in an entirely new light ... Scholarly, colourful and often remarkably funny, this is history at its very best, a richly decorated window on to a very strange world. -- Dominic Sandbrook and Gerard De Groot * The Times Books of the Year *This history takes us deep into the lives - and deaths - of the Vikings ... What surprised me about The Children of Ash and Elm is the extent to which recent archaeological discovery is transforming our picture of the Vikings from the inside. Price, who has spent several decades in ancient cesspits and the remains of Norse workshops, is superbly qualified to understand the significance of what is being unearthed, analysed and dated, and conveys a sense of excitement about just how much is being learnt -- David Aaronovitch * The Times *a book that offers delight after delight ... lyrical, unnerving, specific, and passionately uncertain, all at once ... Throughout this book are glorious collections of Viking facts that are technically known yet still resist our best attempts at interpretation ... Price has a talent for evoking the Vikings' physical surroundings as they might have been - a gift for recreation that's probably natural for an archaeologist accustomed to eking significance from the smallest bit of disturbed dirt ... To convey such a deep sense of scholarly indeterminacy, all while dazzling the reader with cinematic detail-this is, truly, a feat. -- Rebecca Onion * Slate Magazine *This is a comprehensive, lyrically told and personal account of the Viking Age, the product of more than thirty years of experience as a leading archaeologist and researcher. Many books assess the "Viking achievement". The Children of Ash and Elm examines instead who the Vikings were, how they saw themselves and why they did what they did ... no other history of the Vikings is as vibrant or expands the scope of the Viking world to encompass not just landscapes, but mindscapes. -- Jane Kershaw * Times Literary Supplement *It is full of meticulous accounts of the specifics of early medieval Scandinavian daily life ... beautifully evocative, engaging and thought-provoking ... It is impossible not to admire the breadth and range of this book's discussion of Viking material culture. -- Eleanor Parker * History Today *Neil Price's The Children of Ash and Elm is an illuminating and insightful tour of the Viking era; his narrative is composed from his obvious expertise, and his utter passion. He loves this subject and he wants to invite the reader to share his enthusiasm ... Compelling, engaging, insightful and informative ... we couldn't hope for a more entertaining or enlightening guide - Neil Price has given us an exceptional book, and it is one to be treasured. -- Caroline Spalding * Yorkshire Times *Price is adept at bringing this cosmopolitan and brutal world to life, interweaving many complicated strands of history with his own experience in the field along with poetic meditations on a people and time long since passed. -- Rhian Sasseen * The Paris Review *fascinating -- Paul Muldoon * TLS Books of the Year *a very human history of the period, one that is by turns illuminating, surprising and even moving ... much of the beauty of Price work is in its qualitative, sometimes subjective nature, even while it remains a meticulously researched, rigorous piece of scholarship. -- Eleanor Barraclough * Literary Review *This book is the closest thing I have found to a time machine. It brilliantly clears the fog of the past from the Viking era. Extremely well written...if you are seeking an accessible, yet definitive and up-to-date book on the Vikings, this is the one you want. -- Terje Birkedal * The Norwegian American *a thrilling read ... His clear, engaging style introduces us to the Scandinavian communities of the eighth and ninth centuries, centered around the farmstead, before catapulting us overseas and outward into an expanding world where raiding and trading quickly boosted the wealth of individuals and the ambitions of the elites. ... The stereotype of the Viking that we know from history books and popular media is here dismantled and presented anew by Mr. Price in all its wonderful, terrifying complexity and ambiguity. -- Karin Altenberg * Wall Street Journal *The question that this dark, brilliantly written and absorbing book asks is: who were these people and where did this violence come from?...The powerful and unsettling message of this book is that they never went home. These strange, vicious people are our forebears. They never went home. -- Jay Elwes * Spectator *as Neil Price shows in his colourful, revelatory new book, we are almost always looking at the Vikings the wrong way around. Price is one of the world's foremost experts on the Vikings and holds the chair of archaeology at Uppsala University ... He may know more about medieval Scandinavia than anyone else alive, and he aims to show us these fascinating people as they saw themselves, not as they were perceived by those on the sharp end of their robbery ... Thousands of books have been published about the Vikings - this is one of the very best. -- Dan Jones * Sunday Times *

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Book Synopsis**THE NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER** **WINNER OF THE 2010 COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD** 264 wood and ivory carvings, none of them bigger than a matchbox: Edmund de Waal was entranced when he first encountered the collection in his great uncle Iggie's Tokyo apartment.Trade Review[A] wonderful book -- Dame Felicity Lott * Waitrose Weekend *In a decade where memoir became the dominant genre, this immensely evocative family history told via the journey through the generations of some Japanese miniature figures stood out -- Andrew Holgate * Sunday Times, *Books of the Decade* *An evocative narrative of art, inheritance and loss * Homes & Antiques *From a hard and vast archival mass...Mr de Waal has fashioned, stroke by minuscule stroke, a book as fresh with detail as if it had been written from life, and as full of beauty and whimsy as a netsuke from the hands of a master carver. * The Economist *This remarkable book... a meditation on touch, exile, space and the responsibility of inheritance... like the netsuke themselves, this book is impossible to put down. you have in your hands a masterpiece. -- Frances Wilson * The Sunday Times *

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Book Synopsis“Immensely rich and exciting . . . Christopher Hill has that supreme gift of being able to show us the seventeenth-century world from the inside.”—Arthur Marwick in New Society Within the English revolution of the mid-seventeenth century which resulted in the triumph of the protestant ethic—the ideology of the propertied class—there threatened another, quite different, revolution. Its success “might have established communal property, a far wider democracy in political and legal institutions, might have disestablished the state church and rejected the protestant ethic.” In The World Turned Upside Down Christopher Hill studies the beliefs of such radical groups as the Diggers, the Ranters, the Levellers, and others, and the social and emotional impulses that gave rise to them. The relations between rich and poor classes, the part played by wandering “master-less” men, the outbursts of sexual freedom

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Book SynopsisAUTHORITATIVE AND ACCESSIBLE, THIS LANDMARK WORK IS THE FIRST SINGLE-VOLUME HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY SHARED FOR DECADES''A cerebrally enjoyable survey, written with great clarity and touches of wit'' Sunday Times The story of philosophy is an epic tale: an exploration of the ideas, views and teachings of some of the most creative minds known to humanity. But there has been no comprehensive history of this great intellectual journey since 1945. Intelligible for students and eye-opening for philosophy readers, A. C. Grayling covers with characteristic clarity and elegance subjects like epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, logic, and the philosophy of mind, as well as the history of debates in these areas, through the ideas of celebrated philosophers as well as less well-known influential thinkers. The History of Philosophy takes the reader on a journey from the age of the Buddha, Confucius and Socrates. Through Christianity''s dominance of the European mind to the Renaissance and Enlightenment. On to Mill, Nietzsche, Sartre, then the philosophical traditions of India, China and the Persian-Arabic world.And finally, into philosophy today.Trade ReviewA cerebrally enjoyable survey, written with great clarity and touches of wit . . . The non-western section throws up some fascinating revelations * Sunday Times *Grayling has written a masterful and often entertaining chronicle of the epic intellectual journey we humans have taken, in different periods, countries and cultures, to understand ourselves, our world, and how we ought to live. An extraordinary accomplishment that transcends the usual bounds of academic specialization -- Peter Singer, Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics, Princeton UniversityAccurately offers itself as a successor to [Bertrand] Russell's classic survey . . . No other popular survey possesses this range . . . The History of Philosophy isn't just worth buying; it's worth scribbling in and dog-earing. For a work of scholarship, there can be no higher praise. -- Michael Dirda * Washington Post *He's more historically-minded than Russell, less dogmatic than Dawkins and less in thrall to the charms of his own fluency than Hitchens -- Prospect on The Challenge of ThingsUndeniably thought-provokingGrayling is particularly good at illuminating the knottiness of moral discourseLucid, informative and admirably accessibleGrayling writes with clarity, elegance and the occasional aphoristic twistFive minutes with any passage will have you contemplating all dayI find the clarity of his thinking so refreshingIf there is any such person in Britain as The Thinking Man, it is A. C. GraylingThe History of Philosophy is an excellent overview of great philosophical thought by an insightful practitioner of the field. It is a credit to Grayling's abilities that he has penned such a perspicuous book on some very difficult subjects-giving the a reader a clear overview of the complexities of Scholastic logic, Analytic philosophies of language and mind, and much else besides is no easy feat, but Grayling has achieved it. This is a book to be treasured, both as a guide to the subject and as a beautiful piece of writing in itself, containing great insight and wisdom. It is a testament to the continuing importance and value of philosophy. * Aero Magazine *

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisIn the depths of Antarctic winter, hundreds of miles from land or rescue, a small fishing boat is swallowed by waves as high as houses. The captain is fatally slow to act, and then paralyzed by fear. The officers flee for their lives. Only the actions of Matt Lewis, a 23-year-old British marine biologist and one of the most inexperienced men aboard, will save the lives of the South African crew.Lewis is the last man off the sinking boat, and leads the escape onto three life rafts. There the battle for survival begins.Trade ReviewThis is brilliant . . Told with terrifying detail and heartfelt compassion -- Dermot O'LearyA story that reminds us of the unforgiving nature of the sea and the courage that lies within the everyday heroes that have found themselves in hell -- Bear GryllsA dramatic tale of survival in one of the most brutal situations on earth. Feels like reading the diary of a doomed man . . . so personal and chillingly real; totally takes you there in a way that is not always comfortable -- Steve BackshallReads like a sinister version of The Perfect Storm...Thrilling, compelling, unsettling, rewarding . . . This breakneck race of a book isn't just required reading for fans of waterborne peril; Harvard MBAs could also scour the pages as a case study in dysfunctional workplaces and woeful man management. It's like the Perfect Storm, but with gruesomely, even murderously, imperfect people * Sunday Times *A heart-thumping tale of tragedy and survival - minus the Hollywood ending * Daily Telegraph *A thrilling, horrifying and compelling portrait of human survival. Colossal terror unfolds on every page * The Bookseller, Books of the Year *For his compelling account of the hardships of fishing in remote Antarctic waters, and of what it means to abandon ship in a severe storm with inadequate equipment and a crew unprepared for survival. The book is objective but non-judgmental in its descriptiveness, so heightening the true sense of disaster. The style makes the book accessible to a wide public, but it is also essential reading for seafarers, fishermen and yachtsmen, as it concerns attitudes to safety and survival. A truly life-affirming and influential work. * The Mountbatten Maritime Award for best literary contribution - Certificate of Merit *

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Book SynopsisHistory is brought vividly to life in this fresh, authentic and action-packed account of the largest amphibian assault the world has ever seen.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER''A mind-expanding tour of the world without leaving your paintbox. Every colour has a story, and here are some of the most alluring, alarming, and thought-provoking. Very hard painting the hallway magnolia after this inspiring primer.'' Simon GarfieldThe Secret Lives of Colour tells the unusual stories of the 75 most fascinating shades, dyes and hues. From blonde to ginger, the brown that changed the way battles were fought to the white that protected against the plague, Picasso''s blue period to the charcoal on the cave walls at Lascaux, acid yellow to kelly green, and from scarlet women to imperial purple, these surprising stories run like a bright thread throughout history. In this book Kassia St Clair has turned her lifelong obsession with colours and where they come from (whether Van Gogh''s chrome yellow sunflowersTrade ReviewIf you want to fall back in love with colour, read The Secret Lives of Colour * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *A dazzling and vibrant history of colour, from Van Gogh's wilting yellow sunflowers to Turner's deadly green and Picasso's darkest period * MAIL ON SUNDAY *This is a gorgeous book * GUARDIAN *Even Farrow and Ball don't know as much about the secret lore of colour as Kassia St Clair... Almost every page throws up an unexpected detail and insight... Extraordinarily full and interesting...An ideal crib and a valuable resource not only for the design-conscious but for students. -- Brian Morton * TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT *The weirdly fascinating history of your favourite hues from an unwittingly deadly, arsenic-tinged green to Van Gogh's favoured yellow * WIRED *'An excellent, innovative and idiosyncratic cultural history that will colour your thinking...St Clair writes with style, energy and knowledge, explaining many mysteries succinctly and wittily, such as why a regular tomato is, for example, not red. Tomatoes appear red because that's the very wavelength their skin does not absorb. A 'red' tomato lies to tell the truth.. Snappily designed, with high production values...[The Secret Lives of Colour is] attractive and diverting.' -- Stephen Bayley * SPECTATOR *Beautiful...See how a single colour can tell different stories across the globe. * DAILY MAIL *A work of art in its own right... a beautiful tactile book filled with fascinating anecdotes about every colour from blonde to puce. * THE POOL *Charming * FINANCIAL TIMES *From pink boys' clothes to blue warpaint; why orange spells danger and other colourful tales * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Inspiring, compelling and beautifully designed . . . this book will appeal to anyone * THE LADY *A mind-expanding tour of the world without leaving your paintbox. Every colour has a story, and here are some of the most alluring, alarming, and thought-provoking. Very hard painting the hallway magnolia after this inspiring primer * SIMON GARFIELD *A companionable, informative and lively guide to sights so easily taken for granted * THE ECONOMIST *A vivid exploration of the world of colour and our colourful world . . . St Clair is able to dance effortlessly through an astonishing range of subjects . . . What The Secret Lives of Colour offers really is, in some sense, a flash portrait of human civilisation, a zigzagging and unpredictable exploration of how significantly colour has shaped histories and disciplines, fuelled empires, changed the nature of war and caused species to flourish or face extinction * CHEMISTRY WORLD *An irresistible lexicon of colours * COUNTRY LIVING *Well-researched and engaging * HOUSE & GARDEN *Brimming with interesting facts, historical insights and curious tales. * ELLE DECORATION *Kassia St Clair is well-placed to observe the important place that colour has in human civilisation and development...Discursive and anecdotal... this book holds many surprises. Nothing is quite what it seems or how it is seen. * THE OLDIE *A mix of science lore and delightful bookmaking, The Secret Lives of Colour is for reading, dipping and holding up against your curtains * The Tablet *Extremely well-researched historically, each colour story is rich in detail and description, combining vignettes of historical actors with contextual background ranging from the ancient past to the present day. For anyone who was ever fascinated by a box of crayons, coloured pencils or the story of people in time, St Clair's book will not disappoint * Review 31 *I recommend the book to all creatives - and non-creatives, too! * Dame Zandra Rhodes *Beautifully presented . . . The book is simply about colour. But colour is not simple. The history, geography, politics, scandals and influence of colours are documented here with a knowledgeable voice. With references from Jessica Rabbit to Lord Mountbatten, from Greek poets to slavery, this is a fascinating read -- Viv Albertine * GUARDIAN, Book of the Year *

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Book SynopsisDr Eve MacDonald is Senior Lecturer in Ancient History at Cardiff University; she is an archaeologist and ancient historian who has worked and published extensively on the history and material culture of Carthage, North Africa and the Middle East. She is one of the world's foremost experts on the region and is the author of Hannibal: A Hellenistic Life that was published in 2015 by Yale University Press. She has also appeared in podcasts (History Hit: The Ancients, Hannibal's Winter War) and documentary films for Channel 4 and PBS' Secrets of the Dead. Carthage is her first book for the trade.

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Book SynopsisJourney through thousands of years of human history (now with the women put back in).From the earliest human civilizations through to the present day, the stories of countless influential women - leaders, artists, warriors, scientists and more - have been ignored, forgotten, or actively suppressed. In What’s Her Name: A History of the World in 80 Lost Women, Olivia Meikle and Katie Nelson restore women’s stories to their rightful place in world history. Based on the acclaimed podcast, What’s Her Name, this is a truly global history that weaves together biographies of incredible women spanning six continents and thousands of years, from Ancient Egypt and the Roman Empire to imperial China, the Americas and post-war Europe. This book tells a captivating and funny, thought-provoking and deeply researched historical narrative. Drawing on years of study and interviews with dozens of experts, this is an insightful and enthralling look at the trailblazing women you may not have heard of (but should have).

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Book SynopsisIt should become a standard work on this campaign' Telegraph'James Holland is now our foremost authority on the Italian campaign' John C. McManus'A heart-pounding narrative of the brutal Allied fight to take Rome... This is history at its finest' James M. Scott, Pulitzer Prize finalist'Holland writes with eloquence and power about the harsh realities of a brutal battle that grabbed the world's attention and helped to decide the future of Italy' Professor Michael S. Neiberg___________There are no such thing as an easy victory in war but after triumph in Tunisia, the sweeping success of the Sicilian invasion, and with the Italian surrender, the Allies were confident that they would be in Rome before Christmas 1943. And yet it didn't happen. Hitler ordered his forces to dig in and fight for every yard, thus setting the stage for one of the grimmest and most attritional campaigns of the Second World War. By the start of 1944, the Allies found themselves coming up against the Gustav Line: a formidable barrier of wire, minefields, bunkers and booby traps, woven into a giant chain of mountains and river valleys that stretched the width of Italy where at its strongest point perched the Abbey of Monte Cassino. It would take five long bitter winter months and the onset of summer before the Allies could finally bludgeon their way north and capture Rome. By then, more than 75,000 troops and civilians had been killed and the historic abbey and entire towns and villages had been laid waste. Following a rich cast of characters from both sides - from frontline infantry to aircrew, from clerks to battlefield commanders, and from politicians and civilians caught up in the middle of the maelstrom - James Holland has drawn widely on diaries, letters and contemporary sources to write the definitive account of this brutal battle. The result is a compelling and often heart-breaking narrative, told in the moment, as the events played out, and from the perspective of those who lived, fought and died there.

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Book SynopsisThis richly illustrated guide to 650 places will appeal to those who want to explore Britain's lost animist landscape of fairies, folklore, myth and paganism. Discover pre-Christian healing shrines and Norse mythology. Learn where rock, water and hill spirits come alive, and their meaning for our ancestors, and for us today. > Where to find sites associated with fairies, mermaids, dragons, giants and other mythological beings > Places featured in the stories of King Arthur, Merlin and the Celtic Saints > Creation stories, spirits in the stone and entrances to the Otherworld > Places of healing, divination and wish-making > Secret shrines, sacred sites and ancient rituals > The Goddess in the land > Norse gods and mythology

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Book Synopsis'Accessible, informative, enjoyable' - All About History _____________________Spend 24 hours with the ancient Athenians. See the city through their eyes as it teeters on the edge of the fateful war that would end its golden age.Athens, 416 BC. A tenuous peace holds. The city-state’s political and military might are feared throughout the ancient world; it pushes the boundaries of social, literary and philosophical experimentation in an era when it has a greater concentration of geniuses per capita than at any other time in human history. Yet even geniuses go to the bathroom, argue with their spouse and enjoy a drink with friends.During the course of a day we meet 24 Athenians from all strata of society – from the slave-girl to the councilman, the vase painter to the naval commander, the housewife to the hoplite – and get to know what the real Athens was like by spending an hour in their company. We encounter a different one of these characters every chapter, with each chapter forming an hour in the life of the ancient city. We also get to spy on the daily doings of notable Athenians through the eyes of regular people as the city hovers on the brink of the fateful war that will destroy its golden age.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"The memorable thing about Cline's book is the strangely recognizable picture he paints of this very faraway time. . . . It was as globalized and cosmopolitan a time as any on record, albeit within a much smaller cosmos. The degree of interpenetration and of cultural sharing is astonishing."---Adam Gopnik, New Yorker"A fascinating look at the Late Bronze Age, proving that whether for culture, war, economic fluctuations or grappling with technological advancement, the conundrums we face are never new, but merely renewed for a modern age."---Larry Getlen, New York Post"Cline has created an excellent, concise survey of the major players of the time, the latest archaeological developments, and the major arguments, including his own theories, regarding the nature of the collapse that fundamentally altered the area around the Mediterranean and the Near East."---Evan M. Anderson, Library Journal"A remarkable book that brings forth not just a piece of history, but also lessons from the past."---Mihai Andrei, ZME Science"Fresh and engaging."---Andrew Robinson, Current World Archaeology"The 12th century BCE is one of the watershed eras of world history. Empires and kingdoms that had dominated late Bronze Age western Asia and the eastern Mediterranean collapsed." * Choice *"Cline explores a vast array of variables that could have led to the disruption of the society of this era, including earthquakes, famines, droughts, warfare, and, most notably, invasions by the 'Sea Peoples.'" * Publishers Weekly *"A detailed but accessible synthesis. . . . [O]ffers students and the interested lay antiquarian a sense of the rich picture that is emerging from debates among the ruins."---Scott McLemee, Inside Higher Ed"In this enjoyable new book, Eric H. Cline has set himself an ambitious task: Not only must he educate a popular audience about the wealth and power of the eastern Mediterranean civilizations of the Bronze Age, he must then make his readers care that, some time around the year 1200 B.C., these empires, kingdoms, and cities suffered a series of cataclysms from which they never recovered."---Susan Kristol, Weekly Standard"[An] engaging book. . . . Cline builds a convincing case for his theory over a long and absorbing tour of the Late Bronze Age.”"---Josephine Quinn, London Review of Books"A wonderful example of scholarship written for the non-expert. Cline clearly pulls together the engaging story of the interactions among the major empires of the Late Bronze Age and puts forth a reasonable theory explaining why they seem to have evaporated as quickly as moisture on a hot afternoon."---Fred Reiss, San Diego Jewish World"Cline's work reveals eerie parallels between the geopolitics of the first years of 12th century B.C. and today's 21st century. 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed is history, but reads like a good mystery novel. Cline draws readers into his tale, revealing surprises throughout. It is all the more fascinating for being true, and for its relevance to today's world."---Mark Lardas, Daily News"Cline has written one of this year's most interesting books."---Jona Lendering, NRC Handelsblad"Extremely valuable for scholars, yet . . . easily understandable by general readers."---Richard A. Gabriel, Military History Quarterly"Cline is clearly in command of the textual record and his reading of it is the book's real strength."---A. Bernard Knapp, History Today"Written in a lively, engaging style."---Michael McGaha, Middle East Media and Book Reviews"1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed is a thoughtful analysis of one of the great mysteries of human history. . . . Highly recommended."---James A. Cox, Midwest Book Review"[T]his work masterfully incorporates the present state of research into a welcome reevaluation of a period less known to the general public, the crisis of Late Bronze Age civilization. . . . [E}ven more brilliant is the spin on the similarities between the predicament of this area three millennia ago and now."---Barbara Cifola, American Historical Review"There are few published titles which focus on the tumultuous events that took place in the Eastern Mediterranean at approximately 1200 BCE. . . . Cline's 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed stands out among the rest as one of the best and most thoroughly researched. . . . This book is presented as a mystery novel. . . . One thing is for certain, once started, you will not want to put it down." * Ancient Origins *"A gripping mystery story with clues to follow and evidence to analyze."---SG, Ancient Egypt Magazine"Essential."---Thomas F. Bertonneau, Brussels Journal"Well-written, very fairly argued, and excellent value, it will set the agenda for Late Bronze Age studies for some time to come."---Peter Jones, Classics for All"Fascinating. . . . [A]voids the tedium of so many academic writers."---Bruce Beresford, filmmaker"Eric H. Cline has written a work of great scholarship, but has written in a manner so that the non-expert . . . can not only understand, but also appreciate it."---Don Vincent, Open History"I don't know when I've appreciated a book as much as 1177 B.C. If you enjoy learning, you will enjoy this book! Highly recommended."---Thomas A. Timmes, UNRV History"Cline expertly and briskly takes the reader through the power politics of the fifteenth, fourteenth, and thirteenth centuries BC with excursuses on important archaeological discoveries and introductions for each of the major players. No reader with a pulse could fail to be captivated by the details."---Dimitri Nakassis, Mouseion"Cline's book is something special in ancient history writing. . . . The book is up to date in its research, covers a lot of ground, is careful in its conclusions, and will be referred to and cited by students of Aegean and eastern Mediterranean prehistory, discussed by the scholarly community, as well as read by the interested public. Cline has done a good job of bringing the Late Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean to a very wide audience."---Guy D. Middleton, American Journal of Archaeology"Remarkably prescient. . . . [A] convincing case for the relevance of ancient history to the modern world." * Canadian Journal of History *"The end of the Late Bronze Age, around the turn of the twelfth century BCE, was a civilizational collapse similar to the much better known fall of the Roman Empire seventeen centuries later. . . . The causes of this collapse have been among the enduring mysteries of ancient history and archaeology, a complicated detective story for which Eric Cline deftly serves as guide. Cline . . . presents for educated general readers a survey of the evidence and scholarship concerning the end of the Late Bronze Age. He also engagingly establishes the historical and geographical context of the collapse, complete with a motley and compelling cast of characters."---Matthew A. Sears, Canadian Journal of History"This collapse has been a popular subject for scholars, not least our author, for a very long time. Here he usefully assembles the evidence and deduces that it was the very complexity of powers, their interrelationships through trade or war, that brought about the collapse, and he is probably right."---John Boardman, Common Knowledge"The most analytically satisfying, accessible, and of course up-to-date treatment of one of the great enigmas of the ancient world."---Christoph Bachhuber, Historian"Cline admirably acknowledges areas of existing scholarly controversy, while understandably emphasizing the consensus view in order to maintain the flow of his narrative. . . . He has a firm command of the textual, archaeological, and environmental evidence, and brings together a wealth of recent scholarship in an accessible form, a treatment which has been sorely lacking for this pivotal period. . . . [A] fine book."---Erin Warford, European Legacy"1177 BC still offers the best treatment of the subject that is currently available. If you haven’t read it yet, I recommend that you do."---Josho Brouwers, Ancient World Magazine

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Book Synopsis ‘Remarkable' Observer 'Acutely observed, poignant and beautifully written' Daily Telegraph ‘My mother is scraping a piece of burned toast out of the kitchen window, a crease of annoyance across her forehead. This is not an occasional occurrence. My mother burns the toast as surely as the sun rises each morning.’ Toast is Nigel Slater’s award-winning biography of a childhood remembered through food. Whether recalling his mother’s surprisingly good rice pudding, his father’s bold foray into spaghetti and his dreaded Boxing Day stew, or such culinary highlights as Arctic Roll and Grilled Grapefruit (then considered something of a status symbol in Wolverhampton), this remarkable memoir vividly recreates daily life in 1960s suburban England. Likes and dislikes, aversions and sweet-toothed weaknesses form a fascinating backdrop to Nigel Slater’s incredibly moving and deliciously evocative portrait of childhood, adolescence and sexual awakening.Trade Review'Acutely observed, poignant and beautifully written…Slater tells his heartbreaking story with great subtlety. The theme of food and love is a fascinating one and I have never seen it better handled.' Daily Telegraph 'He recreates with moving honesty and laugh-out-loud comedy the hopes and fears of boyhood. Remarkable.' Observer '”Toast” connects emotions, memory and taste buds. Genius.' Lynne Truss, Sunday Times 'A talent for prose as simple and pleasurable as his recipes.’ Sunday Telegraph 'Exquisitely written…You read this remarkable memoir partly cringing, partly marvelling at Slater’s hallucinogenic retrieval of times past. He is the Proust of the Nesquik era.' Independent 'It achieves a remarkable freshness…[and] reveals a gift for doleful, Alan Bennett-like comedy.' Guardian ‘This touching memoir proves [Slater] is more than a cookery writer. Its emotional impact will touch a chord with many.’ Sunday Mirror ‘Wonderful, precise…extraordinary.’ Matthew Fort ‘It’s bitter-sweet, it’s a book to be consumed in a single sitting, a book that slips down really nicely. However you want to put it, “Toast” is delicious.’ The Oldie

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Book Synopsis'A brilliant and important book ... Five Stars!' Mark Dolan, talkRADIO'An important new book' Daily Express An alternative history of the world that exposes some of the biggest lies ever told and how they've been used over time.Lincoln did not believe all men were created equal.The Aztecs were not slaughtered by the Spanish Conquistadors.And Churchill was not the man that people love to remember.In this fascinating new book, journalist and author Otto English takes ten great lies from history and shows how our present continues to be manipulated by the fabrications of the past.He looks at how so much of what we take to be historical fact is, in fact, fiction. From the myths of WW2 to the adventures of Columbus, and from the self-serving legends of 'great men' to the origins of curry – fake history is everywhere and used ever more to impact our modern world.Setting out to redress the balance, English tears apart the lies propagated by politicians and think tanks, the grand narratives spun by populists and the media, the stories on your friend's Facebook feed and the tales you were told in childhood. And, in doing so, reclaims the truth from those who have perverted it.Fake History exposes everything you weren't told in school and why you weren't taught it.Trade Review'A brilliant and important book ... Five Stars!' -- Mark Dolan, talkRADIO'An important new book' * Daily Express *'A wonderful dissection of some of history's heroes and villains who are unfairly castigated or wrongly glorified' * Scotsman *

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Book SynopsisThe extraordinary drama of Malta''s WWII victory against impossible odds told through the eyes of the people who were there.In March and April 1942, more explosives were dropped on the tiny Mediterranean island of Malta - smaller than the Isle of Wight - than on the whole of Britain during the first year of the Blitz. Malta had become one of the most strategically important places in the world. From there, the Allies could attack Axis supply lines to North Africa; without it, Rommel would be able to march unchecked into Egypt, Suez and the Middle East. For the Allies this would have been catastrophic. As Churchill said, Malta had to be held ''at all costs''.FORTRESS MALTA follows the story through the eyes of those who were there: young men such as twenty-year-old fighter pilot Raoul Daddo-Langlois, anti-aircraft gunner Ken Griffiths, American Art Roscoe and submariner Tubby Crawford - who served on the most successful Allied submarine of the Second World WaTrade Review'Holland's stirring account pays fitting tribute to the heroism of the island's defenders and its civil population ... the book teems with memorable characters.' MAIL ON SUNDAY

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Book SynopsisA FINALIST FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL WRITING 2023 SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2023 INDIE CHAMPIONS AWARDS FOR NON-FICTION A FINANCIAL TIMES BEST SUMMER BOOK 2023 'Prepare to be blown away' CHIKWE IHEKWEAZU, Assistant Director General at WHO 'Important and ambitious' OBSERVER This searing polemic reveals how racism and colonialism have shaped science and medicine - leading to the health inequalities we see all around us today. Activist, doctor and patient, Annabel Sowemimo reinserts the stories of Black and Indigenous scientists and doctors into the historical narrative, reframing how we see the 'objective' systems we operate within. In confronting this history, she argues for better understanding of our collective past to bring about urgent change. 'Outstanding ... I can't stress the importance of this book strongly enough' JACQUELINE ROY, author of The Fat Lady Sings 'An unflinching, hugely eye-opening exploration of medicine's brutal colonial history' THE iTrade ReviewDivided is a vital call to action. With passion and expertise, Dr Sowemimo exposes the racism in modern medicine and shows us how we can - and must - transform healthcare for future generations -- Leah HazardAn unflinching, hugely eye-opening exploration of medicine's brutal colonial history * The i *Important and ambitious ... Divided is a necessary book ... A call to action -- Roopa Farooki, Book of the Day * Observer *An illuminating and powerful intersectional analysis of health inequalities and racism * i-D Magazine, All the books to be excited for in 2023 *Annabel Sowemimo ... is taking the art of curating stories that matter to another level. Prepare to be blown away -- Chikwe Ihekweazu, Assistant Director General at WHODivided restores [historic Black and Indigenous scientists] to the history of medicine and makes a convincing case for decolonising healthcare * New Scientist *Through meticulous research and compelling story-telling, the book is an erudite and urgent examination of how modern medicine is intertwined with colonial histories and racist ideas. Annabel deftly weaves history, her own experiences and contemporary inequalities into a powerful and urgent book. While essential reading for anyone working in healthcare, Annabel reminds us that the arts and humanities were also instrumental in communicating so-called 'scientific' ideas about race that informed medical practices ... important reading for anyone engaged in anti-racist and decolonising work across all disciplines -- Joanna Wolfarth, author of MILKNecessary. In the right hands, this book will save lives -- Nova Reid, author of THE GOOD ALLYThis outstanding book should be mandatory reading for all medical practitioners. Beautifully written and erudite, yet highly accessible, it conveys some uncomfortable truths about the unequal treatment of patients of colour, locating the origins of this in European colonialism, history and science. It provides a basis for bringing an end to discriminatory practices, which couldn't be more timely, particularly in the context of COVID. Annabel Sowemimo's compassion and humanity shine through. I can't stress the importance of this book strongly enough -- Jacqueline Roy, author of THE FAT LADY SINGSWide-ranging in scope, Divided is an important contribution to the literature on racism and health. Dr Sowemimo challenges us to think deeper about what we know about medicine and question what we have been taught. Divided is an essential book for anyone working in healthcare, and will be of interest to anyone who is a patient. I will be recommending it far and wide! -- Dr Rageshri DhairyawanThis polemic [...] explains how health divisions are not accidental but occur because of ways in which modern healthcare is built on the back of race science and our colonial history * Bookseller, Editor's Choice *

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