Sudhir Hazareesingh “Black Spartacus” – book review
Toussaint Louverture was a man of many stories. Continue reading Sudhir Hazareesingh “Black Spartacus” – book review
Tag: history
Yuval Noah Harari “Homo Deus” – book review
My least favourite part of “Sapiens” were Harari’s predictions about the future: and here was a book that consisted solely of his predictions of the future. Continue reading Yuval Noah Harari “Homo Deus” – book review
Tom Holland’s “Athelstan” – book review
“It was the most terrible conflict that anyone could remember. Entire kingdoms were mobilized for combat. Slaughter fit to stupefy poets was visited on the ranks of the rival combatants. The memory of it would long endure. (…) “Æðelstan cyning lædde fyrde to Brunanbyrig”: Athelstan the king led the levy to Brunanburh. (…) At stake, though, was not just the future of Athelstan’s kingdom. Beyond the world … Continue reading Tom Holland’s “Athelstan” – book review
Catherine Belton’s “Putin’s People” – book review
Catherine Belton worked from 2013-2017 as the Moscow correspondent for the Financial Times. Her book, Putin’s People provides a narrative of the mechanics and ideological conception behind Putin’s government. Continue reading Catherine Belton’s “Putin’s People” – book review
Jared Diamond’s “Upheaval” – book review
What better time to read Jared Diamond’s Upheaval? After all, the world is having a crisis of some sort at the moment. Sadly, the book doesn’t lay out a ten-step-plan to get ourselves out of the COVID-19 crisis, as it was published in 2019, a world away from what is actually going on now. Still. Jared Diamond’s Upheaval is a case study of 7 nations … Continue reading Jared Diamond’s “Upheaval” – book review
William Dalrymple’s “The Anarchy” – book review
Did I really ‘read’ William Dalrymple’s The Anarchy?
I let it waft around me, listening on Audible as I cooked dinner and I cleared the kitchen. That is surely not the reading it deserves. Continue reading William Dalrymple’s “The Anarchy” – book review
Jack Fairweather’s “The Volunteer” – book review
This is not a story of a hero. This is a story of a man who did the best he could. We need more like him. Continue reading Jack Fairweather’s “The Volunteer” – book review
Bob Woodward’s “Obama’s Wars”- book review
Woodward focuses on the political negotiations regarding the number of troops that should be deployed to Afghanistan. Continue reading Bob Woodward’s “Obama’s Wars”- book review
John Guy’s “Mary Queen of Scots” – book review
I picked up this copy of John Guy’s “Mary Queen of Scots” at Sainsbury’s for 4 pounds, with a film tie-in cover, and I do not regret it. The book was published originally as “My Heart is My Own” and won the Whitbread Biography Award in 2004. I had read David Starkey’s biography of the young Elizabeth when I was in my early teens, but … Continue reading John Guy’s “Mary Queen of Scots” – book review
David Hume’s “Selected Essays” – book review
Hume was a skeptical infidel who had a fondness for the middle-class. Continue reading David Hume’s “Selected Essays” – book review
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