History Books

Book Synopsis''A brilliant concept, executed with enviable elegance'' Lucy Worsley''A gem of a book. Thanks to Daisy Dunn''s elegant and lively retelling of history, the women of the ancient world are restored to the centre of the story of classical antiquity. It was a joy to read.'' Peter FrankopanSpanning 3,000 years, from the birth of Minoan Crete to the death of the Julio-Claudian dynasty in Rome, a magisterial new history of the ancient world told, for the very first time, through women. For centuries, men have been writing histories of antiquity filled with warlords, emperors and kings. But when it comes to incorporating women aside from Cleopatra and Boudica, writers have been more comfortable describing mythical heroines than real ones. While Penelope and Helen of Troy live on in the imagination, their real-life counterparts have been relegated to the margins. In The Missing Thread, Daisy Dunn inverts this tradition and puts the women of history at the centre of the narrative.These pages present Enheduanna, the earliest named author, the poet Sappho and Telesilla, who defended her city from attack. Here is Artemisia, sole female commander in the Graeco-Persian Wars, and Cynisca, the first female victor at the Olympic Games. Cleopatra may be the more famous, but Fulvia, Mark Antony''s wife, fought a war on his behalf. Many other women remain nameless but integral. Through new examination of the sources combined with vivid storytelling Daisy Dunn shows us the ancient world through fresh eyes, and introduces us to an incredible cast of ancient women, weavers of an entire world.

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Book SynopsisAn introduction for students, teachers, and lay readers to the delights of exploring the world of ancient Greece.Trade ReviewWell-written and exceptionally well-illustrated.... An invaluable guidebook for people who want to visit Greece and understand what it is they are seeing. * Times Literary Supplement *An excellent book which should find a ready audience among teachers and students as the standard handbook for classes in Greek archaeology. * Classical Outlook *Biers' book is an excellent and comprehensive introduction to the subject; this new edition retains its original virtues of reliability, clarity and readability, and adds to its already generous quota of illustrations. It should continue to be a standard textbook for years to come. -- Ruth Westgate * Classical Bulletin *For a history of the art of sculpture, painting, and architecture of Classical Greece and her immediate ancestors, The Archaeology of Greece is an excellent choice. * Archaeology Newsletter *Teachers, students, and travelers should be grateful to author and press for the timely production of a well-balanced, informative, and stimulating introduction. * Archaeology *William Biers' first edition of this book served well a generation of scholars and lay people alike as a standard introduction. A second edition of this valuable work is, therefore, most welcomed.... The Archaeology of Greece is the best general introduction to the subject. Biers' command of the subject, his engaging writing style, and the wealth of illustrations make this work in its second edition a joy to read and use. -- Thomas V. Brisco * Southwestern Journal of Theology *Table of ContentsPreface Preface to the Second Edition Abbreviations1. Archaeology in Greece 2. The Minoans 3. The Mycenaeans 4. The Dark Ages 5. The Geometric Period 6. The Orientalizing Period 7. The Archaic Period 8. The Fifth Century 9. The Fourth Century 10. The Hellenistic Age EpilogueSuggestions for Further Reading Select Bibliography Glossary Index

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Book SynopsisIt is well to remember that the stomach governs the world. Winston Churchill Mrs. Landemare s food is distinguished. She is an inspired intuitive cook. Clementine Churchill "Churchill s Cookbook" provides fascinating insight into what the legendary prime minister ate during World War II, containing over three hundred delicious recipes created by his personal cook, Georgina Landemare. The celebrity cook of her day, Landemare specialized in creating sumptuous feasts for England s nobility. At the outbreak of the Second World War, however, she devoted her full-time services to the Churchill family, declaring This will be my war work! She worked for the prime minster throughout the war; she was up at dawn preparing his breakfast and remained steadfastly in the kitchen until after his last whiskey at night. On VE Night, Churchill told her that he could not have managed through the war without her. With an introduction by Phil Reed, director of the Churchill War Rooms, "Churchill s Cookbook" marks the fiftieth anniversary of Churchill s death and the seventieth anniversary of VE Day. Covering mouth-watering cakes, biscuits, and puddings; healthy salads; and warming soups; this timely publication revives some forgotten British classics and reveals the food that sustained Churchill during his finest hours."

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Book Synopsis'Chillingly relevant' DAILY MAIL'A deeply researched and evocative true story' ANNE SEBBA'Jay has a gift for forging a moving narrative from an impressive array of sources' JEWISH CHRONICLENinette Dreyfus was a cosseted scion of one of France's most prominent Jewish families - a cousin to Albert Einstein and family friend to Colette. But when the Second World War broke out and the Germans occupied Paris, the fall was dramatic. Realising that her fate would be transformed, the teenager soon found herself fleeing the capital for the South, only to then fall prey to the Vichy regime. In fear for her life at the hands of the Nazis and their French collaborators, she became somebody else.Woven together from Ninette's own diaries and interviews with author John Jay before she died, NINETTE'S WAR traces the frailty of national and personal unity through the eyes of a young woman, in compelling and unforgettable detail.

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Book Synopsis''A beautiful, beautiful book . . . archaeology is changing so much about the way we view the so-called Dark Ages [Williams] is just brilliant at bringing them to light'' Rory Stewart on The Rest is PoliticsFrom the bestselling author of Viking Britain, a new epic history of our forgotten past.This is the world of Arthur and Urien; of the Picts and Britons and Saxon migration; of magic and war, myth and miracle.In Lost Realms Thomas Williams uncovers the forgotten origins and untimely demise of Britain's ancient kingdoms: lands that hover in the twilight between history and fable, whose stories hum with gods and miracles, with giants and battles and ruin. Why did some realms like Wessex, Northumbria and Gwynedd prosper while others fell? And how did their communities adapt to the catastrophic changes of their age? Drawing on Britain ' s ancient landscape and bringing together new archaeological revelations with the few precious fragments of surviving written sources, Williams spectaTrade Review PRAISE FOR LOST REALMS ‘Sceptical, scrupulous, written with wit and flair’Financial Times ‘This brilliant history of Dark Age Britain mixes serious scholarship with nods to pop culture, from Tolkien to The Wicker Man… Lost Realms is a joy to read’The Telegraph, FIVE STAR REVIEW ‘Williams makes a compelling guide as he steers us through the darkness’ Spectator ‘Williams has a fine command of the literary, administrative, religious and archaeological sources of early medieval Britain. He is a diligent scholar and a likeable writer’ Sunday Times ‘Thomas Williams is an exceptionally vivid and exciting writer, and his wonderfully evocative recreations are just what the generally impoverished and bewildering evidence for early medieval Britain requires. He is also however a meticulous, honest and fair-minded scholar, and his careful analysis of that evidence, material and textual, always establishes its limitations as well as its potential. His consideration of the losers of Anglo-Saxon state building provides a genuinely original and illuminating perspective on how England came to be’Ronald Hutton, author of The Witch 'Thomas Williams has blended a potent brew of mythic and material fragments to raise forgotten kings & queens (and their stories) from the grave. An historian not afraid of the dark and with eyes adapted to it – what he sees is assessed sagely and described beautifully'Christopher Hadley, author of Hollow Places

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Book SynopsisIs your heart fluttering in anticipation? Is your stomach tight with nerves? Are you falling in love? Feeling a bit miffed? Are you curious (perhaps about this book)? Do you have the heebie-jeebies? Are you antsy with iktsuarpok? Or giddy with dépaysement? The Book of Human Emotions is a gleeful, thoughtful collection of 156 feelings, both rare and familiar. Each has its own story, and reveals the strange forces which shape our rich and varied internal worlds. In reading it, you'll discover feelings you never knew you had (like basorexia, the sudden urge to kiss someone), uncover the secret histories of boredom and confidence, and gain unexpected insights into why we feel the way we do. Published in partnership with the Wellcome Collection. Wellcome Collection is a free museum and library that aims to challenge how we think and feel about health. Inspired by the medical objects and curiosities collected by Henry Wellcome, it connects science, medicine, life and art. Wellcome Collection exhibitions, events and books explore a diverse range of subjects, including consciousness, forensic medicine, emotions, sexology, identity and death. Wellcome Collection is part of Wellcome, a global charitable foundation that exists to improve health for everyone by helping great ideas to thrive, funding over 14,000 researchers and projects in more than 70 countries. wellcomecollection.orgTrade Review[Watt Smith] treats each emotion with the expertise of a wine taster, showing how it is formed from a mixture of many other emotions -- Craig Brown * Mail on Sunday *So riveting are these miniature essays exploring 156 emotions that if anyone interrupts your reading, you'll probably feel irritated ... Educative, entertaining. * Observer *Delightful * Prima *A brilliant book -- Róisín Ingle * Irish Times *Witty, informative, undogmatic and thought-provoking, this wonderful book should convince us that emotions are never just neural events. -- Jane O'Grady * Times Higher Education *

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Book SynopsisChina is one of the oldest states in the world. It achieved its approximate current borders with the Ascendancy of the Yuan dynasty in the 13th century, and despite the passing of one Imperial dynasty to the next, it has maintained them for the eight centuries since. Even the European colonial powers at the height of their power could not move past coastal enclaves. Thus, China remained China through the Ming, the Qing, the Republic, the Occupation, and Communism. But, despite the desires of some of the most powerful people in the Great State through the ages, China has never been alone in the world. It has had to contend with invaders from the steppe and the challenges posed by foreign traders and imperialists. Indeed, its rulers for the majority of the last eight centuries have not been Chinese. Timothy Brook examines China's relationship with the world from the Yuan through to the present by following the stories of ordinary and extraordinary people navigating the spaces where China met and meets the world. Bureaucrats, horse traders, spiritual leaders, explorers, pirates, emperors, invaders, migrant workers, traitors, and visionaries: this is a history of China as no one has told it before.Trade ReviewImpressive ... [Timothy Brook] at his best * TLS *Excellent ... The power of this book lies partly in the fact that Brook does not overstate his case. While he does not seek to claim that China's current actions are prefigured by the past, an attentive reader cannot fail to notice extraordinary parallels -- James Kynge * Financial Times *Timothy Brook's Great State puts forward an elegant and compelling argument for why we should look at the cosmopolitan part of the Chinese mind-set as well * Literary Review *Some of Mr. Brook's subjects are ethnically Chinese, but many are not - Mongols and Manchus figure prominently, as do Tibetans, Englishmen, Portuguese, Koreans and a host of others ... [It is] a wondrous range * Wall Street Journal *What a pleasure to read a significant, original book that covers millennia of Chinese history in an informal, often chatty, but always learned style * Times Higher Education *[A] vigorous account ... Scattered across the maps and paintings that Brook invokes, his thirteen encounters take in pirates, merchants, soldiers, traders, explorers, emperors and spiritual leaders - characters in China's complex trade, military, spiritual and political relationships down the centuries. Brook unravels the threads of these relationships across a canvas of war, friendship, savage struggles for power, lethal epidemic disease, triumph and calamity. It is a dizzying and exhilarating journey ... Great State offers some compelling lessons for today, and for all our futures -- Isabel Hilton * New Statesman *A fresh look at China's engagement with the outside world over centuries ... With useful maps and stories within stories, this is an ingenious look at an often misunderstood country * Kirkus Reviews *Praise for Vermeer's Hat: Spell-binding ... as a guide to the world behind the pictures Vermeer's Hat is mind-expanding * Sunday Times *A brilliant attempt to make us understand the reach and breadth of the first global age * Guardian *Brook takes you into the paintings in a way that can be spookily intimate * Evening Standard *An erudite, surprising book that finds traces of swashbuckling where you'd least expect * Daily Telegraph *Truly mesmerising. In this accessible but authoritative study, he... shows better than anyone I've read so far, the truly subversive power of detail * Independent *Praise for Mr Selden's Map of China: The great charm of this book lies not only in its illustrative, erudite detail but in the serendipity that regularly seizes Brook and adds spice to a spellbinding story * Times *The quest is fascinating and picaresque, a sort of cartographical Tristram Shandy with a sure-handed narrator steering us from Ming dynasty China to pre-Civil War Oxford to the Spice Islands of South-East Asia * Sunday Telegraph *

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Book Synopsis''Barthes'' purpose is to tear away masks and demystify the signs, signals and symbols of the language of mass culture'' The TimesIn this magnificent and often surprising collection of essays Barthes explores the myths of mass culture. Taking subjects as diverse as wrestling, films, plastic and cars, Barthes elegantly deciphers the symbols and signs embedded deep in familiar aspects of modern life, unmasking the hidden ideologies and meanings which implicitly affect our thought and behaviour. This early classic of semiotics from one of France''s greatest thinkers may irrevocably change the way you view the world around you.Trade ReviewBarthes is an intellectual star, one of the very small group of maîtres à penser, such as Sartre, Levi-Strauss and Foucault... I readily proclaim that Mythologies is a kind of masterpiece, a fascinating book, the meaning of which sticks in the mind and can lend itself to all sorts of applications * Observer *Essays on the codings that command our daily life (from hair-styles in the film of Julius Caesar through glossy photos of gourmet cooking, to the cult of foam in detergents)...Mythologies has penetrating gusto -- Christopher Ricks * Sunday Times *Semiology is the study of the signs and signals, the symbols, gestures and messages through which western society sustains, sells, identifies and yet obscures itself by painting or powdering over its raddled, whore-like visage... Barthes' purpose is to tear away masks and demystify the signs, signals and symbols of the language of mass culture -- Dennis Potter * The Times *All about the most ordinary things. He knew how to connect Racine and beach holidays, Freud and the anticipation of a lover's phone call. Like so many modern artists, he saw the deeper themes running through supposedly banal things. -- Alain de Botton * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisPeter Ackroyd is an award-winning historian, biographer, novelist, poet and broadcaster. He is the author of the acclaimed non-fiction bestsellers London: The Biography, Thames: Sacred River and London Under; biographies of figures including Charles Dickens, William Blake, Charlie Chaplin and Alfred Hitchcock; and a multi-volume history of England. He has won the Whitbread Biography Award, the Royal Society of Literature's William Heinemann Award, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, the Guardian Fiction Prize, the Somerset Maugham Award and the South Bank Prize for Literature. He holds a CBE for services to literature.Trade ReviewAfter his mammoth, shamanic aria London: the Biography, the remarkable writer Peter Ackroyd has produced a nimble, uproarious pocket history of sex in his beloved metropolis -- Alasdair Lees * Independent *Ackroyd has an encyclopaedic knowledge of London, and a poet's instinct for its strange, mesmerising drives and urges ... Queer City contains something to alarm or fascinate on every page -- Craig Brown * The Mail on Sunday *Droll, provocative and crammed to busting with startling facts -- Simon Callow * The Guardian *If there was a prize for the most evocative or salacious chapter headings, then Peter Ackroyd's new book, Queer City, would be the undisputed victor. They capture the rudery and naughtiness, although not the erudition of this entertaining history of the 'queer' experience in London -- Robbie Millen * The Times *Succinct, perceptive and robust -- Rupert Christiansen * Daily Telegraph *

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Book Synopsis''Essential reading ... will not be bettered'' Ferdinand Mount, Wall Street Journal''Gandhi''s finest biographer'' David Kynaston, GuardianThe magnificent new biography of Gandhi by India''s leading historianA New York Times Notable Book of 2018Gandhi lived one of the great 20th-century lives. He inspired and enraged, challenged and galvanized many millions of men and women around the world. He lived almost entirely in the shadow of the British Raj, which for much of his life seemed a permanent fact, but which he did more than anyone else to destroy, using revolutionary tactics. In a world defined by violence on a scale never imagined before and by ferocious Fascist and Communist dictatorship, he was armed with nothing more than his arguments and example.This magnificent book tells the story of Gandhi''s life, from his departure from South Africa to his assassination in 1948. It is a book with a Tolstoyan sweep, both allowing us to see Gandhi as he was understood by his contemporaries and the vast, varied Indian societies and landscapes which he travelled through and changed beyond measure. Drawing on many new sources and animated by its author''s wonderful sense of drama and politics, Gandhi is a major reappraisal of the crucial years in this titanic figure''s story.Trade ReviewGandhi: The Years That Changed the World will not be bettered, and it is essential reading even for those who do not think of themselves as India buffs, because Gandhi is a maker of our whole modern world -- Ferdinand Mount * Wall Street Journal *Gandhi's finest biographer. -- David Kynaston * Guardian *Magisterial . . . balanced and brilliantly readable . . . This biography reads like the final word on its subject. . . . In fact, this masterly assessment should serve for several generations, and for non-Indians as well -- Bernard Porter * Literary Review *Ramachandra Guha is as dogged a researcher as Gandhi was an agitator. . . . [This book] is the most exhaustive account yet of Gandhi's temporal and spiritual crusades. A vivid and absorbing read. . . . Gandhi's character and mission demands rigorous exploration and Guha weaves together the narrative as deftly as Gandhi's homespun cloth. . . . A remarkable, pioneering leader who changed the world and still has much to teach us ... a monumental biography -- Tarquin Hall * Sunday Times *Unearths fascinating nuggets about India's complex hero ... Guha has scoured archives to search out fascinating nuggets and he marshals them with skill. -- Mihir Bose * Irish Times *A thoroughly researched and well-written account and a faithful chronicle * New Statesman *Deeply affecting * Financial Times *Ramachandra Guha's magisterial biography illuminates the public and private man * Economist *A portrait of a complex man whose remarkable tenacity remained constant, even when his beliefs changed. It is also extraordinarily intimate ... approaches Gandhi on his own terms while trying not to gloss over his flaws ... a fair, thorough and nuanced portrait of the man. Gandhi spoke for himself more than most people in history, but even the most controlling people cannot control how history sees them. Guha lets Gandhi appear on his own terms, and allows him to reveal himself in all his contradictions. -- Alex von Tunzelmann * The New York Times *Through Gandhi's life, a reminder that we have forgotten the value of religious pluralism and the virtues of non-violence he wants to narrate Gandhi's life for today's generation. It is a courageous and worthwhile endeavour, even if Guha admits in the epilogue that we have forgotten the lessons Gandhi taught us: the value of religious pluralism, and the virtues of non-violence and civil disobedience. Guha is the quintessential story teller. He displaces Gandhi from the pedestal generations have placed him on. He shows us a man who was known for taking political time by the forelock, for shaping history, and for his readiness to admit his own mistakes. -- Neera Chandhoke * The Hindu *

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Book SynopsisECONOMIST, SUNDAY TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES AND GUARDIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2017''Comprehensive and compelling ... A nuanced, landmark study that has deservedly won plaudits from both Palestinian and Israeli historians'' Justin Marozzi, The TimesA century after Britain''s Balfour Declaration promised a Jewish ''national home'' in Palestine, veteran Guardian journalist Ian Black has produced a major new history of one of the most polarising conflicts of the modern age. Drawing on a wide range of sources - from declassified documents to oral testimonies and his own decades of reporting - Enemies and Neighbours brings much-needed perspective and balance to the long and unresolved struggle between Arabs and Jews in the Holy Land.Beginning in the final years of Ottoman ruleand the British Mandate period, when Zionist immigration transformed Palestine in the face of mounting Arab opposition, the book re-exTrade ReviewExcellent ... A detailed, even-handed account of the world's most intractable and damaging political dispute -- 'Books of the Year' * Sunday Times *Excellent ... Ian Black brings a fresh perspective to one of the most closely studied conflicts on Earth, unpacking its complexities with clarity and candour -- Anshel Pfeffer * Observer *Comprehensive and compelling ... A nuanced, landmark study that has deservedly won plaudits from both Palestinian and Israeli historians -- Justin Marozzi * The Times *Compelling ... Merits close reading for its rich detail and rare subtlety ... Denies made-up minds their soothing certainties ... A reading of uncommon clarity, informed by extensive research and keen insight -- Stephen Daisley * Spectator *[A] wonderful new history of Palestine and Israel ... For its clarity and balance, Black's work stands tall in a field that is likely to continue growing * Economist *A good read..... sharp, fast paragraphs filled with vivid detail...keeps a tight focus on events on the ground. Punctures the view...that Palestinians bear virtually all the blame for the failure of recent efforts to create a Palestinian state -- Peter Beinart, 'Editor's Choice' * New York Times *A remarkable book that combines sharp insight with absolute impartiality on one of the world's most complex and intractable conflicts. Black captures the voices of the Palestinians and Israelis with equal compassion, and holds their leaders to account with equal severity. An outstanding accomplishment -- Eugene Rogan, author of 'The Arabs: A History'Superbly researched and highly readable. Even those who are well read on the subject will find new insights that had escaped them -- Raja Shehadeh, author of 'Palestinian Walks: Notes on a Vanishing Landscape'When Israeli and Palestinian historians eventually sit down together to compose a single narrative to replace their bitterly conflicting histories, they will find that Ian Black's book has already done it for them. This brilliant, dispassionate work leaves us, curiously, optimistic - for he shows us that there is a middle ground -- Meron Benvenisti, author of 'Sacred Landscape: The Buried History of the Holy Land Since 1948'In its fine balance of historical sweep and telling detail, in its sharp analysis of social, economic, and political forces, and in its exceptional fairness to all sides, Ian Black's thorough and incisive history of the struggle between Arabs and Jews in Palestine and Israel is the book every student of this conflict should read first. A remarkable achievement -- Nathan Thrall, author of 'The Only Language They Understand: Forcing Compromise in Israel and Palestine'In a field where one has gotten used to one-sided 'narratives', it is refreshing to come across a historical account that simply lays down the facts, gory and tragic as these may be. This book is a must-read for those who, still entertaining hope for a sane exit from the conflict, need to be shocked out of their stupor -- Sari Nusseibeh, author of 'Once Upon a Country: A Palestinian Life'The hundred years' war for Palestine has produced numerous books; Ian Black has written one of the finest. Enemies and Neighbours displays an admirable ability to present this enormously complicated and tragic conflict in a lucid and riveting style - and pays unusually close attention to how both sides - Arabs and Jews - have seen it at different periods -- Tom Segev, author of 'One Palestine, Complete – Jews and Arabs Under the British Mandate'Ian Black draws on decades of experience as a journalist in Palestine and Israel to offer a nuanced and thorough account of the century-old conflict over Palestine. A readable and fair assessment of why this conflict has continued unabated for so long -- Rashid Khalidi, author of 'Brokers of Deceit: How the U.S. Has Undermined Peace in the Middle East'This detailed and objective account of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from 1917 onwards catalogues in the most enlightening way the appalling violence and hatred that lies at the heart of today's dangerous stalemate in the peace process -- Jeremy Greenstock, former British Ambassador to the United NationsA tremendous amount of research has gone into Enemies and Neighbors; the writing is straightforward, fast-paced and lucid; and it pulled me right to the end, despite the heavy nature of its topic. An excellent read that offers a true portrayal of the situation -- Fida Jiryis, Palestinian writer, contributor to 'Kingdom of Olives and Ash'

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Book SynopsisThis is a fresh and surprising account of Japan''s culture from the ''opening up'' of the country in the mid-nineteenth century to the present.''How much I admired it, what a lot I learned from it and, above all, how very much I enjoyed it ... Masterly.'' Neil MacGregorIt is told through the eyes of people who greeted this change not with the confidence and grasping ambition of Japan''s modernizers and nationalists, but with resistance, conflict, distress. We encounter writers of dramas, ghost stories and crime novels where modernity itself is the tragedy, the ghoul and the bad guy; surrealist and avant-garde artists sketching their escape; rebel kamikaze pilots and the put-upon urban poor; hypnotists and gangsters; men in desperate search of the eternal feminine and feminists in search of something more than state-sanctioned subservience; Buddhists without morals; Marxist terror groups; couches full to bursting with the psychologiTrade ReviewHow much I admired it, what a lot I learned from it and, above all, how very much I enjoyed it. Although the broad outlines of the story were familiar (as they will be to every reader) almost all the more detailed information was new to me. I thought the book was masterly in the intermeshing of the personal and the political, the quotidian and the spiritual, the psycho-analytic with the journalistic, the long-historical with the contemporary, and everywhere finding and highlighting the poetic and the aesthetic. -- Neil MacGregorElegantly written and compelling history of Japan's past century and a half -- Bill Emmott * Spectator *Lucid and lyrical ... delivered with his flair for storytelling ... one of the best accounts I'veever read of what happens - for better and worse - when a country's relationship with the world is abruptly renegotiated. -- Alex Dudok de Wit * Telegraph *Richly embroidered, well-written text ... you will profit considerably from reading Japan Story. -- Christopher Ross * Literary Review *A fresh, detailed, intimate, witty, and captivating tour across the evolving landscape of Japan over the past hundred and fifty years ... told with compassion and with a storyteller's wit and wisdom. -- Will Harris * Books and Bao *Magisterial -- Best New Books to Read Christmas 2018 * Tatler *

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Book SynopsisCould we ever see Vladimir Putin in the dock for his crimes? What about a Western ally like Benjamin Netanyahu? Putting a country''s leader on trial once seemed unthinkable. But as journalist and human rights advocate Steve Crawshaw describes in Prosecuting the Powerful - a blend of vivid reportage and gripping history - a series of remarkable changes in recent years means that, despite many challenges, both scenarios are now a possibility.Drawing on his on-the-ground reporting from the front lines of justice in Ukraine and Israel, as well as earlier encounters with Serbian leader Slobodan Miloševic and other war criminals, Crawshaw tells the story of the long struggle for accountability. Beginning with the origins of the Geneva Conventions in the 19th century, the book travels via Raphael Lemkin, who coined the term genocide and pressed for its punishment, and the Syrian police photographer who helped put a torturer behind bars, up to the fierce arguments today over who exa

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Book SynopsisSumption is that rare and precious thing: a serious, decent, honest thinker . . . and one of our finest historians.' Dan Jones, Sunday TimesGripping and eminently readable . . . a compelling justification for the enduring value of historical narrative.' The TimesUnsurpassed, and probably unsurpassable.' Daily TelegraphIn this final volume of his epic history of the Hundred Years War, Jonathan Sumption tells the story of the collapse of the English dream of conquest, from the opening years of the reign of Henry VI until the loss of all of England's continental dominions except Calais thirty years later. This sudden reversal of fortune was a seminal event in the history of the two principal nation-states of western Europe, ending four centuries of the English dynasty's presence in France and separating two countries whose fortunes had once been closely intertwined, creating a new sense of national identity in both. The legacy of these events would influence their divergent fortunes for centuries to come. Behind the clash of arms stood some of the most remarkable personalities of the age: the Duke of Bedford, the English Regent who ruled much of France; Charles VII of France, who patiently rebuilt his kingdom after the disasters of his early years; the captains populating the pages of Shakespeare Fastolf, Montagu, Talbot, Dunois and, above all, the extraordinary figure of Joan of Arc who changed the course of the war in a few weeks at the age of seventeen.The Hundred Years War ends in England''s agonising defeat but triumph for Jonathan Sumption . . . There is no doubting his achievement. It is, as everyone says, a monumental work.' Spectator

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Book SynopsisA panoramic history of the roots of China and Mongolia's historic rivalry and why it matters now.

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Book SynopsisKing Charles III is the first British monarch to be directly descended from the Romanovs. in this book, Coryne Hall, renowned expert on the Romanovs, tells the fascinating story of this remarkable bloodline.

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Book SynopsisInto this personal account, Oldham weaves a brilliant historical reconstruction of life in a cultured and prosperous Berlin - until the darkening shadows of Hitler's anti-semitic laws steadily reduced the freedoms that he enjoyed and threatened his very existence. Why? Alexander's family was Jewish by birth but generations before, had converted to Lutheranism, an act which was to provide no defence in Hitler's Germany. Writing, remarkably, without animosity, Alexander Oldham combines the warmth of his childhood and his intriguing family life with a meticulous and historical exploration of the brutal political processes that forced him, aged twelve, to flee his Berlin childhood to take on a new identity and make a new life in Britain.Table of ContentsForeword; GERMANY; 1. Introduction; 2. Berlin 1925; 3. The Golden Years; 4. Change; 5. Darkening Skies; ENGLAND AND THE WAR; 6. Emigration; 7. Settling in; 8. The British Army; 9. Towards an Uncertain Future; Maria's Story

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*SHORTLISTED FOR THE HWA NON-FICTION CROWN 2020*Meet the three women who helped shape the course of modern Chinese history; a gripping story of sisterhood and betrayal from the bestselling author of Wild Swans.They were the most famous sisters in China. As the country battled seismic transformations these three women left an indelible mark on history. Red Sister rose to be Mao's vice-chair. Little Sister became first lady of pre-Communist Nationalist China. Big Sister made herself one of country's richest women. Big Sister, Little Sister, Red Sister takes us on a sweeping journey from exiles' quarters in Japan and Berlin to secret meeting rooms in Moscow, and from the compounds of the Communist elite in Beijing to the corridors of power in democratic Taiwan. By turns intimate and epic, Jung Chang reveals the lives of three extraordinary women who helped shape twentieth-century China.

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Book Synopsis'Excellent ... much to ponder' Financial Times In 1945, Europe lay in ruins - its cities and towns destroyed by conflict, its economies crippled, its societies ripped apart by war and violence. In the wake of the physical devastation came profound moral questions: how could Europe - once proudly confident of its place at the heart of the 'civilised world' - have done this to itself? And what did it mean that it had? In the years that followed, Europeans - from politicians to refugees, poets to campaigners, religious leaders to communist revolutionaries - tried to make sense of what had happened, and to forge a new understanding of civilisation that would bring peace and progress to a broken continent. As they wrestled with questions great and small - from the legacy of colonialism to workplace etiquette - institutions and shared ideals emerged which still shape our world today. Drawing on original sources as well as individual stories and voices, this is a gripping and authoritative account of how Europe rose from the ashes of the Second World War, forging itself anew in the process.Trade ReviewRuin and Renewal is an erudite, rigorously researched, and elegantly written account of the post-war remaking of Europe. Paul Betts provides his reader with a breathtaking panorama of the world of the men and women who, pursuing varied visions for the creation of a new 'civilization', embarked on bold reforms to rebuild the continent on the ruins of the Second World War. His book will fundamentally reshape our understanding of modern Europe - a masterpiece. -- David Motadel, London School of EconomicsPaul Betts uses the concept of 'civilisation' like a radiographer's dye to reveal some deeply unsettling pathologies beneath the skin of post-war Europe. Ruin and Renewal is an impressively wide-ranging, original synthesis of cultural and political history. -- Timothy Garton Ash, Professor of European Studies, University of OxfordRuin and Renewal is a marvellously subtle and wide-ranging exploration of the ways in which Europe rebuilt itself materially and morally after the Second World War. Paul Betts boldly uses the much debated and controversial concept of civilization to show how Europeans, on both sides of the Cold War, redefined themselves and others. Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the world of today. -- Margaret MacMillan, author of The War that Ended PeaceExcellent ... much to ponder * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisA vivid, brilliant, darkly humorous and horrifying history of some of the strangest dictators that Europe has ever seen. 'A witty and page-turning narrative full of grotesque characters' Misha Glenny 'Will leave you astonished, exhausted and curious... An unapologetic page turner' Spectator 'Essential reading for anyone interested in Romania past and present' John Simpson 'An engaging introduction to the rich history [of Romania]' New Statesman Balanced precariously on the shifting fault line between East and West, Romania's past is one of the great untold stories of modern Europe. The country that gave us Vlad Dracula, and whose citizens consider themselves descendants of ancient Rome, has traditionally preferred the status of enigmatic outsider. But it has experienced some of the most disastrous leaderships of the last century. After a relatively benign period led by a dutiful King and his vivacious British-born Queen, the country oscillated wildly. Its interwar rulers form a gallery of bizarre characters: the corrupt and mentally unbalanced King Carol; the fascist death cult led by Corneliu Codreanu; the vain General Ion Antonescu. After 1945 power was handed to Romania's tiny communist party, under which it experienced severe repression, purges and collectivisation. Then in 1965, Nicolae Ceau?escu came to power. And thus began the strangest dictatorship of all.Trade ReviewKenyon relates all this with verve [and] humour... He patiently untangles the complicated webs of loyalty and enmity, that crisscrossed the royal court, the military camarilla and the politburo alike' * Literary Review *A witty and page-turning narrative full of grotesque characters -- Misha GlennyPaul Kenyon sweeps away the myths of romance and horror that cling to this fascinating and mysterious country -- Allan LittleAbsolutely essential reading for anyone interested in Romania past and present -- John SimpsonThis is a book that will leave you astonished, exhausted and curious... An unapologetic page turner' * Spectator *Witty and fluid, Kenyon's prose is readable without being superficial. His book is an engaging introduction to the rich history of a country that is often stereotyped and misunderstood * New Statesman *Paul Kenyon's book delves into this history, bringing to life a rogues' gallery of characters * BBC History Magazine *This is an extraordinary book... It is deeply researched and richly documented... Thanks to this book [Romania] is infinitely better understood' * The Critic *

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Book SynopsisWestern governments and elites have supported the destruction of Gaza, silencing the Palestinians and those who speak on their behalf.Providing a record of the first six months of the war waged by the Israeli army after the 7 October attacks and drawing on a rich range of international sources, Didier Fassin examines how most Western governments have acquiesced in and often contributed to the destruction, by the Israeli army, of Gaza, its homes, infrastructures, hospitals, institutions of education, and civilian population. To justify their support and prevent criticism, they have provided an official version of the events, adopting the Israeli narrative. It was largely taken up by mainstream media, which ignored the experiences and perspectives of Palestinians. Dissenting voices were silenced. A policing of language and thought was imposed. Censorship and self-censorship became normalized. To call for a ceasefire or to demand the respect of humanitarian law was enough to prompt the ever-ready accusation of antisemitism. Exploring the multiple dimensions of the extreme inequality of lives between the two sides of the conflict and analyzing the complex geopolitical, economic and ideological stakes that underlie it, Fassin intends to constitute an archive of this moral abdication. In his view, the abandonment of the values and principles proclaimed by Western elites to be foundational will leave a deep scar in the history of the world.

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Book SynopsisWhen the Nazis invaded France in 1940, Marion and Huguette Müller's family was torn apart. After their mother was deported to Auschwitz, the two young Jewish women fled to the Alpine skiing town of Val d'Isère, where they were rescued by an incredibly courageous doctor.Through intrepid reporting, sensitive family interviews, and thousands of records, Rosie Whitehouse traces decades-old mysteries of the Müller sisters' story, seeking closure and justice for her family and the doctor's. Why did he shelter them? Who had betrayed their mother? How did this national tragedy happen?Whitehouse's discoveries raise deep moral questions about France's Holocaust, with urgent resonance for today's politics: questions about French complicity, minority agency, collective culpability, duty to your country and duty to other people. She pieces together not only how the sisters were saved, but how so many others were lost.From villagers to Vichy officials, antisemitism to resistance, this is a sweeping yet intimate history of French choices before, during and after the Nazi occupation; and a moving, gripping tale of forged documents, narrow escapes, one family's trauma, and the grace of human connection.

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Book SynopsisThree Sisters?is a beautiful story of hope in the hardest of times and of finding love after loss.?The stunning conclusion to The Tattooist of Auschwitz trilogy THEIR STORY WILL BREAK YOUR HEART. THEIR JOURNEY WILL FILL YOU WITH HOPE. When they are little girls, Cibi, Magda and Livia make a promise to their father - that they will stay together, no matter what. Years later, at just 15, Livia is ordered to Auschwitz by the Nazis. Cibi, only 19 herself, remembers their promise and follows Livia, determined to protect her sister, or die with her. Together, they fight to survive through unimaginable cruelty and hardship.Magda, only 17, stays with her mother and grandfather, hiding out in a neighbour's attic or in the forest when the Nazi militia come to round up friends, neighbours and family. She escapes for a time, but eventually she too is captured and transported to the death camp.In Auschwitz-Birkenau the three sisters are reunited and, remembering their father, they make a new promise, this time to each other: That they will survive.Discover?this incredible bestselling trilogy withThe Tattooist of Auschwitzand Cilka's Journey also available now. Heather Morris's exceptional new novel, based on a true story of women in Japanese prison of war camps, will be published on 28th September 2023 and is available to pre-order now.Trade ReviewAt the heart of this unbearably sad, but ultimately uplifting novel is the unbreakable bond shared between three sisters . . . A gruelling read, but the vivid resilience of the girls, their constant care and affection for each other, is immeasurably comforting * Daily Mail *Offers a fascinating glimpse into life after the horrors of Auschwitz. And that's what makes this book stand out . . . A story of hope, spirit and sheer human resilience * Sunday Express *Emotionally affecting storytelling * Top page-turners selection for Daily Telegraph *Another heart-wrenching, deftly told tale . . . it is hard not to be moved by such a chronicle * Mail on Sunday *Heartbreaking yet inspiring, this is a moving tale of bravery, the power of love and survival against the odds * My Weekly *A stunning novel * People Magazine *Morris skillfully chronicles the lives of the sisters from childhood to old age, balancing fictional invention with extensive research and immersion into the Mellers' lives. Readers will be greatly inspired by this story of resilience * Publishers Weekly starred review *Readers of historical and World War II fiction will be gripped by the conclusion to Morris's trilogy * Library Journal *Emotional and inspiring * Platinum Magazine *This book! I loved it. The fact that this is a true story means a lot, but the author is so skilled that you really live through the experiences of these girls. Each of them comes to life and is very much her own person. If I could give it more than five stars, I would. * 5* Netgalley review *I really enjoyed this book because it was very different to the others as this was about the bond of three sisters and not giving up on the others, about sticking together no matter what and getting through the war and staying safe. There is a lot to be taken from these incredible women stories. I highly recommend this book to everyone!! * Steph Reads Blog *Heather Morris's books are written with such care and feeling. This is the story of three sisters and how they coped with the horrors they witnessed in the camps during WW2 and their fight and determination to survive. Excellent book and very emotional. * 5* Netgalley review *This novel is testament to the power that love and devotion can get you through everything. Just like Heather Morris' other works this is also well-written, you get sucked in and before you know it you have read 50 pages in an afternoon! It is interesting that this book doesn't just end with the sister's release from Auschwitz like most other WWII memoirs but carries on and explains how the sisters slowly heal and move on with the rest of their lives. * 5* Netgalley review *An incredible book from start to finish, so emotional and so powerful, every chapter left me desperate to read on. I felt so invested in the lives of the three sisters, and as a reader you become so connected to them, especially as this book spans more than just their lives in Auschwitz, looking at both before and after, meaning they become the three-dimensional people they deserve to be. This was just as excellent as Heather Morris' previous books! * Emma is Reading a Book blog *I absolutely adored Heather's two previous novels - The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Cilka's Journey - so I was more than excited to see she'd written another book. I love that these stories are real, and Heather has been chosen as the guardian of them. She manages to portray the joy amongst the pain, fear, and desperation. What they went through was terrible, but she's managed to ensure we don't forget the beauty the sisters experienced too. * Books by my Bedside blog *I was deeply moved and an emotional wreck for great chunks of this book. If you have read and been moved by Heather Morris's previous books, this is a must read. If you've never read anything in this genre, this is a must read. A dark and bleak but ultimately life-affirming journey, with hope in the darkest days, a determination to survive and to care for those that you love. A vitally important book to never forget, and a reminder of the depth of human hope, love, and the will to survive. * Avid Reader blog *I am not normally one for historical reads, however, this has completely changed my perspective! I loved it! Incredibly gripping and heart-wrenching, would definitely recommend it. * Partridge Pages Blog *This book! I loved it. It was one of those that I was so sorry when I was finished it. The author is so skilled that you really live through the experiences of these girls. And each of them comes to life and is very much her own person. If I could give it more than five stars, I would. * 5* Review from Netgalley *Having read Heather Morris' previous two books, I could not wait to read Three Sisters and it really did not disappoint. Incredibly well written and atmospheric. Everything was handled sensitively and in an inspiring way. I would happily read more from Heather Morris in the future, and I can't wait to see what she does next. * 5* Review from Netgalley *The book is an honest, powerful, at times hard hitting recollection of what the Meller family went through. Once again Heather has taken the dreadful memories of Auschwitz survivors and created an amazing book. The way Heather writes these stories you feel like you have been on a journey and as you read you are almost an eyewitness to the atrocities survivors had to endure. * 5* Review from Netgalley *Prior to reading this book, I had read Heather Morris' The Tattooist of Auschwitz and found it incredibly moving. Three Sisters unveils a different, yet equally brutal side to the concentration camps, through the eyes of three fiercely loyal and brave sisters. Morris does such a wonderful job with such harrowing subject matter. Instead of highlighting or lingering on the horrors that occurred, she focuses on the sisters and their mother and grandfather. Their bond, courage and will to survive is astounding to read about and this is made all the more poignant by the strength of Morris' craft. The authors care for the real sisters' stories is evident throughout; her respect for them filters through the pages. It is no easy task to take someone's life story, particularly one so tragic, and craft it into a book like this. It takes a special person to do it. * 5* Netgalley review *My words are really not going to do this book justice. Heather Morris has (not surprisingly) delivered yet another deeply moving story of bravery, loyalty, survival and love, in defiance of the inconceivable horror and brutality faced at Auschwitz-Birkenau. A complete emotional rollercoaster, we follow sisters Cibi, Magda and Livi; their harrowing, eye opening story of resilience and strength shown throughout their journey and the story of their survival together. * 5* Netgalley review *Wow. I'm absolutely blown away. An extremely heart-breaking but wonderfully written book. What I say here will not do this book justice. Having read both The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Cilka's Journey; I had to of course read Three Sisters too. I think this is possibly my favourite book of the three. I loved how there was so much detail into their lives afterwards, survival, love and family. I would highly recommend that if you do read this book, to read the authors note at the end along with the afterwords. * 5* Netgalley review *Wow, this is such an incredible read. Ciba, Magda and Livia have an indescribable story to tell. They live through so much and Morris gives them a voice and retells everything they endured; good and bad. The three sisters are such strong women and I loved getting to know them, reading about their life and seeing what happened to them and those around them. Three Sisters is an absolute must read. It is powerful, moving and thought-provoking. * 4* review on Netgalley *A heart wrenching, emotional, sad and poignant read. I think the author has captured her characters feelings, thoughts and emotions very eloquently and as a reader you can't help but be affected by their story which had me in tears a few times. A very powerful and poignant read that will stay on my mind for a while. * 4* Netgalley review *If you enjoyed the first two books (`The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Cilka's Journey), then I think you'll equally enjoy this book. The three sisters fill the pages with bravery, family love and the ability to endure. At the end of the book, I had a lump in my throat as you see the large legacy that the three sisters grew: they endured, survived, and thrived which makes for a rewarding and inspiring read. * Between my Lines Blog *

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Book SynopsisThis lavishly illustrated book examines the enormous palace of the premier peers of Scotland, and thehundredsof outstanding works of art acquired by twelveDukesover300years.In 1882, Hamilton Palace stood grandly to thesouthof Glasgow. Home to the Dukes of Hamiltonsince the sixteenth century, its magnificent wallscontainedtreasures to rival theBritishRoyal Collection.Yet by1920, tens of thousands of items had been auctioned off, and the awe-inspiring building was about to be demolished.Today, many of thegreatesttreasures of Hamilton Palace are on display in museums and collections all over the world, includingthe National Gallery in London,the Metropolitan Museum of Art,New York,and the National Museum of Scotlandin Edinburgh.This is the story of Scotland's lost treasurehouse the definitive book on the subject.

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Book SynopsisIn Volume 3 of Penang Chronicles, as the 18th century draws to a close, Penang must fortify and prepare for war, and Francis Light's partner, Martinha Rozells, learns to negotiate the murky waters of colonial prejudice and corruption for the sake of her family.

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Book SynopsisA gripping eyewitness account of a major 20th-century military conflict by the UK's most popular writer on geopolitics; The shattering of Yugoslavia in the 1990s showed that, after nearly 50 years of peace, war could return to Europe. It came to its bloody conclusion in Kosovo in 1999.; Tim Marshall, then diplomatic editor at Sky News, was on the ground covering the Kosovo War. This is his illuminating account of how events unfolded, a thrilling journalistic memoir drawing on personal experience, eyewitness accounts, and interviews with intelligence officials from five countries.; Twenty years on from the war’s end, with the rise of Russian power, a weakened NATO and stalled EU expansion, this story is more relevant than ever, as questions remain about the possibility of conflict on European soil. Utterly gripping, this is Tim Marshall at his very best: behind the lines, under fire and full of the insight that has made him one of Britain’s foremost writers on geopolitics.

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Book SynopsisThis is the first comprehensive history of goth music and culture. John Robb explores the origins and legacy of this enduring scene, which has its roots in the post-punk era.Drawing on his own experience as a musician and journalist, Robb covers the style, the music and the clubs that spawned goth culture, alongside political and social conditions. Reaching back further into history, he examines key events and movements that frame the ideas of goth, from the fall of Rome to Lord Byron and the Romantic poets, European folk tales, Gothic art and the occult. Finally, he considers the current mainstream goth of Instagram influencers, film, literature and music.The art of darkness features interviews with Andrew Eldritch, Killing Joke, Bauhaus, The Cult, The Banshees, The Damned, Einstürzende Neubauten, Johnny Marr, Trent Reznor, Adam Ant, Laibach, The Cure, Nick Cave and many more. It offers a first-hand account of being there at the gigs and clubs that made the scene happen.Trade ReviewOne of Resident Music's Books of the Year 2023‘Magisterial’The Times‘A treat’Uncut‘This exhaustive book shows why the dark side is not dead and buried.’Mojo‘Gloriously knowledgeable and inclusive, rich with words like crystalline, lysergic, spectral, and stuffed with stories about the bands who changed your life as a teenager.’Irish Independent‘A feast for fans of the subculture’Hot Press'John Robb brilliantly illuminates the realm of imagination and dark beauty. Enter the other side of love. The kingdom of goth is within you.'Johnny Marr'An encyclopaedia of excitement - thanks to this book goth is undead.'Chris Packham'John Robb has written the definitive book on a scene that demands to be celebrated. Fascinating, thoughtful, surprising and freakishly detailed.'Grace Dent‘John Robb is an inexhaustible fact finding music sleuth, a sturdy writer and trustworthy guide’Henry Rollins'I could not stop reading about the birth, death and ghost of goth as it poured out of this extensively researched panorama of goth music and culture. Connect the dots, do that dance… while wearing black, of course.’Kid Congo'This is a glorious book, exploring Gothic from its historical roots to the cliches, caricatures and catcalling of the present age. The music, dance and fashion are sumptuously brought to life, but more than that, Robb manages to take us into the psyche, fantasies and imaginations of a plethora of fascinating goths. The go-to book on all things goth.'Janina Ramirez, author of Femina -- .Table of ContentsIntroduction1 Floorshow: a night out at the heart of 1980s goth2 The fall of Rome3 Deep in the forest: Europe’s Gothic history4 'Mad, bad and dangerous to know': the Romantics and the Gothic imagination5 Euro visions6 The devil has the best tunes7 Paint it black: the dark heart of the psychedelic sixties8 All the children are insane, or people are strange: the (un)holy trinity: The Doors/Velvets/Stooges9 Wham bam thank you glam: the dark side of glam rock10 Proto post-punk11 The punk wars12 'What was once unhealthily fresh is now a clean old hat': post-punk to a very Public Image13 Spellbound: Siouxsie and the Banshees14 Feel the pain: The Damned15 Ridicule is nothing to be scared of: Adam Ant16 New dawn fades: Manchester and Joy Division17 'The wreckers of western civilisation...': industrial music18 'I must fight this sickness... find a cure': The Cure19 The naughty north and the sexy south20 All we ever wanted was everything: Bauhaus21 Lord of chaos: a dark and beautiful playground: Killing Joke22 Release the bats! Nick Cave23 'I am not avant-garde I am a deserter': Blixa Bargeld, Einstürzende Neubauten and the reinvention of Berlin24 Voodoo idols: the ballad of Lux and Ivy25 First, last and always: how post-punk Leeds created goth and The Sisters of Mercy26 Vagabonds Bradford: New Model Army and Joolz27 Flowers in the forest: Southern Death Cult28 Wanted dead or alive: how Liverpool opened the doors to a new (North) West Coast sound29 Do you believe in the westworld? Theatre of Hate30 A new form of beauty: Virgin Prunes, Dublin: how Lypton Village changed a nation31 'Good poetry can still resonate louder than a thousand guns': Rammstein for grown-ups: Laibach32 At the gates of silent memory: Field of the Nephilim33 Darklands: how the dark energy infected indie34 'We sing to the gods to be free': American Gothic and the dark art of the American dream35 Trans Europe Express36 In the flat field, suburbs and satellite towns: the second coming of goth37 Apocalypse now! Goth's end daysIndex

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Book Synopsis'A learned, wise, wonderfully written single volume history of a civilisation that I knew I should know more about' Tom Holland'Masterful and engrossing...well-paced, eminently readable and well-timed. A must-read for those who want – and need – to know about the China of yesterday, today and tomorrow' Peter FrankopanChina’s story is extraordinarily rich and dramatic. Now Michael Wood, one of the UK's pre-eminent historians, brings it all together in a major new one-volume history of China that is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand its burgeoning role in our world today.China is the oldest living civilisation on earth, but its history is still surprisingly little known in the wider world. Michael Wood's sparkling narrative, which mingles the grand sweep with local and personal stories, woven together with the author’s own travel journals, is an enthralling account of China&rsqu

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Book SynopsisTHE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLERThe complete history of the world, from the beginning of time to the present day, based on the beliefs and writings of the secret societies.Jonathan Black examines the end of the world and the coming of the Antichrist - or is he already here? How will he make himself known and what will become of the world when he does? - and the end of Time. Having studied theology and learnt from initiates of all the great secret societies of the world, Jonathan Black has learned that it is possible to reach an altered state of consciousness in which we can see things about the way the world works that hidden from our everyday commonsensical consciousness. This history shows that by using secret techniques, people such as Leonardo da Vinci, Isaac Newton and George Washington have worked themselves into this altered state - and been able to access supernatural levels of intelligence. This book will leave you questioning everTrade Review'Dan Brown's non-fiction source for The Lost Symbol might well be Jonathan Black's The Secret History of the World' Roger Lews, Daily Express. * Daily Express *'The startling revelations that form the core of this book show the world as deeply strange and mysterious, filled with secrets and codes,with humanity at the heart of a grand cosmic riddle' Graham Hancock, author of Fingerprints of the Gods. * Graham Hancock *Table of ContentsPreface. Introduction. In The Beginning: God Peers at His Reflection; The Looking-Glass Universe. A Short Walk in the Ancient Woods: Imagining Ourselves into the Minds of the Ancients. The Garden of Eden: The Genesis Code; Enter the Dark Lord; The Flower People. Lucifer, the Light of the World: The Apple of Desire; A War in Heaven; The Secrets of the Days of the Week. The Gods who Loved Women: The Nephilim; The Genetic Engineering of Humankind; The Fish Gods; The Original History of the Origin of the Species. The Assassination of the Green King: Isis and Osiris; The Cave of the Skull; The Palladium. The Age of Demi-Gods and Heroes: The Ancient Ones; The Amazons; Enoch; Hercules, Theseus and Jason. The Sphinx and the Timelock: Orpheus; Daedalus, the First Scientist; Job; Solving the Riddle of the Sphinx. The Neolithic Alexander the Great: Noah and the Myth of Atlantis; Tibet; Rama's Conquest of India; The Yoga Sutras of Pantanjali. The Way of the Wizard: Zarathustra's Battle Against the Powers of Darkness; The Life and Death of Krishna the Shepherd; The Dawn of the Dark Age. Getting to Grips with Matter: Imhotep and the Age of the Pyramids; Gilgamesh and Enkidu; Abraham and Melchizedek. The Descent into Darkness: Moses and the Cabala; Akhenaten and Satan; Solomon, Sheba and Hiram; King Arthur and the Crown Chakra. Reason - and How to Rise Above It: Elijah and Elisha; Isaiah; Esoteric Buddhism; Pythagoras; Lao Tzu. The Mysteries of Greece and Rome: The Eleusian Mysteries; Socrates and his Daemon; Plato as a Magus; The Divine Identity of Alexander the Great; The Caesars and Cicero; The Rise of the Magi. The Sun God Returns: The Two Jesus Children; The Cosmic Mission; The Crucifixion in South America; The Mystic Marriage of Mary Magdalene. The Tyranny of the Fathers: The Gnostics and the Neoplatonists; The Murder of Hypatia; Attila and Shamanism; A Touch of Zen. The Age of Islam: Mohammed and Gabriel; The Old Man of the Mountains; Haroun al Raschid and the Arabian Nights; Charlemagne and the Historic Parsifal; Chartres Cathedral. The Wise Demon of the Templars: The Prophecies of Joachim; The Loves of Ramon Lull; St Francis and the Buddha; Roger Bacon Mocks Thomas Aquinas; The Templars Worship Baphomet. Fools for Love: Dante, the Troubadours and Falling in Love for the First Time; Raphael, Leonardo and the Magi of Renaissance Italy; Joan of Arc; Rabelais and the Way of the Fool. The Green One Behind the Worlds: Columbus; Don Quixote; William Shakespeare, Francis Bacon and the Green One. The Rosicrucian Age: The German Brotherhoods; Christian Rosencreutz; Hieronymus Bosch; The Secret Mission of Dr Dee. Occult Catholicism: Jacob Boehme; The Conquistadors and the Counter-Reformation; Teresa, John of the Cross and Ignatius; The Rosicrucian Manifestos; The Battle of White Mountain. The Occult Roots of Science: Isaac Newton; The Secret Mission of Freemasonry; Elias Ashmole and the Secret Chain of Transmission; What Really Happens in Alchemy. The Age of Freemasonry: Christopher Wren; John Evelyn and the Alphabet of Desire; The Triumph of Materialism; George Washington and the Secret Plan for the New Atlantis. The Mystical-Sexual Revolution: Cardinal Richelieu; Cagliostro; The Secret Identity of the Comte de St Germain; Swedenborg, Blake and the Sexual Roots of Romanticism. The Illuminati and the Rise of the Unreason: The Illuminati and the Battle for the Soul of Freemasonry; Occult Roots of the French Revolution; Napoleon's Star; Occultism and the Rise of the Novel. The Mystic Death of Humanity: Swedenborg and Dostoyevsky; Wagner; Freud, Jung and the Materializing of Esoteric Thought; The Occult Roots of Modernism; Occult Bolshevism; Gandhi. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday: The Anti-Christ; Re-entering the Ancient Wood; The Maitreya Buddha; The Opening of the Seven Seals; The New Jerusalem. Postscript. Acknowledgements. Illustration acknowledgements. A Note on Sources and Selective Bibliography. Index.

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Book SynopsisThis is a surprising portrait of the pastel city, a masterly study of Cuban immigration and exile, and a sly account of vile moments in the Cold War. Miami may be the sunniest place in America but this is Didion's darkest book, in which she explores American efforts to overthrow the Castro regime, Miami's civic corruption and racist treatment of its large black community.

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Book SynopsisIt is generally accepted that Queen Victoria reigned but did not rule. This couldn't be more wrong.

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Book SynopsisA vivid double biography of two fearless early medieval queens. 'Brings the Merovingian empire to thrilling, bewildering, horrifying life' Helen Castor 'Restores two half-forgotten and much-mythologized queens to their proper place in medieval history' Dan Jones 'Fredegund and Brunhild have finally found a worthy champion' Literary Review Brunhild was a Visigothic princess, raised to be married off for the sake of alliance-building. Her sister-in-law Fredegund started out as a lowly palace slave. And yet – in sixth-century Merovingian France, where women were excluded from noble succession and royal politics was a blood sport – these two iron-willed strategists reigned over vast realms for decades, changing the face of Europe. After Brunhild’s and Fredegund’s deaths, however, their stories were rewritten, their names consigned to slander and legend. From the tangled primary evidence of Merovingian sources, award-winning writer Shelley Puhak weaves a gripping and intricate tale, its characters driven by ambition, lust and jealousy to acts of treachery and murderous violence. The Dark Queens resurrects these two women in all their complexity, painting a richly detailed portrait of a shadowy era and dispelling some of the stubbornest myths about female power.Trade ReviewThe Dark Queens brings the Merovingian empire to thrilling, bewildering, horrifying life. This is the story – told with a sharp eye, at heart-pounding pace – of two extraordinary women who held power in a brutal world that believed their sex couldn't rule. Many scholars 'still don't know what to do' with Brunhild and Fredegund. Shelley Puhak does -- Helen CastorBright, smart, and playful, The Dark Queens is a marvelous trip into the murky early Middle Ages. Shelley Puhak presents a believable and vividly drawn portrait of the Frankish world, and in doing so restores two half-forgotten and much-mythologized queens, Brunhild and Fredegund, to their proper place in medieval history -- Dan JonesOn the one hand, a story of scheming and savagery to make Game of Thrones look tame – on the other, a genuinely important exploration of the relationship between two powerful women, written with zest and verve -- Sarah GristwoodHistory owes more to Brunhild and Fredegund, two queens whose bitter rivalry left a trail of bodies in their wake, than the lies perpetuated by their enemies. So bravo to Shelley Puhak for a remarkable piece of detective work, by turns enlightening and shocking. Anyone who thought that medieval queens spent their time sewing and sighing is in for a surprise -- Amanda ForemanA vivid and engaging tapestry of Merovingian plot and counterplot -- Max AdamsThis gripping saga features everything from gory murders to scandalous nuns. Brunhild and Fredegund are often flattened into early medieval Europe's great villains, but in Shelley Puhak's brilliant telling, they come to rich and nuanced life -- Emma SouthonA well-researched and well-told epic history. The Dark Queens brings these courageous, flawed, and ruthless rulers and their distant times back to life -- Margot Lee ShetterlyA compelling read for those with an interest in early medieval European history, Merovingian history, and women in power * Library Journal *A lyrical and astute assessment of the political maneuvers, battlefield strategies, and resilience of medieval queens and rivals Fredegund and Brunhild... Puhak skillfully draws on contemporaneous sources, including letters, poems, and a vividly told yet obviously biased account by Brunhild's devoted ally, Bishop Gregory of Tours, to create her thrilling history. The resulting is a deeply fascinating portrait of the early Middle Ages that vigorously reclaims two powerhouse women from obscurity * Publishers Weekly *Engaging... Fast-paced and intriguing * Booklist *This is a book that will appeal not only to those with an interest in the Middle Ages, but anyone who loves the cut-and-thrust of court politics and ambition laid bare * All About History *Fredegund and Brunhild were clearly extraordinary women. In Puhak, they have finally found a worthy champion * Literary Review *Complete with maps, illustrations and a cast of characters, this is a vibrant exploration of these complex individuals, their world, and their legacy * BBC History Revealed *Eventful plot, entertaining style and historical credibility * TLS *A gripping tale of power, ambition and murderous rivalry in early medieval France * The Critic *

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Book SynopsisThe Truly Terrible History of the Toilet is full of horrible factsabout the loo. Read all about how the ancient Romans used spongeson sticks to wipe each other down, and who invented the firstflushing toilet. This book is the bog standard guide to loos, flushwith facts!

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Book SynopsisThe real Master and Commander 'There is no man I envy so much as Lord Cochrane' Lord ByronTrade Review'The real Master and Commander' Sunday Telegraph 'Cordingly is a brilliant historian' Daily Telegraph 'Intriguing and satisfying ... Cochrane packed enough drama and history to shame both Horatio Nelson and Sir Francis Drake ... O'Brian fans will find great satisfaction in smoking out similarities and differences between Cochrane and Aubrey' Washington Post 'By rights, Thomas Cochrane should be as well known today as Francis Drake ... Cochrane's adventures in Chile, Peru and Brazil are among the most amazing in naval history' Sunday Times

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE WOLFSON HISTORY PRIZE 2008 'The world's most controversial classicist debunks our movie-style myths about the Roman town with meticulous scholarship and propulsive energy' Laura Silverman, Daily Mail The ruins of Pompeii, buried by an explosion of Vesuvius in 79 CE, offer the best evidence we have of everyday life in the Roman empire. This remarkable book rises to the challenge of making sense of those remains, as well as exploding many myths: the very date of the eruption, probably a few months later than usually thought; or the hygiene of the baths which must have been hotbeds of germs; or the legendary number of brothels, most likely only one; or the massive death count, maybe less than ten per cent of the population. An extraordinary and involving portrait of an ancient town, its life and its continuing re-discovery, by Britain's favourite classicist.Trade ReviewThis marvellous book won the Wolfson History Prize and is a model of subtle but accessible writing about the past -- Judith Rice * Guardian *Classicist Mary Beard has had a great time rooting about that ghostly place, and she has brought it quite splendidly back to life. -- Nicholas Bagnall * Sunday Telegraph *To the vast field of Pompeiiana she brings the human touch... this absorbing, inquisitive and affectionate account of Pompeii is a model of its kind. Beard has caught the quick of what was and, in our lives today, remains the same. -- Ross Leckie * The Times *Very readable and excellently researched... Beard's clear-sighted and accessible style makes this a compelling look into history. -- Alexander Larman * Observer *If you want to know what really happened in the last days of the petrified city, Beard's meticulous reconstruction will fill you in, scraping away many of your preconceptions as it goes, while her evocative writing will transport you back. * Guardian *The world's most controversial classicist debunks our movie-style myths about the Roman town with meticulous scholarship and propulsive energy ... scrutinising and animated in equal measure. -- Laura Silverman * Daily Mail *A brilliant portrait ... this meticulous, vivid study of life in the town rightly and resolutely focuses on the living city. -- James McConnachie * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisJohn of Gaunt's illegitimate line whose role in the Wars of the Roses led to the capture of the crown.Trade Review‘The Beauforts were key players in the dramatic history of late medieval England, taking their place centre stage long before Margaret Beaufort’s son Henry Tudor won the crown at Bosworth in 1485. Here, Nathen Amin puts them in the spotlight, telling their remarkable story with insight, passion and verve’ -- Helen Castor, Author of SHE WOLVES'Puts the Beauforts in the spotlight, telling their remarkable story with insight, passion and verve.' -- Dr Helen Castor, author of She-Wolves and Elizabeth I'This book is a must for any student of English history in the fifteenth century.' -- Matthew Lewis, author of Survival of the Princes and Richard of York, King by Right'A compelling, captivating and fascinating book' -- Sarah Bryson, author of La Reine Blanche

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Book SynopsisIF YOU DON''T KNOW SIMON SCARROW, YOU DON''T KNOW ROME!WHEN THE EAGLE HUNTS is the compelling third novel in Simon Scarrow''s bestselling Eagles of the Empire series. For fans of Bernard Cornwell and Conn Iggulden. ''Scarrow''s [novels] rank with the best'' IndependentBritannia, AD 44. Cato, a thoughtful junior officer in the Roman army, and his commanding centurion, Macro, are simply pawns in Rome''s lust to conquer Britain. During the freezing winter, the two men and their legion fight the native savages in hand-to-hand battles that haunt Cato for days after.But in a place full of enemies, the most vicious are the Druids of the Dark Moon; brutal, merciless men who have captured the wife and children of General Plautius himself.So Macro and Cato are given a mission: to travel deep into enemy territory and recover the hostages. If they fail, the fate of the Roman army may just hang in the balance...Trade ReviewPraise for Simon Scarrow's novels: 'I really don't need this kind of competition... It's a great read' -- Bernard CornwellScarrow's [novels] rank with the best * Independent *Gripping and moving * The Times *A satisfyingly bloodthirsty, bawdy romp...perfect for Bernard Cornwell addicts who will relish its historical detail and fast-paced action. Storming stuff * Good Book Guide *Ferocious and compelling * Daily Express *A Rome full of HOUSE OF CARDS treachery... Roman soldiering at its very best - even by Scarrow's high standards - in this winning chunk of historical fiction * Sunday Sport *Rollicking good fun * Mail on Sunday *A fast-moving and exceptionally well-paced historical thriller * BBC History Magazine *

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