This volume is a general survey of the history of Jordan from ancient times to the present.

A gloriously illuminating history of the encyclopaedia (and how and why we have captured knowledge over the years) by the bestselling author of JUST MY TYPE and ON THE MAP

A definitive new history of the Persian Empire, the world's first superpower.

'A revolutionary book' Sunday Times

'A pulsating account' Peter Frankopan

*A SPECTATOR AND NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR*

How did the People's Republic of China transform from a backwater economy in the 1970s into the world superpower of today? Drawing on hundreds of previously unseen archival documents, award-winning historian Frank Dikötter recasts our understanding of an era that both the regime and foreign admirers alike celebrate as an economic miracle. In a fascinating tale spanning f...

Offers an understanding of Vermeer's paintings and of the era they portray.

The untold story of how British-French rivalry drew the battle-lines of the modern Middle East

A magnet for trade and travellers from all over the world, stylish, cosmopolitan Amsterdam is a city of dreams and nightmares, of grand civic architecture and legendary beauty, but also of civil wars, bloody religious purges, and the tragedy of Anne Frank.