The history of a demonic tradition that was stolen from women - and then won back again.

Creatures like Lilith, the seductive first wife of Adam, and mermaids, who lured sailors to their death, are familiar figures in the genre of monstrous temptresses who use their charms to entice men to their doom.

But if we go back 4,000 years, the roots of these demons lie in horrific creatures like Lamashtu, a lion-headed Mesopotamian demon who strangled infants and murdered pregnant w...

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2012Almost six hundred years ago, a short, genial man took a very old manuscript off a library shelf.

In almost every major war there comes a point where defeat looms for one side and its rulers cut a deal with the victors, if only in an attempt to save their own skins. This title offers an account of the final months of the Nazi war machine, from the failed attempt to assassinate Hitler in July 1944 to the German surrender in May 1945.

The international bestseller available in English for the first time: E. H. Gombrich’s world history for the curious of all ages

A deeply engaging new history of how European settlements in the post-Colombian Americas shaped the world, from the bestselling author of 1491.

Presenting the latest research by biologists, anthropologists, archaeologists, and historians, Mann shows how the post-Columbian network of ecological and economic exchange fostered the rise of Europe, devastated imperial China, convulsed Africa, and for two centuries made Mexico City-where Asia, Europe, and the new frontier of the Americas dynamical...

An urgent, fascinating exploration of warfare--past, present, and future--and what we must do if we want to win today from an 82nd Airborne Division veteran, former private military contractor, and professor of war studies at the National Defense University. War is timeless. Some things change--weapons, tactics, technology, leadership, objectives--but our desire to go into battle does not. We are living in the age of "durable disorder"--a period of unrest created by numerous factors: China's ...

Murakami tells the true story behind an act of terrorism that turned an average Monday morning into a national disaster. In spite of the perpetrators' intentions, the Tokyo gas attack left only twelve people dead, but thousands were injured and many suffered serious after-effects.

This is a book about why medieval manuscripts matter. Coming face to face with an important illuminated manuscript in the original is like meeting a very famous person. We may all pretend that a well-known celebrity is no different from anyone else, and yet there is an undeniable thrill in actually meeting and talking to a person of world stature.

The idea for the book, which is entirely new, is to invite the reader into intimate conversations with twelve of the most famous manuscrip...

Offers a study of 16th and 17th century Europe and the fundamental changes which led to the collapse of Christendom and established the geographical and political frameworks of Western Europe as we know it. This book features a rich tapestry that fosters a deeper understanding of Europe's identity.

Jonathan Fenby has edited the Observer, the South China Morning Post and Reuters World Service as well as holding senior positions at the Economist, Independent and Guardian.His books include Generalissimo: Chiang Kai-Shek and the China He Lost, Dealing with the Dragon: A Year in the New Hong Kong, The General: Charles de Gaulle and the France He Saved, The History of Modern France andTiger Head, Snake Tails: China Today, How It Got There and Where It is Heading.He is currently Managing Partn...