Get ready to meet the goddesses.In Divine Might, Natalie Haynes, the bestselling author of Stone Blind and Pandora's Jar, introduces us to the stories of the Greek goddesses. As fearsome, powerful and beloved as their male counterparts, it’s time to look beyond the columns of a ruined temple to the awesome power within . . .We meet Hera, who, whilst most often known for enacting vicious, creative revenge on the women – mortal or otherwise – who catch the wandering eye of her husband Zeus, turns out not to be such a villain after all.We meet Demeter, a mother who will go to any lengths, no matter the cost, to retrieve her daughter Persephone from Hades’ clutches.We’ll be introduced to The Furies, three women who will literally go to the ends of the earth to enact bloody vengeance but who, surprisingly, are the goddesses who can teach us the most about the way we live now.Examining the role of these goddesses and more, Divine Might will change everything you thought you knew about our most ancient stories. Full of fire, fury and devotion, Natalie Haynes brings the divine women of Olympia kicking and screaming into the modern age. Read more

'Excellent. . . Sellars gives a lucid, easy-to-follow account of what Stoicism as a way of life amounts to, and how you might start to put it into practice' Nigel Warburton How can Stoicism inspire us to lead more enjoyable lives?In the past few years, Stoicism has been making a comeback. But what exactly did the Stoics believe? In Lessons in Stoicism, philosopher John Sellars weaves together the key ideas of the three great Roman Stoics -- Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius -- with snapshots of their fascinating lives, to show us how their ideas can help us today. In vivid prose, Sellars shows how the works of these three Stoics have inspired readers ever since, speaking as they do to some of the perennial issues that face anyone trying to navigate their way through life. Their works, fundamentally, are about how to live -- how to understand one's place in the world, how to cope when things don't go well, how to manage one's emotions and how to behave towards others. Consoling and inspiring, Lessons in Stoicism is a deeply thoughtful guide to the philosophy of a good life. Read more

Tom Holland's bestselling account of the world's very first clash of civilisations between the Persians and the Greeks in 480BC'Magisterial... told with great authority and a novelistic colour and verve' Books of the Year, Independent'Holland has a rare eye for detail, drama and the telling anecdote'Dominic Sandbrook, Daily Telegraph'An unequivocal argument for the relevance of ancient history' Observer'Holland brings this tumultuous, epoch-making period dazzlingly to life' William Napier, Independent on SundayIn the fifth century BC, a global superpower was determined to bring truth and order to what it regarded as two terrorist states. The superpower was Persia, incomparably rich in ambition, gold and men. The terrorist states were Athens and Sparta, eccentric cities in a poor and mountainous backwater: Greece. The story of how their citizens took on the most powerful man on the planet is as heart-stopping as any episode in history. Read more

The National Geographic Treasury of Greek Mythology offers timeless stories of Greek myths. Brought to life with lyrical text by award-winning author Donna Jo Napoli and stunning artwork by award-winning illustrator Christina Balit, the tales of gods, goddesses, heroes and monsters will fascinate and engage children’s imaginations.National Geographic completes the book with embellishments of each story: sidebars for each god, goddess, hero, and monster link the myths to constellations, geography, history, and culture to help young readers connect the stories to real life events, people, and places. Sure to dazzle all those intrigued with the fantastic tales of Greek mythology and enchant new readers, this vibrant book will soon become a family keepsake. Read more

In this illuminating and thoughtful book, Will and Ariel Durant have succeeded in distilling for the reader the accumulated store of knowledge and experience from their five decades of work on the eleven monumental volumes of The Story of Civilization. The result is a survey of human history, full of dazzling insights into the nature of human experience, the evolution of civilization, and the culture of man. With the completion of their life's work, they look back and ask what history has to say about the nature, the conduct and the prospects of man, seeking in the great lives, the great ideas, the great events of the past for the meaning of man's long journey through war, conquest and creation - and for the great themes that can help us to understand our own era. Read more

'Bold, dazzling and provocative' – Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads'This book uncovers what was lost when Christianity won' – The TimesIn The Darkening Age, historian Catherine Nixey tells the little-known – and deeply shocking – story of how a militant religion deliberately tried to extinguish the teachings of the Classical world, ushering in unquestioning adherence to the 'one true faith'.The Roman Empire had been generous in embracing and absorbing new creeds. But with the coming of Christianity, everything changed. This new faith, despite preaching peace, was violent, ruthless and intolerant. And once it became the religion of empire, its zealous adherents set about the destruction of the old gods. Their altars were upturned, their temples demolished and their statues hacked to pieces. Books, including great works of philosophy and science, were consigned to the pyre. It was an annihilation.'A searingly passionate book' - Bettany Hughes, author of The Seven Wonders of the Ancient WorldA Book of the Year in the Daily Telegraph, the Spectator, the Observer, and BBC History MagazineA New York Times Book Review Editors' ChoiceWinner of the Royal Society of Literature Jerwood Award for Nonfiction Read more

A BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR: The Times/Sunday Times, Observer, Economist, Guardian, BBC History Magazine, i-paper, Novara Media and History Today'Quinn has done a lot more than reinvent the wheel. What we have here is a truly encyclopaedic and monumental account of the ancient world' THE TIMES'One of the most fascinating and important works of global history to appear for many years' WILLIAM DALRYMPLEThe West, the story goes, was built on the ideas and values of Ancient Greece and Rome, which disappeared from Europe during the Dark Ages and were then rediscovered by the Renaissance. But what if that isn't true?In a bold and magisterial work of immense scope, Josephine Quinn argues that the real story of the West is much bigger than this established paradigm leads us to believe. So much of our shared history has been lost, drowned out by the concept – developed in the Victorian era – of separate 'civilisations'.Moving from the Bronze Age to the Age of Exploration, How the World Made the West reveals a new narrative: one that traces the millennia of global encounters and exchange that built what is now called the West, as societies met, tangled and sometimes grew apart. From the creation of the alphabet by Levantine workers in Egypt, who in a foreign land were prompted to write things down in their own language for the first time, to the arrival of Indian numbers in Europe via the Arab world, Quinn makes the case that understanding societies in isolation is both out-of-date and wrong. It is contact and connections, rather than solitary civilisations, that drive historical change. It is not peoples that make history – people do.'A work of great confidence, empathy, learning and imagination' RORY STEWART'Bold, beautifully written and filled with insights . . . Extraordinary' PETER FRANKOPAN Read more

'A masterly account of this first wicked century of the Roman Empire' Sunday Times'Holland does not just tell the story of the reign of the Julio-Claudian family. He knits the history of ancient Rome into his narrative - its founding myths, the fall of the republic, the religious superstitions - with a skill so dextrous you don't notice the stitching. Dynasty is both a formidable effort to compile what we can know about the ancient world and a sensational story' Observer'A witty and skilful storyteller... He recounts with pleasure his racy tales of psychopathic cruelty, incest, paedophilia, matricide, fratricide, assassination and depravity' William Dalrymple, New Statesman'A wonderful, surging narrative... [for] anyone interested in history, politics or human nature - and it has never been better told' Mail on SundayTHE TOP TEN SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER Read more

Acclaimed historian and best-selling author Antony Beevor vividly brings to life the epic struggles that took place in Second World War Crete - reissued with a new introduction.'The best book we have got on Crete' ObserverThe Germans expected their airborne attack on Crete in 1941 - a unique event in the history of warfare - to be a textbook victory based on tactical surprise. They had no idea that the British, using Ultra intercepts, knew their plans and had laid a carefully-planned trap. It should have been the first German defeat of the war, but a fatal misunderstanding turned the battle round. Nor did the conflict end there. Ferocious Cretan freedom fighters mounted a heroic resistance, aided by a dramatic cast of British officers from Special Operations Executive. Read more

Who was Pandora and what was in her famous box? Why is a famous brand named after the goddess Nike? How did Achilles get his Achilles heel?Who was Pandora and what was in her famous box? Why is a brand of sportswear named after the goddess Nike? How did Achilles get his Achilles heel? What exactly is a Titan? And why is one computer virus known as a Trojan horse?The myths of ancient Greece and Rome can seem bewilderingly complex and yet they are so much a part of modern life and discourse that most of us know fragments of them. This handy companion takes these fragments and weaves them into a comprehensible and enjoyable narrative, guiding you through the foundational stories of classical myth.Philip Matyszak explains the sequences of events and introduces the major plots and characters, from the origins of the world and the labours of Hercules to the Trojan War and the voyages of Odysseus and Aeneas. He brings to life an exotic cast of heroes and monsters, wronged women and frighteningly arbitrary yet powerful Gods. He also shows how the stories have survived and greatly influenced later art and culture, from Renaissance painting and sculpture to modern opera, literature, film and everyday products.Packed with intriguing facts and diverting stories, this carefully researched yet accessible guide is the ideal introduction to the myths and tales that lie at the heart of western culture.With 95 illustrations. Table of ContentsIntroduction • 1. In the Beginning: From Chaos to Cosmos in Four Steps • 2. The Ages of Man 3. The Great Gods: The First Generation • 4. Olympus: The Next Generation • 5. Lesser Gods, Magical Creatures and Heroic Ancestors • 6. Heroes and their Quests • 7. The Golden Age of Mythology • 8. The Trojan War • 9. Going Home Read more

'With icy remorselessness, it puts paid to any notion that the horrors of modern history might be an aberration - for it tells of universal war, of terrorism, revolution and genocide' Tom HollandThe long life-and-death struggle between Athens and Sparta plunged the ancient Greek world into decades of war. Thucydides was an Athenian and achieved the rank of general in the earlier stages of the war, and in this detailed, first-hand contemporary account he writes as both a soldier and a historian. He applies a passion for accuracy and a contempt for myth and romance in compiling a factual record of a ruinous conflict that would eventually destroy the Athenian empire.Translated by Rex Warner with an introduction and notes by M. I. Finley Read more

For nearly 60 years--from its uprising against British rule in the 1950s, to the bloody civil war between Greek and Turkish Cypriots in the 1960s, the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in the 1970s, and the United Nation's ongoing 30-year effort to reunite the island--the tiny Mediterranean nation of Cyprus has taken a disproportionate share of the international spotlight. And while it has been often in the news, accurate and impartial information on the conflict has been nearly impossible to obtain. In The Cyprus Problem, James Ker-Lindsay offers an incisive, even-handed account of the conflict. Ker-Lindsay covers all aspects of the Cyprus problem, placing it in historical context, addressing the situation as it now stands, and looking toward its possible resolution. The book begins with the origins of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities as well as the other indigenous communities on the island (Maronites, Latin, Armenians, and Gypsies). Ker-Lindsay then examines the tensions that emerged between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots after independence in 1960 and the complex constitutional provisions and international treaties designed to safeguard the new state. He pays special attention to the Turkish invasion in 1974 and the subsequent efforts by the UN and the international community to reunite Cyprus. The book's final two chapters address a host of pressing issues that divide the two Cypriot communities, including key concerns over property, refugee returns, and the repatriation of settlers. Ker-Lindsay concludes by considering whether partition really is the best solution, as many observers increasingly suggest.Written by a leading expert, The Cyprus Problem brings much needed clarity and understanding to a conflict that has confounded observers and participants alike for decades. Read more

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER As seen on The Joe Rogan Experience! A groundbreaking dive into the role psychedelics have played in the origins of Western civilization, and a real-life quest for the Holy Grail. The most influential religious historian of the 20th century, Huston Smith, once referred to it as the "best-kept secret" in history. Did the Ancient Greeks use drugs to find God? And did the earliest Christians inherit the same, secret tradition? A profound knowledge of visionary plants, herbs and fungi passed from one generation to the next, ever since the Stone Age? There is zero archaeological evidence for the original Eucharist - the sacred wine said to guarantee life after death for those who drink the blood of Jesus. The Holy Grail and its miraculous contents have never been found. In the absence of any hard data, whatever happened at the Last Supper remains an article of faith for today's 2.5 billion Christians. In an unprecedented search for real answers, The Immortality Key examines the archaic roots of the ritual that is performed every Sunday for nearly one third of the planet. Religion and science converge to paint a radical picture of Christianity's founding event. And after centuries of debate, to solve history's greatest puzzle once and for all. Before the birth of Jesus, the Ancient Greeks found salvation in their own sacraments. Sacred beverages were routinely consumed as part of the so-called Ancient Mysteries - elaborate rites that led initiates to the brink of death. The best and brightest from Athens and Rome flocked to the spiritual capital of Eleusis, where a holy beer unleashed heavenly visions for two thousand years. Others drank the holy wine of Dionysus to become one with the god. In the 1970s, renegade scholars claimed this beer and wine - the original sacraments of Western civilization - were spiked with mind-altering drugs. In recent years, vindication for the disgraced theory has been quietly mounting in the laboratory. The constantly advancing fields of archaeobotany and archaeochemistry have hinted at the enduring use of hallucinogenic drinks in antiquity. And with a single dose of psilocybin, the psychopharmacologists at Johns Hopkins and NYU are now turning self-proclaimed atheists into instant believers. But the smoking gun remains elusive. If these sacraments survived for thousands of years in our remote prehistory, from the Stone Age to the Ancient Greeks, did they also survive into the age of Jesus? Was the Eucharist of the earliest Christians, in fact, a psychedelic Eucharist? With an unquenchable thirst for evidence, Muraresku takes the reader on his twelve-year global hunt for proof. He tours the ruins of Greece with its government archaeologists. He gains access to the hidden collections of the Louvre Museum to show the continuity from pagan to Christian wine. He unravels the Ancient Greek of the New Testament with a Catholic priest. He spelunks into the catacombs under the streets of Rome to decipher the lost symbols of Christianity's oldest monuments. He breaches the secret archives of the Vatican to unearth manuscripts never before translated into English. And with leads from the archaeological chemists at the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he unveils the first scientific data for the ritual use of psychedelic drugs in classical antiquity. The Immortality Key reconstructs the suppressed history of women consecrating a forbidden, drugged Eucharist that was later banned by the Church Fathers. Women who were then targeted as witches during the Inquisition, when Europe's sacred pharmacology largely disappeared. Have the scientists of today resurrected this lost technology? Is Christianity capable of returning to its roots? Featuring a Foreword by Graham Hancock, the New York Times bestselling author of America Before: The Key to Earth's Lost Civilization. Read more

'Suetonius, in holding up a mirror to those Caesars of diverting legend, reflects not only them but ourselves: half-tempted creatures, whose great moral task is to hold in balance the angel and the monster within' GORE VIDALAs private secretary to the Emperor Hadrian, the scholar Suetonius had access to the imperial archives and used them (along with eyewitness accounts) to produce one of the most colourful biographical works in history. The Twelve Caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over Rome, from the foundation of the empire under Julius Caesar and Augustus to the decline into depravity under Nero and the recovery that came with his successors. This masterpiece of observation, immortalized in Robert Graves's classic translation, presents us with a gallery of vividly drawn - and all too human - individuals.Translated by ROBERT GRAVESRevised with an Introduction and notes by JAMES B. RIVES Read more

A haunting tale of human resilience and hope in the face of unrelieved horror, Albert Camus' iconic novel about an epidemic ravaging the people of a North African coastal town is a classic of twentieth-century literature. The townspeople of Oran are in the grip of a deadly plague, which condemns its victims to a swift and horrifying death. Fear, isolation and claustrophobia follow as they are forced into quarantine. Each person responds in their own way to the lethal disease: some resign themselves to fate, some seek blame, and a few, like Dr. Rieux, resist the terror. An immediate triumph when it was published in 1947, The Plague is in part an allegory of France's suffering under the Nazi occupation, and a timeless story of bravery and determination against the precariousness of human existence. Read more

You've read the myth of the Golden Fleece. Now find out how it really was for Jason and the Argonauts in this gripping reimagining of the famous Ancient Greek tale, and first book in the breathtaking Blades of Bronze series. Perfect for fans of Madeline Miller, Neil Gaiman and Natalie Haynes.He has come to take what is yours... Iolkos, Greece, 1230 BC. King Pelias has grown paranoid, tormented by his murderous past and a prophecy of the man who will one day destroy him.When a stranger arrives to compete in the Games of Poseidon, Pelias is horrified, for this young man should never have grown to manhood. He is Jason, Pelias' nephew, who survived his uncle's assassins as a child. Now Jason wants his revenge – and the kingdom.But Pelias is cunning as well as powerful. He gives Jason an impossible challenge: to claim the throne, he must first steal the fabled Golden Fleece of Colchis.Jason assembles a band of Greece's finest warriors. They are the Argonauts, named for their trusty ship. But even with these mighty allies, Jason will have to overcome the brutal challenges hurled his way. His mission and many lives depend on his wits – and his sword.PRAISE FOR THE BLADES OF BRONZE SERIES AND MARK KNOWLES'A bold and thrilling voyage that plunges you deep into the world of ancient myth' Daisy Dunn'Mark Knowles has taken the legend of Jason and the Golden Fleece, and stripped it down to its bare bones... A deeply researched historical epic, so brilliantly brought to life I could taste the salt air on my tongue... Epic battles, well-rounded characters sailing through a brilliantly described world' Adam Lofthouse'What a spectacular triumph! Knowles has taken a reassuringly familiar legend and elevated it into a new, realistic and engrossing story' Sam Taw'Knowles has combined historical realities with sure-footed imagination... brilliant' Dr Paul Millett'[Knowles] has teamed his love of learning classics and childhood love of sword-and-sandals epics to accomplish something remarkable' Boarding Schools' Association Read more

A BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR: The Times/Sunday Times, Observer, Economist, Guardian, BBC History Magazine, i-paper, Novara Media and History Today'Quinn has done a lot more than reinvent the wheel. What we have here is a truly encyclopaedic and monumental account of the ancient world' THE TIMES'One of the most fascinating and important works of global history to appear for many years' WILLIAM DALRYMPLEThe West, the story goes, was built on the ideas and values of Ancient Greece and Rome, which disappeared from Europe during the Dark Ages and were then rediscovered by the Renaissance. But what if that isn't true?In a bold and magisterial work of immense scope, Josephine Quinn argues that the real story of the West is much bigger than this established paradigm leads us to believe. So much of our shared history has been lost, drowned out by the concept - developed in the Victorian era - of separate 'civilisations'.Moving from the Bronze Age to the Age of Exploration, How the World Made the West reveals a new narrative: one that traces the millennia of global encounters and exchange that built what is now called the West, as societies met, tangled and sometimes grew apart. From the creation of the alphabet by Levantine workers in Egypt, who in a foreign land were prompted to write things down in their own language for the first time, to the arrival of Indian numbers in Europe via the Arab world, Quinn makes the case that understanding societies in isolation is both out-of-date and wrong. It is contact and connections, rather than solitary civilisations, that drive historical change. It is not peoples that make history - people do.'A work of great confidence, empathy, learning and imagination' RORY STEWART'Bold, beautifully written and filled with insights . . . Extraordinary' PETER FRANKOPAN Read more

How they changed the world, and how they can change it again.This is the best book on philosophy I have ever read, and I have four master’s degrees. —Philip van Heusen for Readers’ FavoriteFor better or worse, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle engineered the Western mind.Above all, they formed part of a movement that stood at the crossroads of mythological and scientific-rational thought, at the crossroads of mythos and logos. Although the path of logos had already been beaten by the pre-Socratics, and would be paved by the Stoics, it is they, the Gang of Three, who forced the chariot to turn.This book sets out to do three things: trace the journey from mythos to logos; outline the lives and thought of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle; and consider their legacy, and what can still be gained from them, especially in the universal fields of mental health and human flourishing.Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were not philosophers in the narrow sense that we understand today, but in the broader, historical, etymological sense of being lovers of wisdom. They knew logic and dialectic, but they also knew how to live, and how to die—and it is in this, perhaps, that their greater strength lies.Anyone who loves philosophy, history, and the history of ideas will thoroughly enjoy reading Burton’s book. —The US Review of BooksBurton offers abundant insights, and effectively connects the work of three famous philosophers to the struggles of modern-day readers. —The BookLife PrizePrecise and profound without being pedantic … A government of the wise and virtuous that seeks the happiness of all seems as far away as ever. This book brings us near the philosophers who troubled to think through these things. —RelibroAs humanity faces deepening crises, Burton is increasingly turning to the wisdom of the ancients for answers. Through his work, he seeks to bridge the gap between ancient philosophy and modern challenges, offering insights that resonate deeply in today’s troubled world. —Plato’s Academy Centre, AthensContentsPrefaceIntroductionPart I: The Presocratics and Sophists1. The Pre-Socratic Movement2. The Milesian School: Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes3. The Second Pre-Socratic Phase: Pythagoras, Xenophanes, Heraclitus, Parmenides4. The Third Pre-Socratic Phase: Empedocles, Anaxagoras, Democritus5. The Sophists: Protagoras, Gorgias, Prodicus, HippiasPart II: Socrates6. History of Athens up to the Time of Socrates7. The Socratic Question8. Socrates at First9. Socrates on a Mission10. Socrates at War11. Socrates in Love12. Socrates on TrialPart III: Plato13. Life and Works14. Meno15. Phaedo16. Phaedrus17. Republic18. TheaetetusPart IV: Aristotle19. Life, Biology, and Works20. Practical Sciences: Ethics and Politics21. Organon: Logic and Dialectic22. Productive Sciences: Rhetoric and Poetics23. Theoretical Sciences: Physics and MetaphysicsConclusion: The Gang of Three◆ Grab your copy now and rise into the greatest minds that ever lived. Read more

In 320BC an expedition set out from what is now southern France on an unprecedented journey: to find out what lay beyond the pillars of Hercules (the mouth of the Mediterranean) in the mythological northern lands. Pythias' great journey was both thefirst and last Greek attempt to explore northern Europe. Cunliffe has used this journey to recreate the world through which the Greek ship sailed with its bustling trade, ferocious wars and complex, pre-literate societies. As Pythias sails up the English Channel and becomes the first literate man to visit Britain, to the edge of the Arctic sea-ice, we learn about the world view of classical Greece and about our own ancestors at the furthest limit of written experience. Read more