History

NEW YORK TIMES Editors’ Choice • THE TIMES BIOGRAPHY OF THE YEAR • WINNER OF THE HAWTHORNDEN PRIZEA groundbreaking new biography of philosophy’s greatest iconoclastFriedrich Nietzsche is one of the most enigmatic figures in philosophy, and his...

“Wide-ranging and thoroughly winning.” —Jordan Ellenberg, The New York Times Book Review“An absolute joy to read!" —Steven Levitt, New York Times bestselling author of FreakonomicsFor fans of Seven Brief Lessons in Physics, an exploration of the many...

From the award-winning author of A Splendid Exchange, a fascinating new history of financial and religious mass manias over the past five centuries"We are the apes who tell stories," writes William Bernstein. "And no matter how misleading the narrative,...

From a star theoretical physicist, a journey into the world of particle physics and the cosmos—and a call for a more liberatory practice of science.Winner of the 2021 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Science & TechnologyWinner of the 2022 Phi Beta...

“Mine” is one of the first words babies learn, and by the time we grow up, the idea of ownership seems natural, whether we are buying a cup of coffee or a house. But who controls the space behind your airplane seat: you, reclining, or the squished laptop...

Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR and Science FridayA quest to explore some of the most spectacular ancient cities in human history—and figure out why people abandoned them. In Four Lost Cities, acclaimed science journalist Annalee Newitz takes...

How scientists saved humanity from the deadliest infectious diseases—and what we can do to prepare ourselves for future epidemics.After the unprecedented events of the COVID-19 pandemic, it may be hard to imagine a time not so long ago when deadly...

Winner of the Duff Cooper Prize• One of The Economist's top history books of the yearFrom one of our leading historians, an important new history of the Greek War of Independence—the ultimate worldwide liberal cause célèbre of the age of Byron, Europe’s...

As the first European to travel extensively throughout Asia, Marco Polo was the earliest bridge between East and West. His famous journeys took him across the boundaries of the known world, along the dangerous Silk Road, and into the court of Kublai...

In Conquerors, New York Times bestselling author Roger Crowley gives us the epic story of the emergence of Portugal, a small, poor nation that enjoyed a century of maritime supremacy thanks to the daring and navigational skill of its explorers—a tactical...

Vivid, powerful and absorbing, this is a first-person account of one of the most startling military episodes in history: the overthrow of Montezuma's doomed Aztec Empire by the ruthless Hernan Cortes and his band of adventurers. Bernal Díaz del Castillo,...

The writings of a first-rate scientist and daring adventurer, and a major inspiration for Elizabeth Gilbert’s bestselling novel The Signature of All Things John Cook led three famous expeditions to the Pacific Ocean between 1768 and 1779. In voyages that...

One of the greatest nineteenth-century scientist-explorers, Alexander von Humboldt traversed the tropical Spanish Americas between 1799 and 1804. By the time of his death in 1859, he had won international fame for his scientific discoveries, his...

'A roaring tale ... remains as vivid and exciting today as it was on publication in 1697' -- GuardianThe pirate and adventurer William Dampier circumnavigated the globe three times, and took notes wherever he went. This is his frank, vivid account of his...

Charles Darwin's seminal formulation of the theory of Evolution, On the Origin of Species continues to be as controversial today as when it was first published. This Penguin Classics edition contains an introduction and notes by William Bynum, and...

The beginning of the twenty-first century will be remembered, Friedman argues, not for military conflicts or political events, but for a whole new age of globalization - a 'flattening' of the world. The explosion of advanced technologies now means that...

"Lucid, deeply informed, and enlivened with striking illustrations." -Noam ChomskyOne economist has called Ha-Joon Chang "the most exciting thinker our profession has turned out in the past fifteen years." With Bad Samaritans, this provocative scholar...

A fascinating collection of medieval Arabic travel writing in an important new translationBetween the ninth and fourteenth centuries, Arab explorers journeyed widely and frequently into the far north, crossing territories that now include Russia,...

Between 58 and 50 BC Caesar conquered most of the area now covered by France, Belgium and Switzerland, and twice invaded Britain. This is the record of his campaigns. Caesar's narrative offers insights into his military strategy & paints a...

Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire compresses thirteen turbulent centuries into an epic narrative shot through with insight, irony and incisive character analysis. Sceptical about Christianity, sympathetic to the barbarian invaders and...