Dan Jones
The Times (London)
Book Recommendations:
Recommended by Dan Jones
“A huge, rich, deep, witty, humane and unapologetically admiring biography that is a pleasure to read. The Napoleon painted here is a whirlwind of a man—not only a vigorous and supremely confident commander, but an astonishingly busy governor, correspondent and lover, too. . . . To dive into Roberts’s new book is to understand—indeed, to feel—why this peculiarly brilliant Corsican managed for so long to dazzle the world.” (from Amazon)
by Andrew Roberts·You?
by Andrew Roberts·You?
The definitive biography of the great soldier-statesman by the acclaimed author of Churchill and The Last King of America—winner of the LA Times Book prize, finalist for the Plutarch prize, winner of the Fondation Napoleon prize and a New York Times bestseller “A thrilling tale of military and political genius… Roberts is an uncommonly gifted writer.” —The Washington Post Austerlitz, Borodino, Waterloo: his battles are among the greatest in history, but Napoleon Bonaparte was far more than a military genius and astute leader of men. Like George Washington and his own hero Julius Caesar, he was one of the greatest soldier-statesmen of all times. Andrew Roberts’s Napoleon is the first one-volume biography to take advantage of the recent publication of Napoleon’s thirty-three thousand letters, which radically transform our understanding of his character and motivation. At last we see him as he was: protean multitasker, decisive, surprisingly willing to forgive his enemies and his errant wife Josephine. Like Churchill, he understood the strategic importance of telling his own story, and his memoirs, dictated from exile on St. Helena, became the single bestselling book of the nineteenth century. An award-winning historian, Roberts traveled to fifty-three of Napoleon’s sixty battle sites, discovered crucial new documents in archives, and even made the long trip by boat to St. Helena. He is as acute in his understanding of politics as he is of military history. Here at last is a biography worthy of its subject: magisterial, insightful, beautifully written, by one of our foremost historians.
Recommended by Dan Jones
“Janina Ramirez is a born storyteller, and in Femina she is at the peak of her powers. This is bravura narrative history underpinned by passionate advocacy for the women whom medieval history has too often ignored or overlooked. Femina is essential reading for anyone who is interested in the Middle Ages and its place in the modern mind.” (from Amazon)
THE #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER LONGLISTED FOR THE 2023 CUNDIL HISTORY PRIZE A "Next Big Idea Book Club" Must Read? A groundbreaking reappraisal of medieval femininity, revealing why women have been written out of history and why it matters The Middle Ages are seen as a bloodthirsty time of Vikings, saints and kings; a patriarchal society that oppressed and excluded women. But when we dig a little deeper into the truth, we can see that the “Dark” Ages were anything but. Oxford and BBC historian Janina Ramirez has uncovered countless influential women’s names struck out of historical records, with the word FEMINA annotated beside them. As gatekeepers of the past ordered books to be burned, artworks to be destroyed, and new versions of myths, legends and historical documents to be produced, our view of history has been manipulated. Only now, through a careful examination of the artifacts, writings and possessions they left behind, are the influential and multifaceted lives of women emerging. Femina goes beyond the official records to uncover the true impact of women, such as: Jadwiga, the only female king in EuropeMargery Kempe, who exploited her image and story to ensure her notorietyLoftus Princess, whose existence gives us clues about the beginnings of Christianity in England In Femina, Ramirez invites us to see the medieval world with fresh eyes and discover why these remarkable women were removed from our collective memories.
Recommended by Dan Jones
“Medievalist Marc Morris has produced a deep dive into one of the murkiest ages in our national history. Morris is such an accomplished guide to the tricksy Anglo-Saxon world. Throughout this clever, lively book Morris leans enthusiastically into uncertainty, inviting the reader to figure out the puzzles with him. Much of the Anglo-Saxon world was wiped out by the Normans, but as Morris’s splendid new book shows, there is plenty we can still see, and enjoy, today.” (from Amazon)
by Marc Morris·You?
by Marc Morris·You?
A definitive and ground-breaking history of the Anglo-Saxons by national bestselling author Marc Morris. Sixteen hundred years ago, Britain parted company with Europe. As the Roman legions withdrew, the economy that had supported them collapsed. A world that had been peaceful, prosperous, and predictable became dangerously insecure. Rich and poor huddled together for protection in ancient hill-forts, unoccupied since the Iron Age. Learning and literacy were lost; it is no exaggeration to call this a Dark Age. Into this ruined world came a new people―foreigners from beyond the Empire’s northern frontier, collectively known as the Anglo-Saxons. Some were warriors, drawn into the internecine struggles between Britain’s new tribal rulers. Most were economic migrants, in search of land to farm and a happier future. Arriving on the shores of southern and eastern Britain, in the centuries that followed they spread northwards and westwards, eventually occupying every lowland part of the island, and in the process they gradually built a new civilization. The Anglo-Saxons is a quest for the England’s origins. It takes us from an alien world of slaves, temples, villas, druids and amphorae, to a familiar landscape of shires and boroughs; from the worship of vanished gods like Thor and Woden to the veneration of saints who are still well-known; from a population who spoke Latin and Celtic to one whose language was recognizably the ancestor of the English that is spoken today. Marc Morris’s invigorating narrative asks what we can really know of life in this lost age, and tackles controversial questions: Did the Anglo-Saxons drive the Romano-British into the fringes of the island, as traditional argued, or peacefully absorb them, as revisionist historians claim? It also explores the later legends that arose to fill the void, such as what truth is there, if any, in the tales of a British resistance led by a hero called Arthur? 16 pages of color illustrations