Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve Whether wishing to learn of the vivid life of one of history’s greatest figures or appreciating the brilliant scholarship involved in bringing this to the reader, Edmund Richardson’s biography of the legendary Macedonian/Greek is enormously satisfying and thrilling to read. Thousands of versions of Alexander have been scattered around the world.
Reviewed by Norrie Sanders Egyptian dynasties began about 5,000 years ago and humans had been there more than 30,000 years by that time. This was not just one of the longest lasting civilisations on earth, but perhaps the pinnacle for architectural grandeur. Maria Golia is the most recent writer to complete the challenge of shortening
Reviewed by Norrie Sanders A history of Scotland is as much about its contribution to the world as about the events that took place within its borders. Scottish people, places and innovations are familiar: where would the world be without whisky, Loch Lomond, bagpipes, chloroform, Robbie Burns and Adam Smith? A constant stream of emigration
Reviewed by Ian Lipke The Menzies Legacy is a stimulating book in that it considers the important question of Menzies’ place in the historical record. It interprets whether Menzies led Australia for over half the decade … [with a] reputation for stability and continuity … opposed to everything we commonly associate with the 1960s”. He
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke Empires of Violence is the work of a team of highly skilled researchers who have collaborated in the production of a book that is well balanced and which meets the market at a time when it is most needed. For simplicity the authors have chosen to speak of the original settlers
Reviewed by Wendy Lipke This academic book, by well-known and respected (except by the Chinese government) Dutch historian Frank Dikötter, is the latest in his books on how China became the powerful country it is today. Dikötter is the author of The People’s Trilogy, which consists of Mao’s Great Famine, The Tragedy of Liberation, and
Reviewed by Norrie Sanders Innovation is the 21st title of the Shortest History series and must be one of the most challenging to write. The concept is abstract, the timeline is the whole of human history and the geography covers the world. Compressing all of that material into 220 pages means applying the most stringent
Reviewed by Norrie Sanders The cover and title give little away – police armed with bayonets facing men in civilian clothes with sticks and swords, all under an Australian Flag. But Riots is a very specific story about civil unrest that centred on soldiers freshly returned from supporting the British empire in World War 1.
Reviewed by Ian Lipke I found the initial chapters of Tony Abbott’s new book bracing and balanced, comprehensive within limits and a jolly good read. I was all too familiar with the author’s political philosophies and his blind acceptance of Roman Catholicism. I even found myself warming to him as I worked my way patiently
Reviewed by Ian Lipke Despite the odd nature of the title, this is a serious piece of research. Lesley Synge identified an unresearched area of knowledge from our nation’s history and, employing accepted means of academic scholarship, has unfolded a new area of knowledge and published it for the benefit of mankind. Her study is
Reviewed by Richard Tutin Nations use myths to shape their origin stories and guide the kind of society they seek to become. For some their guiding myths are ones of courage and the ability to overcome adversity as they move forward towards their vision and destiny. For others the myths help tie the people to
Reviewed by Norrie Sanders Domination is a story of how a tiny cult within the Roman empire came to be a powerful force in the space of a few centuries. Professor Alice Roberts is not the first and is unlikely to be the last to ponder this question: how did Christianity come to dominate the
Reviewed by Richard Tutin This entertaining book by Matt Murphy reminds me of the old wild west scene when a dishevelled prospector comes rushing in saying at the top of their lungs “Tha’s gold in them tha hills”. Murphy has set himself the task of identifying who exactly could rightfully be regarded as the one
Reviewed by E.B. Heath In his latest book, On Democracies and Death Cults, Douglas Murray reports on the Hamas insurgency into Israel. Murray travelled throughout Israel immediately after the attack of October Seventh, the initial chapters describe the horror of the brutality he witnessed. It seems the atrocities were under-reported by the media. He questions
Reviewed by Ian Lipke Riley Knight is the host of a popular podcast, called Half-Arsed History. Despite the publisher’s assurance that Knight’s stories are true, the joking approach of the author requires one to take care when deciding which elements of each story are true. The book highlights the many and varied ways that people