Forests have been entwined with human development and cultural history for centuries. In this Very Short Introduction Jaboury Ghazoul explores their origins, dynamics, and the range of goods and services they provide to human society, as well as looking at issues of deforestation, reforestation, and the effects of climate change.

Debunking what were accepted truths about the Second World War, the author argues provocatively that Hitler did not set out to cause the war as part of an evil master plan, but blundered into it partly by accident, aided by the shortcomings of others.

An original and consequential argument about race, crime, and the law

A compelling and vivid narrative history of one of the founding civilizations of the modern world, the Byzantine empire, evocatively told through the lives of its 92 emperors.

The Byzantine empire was one of the most successful states of the Middle Ages, ruling over a huge terrain straddling Europe and western Asia for an unrivalled eleven hundred years. Yet its history remains largely unfamiliar. This chronicle brings this majestic yet turbulent period to life through the lives of...

A new history of Roman art and archaeology, from its very beginnings in Etruscan art to the adoption of Christianity.