History Books

Book SynopsisGenuinely new story of the Second World War - the full account of England's last war against France in 1940-42.Trade ReviewSmith describes unfamiliar battles with notable fluency and skill -- Max Hastings * SUNDAY TIMES *Riveting -- Robert Fisk * INDEPENDENT *his descriptions of these obscure battlefield encounters are thrilling and his narrative is spruce and peppery. -- Christopher Silvester * DAILY TELEGRAPH *a narrative of war that has much of Patrick O'Brian about it. -- Carmen Callil * GUARDIAN *excellent account of a woefully understudied 'war within a war'...Astonishingly, this is the first book -- Andrew Roberts * LITERARY REVIEW *Smith's considerable achievement is to unmask the reality and make us understand this painful period far better than ever before. * CATHOLIC HERALD *"a classic on the conflict with Hitlers Vichy allies... a superb book on an astonishing array of long-buried incidents." * OXFORD TIMES *"Colin Smith's light yet detailed touch superbly outlines a wasteful and depressing story... A quality read with many political and military twists and turns." * SOLDIER MAGAZINE *In this exemplary work, Smith displays a real knack for conveying time, place and pungent action. * WARSHIP INTERNATIONAL FLEET REVIEW *

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Book SynopsisAn abridged edition of Saul Friedlander's definitive two-volume history of the Holocaust: THE YEARS OF PERSECUTION and THE YEARS OF EXTERMINATION.Trade ReviewThis is a hideous history described with a blend of exemplary scholarship, spiritual detachment and intellectual humility that deserves the very widest readership * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Friedlander is a world authority on the holocaust but he is also a survivor... his intellectual discipline may be that of the historian but his writing is animated by the passion of memory that only his generation can fully express * OBSERVER *By the end we understand the events better than any previous historian has managed to explain it, while still feeling bewildered, belittled, and incredulous that it happened, let alone that it happened to him * LITERARY REVIEW *An account of unparalleled vividness and power that reads like a novel... A masterpiece that will endure * NEW YORK TIMES *This will be the standard work for many years to come * THE TIMES *Expressive and forceful; it's difficult to imagine a more comprehensive book about the Holocaust than this * SUNDAY BUSINESS POST *

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Book SynopsisThe women who wielded the real power behind the throne in Renaissance Italy, from a bestselling historian.This book is one of drama on a grand scale, a Renaissance epic, as Christendom emerged from the shadows of the calamitous 14th century. The sweeping tale involves inspired and corrupt monarchs, the finest thinkers, the most brilliant artists and the greatest beauties in Christendom. Here are the stories of its most remarkable women, who are all joined by birth, marriage and friendship and who ruled for a time in place of their men-folk: Lucrezia Turnabuoni (Queen Mother of Florence, the power behind the Medici throne), Clarice Orsini (Roman princess, feudal wife), Beatrice d''Este (Golden Girl of the Renaissance), Caterina Sforza (Lioness of the Romagna), Isabella d''Este (the Acquisitive Marchesa), Giulia Farnese (''la bella'', the family asset), Isabella d''Aragona (the Weeping Duchess) and Lucrezia Borgia (the Virtuous Fury). The men play a secondary roTrade ReviewThis group of well-born, fastidiously educated women played a crucial role in the complicated politics of Renaissance Italy, where a collection of city states and competing warlords struggled to maintain their independence from the papacy at home and the French and Spanish abroad ... a torrent of poisoned daggers, ruthless politics and sexual intrigue -- Daisy Goodwin * Sunday Times *[Frieda] portrays eight princesses in vibrant colours, while deftly sketching the political background . . . these princesses were capable of immense political courage -- Christopher Silvester * Daily Express *Full of bright, brash women, quite a lot of killing . . . and some really serious statement jewellery -- Kathryn Hughes * Mail on Sunday *Detailed, dramatic and colourful * The Lady *This is a fresh and enlightening look at the dynastic confl icts of the fi fteeth century via the key female fi gures involved * BBC History Magazine *...it's a very welcome contribution to Renaissance studies, as well as a thorough and well-paced read. -- Lesley McDowell * GLASGOW SUNDAY HERALD *

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Book SynopsisHow the division of the Americas from the rest of the world affected human history.Trade ReviewWatson gathers academic research from numerous disciplines into a comparatively reader-friendly form. * THE HERALD *This is a fascinating doorstopper of a work * THE SUNDAY BUSINESS POST *Watson's fascinating theme compares the two great populations in the Americas and the 'Old World', separated in 15,000 BC, when the ice Age ended and the Bering Strait land bridge became submerged. * THE LADY *

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Book SynopsisRichard III and Henry Tudor''s legendary battle: one that changed the course of English history.On the morning of 22 August 1485, in fields several miles from Bosworth, two armies faced each other, ready for battle. The might of Richard III''s army was pitted against the inferior forces of the upstart pretender to the crown, Henry Tudor, a 28-year-old Welshman who had just arrived back on British soil after 14 years in exile. Yet this was to be a fight to the death - only one man could survive; only one could claim the throne.It would become one of the most legendary battles in English history: the only successful invasion since Hastings, it was the last time a king died on the battlefield. But BOSWORTH is much more than the account of the dramatic events of that fateful day in August. It is a tale of brutal feuds and deadly civil wars, and the remarkable rise of the Tudor family from obscure Welsh gentry to the throne of England - a story that began 60 years Trade ReviewAn authoritative overview of the causes and consequences of the most important battle in all of the Wars of the Roses -- Philippa Gregoryenjoyable and forensically researched ... Skidmore delves far into the histories of both the Wars of the Roses and the Tudor family ... This fine, scholarly and elegantly written book is well worth reading by anyone who hankers to fill in the many blank patches in one of Britain's most famous battles -- Dan Jones * DAILY TELEGRAPH *absorbing and beautifully illustrated study of the battle and of the fiendishly complex yet grimly fascinating Wars of the Roses ... Chris Skidmore is a well-informed and dispassionate guide through the astounding switchback turns of fortune's wheel that brought Henry the crown, reputedly found in a thornbush on the battlefield and set on his head by one of those who had deserted Richard -- Nigel Jones * SUNDAY EXPRESS *[Bosworth] is just the right book for those whose interest has been piqued by the archaeology ... a vivid picture of the death of the last Plantagenet king ... it is certainly now the definitive account of the battle -- Leanda de Lisle * SPECTATOR *[T]houghtful, well-sourced ... Skidmore is also good on Richard III. He is characterised as bellicose, all too aware of his tenuous grasp on the crown he usurped from his young nephew Edward V ... Skidmore expertly handles the accretion to [Henry's] army of allies and defectors from Richard as it trekked through Wales, a thrilling narrative of overcoming the odds -- Paul Lay * LITERARY REVIEW *Skidmore's excellent book...expertly guides the reader through a minefield of facts * MAIL ON SUNDAY *No matter how many times they are recounted, the improbable and arduous circumstances by which Henry Tudor came to the throne continue to impress ... Bosworth is a well-executed and well-informed book ... well written and approachable * TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT *Chris Skidmore's new book explores the background to Henry VII's claim to the throne and the dynasty he founded, drawing on eyewitness reports, newly discovered manuscripts and archaeological evidence * YOUR FAMILY HISTORY *There is a real need for this book, which could not have been published more opportunely ... Chis Skidmore tells the story again, very readably, with an admirably complete knowlege of all the sources and the latest research ... Chris Skidmore has written a first-rate book that will be enjoyed by all those who are fascinated by the Wars of the Roses -- Desmond Seward * THE TABLET *One of the most important battles of British history has been in the news recently, with its location debated among archaeologists. Historian Skidmore gives his opinion on this, after skilfully weaving in the events that led to the battle, from Edward IV's death to the march of Henry Tudor, with only a short, vividly described chapter on the engagement itself ... A well-researched account of the battle and events surrounding it * YOUR FAMILY TREE *This well researched account of how a complete outsider managed to win the throne in 1485 deserves a place on the bookshelves of anyone interested in the Wars of the Roses ...Chris Skidmore discusses the Wars in general and the politics and personalities behind them, and does so with clarity and verve * BATTLEFIELD, The Magazine of the Battlefield Trust *Mr Skidmore uses extracts from many contemporary accounts, information from the latest archaeological findings, and the proof discovered recently of the actual location of the battlefield, to great advantage. The discovery of the remains of Richard III in a Leicester car park late in 2012 came just in time for a postscript to be added to this scholarly but readable history * PENNANT *Skidmore's narrative style is engaging, and he sets out fair arguments for both sides ... both the student of this period and the first-time reader would gain a lot of knowledge and enjoyment from this book. * HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW *A forensic and entertaining account of 1485 And All That -- Dan Jones * DAILY TELEGRAPH 'History Books of the Year' *An action-packed account of the many events leading up to Bosworth, the last time an English king was to die on a battlefield, of the people involved and of their complex relationships and divided loyalties. With its wealth of local background, its detail and its lively narrative, Bosworth is a must for the reading list of anyone whose interest in Richard III has been either sparked off or renewed by the recent Greyfriars discovery * LEICESTERSHIRE & RUTLAND LIFE *

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Book SynopsisThe adventurous young women who sailed to India during the Raj in search of husbands. Perfect for fans of SINGLED OUT - a great book club option.Trade ReviewAnne de Courcy's history is a sparkling collage of stories and quotations in which we hear the authentic voices of the women and girls she portrays, most of them natural, unaffected writers with sharp eyes, a gift for description and a sense of humour. This book is brilliantly researched, and full of delights. * THE DAILY TELEGRAPH *Anne De Courcy combines the perseverance of a social historian with the panache of a novelist in her tales from the Raj. * THE TIMES *The Fishing Fleet is an entertaining, richly detailed account of a world that vanished overnight in 1947 with independence. De Courcy revels in the details of durbars, tiger hunts, maharajahs dripping with jewels, but also reveals how life in the jewel of the crown could be as desperate as it was glittering -- Daisy Goodwin * THE SUNDAY TIMES *This is a fine picture of a lost world -- JAD ADAMS * THE GUARDIAN *This sparkling collage explores the lives of the English girls who came to colonial India to hook themselves a spouse, and draws intriguing parallels between India and British social attitudes. * THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *What this brilliantly researched book, using letters and diaries, reveals is that for many of the brightest and most attractive girls, the experience was thrilling and liberating - one girl writes how she went dancing 26 nights in a row, another had dates with eight different men in as many nights. For others, the experience was humiliating as, failing to land a man, they sailed home labelled 'Returned Empties'. Once married, the women showed extraordinary grit and strength as, unless they bagged top men in the prime city locations, the life could be lonely, hard and thankless. A wonderful slice of history -- Sally Morris * DAILY MAIL *Recommended as an absorbing read. * HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW *

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Book SynopsisA globe-spanning narrative history of the 1850s - a time of electrifying change - seen through the eyes of the men and women who embraced the adventurous spirit of the timesTrade Review'Wilson's account of the 1850s is a wonderfully engrossing and intelligent read . . . He has clever and entertaining things to say about even the most banal topics, tracing the Victorian enthusiasm for beards, for instance, to the impact of the Crimean War . . . He even manages to make the history of Minnesota exciting' -- Dominic Sandbrook * THE SUNDAY TIMES *'With a rip-roaring style to match his subject . . . excellent . . . His grasp of the interplay between politics, economics and individuals is admirable. This is narrative history of the highest quality' -- Andrew Lycett * DAILY TELEGRAPH *'Engrossing study of the explosion of the new technology that reshaped the world in the 1850s, and Britain's role in it' * THE SUNDAY TIMES 'Must Reads' *'In this rollercoaster of a book, Ben Wilson describes the 1850s as the most explosive period in history, a decade that gave birth to modernity and trampled those who resisted it . . . So much of current transnational history is, quite frankly, perishingly dull, with arcane analysis smothering the wonderful stories the past provides. Heyday stands in refreshing contrast: the scholarship is certainly impressive but the drama is what delights. Wilson's knack for detail brings this history alive . . . Heyday is a lot like its subject; it's a big-bearded book of enormous scope and unstoppable momentum. However, it's also a sobering tale of greed gone wrong' -- Gerard De Groot * THE TIMES *'This is a scholarly, intelligent and readable book. This book is an original prism through which to view the mid-19th century and, essentially, about the invention not so much of modernity as of globalisation' -- Simon Heffer * THE SPECTATOR *'I finished Ben Wilson's immensely enjoyable new book, Heyday: Britain & the Birth of the Modern World. Highly recommended' -- Tom Holland'Ben Wilson argues that the 1850s should be seen as a distinct period within the Victorian era because its developments shaped the world for decades. Key among these are the 1851 Great Exhibition; the "gold rushes", migration to area with newly discovered deposits of gold; and the first underwater transmission of a telegraph message, from London to Paris in 1851 - which, in theory, meant that the whole world could be linked in such a away. The Crimean War (1853-56), meanwhile pitted Russia against the UK, France, Sardinia and the Ottoman empire in a conflict that altered global alliances' * BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE *'A fascinating and sweeping account of one of the most eventful decades in world history, a period when the nation was fast-tracked into the modern age . . . compellingly written and intricately researched . . . Wilson skilfully examines how a series of intertwined events gave birth to today's society . . . readers of this excellent book will undoubtedly find that the events of more than 150 years ago have a great deal of light to shine on our own supposedly more advanced civilisation' -- Alexander Larman * DAILY EXPRESS *'Heyday brings to life one of the most extraordinary periods in modern history. Over the course of the 1850s, the world was reshaped by technology, trade, mass migration and war. The global economy expanded fivefold, millions of families emigrated to the ends of the earth to carve out new lives, technology revolutionised communications, while steamships and railways cut across vast continents and oceans, shrinking the worlds and creating the first global age. In a fast-paced, kaleidoscopic narrative, the acclaimed historian Ben Wilson recreates this time of explosive energy and dizzying change, a rollercoaster ride of booms and bust, focusing on the lives of the men and women reshaping its frontiers' * DISCOVER YOUR ANCESTORS *'The world began speeding up in the 1850s and hasn't stopped since. Electricity and steam were the crucial technologies: railways, steamships, telegraphs and submarine cables shrank the world in space and time. Now that information, commodities and people could move faster than ever before a genuinely global economy emerged, hungry for growth, labour and new markets . . . Ben Wilson's richly detailed and compelling narrative of this whirlwind period catches its exhilaration' -- Ian Irvine * PROSPECT *'The tale is told on a global scale. Snapshots, or perhaps picture postcards, colourfully depict events on every continent except Africa, which offered little hope or profit to the moderniser. Thousands of people moved west of the Mississippi or from Britain to the Australian goldfields; British soldiers looted the palaces of Oudh and joined with the French to burn the Summer Palace in Beijing. There are plentiful sketches of inspired inventors and determined engineers. This book abounds in good stories too. Wilson recounts, for example, the rumour that Australian miners ate sandwiches with £10 as a filling . . . without doubt this is a book that has sweep and panache. It is crammed with interesting facts and the general reader will be painlessly transported across oceans . . . engaging' -- Leslie Mitchell * LITERARY REVIEW *'What was it about the 1850s that led to it becoming a period of such remarkable economic, technological and social change? Seen through the eyes of the key players, Ben Wilson's book traverses the globe in search of answers, producing a fresh, compelling take on what was arguably the pivotal decade in the entire Victorian era' * HISTORY REVEALED *'This decade [the 1850s] saw major global events - the Australian Gold Rush, the Crimean War, the Indian Rebellion and the start of the American Civil War - but also revolutions in transport and communications, bringing that global empire much nearer home . . . All of these subjects, and many more - right down to the mid-Victorian craze for impressive beards - are covered with aplomb in Wilson's dramatic and stirring narrative . . . A rollercoaster ride through the 1850s, guided by an expert historian' * YOUR FAMILY HISTORY *'In the 1850s, Britain was not merely the first superpower; British innovation, invention and energy were shaping the modern world in ways that we can still easily recognize today. Ben Wilson eloquently argues that this is when "the forces that define our age first swept across the world" . . . This is a book written with great verve and with a sharp eye for the obscure fact or the telling details . . . Reading it is rather like immersing oneself in an invigorating shower, a cascade that shifts between hot and cold, and leaves a feeling of being both enriched and stimulated, as well as a touch exhausted' -- Denis Judd * TLS *'A highly readable account' * EVERGREEN *'The 1850s, as Ben Wilson shows, was not a time of peace. This was a turbulent decade that gave birth to modernity. Wilson rattles through the decade, jumping from the Indian Mutiny, the Crimean War, the Australian gold rush, Commodore Perry's arrival in Japan, Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859) and the Great Exhibition. Lively, intelligent, popular history' * THE TIMES 'Summer Books' *'Wilson's book is a persuasive example of a newish turn in writing about the 19th century: the expansive survey of a globalised Victorian world, powered by a new battery of online resources . . . It's an exhilarating time to be a Victorianist . . . Heyday is a book that contains plenty of wonders. It scopes the globe, looking for the telltale marks of modernity. It finds them on the discharge of gunpowder, the slather of industrial grease, the shiver of the telegraph wire' -- Matthew Sweet * THE GUARDIAN *'This is an engaging history of the capitalist world in the 1850s, which stitches together vivid stories of entrepreneurs and adventurers from the United States to New Zealand. Heyday: Britain and the Birth of the Modern World sometimes feels like an exciting Phileas Fogg travelogue, with Ben Wilson's finger spinning round a mahogany globe in his study and us with it . . . The strength of this magnificent book is Wilson's awareness of "modernity's close connection with barbarism". To acknowledge that progress came at a high price for most people is not to belittle British achievements; it merely puts them into a proper historical perspective' -- Richard Weight * HISTORY TODAY *

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Book SynopsisExploring the boundaries of the law as they existed in medieval and early modern times and as they have been perceived by historians, this volume offers a wide ranging insight into a key aspect of European society. Alongside, and inexorably linked with, the ecclesiastical establishment, the law was one of the main social bonds that shaped and directed the interactions of day-to-day life. Posing fascinating conceptual and methodological questions that challenge existing perceptions of the parameters of the law, the essays in this book look especially at the gender divide and conflicts of jurisdiction within an historical context. In addition to seeking to understand the discrete categories into which types of law and legal rules are sometimes placed, consideration is given to the traversing of boundaries, to the overlaps between jurisdictions, and between custom(s) and law(s). In so doing it shows how law has been artificially compartmentalised by historians and lawyers alike, and hoTable of ContentsContents: Introduction, Anthony Musson; Law in the landscape: criminality, outlawry and regional identity in late medieval England, W.M. Ormrod; The geographical and practical legal impact of the Peace of God in 11th century Aquitaine, Thomas Gergen; Sanctuary and penitential rebirth in the central Middle Ages, Trisha Olson; Between theology and popular practice: medieval canonists on magic and impotence, Catherine Rider; Maintenance agreements and male responsibility in late medieval England, Sara M. Butler; Crossing boundaries: attitudes to rape in late medieval England, Anthony Musson; Rethinking incest and heinous sexual crime: changing boundaries of secular and ecclesiastical jurisdiction in late medieval Sweden, Mia Korpiola; Rules for solving conflicts of law in the Middle Ages: part of the solution, part of the problem, Dirk Heirbaut; The geographical, jurisdictional and jurisprudential boundaries of English litigation in the early 17th century, Louis A. Knafla; Jurisdictional competition and the evolution of the common law: an hypothesis, Daniel Klerman; English legal history and interdisciplinary legal studies, Jonathan Rose; Index.

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Book SynopsisThe Ottoman Empire stood at a crossroads of intercontinental trade, stretching from the Balkans and the Black Sea region through the present day Middle East and most of the North African coast for six centuries up to World War I. The articles in this volume by a leading economic historian examine its economic institutions, the long term performance of the Ottoman economy and explore the reasons for the longevity of this large empire. Until recently, historiography had depicted an empire in decline after the 16th century. These articles argue, however, that the Ottoman state and society showed considerable ability to reorganize and adapt to changing circumstances through selective institutional change, well before the reforms of the nineteenth century. They also make the case that, until the 19th century, standards of living in many parts of the empire were not very different from those prevailing in most parts of continental Europe.Trade Review’The collection will be particularly welcome to historians of the Ottoman Empire - or at least those who are not themselves economic historians - as most of the articles originally appeared in journals outside their usual area of study and so will probably have escaped their notice.’ Journal of Islamic StudiesTable of ContentsContents: Introduction; Institutional change and the longevity of the Ottoman Empire, 1500-1800; Ottoman interventionism in economic and monetary affairs; The Ottoman monetary system and frontier territories in Europe, 1500-1700; The evolution of financial institutions in the Ottoman Empire, 1600-1914; The price revolution in the Ottoman Empire reconsidered; Prices in the Ottoman Empire, 1469-1914; In the absence of domestic currency: debased European coinage in the 17th-century Ottoman Empire; The great Ottoman debasement, 1808-1844: a political economy framework; From debasement to external borrowing: changing forms of deficit finance in the Ottoman Empire, 1750-1914; The Middle East in 19th century world trade; Anatolia and Egypt during the 19th century: a comparison of foreign trade and foreign investment; The Ottoman Empire in the 'Great Depression' of 1873-1896; The Ottoman economy in World War I; Real wages and standards of living in the Ottoman Empire, 1489-1914; Estimating economic growth in the Middle East since 1820. Index.

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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 SynopsisFeatures over 100 quotes from wartime documents, newspaper reports, books, letters, tape recordings and soliders' diaries.

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Book SynopsisMedieval knights, their origins, status, training, military exploits and adventures, sumptuously illustrated throughout.

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Book SynopsisA beautifully illustrated guide to the most influential composers of classical music, from medieval to modern times.

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

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Book SynopsisThe men of the SBS are the maritime equivalent of their counterparts in the SAS; they are the elite of the British Special Forces and also the most secretive. Although SAS activity has been extensively documented, the SBS has remained in the state it prefers - a shadowy silhouette, with identities protected and missions kept from public view. Formed during the Second World War, when they took part in many daring raids (one of which was filmed as The Cockleshell Heroes), they were active in the jungle campaigns in the Far East, in the Falklands, the Gulf War and Bosnia. Since this seminal book was published in 1997, John Parker has been privy to much more inside information about the SBS''s original operations and he brings the book right up to date with accounts of their exploits in East Timor, Somalia, Sierra Leone, Kosovo and most recently in Iraq.

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Book SynopsisA gripping history of the elite brigade of the Royal Navy

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Book SynopsisRussell Ash has trawled parish registers and censuses going back 900 years to compile the first ever complete book of breathtakingly unlikely-but-true British names. It features an incredible and diverse range of totally genuine names, evoking everything from body parts (Dick Brain), sex (Matilda Suckcock), illness (Barbaray Headache) and toilet functions (Peter Piddle) to food (Hazel Nutt), animals (Minty Badger) and places (Phila Delphia). Every single one has been checked for authenticity and its source is given, as well as extra notes where further fascinating illumination is possible. The book provides a rigorously researched yet laugh-out-loud overview of Britain''s eccentricity through the ages. And in this fully revised, expanded and enhanced paperback edition, it is no exaggeration to say that it''s Pottier, Fartier and Knobbier than ever before.Trade Review'Sometimes it can feel as though so much of what we love about the British character has been stamped out by the joyless indifference of the Call Centre mob. You know the ones: 'Your call is Held in a Queue, You Will be Answered Shortly.' They have sapped our will to live, but, even worse, they have sapped our will to laugh. So let me recommend a hilarious new book called Potty, Fartwell And Knob: Extraordinary Names of True People. Some of the names it has traced are not suitable for a family newspaper. But all of them make you happy to belong to a people who believe it is their patiortic duty not to take themselves too seriously.' * Allison Pearson, >Daily Mail *'Hilarious... [the names] make you happy to belong to a people who believe it is their patriotic duty not to take themselves too seriously' * Allison Pearson, Daily Mail *

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Book Synopsis''I am a very ordinary woman to whom a chance was given to see human beings at their best and at their worst... I completely believe in the potential nobility of the human spirit.''During some of the darkest days of the Second World War, a young Frenchwoman living as a mother and housewife in England left her ordinary life to become a British agent, working covertly in France to aid the Resistance. Entering a murky and deadly world of espionage and double-dealing, she was betrayed to the Germans, only to endure torture by the Gestapo and the hell of the infamous concentration camp of Ravensbruck. Yet she retained a compassion, grace and spiritedness that mystified her captors; and, living to see the liberation of Europe, she kept, in the direst circumstances, her fundamental trust in goodness. ODETTE tells the moving and inspirational story of a woman, who, in her courage and her ability to hold on to hope, was far from ordinary.

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Book SynopsisThis oral history of Glasgow spans most of the last century - a time of economic downturn and eventual renewal, in which the many communities making up the city experienced upheavals that tore some apart and brought others closer together. It tells of the beating heart of no mean city in the words of the people who made it what it is. Piers Dudgeon has listened to dozens of people who remember the city as it was, and who have lived through its many changes. They talk of childhood and education, of work and entertainment, of family, community values, health, politics, religion and music. Their stories will make you laugh and cry. It is people''s own memories that make history real and this engrossing book captures them vividly.Trade ReviewIt makes for surprisingly satisfying, if sometimes shocking, reading * The Scotsman *'Dudgeon has hit on the winning formula of allowing the history of a place to reverberate through the voices of its citizenry' * Jenni Frazer, The Jewish Chronicle *'There is much of substance in Our Glasgow. It is written clearly and...it has strong individual voices...It is also brisk. This has its attractions as Dudgeon bounds through his topics with energy and...erudition...[T]he old Glasgow appeals, if not as a reality then as an idea drenched in warming nostalgia...One can look back in anger, astonishment or admiration. One can laugh at the troubles and be lifted by the strength of our ancestors' * The Herald *

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Book SynopsisRevelling in the off-beat and eccentric, Londoner Suggs takes us on a nostalgic adventure to explore the disappearing history of his extraordinary home town: from the sharp tailors of Saville Row to the sex traders of Bohemian Soho, by way ofquaint and quirky habitats, brilliant but endangered boozers, unique eateries that have introduced the capital to the world''sfinest foodsand a music scene that''s dear to his heart.Drawing onthree series of Suggs''s ITV programme of the same name, on the Suggs in the City chatshow, and on Suggs''s personal experience of loving London, this is theenlightening and highlyentertainingstory of a living, breathing town and its ability to absorb and adapt over the centuries, seen through the eyes of one of its favourite sons.

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Book Synopsis5th July 1943: the greatest land battle of all time began around the town of Kursk in Russia. This epic confrontation between German and Soviet forces was one of the most important military engagements in history and epitomised ''total war''.It was also one of the most bloody, characterised by hideous excess and outrageous atrocities. The battle concluded with Germany having incurred nearly three million dead and the Soviet Union a staggering ten million. It was a monumental and decisive encounter of breathtaking intensity which became a turning point, not only on the Eastern Front, but in the Second World War as a whole. Using the very latest available archival material including the testimonies of veterans and providing strategic perspective alongside personal stories of front line fighting, Lloyd Clark has written a lucid, enthralling and heart-stopping account of this incredible battle.

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Book SynopsisFrances Millard is Professor Emerita in the Department of Government, Member of the Human Rights Centre and former Dean of Social Sciences at the University of Essex. She is twice winner of the George Blazyca Prize of the British Association of Slavonic and East European Studies for the best book on Central and Eastern Europe.Trade ReviewIn this insightful and detailed account Frances Millard deftly charts and explains the twists and turns of Poland’s three decades of debates about transitional justice. The book deserves to be on the shelves of all scholars and students concerned with how states and societies deal with difficult pasts, but also those interested in the consequences that decisions to punish, prosecute or draw lines have on the health and fate of democracy. * Tim Haughton, University of Birmingham, UK *This is an extremely detailed and wide-ranging account of attempts to achieve transitional justice since the collapse of the Polish communist regime in 1989. It is a meticulously-researched piece of history writing, which explains the chequered progress of transitional justice with reference to developing political circumstances and without recourse to simplistic, one-sided explanations. Millard provides a thorough analysis of the legislation regarding each separate strand of transitional justice. * Anne White, UCL, UK *Table of Contents1. Introduction: Approaches to the Study of Transitional Justice 2. The Politics of Transitional Justice in Poland 3. The Prosecution of Past Crimes 4. Reparation through Rehabilitation and Compensation 5. The Restitution of Property 6. Lustration 1989-2005 7. Lustration after the fall of the SLD: The Return of the Right 8. Transitional Justice and the Role of the Constitutional Tribunal 9. The Role of the Institute of National Remembrance: The Politics of History and Memory 10. PiS: The End of Transitional Justice and the New Project of Social Transformation Index

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Book SynopsisWhy have state-building projects across the MENA region proven to be so difficult for so long? Following the end of the Ottoman Empire in the early 1920s, the countries of the region began a violent and divisive process of state formation. But a century later, state-building remains inconclusive. This book traces the emergence and evolution of state-building across the MENA region and identifies the main factors that impeded its success: the slow end of the Ottoman Empire; the experience of colonialism; and the rise of nationalistic and religious movements. The authors reveal the ways in which the post-colonial state proved itself authoritarian and formed on the model of the colonial state. They also identify the nationalist and Islamist movements that competed for political leadership across the nascent systems, enabling the military to establish a grip on the security apparatus and national economies. Finally, in the context of the Arab Spring and its conflict-filled aftermath, thiTrade ReviewThis timely book highlights the under-researched historical dimension of state-making and unmaking... respond[ing] successfully to the promise in [its] title. With this book's demonstration of historical legacies, MENA state-Building analysis is no longer the complex puzzle it was. -- Bahgat Korany , American University in Cairo and University of Montreal, CanadaSheds new light on one century of the state system in the modern Middle East ... A powerful and essential book to understand the failure of the state system and its contribution to a century of conflict in the Middle East. Eugene Rogan, Oxford University -- Eugene Rogan, Professor of Modern Middle Eastern History, Oxford University, UKTable of ContentsAcknowledgements Foreword, Lisa Anderson Part One – Foundations and Legacies 1. A Century of Elusive State-Building in the Middle East and North Africa: From the Balfour Declaration of 1917 to the Deal of the Century of 2020, Mohammad-Mahmoud Ould Mohamedou 2. “The Western Question”, Henry Laurens 3. From the Twilight of the Ottoman Empire to the ‘Caliphate’ Redux: The Tortuous Journey of Arab Statehood, Benoît Challand Part Two – Irresolution and Absences 4. A State in Search of a Nation: The Case of Iraq, Faleh Abdel Jabar 5. One Hundred Years of the Palestinian National Movement, Ahmad Samih Khalidi 6. Permanent Irresolution of the Kurdish Question, Jordi Tejel Part Three – Reinventions and Returns 7. Egypt’s Post-Arab Spring Neo-Authoritarianism, Bruce Rutherford 8. Armed Militancy and Alternative Statehood: Al Qaeda, the Islamic State and the Rise of Revolutionary Islamism, François Burgat 9. “Authoritarianism, Weakness and the New Great Game”, Bertrand Badie Conclusion, “Longing for the State, Mistrusting the State”, Ghassan Salamé

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Book SynopsisA Spectator 2023 Book of the YearEsther is the most visual book of the Hebrew Bible and was largely crafted in the Fourth Century BCE by an author who was clearly au fait with the rarefied world of the Achaemenid court. It therefore provides an unusual melange of information which can enlighten scholars of Ancient Iranian Studies whilst offering Biblical scholars access into the Persian world from which the text emerged.In this book, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones unlocks the text of Esther by reading it against the rich iconographic world of ancient Persia and of the Near East. Ancient Persia and the Book of Esther is a cultural and iconographic exploration of an important, but often undervalued, biblical book, and Llewellyn-Jones presents the book of Esther as a rich source for the study of life and thought in the Persian Empire. The author reveals answers to important questions, such as the role of the King's courtiers in influencing policy, the way concubines at Trade ReviewAt a time when relations between Iran and Israel have never been worse, it is good to remember that Persians and Jews were once peacefully and productively intertwined in a single cultural world and that a book of the Old Testament provides one of our best sources for ancient Persian court culture. * William Dalrymple, The Spectator *Biblical scholars know that the Persian context is relevant and significant for understanding the rich narrative of Esther, but most are not trained in the art and archaeology of the Achaemenid world. Llewellyn-Jones, who is so well at home in the Persian cultural context, makes a major contribution to scholarship on Esther, and to the Persian period in biblical studies more generally, with this book. This is indispensable for anyone working on Esther. * Aaron Koller, Yeshiva University, USA *In this accessible and well-illustrated volume, Llewellyn-Jones explores and unpacks the distinctively Persian setting of the Esther narrative. With a particular focus on the early chapters, he provides a detailed cultural and iconographic companion to the biblical book of Esther, one which helpfully illuminates for historians and biblical scholars alike the broader Achaemenid context of the narrative. * Matthew A. Collins, Senior Lecturer in Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Judaism, University of Chester, UK *Table of ContentsList of Figures Acknowledgements Abbreviations Introduction Commentary Concluding Thoughts Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisChristopher Phillips is Reader in International Relations at Queen Mary, University of London, U.K and associate fellow at Chatham House's Middle East and North Africa Programme. He has written for The Guardian, The Washington Post, Newsweek and CNN, among others. He has also made numerous media appearances on outlets including BBC Newsnight, Radio 4's Today Programme, BBC News, Al-Jazeera, Sky News and Channel 4 News. He is the author of The Battle for Syria: International Rivalry in the new Middle East (2016).Michael Stephens is a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), and an Associate Fellow at RUSI where he previously worked as the Research Fellow for Middle East Studies. Michael was seconded to the Foreign and Commonwealth in 2017 serving as the Senior Research Analyst for Lebanon and Syria. He is a regular broadcast commentator and has written for many of the world's top news publications.Trade ReviewA timely and trusted guide - smart thinking from respected scholars who understand the past and provide impressive insight into the future of a fast-changing map of Britain and the Middle East. Here are the right questions, and the right kind of answers with rigorous analysis and advice. * Lyse Doucet, BBC Chief International Correspondent *Table of ContentsList of Contributors Map of the Middle East Acknowledgements 1. Introduction Christopher Phillips & Michael Stephens PART ONE: Still searching for a role – The UK in the Middle East from East of Suez to Brexit 2. Britain and the Middle East since 1971 Rosemary Hollis 3. Britain’s Foreign Policy Landscape in the Post-Brexit Era Michael Clarke 4. Still Special? The UK and US in the Middle East Michael Stephens PART TWO: Principles and Pragmatism – the debates over the UK's Middle East priorities 5. The third wheel? “Values” in British foreign policy in the Middle East James Lynch 6. Prosperity David Butter 7. Security Louise Kettle PART THREE: Britain and the non-Arab powers 8. Turkey Bill Park 9. Israel Ian Black 10. Iran - Bridging Opportunities and Challenges Sanam Vakil PART FOUR: Britain and the Middle Eastern Arab states 11. Syria and the Levant Christopher Phillips 12. Iraq Jack Watling 13. The Gulf Tobias Borck and Michael Stephens 14. Egypt Emma El-Badawy 15. Conclusion Christopher Phillips & Michael Stephens

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Book SynopsisFrances Trix is Professor Emerita of Anthropology at Indiana University and Distinguished Senior Scholar at the Center for the Study of the Middle East. She has been the recipient of a number of distinguished grants and was a Fulbright Research Fellow in Istanbul, a Woodrow Wilson Fellow at the Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C and received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Albanian American National Association. In the winter of 201516, she spent time working in refugee transit camps on the Macedonian border and is the author of numerous books, including Urban Muslim Migrants in Istanbul (2016) with I.B.Tauris.Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgements Prologue Introduction Focus Researcher Quandaries and Stratagems Important Influences Style Organization 1. What Affects Attitudes Toward Refugees National Leadership Earlier Refugees in Europe Postwar Refugees: Expulsions, Escapees, to “Ethnic Cleansing” Postwar Immigrants Anti-Immigrant Violence to Pro-Immigrant Consensus The “Alternative for Germany:” Pegida and AfD Forgotten Connections of Germany and Islam Reflection on Attitudes Toward Refugees PART I. Entry to Europe through Macedonia – Transit of Refugees 2. NGOs and Local Responses Macedonia and Refugees Jasmin Redjepi’s Response: Establish an NGO with Friends Lence Zdravkin’s Response: Feed Those Who Pass By 3. Refugee Transit Camps Tabanovce on the Northern Border Gevgelija on the Southern Border Reflection on Refugee Transit Camps PART II. Inside Germany – Accommodation of Refugees 4. Responses of Villages The First Village and First Refugee The Second Village of Elzach: Whose People Made Wise Decisions The Third Village: Whose People Worked Yet Missed the Mark 5. Responses of Towns and Smaller Cities Bruchsal: A Town with Dedicated Volunteers and Leaders Bamberg: A University Town Where Research Did Not Work Nürnberg: A Central City of Immigrants and Refugees Schwäbisch Gmünd: A Town of Integrated Civic Engagement 6. Responses of Large Cities Munich: The Rule-Tight City Cologne: Toleration and Organization Spread across the Rhine Hamburg: The Northern City of Visionary Programs 7. Toward Integration Major Issues in Integration: Access to the Labor Market Major Issues in Integration: Education Major Issues in Integration: Urban Planning Major Issues in Integration: Social Cohesion Conclusion Positive Initiatives and Strategies for Success Emphasis on Leadership at the Local Level Purpose Rexamined Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFarhad Daftary received his early education in Iran, Italy and England, and then undertook his university studies during 1958-1971 in the United States. He received his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. Subsequently, he held various academic and governmental posts in Iran, before in 1988 joining the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London, where he is currently Director and Head of the Department of Academic Research and Publications. Dr Daftary is a consulting editor of the Encyclopaedia Iranica, co-editor (with W. Madelung) of the Encyclopaedia Islamica, as well as the general editor of the Ismaili Heritage Series, the Ismaili Texts and Translations Series and the Shii Heritage Series. An authority on Ismaili studies, he has written and edited 20 books in this field, including The Ismailis: Their History and Doctrines (1990; 2nd ed., 2007); The Assassin Legends (1994); A Short History of the Ismailis (1998); IsmTable of ContentsList of maps and tables Preface I: The Ismaili Imamate in History II: The Early Imams 'Ali b. Abi Talib Husayn b. 'Ali 'Ali b. Husayn Zayn al-'Abidin Muhammad al-Baqir Jafar al-Sadiq Isma'il b. Ja'far al-Sadiq Muhammad b. Isma'il al-Maymun III: The Concealed Imams 'Abd Allah b. Muhammad, also known as Wafi Ahmad Ahmad b. 'Abd Allah, also known as Taqi Muhammad Husayn b. Ahmad, also known as Radi al-Din Abd Allah IV: The Early Fatimid Imam-caliphs al-Mahdi al-Qa'im al-Mansur al-Mu'izz al-'Aziz al-Hakim al-Zahir al-Mustansir Nizar V: The Imams at Alamut Concealed Imams: al-Hadi, al-Muhtadi, al-Qahir Hasan ala dhikrihi’l-salam Nur al-Din Muhammad, also known as A?la Muhammad Jalal al-Din Hasan 'Ala al-Din Muhammad Rukn al-Din Khurshah VI: The Early Imams after Alamut Shams al-Din Muhammad Qasim Shah Islam Shah Muhammad b. Islam Shah VII: The Imams of the Anjudan Period Mustansir bi’llah 'Abd al-Salam Shah Gharib Mirza, also known as Mustansir bi’llah Abu Dharr 'Ali Murad Mirza Dhu’l-Faqar 'Ali Nur al-Din (al-Dahr) 'Ali Khalil Allah 'Ali VIII: The Imams in the Eighteenth Century Shah Nizar Sayyid 'Ali Hasan 'Ali Qasim 'Ali Abu’l-Hasan 'Ali Shah Khalil Allah IX: The Imams in the Modern Age Hasan 'Ali Shah, Aga Khan I Agha 'Ali Shah, Aga Khan II Sultan Muhammad Shah, Aga Khan III Shah Karim al-Husayni, Aga Khan IV Glossary Select Bibliography Picture credits Index

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Book SynopsisKristina Richardson is Associate Professor of History at Queens College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, USA. She is the author of Difference and Disability in the Medieval Islamic World (2012) and co-editor of a 16th-century Syrian weaver's notebook (forthcoming). She also serves as an editor for the journal Der Islam.Trade ReviewThis book is nothing short of a radical remapping of the Global Middle Ages that decenters sedentary peoples and refuses territorial partition. Kristina Richardson brilliantly illuminates the sophisticated literary, technological, and intellectual cultures of the Ghuraba' (Strangers), the Roma, and other traveling communities as they moved along the margins of Afro-Eurasian societies between the eighth and the sixteenth centuries. Methodologically wide-ranging and analytically bold, Roma in the Medieval Islamic World will change the way we write medieval history. * Professor of History and International Studies, Zayde Antrim, Trinity College, USA *Fascinating! Like watching a wonderful and unexpected landscape emerge as a master jigsaw puzzler fits the pieces together. * Richard Bulliet, Emeritus Professor of History, Columbia University, USA *"In this brilliant work, Dr. Kristina Richardson illustrates the fundamental importance of studying peoples that transcend geographical and cultural boundaries. Attention to the 'marginal' Ghuraba' across time and space shows them to be anything one of the major groups responsible for facilitating Afro-Eurasian cultural exchange. Of the many notable contributions of this work, her intervention in the history of the printed book is a stunning contribution to the field. Through meticulous linguistic and material analysis, she shows that the Ghuraba' are the most likely candidates for the transmission of 'print culture' from East Asia to the West. Her findings are sure to win many converts and provide a new methodological approach for exploring the vital importance of minority groups to the emergence of Afro-Eurasian material cultures." * Devin Fitzgerald, Curator of Rare Books and History of Printing, UCLA, USA *Table of ContentsList of Figures List of Tables Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction 1. The Roma, Banu Sasan, and the Ghuraba’ 2. Sin: The Language of the Banu Sasan and Ghuraba’ 3. Gharib Literary Cultures in Mamluk Cairo 4. Housing, Neighborhoods, and Cemeteries of Urban Ghuraba’ 5. Illustrated Astrological Books (Bulhans) 6. A New Narrative of Premodern Afro-Eurasian Printing 7. Ghuraba’ Astrologers and Print in 15th-Century Central Europe Appendix 1: Appendix 2: Glossary Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisMaziar Behrooz is Associate Professor of History at San Francisco State University, USA. He has authored numerous articles and book chapters on the 19th and 20th-century history of Iran. His first book, Rebels with a Cause: the Failure of the Left in Iran (1999), has been translated into Persian and Turkish. His second book, Perspectives on the History of Rebels with a Cause in Iran (2006), is a translation of a collection of articles and interviews on the left movement in Iran, published in Tehran. To find out more please visit: https://faculty.sfsu.edu/~mroozbehTrade ReviewThe early Qajar period has been largely neglected by scholarship. This book therefore fills an important gap and makes a welcome contribution to our understanding of early nineteenth-century Iran, as seen through the prism of its political and military conflicts with imperial Russia. * Stephanie Cronin, University of Oxford, UK *The early Qajar period has been largely neglected by scholarship. This book therefore fills an important gap and makes a welcome contribution to our understanding of early nineteenth-century Iran, as seen through the prism of its political and military conflicts with imperial Russia. * Stephanie Cronin, University of Oxford, UK *Table of ContentsPreface Introduction 1. Qajar Reunification The Eunuch King and reunification of Iran Aqa Muhammad Shah Defeat of the Zand Conquest of the Caucasus 2. Iran: State and Society in the Early Nineteenth Century Fath Ali Shah Qavanllu-Qajar Early Qajar state Social classes and land tenure Ulama–state relations Early nineteenth-century society The Qajar military 3. Diplomacy and War: The First Russo-Iranian War, 1804–1813 Prelude to war, 1801–1803 Abbas Mirza Qavanllu-Qajar Fall of Ganjeh, 1804 First siege of Iravan, summer 1804 The Battle of Qarabagh and the siege of Ganjeh and Badkubeh, 1805 Diplomacy and intrigue Battles of 1806 The Peaceful 1807 The Gardane mission, 1807–1809 Second siege of Iravan and the Battle of Nakhjavan, October–December 1808 The Jones Brydges mission, 1809–1810 4. Interwar Years and the Second Russo-Iranian War The Interwar years Prelude to war Russian policy toward the southeastern Caucasus Council of Sultanieh The Battlefield Causes of the Second Russo-Iranian War The aftermath Conclusion: Seven Points Chronology Appendix Biographies Notes Bibliography

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Book SynopsisSuraiya Faroqhi is Professor Emerita at Ibn Haldun University, Turkey. She has previously held positions at Istanbul Bilgi, Turkey, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Germany and the Middle East Technical University. A leading expert on the social history of the Ottoman Empire, her books include Subjects of the Sultan (I.B.Tauris, 2000), The Ottoman Empire and the World Around It (I.B.Tauris, 2003), Artisans of Empire (I.B.Tauris, 2009) and The Ottoman and Mughal Empires (I.B.Tauris, 2019).Trade ReviewA remarkable book that masterfully traces the changes in the condition féminine during the early modern and modern periods. With a tremendous command of primary sources and the secondary literature, Faroqhi covers all the themes in the field by providing a fascinating panorama of the history of Ottoman women through the perspective of women’s agency. * Betül Ipsirli Argit, Marmara University, Turkey *Women in the Ottoman Empire is a unique product of Suraiya Faroqhi’s decades of experience. On the one hand, it provides a striking overview of the body of Ottoman/Middle Eastern women’s studies, and on the other, it enriches the field with a touch that embraces the cultural, religious, social, and ethnic diversity of the empire. The book is an ideal introduction for newcomers to the field and a source of pride for experienced researchers, reflecting the existing scholarship. * Yahya Araz, Dokuz Eylül University, Turkey *Table of ContentsList of Figures Acknowledgements A note on spelling and transliteration Introduction Prologue: A conspectus of Ottoman history 1. Ottoman women, Ottoman history: Coping with a changing world Part I (1500s to about 1700) 2. The legal framework of family life 3. Dependent on work, investments and charity 4. Exceptionally talented, exceptionally active: women of distinction Part II (about 1700-1870s) 5. Ottoman diversity: Female agency and survival in Ottoman Syria and Egypt 6. Ottoman diversity: Coping with relatives, the state and dependent capitalism Part III (1870-1918) 7. Female teachers, journalists and actors: education as a source of survival skills 8. Before 1912: Making a living through family relations, work and charity – and occasionally turning to crime 9. In profound distress:Struggling to survive the disintegration of the empire (1912-18) Conclusion Suggestions for further reading: A bibliographical essay Notes Timeline Glossary

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Book SynopsisFrancisco Freire is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the NOVA School of Social Sciences and Humanities in Lisbon, Portugal, and Researcher at The Centre for Research in Anthropology (CRIA), Lisbon, Portugal. He is the author of many articles and book chapters on Islam and the Sahara, including contributions to the Journal of North African Studies, African Studies Review, History and Anthropology and Journal of Modern African Studies.Trade ReviewThis splendidly interdisciplinary and engagingly written book is a powerful contribution to a new understanding of Saharan modes of cultural change and continuity. Its brilliantly researched case studies, and insightful Introduction and Postscript, dispel diehard stereotypes of “immemorial” patterns and abrupt ruptures, and disclose innovation and transformational reappropriations of tradition. * Paulo Fernando de Moraes Farias, Professor, University of Birmingham, UK *Table of ContentsPreface: Benjamin Soares, University of Florida, USA Introduction: Shifting Sands: State, Society and Islam in the Western Regions of the Sahara, Francisco Freire, NOVA FCSH, Portugal PART I: State Chapter 1: A Land of Opportunities: Political Morphologies at the Northwestern Saharan Frontier (1934-1960), Alberto Lopéz Bargados, University of Barcelona, Spain Chapter 2: A Historical Perspective on Legal Practices in Sahrawi Society (1958-2019), Enrique Bengochea Tirado, NOVA FCSH / CRIA, Portugal Chapter 3: Magnitudes of Sahrawi Nomadism throughout Colonialism and Refugeehood, Juan Carlos Gimeno, Autonoma University, Madrid, Spain and Julien Lafontaine Carboni, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland Chapter 4: The Flexible Use of Democracy in an Islamic Republic: The Case of the Mauritanian President Abdel Aziz (2009-2019), Elemine Ould Mohamed Baba Moustapha, University of Nouakchott, Mauritania PART II: Society Chapter 5: Artisanal Gold Mining in Mauritania, Moustapha Taleb, NOVA FCSH / CRIA, Portugal Chapter 6: Unsettling Gender and Feminism: Views from Mauritania, Maria Cardeira da Silva, NOVA FCSH, Portugal Chapter 7: Funeral Orations, the Web and Politics: The Online Making of National Heroes in Mauritania and the Western Sahara in Poems and Songs, Sébastien Boulay, Faculté des sciences humaines et sociales de la Sorbonne, Université de Paris, France and Mohamed Meidah, University of Nouakchott, Mauritania Chapter 8: Haratin Activism in Post-Slavery Mauritania: Abolition, Emancipation and the Politics of Identity, David Malluche, University of Bayreuth, Germany PART III: Islam Chapter 9: On the (Body of the) Subject in the Sahara: Mu?ummadhun Fal b. Muttali’s Fat? al-?aqq (19th century), Abdel Wedoud Ould Cheikh, Université de Lorraine, France Chapter 10: The Past and Present of the Ghu?fiyya Sufi Order from the Western Regions of the Sahara, Yahya Ould al-Bara, University of Nouakchott, Mauritania Chapter 11: Islamic Traditional Schooling in a Globalized Context: A Case-Study from the Teisir Mahadra (southwestern Mauritania), Mariem Baba Ahmed, NOVA FCSH / CRIA, Portugal and Zahra Horma, NOVA FCSH / CRIA, Portugal Chapter 12: Islam, Blasphemy, and Realpolitik in Mauritania: The Case of Mohamed Mkhaitir, Francisco Freire, NOVA FCSH, Portugal Postface: Reflections on Research Ethics in Complex Contexts—Navigating Politics, Pragmatics, and Positionality, Leonardo Villálon, University of Florida, USA and Irina Branco da Silva, NOVA FCSH

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Book SynopsisRoss Harrison is Senior Fellow and Director of Research at the Middle East Institute in Washington, DC, USA. He is also a member of faculty at the Department of Political Science in the University of Pittsburgh, USA. His books include Strategic Thinking in 3D: A Guide for National Security, Foreign Policy and Business Professionals (2013) and From Chaos to Cooperation: Toward Regional Order in the Middle East (2017) and he co-edited with Paul Salem, Escaping the Conflict Trap: Toward Ending Civil Wars in the Middle East (2019). He has written numerous articles on Middle East Affairs in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The National Interest, Parameters and Orient.

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Book SynopsisAhmad H. Sa'di is Associate Professor in the Department of Politics and Government at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. He is the author of Thorough Surveillance: The Genesis of Israeli Policies of Population Management (2014) and Surveillance & Political Control towards the Palestinians (2013), and the co-editor of Nakba: Palestine, 1948, and the Claims of Memory (2007). He was formerly a Visiting Professor at the Universities of Waseda, Japan, as well as The National University of Singapore, Singapore; and Columbia University, US.Nur Masalha is a Palestinian historian and academic based in the Centre for Palestine Studies, SOAS, University of London, UK. He is Editor of the Journal of Holy Land and Palestine Studies. His authored books include Palestine Across Millennia: A History of Literacy, Learning and Educational Revolutions (I.B.Tauris, 2021) and Palestine: A Four Thousand Year History (Zed, 201Trade ReviewThis book makes a groundbreaking contribution to both Palestine studies and settler colonial studies. The life works and scholarly legacy of Elia Zureik is essential for understanding what settler colonialism is and does Palestine. Equally, this volume forefronts Palestinian scholarly voices and, in doing so, establishes the appropriate foundations for decolonizing Palestine studies. -- Somdeep Sen, Associate Professor in International Development Studies, Roskilde University, Denmark.A landmark volume by leading Palestinian scholars and a fitting tribute to the pioneering scholarship of the late sociologist Elia Zureik. Inspired by his insistence on the inseparability of epistemological decolonization and empirical rigor in the study of the colonial situation under which Palestinians live, diverse and eye-opening essays illuminate the value of concepts like internal colonialism while exposing the formidable technologies of rule to which they have been subjected in the past and present. * Lila Abu-Lughod, Columbia University *Table of ContentsIntroduction, Nur Masalha, SOAS, University of London, UK and Ahmad Sa’di, University of the Negev, Israel Part One: Colonial and Decolonial: Conceptualizations of Palestine 1. Towards a Decolonization of Palestinian Studies, Ahmad Sa’di, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel 2. Indigenous versus Colonial-Settler Toponymy and the Struggle over the Cultural and Political Geography of Palestine: The Appropriation of Palestinian Place-Names by the Israeli State, Nur Masalha, SOAS, University of London, UK 3. What’s the Problem with the Jewish State? Raef Zreik, The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, Israel Part Two: Zionist Settler-Colonialism: Tenets and Practices 4. The Epistemology of Zionist Settler Colonialism and the Ontological Securitization of Palestinians, Amal Jamal, Tel Aviv University, Israel 5. The Unfinished Zionist Settler-Colonial Conquest of its Elusive ‘Last Frontier’, and Indigenous Palestinian Bedouin Arab Resistance, Ismael Abu-Saad, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel 6. The Paradox of Settler Colonial Citizenship in Israel, Areej Sabbagh-Khoury, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel 7. Celebrating Survival: Palestinian Epistemes and Resisting Anti-Palestinian Racism, Yasmeen Abu-Laban, University of Alberta, Canada Part Three: Zionist Settler-Colonialism: Surveillance 8. Secrecy as Colonial Violence: The Case of Occupied East Jerusalem, Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, Queen Mary University of London, UK and Abeer Otman, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel 9. Israel’s Telecommunications Lines and Digital Surveillance Routes, Helga Tawil-Souri, New York University, USA Part Four: Palestine: Connections, Ruptures and Popular Resistance 10. Settler Colonialism in Palestine: Connections and Ruptures, Magid Shihade, Dar Al-Kalima University, Palestine 11. Popular Resistance in Palestine, Marwan Darweish, Coventry University, UK Part Five: Issues of Bio-Power 12. The Effect of the Separation of the Wall on the West Bank Labour Market, Sami Miaari, Tel Aviv University, Israel and Dorde Miloslav, Trinity College, Ireland 13. Palestinian Refugee Archives UNRWA and the Problem with Sources, Salim Tamari, Birzeit University, Palestine and Eliza Zureik, Queens University, Canada In Lieu of Afterword 14. Liminal Lights in Dark Places: Elia Zureik’s Sociological and Critical Contribution to Palestinian and Surveillance Studies, David Lyon, Queen’s University, Canada Bibliography

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Book SynopsisRichard Foltz is Professor of Religions and Cultures at Concordia University, Canada.Trade Review‘This engagingly written, excellent new history of the Tajik people is an outstanding achievement’. * Rustam Shukurov, Professor of History, Moscow State University, Russia *"an informative introduction to an important subject that has been ill-served both in history and in scholarship" * Daniel Beben, Central Asian Survey *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Preface to the second edition Acknowledgments Historical Timeline A Note on Transliteration Introduction: Who are the Tajiks? 1 The Prehistory of Central Asia 2 Sogdians and Bactrians 3 The Samanid Empire and the New Persian Renaissance 4 Tajiks and Turks 5 The Soviet Period 6 The Republic of Tajikistan 7 Tajiks in Uzbekistan Excursus: Afghanistan at a Stone’s Throw Conclusion: Differing Contexts, Manifold Challenges Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisRosemary Sayigh is a renowned journalist and scholar of Middle Eastern history, having published ground-breaking works on the Palestinian people including Palestinians: From Peasants to Revolutionaries (1979) and Too Many Enemies: The Palestinian Experience in Lebanon (1993). In 2024 the Palestine Book Awards presented Sayigh with the Lifetime Achievement Award for her work on recording the displacement narratives of Palestinian women. She taught oral history at Birzeit University, Palestine, and at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. She received her BA at Oxford University, UK in 1948 and her PhD at Hull University, UK in 1994.

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Book SynopsisIn this landmark guide, nearly two dozen essays by scholars, educators, and museum leaders suggest the next steps in the interpretation of African American history and culture from the colonial period to the twentieth century at history museums and historic sites. This diverse anthology addresses both historical research and interpretive methodologies, including investigating church and legal records, using social media, navigating sensitive or difficult topics, preserving historic places, engaging students and communities, and strengthening connections between local and national history. Case studies of exhibitions, tours, and school programs from around the country provide practical inspiration, including photographs of projects and examples of exhibit label text.Highlights include:Amanda Seymour discusses the prevalence of false nostalgia at the homes of the first five presidents and offers practical solutions to create a more inclusive, nuanced history.Dr. Bernard Powers reveals thTrade ReviewInterpreting African-American history at historic sites is an essential but often complicated task. This timely and important volume seeks to improve and suggest successful plans for historical interpretation, and contains nearly two dozen essays spanning from the colonial period to the 21st century. It embraces a myriad of research methods and strategies for interpretation, including the use of social media, archival and documentary research, outreach programmes as well as instructing interpreters how to manage conflict and difficult questions. . . .This volume offers a rich and interesting insight into the world of public history. . . .[and] provides an engaging and fascinating account of how African-American history is interpreted today. Historical interpreters have an opportunity to explore, ask questions, dig deeper and engage an audience whilst navigating the tensions of American history. This volume celebrates contributions and successes, but we need to recognise that many historic sites have much to improve when confronting the legacy of slavery. * History In Review *Museums and historic sites wishing to devise, or revise., their interpretive programs to better synthesize African American history will find several of the practical case studies in this volume quite useful. Those teaching public history in universities, particularly museum interpretation, historic site interpretation, and museum education courses, may also find it beneficial to assign this book as a way to help students understand current issues in the field. Few worthwhile historic sites and museums can fail to acknowledge the importance of expanding their programs to include the histories of diverse communities. Now, as van Balgooy and the essay authors clearly demonstrate, the challenge is to embed these histories within the sites themselves. * The American Historian *What a gift it will be when museums and historic sites can help our publics understand that they are shaped, touched, and made better by African American history, all day, every day. The essays in this volume give me hope that that day is not too far distant. -- Lonnie G. Bunch, Founding Director, National Museum of African American History and CultureTable of ContentsForeword by Lonnie G. Bunch, III Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1: Pride and Prejudice: Interpreting Slavery at the Homes of Five Founding Fathers, Amanda Seymour Chapter 2: Developing Comprehensive and Conscientious Interpretation of Slavery at Historic Sites and Museums, Kristin L. Gallas and James DeWolf Perry Chapter 3: Interpreting Difficult Knowledge, Julia Rose Chapter 4: Expanding Interpretation at Historic Sites: When Change Brings Conflict, David W. Young Chapter 5: There is a Doctor in the House--and he's Black, Michelle L. McClellan Chapter 6: Finding Sarah Bickford, William Peterson Chapter 7: Documenting Local African American Community History, Lila Teresa Church Chapter 8: Interpreting the Upper-Ground Railroad, Matthew Pinsker Chapter 9: Churches as Places of History: The Case of Nineteenth Century Charleston, South Carolina, Bernard E. Powers, Jr. Chapter 10: Imagining Slave Square: Resurrecting History through Cemetery Research and Interpretation, D L Henderson Chapter 11: Furnishing Slave Quarters and Free Black Homes: Adding a Powerful Tool to Interpreting African American Life, Martha B. Katz-Hyman Chapter 12: Six Degrees of Separation: Using Social Media and Digital Platforms to Enhance African American History Projects, Lynn Rainville Chapter 13: Asking Big Questions of a Small Place, George W. McDaniel Chapter 14: Power in Limits: Narrow Frames Open Up African American Public History, Benjamin Filene Chapter 15: Connecting Students with Community History, Stacia Kuceyeski Chapter 16: Do You Have What it Takes to be a Freedom Fighter?, Andrea K. Jones Chapter 17: Preserving Los Angeles’ African American Historic Places, Jenny Scanlin and Teresa Grimes Chapter 18: More Than Just a Building: Interpreting the Legacy of the Frederick Douglass Elementary School, Wendi Manuel-Scott and Sara Howard-O’Brien Chapter 19: Soul Soldiers: Giving Voice to Vietnam’s Veterans, Robbie Davis Chapter 20: Making African American History Relevant through Co-Creation and Community Service Learning, Robert Connolly and Ana M. Rea Chapter 21: The Scottsboro Boys Museum: University-Community Collaboration Yields Unanticipated Results, Ellen Griffith Spears and Shelia Washington Selected Bibliography on the Interpretation of African American History and Culture National Organizations Index About the Author and Contributors

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Book SynopsisColor your way through 1980s pop culture with Best of the ’80s Coloring Book! Mix coloring with nostalgia, and you have an upbeat activity book that is also therapeutic, for a fun and relaxing escape from life’s stresses. With almost 50 nostalgic illustrations, this high-quality coloring book lets you color some of the most memorable moments from the 1980s. With your choice of coloring tools, revisit everything in this decade, from TV and movie icons, such as Mr. T and Freddy Krueger, to music stars, such as Guns N' Roses and Madonna. This coloring book’s high-quality paper allows you to color with your choice of colored pencils, crayons, markers, and more. The one-sided printing helps avoid coloring bleed-through and allows for easy display of finished pieces, which include: Movie scenes from The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Footloose, and Nightmare

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Book SynopsisUsing a remarkable cache of scrapbooks kept by Albert Haskell, Jr. through his lifetime, Martin A. Sweeny narrates a fascinating story of unwavering dedication to the public good. As a lawyer, politician, civic organizer, and economic developer, Haskell never turned away from an opportunity to do something beneficial for others. Trade ReviewThe Remarkable Life of Albert Haskell, Jr. adds much to our understanding of how the City of Cortland, NY developed in the 20th century​‌. Readers will learn much about this time period and the crucial role Albert Haskell, Jr. played. -- Kate O’Connel, City of Cortland HistorianMartin Sweeney’s biography of Albert Haskell, Jr. brings the past to life through his detailed use of scrapbooks compiled by the subject, correspondences, interviews, and other primary sources. Haskell was an important contributor to his community, and Sweeney gets to the heart of the story and builds a compelling narrative that will keep you engaged. -- Tabitha Scoville, executive director, Cortland County Historical Society,Once again Martin Sweeney has put to great use his creative writing and investigative skills. The culmination of which is this entertaining and interesting biography about my grandfather, Albert Haskell, Jr. Not only is this volume interesting to me from a personal perspective, as I am Albert’s youngest grandchild, but the book captures the story of Central New York’s proud past as well. It has often been relayed to me that Grandpa Haskell deeply cared about the people of Cortland County, and I believe readers will agree that Martin has captured that affinity very well through his storytelling. -- William Sweeney, grandson of Albert Haskell, Jr.Albert Haskell, Jr. was my grandfather. I remember him as a humble and stoic man. As an 11-year-old kid, I never knew the scope of his law career. This biography was a real eye opener for me. It is a story that all readers will enjoy. -- Joseph Haskell, Jr., grandson of Albert Haskell, Jr.The name Albert Haskell, Jr. was known by all in Cortland County for a large part of the 20th century. As a lawyer, elected official, businessman and a public citizen, he always had the interests of his community foremost in his mind. My first employment as an attorney was in the law firm of Haskell, Foley, Meldrim and Shay. I was fortunate to be associated with the Haskell name. Albert Haskell, Jr. lived a fascinating life, and his story will be enjoyed by all. -- Marty Mack, colleague of Albert Haskell, Jr.Table of ContentsList of Figures PrologueAcknowledgementsIntroductionChapter 1: The Formative YearsChapter 2: The Years of Arts and LettersChapter 3: A Young, Aspiring LawyerChapter 4: The Great Cortland Rotary Hijinks Chapter 5: The New D.A. Goes After Bootleggers with Izzy and Moe Chapter 6: Bathtub Gin, Bootleggers, and the Black Hand Chapter 7: The People vs White Slavers, Faith Healers and a Murderer Chapter 8: Haskell Takes on the Klan Chapter 9: The Tragic Demise of Alton Howe Chapter 10: Tubercular Cattle Scandal Chapter 11: Another Murder Case and RetirementChapter 12: A Continued Career in the LawChapter 13: The Political ArenaChapter 14: The Milk StrikesChapter 15: Civic EngagementChapter 16: Promotion of Economic Expansion in the 1950sChapter 17: “Elder Statesman” of Cortland’s Industrial GrowthChapter 18: A Man of FaithEpilogueChapter NotesSourcesIndex

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Book Synopsis For fashion buffs, romantics, and brides-to-be, a fascinating collection of wedding garb and glamour through pop culture and history. The Way We Wed: A History of Wedding Fashion presents styles and stories from the Renaissance to the present day, chronicling evolving fashions, classes, and expectations. And because all wedding attire has a tale to tell, The Way We Wed also reveals fascinating personal stories of those who wore it.While the book is a rich source of bridal inspiration for all seasons, it''s far from a monotonous parade of white gowns. The Way We Wed showcases wedding gowns of all colors and styles from around the world, as well as going-away dresses, accessories (shoes, veils, hats, and tiaras), and clothes worn by flower girls, bridesmaids, mothers of the bride, and grooms. Same-sex weddings are represented along with royal weddings, wartime brides, White House weddings, remarriage, Hollywood weddings, and more. The book features celebrity and historical couples as well as everyday people. A few of the included names: Angelina Jolie Frida Kahlo Elizabeth Taylor Princess Diana Martha Washington Solange Knowles Ellen DeGeneres Meghan Markle Illustrated with 100 gorgeous photos, The Way We Wed is a rich celebration of the art of wedding fashion across time and cultures, and those whose style and circumstances made a statement.

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Book SynopsisFrom Donald Bogle, the award-winning author of Hollywood Black and leading authority on Black cinema history, this is a first-of-its-kind comprehensive and lavish biography of Hollywood’s first African American movie goddess. Lena Horne’s life and career are truly remarkable in American film history. She was the first Black performer to become a true star—to receive the kind of glamour treatment at the fabled MGM that the studio had previously given to the likes of Greta Garbo, Jean Harlow, Lana Turner, and Ava Gardner. At the same time, Horne dealt with endless indignities, not the least of which was the fact that her roles in films was often as a musical performer, which allowed her numbers to be easily stripped out of films without affecting the narrative when played to audiences that would find her presence undesirable. ​ At long last, Lena Horne: Goddess Reclaimed gives the star her due. Through a highly informed and insightful narrative based on interviews, press accounts, studio archives, and decades of research, the book sheds new light on the star's compelling life and complicated career: her activism; her accomplishments and heady triumphs in movies, television, and nightclubs as she broke down long-standing barriers for Black individuals—especially Black women—and her solemn, sometimes bitter disappointments, both professional and personal. Illustrated by stunning photos (some published for the first time), this is the ultimate book on the icon.

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Book SynopsisThe Quarantine Atlas is a poignant and deeply human collection of more than 65 homemade maps created by people around the globe that reveal how the coronavirus pandemic has transformed our physical and emotional worlds, in ways both universal and unique. Along with eight original essays, it is a vivid celebration of wayfinding through a crisis that irrevocably altered the way we experience our environment.In April 2020, Bloomberg CityLab journalists Laura Bliss and Jessica Lee Martin asked readers to submit homemade maps of their lives during the coronavirus pandemic. The response was illuminating and inspiring. The 400+ maps and accompanying stories received served as windows into what individuals around the world were experiencing during the crisis and its resonant social consequences. Collectively, these works showed how coronavirus has transformed the places we live, and our relationships to them.In The Quarantine Atlas, Bliss distills these stunning submissions and pairs them with essays by journalists and authors, as well as notes from the original mapmakers. The result is an enduring visual record of this unprecedented moment in human history. It is also a celebration of the act of mapping and the ways maps can help us connect and heal from our shared experience.

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