History Books

Book SynopsisRemember the wonderfully romantic book of letters by Beethoven, Byron and Napoleon that featured in the Sex and the City film? That collection never actually existed, but all of the letters referenced in the film were real; so Macmillan decided to create Love Letters of Great Men...Table of ContentsIntroduction - i: Introduction Chapter - 1: Pliny the Younger to his wife, Calpurnia Chapter - 2: King Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn Chapter - 3: William Congreve to Mrs Arabella Hunt Chapter - 4: Richard Steele to Miss Mary Scurlock Chapter - 5: George Farquhar to Anne Oldfield Chapter - 6: Alexander Pope to Martha Blount Chapter - 7: Alexander Pope to Teresa Blount Chapter - 8: Alexander Pope to Lady Mary Wortley Montagu Chapter - 9: David Hume to Madame de Boufflers Chapter - 10: Laurence Sterne to Catherine Fourmantel Chapter - 11: Laurence Sterne to Lady Percy Chapter - 12: Denis Diderot to Sophie Volland Chapter - 13: Henry Frederick, Duke of Cumberland, to Lady Grosvenor Chapter - 14: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to his wife, Constanze Chapter - 15: Lord Nelson to Lady Emma Hamilton Chapter - 16: Robert Burns to Mrs Agnes Maclehose Chapter - 17: Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller to Charlotte von Lengefeld Chapter - 18: Napoleon Bonaparte to his wife, Josephine Chapter - 19: Daniel Webster to Josephine Seaton Chapter - 20: Ludwig van Beethoven to his ‘Immortal Beloved’ Chapter - 21: William Hazlitt to Sarah Walker Chapter - 22: Lord Byron to Lady Caroline Lamb Chapter - 23: Lord Byron to the Countess Guiccioli Chapter - 24: John Keats to Fanny Brawne Chapter - 25: Honorè de Balzac to the Countess Ewelina Hanska Chapter - 26: Victor Hugo to Adèle Foucher Chapter - 27: Nathaniel Hawthorne to his wife, Sophia Chapter - 28: Benjamin Disraeli to Mary Ann Wyndham Lewis Chapter - 29: Charles Darwin to Emma Wedgwood Chapter - 30: Alfred de Musset to George Sand Chapter - 31: Robert Schumann to Clara Wieck Chapter - 32: Robert Browning to Elizabeth Barrett Chapter - 33: Gustave Flaubert to Louise Colet Chapter - 34: Gustave Flaubert to George Sand Chapter - 35: Walter Bagehot to Elizabeth Wilson Chapter - 36: Mark Twain to Olivia Langdon Chapter - 37: William F. Testerman to Miss Jane Davis Chapter - 38: Charles Stewart Parnell to Katherine O’Shea Chapter - 39: Oscar Wilde to Lord Alfred Douglas Chapter - 40: Pierre Curie to Marie Sklodovska (Marie Curie) Chapter - 41: G. K. Chesterton to Frances Blogg Chapter - 42: Captain Alfred Bland to his wife, Violet Chapter - 43: Regimental Sergeant-Major James Milne to his wife, Meg Chapter - 44: Second Lieutenant John Lindsay Rapoport to his fiancée Acknowledgements - ii: Acknowledgements

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Book SynopsisDr Hannah McCann (consultant) is a lecturer in gender studies at the University of Melbourne. Her research focuses on feminist discourse on femininity, LGBTIQ subcultures, beauty culture, and aesthetic labour. Her book Queering Femininity: Sexuality, Feminism and the Politics of Presentation was published by Routledge in 2018. Lucy Mangan (spokesperson) is a columnist, television reviewer and features writer. She is currently a columnist for Stylist magazine, a frequent writer for The Guardian, The Telegraph and other publications, and the author of five books. BOOKWORM: A Memoir of Childhood Reading, was published in February 2018 to great acclaim.

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Book SynopsisNew to Penguin Classics, the astonishing story of the Copernican Revolution, told through the words of the ground-breaking scientists who brought it aboutIn the late fifteenth century, it was believed that the earth stood motionless at the centre of a small, ordered cosmos. Just over two centuries later, everything had changed. Not only was the sun the centre of creation, but the entire practice of science had been revolutionised. This is the story of that astonishing transformation, told through the words of the astronomers and mathematicians at its heart. Bringing together excerpts from the works and letters of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Descartes, Newton and others for the first time, The Dawn of Modern Cosmology is the definitive record of one of the great turning points in human history.Edited with Translations, Notes and an Introduction by Aviva Rothman

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewArrogant, affectionate, and dogmatic, Guevara is intimately revealed in this compilation of personal letters sent over the latter half of his extraordinary life... a thrilling, eyewitness account of battles whose repercussions still reverberate today * Publisher's Weekly *

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Book SynopsisEmbark on an unforgettable time-travelling journey along one of the world''s greatest landmarks: the Great Wall of China.Spanning 2,700 years and over 21,000km (13,000 miles), this beautifully illustrated children''s book reveals the fascinating story of the Great Wall and the individuals that helped build it. What started out as a frontier defence against northern tribesmen has, over time, become one of the seven great wonders of the world. Exquisite panoramic illustrations and engaging text bring to life key periods and turning points in the Great Wall''s history - from the first defensive forts built in 656 BCE to its painstaking present-day restoration. Cutaway views reveal the interiors of important buildings, and pull-out details introduce fascinating facts and key characters. Children will also love searching for the adventurous time-travelling fox who appears in each of the artworks.Perfect for parents and children to pore over together, The Great Wall Through Time makes a gorgeous gift or collector''s item. Fun, interactive, and packed with details, it vividly presents Chinese history to children as they have never seen it before.

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Book Synopsis**SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE 2024****A BEST BOOK OF 2024 BY THE NEW YORKER** From the Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of Ghost Wars, the inside story of America''s long and ruinous relationship with Saddam HusseinThe Achilles Trap masterfully untangles the people, ploys of power and geopolitics that led to America''s disastrous war with Iraq and, for the first time, details America''s fundamental miscalculations during its ruinous, decades-long relationship with Saddam Hussein.Beginning with Saddam''s rise to power in 1979 and the birth of Iraq''s secret nuclear weapons programme, Steve Coll traces Saddam''s motives through understanding his inner circle. He brings to life the diplomats, scientists, family members and generals who had no choice but to defer to their leader - a leader directly responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, as well as the torture or imprisonment of many more. This was a man whose reasoning was impossible to reduce to a simple explanation, and the CIA and successive presidential administrations failed to grasp critical nuances in his paranoia, resentments and inconsistencies - even when the stakes were incredibly high.Using unpublished and underreported sources, interviews with surviving participants, and Saddam''s own transcripts and audio files, The Achilles Trap is a remarkable picture of a dictator who was convinced the world was out to get him and acted accordingly. A work of great historical significance, it is the definitive account of how corruptions of power, lies of diplomacy and vanity - on both sides - led to avoidable errors of statecraft: ones that would enact immeasurable human suffering and forever change our political landscape.

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Book Synopsis''Four years of war turned Ypres into a ghost town. Not a leaf grew on a tree. Scarcely one stone stood upon another. From the battered ramparts the eye swept clean across a field of rubble to the swamp-lands beyond . . .'' The Third Battle of Ypres, ending in a desperate struggle for the ridge and little village of Passchendaele, was one of the most appalling campaigns in the history of warfare. A million Tommies, Canadians and Anzacs assembled at the Ypres Salient in summer of 1917, mostly raw young troops keen to do their bit for King and Country. This book tells their tale of mounting disillusion amid mud, terror and increasingly desperate attacks, yet it is also a story of immense courage, comradeship, high spirits and hope. In Passchendaele, Lyn Macdonald lets over 600 soldiers speak for themselves. In doing so, she portrays events from the only point of view that really matters.Trade ReviewLyn Macdonald writes splendidly and touchingly * Sunday Telegraph *It is rare to find a history of the First World War which manages to convey the front-line soldiers' experiences and to describe what it was that enabled those who survived to get through it. Lyn Macdonald has done just that * Sunday Times *Her basic inspiration is compassion, her technique is scrupulously painstaking. And her application in finding, interviewing and editing innumerable contributions can only be admired * Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of Guns, Germs and Steel, Jared Diamond''s Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive is a visionary study of the mysterious downfall of past civilizations.Now in a revised edition with a new afterword, Jared Diamond''s Collapse uncovers the secret behind why some societies flourish, while others founder - and what this means for our future.What happened to the people who made the forlorn long-abandoned statues of Easter Island?What happened to the architects of the crumbling Maya pyramids?Will we go the same way, our skyscrapers one day standing derelict and overgrown like the temples at Angkor Wat?Bringing together new evidence from a startling range of sources and piecing together the myriad influences, from climate to culture, that make societies self-destruct, Jared Diamond''s Collapse also shows how - unlike our ancestors - we can benefit from our knowledge of the past and learn to be sur

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Book Synopsis''The Ministry of Defence does not comment upon submarine operations'' is the standard response of officialdom to enquiries about the most secretive and mysterious of Britain''s armed forces, the Royal Navy Submarine Service. Written with unprecedented co-operation from the Service itself and privileged access to documents and personnel, The Silent Deep is the first authoritative history of the Submarine Service from the end of the Second World War to the present. It gives the most complete account yet published of the development of Britain''s submarine fleet, its capabilities, its weapons, its infrastructure, its operations and above all - from the testimony of many submariners and the first-hand witness of the authors - what life is like on board for the denizens of the silent deep.Dramatic episodes are revealed for the first time: how HMS Warspite gathered intelligence against the Soviet Navy''s latest ballistic-missile-carrying submarine in the late 1960s;Trade ReviewA tour de force, a valuable resource for naval historians and future generations to wonder at. And I can't help hoping that our current leaders will make themselves aware of some vitally significant issues that it raises. -- Admiral Lord West * Spectator *The lay reader cannot fail to be absorbed by its dramatic tales of cat-and-mouse skirmishes with Soviet hunter-killer submarines, embarrassing spy scandals and lucid accounts of the Falklands War - all enlivened with first-hand testimony from the submariners themselves. -- Richard Blackmore * Independent *

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Book SynopsisFROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE NAZI MIND AND PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY''S MOST-READ BOOK, HITLER AND STALIN''By far the clearest book ever written about the Holocaust, and also the best at explaining its origins and grotesque mentality, as well as its chaotic development'' Antony Beevor''Groundbreaking. You might have thought that we know everything there is to know about the Holocaust but this book proves there is much more'' Andrew Roberts, Mail on SundayTwo fundamental questions about the Holocaust must be asked:How did it happen? And why?More completely than any other single work of history yet published, Laurence Rees''s Holocaust definitively answers them.''Rees provides an exemplary account of how the greatest crime in modern history came about'' The Times''Rees has distilled 25 years of research into this compelling study, the finest single-volume account of the Holocaust . . . demands to be read'' Saul David, Telegraph''Anyone wanting a compelling, highly readable explanation of how and why the Holocaust happened, drawing on recent scholarship and impressively incorporating moving and harrowing interviews need look no further than Laurence Rees''s brilliant book'' Professor Ian Kershaw, bestselling author of HitlerTrade ReviewAnyone wanting a compelling, highly readable explanation of how and why the Holocaust happened, drawing on recent scholarship and impressively incorporating moving and harrowing interviews need look no further than Laurence Rees's brilliant book -- Professor Ian KershawYou might have thought that we know everything there is to know about the Holocaust but this book proves there is much more... * Daily Mail *Absorbing, heart-breaking...he has drawn skilfully on speeches, documents and diaries of the Third Reich, and on the vast library of secondary literature, to weave together a powerful, inevitably harrowing revelation of the 20th century's greatest crime * Sunday Times *This is by far the clearest book ever written about the Holocaust, but also the best in explaining both its origins and grotesque mentality, as well as its chaotic developmentA fine book. Rees is a gifted educator, who can tell a complex story with compassion and clarity, without sacrificing all nuances...it comes alive through the voices of victims, killers and bystanders. * Guardian *The interview material is largely compelling, always illuminating and on occasion, very moving . . . Like all of Rees's work, it is accurate and carefully researched * New Statesman *Rees has distilled 25 years of research into this compelling study, the finest single-volume account of the Holocaust. It is not a book for the faint-hearted. Some of the first-hand testimony is both shocking and heart-rending. Yet it has important things to say about human nature - what our species is capable of doing if not prevented by civilized laws - and demands to be read * Telegraph *A masterpiece. Laurence Rees's best book yet . . . In compelling prose, Rees tells the full story of the most shameful period in the story of MankindWith The Holocaust he has set himself the task of writing an accessible chronological account of the murder of six million Jews in conditions of scarcely imaginable horror. He's done it excellently. There is no shortage of books on the Holocaust but Rees's stands out as a readable and authoritative exposition of how and why it happened, and the barbarous methods by which it was pursued. The amount of ground it covers in 500 pages is remarkable - from the anti-Semitism of popular German literature of the 19th century to Hitler's suicide and the surrender of his regime. It's excellently written and skilfully interweaves narrative history, sound interpretation and the recollections (through interviews, listed in the notes as "previously unpublished testimony") of survivors. Rees provides an exemplary account of how the greatest crime in modern history came about. * The Times *

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Book SynopsisBlack vaudevillians and entertainers joked that T.O.B.A. stood for tough on black artists. But the Theater Owner's Booking Association (T.O.B.A.) played a foundational role in the African American entertainment industry and provided a training ground for icons like Cab Calloway, Bessie Smith, Ethel Waters, Sammy Davis Jr., the Nicholas Brothers, Count Basie, and Butterbeans and Susie. Michelle R. Scott's institutional history details T.O.B.A.'s origins and practices while telling the little-known stories of the managers, producers, performers, and audience members involved in the circuit. Looking at the organization over its eleven-year existence (19201931), Scott places T.O.B.A. against the backdrop of what entrepreneurship and business development meant in black America at the time. Scott also highlights how intellectuals debated the social, economic, and political significance of black entertainment from the early 1900s through T.O.B.A.'s decline during the Great Depression. ClearTrade Review"Clarifies the important role African American entrepreneurs played in promoting entertainment by and for Black people during a transitional period in American show business history. . . .T.O.B.A. Time is an excellent addition to [the University of Illinois Press] catalogue." --NewCity Lit"In clear and precise prose Scott chronicles the coalescence of Black vaudeville and how T.O.B.A. helped establish and nurture the initial flowering of what became the incalculably influential Black entertainment industry. Readers who enjoyed Entertaining Raceby Michael Eric Dyson and Little Devil in America by Hanif Abdurraqib will find Scott’s unique history compelling. " --Booklist"Michelle R. Scott's T.O.B.A. Time: Black Vaudeville and the Theatre Owners' Booking Association in Jazz-Age America is a scholarship of the highest order. It provides an in-depth analysis of an organization that played an important role in providing a space for entrepreneurs and talented individuals to forge an independent role for themselves in segregated America. Scott effortlessly combines the minutiae of a multifaceted activity such as vaudeville with the broader currents which were operating in America in the early decades if the twentieth century." --British Journal of Industrial Relations“Scott’s meticulously researched and exquisitely detailed account reveals the broad impact of the T. O. B. A. circuit and the complexities of its organization and operations. The discussions of individual performers--famous and obscure--and their experiences as they worked the circuit are riveting. This is a benchmark book in theater studies and the definitive account of this fascinating institution.”--Allyson Nadia Field, author of Uplift Cinema: The Emergence of African American Film & The Possibility of Black Modernity Table of ContentsPreface AcknowledgmentsIntroduction: They Called It T.O.B.A. Chapter 1. “Whistling Coons” No More: Race Uplift & the Path to T.O.B.A. Chapter 2. Hebrew, Negro, and American Owners: Black Vaudeville and Interracial ManagementChapter 3. T.O.B.A Forms: The Interracial Business Plan for a New Negro BusinessChapter 4. The Multiple Meanings of T.O.B.A: The Performers’ PerspectiveChapter 5. A Responsibility to Community: Circuit Theaters and Black Regional AudiencesChapter 6. “Trouble in Mind": The End of T.O.B.A. TimeEpilogue: T.O.B.A.’s LegacyAppendixNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisScholars, journalists, and policymakers have long argued that the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act dramatically reshaped the demographic composition of the United States. In A Nation of Immigrants Reconsidered, leading scholars of immigration explore how the political and ideological struggles of the age of restriction--from 1924 to 1965--paved the way for the changes to come. The essays examine how geopolitics, civil rights, perceptions of America's role as a humanitarian sanctuary, and economic priorities led government officials to facilitate the entrance of specific immigrant groups, thereby establishing the legal precedents for future policies. Eye-opening articles discuss Japanese war brides and changing views of miscegenation, the recruitment of former Nazi scientists, a temporary workers program with Japanese immigrants, the emotional separation of Mexican immigrant families, Puerto Rican youth's efforts to claim an American identity, and the restaurant raids of conscriptedTrade Review"A Nation of Immigrants Reconsidered is a terrific anthology of thirteen essays, excavating the fertile history of immigration between 1924 and 1965." --Journal of American Ethnic History"This book makes a good case for why we must understand the mid-century period as part of a larger history of US immigration. As an overview of some of the best recent work on the period, this compilation stands out." --History"This anthology provides an excellent analysis of immigration policy changes in the 1924-1965 period. . . . These essays are well worth reading and offer a new, more comprehensive look at this period." --Journal of American History"This important collection revises our understanding of a relatively understudied period in the historiography of US immigration and citizenship, the years between the institution of national origins quotas in the 1920s and their abrogation in the 1960s. As such, it deserves wide scholarly attention."--Kunal M. Parker, author of Making Foreigners: Immigration and Citizenship Law in America, 1600-2000"Bringing together essays by rising stars and established leaders in US immigration history, this volume opens our understanding of the complexities of the national origins era by highlighting understudied dynamics, advancing new periodizations, and bringing new historical actors to the fore. Taken as a whole, the essays insist on the centrality of racial-nationalist boundary-making—and of struggles to defeat it—within the broader history of the US in the world in the mid-twentieth century."--Paul A. Kramer, author of The Blood of Government: Race, Empire, the United States, and the Philippines

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Book SynopsisRejecting the conventional Western interpretation of Middle Eastern history as an offshoot of global power politics, the author contends that the region's experience is the culmination of long-existing indigenous trends, passions and patterns of behaviour, and that foremost among these is Islam's millenarian imperial tradition.Trade Review"In Islamic Imperialism Efraim Karsh argues for the existence of an Islamic imperial drive and traces it from Muhammad's time to current Islamist aggressions. One can hardly imagine a thesis with larger implications for prosecuting the war on terror."—Daniel Pipes -- Daniel Pipes“Only a shrewd and talented revisionist, a professor with curiosity and nerve, could take on the clichés of Middle East scholarship and insist that they be reconsidered. That describes Efraim Karsh, a much-published and much-admired professor at the University of London. His new book, Islamic Imperialism deserves serious consideration by anyone who cares about this debate. He challenges not only our favourite ideas about the Middle East but even our notions of imperialism. . . . Karsh’s view of rising Islamic imperialism chills the blood. Multiculturalism looks different through the lens of his scholarship, and so does the future for global politics.”—Robert Fulford, Canada National Post -- Robert Fulford * Canada National Post *"Karsh's lively, clearly written and well-researched account should have an appeal beyond an academic audience. The crisp manner with which he disposes of accepted wisdom will delight the reader. And in laying to rest the victim theory, he restores a measure of dignity to the Middle East."—Ralph Amelan, Jerusalem Post -- Ralph Amelan * Jerusalem Post *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Kitchen’s exhaustively researched, detailed book nails, one by one, the lies of the man who provided a thick coat of whitewash to millions of old Nazis. Its fascinating account of how the moral degradation of the chaotic Nazi regime corrupted an entire nation is a timely warning for today.”—John Harding, “Book of the Month", Daily Mail -- John Harding * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisA comprehensive study of the connection between Calvinist missions and Dutch imperial expansion during the early modern periodTrade Review“This study is an important contribution to our understanding of the cultural and intellectual impact of the global Calvinist diaspora.”—Charles Littleton, Huguenot Society Journal“A masterly synthesis of archival and secondary sources, this is a tour de force offering the reader the best study of global Calvinism in the realms of the Dutch East India Company. Recommended for all students of early modern history.”—Ronnie Po-Chia Hsia, editor, Calvinism and Religious Toleration in the Dutch Golden Age“In this landmark and riveting publication, Charles Parker demonstrates the importance of Calvinism in the making of the Dutch Empire. Missionaries and their encounters with indigenous societies significantly reshaped Dutch intellectual life, inspiring Enlighted ideas about religion in Europe.”—Ulinka Rublack, Cambridge University“A splendid addition to the literature on Christian missions outside Europe during early modern times.”—Jonathan Israel, author of The Dutch Republic: Its Rise, Greatness, and Fall, 1477–1806

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

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Seapower States presents, along with a fascinating geopolitical chronicle, ‘the history of an idea, and its transmission across time’ . . . [with] many provocative insights. . . . A superb survey of the perennial opportunities and risks in what Herman Melville called ‘the watery part of the world.’”—William Anthony Hay, Wall Street Journal“Seapower States is an intriguing series of stories of communities thinking seriously about how to stand their own ground when outpowered, how to do so in ways that are consistent with their values, and sometimes how to negotiate the descent from being a great power when the cards just aren’t in their favour any more.These are timely questions.”—Sarah Kinkel, Times Higher Education Supplement“Compelling . . . both scholarly and readable.”—Gary Anderson, Washington Times“I admire the author’s ambition and verve, the fluency of his writing, the audacity of some of his insights, the unquenchability of his commitment and the brilliance with which he uses art as evidence.”—Felipe Fernandez Armesto, Literary Review“Utterly brilliant. It goes back to the Phoenicians, the Venetians, Carthaginians and all the way up to the British and Dutch. Beautifully written, a lifetime’s research” — Andrew Roberts, The Guardian“Lambert is, without a doubt, the most insightful naval historian writing today. His range is immense and his sensitivity to his subject profound. This is, however, a very serious book. . . . It will become a standard text at universities for decades to come. . . . I found this book admirable.“—Gerard DeGroot, Times (UK)“Andrew Lambert’s magisterial new book offers a provocative yet persuasive account of how five historical seapowers—Athens, Carthage, Venice, the Dutch republic and Britain—shaped our global social, economic and political identity.”—Jerry Brotton, BBC History Magazine“Seapower States is a powerful, compelling work by an historian who is absolutely at the top of his game.”—Nick Hewitt, Military History Magazine“Seapower States will prove to be an essential addition to the shelves of anyone interested in the relationships between culture, power, and strategy.”—Rob Cullum, Intelligence and National Security magazine“[A] gripping account”—Businesslife Magazine“An ambitious book that interweaves liberal politics, maritime strategy, and culture into a single account explaining the continuities among various policies across the sweep of Western history.”—Rob Cullum, Intelligence and National SecurityWinner of the sixth annual Gilder Lehrman Prize for Military History, sponsored by The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History“Seapower States offers a wide-ranging analysis of how and why different seapowers have emerged and declined. In crisp and assertive prose, Lambert points out parallels and congruences between different states, arguing that they chose to construct ‘seapower’ identities. An impressive and important contribution.”—James Davey, author of In Nelson’s Wake“An excellent much needed long-view historical narrative of the ideas of seapower and sea power. It shows how the classical heritage of the histories of the Peloponnesian and Punic wars have informed the rhetoric, grammar, metaphors and iconography of international politics for 500 years. It is well-written and well-structured, and leads to an important and provocative discussion of seapower and sea power in contemporary international relations.”—Richard Harding, author of Modern Naval History

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“The amount of material Waters has unearthed is impressive, especially given the deliberate invisibility of witchcraft’s practitioners. His book is a salutary reminder that the modern world is not immune to superstition”— Robert Leigh-Pemberton, Daily Telegraph“[The book] is admirably wide-ranging, none the less, offering a survey of magic from the beginning of the 19th century until the present day, clearly demonstrating its ubiquity, its importance, and its persistence” — William Whyte, Church Times“Waters has…produced a magnificent history of 19th and 20th-century British witchcraft.”—Simon Young, Times Higher Education "Waters will certainly get his readers thinking."—Ceri Houlbrook, The Canadian Journal of History“There are many histories of witchcraft and magic, but this one is distinguished by its impressive scholarship, compelling narratives and good writing.”—Fortean Times “A timely account of the ebb and flow of belief in the black arts in modern times. It's fascinating, well-researched and utterly compelling.”—Michelle Paver, author of Wakenhyrst“This is one of those pioneering studies which immediately establishes a mastery of its field. It is broad, adventurous, subtle, painstaking and in places perhaps controversial: at once a glittering debut and a monument of scholarship.”—Ronald Hutton, author of The Witch“Built around numerous intriguing case studies, Cursed Britain charts the continued fear of witchcraft and harmful magic in Britain and beyond over the last two centuries. Authoritative and engaging, Waters’ book explores and explains why we should seek to understand the magical beliefs of our recent ancestors, and also requires us to reflect on the continued belief in malign forces.”—Owen Davies, author of A Supernatural War“An important and timely investigation into how malevolent magic and counter magic has survived, adapted, declined, and revived in the modern age. This is also a very human history of fear, power, influence and imagination. Fascinating.”— Karl Bell, author of The Magical Imagination

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Book SynopsisA provocative account showing that “China”—and its 5,000 years of unified history—is a national myth, created only a century ago with a political agenda that persists to this dayTrade Review“This highly readable book is a fascinating primer on how the Qing Great State, reflected in a hall of mirrors formed of western ideas, reflects back a founding narrative which serves current Chinese political objectives. Contemporary Chinese policy is contextualised and thus somewhat demystified for the reader.”—Christopher Ruane, Asian Affairs“For scholars and students, the book provides fresh perspectives on age-old issues.”—Enzo Miguel M. De Borja, Philippine Political Science Journal“China is never out of the news, but we need to stop and think why our conventional wisdom about the country may need rethinking. Whether it’s the name of the country itself, or the maps that underpin its territorial claims, Hayton is a sure, informed and often witty guide to understanding how this major state came to imagine itself.”—Rana Mitter, author of China’s Good War“Immensely readable. . . . As China becomes increasingly nationalistic and aggressive, how Party leaders view their national identity and destiny grows ever more critical. This is a valuable porthole into that important subject.”—Orville Schell, author of Wealth and Power“A remarkable tour de force. This prodigious, highly readable book enhances our understanding of the origins and possible future of China’s ethnic conflicts, territorial disputes, and great power aspirations.”—Suisheng Zhao, University of Denver“Engaging. . . . Historians, poets, film-makers inside and outside China have built, demolished and rebuilt a multidimensional country/culture object that is more shaped by than shaping the aspirations and anxieties of humanity.”—Pamela Kyle Crossley, author of The Wobbling Pivot, China since 1800“Hayton’s work challenges readers to remember that ideas defining ‘China’ today are no more exceptional than those underpinning any state or nation. Assertions about rising from humiliation and immutable positions existing ‘since ancient times’ are in fact creations of an ongoing, modernist state-building project.”—Ja Ian Chong, assistant professor, National University of Singapore

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Book SynopsisA vibrant, diverse history of Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples in the age of RomanticismTrade Review“Best of all, Volcanic succeeds by showing the enduring draw of Vesuvius. . . . This is a polyphonic chorus of different voices and stories guided by such a stylish documentarian. . . . Momentous and spellbinding.”—Caroline Eden, Financial Times “A splendid work of historical archaeology. . . . Mr. Brewer writes as a literary and art critic as well as a historian—and he writes beautifully.”—Jeffrey Collins, Wall Street Journal“An entertaining social history. . . . [Brewer’s] account rests on the rare survival of a visitors’ book from 1826–8. . . . A fascinating and complex story, reflected by the mountain, itself an icon of destruction and renewal.”—Suzi Feay, The Guardian“[An] endlessly fascinating microhistory. . . . [Brewer’s] baroque prose is perfectly apt for his romantic subjects, all of whom were obsessed with the sublime.”—Pratinav Anil, Times (UK)“Vigorous and vividly detailed . . . deep scholarship sparked by serendipity.”—Lucy Hughes-Hallett, Times Literary Supplement“Brewer offers a series of lively pen portraits, interspersed with sociological sketches and glimpses of politics, science, painting, antiquarianism and more. . . . An extremely learned and companionable guide.”—Seamus Perry, Literary ReviewListed in New Statesman’s Best Books of the Academic Presses, 2023“An absorbing study by a master historian, Volcanic chronicles our fleeting attempts to comprehend, control and shape an unmasterable force of nature.” —Jeffrey Collins, The Australian“[A] brilliant study. . . . Such humility and respect for the natural world has never felt more apt nor urgent.”—Jacqueline Riding, Country Life“Brewer’s sweeping account is an enjoyable read rich in rigorous original research, thoughtful analysis and engaging storytelling. Like those travellers scaling the slopes under the watchful eyes of Salvatore Madonna, we couldn’t hope for a better guide.”—Emily Brand, BBC History Magazine“This is an exceptional book, a master class of historical writing, imagination and insight.”—John A. Davis, author of Naples and Napoleon“Vesuvius was a dramatic natural curiosity few travellers engaged in the Grand Tour could resist. By tracing the steps of visitors, guides and naturalists, Brewer writes a fascinating history of marvel and knowledge, strong emotions and leisure.”—Pietro Corsi, author of Science and Religion“In Volcanic, John Brewer animates the Vesuvius of the Romantic era, from the tourist throngs and guides who made the volcano their business, to the movers, shakers, savants and scientists whose works and lives intersected around this grand, natural laboratory. This is a rich, entertaining and illuminating account of the cultural milieu of continental Europe’s liveliest volcano.”—David Pyle, author of Volcano: Encounters Through the Ages“In this magnetic, densely populated, account of Vesuvius, Brewer moves at ease between the intensely close-focus and the universal. The volcano, nerve-wracking yet thrilling in its unpredictability, mesmerised individuals and even mirrored political reverberations in Europe and beyond. Brewer has captured Vesuvius in its Romantic entirety: he has written a remarkable book.”—Gillian Darley, author of Vesuvius: The Most Famous Volcano in the World

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Book SynopsisThe first account of Britain’s convoys during the Napoleonic Wars—showing how the protection of trade played a decisive role in victoryTrade Review“A delightful book. . . . Knight describes the nature of life on the convoys in intricate detail, but always in simple, accessible prose. Points are made through delightfully allegorical anecdotes, rather than cumbersome argument. We feel the waves, smell the sea, rub shoulders with long-suffering seamen.”—Gerard DeGroot, Times (UK)“The story of these men and their ships . . . is recounted brilliantly and deserves to be read as both a pleasure and a tribute.”—David Childs, Naval ReviewEach year, in memory of Dr Roger Charles Anderson, a distinguished naval scholar and founder member of the Society, the Society awards the Anderson medal for a book on maritime history published during the previous year.“Naval history at its best. A challenging text that examines the critical role of the British convoy system in the Napoleonic era, a partnership that bound the state, trade, the Royal Navy and the insurance industry, and foreshadowed the better-known but no less vital convoy systems of the World Wars of the twentieth century.”—Andrew Lambert, author of Nelson: Britannia’s God of War“This is an outstanding study of a vital and too-long neglected element of British power during the Napoleonic War. Knight takes us into the daily lives of those who worked on these dangerous missions, explodes many old myths and makes an important contribution to developing our understanding of life at sea in this period.”—Richard Harding, author of Naval Leadership in the Atlantic World“Outstanding. Roger Knight brilliantly tells the forgotten story that underpinned Britain’s survival and ultimate victory in the war against Napoleon. Authoritative and original, this will appeal to all readers with an interest in the Napoleonic Wars.”—Rory Muir, author of Wellington: The Path to Victory 1769–1814

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Book SynopsisThe most horrific struggle of the American Revolution occurred just 100 yards off New York, where more men died aboard a rotting prison ship than were lost to combat during the entirety of the war. Moored off the coast of Brooklyn until the end of the war, the derelict ship, the HMS Jersey, was a living hell for thousands of Americans either captured by the British or accused of disloyalty. Crammed below deck -- a shocking one thousand at a time -- without light or fresh air, the prisoners were scarcely fed food and water. Disease ran rampant and human waste fouled the air as prisoners suffered mightily at the hands of brutal British and Hessian guards. Throughout the colonies, the mere mention of the ship sparked fear and loathing of British troops. It also sparked a backlash of outrage as newspapers everywhere described the horrors onboard the ghostly ship. This shocking event, much like the better-known Boston Massacre before it, ended up rallying public support for the war. Revealing for the first time hundreds of accounts culled from old newspapers, diaries, and military reports, award-winning historian Robert P. Watson follows the lives and ordeals of the ship''s few survivors to tell the astonishing story of the cursed ship that killed thousands of Americans and yet helped secure victory in the fight for independence.

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Book SynopsisV. S. Naipaul was born in Trinidad in 1932. He came to England on a scholarship in 1950. He spent four years at University College, Oxford, and began to write, in London, in 1954. He pursued no other profession.His novels include A House for Mr Biswas, The Mimic Men, Guerrillas, A Bend in the River, and The Enigma of Arrival. In 1971 he was awarded the Booker Prize for In a Free State. His works of nonfiction, equally acclaimed, include Among the Believers, Beyond Belief, The Masque of Africa, and a trio of books about India: An Area of Darkness, India: A Wounded Civilization and India: A Million Mutinies Now.In 1990, V. S. Naipaul received a knighthood for services to literature; in 1993, he was the first recipient of the David Cohen British Literature Prize. He received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2001. He lived with his wife Nadira and cat Augustus in Wiltshire, and died in 20Trade ReviewNaipaul travels with the artist’s eye and ear and his observations are sharply discerning. -- Evelyn WaughBelongs in the same category of travel writing as Lawrence’s books on Italy, Greene’s on West Africa and Pritchett’s on Spain. * New Statesman *Where earlier travellers enthused or recoiled, Mr Naipaul explains. His tone is critical but humane, and he tempers his inevitable indignation with an admirable sense of comedy. * Observer *Dazzling reportorial skills and a sharp historical mind. * New York Times Book Review *

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Book Synopsis* Uniquely complete account of the British Empire - Jan Morris' great Penguin trilogy PAX BRITANNICA only starts from 1837, rather than the 16th Century.* A modern classic of narrative history, updated to include the 1997 handover of Hong Kong.Trade ReviewA masterpiece * A N Wilson *...with this superb history of a mammoth subject his writing career has reached its apogee. * Andrew Roberts, THE TIMES *James never loses sight of his grand design, yet he still finds room for the telling detail which illuminates and enriches a narrative" Philip Ziegler, THE DAILY TELEGRAPH * 'A stimulating book… intelligent and making no concessions to current cliché.’ *IRISH TIMES * 'With dispassion and erudition James restores it to us mixing a pacy, lucid narrative with enlivening detail taken from political, cultural and populist sources.’ *His feeling for historical detail cannot be faulted and is made more engaging by his scholarship and infectious enthusiasm for the subject ... A thumping good read * Scotland on Sunday *James' epic is not only a first-rate narrative, but also a penetrating portrait of the British ... Having largely, if often inadvertently, selfishly or ham-fistedly, engineered the world we live in, we need the courage now to face up to our record as coolly and intelligently as Lawrence James has done * John Spurling, TLS *Outstanding ... An intelligible introduction to a grand subject * M.R.D. Foot, THE SPECTATOR'S BOOK OF THE YEAR *

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Book SynopsisMigrants cuts through the toxic debates to tell the rich and collective stories of humankind's urge to move. 'Fascinating... Miller's perspective may be just what we need' Daily Telegraph 'Enjoyable, provocative and timely' Spectator 'Timely and empathetic: a rare combination on this most controversial issue' Remi Adekoya, author of Biracial Britain 'Tremendous: blends the personal and the panoramic to great effect' Robert Winder, author of Bloody Foreigners Humans are, in fundamental ways, a migratory species, more so than any other land mammal. For most of our existence , we were all nomads, and some of us still are. Houses and permanent settlements are a relatively late development - dating back little more than twelve thousand years. Borders and passports are much more recent. From the Neanderthals, Alexander the Great, Christopher Columbus and Pocahontas to the African slave trade, Fu Manchu, and Barack Obama, Migrants shows us that it is only by understanding how migration and migrants have been viewed in the past, that we can re-set the terms of the modern-day debate about migration.Migrants presents us with an alternative history of the world, in which migration is restored to the heart of the human story. And in which humans migrate for a wide range of reasons: not just because of civil war, or poverty or climate change but also out of curiosity and a sense of adventure. On arrival, migrants are expected both to assimilate and encouraged to remain distinctive; to defend their heritage and adopt a new one. They are sub-human and super-human; romanticised and castigated, admired and abhorred. Migrants tells us that this is not a new narrative; this is the history of us all, part of everybody's backstory - for those who consider themselves migrants and those who do not.

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Book Synopsis** Eastern Eye''s Non-Fiction Book of the Year 2023 **The UK is grappling with big questions about belonging, equality and the legacies of Empire and Colonialism. We''ve been here before. Embracing a broader history that encompasses all British people, The Shoulders We Stand On is fundamental to a better understanding of the past and gives many more people who fought for our future a voice in the present.''One of the most important books I''ve ever read . . . this history matters and should never, ever, be forgotten'' Dr Priya Atwal, Royals and RebelsHave you heard of the Indian Workers'' Association? The Grunwick Strike? The Brixton Black Women''s Group? The Battle of Brick Lane? If the answer is no, you''re not alone. The Shoulders We Stand On tells the stories of ten remarkable movements, campaigns and organisations led by Black and Brown people across Britain from the sixties to the eighties that fought aga

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Book Synopsis''A rich, sprawling epic full of history and magic.'' Alix E. Harrow, Hugo award-winning authorA sweeping tale of revolution and wonder in a world not quite like our own, A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians is a genre-defying story of magic, war, and the struggle for freedom.It is the Age of Enlightenment -- of new and magical political movements, from the necromancer Robespierre calling for revolution in France to the weather mage Toussaint L''Ouverture leading the slaves of Haiti in their fight for freedom, to the bold new Prime Minister William Pitt weighing the legalization of magic amongst commoners in Britain and abolition throughout its colonies overseas. But amidst all of the upheaval of the enlightened world, there is an unknown force inciting all of human civilisation into violent conflict. And it will require the combined efforts of revolutionaries, magicians, and abolitionists to unmask this hidden enemy before the whole Trade ReviewA beautiful tapestry of words, a combination of carefully observed and researched history and a well-thought-out and fascinating system of magic. An absolute delight to read. * Genevieve Cogman, author of THE INVISIBLE LIBRARY *Impressively intricate; fans of the magic-and-history of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell will be delighted. * Alexandra Rowland, author of A CONSPIRACY OF TRUTHS *A rich, sprawling epic full of history and magic. * Alix E. Harrow, Hugo Award-winning author *Puts a human face on the titans of the past, while weaving in supernatural elements that add a whole new dimension. I stayed up well past my bedtime to find out what happens next. * Marie Brennan, author of The Memoirs of Lady Trent series *Many have tried and some have succeeded in writing mashups with famed literary characters, but Parry knocks it out of the park... Just plain wonderful * Kirkus on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *Fun, witty, and full of insights about the powerful effect of stories on our lives, this book is highly recommended. Give it to readers who devoured Jasper Fforde, Jim C. Hines' Libriomancer, and Genevieve Cogman's The Invisible Library, and to readers looking for adventurous fantasy with a soupçon of family drama. * Booklist (starred review) on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *H.G. Parry's ambitious debut novel is a delight of magic and literature, love and adventure. With vibrant characters and a passion for story that shines through every word, this engaging read establishes Parry as a writer to watch. * Kat Howard on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *A delightful blend of adventure and mystery and marvel, a story in which the fantastical becomes real. This beautifully-written novel is an exploration of the power fiction wields -- the power to inform and to change, even to endanger, our everyday world. * Louisa Morgan on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *A daring exploration of the worlds within words. Parry writes with the keen insight of Sherlock Holmes, the generous heart of David Copperfield, and the haunting soul of Dorian Gray. * Jordanna Max Brodsky on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *A joyous adventure through all the tales you've ever loved. Funny, charming, clever and heartfelt, you're absolutely going to adore The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep. * Tasha Suri on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *H.G. Parry has crafted an imaginative and unique exploration of how words shift our lives in ways big and small. The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep is a rollicking adventure that thrills like Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere mashed up with Penny Dreadful in the best post-modern way. Equal parts sibling rivalry, crackling mystery, and Dickensian battle royale, it'll be one of your most fun reads this year. * Mike Chen on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *Parry does a lovely dance on and around the stage of Dickens and other classical literature, playing fast and loose with the nature of reality to tell a story about the transformative act of the reading process and the importance of family, both found and not. The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep is dead clever and enormously satisfying. * Vivian Shaw on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *Clever, emotionally compelling, and teeming with witty allusions. In a story reminiscent of the literary world-bending adventures of Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next, Parry has crafted a tale which will appeal to the cherished dreams-and secret nightmares-of all bibliophiles. * Cass Morris on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *If you've ever checked the backs of your wardrobe for snow and lamp-light -- if you've ever longed to visit Pemberley House or 221B Baker Street, to battle the Jabberwock or wander through a fictional London fog -- this book belongs to you. It's a star-studded literary tour and a tangled mystery and a reflection on reading itself; it's a pure delight. * Alix E. Harrow on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *Engaging and intelligent, The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep kept me turning the pages to discover familiar characters and surprising twists. * Rowenna Miller on THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP *

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Book SynopsisAlthough it offers an appropriately complex treatment of the American past, Boyer/Clark/Halttunen/Kett/Salisbury/Sitkoff/Woloch/Rieser's THE ENDURING VISION: A HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, 10th EDITION, requires no prerequisite knowledge from students. The approach is not only comprehensive, but readable, lively and illuminating. It is attentive to the lived historical experiences of women, African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans and Native Americans -- that is, of men and women of all ethnic groups, regions and social classes who make up the American mosaic. This text seeks to encourage students' spatial thinking about historical developments by offering a map program rich in information, easy to read and visually appealing. Visual culture -- paintings, photographs, cartoons and other illustrations -- is investigated throughout all chapters in the volume.Table of ContentsPrologue: Enduring Vision, Enduring Land. 1. Native Peoples of America, to 1500. 2. The Rise of the Atlantic World, 1400-1625. 3. The Emergence of Colonial Societies, 1625-1700. 4. The Bonds of Empire, 1660-1750. 5. Roads to Revolution, 1750-1776. 6. Securing Independence, Defining Nationhood, 1776-1788. 7. Launching the New Republic, 1788-1800. 8. America at War and Peace, 1801-1824. 9. The Transformation of American Society, 1815-1840. 10. Democratic Politics, Religious Revival, and Reform, 1824-1840. 11. Technology, Culture, and Everyday Life, 1840-1860. 12. The Old South and Slavery, 1830-1860. 13. Immigration, Expansion, and Sectional Conflict, 1840-1848. 14. From Compromise to Secession, 1850-1861. 15. The Promise of Freedom: Civil War, 1861-1865. 16. Reconstruction and Resistance, 1865-1877. 17. The Transformation of the Trans-Mississippi West, 1860-1900. 18. The Rise of Industrial America, 1865-1900. 19. Immigration, Urbanization, and Everyday Life, 1860-1900. 20. Politics and Expansion in an Industrializing Age, 1877-1900. 21. The Progressive Era, 1900-1917. 22. Global Involvements and World War I, 1902-1920. 23. Coping with Change, 1920-1929. 24. The Great Depression and the New Deal, 1929-1939. 25. Americans and a World in Crisis, 1933-1945. 26. The Cold War Abroad and at Home, 1945-1960. 27. America at Midcentury, 1945-1963. 28. The Triumph and Collapse of Liberalism, 1963-1968. 29. Conservatism Reborn, 1968-1988. 30. The Second Gilded Age, 1988-2008. 31. An Enduring Democracy, 2008 to the Present.

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Book SynopsisThe fascinating story of America's national anthem and a search for the source of its powerful meaning today

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Book SynopsisDuring the Second World War, a secret department was formed at Britain's Air Ministry to co-ordinate a strategy to defeat German bombing by means of deception. This is a study of Britain's bombing decoys, both at war, through their design, locations and operations, and at peace, through their fragmentary survival.

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Book SynopsisMaking creates knowledge, builds environments and transforms lives. Anthropology, archaeology, art and architecture are all ways of making, and all are dedicated to exploring the conditions and potentials of human life. In this exciting book, Tim Ingold ties the four disciplines together in a way that has never been attempted before. In a radical departure from conventional studies that treat art and architecture as compendia of objects for analysis, Ingold proposes an anthropology and archaeology not of but with art and architecture. He advocates a way of thinking through making in which sentient practitioners and active materials continually answer to, or correspond', with one another in the generation of form. Making offers a series of profound reflections on what it means to create things, on materials and form, the meaning of design, landscape perception, animate life, personal knowledge and the work of the hand. It draws on examples and experTrade Review"In his latest book, Tim Ingold persuasively argues for anthropology’s transformational capacity and promotes serious reflection on the need for anthropologists to correspond with the world. His focus on handwork in art, building, and the making of tools beautifully illustrates ‘thinking through making’ and learning by doing. This accessible book makes an excellent and timely contribution to a core area of anthropological research, and invites the reader to engage with the fascinating work emerging from it." - Trevor Marchand, School of Oriental & African Studies, UK"Ingold is a joy to read. With Making, he continues to enliven the social sciences with his distinctively compelling and critical reflections on anthropological, archaeological, architectural and artistic practices. This volume will be useful to all who are striving to integrate art and research, making and thinking, practice and theory." - Ian Alden Russell, David Winton Bell Gallery, Brown University, USA"For architects it is an absolute must to discover and absorb the work of this friendly outsider whose ideas touch the heart of what we do." - Lars Spuybroek, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA"Unafraid to ask bold questions and propose daring answers, Tim Ingold has developed a distinctive voice. In the process, he has staked out an increasingly influential position that touches on a wide range of disciplines." - Webb Keane, University of Michigan, USATable of Contents1. Knowing from the inside 2. The materials of life 3. On making a hand axe 4. On building a house 5. The sighted watchmaker 6. Round mound and earth sky 7. Bodies on the run 8. Telling by hand 9. Drawing the line

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Book SynopsisWhy is the moving image so important in our lives? What is the link between the psychology of Jung, Freud and films? How do film and psychology address the problems of modernity? Visible Mind is a book about why film is so important to contemporary life, how film affects us psychologically as individuals, and how it affects us culturally as collective social beings. Since its inception, film has been both responsive to historical cultural conditions and reflective of changes in psychological and emotional needs. Arising at the same moment over a century ago, both film and psychoanalysis helped to frame the fragmented experience of modern life in a way that is still with us today. Visible Mind pays attention to the historical context of film for what it can tell us about our inner lives, past and present.Christopher Hauke discusses a range of themes from the perspective of film and analytical psychology, these include: The FaceTable of ContentsPart I: Watching Movies . Introduction; Modernity, fragmentation and film. The Face and Film; The surface and what’s beneath. Film and The Shadow; Film and its gaps - emptiness as shadow to substance. Cinema, Jung and the American psyche; How Europe got to know the mind of America through the movies. Part II: Making Movies. What makes movies work; Unconscious process and the filmmaker’s craft. Based on real events’; Narratives of fact and fiction in film. Changing Your Story. Narrative, time and meaning in the movies. Part III: Projecting movies . Out of the not-knowing, something forms. Unusual Suspects: movies in the therapist’s room. Anima-Animus; Soul-image and individuation.

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Book SynopsisIn his most powerful and important book, renowned psychiatrist Robert Jay Lifton presents a brilliant analysis of the crucial role that German doctors played in the Nazi genocide. Now updated with a new preface, The Nazi Doctors remains the definitive work on the Nazi medical atrocities, a chilling exposé of the banality of evil at its epitome, and a sobering reminder of the darkest side of human nature.

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Book SynopsisVenice was a major center of art in the Renaissance: the city where the medium of oil on canvas became the norm. The achievements of the Bellini brothers, Carpaccio, Giorgione, Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese are a key part of this story. Nowhere else has been depicted by so many great painters in so many diverse styles and moods. Venetian views were a speciality of native artists such as Canaletto and Guardi, but the city has also been represented by outsiders: J. M. W. Turner, Claude Monet, John Singer Sargent, Howard Hodgkin, and many more.Then there are those who came to look at and write about art. The reactions of Henry James, George Eliot, Richard Wagner, and others enrich this tale. Nor is the story over. Since the advent of the Venice Biennale in the 1890s, and the arrival of pioneering modern art collector Peggy Guggenheim in the late 1940s, the city has become a shop window for the contemporary art of the whole world, and it remains the site of important artistic events.In this elegant volume, Gayford?who has visited Venice countless times since the 1970s, covered every Biennale since 1990, and even had portraits of himself exhibited there on several occasions?takes us on a visual journey through the past five centuries of the city known La Serenissima, the Most Serene. It is a unique and compelling portrait of Venice that will delight lovers of the city and lovers of its art.Trade Review'Venice isn’t just the most painted city in the world, it is probably the most written about too. Finding a fresh angle from which to view it is a challenge. Gayford’s answer is to understand the city and its history through the splendid and varied art it has inspired. Packed with potted histories and informed anecdotes, this is a tome to pack on a visit to La Serenissima' - Waldemar Januszczak, Art Books of the Year, The Sunday Times'Impressive' - New European'Clear, vividly well written and deeply original ... a very bold, far reaching analysis of this much discussed city ... to offer an original perspective on this important city is a very significant achievement' - David Carrier, Counterpunch'Engaging, sumptuously illustrated … This is the present influencing the past and vice versa, living history' - Country & Town House'A compelling portrait of Venice capturing the work of great painters from Titian and Canaletto to Monet and Turner' - Traveller'Elegant, insightful ... Gayford is the perfect cicerone - observant, original and energetic. This isn’t a straight history of Venice or Venetian art, but a book about how artists and writers have pictured Venice and shaped the way visitors see Venice in turn. From Jacopo de' Barbari’s seabird's-eye map of the lagoon to Anselm Kiefer’s’ takeover of the Doge’s Palace, via Veronese, Canaletto, Ruskin, Manet, Monet, Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire and Yayoi Kusama: discover Venice anew' - Laura Freeman, Books of the Year, The Times'I didn’t think it would be possible to write a new, fresh and original book about Venice, but Martin Gayford has managed it ... I can’t think of a better way of introducing Venice and it makes me want to get on a plane at once' - Sir Charles Saumarez Smith'Gayford vaults the psychological crevasse between the 15th century and the present with élan, recovering the vitality, energy and thrilling modernity of its innovations … The freshness and precision of his vision reanimates even the most familiar Venetian masterpieces. A Titian scholar, his evocation of the disarming, almost hallucinatory sensuality produced by the dash and flutter of brushstrokes is positively gleeful' - Lisa Hilton, Spectator'The scale of the book is dazzling, spanning 500 years of history, opera, sculpture and buildings, religion, philosophy – and, of course, art. Along the way, elegant prose introduces a fascinating cast … All told, this is a wonderful lesson in Venetian paintings, and how to look at them. It made me desperate to return to Venice and rush to the Frari Basilica to contemplate Titian’s Assunta' - The Tablet'Martin Gayford points out, with learning and discrimination, the hidden-in-plain-sight' - Michael Prodger, Country Life'The book is conversational, amiable; the effect is that of wandering around the city, its museums, churches and confraternities, its calli and campi, its limping bell towers and scene-stealing façades, its duelling bridges and blind alleys, with a thoughtful and well-read friend … [Gayford’s] book is a celebration that sidesteps some of the clichés of a more heritage-driven approach … he roots the project in the elementary pleasure of standing in front of, looking at and thinking about beautiful and interesting things' - Keith Miller, Times Literary Supplement'This is a book to immerse yourself in and to let your imagination run freely' - The Artist

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Book SynopsisThe first book in nearly a century to explore and satisfactorily explain how and when the Irish people came into being, now available in B-format paperback.Trade Review'So important ... It was very difficult to put down ... Wonderful' - History Today'Mallory’s wry, convivial style makes this complex account an effortless and enjoyable read' - Current Archaeology'Mallory brilliantly synthesizes the complexities of geology, archaeology, historical/mythical sources, genetics and linguistics ... I urge you to read this brilliant book' - Minerva'Superb and witty … as a tour d’horizon, it is unmatched' - The Irish TimesTable of ContentsPreface • Introduction • 1. The Origins of Ireland • 2. First Colonists • 3. First Farmers • 4. Beakers and Metal • 5. The Rise of the Warriors • 6. The Iron Age • 7. The Native Version • 8. Skulls, Blood and Genes • 9. The Evidence of Language • 10. The Origins of the Irish

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Book SynopsisIn this clear and evocative account, John Gaskin unfolds the thinking about nature, life, death and other worlds that informed the culture and society of the Classical world, drawing out its interest for modern readers. Witty sketches and diagrams enliven the story, which runs from Homeric Greece to the banning of pagan religions in ad 391. The book concludes with a gazetteer describing notable sites and the people and ideas connected with them, making it an ideal companion for visitors to Classical ruins and for all armchair travellers curious to explore life's big questions.Trade Review'A great idea, smartly executed … You’ll never confuse a Stoic with a Cynic again' - Independent'One of my favourite discoveries in the last twelve months' - Juxtabook'Clear and evocative … a delightful book … It is written with a light and witty touch but you will be the wiser for reading it' - Timeless TravelsTable of ContentsPart I – The Idea of Hellenism: What the Greeks Created: 1. The Scheme of Things Entire • 2. The Idea of Hellenism • 3. Wine, Sex and the Symposium • 4. Theatres: Festivals, Entertainments and Meetings • 5. Temples: Gods, Feasts and Safe Deposits • Part II – The Ideal of Homer and the Ideas of the Philosophers: • 1. Troy: The Legend and the Book • 2. Troy: The Book and the Ideals • 3. Miletus: The Nature of the Universe • 4 Ionia and Western Greece: Laws, Numbers and Reality • 5. Athens: Socrates, Plato and Other Worlds • 6. Aristotle and this World: Nature, Life and Ethics • 7. Epicurus: The Garden and the Wilderness • 8. Stoicism: Duty and the Laws of Nature • 9. Neoplatonism: The Last Protest • 10. The End of Classical Antiquity • Part III – Cities and Citizens: A Gazetteer

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Book SynopsisDr Fahmida Suleman is Phyllis Bishop Curator for the Modern Middle East at the British Museum. She is the editor of Word of God, Art of Man: The Qur'an and its Creative Expressions and People of the Prophet's House: Artistic and Ritual Expressions of Shi'i Islam.Trade Review'A fascinating visual resource, full of beautiful, detailed images and lots of surprises … exciting … the text is concise and informative … It is a pleasure to learn by looking through this delightful book' - Jennifer Wearden, former curator of Islamic Textiles at the Victoria & Albert Museum'A visual feast and an eye-opening history' - History Revealed'Lives up to its title in examining “the fabric of life” across time in this vast region' - Embroidery'Richly illustrated … there is a lot to be learned about the region in this beautifully presented book' - Journal for Weavers, Spinners & Dyers'Beautifully illustrated ... this publication provides an exquisite guide through the collection' - Anthropos JournalTable of ContentsIntroduction • 1. Childhood • 2. Status and Identity • 3. Marriage and Ceremony • 4. Religion and Belief • 5. House and Homestead • 6. Politics and Conflict

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Book SynopsisAlan Johnson was born in May 1950. He is a British Labour Party politician who served as Home Secretary from June 2009 to May 2010. Before that he filled a wide variety of cabinet positions in both the Blair and Brown governments, including Health Secretary and Education Secretary. Until 20 January 2011 he was Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer. Johnson was the Member of Parliament for Hull West and Hessle until his retirement from politics in 2017. His first book, This Boy, won the RSL Ondaatje Prize and the Orwell Prize in 2013. His second, Please Mister Postman, won the National Book Award for Autobiography of the Year in 2014. His third, The Long and Winding Road, was published in 2016 and won the Parliamentary Book Award for Best Memoir.Trade ReviewThe best political testament I have ever read -- Peter Wilby * New Statesman *This boy can write…there’s nothing second-rate about his writing. He is a natural * The Spectator *A wonderful elegy for a life that has only just passed into history... Beautifully written, affecting and sad -- John Rentoul * Independent on Sunday *A fascinating piece of social history -- Daisy Goodwin * Sunday Times *Johnson’s writing style is easy, relaxed, self-deprecating. His recall and eye for detail are impressive -- Chris Mullin * Observer *

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