History

A scathing look at the Russian Revolution in the aftermath of the Bolshevik takeover. Prominent anarchist Emma Goldman describes the repression practiced by the Leninists against politicla dissidents and their own workers, in order to maintain their system of centralized party-dominated state capitalism. First published in two volumes 1923 and 1924; this one volume reprint 2008

Planning a cruise? Heading for the high seas? This book is guaranteed to make you think twice. You won't be immune to a frisson of fear as you peruse these gripping stories of piracy on the Chinese seas. After all, piracy is as prevalent today as it was in the early nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Culled from contemporary newspapers, journals, and a rare selection of diplomatic letters and telegrams, this anthology is the first true crime thriller set off the China coast - first-hand accounts by the men, women and children who ... read more

The USA is now the world's lone superpower, whose deeds could make or break this century. For better and worse, America has Americanised the world. How did a marginal frontier society, in a mere two centuries, become the de facto ruler of the world? First published 2008

This is a literary cartography to delight armchair travellers everywhere. It includes a wonderful mix of fascinating facts and warm nostalgia. It is now available in paperback. Do you still find yourself referring to Zaire or Czechoslovakia, or wondering whether it should be Moldavia or Moldova, Burma or Myanmar? Dozens of countries, cities and counties have changed their identity over the years - even within our lifetime. "Whatever Happened to Tanganyika?" is a fascinating trawl through the place names that history left behind. Fr... read more

From Herod to Papa Doc Duvalier, from Nero to Saddam Hussein, here are 50 chilling portraits of the despots whose iron-fisted rule left an indelible mark on the history of the world. Presenting a compelling chronology of the moments in history when the principles of government and law were corrupted by the vanity of the ambitious and unscrupulous, "The Tyrants" recounts the story of each dictator individually. From irresistible rise to inevitable fall, it describes how these men and women - as often outcasts or outsiders as kings o... read more

Polk is an extensive traveller, Explorers Club member and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. With fellow writer Tiegreen she tells the stories of women ranging from 10th Century Viking Unn the Deep Minded to 20th Century primatologist Jane Goodall. The result, including photos and maps, is an impressive gallery of more than 80 women who ventured into inhospitable territory as travellers, explorers, photographers, aviators and scientists.

"An enchanting photographic journey through mid-19th-20th century Jerusalem, Gibson's book offers a haunting view, never previously seen, of faces and historical landscapes" - Seymour Gitin "The very essence of old Jerusalem - timeless and deeply rewarding" from the preface

Essays on the "traffic" in human bodies in Pacific region from 18th century to present.

Historica shows the evolution of people

On May 25, 1841, the whaleship Sharon of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, set out for the whaling grounds of the northwestern Pacific under the command of Captain Howes Norris. A year later, while most of the crew was out on the hunt, Norris remained at the helm with four crew members - three of them natives from the Pacific Islands. When the men in the whaleboats spied the Sharon's flag flying at half-mast -a signal of distress- they rowed toward the ship to discover their Captain had been hacked to pieces. His murderers, the Pacific Isl... read more

A highly accessible, beautifully illustrated short history of Bali from the Bronze Age to the 2002 bombing. Two million tourists visit Bali every year. Many want to know more about the island, its often turbulent past, and the forces that have shaped its universally appealing culture. This lively and informative concise history is for them, and for others interested in a unique but important province of Indonesia. A Short History of Bali covers the entire history of this intriguing and mysterious island, from before the Bronze... read more

From the Manhattan Project to the present energy crisis and what it means for our future, In Mortal Hands is a sweeping chronicle of humanity's attempts to harness the power of the atom. Drawing on unprecedented access to industry insiders and historical documents, Stephanie Cooke charts the intertwined histories of military and civilian nuclear programs from the Second World War to the present day. She describes the development of the first atom bomb, the decision to bomb Hiroshima and the race to develop nuclear programmes during... read more

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Part one of a two-volume comprehensive history - less a history of Ireland, more a history of civilization in an Irish kind of way St Patrick catching sight of Ireland for the first time as he is taken there as a prisoner; Joyce and Yeats eating sticky buns in a Dublincaf . There has never before been an Irish history book remotely like this one, composed as a vast mosaic of incidents, encounters and vignettes. It is not so much a history of Irish civilization as an Irish history of civilization . In telling a wide range of stori... read more

In a magnificent narrative, Stephen O'Shea evokes the crucial encounters between the two imperial faiths, bringing to life the instances of their momentous conflict and coexistence, which have made the world in which we live: 'He has a wonderful sense of place and the survival of the past in the present' - Robert Irwin. On the one hand, the fall of the Christian Middle East at Yarmuk and the sack of Constantinople by the Ottomans, on the other the glorious multicultural societies of Cordoba and Palermo - these and other fragments o... read more

The first proper global account of the place of technology in twentieth century history, this brilliant, thought-provoking book will radically revise our understanding of the relationship between technology and society.This first ever history of technology casts aside the usual stories of inventions and focuses instead on what people actually use. It reassesses the relationship of technology and society, using unrecognised examples such as Spanish synthetic petrol, Japanese rickshaws, American gas chambers, Soviet tractors and Turk... read more

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The Victorians were a people of visions. Their visions were partly inspired by the immense social problems they inherited from their predecessors and, additionally, created for themselves. They were also influenced by the intellectual ferment of their age; by the political turmoil of Europe; by the technological advances that gave them a sense of riding a tiger of progress; and by a new awareness of the wider world in which they were set. This book, and the exhibition which it accompanies, sets out to examine these wider preoccupat... read more

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The birth of the railways and their rapid spread across the world triggered economic growth and social change on an unprecedented scale. From Panama to the Punjab, Tasmania to Turin, Blood, Iron and Gold describes the vision and determination of the pioneers who developed railways that would link cities that had hitherto been isolated, and would one day span continents. Christian Wolmar reveals how the rise of the train stimulating daring feats of engineering, architectural innovation and the rapid movement of people and goods arou... read more