This third and final volume in Shelby Foote's magnificent history of the American Civil War is a haunting and powerful read. The drama of the Confederate's slow collapse, Grant's relentless pursuit of Lee, the flight of the Confederate government from their capital in Richmond, the moving respect the opponents showed for each other at Appomattox, Lincoln's triumph, and then tragic assassination, makes for a compelling narrative.
A narrative history of the American Civil War, which covers not only the battles and the troop movements but also the social background that brought on the war and led, in the end, to the South's defeat.
This is the second book in Tom Holland's trilogy on ancient Rome. Like the others, it is a riveting read. 'Dynasty' takes us from Augustus to Nero - and a wilder set of rulers it is hard to imagine. Augustus - ruthless, then with the wiles to keep the form of the republic while in fact ruling as the first emperor. Tiberius, with his predilection for sexual titillation. Caligula, whose dark name rings through history, Claudius, and of course Nero, who murdered his brother, his wife, his mother, and so many more. A narrative like this is a study in power and its corruption, and there are few more striking examples than the house of Caesar - where no one trusts anyone..
'This is a wonderful, surging narrative - a brilliant and meticulous synthesis of the ancient sources . . . This is a story that should be read by anyone interested in history, politics or human nature - and it has never been better told' - Boris Johnson, Mail on Sunday
Rome was first ruled by kings, then became a republic. But in the end, after conquering the world, the Republic collapsed. Rome was drowned in blood. So terrible were the civil wars that the Roman people finally came to welcome the rule of an autocrat who could give them peace.…
'Citizens' reexamines the events of the French revolution. So many cliches have surrounded this most unexpected and almost inexplicable series of events, and many of them are wrong. Schama examines the evidence and takes us through the events with an eye for the important detail. The removal of the monarchy and the reign of terror needed the confluence of a great many events, and among them were pamphlets full of scandal and completely false – but which made an impact. Surely that could never happen today?
One of the great landmarks of modern history publishing, Simon Schama's Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution is the most authoritative social, cultural and narrative history of the French Revolution ever produced.
'Monumental ... provocative and stylish, Simon Schama's account of the first few years of the great Revolution in France, and of the decades that led up to it, is thoughtful, informed and profoundly revisionist' Eugen Weber, The New York Times Book Review
'The most marvellous book I have read about the French Revolution' Richard Cobb, The Times
'Dazzling - beyond praise - He has chronicled the vicissitudes…
Treason is a page-turning story of human drama, heroism and sacrifice. It is an intimate and compelling account of individual moral character and physical courage set against tumultuous events. Treason is the extraordinary true story of exceptional men and women who risked everything in their attempts to rid the world of the Nazi regime and end the Second World War. It is one of the twentieth century’s great narratives. Treason presents a detailed, historically accurate and intimate portrait of the extensive resistance within Germany to the Nazis. From late 1943, the struggle against Hitler and the Nazis was led by Claus von Stauffenberg, a brilliant staff officer in the German Army. On 20 July 1944 Stauffenberg placed a briefcase bomb in Hitler’s briefing hut at the Wolf’s Lair, flew back to Berlin, and then directed an insurrection against the Nazi regime. The plotters wrested control of Paris and Vienna, and briefly, Berlin. When it became clear that Hitler had survived the conspiracy unravelled.
