The history of the world is, in many ways, a history of revolutions. Not only those that succeeded, though a great many did, but those that failed and those that were averted.What if they weren't? What if Canada had won its independence in 1837? What if the Taiping rebels had formed their own country in China? What if Trinidad revolted against the British in the 1930s? What if a Socialist Commune arose in East Sussex?In this collection of 13 short stories, the authors of Se...

Ireland is a country that is, in many ways, still defined by the British occupation and the nature of its partition and independence and so there is much room to explore how it could have evolved differently in different circumstances.What would home rule have looked like in practice? What struggles would an Ireland that won independence in the late 18th century have faced? How would Ireland have positioned itself if the Nazis had won the Second World War?In this collection, thirteen talen...

THE ONLY BOOK ON IRISH HISTORY YOU'LL EVER NEED!From invasions to rebellions, heroic martyrs to pragmatic politicians, industrial development to mass emigration, A History of Ireland in 250 Episodes by renowned Irish historian Jonathan Bardon will take you on a sweeping journey through Irish history, getting behind the historical headlines to reveal the lived experience of Irish people.Written in easy-to-read bitesize episodes, Bardon's original and engaging style will make you feel as tho...

A fascinating and surprising history of the world told through the lines people have drawn on maps, described by Richard Osman as 'an absolutely incredible present for anyone who's interested in the world at all, which is sort of all of us' (The Rest Is Entertainment podcast)* * * Pre-order Jonn Elledge's 31 Inventions that Built Our World - a fascinating delve into the history of the city * * *'Fascinating' TOM HO...

Many of us were put off history by the dry and dreary way it was taught at school. Back then 'The Origins of the Industrial Revolution' somehow seemed less compelling than the chance to test the bold claim on Timothy Johnson's 'Shatterproof' ruler.But here at last is a chance to have a good laugh and learn all that stuff you feel you really ought to know by now...In this 'Horrible History for Grown Ups' you can read how Anglo-Saxon liberals struggled to be positive about i...

THE TIMES HISTORY BOOK OF THE YEARONE OF THE ECONOMIST'S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEARA SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERFrom the master storyteller and internationally bestselling author - the story of humanity from prehistory to the present day, told through the one thing all humans have in common: family.We begin with the footsteps of a family walking along a beach 950,000 years ago. From here, Montefiore takes us on an exhilarating epic j...

DAILY TELEGRAPH BOOKS OF THE YEARIf in the year 1411 you had been able to circumnavigate the globe, you would have been most impressed by the dazzling civilizations of the Orient. The Forbidden City was under construction in Ming Beijing; in the Near East, the Ottomans were closing in on Constantinople.By contrast, England would have struck you as a miserable backwater ravaged by plague, bad sanitation and incessant war. The other quarrelsome kingdoms of We...

A globetrotting, laugh-out-loud funny history for grown-ups from the multi-million copy bestselling author.It is a truth universally acknowledged that the rich and powerful always look after their own and the working people are always revolting.But every now and again, a new group actually manages to seize power, and it changes history.In his new book, Revolting, bestselling Horrible Histories author Terry Deary ta...

A moving account of how war is remembered – and by whomWinner of the Military History Matters Book of the Year Gold Award 2026'Impressive. A hundred individual histories, skillfully assembled, built into a poignant meditation on why they still matter' David OlusogaBestselling historian Tessa Dunlop travels the length and breadth of the United Kingdom on a quest to uncover a story of national warring and national mourning, of fightin...

Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities in the world – with one of the darkest histories on record. Sweeping through the centuries in a blood-soaked catalogue of assaults, assassinations and all-out attempts at annihilation, this volume reveals the hideous tapestry of death, disease and disaster that lies beneath Edinburgh's stunning façade. You'll never see the city in the same way again…

Readers can discover all the foul facts about ROTTEN RULERS, including who gave the job of high priest to a donkey, who choked to death while eating a crow and who celebrated victory by eating his enemy's head.

'After his masterpieces on Germany and England, James Hawes has done it again... a wonder to behold' PROFESSOR CIARAN MARTINFrom the Ice Age to the present, here is the real story of Ireland.In The Shortest History of Ireland, James Hawes turns his attention to Ireland, reaching beyond the clichés to tell a dramatic new story, backed up by the latest scholarship.Irish history is often seen as a mere catalogue of colonial repression. Yet Hawes ...