History Books

Book Synopsis''A stunning, clear-sighted history of ancient Egypt'' Sunday TimesThe extraordinary history of Ancient Egyptian civilization - from its earliest origins to the creation of its greatest monument - from specialist John RomerThis exceptional book draws on a lifetime of research and thought to recreate the previously untold story of how a civilization which began with handfuls of semi-itinerant fishermen settled, spread and created a rich, vivid, strange civilization that had its first culmination in the pharaoh Khufu building the Great Pyramid.The book immerses the reader in the fascinating world of archaeological evidence, the process by which this long vanished world has gradually re-emerged and the rapidly changing interpretations which these breathtaking but entirely enigmatic remains have been subjected to. Whether he is writing about the smallest necklace bead or the most elaborate royal tomb, John Romer conveys to the reader a remarkable sense of how to understand a people so like ourselves and yet in so many ways eerily different.Trade ReviewScholarly, passionate and exquisitely written ... a stunning, clear-sighted history of ancient Egypt -- James McConnachie * Sunday Times *It is not easy to enliven prehistory while simultaneously respecting limited archaeological evidence and avoiding novelistic pitfalls. But Romer manages it ... After a long wait, we have an up-to-date, stimulating account of the birth of what may turn out to be the world's oldest civilization -- Andrew Robinson * Nature *His physical descriptions are superb ... a book to be read and thought about -- John Ray * Financial Times *Romer carries the reader along effortlessly on a lengthy, complex yet immensely satisfying journey -- Joyce Tyldesley * BBC History *

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Book SynopsisThis definitive, multi-volume history of the world''s first known state reveals that much of what we have been taught about Ancient Egypt is the product of narrow-minded visions of the pastDrawing on a lifetime of research, John Romer chronicles the history of Ancient Egypt from the building of the Great Pyramid through the rise and fall of the Middle Kingdom: a peak of Pharaonic culture and the period when writing first flourished. He reveals how the grand narratives of nineteenth and twentieth-century Egyptologists have misled us by portraying a culture of cruel monarchs and chronic war. Instead, based in part on discoveries of the past two decades, this extraordinary account shows what we can really learn from the remaining architecture, objects and writing: a history based on physical reality.Trade ReviewEvocative and passionate ... [Romer] has a command of material and of language that makes this a fascinating tale ... Magisterial -- Anthony Sattin * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisTLS BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2016FINANCIAL TIMES BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2015WINNER OF THE PUSHKIN HOUSE RUSSIAN BOOK PRIZE 2016 ''Magisterial... reveals how much is at stake for world order in Ukraine and Syria.'' Rachel Polonsky''As much as anything, World War I turned on the fate of Ukraine''The decision to go to war in 1914 had catastrophic consequences for Russia. The result was revolution, civil war and famine in 1917-20, followed by decades of communist rule. Dominic Lieven''s powerful and original book, based on exhaustive and unprecedented study in Russian and many other foreign archives, explains why this suicidal decision was made and explores the world of the men who made it, thereby consigning their entire class to death or exile and making their country the victim of a uniquely terrible political experiment under Lenin and Stalin.Dominic Lieven is a Senior Research Fellow of Trinity College,CaTrade ReviewA book of immense scholarship and engaging readability. Through an eastern window rarely opened to Western gaze, it illuminates the end of Europe's old order and the explosive start of the twentieth century. A century later, we are still struggling with this era's epic legacies. -- David Reynolds, author of The Long Shadow: The Great War and the Twentieth CenturyNot just one of the greatest historians on Russia, but also a great writer -- Antony Beevor * The Independent *With its important new evidence about Russia's slide towards war, this is a much-needed account of a how a few clever but foolish men ruined their country and brought disaster on themselves -- Victor Sebestyen * Sunday Times *Aristocratic values, imperial mindsets and the emergence of modern nationalisms are the big themes of this illuminating history of late tsarist Russia by Lieven... he writes with all the clarity, conviction and fluent command of sources that readers have come to expect of him -- Tony Barber * Financial Times *This magnificent book, lively in perceptions and bristling with empirical novelty, traces the origins of the Russian-German rivalry. It is a pleasure to read -- Robert Service * Literary Review *[Lieven's] intimate familiarity with the Russia he describes and his extensive study of the letters, diaries and books of the chief actors in Russia's descent "towards the flames" - many not hitherto accessible to historians - are what render this book so authoritative and readable -- Serge Schmemann * The New York Times *Lieven presents Russia's road to war and revolution as a classical tragedy - a fate driven by the character of both the country and its rulers... [he] recovers a world that has been lost -- William Anthony Hay * The Wall Street Journal *Lieven has a double gift: first, for harvesting details to convey the essence of an era and, second, for finding new, startling, and clarifying elements in familiar stories. This is history with a heartbeat, and it could not be more engrossing -- Robert Legvold * Foreign Affairs *Illuminating history of late tsarist Russia. Lieven writes with all the clarity, conviction and fluent command of sources that readers have come to expect of him -- Tony Barber * FT *

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Book SynopsisPreviously published as The Shorter Pepys, Samuel Pepys'' The Diary of Samuel Pepys: A Selection is a collection of scintillating first-hand accounts of Restoration England, from the most tumultuous events to the simplest domestic pleasures, selected and edited by Robert Latham.The 1660s represent a turning point in English history, and for the main events - the Restoration, the Dutch War, the Great Plague, the Fire of London - Pepys provides a definitive eyewitness account. As well as recording public and historical events, Pepys paints a vivid picture of his personal life, from his socializing and amorous entanglements, to his theatre-going and his work at the Navy Board. Unequalled for its frankness, high spirits and sharp observations, the diary is both a literary masterpiece and a marvellous portrait of seventeenth-century life.Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) achieved fame as a naval administrator and a friend and colleague of the powerful and learned. Fo

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Book SynopsisWinston S. Churchill (1874-1965) was prime minister of Great Britain from 1940 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1955. A prolific writer, whose works include The Second World War and A History of the English-Speaking Peoples, Churchill was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1953.

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Book SynopsisWinston Churchill''s six-volume history of the cataclysm that swept the world remains the definitive history of the Second World War. Lucid, dramatic, remarkable both for its breadth and sweep and for its sense of personal involvement, it is universally acknowledged as a magnificent reconstruction and is an enduring, compelling work that led to his being awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. Closing the Ring chronicles the period between June 1943 and July 1944 as the Allies consolidated their gains towards a drive to victory - the fall of Mussolini, Hitler''s ''secret weapon'', the mounting air offensive on Germany, strategies to defeat Japan and the plans for D Day.

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Book SynopsisUpdated edition of the authoritative single-volume biography of John F. Kennedy. Drawing upon first-hand sources and never-before-opened archives, prize-winning historian Robert Dallek reveals more than we ever knew about Jack Kennedy, forever changing the way we think about his life, his presidency and his legacy.Dallek also discloses that, while labouring to present an image of robust good health, Kennedy was secretly in and out of hospitals throughout his life, soill that he was administered last rites on several occasions. He never shies away from Kennedy''s weaknesses, but also brilliantly explores his strengths. The result is a full portrait of a bold, brave and truly human John F. Kennedy.

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Book SynopsisFifty years since first publication, E. P. Thompson''s revolutionary account of working-class culture and ideals is published in Penguin Modern Classics, with a new introduction by historian Michael KennyThis classic and imaginative account of working-class society in its formative years, 1780 to 1832, revolutionized our understanding of English social history. E. P. Thompson shows how the working class took part in its own making and re-creates the whole-life experience of people who suffered loss of status and freedom, who underwent degradation, and who yet created a cultured and political consciousness of great vitality.Reviews:''A dazzling vindication of the lives and aspirations of the then - and now once again - neglected culture of working-class England'' Martin Kettle, Observer''Superbly readable . . . a moving account of the culture of the self-taught in an age of social and intellectual deprivation'' Asa Briggs, Financial Times''Thompson''s work combines passion and intellect, the gifts of the poet, the narrator and the analyst'' E. J. Hobsbawm, Independent''An event not merely in the writing of English history but in the politics of our century'' Michael Foot, Times Literary Supplement''The greatest of our socialist historians'' Terry Eagleton, New StatesmanAbout the author:E. P. Thompson was born in 1924 and read history at Corpus Christi, Cambridge, graduating in 1946. An academic, writer and acclaimed historian, his first major work was a biography of William Morris. The Making of the English Working Class was instantly recognized as a classic on its publication in 1963 and secured his position as one of the leading social historians of his time. Thompson was also an active campaigner and key figure in the ending of the Cold War. He died in 1993, survived by his wife and two sons.Trade ReviewThompson's work combines passion and intellect, the gifts of the poet, the narrator and the analyst -- Eric Hobsbawm * Independent *A dazzling vindication of the lives and aspirations of the then - and now once again - neglected culture of working-class England -- Martin Kettle * Observer *Superbly readable . . . a moving account of the culture of the self-taught in an age of social and intellectual deprivation -- Asa Briggs * Financial Times *An event not merely in the writing of English history but in the politics of our century -- Michael Foot * Times Literary Supplement *The greatest of our socialist historians -- Terry Eagleton * New Statesman *

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Book Synopsis ''The superb, funny, fascinating story of Lenin''s trans-European rail journey and how it shook the world'' Simon Sebag Montefiore, Evening Standard, Books of the Year''Splendid ... a jewel among histories, taking a single episode from the penultimate year of the Great War, illuminating a continent, a revolution and a series of psychologies in a moment of cataclysm and doing it with wit, judgment and an eye for telling detail'' David Aaronovitch, The TimesBy 1917 the European war seemed to be endless. Both sides in the fighting looked to new weapons, tactics and ideas to break a stalemate that was itself destroying Europe. In the German government a small group of men had a brilliant idea: why not sow further confusion in an increasingly chaotic Russia by arranging for Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, the most notorious of revolutionary extremists, currently safely bottled up in neutral Switzerland, to go home?Catherine Merridale''s Lenin on the Train recreates Lenin''s extraordinary journey from harmless exile in Zurich, across a Germany falling to pieces from the war''s deprivations, and northwards to the edge of Lapland to his eventual ecstatic reception by the revolutionary crowds at Petrograd''s Finland Station.With great skill and insight Merridale weaves the story of the train and its uniquely strange group of passengers with a gripping account of the now half-forgotten liberal Russian revolution and shows how these events intersected. She brilliantly uses a huge range of contemporary eyewitnesses, observing Lenin as he travelled back to a country he had not seen for many years. Many thought he was a mere ''useful idiot'', others thought he would rapidly be imprisoned or killed, others that Lenin had in practice few followers and even less influence. They would all prove to be quite wrong.Trade ReviewTwice I missed my stop on the Tube reading this book... this is a jewel among histories, taking a single episode from the penultimate year of the Great War, illuminating a continent, a revolution and a series of psychologies in a moment of cataclysm and doing it with wit, judgment and an eye for telling detail... Catherine Merridale, who won the Wolfson history prize for Red Fortress, her 2013 book about the Kremlin, is one of those historians whose work allows you to understand something more about the world we inhabit now. -- David Aaronovitch * The Times *'A detailed look at the famous train journey... fascinatingly realist... [Merridale] is good at capturing the frankly dodgy atmosphere of high politics and low motives that swirled around post-abdication Russia... Merridale can bring humour into the most gruesome moments. -- André Van Loon * Spectator *Catherine Merridale is one of the foremost foreign historians of Russia, combining wry insights with deep sympathy for the human beings suffering the tragedies she writes about... It combines diplomatic intrigue, spycraft, towering personalities, bureaucratic bungling, military history and ideology. Ms Merridale neatly unites background and foreground, and deftly evokes the atmosphere of the time... excellent * Economist *Praise for RED FORTRESS: 'Magnificent ... [a] a superbly written book' Telegraph 'A zingy, razor-keen history of the Kremlin' Spectator Books of the Year 'Exhilarating' * Guardian *A brisk and often witty overview for the lay reader of the circumstances leading up to the February and October revolutions. -- Helen Rappaport * The Sunday Times *With a novelists' readability and a fertile imagination... Merridale retraces his week-long journey... At the same time, she skilfully weaves into the story the unfolding revolution * Observer Review *With the 100th anniversary of the two Russian revolutions of 1917 around the corner... surely no author will give a better account than Merridale of how, in that fateful year, Lenin made his way with German help from exile in Switzerland to Russia. * Financial Times BOOKS OF THE YEAR *Fills a lacuna in the canonical record of Soviet communism.... A superbly written narrative history that draws together and makes sense of scattered data, anecdotes, and minor episodes, affording us a bigger picture of events that we now understand to be transformative * Kirkus Reviews *Merridale corrects factual errors made by predecessors and opens a fresh interpretive perspective. Personal reenactment of Lenin's eight-day train-and-ferry journey gives force to materials uncovered through assiduous research in newly opened archives as Merridale resolves perplexities long surrounding the political gambles, devious espionage, and shadowy financing that transport Lenin through Germany on a sealed train bound for a land tempestuously shedding its czarist past and desperate for a leader to guide it into an uncharted future. . . . History recovered as living drama * Booklist *A colorful, suspenseful, and well-documented narrative * Publishers Weekly *[This] remarkable account recaptures the idealism that filled this ragtag band of revolutionaries with the desperate belief that their leader would bring a "springtime of hope" to their divided and brutalised country. This is a revealing portrait of Lenin and his fellow travellers at a crucial turning point in world history. -- PD Smith * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis''The most ingenious, informative, inimitable, individual, innovative, insightful, inspiring, instructive, intelligible, intoxicating, intricate guide to the great city that I have ever seen. Bravo!'' Philip Pullman''A glorious and delightful compendium and guide to London from Above, Below and all the in-betweens'' Neil GaimanCuriocity is a London book unlike any other. Its 26 chapters weave together facts, myths, stories, riddles, essays, diagrams, illustrations and itineraries to explore every aspect of life in the capital. At the heart of each chapter is a hand-drawn map, charting everything from thecity''s islands and underground spaces, to its erogenous zones and dystopian futures. Taking you from Atlas to Zones, via Congestion, Folkmoot, Pearls and Xenophilia, Curiocity will transform the way you see London.''The greatest book about London published in modern times ... an illuminated manuscript for the 21st century city'' Trade ReviewThe most ingenious, insightful, inspiring, intoxicating, and simply interesting guide to the great city that I have ever seen -- Philip PullmanRemarkable ... a nerdy Londoner's paradise ... an exquisite 450-page cross between an encyclopaedia and an artwork * Evening Standard *The greatest book about London published in modern times ... an illuminated manuscript for the 21st century city * Londonist *London's bookshops and libraries are filled with printed guides to the city but few (if any) are as comprehensive as Curiocity * Creative Review *An endlessly fascinating guide to London ... an eccentric lexical juggernaut ... I doubt that anything of such crazy magnitude will be attempted again in a hurry * Evening Standard *A glorious and delightful compendium and guide to London from Above, Below and all the in-betweens -- Neil GaimanHere is something different [...] composed of fresh flashes of insight [...] constructed as a cabinet of curiosities, the literary equivalent of Sir John Soane's Museum in Lincoln's Inn Fields. The work [the authors] have put into it is formidable, the collaboration they have won from contributors, illustrators and publishers quite breathtaking. * Times Literary Supplement *The authors' delight in London trivia is infectious * Guardian *A great walk for the senses -- Iain SinclairUtterly extraordinary -- Tom HollandA glorious treasure trove * Esquire *A beautifully produced miscellany of fascinating facts about London. Wonderful illustrations are added to intriguing nuggets of information on a huge range of subjects from street cries to earthstars. An object of beauty in itself * The Oldie *Reimagines the 'guidebook' in the same way that Peter Ackroyd's London: the Biography reinvented historical writing about the capital. And just as Ackroyd set a benchmark, every new guide to London will now be viewed with reference to Curiocity. [...] However well you think you know London, you will discover something new on virtually every page, and the things you know well will be seen completely differently. Highly recommended * The London Society *Beautifully illustrated, quirky and irreverent -- Danny DorlingIncredibly clever and gorgeous. It's like a London treasure hunt - an unexpected explorers' map of a city I've lived in all my life and thought I knew -- Bidisha

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Book Synopsis''An ambitious and engrossing investigation of the moral legacies which stubbornly refuse to pass'' Brendan Simms As the western world struggles with its legacies of racism and colonialism, what can we learn from the past in order to move forward?Susan Neiman''s Learning from the Germans delivers an urgently needed perspective on how a country can come to terms with its historical wrongdoings. Neiman, who grew up as a white girl in the American South during the civil rights movement, is a Jewish woman who has spent much of her adult life in Berlin. In clear and gripping prose, she uses this unique perspective to combine philosophical reflection, personal history and conversations with both Americans and Germans who are grappling with the evils of their own national histories.Through focusing on the particularities of those histories, she provides examples for other nations, whether they are facing resurgent nationalism, ongoing debates over reparations or controversies surrounding historical monuments and the contested memories they evoke. It is necessary reading for all those confronting their own troubled pasts.Trade ReviewSusan Neiman relates hard truths from which others shrink. Her audacious work is a refreshing change from those, afraid to offend, who leave unsaid things that seem self-evident. * The Guardian *Growing up in the American south during the civil rights era, and spending much of her adult life in and around Berlin as a Jewish woman, Neiman has a keen ear for discomforts and awkwardnesses and the tics of guilt and avoidance -- Anne McElvoy * The Observer *Ambitious and detailed... ranges from the initial reluctance of German citizens to begin the process of truth and reconciliation to small-town Mississippi, and the shooting of nine African American American churchgoers in Charleston, South Carolina * The Guardian *

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Book Synopsis*WINNER OF THE WOLFSON HISTORY PRIZE 2022*A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2021, AS CHOSEN BY THE TIMES, NEW STATESMAN, TELEGRAPH AND TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT ''A big historical advance. Ours, it turns out, is a very un-insular Island Story. And its 17th-century chapter will never look quite the same again'' John Adamson, Sunday Times A ground-breaking portrait of the most turbulent century in English history Among foreign observers, seventeenth-century England was known as ''Devil-Land'': a diabolical country of fallen angels, torn apart by seditious rebellion, religious extremism and royal collapse. Clare Jackson''s dazzling, original account of English history''s most turbulent and radical era tells the story of a nation in a state of near continual crisis. As an unmarried heretic with no heir, Elizabeth I was regarded with horror by Catholic Europe, while her Stuart successors, James I and Charles I, were seen as impeTrade ReviewThe book is a big historical advance. Epic in scale, briskly paced and elegantly written ... Ours, it turns out, is a very un-insular "Island Story". And its 17th-century chapter will never look quite the same again. -- John Adamson * Sunday Times *The story of the rise and fall of the Stuart dynasty in England, as seen through the eyes of our often confused European neighbours ... Wonderfully clear and original. -- Leanda de Lisle * The Times *A bracingly revisionist view of our history in the century after the Armada ... after reading Devil-Land 'this sceptered isle' and 'demi-paradise' is unlikely to look quite the same ever again. -- David Reynolds * New Statesman *Jackson reappraises Stuart England in two distinctive ways ... The result is a richer picture not only of England under the Stuarts and as a republic, but also of its neighbours ... The research is impressive, the writing lucid and every page thought-provoking. It is also tremendously entertaining. -- Jessie Childs * London Review of Books *Wonderful ... So vivid, plunges you into the chaos and the uncertainty, and inevitably has echoes of now. It reminds us that states are not inevitabilities, and that they're formed out of chaos and may go back to the conditions of their formation. -- Fintan O’TooleExtraordinary ... one of those perception-changing books of British history which only come along now and then, every few decades, and this is really one of the big ones. -- Andrew MarrA book to be savoured by students, history aficionados, and anyone who enjoys seeing a scholar at the top of her game diving into stories we think we know well, only to emerge with all manner of surprises. -- Steven Veerapen * Aspects of History *Superb ... a reminder that bitter division is not a permanent condition ... Jackson chronicles events with verve and erudition. -- Brendan Simms * Wall Street Journal *Devil-Land eloquently retells the story of our island's most turbulent century ... England, Jackson shows, was a pariah state, feared, distrusted and ridiculed on the continent. -- Ruth Scurr * Times Literary Supplement *Clare Jackson offers some acute insights on an era of failure and ferment, weaving together an impressive narrative of a time when the English seemed suddenly to have lost their minds. -- Gerard DeGroot * The Times *Fascinating. This Stuart-centred view from across the Channel of the years 1588-1688 offers a fresh, provocative and highly readable take on one of the most formative centuries of English history. -- David Reynolds, author of Island Stories: An Unconventional History of Britain

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE SOCIETY FOR MILITARY HISTORY''S DISTINGUISHED BOOK AWARD 2021SHORTLISTED FOR THE GILDER LEHRMAN PRIZE FOR MILITARY HISTORY AND THE BRITISH ARMY MILITARY BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD A BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE BOOK OF THE YEAR 2019, AND FINANCIAL TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020''A masterpiece. It deserves to become a classic of military history'' Lawrence James, The TimesFrom the prize-winning author of Ring of Steel, a gripping history of the First World War''s longest and most terrible siegeIn the autumn of 1914 Europe was at war. The battling powers had already suffered casualties on a scale previously unimaginable. On both the Western and Eastern fronts elaborate war plans lay in ruins and had been discarded in favour of desperate improvisation. In the West this resulted in the remorseless world of the trenches; in the East all eyes were focused on the old, beleagTrade ReviewThe vividly written and well-researched The Fortress is a masterpiece. It deserves to become a classic of military history. -- Lawrence James * The Times *If you read one military history book this year, make it Alexander Watson's The Fortress. -- Tony Barber, Financial Times Summer Books of 2020Superb, revelatory, haunting ... he brings the suffocating, cataclysmic siege burningly alive ... It is excellent history, a marvellously readable, though tragic, story of its time and of how the clock can be made to turn backwards under siege conditions. -- Julian Evans * Daily Telegraph *Alexander Watson tells this story beautifully, giving the reader a vivid sense of the city ... His exposure of the breathtaking incompetence of the Austrian high command is both shocking and hilarious; his wit and keen sense of the ridiculous alternate with his evident compassion in describing this black farce ... This is a hugely enjoyable book that anyone seeking to make sense of the dark side of 20th-century Europe would do well to read. -- Adam Zamoyski * Literary Review *Brilliantly researched and superbly written ... Pryzemysl offered a bleak preview of what was coming: nationalism, anti-Semitism and a whirlwind of hatred. Grim stuff, but magnificently done. -- Dominic Sandbrook * BBC History Magazine *Marvellous ... Watson uses the fortress city like a jeweller's glass to show how war distorted and transformed the pre-war civilian world ... Watson's splendid book combines great evocative power (and flashes of sharp humour) with the ethical authority of the best history writing. -- Christopher Clark * The Guardian *Gripping ... Watson's book is an impressive telling of a story almost entirely unknown, and it makes clear how much we have yet to learn about the first world war away from the western front. -- Mark Mazower * Financial Times *

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Book Synopsis''Everything about this story is astounding'' Bryan Appleyard, Sunday TimesTrinity was the codename for the test explosion of the atomic bomb in New Mexico on 16 July 1945. Trinity is now also the extraordinary story of the bomb''s metaphorical father, Rudolf Peierls; his intellectual son, the atomic spy, Klaus Fuchs, and the ghosts of the security services in Britain, the USA and USSR.Against the background of pre-war Nazi Germany, the Second World War and the following Cold War, the book traces how Peierls brought Fuchs into his family and his laboratory, only to be betrayed. It describes in unprecedented detail how Fuchs became a spy, his motivations and the information he passed to his Soviet contacts, both in the UK and after he went with Peierls to join the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos in 1944. Frank Close is himself a distinguished nuclear physicist: uniquely, the book explains the science as well as the spying.Fuchs returned toTrade ReviewA masterclass in thriller writing, it bears comparison with the most gripping spy sagas of Ben Macintyre -- Graham Farmelo * Guardian *A brilliant new biography ... The book introduces crucial changes to ... the official version of events. -- Bryan Appleyard * Sunday Times *Engrossing, brilliantly researched ... The scale of Fuchs's spying was astounding, as were its consequences -- Jay Elwes * Spectator *He has delved into the archives to produce a remarkable story ... meticulous but highly readable -- Manjit Kumar * The Times *

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Book Synopsis''As fascinating as it is beautifully written'' JARED DIAMOND, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs and SteelRivers, more than any road, technology or political event, have shaped the course of civilization. Rivers have opened frontiers, defined borders, supported trade, generated energy and fed billions. Most of our greatest cities stand on river banks or deltas, and our quest for mastery has spurred staggering advances in engineering, science and law. Rivers and their topographic divides have shaped the territories of nations and the migration of peoples, and yet - as their resources become ever more precious - can foster cooperation even among enemy states. And though they become increasingly domesticated, they remain a formidable global force: these vast arterial powers promote life but are capable of destroying everything in their path.From ancient Egypt to our growing contemporary metropolises, Rivers of Power<Trade ReviewSmith takes readers on a tour of the world's great rivers. The result is fascinating, eye-opening, sometimes alarming, and ultimately inspiring. -- Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth ExtinctionA tour de force - a narrative as powerful as the rivers he documents. He is up there with Jared Diamond - a storyteller with real craft. From Herodotus musing on the Nile to the dam makers of modern China, this is their story. -- Fred Pearce, author of When The Rivers Run DryThis book about rivers is as fascinating as it is beautifully written -- Jared Diamond, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs and Steel, and UpheavalPassionate... and infectiously enthusiastic ... an eclectic journey through several millennia. -- Victor Mallet * The Financial Times *Instructive and entertaining. Smith's prose is clear and he explains scientific concepts well. * The Times *A hymn to hydrology ancient and modern. * The Spectator *With scholarship, literary flair, and a personal touch, Smith takes the reader on a fascinating and surprising voyage of discovery. He also sounds a clarion call for all of us to invest in protecting our rivers as a means of improving our own lives. -- Eric Jay Dolin, bestselling author of Black Flags, Blue WatersHow can one write a world history of rivers? Laurence C. Smith triumphantly meets the challenge, fluently comparing the role of rivers in wartime, in trade, in water management, in floods and droughts, and, looking to the future, in a world of rising temperatures. -- David Abulafia, author of The Boundless SeaEngaging, informative, magisterial in its coverage, intimidating in the scope of its command of the material, there's no end to the good things to be said about this book. * Geography Realm *Absorbing. Smith is not only an excellent storyteller, he is also perhaps the world's leading scientist using satellites to unlock the secrets of the planet's rivers. His deep understanding will inspire readers to see rivers in wholly new and surprising ways. -- Paul Bates, Professor of Hydrology, University of BristolSmith demonstrates compellingly and engagingly that rivers have played a key role in the development of nations and, indeed, of humankind itself. -- Professor Julian Dowdeswell, Director of the Scott Centre for Polar Research, University of Cambridge

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Book SynopsisThe second sensational volume of ''One of the biggest intelligence coups in recent years'' (The Times)When Vasili Mitrokhin revealed his archive of Russian intelligence material to the world it caused an international sensation. The Mitrokhin Archive II reveals in full the secrets of this remarkable cache, showing for the first time the astonishing extent of the KGB''s global power and influence. ''The long-awaited second tranche from the KGB archive ... co-authored by our leading authority on the secret machinations of the Evil Empire'' Sunday Times''Stunning ... the stuff of legend ... a unique insight into KGB activities on a global scale'' Spectator''Headline news ... as great a credit to the scholarship of its author as to the dedication and courage of its originator'' Sunday Telegraph''There are gems on every page'' Financial Times

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Book Synopsis''Impressive ... It is a complicated story that still reverberates, and Gingeras narrates it with lucid authority'' New StatesmanThe story of the fall of the Ottoman Empire, published to coincide with the centenary of its dissolutionThe Ottoman Empire had been one of the major facts in European history since the Middle Ages. By 1914 it had been much reduced, but still remained after Russia the largest European state. Stretching from the Adriatic to the Indian Ocean, the Empire was both a great political entity and a religious one, with the Sultan ruling over the Holy Sites and, as Caliph, the successor to Mohammed.Yet the Empire''s fateful decision to support Germany and Austria-Hungary in 1914, despite its successfully defending itself for much of the war, doomed it to disaster, breaking it up into a series of European colonies and what emerged as an independent Saudi Arabia.Ryan Gingeras''s superb new book, published for the centenary of the last Sultan''s departure into exile, explains how these epochal events came about and shows how much we still live in the shadow of decisions taken so long ago. Would all of the Empire fall to marauding Allied armies, or could something be saved? In such an ethnically and religiously entangled region, what would be the price paid to create a cohesive and independent new state? The story of the creation of modern Turkey is an extraordinary, bitter epic, brilliantly told here.Trade ReviewThis epic account of Ottoman decline and the birth of modern Turkey is a tour de force of accessible scholarship. -- Fara Dabhoiwala * The Guardian *Gingeras takes an even-handed approach to each issue, while never making light of the horrendous tally of human suffering that emerges on every side. Turks have long been treated to an over-simplified account of their modern history. This book teaches the beginning of wisdom, which is that most human history, as it actually happened, was a terrible, bewildering mess. -- Noel Malcolm * The Telegraph *In his impressive centenary history, Ryan Gingeras recounts not just the death throes of the old realm but the painful emergence of Turkey as a nation state ... It is a complicated story that still reverberates under Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Gingeras narrates it with lucid authority. -- Michael Prodger * New Statesman *Dispassionate and well-researched ... Gingeras sets out the twisting, turning story of decline through the later part of the 19th century. -- Peter Frankopan * Financial Times *Fruitful reflections on the enduring cultural legacy of the Ottomans, how their empire ended and what was lost when it did ... brings a welcome human lens to the story of the empire's disintegration. -- Vanessa H. Larson * Washington Post *

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Book Synopsis''Superb'' David Aaronovitch, The Times ''A punchy account that is a proper page-turner'' Financial Times ''The last days of the Third Reich have often been told, but seldom with the verve, perception and elegance of Volker Ullrich''s rich narrative'' Richard Overy, author of The Bombing War 1 May 1945. The world did not know it yet, but the final week of the Third Reich''s existence had begun. Hitler was dead, but the war had still not ended. Everything had both ground to a halt and yet remained agonizingly uncertain. Volker Ullrich''s remarkable book takes the reader into a world torn between hope and terror, violence and peace. Ullrich describes how each day unfolds, with Germany now under a new Führer, Admiral Dönitz, based improbably in the small Baltic town of Flensburg. With Hitler dead, Berlin in ruins and the war undoubtedly lost, the process by which the fighting would end remained horrifyingly unclear. MTrade ReviewSuperb ... excellent and admirably succinct. -- David Aaronovitch * The Times *Ullrich delivers a punchy account that is a proper page-turner ... there is still plenty to say about immediate postwar Germany. -- Giles MacDonogh * Financial Times *Strongly written and deeply researched ... a vital and often vibrant account of eight days when people all across Europe were suspended in confusion and chaos. * Kirkus *The last days of the Third Reich have often been told, but seldom with the verve, perception and elegance of Volker Ulrich's rich narrative. For Western nations that have never faced comprehensive and destructive defeat, this is an instructive lesson in how societies cope with the devastating reality of a surrender that they grimly await. -- Richard OveryA fast-paced, brilliant recounting of the turbulent last days of the Third Reich. With all the energy and chaos of a Jackson Pollock canvas, Eight Days in May evokes the complete and utter chaos of a collapsing society. -- Helmut Walser Smith, author of Germany: A Nation in its TimeThe last chapter of the Nazi regime, just before its fall, is perhaps the most interesting. And Volker Ulrich manages to cover the days after Hitler's suicide with brilliant prose, and excellent original research. -- Norman Ohler, author of Blitzed: Drugs in the Third ReichUllrich's compact, gripping narration brings to life the death throes of the Nazi regime as individual acts of delusion, desperation and resignation. This vivid mosaic of German reactions to defeat is a suspenseful account and original depiction of the ambivalence and disbelief of those who had been spellbound by Hitler. -- Wendy Lower, author of The Ravine

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Book Synopsis''Magisterial ... Immensely readable'' Douglas Alexander, Financial Times''Insightful, productively provocative and downright brilliant'' New York Times A compelling history of catastrophes and their consequences, from ''the most brilliant British historian of his generation'' (The Times) Disasters are inherently hard to predict. But when catastrophe strikes, we ought to be better prepared than the Romans were when Vesuvius erupted or medieval Italians when the Black Death struck. We have science on our side, after all. Yet the responses of many developed countries to a new pathogen from China were badly bungled. Why? While populist rulers certainly performed poorly in the face of the pandemic, Niall Ferguson argues that more profound pathologies were at work - pathologies already visible in our responses to earlier disasters. Drawing from multiple disciplines, including economics and network science, Trade ReviewMagisterial reach ... immensely readable ... Ferguson [applies] his prodigious intellect to placing the present pandemic on a wider historic canvas. -- Douglas Alexander * Financial Times *This is not just about a virus but a collision of politics, panic, digital media, human behaviour and incompetence. Niall Ferguson's Doom looks at each of these aspects, putting them into historical perspective in a book of dazzling range and rigour. -- Fraser Nelson * The Spectator *Niall Ferguson's Doom is often insightful, productively provocative and downright brilliant. * New York Times *A superb history of the lost art of handling a crisis. * The Telegraph *Stimulating ... Each chapter of this thought-provoking book is worth reading for the ideas, perceptiveness and well-told stories of landmark events ... It's a useful reminder that what may feel like having unprecedented restrictions imposed on our lives today is nothing new... readers will find much to relish. -- Martin Bentham * Evening Standard *Elegant, pacey, gripping ... a wealth of deep research. * The Economist *Doom covers an impressive sweep of history at a lively narrative clip and weaves a lot of disparate strands together into an engaging picture. -- Rafael Behr * The Guardian *Timely and refreshing ... An informative, amusing and thought-provoking read that is full of steadying good sense for these troubled times. -- Peter Neville-Hadley * South China Morning Post *Performs a crucial public service ... Doom is far more than just a page-turner, though that it certainly is: it's that most precious of things in a history book - an account of the past that truly helps us understand where we are today. -- Ryan Bourne * CapX *

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Book SynopsisFascinating firsthand accounts of the Titanic—in a deluxe package with gorgeous graphic cover artThe Titanic, First Accounts graphic deluxe edition compiles first hand accounts, testimonies, and letters by notable Titanic survivors, including Archibald Gracie, Lawrence Beesley, Elizabeth W. Shutes, and the unsinkable Molly Brown. Full of historically accurate details and an afterword by the grandson of Lawrence Beesley, Titanic Survivors and author of The Loss of the S.S. Titanic, it will be the gift to give die-hard Titanic buffs. Authoritative, commemorative and in a striking, luxurious package with and introduction by Titanic enthusiast and expert, Tim Maltin, this will be the authoritative work on the disaster.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works tTrade Review"With its detailed stories from survivors of the disaster, Titanic, First Accounts is hugely engaging and adroitly debunks some of the event's great myths. ("Nearer, My God, to Thee" wasn't actually the last song played by the ship's band.) The eyewitness testimonies are equal parts illuminating and haunting, revealing intimate conversations with surviving passengers who didn't fully grasp the scope of the unfolding devastation until it was too late." — Entertainment Weekly

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Book SynopsisThe most fatal virus known to science, rabies-a disease that spreads avidly from animals to humans-kills nearly one hundred percent of its victims once the infection takes root in the brain. In this critically acclaimed exploration, journalist Bill Wasik and veterinarian Monica Murphy chart four thousand years of the history, science, and cultural mythology of rabies. From Greek myths to zombie flicks, from the laboratory heroics of Louis Pasteur to the contemporary search for a lifesaving treatment, Rabid is a fresh and often wildly entertaining look at one of humankind''s oldest and most fearsome foes.A searing narrative.-The New York TimesIn this keen and exceptionally well-written book, rife with surprises, narrative suspense and a steady flow of expansive insights, ''the world''s most diabolical virus'' conquers the unsuspecting reader''s imaginative nervous system. . . . A smart, unsettling, and strangely stirring piece of work.-San Francisco ChronicleFascinating. . . . Wasik and Murphy chronicle more than two millennia of myths and discoveries about rabies and the animals that transmit it, including dogs, bats and raccoons.-The Wall Street JournalTrade Review“A searing narrative.”—The New York Times “In this keen and exceptionally well-written book, rife with surprises, narrative suspense and a steady flow of expansive insights, ‘the world’s most diabolical virus’ conquers the unsuspecting reader’s imaginative nervous system. . . . A smart, unsettling, and strangely stirring piece of work.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Fascinating. . . . Wasik and Murphy chronicle more than two millennia of myths and discoveries about rabies and the animals that transmit it, including dogs, bats and raccoons.”—The Wall Street Journal “Rabid delivers the drama of Louis Pasteur’s courageous work developing the rabies vaccine at the same time it details the disease’s place in our cultural history, taking us from Homer to the Bronte sisters to Zora Neale Hurston to Richard Matheson. . . . All along the book’s prose and pace shine—the book is as fast as the virus is slow.”—The Seattle Times “A very readable, fascinating account of a terrifying disease….Wasik and Murphy grippingly trace the cultural history of the disease. . . . Rabid reminds us that the disease is a chilling, persistent reminder of our own animal connections, and of the simple fact that humans don’t call all of the shots.”—The Boston Globe “Compelling. . . . Murphy and Wasik give life, context and understanding to the terrifying disease. Like the virus itself, this fascinating book moves quickly, exploring both the marginalized status and deadly nature of the virus. And as the authors trace the influence of rabies through history, Rabid becomes nearly impossible to put down.”—New Scientist “An elegant exploration of the science behind one of the most horrible way to die.”—Chris Anderson, author of The Long Tail “This book is not for the squeamish. Yet those who are fascinated by how viruses attack the body, by the history of vaccination and by physicians’ efforts to save the most desperately ill patients will want to read it. There is also a happy ending: scientists are working to harness rabies as a potent drug delivery vehicle.”—Scientific American “[Wasik and Murphy] offer an in-depth look at a disease so insidious that it even turns our best friends—dogs—against us. The pair convincingly link the history of rabies…with the history of man’s fear of nature and the unknown, and our own latent capacity for beastliness.”—The Daily Beast “Thrilling, smart, and devilishly entertaining, Rabid is one of those books that changes your sense of history—and reminds us how much our human story has been shaped by the viruses that live among us.”—Steven Johnson, author of The Ghost Map “Rabies has always been as much metaphor as disease, making it an excellent subject for cultural history. . . . As Wasik and Murphy document . . . the horror of rabies has been with us since the beginning of human civilization.”—Bookforum “Funny and spry. . . . It’s a rare pleasure to read a nonfiction book by authors who research like academics but write like journalists.”—Alice Gregory, n+1 “Readable, fascinating, informative, and occasionally gruesome, this is highly recommended for anyone interested in medical history or the cultural history of disease.”—Library Journal (starred review) “Take Bill Wasik, one of our most perceptive journalistic storytellers, have him join forces with Monica Murphy, scholar of public health, and you end up with this erudite, true-life creep show of a book. It turns out that the rabies virus is a good bit more fascinating and at least as frightening as any of those blood-thirsty monsters that have stalked our fairy tales, multiplexes, and dreams.”—Donovan Hohn, author of Moby Duck “Ambitious and smart.”—Publisher’s Weekly “Terrible virus, fascinating history in Rabid.”—NPR “As entertaining as they are on rabies in culture, the authors also eruditely report on medicine and public health issues through history, from ancient Assyria to Bali to Manhattan in the last five years, showing that while the disease may be contained, it may never be fully conquered. Surprisingly fun reading about a fascinating malady.”—Kirkus Reviews “The ultimate weird dad book.”—Very Short List “The rabies virus is a microscopic particle of genes and proteins. And yet it has cast a fearful shadow over all of human history. Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy have produced an eerily elegant meditation on disease and madness, dogs and vampires. It's as infectious as its subject.”—Carl Zimmer, NPR contributor and author of Parasite Rex “A fun read, rivaling a Stephen King novel for page-turning thrills.”—The Awl

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe range of mystical interlocutors and C.'s deft weaving of mystical voices with artists, intellectuals, and others engaged with ongoing struggles for justice make this work a fruitful read. It is a welcome addition for theologians who are seeking ways to bring the wisdom of the mystics to bear on the existential, political, and spiritual challenges of our time. * Amy Maxey, Theological Studies *Seekers and contemplatives from other traditions, or no tradition, will find in The Insurmountable Darkness of Love a deep and attractive point of access to the riches of contemplative Christianity. * Fr. Isaac Slater, Abbey of the Genesee, Cistercian Studies Quarterly *Intimacy and absence have rarely been explored in tandem with the care and attention manifest in The Insurmountable Darkness of Love, a book as valuable for the extraordinary range of voices it collects as for its conviction that loss and desolation are experiences from which we have much to learn. In the many sites, texts and personal memories it explores, Douglas Christie's book invites us to recognize and reflect on our own heterotopias, and what we might then offer the world, by dwelling in these spaces of otherness. * Constance Furey, Professor of Religious Studies, Indiana University - Bloomington *In his powerful, original and important new work, Douglas Christie explores the intersection of personal loss, atrocity, and apophatic mystical texts, suggesting how a contemplative ethos can discover in the isolating experience of personal and social trauma the ground of a renewed and deepened solidarity. Seekers and contemplatives from other traditions, or no tradition, will find in The Insurmountable Darkness of Love a deep and attractive point of access to the riches of contemplative Christianity. * Cistercician Studies Quarterly *I have been pursuing the love 'born of and nurtured by darkness' all of my life. In The Insurmountable Darkness of Love, Douglas Christie invites readers to embark on a journey of 'silent attention' awakening, shedding, and finally the embrace of what cannot be known. So, how do you write about something that cannot be captured in words? Christie uses vulnerability, life stories and memories as well as excellent scholarship. The end result is breathtaking! * Barbara A. Holmes, author of Joy Unspeakable: Contemplative Practices of the Black Church *With all the tumult, chaos and uncertainty in our world, we need a spiritual compass to navigate the pain and suffering that is part and parcel of being soulfully alive today. As our most poetic and compassionate scholar of contemplative practice, Douglas Christie guides us on a most profound journey into the darkness that underlies many mystical experiences, one that is ultimately redemptive. At no time in human history have we needed a prophetic voice like Christie's as we do now. * Gary Paul Nabhan, Ecumenical Franciscan Brother and author of Jesus for Farmers and Fishers *Maybe the key word in all the world's religions is emptiness. But it takes a Laozi or a Thomas Merton to map it. Or generous and wise Douglas Christie. I cannot think of a book with more heart or with such tenderness for our 'apocalyptic psyche.' His lyrical, learned, gentle book holds us to the 'blank, unnamed, empty, unknown,' where 'Love itself is a desert.' * Lynda Sexson, author of Ordinarily Sacred and Margaret of the Imperfections *Douglas Christie's The Insurmountable Darkness of Love is a moving exploration of apophatic experience and language in the contemporary retrieval of contemplation. The book daringly combines several different genres * personal accounts of loss and gain; meditations on the natural world and its role in spirituality; and reflections on the significance of major apophatic thinkers and poets. This is a book to be pondered, even savored.Bernard McGinn, Naomi Shenstone Donnelley Professor Emeritus of Historical Theology and of the History of Christianity, The University of Chicago *The Insurmountable Darkness of Love is remarkable not just for its depth of insight and its mining of the rich veins of the contemplative tradition, but also for its piercing honesty. It probes the loves, the losses, the tender frailties of us all and reflects the author's unflinching conviction regarding the power of darkness to heal, to reveal love that never allows anyone to be lost. Readers will be grateful to be in Christie's debt for the gift of this book, for all the beauty, insight, trust, and hope it bestows. * Martin Laird, O.S.A., Professor of Early Christian Studies, Villanova University *Douglas Christie's meditations on the terrible beauty of darkness, silence, and the limits to human understanding draw from the deepest sources of the Christian mystical tradition. We modern pilgrims, who so often have no idea where we are or where we are going, thirst for such wisdom, but we need a guide and interpreter. Christie is that sure guide, showing us how even wrenching loss can take us to a place of rest and reflection, preparing us for the next stage of the journey. * Columba Stewart, O.S.B., Professor of Theology, Saint John's University *

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Book SynopsisSavage and bloodthirsty, or civilized and peaceable? The Celts have long been a subject of enormous fascination, speculation, and misunderstanding. From the ancient Romans to the present day, their real nature has been obscured by a tangled web of preconceived ideas and stereotypes. Barry Cunliffe seeks to reveal this fascinating people for the first time, using an impressive range of evidence, and exploring subjects such as trade, migration, and the evolution of Celtic traditions. Along the way, he exposes the way in which society''s needs have shaped our visions of the Celts, and examines such colourful characters as St Patrick, Cú Chulainn, and Boudica.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

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Book SynopsisCrusading fervour gripped Europe for over 200 years, creating one of the most extraordinary, vivid episodes in world history. Whether the Crusades are regarded as the most romantic of Christian expeditions, or the last of the barbarian invasions, they have fascinated generations ever since, and their legacy of ideas and imagery has resonated through the centuries, inspiring Hollywood movies and great works of literature. Even today, to invoke the Crusades is to stir deep cultural myths, assumptions and prejudices.Yet despite their powerful hold on our imaginations, our knowledge of them remains obscured an distorted by time. Were the Crusaders motivated by spiritual rewards, or by greed? Were the Crusades an experiment in European colonialism, or a manifestation of religious love? How were they organized and founded?With customary flair and originality, Christopher Tyerman picks his way through the many debates to present a clear and lively discussion of the Crusades; bringing together issues of colonialism, cultural exchange, economic exploitation, and the relationship between past and present. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade ReviewSmall but impressive * Soldier Magazine *Table of Contents1. Definition and Scope ; 2. Sources and Perspectives ; 3. Holy War ; 4. Holy lands ; 5. The Business of the Cross Conclusion ; Conclusion ; Further reading

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Book SynopsisThe definitive and revealing account of the extraordinary parliamentary battle over Brexit and what it means for British democracy.Trade ReviewA terrific overview of the battles within Parliament to try to stop Brexit. * Paul Donnelley, Express.co.uk *This book is of paramount importance. The first proper look at what happened in those dreadful years, by extremely authoritative figures, taking no prisoners in its assessment. Absolutely vital reading. * Ian Dunt, Columnist, i Newspaper & Host, Origin Story podcast *I was engrossed in Brexit for years it feels as though it's finally possible to get some perspective, and Meg [Russell] and Lisa James's book does that brilliantly * Ros Taylor, The Bunker Podcast *I doubt whether anyone will ever improve on Russell & Jamess account. It is highly detailed, lucid, and painstakingly accurate... sure-footed and faultless. * Chris Grey, Brexit and Beyond Blog *An authoritative, comprehensive guide, written with great analytical lucidity and narrative verve. * Rafael Behr, Politics on the Couch *A beautifully researched, thoughtful, and morally alert examination of one of the most difficult and divisive issues in British history. * Rory Stewart, Former Conservative Cabinet Minister and co-host of The Rest is Politics podcast *In their analysis of these nuances, contradictions and complexities, Russell and James have written a book that will undoubtedly stand as the definitive text on the parliamentary battle for Brexit. * Katy Hayward, International Affairs *Brexit was a serious and destabilising political event, but also an extraordinary parliamentary soap opera. This accessible book provides a definitive, compelling account of every improbable plot twist, while identifying important lessons for the future of our democracy. * Dr Hannah White, Director, Institute for Government *Parliament was often the centre of national attention on Brexit. For a while in 2019, the BBC's Parliament channel's ratings even beat those for MTV. To really understand what went on, and what it all means, you can do no better than to read this meticulously researched book. * Anand Menon, Director of UK in a Changing Europe and Professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King's College, London *The 2016 referendum and its aftermath crystallised long-running divisions over our EU membership, within political parties and the wider public. This thoughtful book charts what happened, identifies what could have been handled better, and helps outline how we can overcome the divisions and return to a more consensual democratic discourse. * Gisela Stuart, former Labour MP and chair of the 2016 Vote Leave campaign *Impressive and meticulously researched...[The Parliamentary Battle over Brexit] offers a clear chronological explanation and thematic analysis of those difficult years. * Ben Wellings, Australian Book Review *Thoughtful and carefully researched. * Emily Jones, Times Literary Supplement *Russell and James have written a book that will undoubtedly stand as the definitive text on the parliamentary battle for Brexit. * Katy Hayward, International Affairs 99: 6 *[A] clear-eyed study of the events of 2016. * New Statesman *A comprehensive account of The Parliamentary Battle Over Brexit which is well worth reading. * Sam Freedman, Comment is Freed *This book explores the power of Parliament, how Brexit challenged this power, and the lessons learned....Recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty; professionals. * Choice *Table of Contents1: Introduction 2: The parliamentary path to the Brexit referendum 3: The referendum 4: Theresa May and the triggering of Article 50 5: Seeking, but losing, a majority: the 2017 general election 6: Determining the form of Brexit 7: The emerging deal and the meaningful vote 8: Backbenchers 'seize control' 9: Shut down parliament! Boris Johnson and the prorogation crisis 10: The 2019 general election and the Brexit mandate 11: Conclusion: Brexit, parliament and the constitution

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Book SynopsisFirst published as part of the best-selling The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain, John Morrill''s Very Short Introduction to Stuart Britain sets the Revolution into its political, religious, social, economic, intellectual, and cultural contexts. It thus seeks to integrate what most other surveys pull apart. It gives a graphic account of the effects of a century-long period during which population was growing inexorably and faster than both the food supply and the employment market. It looks at the failed attempts of successive governments to make all those under their authority obedient members of a unified national church; it looks at how Charles I blundered into a civil war which then took on a terrifying momentum of its own. The result was his trial and execution, the abolition of the monarchy, the house of lords, the bishops, the prayer book and the celebration of Christmas. As a result everything else that people took for granted came up for challenge, and this book shows how painfully and with what difficulty order and obedience was restored. Vividly illustrated and full of startling detail, this is an ideal introduction to those interested in getting into the period, and also contains much to challenge and stimulate those who already feel at home in Stuart England.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Society and economic life ; 2. Government and law ; 3. The early Stuarts ; 4. The Civil Wars ; 5. Commonwealth and Protectorate ; 6. Restoration monarchy ; 7. Intellectual and religious life ; Further reading ; Chronology ; Index

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Book SynopsisHighly acclaimed and thoroughly updated, Return to Diversity, Fourth Edition, provides a comprehensive political history of East Central Europe from World War II to the present. An engaging and straightforward political narrative, the book is organized chronologically in a country-by-country format that students can easily navigate. Each section summarizes and examines the most important themes in Eastern Europe during the rise and fall of Communism. The text features balanced discussions of relevant political events, along with a detailed analysis of the causes and consequences of Communism from the perspective of post-Communist regimes. Nancy M. Wingfield has revised the fourth edition to incorporate additional social and economic history into the text''s strong discussions of political history. She also provides expanded coverage of the resurgence of nationalism in the 1980s, the role of dissident movements in the shift to democracy, and the problems of Communism. To make the regioTrade ReviewFor twenty years, Return to Diversity has been recognized as the best text in its field. Now in its fourth edition, the text is better than ever. Updated throughout, this text provides a reliable, clear, and scholarly narrative of the major events, persons, and trends in East Central Europe since World War II. Written with a non-specialist American audience in mind, Return to Diversity presents a sophisticated narrative of political and economic change in the region. * Theodore R. Weeks, Southern Illinois University *This text fills a special niche, providing a succinct and accessible summary of a complex political history. For a concise yet scholarly political history of East Central Europe, there is nothing comparable. This clear and intelligent book will be useful to students and general readers alike. * Perspectives on Political Science *Essential reading for both students and their professors to obtain a balanced account of the nations of East Central Europe since the Second World War. * Peter Black, George Mason University *Table of ContentsPreface to the Fourth Edition Preface to the Third Edition Preface to the Second Edition Preface to the First Edition 1. The Interwar Background 2. World War II 3. The Communists Come to Power 4. The Dialectics of Stalinism and Titoism 5. The Revenge of the Repressed: East Central Europe Reasserts Itself 6. A Precarious Stalemate 7. The Various Endgames 8. The Return to Europe Notes Suggested Readings Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe book...is instructive, and logical. * Peter Grace, Listener *One of America's greatest historians takes on one of America's most controversial wars. With his customary professionalism, thoroughness, balanced perspective, and vivid prose, Prof. Leffler brings the reader inside the Bush administration's decision-making process as no other writer has yet done. Finally, a serious book about Iraq. * Robert Kagan, Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution *A measured, balanced, and brilliant explanation of how the United States went to war to remove Saddam Hussein. Stressing a fatal combination of fear, power, and hubris in the White House, Leffler shows, with great empathy, how President Bush was at the center of a policymaking process gone awry. * O.A. Westad, author of The Cold War: A World History *Melvyn Leffler, the nation's leading historian of American foreign relations, has written the most balanced and dispassionate account of the Bush Administration's policies toward Iraq. Henceforth all serious studies of the Iraq War will start here. This book should be read by scholars, policymakers, and anyone interested in understanding the decision making untainted by partisan bias. * Eric S. Edelman, former US Ambassador to Turkey, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor to Vice President Richard B. Cheney *Agree or disagree with his conclusions, Mel Leffler has unearthed fascinating new information about the decisions that led to America's invasion of Iraq. Anyone interested in understanding that seminal event needs to grapple with this book. * Peter Beinart, author, The Crisis of Zionism *In this deeply researched, luminously written book, Mel Leffler explores why the United States invaded Iraq. His sympathetic, nuanced, but by no means uncritical, account may not convince opponents of that war, but even they will not see it quite the same way again. This is an exceptional book by an outstanding scholar. * Rajan Menon, Anne and Bernard Spitzer Professor Emeritus of International Relations, The Powell School, City College of New York, and author of The Conceit of Humanitarian Intervention (Oxford, 2016) *Such is the force of Melvyn P. Leffler's insightful analysis that it broke through my long held convictions about the Bush administration's invasion of Iraq. In Confronting Saddam Hussein, one of America's most respected historians assembles stunning new evidence from personal interviews and archival documents. This brilliant account will remain an indispensable source for many years. * Frank Costigliola, Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of History, University of Connecticut *The Bush Administration's invasion of Iraq in 2003 tops any list of strategic failures in the long history of American foreign relations. Conversely, Mel Leffler tops any list of the nation's finest scholars of American strategic decision-making. The two come together in this gripping, illuminating, fair-minded, and undoubtedly landmark exploration of how American leaders, at the height of their power and influence yet simultaneously driven by fear, got it all so very, very wrong. * Jeffrey A. Engel, Director, Center for Presidential History *The war in Iraq was a disaster that diminished American power and divided the American people. Leffler explains how a fearful, well-intentioned, but poorly-informed president led our country down this damaging road. This book is essential reading for any leader who hopes to avoid disaster, and any citizen who wants to elect better leaders. * Jeremi Suri, Author of Civil War by Other Means: America's Long and Unfinished Fight for Democracy *Confronting Saddam Hussein offers a welcome antidote to flip assessments of the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq in 2003. Mel Leffler's provocative new account shows that the invasion was not a result of cartoonish bumbling or single-minded warmongering, but rather careful debate poisoned by a disastrous mix of fear and hubris. * Nicole Hemmer, Director of the Carolyn T. and Robert M. Rogers Center for the Study of the Presidency, Vanderbilt University *In the vast literature on the Iraq tragedy, this incisive, readable book stands above all others...Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; professionals. * Choice *Confronting Saddam Hussein...is necessary in both correcting the historical record and offering a map of the mistakes that we should never repeat. * Abe Greenwald, The Commentary *Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgments 1. Saddam Hussein 2. George W. Bush 3. 9/11 and the Global War on Terror 4. Iraq 5. Coercive Diplomacy 6. A Special Relationship 7. Deciding 8. Resolve 9. Mission Awry 10. Conclusion: Fear, Power, Hubris Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisStars and Shadows is the first work in American political history to offer a comprehensive historical view of how the often-overlooked virtue of friendship has come to shape the possibilities for democratic politics in America. Covering ten cases, Ambar's study illuminates how the personal bonds of friendship have proven critical to understanding the potential for a vigorous multiracial democracy over time. Ambar develops a working theory of multiracialdemocracy that demands more of us as citizens: a commitment to honestly engage one another, and perhaps most importantly, to engage our past with even greater courage and trust.Trade ReviewA searching history of interracial friendship and cooperation throughout American history ... A welcome case that all of us should just get along - and work hard to do so. * Kirkus Reviews *This beautifully-written historical meditation on the powers of friendship is an extended reflection about meaningful connections that span America's racial borderlands. Stars and Shadows—a book I could not put down—probes often surprisingly resonant relations, taking in the personal and the political in a democratic zone marked by affection and regard. In troubling times, it is moving and encouraging to gain access to such sources of hope for the fraught American experience. * Ira Katznelson, Ruggles Professor of Political Science and History, Columbia University *A fresh, wise, humane antidote to the political bombast of our time. Amber brilliantly explores the way Americans have bonded across the racial divide from Thomas Jefferson to Angela Davis. Stars and Shadows is deeply researched, beautifully written, and genuinely moving. It all adds up to something special—a guide to the angels of our better selves—as individuals, as communities, and as a nation. * James A Morone, John Hazen White Professor, Brown University, and author of The Republic of Wrath: How American Politics Turned Tribal from George Washington to Donald Trump *Saladin Ambar offers the rare combination of a gifted storyteller whose prose is hard to put down and a penetrating scholar of politics. In Stars and Shadows, he gives readers an inspiring and candid set of meditations on friendship mediated through the lens of race and spanning the entirety of US history. In these ten narratives he conveys why friendship is a democratic responsibility on which any thriving multiracial society depends. This book is an urgent and extremely enjoyable read. * Elizabeth F. Cohen, Professor of Political Science, Syracuse University *Professor Ambar skillfully challenges readers to place the role of intra-racial political fraternity at the heart of American democracy. Using historical and present-day case studies of political friendships between Blacks and Whites, Ambar illustrates the prevalence of White supremacy in American politics but also adroitly weaves together a compelling account of friendships that challenge this political problem. This book is engaging, beautifully written, and thoroughly researched. Stars and Shadows is a must-read for students of American politics regardless of subfield or methodological orientation. * Nadia Brown, Professor of Government and Director of Women's and Gender Studies program at Georgetown University *Illuminating. . . . [Stars and Shadows is] a welcome case that all of us should just get along-and work hard to do so. * Kirkus Reviews *This beautifully-written historical meditation on the powers of friendship is an extended reflection about meaningful connections that span America's racial borderlands. Stars and Shadows-a book I could not put down-probes often surprisingly resonant relations, taking in the personal and the political in a democratic zone marked by affection and regard. In troubling times, it is moving and encouraging to gain access to such sources of hope for the fraught American experience. * Ira Katznelson, Ruggles Professor of Political Science and History, Columbia University *A fresh, wise, humane antidote to the political bombast of our time. Amber brilliantly explores the way Americans have bonded across the racial divide from Thomas Jefferson to Angela Davis. Stars and Shadows is deeply researched, beautifully written, and genuinely moving. It all adds up to something special-a guide to the angels of our better selves-as individuals, as communities, and as a nation. * James A Morone, John Hazen White Professor, Brown University, and author of The Republic of Wrath: How American Politics Turned Tribal from George Washington to Donald Trump *Saladin Ambar offers the rare combination of a gifted storyteller whose prose is hard to put down and a penetrating scholar of politics. In Stars and Shadows, he gives readers an inspiring and candid set of meditations on friendship mediated through the lens of race and spanning the entirety of US history. In these ten narratives he conveys why friendship is a democratic responsibility on which any thriving multiracial society depends. This book is an urgent and extremely enjoyable read. * Elizabeth F. Cohen, Professor of Political Science, Syracuse University *Professor Ambar skillfully challenges readers to place the role of intra-racial political fraternity at the heart of American democracy. Using historical and present-day case studies of political friendships between Blacks and Whites, Ambar illustrates the prevalence of White supremacy in American politics but also adroitly weaves together a compelling account of friendships that challenge this political problem. This book is engaging, beautifully written, and thoroughly researched. Stars and Shadows is a must-read for students of American politics regardless of subfield or methodological orientation. * Nadia Brown, Professor of Government and Director of Women's and Gender Studies program at Georgetown University *Illuminating. . . . [Stars and Shadows is] a welcome case that all of us should just get along-and work hard to do so. * Kirkus Reviews *Ambar's lucid history lessons and spirit of optimism make this an enlightening study of how racial progress is made. * Publishers Weekly *Table of ContentsIntroduction ONE: An Exchange of Letters: Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Banneker TWO: Three Meetings: Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass THREE: Color Lines: William James and W.E.B. Du Bois FOUR: First Ladies: Eleanor Roosevelt and Mary McLeod Bethune FIVE: Veins: Shirley Jackson, Stanley Hyman, Ralph Ellison SIX: Scripts: Marlon Brando and James Baldwin SEVEN: Mocambo: Marilyn Monroe and Ella Fitzgerald EIGHT: Riverside: Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. NINE: Icons and Intersectionalities: Gloria Steinem and Angela Davis TEN: Conclusion: An Uncommon Bond: Joe Biden and Barack Obama

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Book SynopsisIn their pursuit of social justice, revolutionaries have taken on the assembled might of monarchies, empires, and dictatorships. They have often, though not always, sparked cataclysmic violence, and have at times won miraculous victories, though at other times suffered devastating defeat.This Very Short Introduction illuminates the revolutionaries, their strategies, their successes and failures, and the ways in which revolutions continue to dominate world events and the popular imagination. Starting with the city-states of ancient Greece and Rome, Jack Goldstone traces the development of revolutions through the Renaissance and Reformation, the Enlightenment and liberal constitutional revolutions such as in America, and their opposite--the communist revolutions of the 20th century. He shows how revolutions overturned dictators in Nicaragua and Iran and brought the collapse of communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, and examines the new wave of non-violent color revolutions--the Philippines'' Yellow Revolution, Ukraine''s Orange Revolution--and the Arab Uprisings of 2011-12 that rocked the Middle East.In this new edition, Goldstone also sheds light on the major theories of revolution, exploring the causes of revolutionary waves, the role of revolutionary leaders, the strategies and processes of revolutionary change, and the intersection between revolutions and shifting patterns of global power. Further, he explores the role social media and nonviolence play in modern revolutions. Finally, he examines the reasons for diverse revolutionary outcomes, from democracy to civil war and authoritarian rule, and the likely future of revolution in years to come.Table of ContentsList of illustrations Acknowledgments Chapter 1: What is a revolution? Chapter 2: What causes revolutions? Chapter 3: Revolutionary processes, leadership, and outcomes Chapter 4: Revolutions in the ancient world Chapter 5: Revolutions in the Renaissance and Reformation Chapter 6: Constitutional revolutions: America, France, Europe (1830 and 1848), and Meiji Japan Chapter 7: Communist revolutions: Russia, China, and Cuba Chapter 8: Revolutions against dictators: Mexico, Nicaragua, and Iran Chapter 9: Color revolutions: The Philippines, Eastern Europe and the USSR, and Ukraine Chapter 10: The Arab revolutions of 2011: Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Syria Chapter 11: The future of revolutions References Further reading Index

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Book SynopsisFor the first time, this volume by two leading historians offers a comprehensive study of drawing lots as a central institution of ancient Greek society. Drawing lots expressed an egalitarian mindset that guided selection, procedure, and distribution by lot and was eventually introduced for polis governance, a Greek innovation that appears to be of increasing relevance today. The authors explore the egalitarian, horizonal, mindset expressed in using the lot instead of a top-down vision of authority and sovereignty. Drawing lots presupposed equality among participants deserving equal portions and was used for distributing land, inheritance, booty, sacrificial meat, selecting individuals, setting turns, mixing and reorganizing groups, and divining the will of the gods. Lot-oracles were used for divination; otherwise, the gods guarded the justice of the procedure but only rarely determined the outcome. It was a self-evident method broadly and ubiquitously applied. Drawing lots would crystallize community boundaries and emphasize its sovereignty. The book further investigates the transposition of the drawing of lots to the governance of the polis. The implied egalitarianism of the lot often conflicted with top-down perceptions of society and the values of inequality, status, and merit. Drawing lots was introduced into oligarchies and democracies at an uneven pace and scale. Its wide use in the democracy of classical Athens was an exceptional case, eye-catching both in antiquity and today. The book concludes with a discussion about the meaning of the Greek examples for drawing lots today and the increasing interest in using random selection in politics as a possibility for modern democracies around the world. The appendix surveys the Greek vocabulary of lottery practices.

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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 SynopsisThe story of the highly controversial First World War campaign that nearly destroyed Churchill's reputation for good and of his decades-long battle to set the record straight - a battle which ultimately helped clear the way for Churchill's appointment as Prime Minister in Britain's 'darkest hour'.Trade Review'In this highly readable and comprehensive treatment, Christopher M. Bell treats the evidence with forensic care and delivers arguments that are consistently nuanced and fair. The book casts new light both on Churchill himself and on the wider question of civil-military relations during World War I' * Richard Toye, author of The Roar of the Lion *'A book which combines a thoroughly researched, well-written and convincing new assessment of one of the British Empire's most controversial and disputed campaigns with a thoughtful and reflective survey of how the episode has come to be understood since ... one of the best additions to the scholarship on the First World War produced since 2014.' * David G. Morgan-Owen, English Historical Review *'This is quite simply the best naval history book that I have read this year. Christopher Bell may not have written the last word on this still very emotive subject, but I can't imagine that anyone will be able to produce a better, more equitably balanced and authoritative account of the Dardanelles operation than he has done. It is quite superb in virtually every way.' * Malcolm H. Murfett (Kings College, London), The International Journal of Maritime History *'Bell's historical judgements are balanced and fair. He has made a major contribution to British naval history and to a clearer understanding of that towering twentieth-century political figure, Winston Churchill. Bell's book will stand as the definitive study of the Dardanelles campaign and the central role of Churchill for many years to come.' * W. Mark Hamilton, The Mariner's Mirror: The International Quarterly Journal of The Society for Nautical Research *'An authoritative account.' * Paul Ridgeway, Flash: Trinity House Fraternity Review *'A marvellous book.' * Robin Brodhurst, British Journal of Military History *'Bell's conclusions are admirably balanced.' * David French, Journal of Military History *'The blame-shifting, name-calling, and finger-pointing were not stilled by an exhaustive Dardanelles Commission inquiry and its 1919 report, but should now finally come to an end a century later with the publication of this well-researched, very well-written, but above all judiciously objective book by the distinguished naval historian Christopher M. Bell... This excellent book cuts through a century of pro- and anti-Churchill writing to reach remarkably balanced conclusions.' * Andrew Roberts, Weekly Standard *'Impressive and readable... Churchill and the Dardanelles is an important and balanced book... For anyone interested in Gallipoli, or Winston Churchill, it is essential reading.' * Gary Sheffield, Stand To! *'Christopher Bell's outstanding Churchill and the Dardanelles... is a fantastic exposition of how academics can write successfully for a broader audience without compromising at all on the quality of their research, and comes with a hearty recommendation from me.' * David Morgan Owen, Defence in Depth *'Indispensable' * Yusuf Ali Ozkan, Gelibolu'yu Anlamak *'This is a well-written and important book which adds valuably to the literature on Churchill himself and to the strategic history of the First World War.' * David Dutton, International History Review *'Bell explores the subject afresh and does so with such mastery that the tenor of his judgments rings true. [...] In clearing away a mass of historical debris from the scene, Bell has achieved for Churchill and Gallipoli what David Reynolds accomplished for Churchill and the Second World War, the excavation of a man from the myth that he created.' * History Today *'[Churchill and the Dardanelles] is a well-written and important book which adds valuably to the literature on Churchill himself and to the strategic history of the First World War.' * David Dutton, International History Review *'Well-researched study.' * Saul Kelly, Middle Eastern Studies *'A clear and authoritative account about Churchill's role in the Dardanelles offensive. Bell's style is easily accessible for the armchair strategist but is equally thorough and well footnoted for the weathered naval historian. Everyone can appreciate the enormous efforts and herculean tasks Bell undertook to disentangle the reality of the Dardanelles from its various narrative myths.' * Warren Dockter, Churchill Bulletin *'Christopher Bell's knowledge of the sources cannot be bettered, and he has shown himself to be the ideal person to present this important, accessible reassessment' * Eric Grove, Times Literary Supplement *An extremely absorbing and highly readable work which casts new light on not only Churchill himself but on the much wider issues of the relationships between the military and civilian governments during the First World War. * History of War *'Meticulously researched and readable account.' * History of War *'This immaculate study of the First Lord of the Admiralty's disgrace and comeback is ... likely to become the definitive work on the campaign, and Churchill's role in it. What gives the book its edge is not merely Bell's scholarship, which is rigorous, but its highly original analysis of the aftermath ... Unlike most additions to the Churchill bibliography, it is truly valuable.' * Simon Heffer, The Daily Telegraph *Table of ContentsWinston Churchill and the Dardanelles: A Riddle Wrapped in Myths Inside a Legend 1: Stalemate and Frustration: The First Months of War 2: The Origins of the Naval Offensive 3: 'A Great Experiment': The Naval Plan Approved 4: 'I Will Find the Men': The Plan Remade 5: 'Groping Round Without a plan' 6: From the Dardanelles to Gallipoli 7: Jacky Fisher's Crisis 8: The Duchy of Lancaster Goes to War! 9: Exile 10: The Dardanelles Commission I: The Preliminaries 11: The Dardanelles Commission II: The Naval Staff under Scrutiny 12: The Dardanelles Commission III: An Instalment of Fair Play 13: The Cabinet Minister as Censor: The Official Histories 14: The Battle of the Memoirs 15: From Millstone to Myth: 'The Great Movement of Opinion' Conclusion: What about the Dardanelles? Notes Bibliography

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Book SynopsisVoltaire''s description of the Holy Roman Empire as ''neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire'' is often cited to underline its worthlessness. German historians traditionally despised it because it had allegedly impeded German unification. Since 1945 scholars have been more positive but the empire''s history and significance is still largely misunderstood.In this Very Short Introduction Joachim Whaley outlines the fascinating thousand-year history of the Holy Roman Empire. Founded in 800 on the basis of Charlemagne''s Frankish kingdom, its imperial title went to the German monarchy which became established in the ninth and ten centuries. They claimed Charlemagne''s legacy, including his role as protector of the papacy and guardian of the Church. Around 1500 the title Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation was adopted. An elective monarchy, the empire gradually developed from a feudal monarchy into a legal system that pacified the territories and cities of German-speaking Europe. By 1519 it had a supreme court and a regional enforcement system ended feuding. Throughout its lifetime, the empire''s growth and history was shaped by the major developments in Europe, from the Reformation, to the Thirty Years War, to the French revolutionary wars, which led to Napoleon destroying the empire in 1806. The sense of a common history over a thousand years and the legal traditions established by the empire have shaped the history of German-speaking Europe ever since. Joachim Whaley analyses the empire''s crucial impact and role in the history of European power and politics, and shows that there has never been a more durable political system in German history. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade ReviewBy analysing and narrating the essentials of one of the most complex and long-lived of all European institutions, and moreover doing it lucidly and entertainingly, Whaley has performed something of a miracle. * Tim Blanning, University of Cambridge *A crisp, authoritative and notably accessible introduction to the Holy Roman Empire, which occupied a central place in Europe's history for an entire millennium before its dissolution in 1806. * Professor Hamish Scott, FBA, Jesus College, Oxford. *Table of ContentsIntroduction - What was the Holy Roman Empire? 1: Roman Empire and German Kingdom: From Charlemagne to the Ottonians 2: The High Medieval Empire: From the Salians to the Hohenstaufen 3: The Later Medieval Empire: The emergence of the Habsburgs 4: The Early Modern Empire (1): From Maximilian I to the Thirty Years War 5: The Early Modern Empire (2): From the Peace of Westphalia to 1806 Conclusion: The Legacy of the Holy Roman Empire Maps Chronology Further Reading Index

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Book SynopsisRumi is the greatest mystic poet to have written in Persian, and the Masnavi, written in six books, is his masterpiece. It conveys a message of divine love in entertaining stories and homilies. The focus of Book Four is with the mystical knowledge of the spiritual guide.Table of ContentsIntroduction Note on the Translation Select Bibliography Chronology The Masnavi: Book 4 Explanatory Notes Glossary

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Book SynopsisThe story of Isaac Newton's decades in London - as ambitious cosmopolitan gentleman, President of London's Royal Society, Master of the Mint, and investor in the slave trade.Trade ReviewAnyone interested in a detailed account of the later part of Newton's life, focusing on its social, political, and moral dimensions, will find this an especially illuminating book. * J W Dauben *Fara's story is full of colour... she is not just writing about Newton, she is painting a portrait of the age in which he lived, worked, schmoozed and manoeuvred... she also writes with an elegance and a wit you don't generally associate with history books. * Marcus Berkmann, Daily Mail *Science is always part of society, as Fara entertainingly shows. * BBC History Magazine *... fresh, fascinating study of his [Newton's] London career. * Andrew Robinson, Nature *... a highly unorthodox and groundbreaking book... revealing and beautifully written... * Vitali Vitaliev, E&T Magazine *Fara is a pleasingly lively historical guide... the sheer energy of the book shines through, giving readers a messier and more thornily human Newton than the cartoon renditions to which he's so often reduced. * Steve Donoghue, Christian Science Monitor *... impressively broad and multifaceted, making for an interesting, penetrating slice of history, personal and generally. * M A Orthofer, Complete Review *The rich historical background provided... is to be welcomed... this is an excellent account of Newton in London. * Brad Baxter, British Numismatic Journal *Table of ContentsList of illustrations Introduction Prologue Act I: The Theatre: Isaac Newton moves to the Metropolis 1: Living in Style 2: The Tower of London 3: Family Trees 4: The Rise and Rise of John Conduitt Act II: The Audience: Isaac Newton In London society 5: Fortune Hunters 6: The Royal Society 7: Hanover-upon-Thames Act III: The Play: Isaac Newton and English Imperialism 8: Making Money 9: Knowledge and Power 10: Going Global Epilogue Notes Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThe People''s Peace: Britain since 1945 is the first comprehensive study by a professional historian of British history from 1945 to the present day. It examines the transformation of post-war Britain from the planning enthusiasm of 1945 to the rise of New Labour. Its themes include the troubles of the British economy; public criticism of the legitimacy of the state and its instruments of authority; the co-existence of growing personal prosperity with widespread social inequality; and the debates aroused by decolonization, and Britain''s relationship to the Commonwealth, the US and Europe. Changes in cultural life, from the puritanical ''austerity'' of the 1940''s, through the ''permissiveness'' of the 1960s, to the tensions and achievements of recent years are also charted.Using a wide variety of sources, including the records of political parties and the most recently released documents from the Public Records Office, Kenneth Morgan brings the story right up to date and draws comparisons with the post-war history of other nations. This penetrating analysis by a leading twentieth-century historian will prove invaluable to anyone interested in the development of the Britain of today.Trade ReviewReview from previous edition an outstanding work: comprehensive, lucid and judicious. * Ben Pimlott, Sunday Times *Table of ContentsI. The Era of Advance, 1945-1961 1: The Facade of Unity 2: Labour's High Noon, 1945-1947 3: The Collectivist Retreat, 1948-1951 4: The Conservative Compromise, 1951-1956 5: The Zenith of One-Nation Toryism, 1957-1961 II. The Years of Retreat, 1961-1979 6: The Stagnant Society, 1961-1964 7: Labour Blown Off Course, 1964-1967 8: Years of Hard Slog, 1968-1970 9: The Heath Experiment, 1970-1974 10: Challenge to Consensus, 1974-1976 11: The Years of Discontent, 1977-1979 III. Thatcherism and its Aftermath, 1979-1998 12: The Foundations of Thatcherism, 1979-1983 13: High Noon for the New Right, 1983-1990 14: Fin de Siècle: New Labour in Power, 1990-2001 15: Millennial Perspectives, 2001 - 2008 16: From Crash to Brexit, 2008 - 20 Select Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThe ancient Egyptians are an enduring source of fascination, from mummies and pyramids, to curses and rituals. In this second edition of his Very Short Introduction, Ian Shaw explores the history and culture of pharaonic Egypt, and examines the latest research on Ancient Egyptian ideas of death, kingship, religion, race, sex, and gender.Trade ReviewThe author is on top of every aspect of their topics, and fully up to date... The entirely new chapter on the 'Arab Spring', new museums, and cultural heritage in modern Egypt is very welcome and thought provoking. * John Tait, Emeritus Professor of Egyptology, UCL *Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements List of illustrations 1: Introduction: the story so far 2: Discovering and inventing: constructing ancient Egypt 3: History: building chronologies and writing histories 4: Writing: the origins and implications of hieroglyphs 5: Kingship: stereotyping and the 'oriental despot' 6: Identity: issues of ethnicity, race, and gender 7: Death: mummification, dismemberment, and the cult of Osiris 8: Religion: Egyptian gods and temples 9: Egyptomania: the recycling and reinventing of Egypt>'s icons and images 10: The 'Arab Spring', new museums, and cultural heritage in modern Egypt References Further reading Useful websites Glossary Timeline Index

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Book Synopsis''Intellectual freedom depends on material things. Poetry depends on intellectual freedom. And women have always been poor...''In these two classic essays of feminist literature, Woolf argues passionately for women''s intellectual freedom and their role in challenging the drive towards fascism and conflict. In A Room of One''s Own she explores centuries of limitations placed on women, as well as celebrating the creative achievements of the women writers who overcame these obstacles. In this first history of women''s writing, she describes the importance of education, financial independence, and equality of opportunity to creative freedom. Three Guineas was written under the threat of fascism and impending war. A radical articulation of Woolf''s pacifist politics, it investigates the causes of gender inequalities and the ways in which women''s historic outsider position make them crucial in the prevention of war. Both these works started life as talks to groups of young women, and their

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Book SynopsisA history of modern Spain told through one of world football''s most intense rivalries' IndependentSports Book of the Year' Sunday TimesIt's Messi vs Ronaldo, it's Catalonia vs Castilla. It's the nation against the state, freedom fighters vs Franco's fascists. It's majestic goals and mesmerising skills, red cards and bench brawls. It's the best two teams on the planet going face to face and toe to toe. It's more than a game. It's a war.It's Barcelona vs Real Madrid. Only, it's not that simple. From the wounds left by the civil war to the teams' recent global domination, historian and expert on Spanish football, Sid Lowe lifts the lid on sport's greatest rivalry. Lowe has spoken to the biggest names and the forgotten heroes who defined their clubs. Men like Alfredo Di Stéfano and Johan Cruyff as well as the only survivor of the most politically charged game in history, the Barcelona striker who knocked MadrTrade ReviewOne of the year’s best football books … an extremely well-informed and usefully myth-busting portrait * Guardian *Fascinating * Sunday Independent *Sports Book of the Year * Sunday Times *Football Books of the Year: Sid Lowe isn’t an ordinary football writer and, as a result, this is not an ordinary football book. Lowe paces it all so well ... like an engaging lesson from your favourite teacher * Daily Mirror *A revelation. Anyone interested in Spain's two biggest teams can learn something new from this labour of love ... tackling tricky subjects with skill and weaving them into an engaging story. For that, this book stands out from the rest. * talksport.com *

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Book SynopsisThe untold story of Chicago's pivotal role as a country and folk music capital. Chicago is revered as a musical breeding ground, having launched major figures like blues legend Muddy Waters, gospel soul icon Mavis Staples, hip-hop firebrand Kanye West, and the jazz-rock band that shares its name with the city. Far less known, however, is the vital role Chicago played in the rise of prewar country music, the folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s, and the contemporary offspring of those scenes. In Country and Midwestern, veteran journalist Mark Guarino tells the epic century-long story of Chicago's influence on sounds typically associated with regions further south. Drawing on hundreds of interviews and deep archival research, Guarino tells a forgotten story of music, migration, and the ways that rural culture infiltrated urban communities through the radio, the automobile, and the railroad. The Midwest's biggest city was the place where rural transplants could reinvent themselves Trade Review"Guarino is a child of Oak Park and has been a writer since high school, his work appearing in a vast and varied number of publications, on stages of theaters in plays he created and now, finally, between covers in a spectacular book dedicated to the musicians of Chicago. . . The book will thrill any music fan but it is something more than that. It gives readers a greater appreciation of the heart and resilience and creativity of this city and its ability to sustain and nurture those talented to persevere." * Chicago Tribune *"With an epic scope, gorgeous photographs, and useful discographies, this is a vital contribution to the history of American music and required reading for country and folk music fans." * Booklist starred review *"In his monumental new book Country and Midwestern, music writer Guarino tells a riveting story of the central role that Chicago has played in the development of country and folk music. Every chapter of the book features stories of people, places, and events that have made Chicago home to a growing and vibrant music scene. . . . Country and Midwestern is essential reading for anyone interested in the history of country and folk music." * No Depression *"Smartly-written, surprising puzzle piece of Americana: How Chicago, before Nashville, then later with Wilco and other cross-pollinators, was the quiet engine beneath country music for generations." * Chicago Tribune, on "books for summer 2023" *"Journalist Guarino researched his book Country and Midwestern, for more than ten years. . . . Now he’s seeing what a big audience there is for this subject—with author events all over the region." * NewCity Lit 50 2023 *"Guarino’s richly textured cultural history is informed by his instinctive sense of the sounds and lyrics that originated in Chicago’s small taverns and clubs that were an 'unusual hothouse for creativity,' crucial to the reinvention of country and folk music. Guarino captures the improvisation of balladeers and troubadours, and their music shaped by the century’s gyrations of immigration and industrialization. Among his most memorable characters is Studs Terkel’s friend Win Stracke, co-founder of the Old Town School of Folk Music, musician, and activist, hounded by Hoover’s anti-communist FBI, who observed: 'Chicago has no entrenched cultural tradition like New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. An idea can grow here without being required to conform.'" * National Book Review *"With a combination of engaging prose and thorough research, [Country and Midwestern] sheds light on key Chicago contributions to the country and western music genre . . . The book provides compelling accounts of dozens of artists who worked in Chicago, such as bluegrass icon Bill Monroe, radio star (and future Hollywood legend) Gene Autry, folk-music titans John Prine and Steve Goodman, alt-country darlings The Handsome Family and the unheralded country trio The Sundowners, who performed in Chicago bars several nights a week between 1959 and 1989." * Block Club Chicago *"Chicago is well known for giving the world gospel, electric blues, and house music. In this groundbreaking book, journalist Guarino suggests that as migrants from the rural Midwest and the southern states headed north in the interwar period, the Windy City also played a crucial role in the rise of country and western and folk music. . . . Summing Up: Recommended." * CHOICE *"While Chicago is known mostly for its history with blues and jazz music, local writer Mark Guarino has tapped into the region's fascinating country roots. . . [taking] great care to detail the importance of the city and suburbs in the history of country music." * Daily Herald *“Guarino’s magnificent Country and Midwestern proves that the Second City was first among equals in the development of American roots music. A ruthless researcher and scintillating storyteller, Guarino provides critical context and moving portraits of the pickers, grinners and pioneers who shaped Chicago’s contributions to country and folk. A long overdue but welcome volume that will sit alongside other essential works on the subject, from Bill C. Malone’s Country Music USA to David Hadju’s Positively Fourth Street.” * Bob Mehr, author of Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements *"Long before Nashville’s emergence as the country music capital, Chicago held sway with the nationally-broadcast Barn Dance and a row of honky-tonk venues on Madison Street. Guarino masterfully connects the dots between that star-making era to a contemporary scene devoted to insurgent country. This is a definitive and long-overdue look at a vital, if underappreciated, thread in how so-called hillbilly music evolved and flourished in a seemingly incongruous setting: the hard streets of Chicago." * Greg Kot, cohost of Sound Opinions and author of I'll Take You There: Mavis Staples, the Staple Singers, and the Music That Shaped the Civil Rights Era *"Those of us who came of age in the vicinity of Chicago understand its importance to country and folk music. The Windy City is home to some of the most prolific artists in the genre: John Prine, Wilco, Mavis Staples, Jon Langford and Robbie Fulks. Chicago gave us the WLS Barn Dance, the Old Town School of Folk Music, the Hyde Park Folk Festival, Flying Fish and Bloodshot Records. Some of us were lucky enough to make our own personal discoveries of the music that sustains us at clubs Gate of Horn, Earl of Old Town, the Hideout, and Whiskey River. Now, finally, author Mark Guarino chronicles the history of country and folk music in Chicago in his necessary and irresistible book Country and Midwestern." * Tamara Saviano, author of Without Getting Killed or Caught: The Life and Music of Guy Clark *"In this remarkable and thrilling book, Guarino writes that 'Chicago’s role in country music and the folk revival has never earned a closer look.' Well, it gets that now in a book exhaustively researched, stylishly written and exciting on every single page. In it I find people I knew well (even my father), many more that I heard play and sing in clubs, and some that are new to me. They are all here, vividly, the rogues, rascals and geniuses who made and keep making our city sing." * Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune columnist and 2022 Fuller Award for Lifetime Achievement by the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1 The WLS Barn Dance and the Call to Chicago 2 “Hillbilly Heaven” in Chicago: Uptown and Skid Row 3 The Gate of Horn and the Chicago Folk Revival 4 Win Stracke and the Old Town School of Folk Music 5 Bohemia in Hyde Park: The University of Chicago Folk Festival 6 Chicago’s Second Folk Boom: The 1970s in Old Town and Lincoln Park 7 Country Music Surges and Bluegrass Arrives 8 “Insurgent Country”: Looking Backward to Go Forward 9 The Old, Weird Chicago Acknowledgments Appendix A: Chicago in Song Appendix B: Essential Chicago Country and Folk Albums Notes Index

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Book SynopsisTranslation of Forgerons et alchimistes.

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Book SynopsisA history of how, in the mid-twentieth century, we came to believe in the concept of creativity. Named a best book of 2023 by the New Yorker and a notable book of 2023 by Behavioral Scientist. Creativity is one of American society's signature values, but the idea that there is such a thing as creativityand that it can be cultivatedis surprisingly recent, entering our everyday speech in the 1950s. As Samuel W. Franklin reveals, postwar Americans created creativity, through campaigns to define and harness the power of the individual to meet the demands of American capitalism and life under the Cold War. Creativity was championed by a cluster of professionalspsychologists, engineers, and advertising peopleas a cure for the conformity and alienation they feared was stifling American ingenuity. It was touted as a force of individualism and the human spirit, a new middle-class aspiration that suited the needs of corporate America and the spirit of anticommunism. Amid increasingly rigid systems, creativity took on an air of romance; it was a more democratic quality than genius, but more rarified than mere intelligence. The term eluded clear definition, allowing all sorts of people and institutions to claim it as a solution to their problems, from corporate dullness to urban decline. Today, when creativity is constantly sought after, quantified, and maximized, Franklin's eye-opening history of the concept helps us to see what it really is, and whom it really serves. Trade Review"In Franklin’s account, creativity, the concept, popped up after the Second World War in two contexts. One was the field of psychology. Since the nineteenth century, when experimental psychology (meaning studies done with research subjects and typically in laboratory settings, rather than from an armchair) had its start, psychologists have been much given to measuring mental attributes. . . . The pages Franklin devotes to the contemporary creativity landscape are the freshest and most fun in the book." -- Louis Menand * New Yorker *"Franklin posits that 'creativity' is a concept invented in America after the Second World War, appearing primarily in two contexts: psychological research and business, each arising semi-independently, but feeding into and reinforcing each other. Humanistic psychologists—attuned to postwar anxieties about alienation and conformity—connected creativity with authenticity and self-expression. The advertising industry—the motor of consumerism—grabbed on to the term to appropriate the glamour and prestige of the artist and confer those attributes on admen and product designers. In the information age, countercultural values turned out to be entirely compatible with consumer capitalism. The difficulties that arose in defining creativity are intrinsic to the concept itself, Franklin argues, and his provocative book unpacks the history of a term whose origins are more recent than we might imagine." * New Yorker, on "Best Books of 2023" *"Where did the concept of creativity come from? And why is it valued so highly? One answer is posited by Franklin’s provocative new book. . . . Franklin cogently argues that creativity became a buzzword because it was a way to retool white-collar workers for a service economy—one that rewarded branding, research and development instead of Fordian manufacturing. . . . His book is an antidote for anyone who has sat, pen in hand, struggling to locate their 'divine muse.'" * The Economist *"As historian Franklin notes in his forthcoming book The Cult of Creativity, the concept [of creativity] gained much of its cultural currency in the mid-20th century, when executives and other leaders tried to stimulate creativity in hopes of churning out better ad spreads and new technologies. With these titans’ encouragement, Americans began to see creativity as a virtuous end in itself, buying into the promise that expanding our creative abilities could fulfill us individually and secure our collective future." * Boston Globe *"The Cult of Creativity comes at a technological turning point. The emergence of generative-AI tools has given us the option of outsourcing our brainstorming, becoming prompt engineers to idea-spitting machines. . . . In Mr. Franklin’s idealistic scenario of the future, we will redirect our energy away from producing more disruptive innovations and toward a thoughtful consideration of 'what should be produced in the first place.' World-saving ideas and technologies are still needed—whether they result from creative thinking or not—but 'the space to question the goodness of the new,' Mr. Franklin suggests, might be 'the big idea we need right now.'" * Wall Street Journal *"What Franklin leaves us with is a thought-provoking reevaluation of a celebrated societal value marbled with contradictions. All told, The Cult of Creativity is lucid, fresh and illuminating. If you need more adjectives than that, you’ll have to brainstorm them yourself." * NewCity *"Franklin challenges the notion that creativity is a trait that can be cultivated and unleashed by virtually anyone. . . . He proposes a nuanced and critical approach to the study of creativity, one that recognizes its complexity, diversity, and context-dependence. In doing so he offers a nicely written and well-researched book that casts a fresh and insightful perspective on a controversial topic. . . . Summing Up: Recommended. All readers." * CHOICE *"Franklin’s well-researched book on the young history of the word 'creativity' has simultaneously turned out to be a chronicle of the morals and values ruling post-war America – and implicitly many other Western countries. Its pleasant style and the many well-chosen quotations from the creativity literature, helped by the mildly critical tone, make for insightful and entertaining reading." * Leonardo *"As the subtitle of Franklin’s book suggests, the highly valued quality we call 'creativity'—so ubiquitous today as to seem universal and timeless—is actually quite new. Franklin tells a story of psychologists, scholars, business management 'gurus,' ad men, education policymakers, artists, and engineers who together reified creativity as immanently versatile, a trait both inherent to the individual and developable at scale. . . . It turns out the taken-for-granted virtue of creativity is yet another dubious invention of midcentury cold war and a product of academia’s collusion with industry." * Public Books *"When we let people get away with thinking that creativity is the alpha and omega of existence, or even just of the business world, we sow a garden of vices. We’ve seen corporate monsters before, but it took the cult of creativity to concoct the particular monster called Elon Musk. Franklin’s wonderful book made me understand, as never before, the forces that shaped this billionaire narcissist schmuck and not a few lesser rich schmucks as well." * The New Republic *“The Cult of Creativity is a beautifully written and well-documented account of how creativity gained the societal value it has today. Franklin reveals the powerful social construction at work behind the meaning of creativity and reminds us that such ideas have historical roots, as well as a more sinister side that should concern us all. Through engaging storylines, he builds a complex picture that is captivating to discover, piece by piece.” -- Vlad Glaveanu, author of Wonder: The Extraordinary Power of an Ordinary Experience“Celebrated and sought-after, ‘creativity’ is often presented as the magic yet ineffable elixir for fame and fortune by today’s artists, technologists, and business leaders. And yet—until Samuel Franklin’s marvelous new book—it has been little studied as a historical phenomenon. The Cult of Creativity examines how, after World War II, a fascinating ensemble of psychologists, advertising executives, and other assorted gurus attempted to explain and quantify human ingenuity. The result is an insightful and delightful exploration into how we think about technology, capitalism, and consumerism.” -- W. Patrick McCray, author of Making Art Work: How Cold War Engineers and Artists Forged a New Creative Culture“The Cult of Creativity presents an exceptionally lucid look at the various ideas, doctrines, and programs behind the concept of creativity. Through keen analysis, Franklin brings together scholarship from a range of sources to frame this powerful social and cultural critique.” -- Howard Brick, author of Transcending Capitalism: Visions of a New Society in Modern American ThoughtTable of ContentsIntroduction 1 Between the Commonplace and the Sublime 2 The Birth of Brainstorming 3 Creativity as Self-Actualization 4 Synectics at the Shoe 5 The Creative Child 6 Revolution on Madison Avenue 7 Creativity Is Dead . . . 8 From Progress to Creativity 9 Long Live Creativity Conclusion: What Is to Be Done? Acknowledgments Notes Index

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