History
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Beaufighter vs German Flak Ships: North Sea and Mediterranean 1941–45: 151 (Duel)
An illustrated study of RAF Coastal Command’s deployment of the Beaufighter against German supply lines in 1941 and the long-running ‘arms race’ with Kriegsmarine Flak ships that followed.Crucial German shipping lines faced a new threat in 1941 when RAF Coastal Command debuted the iconic long-range Beaufighter. The aircraft and its subsequent Mk VIC and Mk X versions gave the Allies a tough, relatively fast and very hard-hitting platform for air attack on German convoys, and so it became essential for the Kriegsmarine to fit ever-heavier anti-aircraft batteries to its escort vessels, and even to develop specialist Flak vessels.
In this compelling study, naval aviation historian Matthew Willis chronicles the little-explored arms race that saw RAF Coastal Command and the Kriegsmarine engaged in a fierce battle of one-upmanship until war’s end. New artwork, rare archive photography and contemporary records of Beaufighter operations add depth to fascinating historical accounts, including the actions of the famous North Coates Strike Wing against shipping in the North Sea and the exploits of Beaufighter units tasked with severing Rommel’s all-important supply lines.
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Borrowed Land: A Highland Story
This is the intimate story of a Scottish glen and its inhabitants, of whom I am one.
From the powerful rivers that bring life and prosperity; to the Pictish cairns, undisturbed for centuries; to the meadows of bluebells, where deer emerge, God-like, in a flash, Kapka Kassabova reveals a world that has been abused, but remains achingly beautiful and alive.
In the Highlands, centuries-old connections between the land, nature and people have been, and continue to be, shaken by the forces of colonialism, industry, depopulation, and private property speculation. Borrowed Land tells the stories of those who are working against this disconnect: the last true Highlanders fighting to preserve their home.
An extraordinary portrait of the Scottish Highlands, this is an epic and urgent story of destruction and renewal, told through encounters with some of the last true Highlanders.
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From £20.96Borrowed Land: A Highland Story
From £20.96 -
British Gardens (BBC Books)
What do our gardens say about us?
Monty Don has spent many years travelling the world, from America to Japan, from Italy and the Adriatic to Spain and the Mediterranean, getting under the skin of a country through its gardens and gardening traditions. In British Gardens, he finally brings his focus to home, journeying from the northern tip of Scotland to the Cornish coast, seeking to understand what our gardens tell us about ourselves as a nation.
Encompassing historical gardens and public parks, mountains and seascapes, urban gardens and rural nurseries, glasshouses and community plots, each encounter is another link in a larger story of British identity: marks of ingenuity, eccentricity, and adaptation to changing environments. From Northumbria’s Alnwick Gardens and Beatrix Potter’s Lake District farmhouse to the rewilded walled garden on the Knepp Estate and the story of Britain’s first garden gnome, Monty’s account brings in an astonishing range of British experience.
Accompanied by a landmark five-part series on BBC2, and illustrated by stunning photography from Monty’s long-time collaborator Derry Moore, British Gardens is a definitive, and uniquely British, account of a nation like no other.
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From £4.33British Gardens (BBC Books)
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One Woman’s War: Rags to Riches, Book 2 (Audio Download): Rosie Goodwin, Charlie Sanderson, Zaffre: Amazon.co.uk: Books
A Rags to Riches novel .
The second book in a brand-new historical trilogy from Britain’s best-loved saga author.
Nuneaton, 1914
War is just around the corner and for Annie Lilburn and her adopted family, life will never be the same. Annie, after a difficult childhood, has never felt like she fits in, but since Levi Lilburn, the local rag and bone man, took her under his wing and she became a business woman in her own right, things have been on the up. Soon that is set to change when World War I is declared and the men of the town enlist. And as more and more casualties come in, Annie needs to step up and do her bit for the war effort.
Annie trains to become a nurse and eventually finds herself on the battlefields in France. With death and destruction all around her, Annie is experiencing things she could never have imagined, but finds an inner strength like no other. Then through the devastation of war, love starts to bloom when Annie meets a young officer. Could this orphan girl finally be finding her place in the world and someone to truly love her, or is her happiness set to come crashing down once again?
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From £6.99 -
Sea Power in the Pacific: A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Korean War
An epic history of the fierce struggle for supremacy over the world’s greatest ocean.This book is sure to be enjoyed by fans of Ian Toll, James D. Hornfischer, and Craig L. Symonds.
Despite being the largest body of water on the globe, the Pacific was often overlooked by historians until the conflict between Japan and the USA after Pearl Harbor. Donald Macintyre, renowned naval authority and wartime U-boat hunter, sets this right.
Drawing upon a wealth of research, Macintyre charts how naval forces were developed and clashed across the Pacific Ocean over the course of five centuries. He begins with the years prior to European intervention in the region, then explores how Portuguese, Dutch, and British naval forces reshaped the balance of power in these vast waters. Particularly compelling is the history of Japanese influence in the Pacific, as it transformed from an isolated medieval state into a modern naval power, asserting itself in the early twentieth century through conflicts with China and Russia.
The origins of the Pacific War, as well as all its major battles — from the Coral Sea to Leyte Gulf — are recorded in fascinating detail, before Macintyre concludes with an overview of the Pacific’s last major naval conflict: the Korean War.
Sea Power in the Pacific: A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Korean War is essential reading for anyone interested in the rise of early modern European empires, their maritime conflicts, and how the Pacific became a crucible of war in the twentieth century.
‘A clear, concise, and very readable history of events.’ — The RUSI Journal
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From £5.00 -
SS Kommando: Hitler’s Special Forces in the Second World War (The Third Reich’s Shadow Forces Book 1)
The secret war of Germany’s elite commandos — a gripping account of sabotage, espionage, and survival in World War Two.For readers of James Owen, Peter Young, James Lucas and Franz Kurowski.
The SS Kommandos and their forerunners, the Brandenburgers — led by Admiral Canaris and later Otto Skorzeny — fought their war in the shadows of Europe for six years. During this time, they battled and plotted behind enemy lines across three continents and dozens of countries. Their clandestine activities undoubtedly changed the course of history.
Often overlooked in favour of the perhaps better-known British Special Forces or American Rangers, the Kommandos were, in fact, the first military units to embrace and utilise such an unconventional style of warfare. In this book, author Charles Whiting presents a thorough account of the men and the operations they undertook during the war years, using first-hand interviews with the remaining survivors — including Skorzeny himself. The result is a vivid, personal account of ordinary men, both heroes and victims of the German war machine, engaged in a deadly struggle for survival.
The daring and complexity of some of the SS Kommando operations is truly staggering and includes the 1943 rescue of deposed dictator Benito Mussolini from under the noses of the Italians in the mountains; the 1944 kidnapping of the son of the Regent of Hungary to keep that country in the war against the Allies; and the theft of a large quantity of diamonds in South Africa to sabotage Britain’s war effort. Brutally efficient and often disregarding the rules of war, these men seized strategic targets, captured key bridges, engaged in espionage and sabotage, and would ultimately influence the development of special forces around the world.
This book is a compelling read for anyone interested in Kommando operations throughout World War Two — the men involved, their leaders and rivals under the Führer, and the desperate tactics employed in the face of defeat.
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The Norman Conquest
‘I loved it. A suitably epic account of one of the most seismic and far-reaching events in British history’ Dan Snow
An upstart French duke who sets out to conquer the most powerful and unified kingdom in Christendom. An invasion force on a scale not seen since the days of the Romans. One of the bloodiest and most decisive battles ever fought.
Going beyond the familiar outline, bestselling historian Marc Morris examines not only the tumultuous events that led up to the Battle of Hastings in 1066, but also the chaos that came in its wake – English rebellions, Viking invasions, the construction of hundreds of castles and the destruction of England’s ancient ruling class. Language, law, architecture, even attitudes towards life itself, were altered forever by the Norman Conquest.
‘Retells the story of the Norman invasion with vim, vigour and narrative urgency’ Dan Jones, Sunday Times
‘A wonderful book’ Terry Jones
‘A much-needed, modern account of the Normans in England’ The Times
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From £2.88The Norman Conquest
From £2.88 -
The Norman Conquest
An upstart French duke who sets out to conquer the most powerful and unified kingdom in Christendom. An invasion force on a scale not seen since the days of the Romans. One of the bloodiest and most decisive battles ever fought. This riveting book explains why the Norman Conquest was the single most important event in English history.
Assessing the original evidence at every turn, Marc Morris goes beyond the familiar outline to explain why England was at once so powerful and yet so vulnerable to William the Conqueror’s attack. Why the Normans, in some respects less sophisticated, possessed the military cutting edge. How William’s hopes of a united Anglo-Norman realm unravelled, dashed by English rebellions, Viking invasions and the insatiable demands of his fellow conquerors. This is a tale of powerful drama, repression and seismic social change: the Battle of Hastings itself and the violent ‘Harrying of the North’; the sudden introduction of castles and the wholesale rebuilding of every major church; the total destruction of an ancient ruling class. Language, law, architecture, even attitudes towards life itself were altered forever by the coming of the Normans.
Marc Morris, author of the bestselling biography of Edward I, A Great and Terrible King, approaches the Conquest with the same passion, verve and scrupulous concern for historical accuracy. This is the definitive account for our times of an extraordinary story, a pivotal moment in the shaping of the English nation.
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From £2.88The Norman Conquest
From £2.88 -
The Norman Conquest: The Battle of Hastings and the Fall of Anglo-Saxon England (Audio Download): Marc Morris, Frazer Douglas, Audible Studios: Amazon.co.uk: Books
A riveting and authoritative history of the single most important event in English history: The Norman Conquest.
An upstart French duke who sets out to conquer the most powerful and unified kingdom in Christendom. An invasion force on a scale not seen since the days of the Romans. One of the bloodiest and most decisive battles ever fought.
This new history explains why the Norman Conquest was the most significant cultural and military episode in English history. Assessing the original evidence at every turn, Marc Morris goes beyond the familiar outline to explain why England was at once so powerful and yet so vulnerable to William the Conqueror’s attack; why the Normans, in some respects less sophisticated, possessed the military cutting edge; how William’s hopes of a united Anglo-Norman realm unraveled, dashed by English rebellions, Viking invasions, and the insatiable demands of his fellow conquerors.
This is a tale of powerful drama, repression, and seismic social change: the Battle of Hastings itself; the sudden introduction of castles and the massive rebuilding of every major church; the total destruction of an ancient ruling class. Language, law, architecture, and even attitudes toward life itself were altered forever by the coming of the Normans.
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From £8.50 -
Tito and the Rise and Fall of Yugoslavia
Few figures have dominated a nation’s destiny as much as Marshal Tito of former Yugoslavia. For nearly thirty years he held together mutually hostile religious groups in a deeply divided country, but his death in 1980 rekindled centuries-old hatreds and by 1992 Yugoslavia ceased to exist. In this revealing biography, Richard West questions the full impact of Tito’s reign of power and his implicit responsibility for the ensuing violent, bloody war in Bosnia.
‘Excellent … I recommend his book for those who already know about Yugoslavia and want food for thought about the future.’ David Owen, Sunday Times
‘Admirable … Carefully researched and extremely readable.’ Literary Review
‘A passionate book, in which West’s historical sense is interlaced with his own very intimate knowledge of Yugoslavia from the late 1940s on and of the poignancy of [subsequent] events.’ Fergus Pyle, Irish Times
‘Masterly’. Glasgow Herald
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From £5.78Tito and the Rise and Fall of Yugoslavia
From £5.78 -
Trafalgar: Nelson’s Great Victory (The Age of Sail)
A gripping account of one of history’s most famous naval battles: Trafalgar.But why was the battle so important? How did Napoleon’s navy come to threaten English shores? And what truly unfolded during those brutal hours on 21 October 1805?
In this authoritative and engrossing narrative, Donald Macintyre charts the dramatic prelude to Trafalgar — from Horatio Nelson’s rise to fame at the battles of the Nile and Copenhagen, to Pierre-Charles Villeneuve’s bold attempt to unite French naval forces in the Caribbean before slipping past the British blockade to challenge their command of the seas.
The mounting tension is brilliantly captured as Nelson pursues Villeneuve across the Atlantic, leading to a fateful clash off the coast of Spain. Though the outcome is known to history, the battle’s gripping details — the daring manoeuvres, the desperate fighting, and the heroism of individual ships and captains — are vividly brought to life, revealing both the triumph and the tragedy of Britain’s most celebrated naval victory.
Trafalgar is essential reading for anyone fascinated by this legendary conflict of the Age of Sail.
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From £4.35 -
When the World Sleeps: Stories, Words, and Wounds of Palestine
The spirit of a place lies in the people who inhabit it, in the stories that intertwine through its streets. And this is especially true of a land like Palestine, the witness to defining historical transitions and stage to one of the most painful chapters in contemporary history. With a voice both authoritative and deeply human, Francesca Albanese, who had been living in Palestine for many years while following the legal battles of numerous Palestinian families, takes on the role of narrator of the ongoing conflict, starting from the stories of the people she met. Albanese elegantly composes a gallery of stories, characters, and places that allow us to understand what Palestine was like until a year and a half ago, and what it has become today. ‘Is it possible that after 42,000 people have been killed, you still cannot empathize with the Palestinians? Those among you who have not uttered a word about what is happening in Gaza demonstrate that empathy has evaporated from this room. Empathy is the glue that makes us stand united as humanity.’ -Albanese at the United Nations General Assembly, October 2024.Read more
From £9.25 -
William Tyndale and the English Language
‘Dearly beloved’, ‘say the word’, ‘the powers that be’, ‘for ever and ever’ – these familiar phrases and many more were set down in print for the first time by William Tyndale. For his groundbreaking English translation of the Bible, he deliberately chose to write in a way that could be understood by the widest possible audience.
In the first half of this pioneering exploration of the extraordinary impact Tyndale’s writing had on the development of the English language, David Crystal provides an analysis of his prose style, demonstrating its character as a novel genre of ‘written speech’, and bringing to light the remarkable number of cases where Tyndale is the first recorded user of a word or phrase in English. He also draws attention to the hitherto unrecognised role of Tyndale as an early lexicographer. The second half of the book is a linguistic detective story, devising an innovative lexical and grammatical metric to investigate the often-stated claim that eighty per cent of later biblical translations display Tyndale’s influence.
The result is a fascinating exploration of the work of the Father of the English Bible.
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From £5.72William Tyndale and the English Language
From £5.72 -
Willie, Willie, Harry, Stee: The brand-new hilarious history from comedy legends Higson and Moir
A Waterstones Best History Book 2025
A BBC History Magazine Book of the Year 2025
‘Learned, entertaining and highly approachable’ BOB MORTIMER
‘A treat’ ALICE LOXTON
‘Five stars from me…’ AL MURRAY
An unmissable collaboration between two comedy legends – an irresistible, family-friendly deep dive into the murky lives of the British monarchy.
Willie, Willie, Harry, Stee, Harry, Dick, John, Harry three. One, two, three Neds, Richard Two, Henries, four, five, six, then who?
Charlie Higson has always been fascinated by the story of the monarchy: from the b*stardly to the benevolent, the brilliant to the brutal. In this wonderful new book, using the famous rhyme he learned at school as his trusty guide, Charlie takes us through the history of this bizarre and long-lasting institution, introducing readers to every single ruler since poor Harold got it in the eye at the Battle of Hastings (or did he?).
Who were all these people, and what did they do? It’s all here. Bloody treachery? Check. Unruly incest? Check. A couple of Cromwells? Check. The War of Jenkins Ear? Sadly, for Robert Jenkins, check.
A rip-roaring journey that takes in the Normans, Plantagenets, Tudors, Stuarts, Hanoverians and Windsors, not to mention the infamous Blois (how can we forget them?), Willie, Willie, Harry, Stee is an utterly engrossing and grossly entertaining guide to who ruled when and whether they were any good at it.
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From £14.24