History

A bold new history showing that the fear of Communism was a major factor in the outbreak of World War IIThe Spectre of War looks at a subject we thought we knew—the roots of the Second World War—and upends our assumptions with a masterful new...

'Grayling brings satisfying order to daunting subjects' -- Steven PinkerIn very recent times humanity has learnt a vast amount about the universe, the past, and itself. But through our remarkable successes in acquiring knowledge we have learned how much...

A prize-winning historian reveals how Stalin—not Hitler—was the animating force of World War II in this major new history.World War II endures in the popular imagination as a heroic struggle between good and evil, with villainous Hitler driving its...

Charting the events and psychological effects of witch-hunting in a small community of early settlers in 1650s Massachusetts in gripping and thought-provoking prose, The Ruin of All Witches reads like a haunting real-life folktale.   The dark,...

As richly beautiful as it is informative, Hidden Hands’ skill is in bringing to life not only the works that are so essential to our literary and cultural history but the men and women – their quiet lives often unregarded – who created and preserved...

This immersive dive into the life and work of Salvador Dalí unlocks the secret of this creative genius and reveals for the first time how his erotically charged paintings changed the world of modern art. In turns beloved and reviled, twentieth century...

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThe official book behind the Academy Award-winning film The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira KnightleyIt is only a slight exaggeration to say that the British mathematician Alan Turing (1912-1954) saved...

The bestselling author of E=mc2 weaves tales of romance, divine inspiration, and fraud through an account of the invisible force that permeates our universe—electricity—and introduces us to the virtuoso scientists who plumbed its secrets.For centuries,...

A landmark work of American photojournalism “renowned for its fusion of social conscience and artistic radicality” (New York Times)     In the summer of 1936, James Agee and Walker Evans set out on assignment for Fortune magazine to explore the daily...

The most authoritative life of Mao ever written, by the bestselling author of Wild Swans, Jung Chang and her husband, historian Jon Halliday.Based on a decade of research, and on interviews with many of Mao's close circle in China who have never talked...

(Available after 3-20 days)NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE directed by Marjane Sartrapi, starring Rosamund Pike and Sam Riley.   NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINIALIST. “Vivid and ethereal” –New York Times “Radioactive is quite unlike any book I have ever read—part...

Shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize and winner of the Royal Society Prize for Science Books, Richard Holmes's dazzling portrait of the age of great scientific discovery is a groundbreaking achievement. The book opens with Joseph Banks, botanist on...

*National Bestseller*New York Times bestselling author Laurence Leamer reveals the complex web of relationships and scandalous true stories behind Truman Capote's never-published final novel, Answered Prayers—the dark secrets, tragic glamour, and...

One of The Christian Science Monitor's Ten Best Books of May"A highly original work of history . . . [Saltzman] has written a distinctive study that transcends both art and history and forces us to explore the connections between the two.” —Roger...

(Available after 3-20 days)New York Times Bestseller"Janice P. Nimura has resurrected Elizabeth and Emily Blackwell in all their feisty, thrilling, trailblazing splendor." —Stacy Schiff   Elizabeth Blackwell believed from an early age that she was...

With unequaled authority and dramatic detail, the first volume of Charles Moore's authorized biography of Margaret Thatcher reveals as never before the early life, rise to power, and initial period as prime minister of the woman who transformed Britain...

The sensational second volume of Charles Moore's bestselling authorized biography of the Iron LadyIn June 1983 Margaret Thatcher won the biggest increase in a government's Parliamentary majority in British electoral history. Over the next four years, as...

Charles Moore's masterful and definitive biography of Britain's first female prime minister reaches its climax with the story of her zenith and her fall.A TIMES, SUNDAY TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, TELEGRAPH, IRISH TIMES, NEW STATESMAN AND SPECTATOR BOOK OF...

In this “urgently relevant”* collection featuring the landmark essay “The Case for Reparations,” the National Book Award–winning author of Between the World and Me “reflects on race, Barack Obama’s presidency and its jarring aftermath”*—including the...

“An exhilarating romp through Orwell’s life and times and also through the life and times of roses.” —Margaret Atwood “A captivating account of Orwell as gardener, lover, parent, and endlessly curious thinker.” —Claire Messud, Harper's“Nobody who reads...