Everybody knows they exist: the Cosa Nostra, the Medellin Cartel, New York's Five Families, China's tongs. This book asks the question: how have mafias helped define the modern world?

'Wry, informative but deadly - a great book'

Will Hutton

'Fast-paced and impassioned'

Sunday Telegraph

Who said that dictatorship was dead? The world today is full of Strong Men and their imitators. A fascinating exploration of how and why Caesars seized power and why they fell.

There is a comforting illusion shared by historians and political commentators, that history progresses in a nice straight line towards liberal democracy or socialism, despite the odd hiccup.

Every democracy, however ...

Suitable for economic students and those who have interest in how economies work, this title provides more that 100 of the big ideas in economic theory and practice covering from ancient theories right up to modern developments.

An engrossing history of the pivotal year when the future of England secured.

The astonishing story of one of the most significant years in modern European history.

To tell the story of Indian independence and the creation of Pakistan through the chaotic and seismic events of 1947 and the experiences of the people who lived through them.

See the world in a strand of hair...