What is Literature?
John Sutherland’s ‘Little History’ tackles a very big subject: the glorious span of literature from Greek myth to…
Extracts
Monty’s Men: The British Army and the Liberation of Europe
In Monty’s Men: The British Army and the Liberation of Europe, John Buckley offers a radical reappraisal of Great…
Butterfly’s Sisters: The Geisha in Western Culture
The figure of a geisha can be troubling to Westernised eyes. Yoko Kawaguchi, the author of Butterfly’s Sisters: The…
The Victorian with whom you would most want to have dinner
Walter Bagehot (1826-1877) was a prominent Victorian lawyer, businessman, essayist and journalist. For 17 years he was editor…
Antoine–Laurent Lavoisier and the myth of phlogiston
Yale University Press’ Little Histories collection is a family of books that take a closer look at some…
Measuring pressure is tricky, just ask Stephen Hales’ horse!
Robert Boyle was fascinated by the world and he spent his life trying to explain why things are…
‘This diary must never be printed!’: Playwright August Strindberg and The Occult
The Swedish playwright August Strindberg was, amongst other things, a mercurial talent, artist, occultist, husband and father. He…
The Decorative History of the Basilica of San Francesco
For a brief moment at the close of the 13th century, the town of Assisi was the focus…
‘No use being sentimental’: Strindberg & The Modern World
Sue Prideaux is the author of Strindberg: A Life. Playwright, poet, photographer, painter, alchemist and hellraiser, August Strindberg (1849–1912) is principally…
Introduction to The Anglo-Saxon World
The Anglo-Saxon period, stretching from the fifth century to the late eleventh, begins with the Roman retreat from…
On the performance and legacy of Strindberg
The Swedish playwright August Strindberg was, amongst other things, a mercurial talent, artist, occultist, husband and father. He…
In the Olden Time: Victorians and the British Past
‘When the painter Henry Wallis first exhibited his Chatterton at the Royal Academy in 1856 the painting was…
The Anglo-Saxon World: From Roman Retreat to Norman Takeover
The Anglo-Saxon period witnessed the birth of the English people, the establishment of Christianity, and the development of…
China’s Innovation Hurdle
Drawing on extensive research and experience living and working in Asia over the last thirty-five years, Stumbling Giant…
Experiments in Modern Realism
Experiments in Modern Realism: World Making in Postwar European and American Art is major study which offers a new…