Point of the Needle

Barbara Burman is a writer and former academic at the University of Southampton and University of the Arts, London. She is co-author with Ariane Fennetaux of The Pocket: A Hidden History of Women’s Lives, 1660–1900 (2019) and editor of The Culture of Sewing (1999). She is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and lives near Cambridge.

"Barbara was the co-author of the well-received book called The Pocket - A Secret History of Women’s Lives, but in this new book, Barbara has a much bigger canvas: to rescue sewing from the twilight and to celebrate it as a fundamental human activity . . . This book is a much broader one that seeks to shine a light on the extraordinary human endeavour of stitching." - Jo Andrews, Haptic & Hue Book of the Year 2023"Malyn Newitt writes with the breadth of knowledge that one would expect from a man who was the Charles Boxer Professor of History at King’s College . . . Reaktion has issued a series of books on Renaissance lives for which Navigations will make a welcome companion . . . the impact of the voyages undertaken in the hundred years covered by this book fully deserve a detailed, wide-ranging forensic study such as Newitt provides." - David Childs, Naval Review"In Plato: A Civic Life we journey through the philosopher’s life – and, from the third chapter onwards, through his writings – learning as much about Athenian democracy, international relations, education and culture as we do about Plato himself . . . Anyone who finds raw Plato indigestible will welcome these accessible explanations of his work . . . Twenty-five years on from my last ancient philosophy exam, I am surprised to discover that I want to open his works again, thanks to this humanizing and carefully contextualized biography." - Alice König, Times Literary Supplement"Margolin shines a bright light onto the shadowy Wagner mercenary group, at once deeply-researched and as readable as a thriller." - Mark Galeotti, author of Putin's Wars"From the 18th century to the present day, and taking in poetry, letters, diaries, novels and more, this anthology traces the long tradition of women writing about walking. Among the many writers included are Mary Wollstonecraft, Jane Austen, Raynor Winn, Cheryl Strayed, Sarah Moss and Polly Atkin." - Caroline Sanderson, The Bookseller"Edwin Morgan’s is the kind of poetry I want. A Home in Space is a multiverse chock full of concrete word-patterning, sound-ups and cut-ups, galaxies and constellations, collages, overlays, typographic arrays, acoustic riffs, lettrist elations and noncesensical confabulations, graphic designs, ur-computer inventions, and iconoclastic ads and icons. Greg Thomas and Julie Johnstone’s detailed, historically informative, and discerning introduction sets the stage for Morgan’s verbo-visual-vocal – patalexical! polychromatic! – lollapalooza of a book." - Charles Bernstein, Donald T. Regan Professor Emeritus of English and Comparative Literature, University of Pennsylvania"Brahms’s later life is well known, but we hear less about the young dynamo whom Joseph Joachim described in 1853 as “this green-gold baby tiger”. In this sympathetic and level-headed biography, John Worthen traces Brahms’s early influences, delves into the complexities of his long relationship with Clara Schumann and explores the cast of mind which led him to remain “free but lonely”." - Susan Tomes, pianist and writer"With scholarship rather than machismo, intelligence rather than bluster, Michael S. Begnal gets to the heart of the Stooges’ lortuous and lonely road to Raw Power: one of the greatest albums ever made." - Jon Savage, author of England’s Dreaming: Sex Pistols and Punk Rock"William Sheehan’s Solar Eclipses offers an illuminating tour through the science and history of nature’s most awe-inspiring spectacle. Wonderfully illustrated and richly told, it’s a book that will appeal to novice and expert alike." - David Baron, author of American Eclipse: A Nation’s Epic Race to Catch the Shadow of the Moon and Win the Glory of the World"Another brilliant, thought-provoking book by Joanna Bourke. In her riveting stories about the crimes of five reviled female murderers she analyses responses of experts and the public, and convincingly argues that the concept of the “evil woman” is inappropriate." - The Rt Hon. Baroness Tessa Blackstone"With originality and depth, Paul Dobraszczyk explores the rich lodes, veins and seams of interconnections between the Earth’s own architecture, and how humans have used this to make their own no less extraordinary constructions from its rock resources. An engaging journey through ideas, imagination and history as much as it is one through strata and the built environment, The Matter of Architecture will open new perspectives to its readers." - Jan Zalasiewicz, author of The Planet in a Pebble"To read the caring, humane views put forward by Rabbi Jonathan Romain was a huge relief. Obviously, as he is in favour of changing the law, it is unsurprising that I welcome his contribution to the debate. But he is also fair-minded and bases his arguments on real evidence." - Esther Rantzen"This is an essential book for understanding the current anti-democratic turn. Professors Fuentes and Rodrigo provide much needed historical context to debates over contemporary fascism." - Federico Finchelstein, the New School for Social Research"This bold and ambitious book brings to life the horse-riding peoples of the Eurasian steppe while also exploring the political conditions that have shaped their discovery and study from Imperial Russia to the present. It offers a nuanced account of Western, Russian, and Ukrainian scholarship, presenting major anthropological theories accessibly and vividly illustrating how textual sources and archaeology together illuminate the past." - Karen S. Rubinson, Research Associate, Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University"Scott Nethersole’s meticulous and lucid analysis demonstrates Lorenzo Ghiberti’s ingenuity, technical brilliance, and the power of his sculptures to engage viewers. This rich and illuminating book gives us a Ghiberti particularly skilled in design – the creative process through which he crafted reliefs and statues in copper alloys and planned architectural and other projects in stone, wood, and stained glass." - Amy R. Bloch, Professor of Art History, University at Albany, SUNY, and author of Lorenzo Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise"Helge Kragh is the leading historian of scientific studies of the universe. He also possesses a rare ability to make complex ideas accessible and understandable. In Universe, we see him in sparkling form, presenting a lucid and engaging account of how people have envisioned the universe from ancient Greece to the twenty-first century. A reader could not ask for a better guide to this captivating story." - Robert Smith, Professor of History, University of Alberta"Glenda Norquay narrates Stevenson’s all-too-brief and eventful life with grace and verve and a fine eye for the telling detail. This is a learned book, but Norquay wears her learning lightly. Not only does she reveal Stevenson himself in all his multi-faceted complexity, she vividly conjures up the many disparate worlds he moved through, from Scotland to the South Seas." - Stephen Arata, Professor of English, University of Virginia"Hypochondria tends to be regarded as the exaggeration if not complete fabrication of ailments or illness. In this important and beautifully written book, however, Susannah Mintz provides a very different account of essential expression, profound reflection, and often untapped potential for making meaningful personal and sociocultural connections." - David Bolt, Professor and Director of the Centre for Culture and Disability Studies, Liverpool Hope University"Whittaker provides a comprehensive yet sharp history of the uneasy relationship between journalism and technology, from the golden age of print to today’s digital monopolies. He shows how the promises of digital media - pluralism, empowerment, and democratisation - have been undermined by the realities of corporate power, disinformation, and surveillance capitalism. This book combines scholarship with urgency, warning that the future of journalism is inextricably linked with the future of democracy itself. A vital and timely book." - Matt Walsh, Head of Cardiff University School of Journalism, Media and Culture, former journalist and Deputy Editor of the ITV News Channel"This is a beautifully written and illustrated account of the discovery and re-discovery of America in the late fifteenth to early sixteenth century. Lydia Towns incorporates much recent published research whilst being unafraid to offer clear and original analysis. Her core focus is not only the stories of the voyages of Columbus and the two Cabots, John and Sebastian, but the motivations for the journeys – as much merchant enterprises as means of imperial endeavour. In Search of Trade and Fortune is, for sheer originality of thought and sound scholarship, a book I shall wish to keep at hand." - Margaret Condon, Cabot Project, University of Bristol"A book that will upend our view of the past, this time disabusing us of the Medieval reputation of dirt and lack of hygiene . . . Harvey's revisionist history uncovers a time when people strove to live a healthy and balanced life." - Sue Baker, The Bookseller: Health and Diet Spotlight 'Expert Pick'"In this lavishly illustrated book, the author offers us a fresh view of the Ming as a dynastic enterprise. We emerge from it with a new sense of how the political arena was shaped by the workings of the sprawling clan at its heart, continuously sprouting new branches of imperial princes, calculating advantageous marriages, and frequently afflicted by brutal violence. It gives due weight to the importance of women as well as men, and of the dead as well as the living. Sons of Heaven is distinguished by its sense of the strangeness of the past, its eye for discreet but telling deployment of inter-disciplinary insights, and its engagement with the broader vistas of global history." - Alan Strathern, Professor of Global History, University of Oxford"Antonioli has done masterful work weaving together the often contradictory threads of Colette’s work, her biography, and her reception over the past century. This book has much to offer to both readers new to Colette and to those familiar with her oeuvre and with the French literary landscape she redefined." - Patricia Tilburg, Professor at Davidson College and author of Colette's Republic"Dawley’s retelling of Taiwan’s history humanises Taiwanese people and their history in a way that is desperately needed in today’s great-power focused world. No other volume better introduces Taiwan’s complex history and political development in such a thorough yet accessible way. This is a must-read, both for those new to – and familiar with – East Asian history and politics." - Dr Lev Nachman, author of Contested Taiwan"This book is a fascinating, extremely well-researched investigation into the various ways in which prehistoric stone monuments have been understood and responded to culturally over the many centuries since they were built. It covers a huge range of ground, from the earliest myths and legends through Romantic poetry to contemporary pop music, revealing just how many wonderful “stories of the stones” there are to tell. A highly rewarding and immensely rich read." - Duncan Garrow, Professor of Archaeology, University of Reading, and co-author of The World of Stonehenge"Jeremy Harte is one of Britain’s leading folklorists, and probably the most perceptive and humane, as well as erudite. All these virtues are displayed to the full in this book, which is a treat for readers at any level of knowledge." - Ronald Hutton, Professor of History, University of Bristol, and author of The Witch: A History of Fear, from Ancient Times to the Present"No one can say anything sensible about undocumented artworks without connoisseurship. This practice relies exclusively on judgments based on comparisons informed by feats of visual memory. But those judgments follow rules that do not necessarily capture actuality. It has taken an historian of Peter Burke’s acuity to analyze the development of a form of attention–connoisseurship that relies on questionable rules unacknowledged by those who follow them. Burke’s tour d’horizon is a tour de force." - Ivan Gaskell, Bard Graduate Center"With words of stillness, clarity and simplicity, perfectly complementing the images of Zurbarán himself, Robbins deftly unveils the occluded mysteries of this supreme master of Spanish piety." - David Howarth, Emeritus Professor of Baroque Art, The University of Edinburgh"A mesmerizing philosophical tour of insects, humans, and transformation." - Mark W. Moffett, author of Adventures Among Ants and The Human Swarm"An engaging biography for everyone who loves the poems of John Clare or is simply curious about them. By rooting the story of Clare’s life in the places he lived, renowned expert Sarah Houghton-Walker paints a vivid picture of Clare as a friend, husband, and lover. He was a masterful observer of the natural world and a poet whose writings have captured generations of readers and are being understood afresh today." - Stephanie Kuduk Weiner, Professor of English, Wesleyan University"Through a series of brilliant visual analyses of Veronese’s paintings, Nichols’s book highlights the feminization of the artist’s ravishingly beautiful visual world as well as the sustained attention that he paid to those on the margins of society. Veronese emerges as an aristocratic painter but never a socially exclusive one. His tendency toward pictorial inclusivity is explored for the first time in this compelling and sharply observed study that casts fresh light on one of the greatest masters of the Venetian Renaissance." - Marie-Louise Lillywhite, Fellow by Special Election, Keble College, University of Oxford"Reappraises the life of the Albanian communist dictator known for his vengefulness but also for his love of Norman Wisdom films." - New Statesman’s Culture Preview 2026: The best non-fiction to read this year"In Qaddafi: Beyond the Myth, expert Libya scholar Ronald Bruce St John offers a penetrating reappraisal of one of the Arab world’s most enigmatic and polarizing leaders. Drawing on decades of research, he traces Muammar Qaddafi’s journey from a Bedouin childhood in the Libyan desert to his four decades in power, exploring the tribal, ideological, and geopolitical forces that shaped his rule. Far from the caricatures of “madman” or “messiah,” St John portrays Qaddafi as both visionary and autocrat — a revolutionary who sought to fuse Islam, socialism, and direct democracy in his “Third Universal Theory,” yet built one of the most centralized and repressive regimes in the region. Balancing rigorous scholarship with vivid storytelling, this book reveals how Qaddafi’s ambitions, contradictions, and ultimate downfall continue to define Libya’s fractured present and contested future. Qaddafi: Beyond the Myth is a definitive and timely portrait of a leader whose legacy still haunts North Africa and the wider Arab world." - Yahia Zoubir, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Middle East Council on Global Affairs, Doha, Qatar"Culture Preview 2026: The best non-fiction to read this year" - New Statesman"The authors shine a light on the impact of hunger on children and their families and the book highlights how food is interwoven in everyday life and in the collective memory, which has an impact on the life course. An excellent book which leads all of us to think hard about these issues." - Gurpinder Singh Lalli, Professor at University of Wolverhampton School of Education and author of Schools, Food and Social Learning"Paul Cartledge brings his wealth of knowledge and depth of insight to this engrossing exploration of one of the most influential and controversial politicians of all time. He situates Pericles fully in Athens and gives scope to all the nuances that are identified – sometimes inaccurately – by the adjective 'Periclean'. This is a masterly investigation of the complex and troubling relationship between demagoguery and democracy that speaks to the current era as much it does to one that will forever be inseparable from Pericles’s name." - Robert Garland, author of Athens Burning"Whispers from Celtic Seas is a fascinating and passionate call for the oral traditions and traditional folk stories of Northwest Europe to be granted the respect they deserve for the deep histories they tell. Patrick Nunn masterfully reveals the traumatic events that constantly redefined the boundaries between land and sea." - Lynne Kelly, author of The Knowledge Gene and The Memory Code"Readers assemble! Anyone interested in the intersections of cinema and popular culture will want to read this lively and informative account of comic book movie adaptations. James Chapman takes us up, up and away with a fascinating history that explores social and political contexts while providing close readings of specific films, series, and franchises. Highly recommended." - Barry Keith Grant, Professor Emeritus, Brock University, Canada, author of Peter Jackson and co-editor, Comics and Pop Culture: Adaptation from Panel to Frame"Antisemitism, that light sleeper, is on the rise again. In a period in which it is weaponised on many sides – by the Right wing, by the Left, by Israeli advocates and by anti-Zionists – it is also a real feature of the cultural and political field. In this book Sander L. Gilman, who has done more than any other scholar to unpick the history and character of antisemitism, shows how different “antisemitisms” have arisen and how they function. Through four lively and deeply researched “case histories” – visible difference (appearance), vulnerability (disease), belonging (rootedness) and boundary setting (self-hatred) – Gilman demonstrates the versatility and variability of antisemitic images (and self-images) of Jews, traced historically and conceptually. This is a vivid text that is a vital read for everyone concerned about antisemitic and racial hate." - Stephen Frosh, Emeritus Professor of Psychology, Birkbeck, University of London"The underbelly of Chinese culture was never as poetic and as vivid as in this book on the ars amatoria – arts of love. Erotic and soulful, it takes you into the world of pillow and mat, moon and wind, rain and clouds, scented mountains and gyrating snow. These metaphors for intimacy part the curtains of the bedchamber and enrich the lexicon of love beyond the salaciousness of Western pornography. John Minford, a brilliant sinologist and translator, has brought together ancient, traditional and modern texts, with a flair for winged pleasures such as this one line from the oldest “Book of Songs”: I bring my lithe lass joy." - Vera Schwarcz, Emerita Professor of History and East Asian Studies, Wesleyan University"There may be no greater clear and present danger to our society, our health, and our environment – indeed, to our very existence – than the current contagion of stupidity and idiocy. Svendsen’s serious but accessible and entertaining book is thus a timely and essential tool both for identifying the threat and for finding a way to save ourselves from the epistemological epidemic and restore some rationality to the world." - Steven Nadler, Vilas Research Professor and William H. Hay II Professor of Philosophy, University of Wisconsin-Madison"What an Arkestra, what a trip! Visiting (and revisiting) Loughridge and Patteson’s The Museum of Imaginary Musical Instruments immerses you in the sonic, visual and philosophical delights of “fictophones” from across space, time and astral planes. This slim encyclopedia is brilliant, hilarious and erudite – an ultra-evocative and hyper-resonant sextant for an age of sublime and demented machines." - John Tresch, Professor of History of Art, Science, and Folk Practice at the Warburg Institute, University of London"This accessible and informative book demonstrates Kerry Brown’s open-minded evaluation of Mao and his extensive knowledge of him." - Mobo Gao, Adelaide University"Kerry Brown provides a wonderfully insightful analysis of one of the most influential and complex figures of the twentieth century, Mao Zedong. Brown weaves together Mao’s life with the unfolding drama of the Chinese communist movement. He highlights the influence of Chinese history and culture on Mao’s evolution of Marxism—Marxist Daoism. The book serves as an excellent introduction to the man, the revolution that he led, and its global ramifications." - Tony Saich, Harvard Kennedy School, author of From Rebel to Ruler: One Hundred Years of the Chinese Communist Party"Hugely enjoyable and endlessly stimulating, The Museum of Imaginary Musical Instruments takes readers on a captivating journey through centuries of musical invention, both real and imagined. Every page is infused with deep scholarship and a palpable sense of wonder – a true celebration of music’s limitless possibilities." - Alexander Rehding, Fanny Peabody Professor of Music at Harvard University"Antisemitisms rethinks the very nature of “Jew hatred” with remarkable concision and clarity. Rather than treating antisemitism as a static or “eternal” phenomenon, or trying to define or describe it, Sander L. Gilman illuminates the multi-faceted concept as an ever-changing, adaptive constellation of ideas, attitudes, and prejudices – each responsive to its own political and cultural moment. This pioneering study offers a nuanced, historically grounded understanding of not one antisemitism, but many antisemitisms: opportunistic, multifaceted, and shaped as responses to deeply rooted, longstanding xenophobia. With penetrating insight and elegant restraint, Gilman provides a vivid intellectual map that spans centuries – most powerfully including the time before the Holocaust – while speaking directly to the complexities of our present. Antisemitisms is an indispensable, lucid, and urgent book – essential reading for anyone interested in Israel and Palestine, the history of ideas, the rhetoric of racism and xenophobia, and the tangled legacies that define our contemporary world." - Agnes Mueller, Professor of German and Comparative Literature, University of South Carolina"In this wonderfully thought-provoking book, Patrick Nunn dispels the myth about myths, and shows that sea-level changes, particularly sea-level rise, are not recently recognised phenomena. The longevity of myths is breath-taking, and reveals we still have a lot to learn about ourselves from studies of the past." - Colin Murray-Wallace, Honorary Senior Professor, University of Wollongong, New South Wales"This is a terrific life of an intriguing poet by one of our great biographers. Peter Ackroyd sensitively explores W. H. Auden's development as a poet, his family, religion (Anglo-Catholic) and relationships. By fleshing out Auden the man, we better understand his verse. One fine writer on another." - London Standard"Ronald Bruce St John has written an essential guide to the man who long referred to himself as Libya’s guide – in the process, deftly summarizing more than five decades of Libyan history." - Ethan D. Chorin, author of Benghazi: A New History"Enver Hoxha, though he governed a small and obscure country, was one of the great tyrants of the twentieth century. This important book reveals the depth of both his crimes and his vanity, in all their historical and cultural sweep." - Robert D. Kaplan, author of Balkan Ghosts, In Europe’s Shadow, and Adriatic"Boria Sax’s The Butterfly Who Dreamt He Was a Man brilliantly weaves together all the threads that tie us to the natural world. He finds literary and literal connections that will make you rethink our relationship to insects throughout history, their magnificence and the vital role they continue to play, keeping our planet on its axis." - Peter Kuper, author of Insectopolis"Albon and Palmer bring us authentic voices of children and how their “foodways” have changed over time. The excellent selection of their voices and images is salutary and by turns celebratory. I recommend this fascinating book and ask for more." - Penny Lawrence, Associate Professor, Early Childhood Education, UCL Institute of Education"Francisco de Zurbarán and the Fabric of the World presents an intriguing approach through the materiality and genres of painting, offering a journey through the artist’s entire career and emphasising the importance of the study of matter and the monumentalisation of still life through textures. This is an original approach that undoubtedly provides an interesting perspective in visual culture for discovering the Spanish artist and explaining his work." - Benito Navarrete Prieto, Professor of Art History, Complutense University of Madrid"Peter Burke sheds light on one of the most enigmatic and captivating aspects of the history of art." - Paolo Coen, University of Teramo"Treasures on Earth is a captivating exploration of the myths, legends and historical accounts surrounding buried treasures across Britain. Jeremy Harte delves into the human fascination with hidden wealth, weaving together folklore, archaeology and cultural history to examine how stories of treasure troves, guarded by supernatural beings like demons, fairies and ghosts, have evolved over centuries, reflecting societal values, fears and aspirations. This book is not just a collection of stories but a thoughtful analysis of how legends are shaped by history, geography and human imagination. Harte's engaging narrative and meticulous research make this book a treasure in itself, a perfect read for anyone interested in folklore, history and the enduring allure of hidden riches." - Simon Costin, Founder and Director, Museum of British Folklore"Many of us have wondered about the prehistoric builders of megalithic monuments, but in Stories of the Stones Paul Robichaud compellingly offers an even richer story of our cultural entanglement with these protean markers in the landscape, which did not cease to be significant with the end of their prehistoric ritual life. In a magical yet historically grounded book, Robichaud reveals a new depth to these living stones whose enduring appeal is interwoven with folklore, story, identity, nationhood and spirituality." - Francis Young, author of Silence of the Gods: The Untold History of Europe’s Last Pagan Peoples"The arrival of Evan N. Dawley’s Taiwan: A People's History could not be better timed. Written in an admirably accessible style, it offers an original approach and is chockful of engaging nuggets. Based on deep familiarity with the literature, a thorough amount of original research, and much time in the field, Dawley’s book is required reading." - Thomas Gold, University of California, Berkeley"With extensive research and fresh insights, Antonioli tackles some of the less-explored aspects of Colette’s complex life, work, and legacy, offering a nuanced portrait of Colette as the astute steward of her own literary reputation and persona, in all her fascinating contradictions." - Rachel Careau, translator of Colette’s The Pure and the Impure and Chéri and The End of Chéri"The vivid details of the lives of Ming dynasty emperors (1368–1644), in contemporary records and rare illustrations, offer us today a unique view of China’s rulers, whose world, hidden in their palaces, could not be seen or imagined by their subjects. Craig Clunas’s exemplary but also extraordinary account reveals the texture of their daily encounters and observations, embedded in a period and culture of which we know still far too little. These emperors remind us too of the sophistication of their immense territory, as it began to enter the imaginations of Europeans." - Jessica Rawson, Professor of Chinese Art and Archaeology, University of Oxford"In a fascinating book that cleverly intertwines the careers of Christopher Columbus and John Cabot, Lydia Towns sets their voyages within contemporary knowledge of the Atlantic, which was fuller than is generally assumed, and shows that English merchants, and then John Cabot, played a much under-estimated role in the discovery of America." - David Abulafia, Professor Emeritus of Mediterranean History, University of Cambridge, and Fellow of Gonville and Caius College"We all know what happened: the dumbing down of broadcast news, the collapse of the local press, the proliferation of fake news – and the ruthless dominance of Big Tech. Jason Whittaker offers something new in this brilliant book: a sober dissection of the “why” and, most importantly as we consider AI, an urgent policy-focused exploration of “what next”." - Dave Lee, U.S. technology columnist, Bloomberg Opinion"Hypochondria is a capacious and audacious book—capacious in its investigation of an impressive range of representations of the condition, audacious in its open-mindedness toward this often dismissed, if not maligned, complaint. Mintz regards hypochondria as a legitimate “identity position,” a not necessarily pathological reaction to being a bodymind. Indeed, she dares to suggest that hypochondria poses a challenge to compulsory healthiness that we should attend to, rather than disregard." - G. Thomas Couser, Professor of English and Founding Director of Disability Studies Program, Hofstra University"In The Medieval Guide to Healthy Living, Katherine Harvey offers a clearly written, lively exposé of medieval ideas about, and practices for, health and wellness that challenge our modern misconceptions of the era. At times serious but often infused with humour, Harvey’s work reminds us that concern for our health, and taking action to protect it, is part of what makes us human, even if our understanding of how the body works has changed over the centuries." - Lori Jones, Adjunct Professor, University of Ottawa, and author of Patterns of Plague: Changing Ideas about Plague in England and France, 1348–1750"In this book Helge Kragh, one of the premier historians of cosmology, offers a lively account of our conceptions of the universe from Aristotle to the present. Written for a broad audience, it also addresses ultimate pressing mysteries like what came before the Big Bang; the ultimate fate of galaxies, black holes, and life; and whether we may live in a multiverse. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the changing conceptions of our place in the universe." - Steven J. Dick, former NASA Chief Historian"Nethersole presents a new and compelling cast of Ghiberti as a scheming and ravishing artist who could think with his hands and use visual design to control affect. In this superb book he alloys a limpid rereading of the primary sources with an analysis of the artistic challenges of exacting patrons, unruly materials and illustrious locations to which Ghiberti responded. Nethersole is as magisterial a director of the eye as Ghiberti is." - Machtelt Brüggen Israëls, Senior Lecturer in Italian Renaissance Art, University of Amsterdam, and author of Piero della Francesca and the Invention of the Artist"A timely and much needed sober intervention in the debate about current-day ‘fascism’ and its historical roots. Fuentes Codera and Rodrigo do an excellent job in dissecting fascism as a historical phenomenon, its post-1945 transformations and current legacies." - Robert Gerwarth, University College Dublin"This is a remarkably interesting book. It explores, in a clear-headed way, why some women turn to violence and why, in doing so, they are regarded with special disdain. Written with great lucidity by a truly distinguished scholar, Five Evil Women breaks new ground in the study of gender and criminality." - Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College"Solar Eclipses is a comprehensive guide on the history, science, and majesty of solar eclipses. Exploring the eclipse experience across time and cultures, William Sheehan examines how eclipses influenced people from early observers to modern astronomer-adventurers, and how eclipse predictions and studies drove major advances in our understanding of the Sun, chemistry, and the nature of gravity. Notably, Solar Eclipses delves into the awe and wonder of experiencing a solar eclipse, with guidance for those making their first or fifteenth eclipse viewing. With clear science graphics and compelling historical images, this is a beautifully written reference for those drawn to the eclipse shadow." - Adam Burgasser, Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics, UC San Diego"A kaleidoscopic study that criss-crosses and brilliantly illuminates the Stooges’ second act. Michael S. Begnal brings together the methodology of a scholar with the enthusiasm and knowledge of a life-long fan. Death Trip will enthral, inform and entertain die-hard and casual devotees alike as it elucidates, through the story of Raw Power, the lost history of punk before the Ramones and the Sex Pistols." - Peter Stanfield, author of The Yardbirds"Way Makers is a scintillating and exciting collection of women's voices." - Katharine Norbury, author of The Fish Ladder"In this gripping and meticulous guide to Russia’s most notorious mercenary group, Margolin charts Wagner’s heady rise and Prigozhin’s calamitous fall with an eye to an international context and the West’s own complicity." - Jade McGlynn, author of Russia's War"If there can be a life-affirming book about death, this is it. Jonathan Romain’s compassion and humanity permeate every page. His professional and personal experiences have given him privileged access to the views of patients and their relatives. Their hopes and fears have influenced his opinions and provide the background to this story." - Graeme Catto, former President of the General Medical Council"Carol Atack’s study of Plato achieves more in 240 pages than many other writers manage in biographies three times the length . . . A gem for anyone interested in this ancient Greek philosopher and the world he inhabited. Approachable, enlightening, informative." - Bookmunch"One of the seminal episodes in world history was the fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Portuguese discovery of and expansion into Asia, Africa, and the Americas. The historiography of the period, written mostly by Portuguese scholars, often portrayed this history as a series of celebrated events led by heroic personalities whose successes furthered Portugal’s achievements and greatness. Questioning this formidable historiography, Newitt de-emphasizes these traditional portrayals and places the discoveries within the context of the European Renaissance and the less recognized parallel rise of comparable empires in Asia. Newitt envisions this history not as a series of dramatic enterprises but as a continuation of patterns already in process in both parts of the world. Written in a readable style, this volume shows the history as a collaborative effort between already famous discoverers and an often ignored, supporting cast of crews, soldiers, women, Sephardic Jews, and African captives. As the author suggests, the Portuguese discoveries were important for establishing commercial and cultural networks between rising world powers in the East and the West. This volume is an appreciated addition to the author’s recent publications reinterpreting the international Portuguese historical experience. Highly recommended." - Choice"Chronicling the intimate stories of people who sew today, this ‘trenchant’ argument for the importance of sewing in our lives looks at identity, diversity, resilience and memory as it explores why we sew, what motivates us and why we mend things." - Caroline Sanderson, The Bookseller"[Barbara Burman] pulls off turning a lifetime's research, including her own Our Sewing Stories, into a book by having a strong, thematic narrative, fluent style and empathy with the more personal aspects of needlecraft . . . The book charts the social history of what is still perceived as a "gendered practice". It also explores needlework's moral and religious associations and the benefits it offers to well-being . . . At a more sensory level, evocative descriptions of scissors crunching through cloth, "earthy and seductive" Harris tweed, silk pleated "into rills like the delicate underside of a field mushroom", "swishy, flowy" synthetic jerseys and old-fashioned lutestring, fustian and dimity will resonate with lovers of haberdasheries." - Mary Miers, Country Life"Few living scholars know as much about the Portuguese empire as Malyn Newitt. None writes about it with more confidence, clarity, critical acuity and common sense. His new book is the precious gift of a long lifetime's work and reflection, enlivened by moments of subtle humour and distinguished by objectivity, reliability and restraint in judgement." - Felipe Fernández-Armesto, William P. Reynolds Professor of History, University of Notre Dame, and author of Straits: Beyond the Myth of Magellan"Atack excels, contextualizing the dialogues smoothly and authoritatively, with neither the gatekeeping condescension of the expert nor the oversimplifying condescension of the pedagogue . . . As a primer to the man, his works, and his time, the general-interest reader could scarcely ask for something better." - Open Letters Review"This fascinating history of the Wagner Group (and of the connected but competing group Redut) is filled with details not reported elsewhere, based on the author’s own interviews and extensive research of Russian-language blogs, social media posts, and leaked documents. It will appeal to anyone interested in the criminality, violent military exploits, and political infighting of Vladimir Putin’s Russia." - Kimberly Marten, Barnard College, Columbia University"It was while researching her bestselling 2021 non-fiction book, Wanderers: A History of Women Walking, that Kerri Andrews realised there was no anthology dedicated to the subject . . . Her answer is Way Makers, which lays claim to being 'the first anthology of women's writing about walking' . . . The book includes extracts from novels, letters, journals, guidebooks, essays, poetry and even 'the occasional play'. Importantly, it covers female writers from 'a range of social, racial and bodily backgrounds' and the walks they make physically and in their minds . . . Andrews' ground-breaking Way Makers [has] more than 70 entries spanning the centuries." - Sally McDonald, The Sunday Post"Bill Sheehan takes the reader on a captivating journey through the scientific and cultural heritage of solar eclipses, revealing the cosmic choreography behind one of nature’s most mesmerizing spectacles. This book is a must-read for eclipse enthusiasts and curious minds alike." - Kevin Schindler, historian at Lowell Observatory, Arizona"This is a probing, compassionate and deeply ethical book exposing society's biases when faced with examples of extreme violence in women. Joanna Bourke untangles how prurience, sensationalism and misogyny entwine to conjure monster myths that leave an enduring impression that evil acts committed by women are far more deviant and horrifying than those of men. She takes us through a series of contemporary ‘evil’ women to reflect on how our starting points of gendered prejudice serves to strengthen the horror and disgust that their names evoke." - Jude Kelly CBE, founder of The WOW Foundation"Jonathan Romain is a gentle, insightful and honest guide to assisted dying, and makes a powerful case for it. This moving book left me thinking this option is a loving and necessary expression of our care for one another." - Revd Canon Rosie Harper"Mintz provides a fresh and rich account of the surprisingly creative and communicative potential of hypochondria, attentive to what it reveals about medical and ableist norms, old age, care, and discrimination. The pleasure of reading Hypochondria comes not only from its honed prose but the challenge it poses to think, even to know, differently." - Jennifer Cooke, Professor of English, Loughborough University and author of Contemporary Feminist Life-writing: The New Audacity"This work is a vital and compelling look at the interconnected systems of the early Atlantic World. Brilliantly re-contextualizing familiar explorers within the crucial economic and historical networks that made their journeys possible, this book is a masterful examination of how the Old World truly expanded into the New." - Mylynka Kilgore Cardona, Associate Professor of History, East Texas A&M University"This innovative, beautifully illustrated book narrates the history of the Ming dynasty in an emperor-by-emperor format that interweaves personal, familial, and dynastic history. Rigorously researched, it uncovers how individual emperors shaped politics (and vice versa), thereby revealing the palace events and machinations of the Ming in Anglophone prose." - Jennifer Purtle, Associate Professor of Chinese and East Asian Art History, University of Toronto"This is the book the world has been waiting for! Since Taiwan is one of the world’s geopolitical hotspots, the history of the Taiwanese people is needed to understand their views. Evan N. Dawley’s gem of a book is at once rigorous scholarship, a delightful read, and a courageous act of decolonization." - Scott E. Simon, University of Ottawa"This book made me feel like a witch on a broomstick, swooping over Britain, Ireland and Brittany to alight at the ancient circles, dolmens and barrows and hear their stories. It is an enchanting and completely fascinating tour through the megalithic imagination. This is the first time all the tales of the stones from literature, art, film and folklore have been gathered together – what a treasure trove!" - Fiona Robertson, author of Stone Lands: A Journey of Darkness and Light Through Britain’s Ancient Places"A perfect gateway into the world of Zurbarán, this book captures the essence of one of Seville’s greatest painters, celebrated for his stark, moving depictions of monastic life in seventeenth-century Spain. It invites readers not only to appreciate his mastery of light and realism but also to seek out his works at the Museo del Prado and the Monastery of Guadalupe, where the quiet spirituality of his paintings can be felt most deeply." - Xavier Bray, Director of the Wallace Collection, London"The Butterfly Who Dreamt He Was a Man takes us on a delightful journey of metamorphoses through a wide range of insect bodies as well as thought systems. Richly illustrated with stories from across time and space, the book shows how insects have been fundamental to the literary imagination. It also reveals some of the surprising ways in which human identities have been created through comparisons made between humans and insects. This beautifully written and deeply thought-provoking book transforms the way we see insects – and ourselves." - Kaori Nagai, University of Kent, author of Imperial Beast Fables"The canon of good history books about Albania in English is small, but this is a mighty addition to it. Austin and Hoxha have done a wonderful job in telling the Albanian dictator’s story and setting it in the context of his times. It is full of insights and thankfully devoid of all the usual clickbait cliches - bunkers, little known country, the North Korea of Europe, blah, blah, blah. This is a solid piece of scholarship. It examines Hoxha’s story and explores the essential who, how, why, what and where. It is not a book in which everything and everyone is either described as black or white or good and bad which is the normal approach to writing about Hoxha and his life and times. Maybe it is the passage of time which has cooled the emotion that used to colour books about this period, but that means the authors have succeeded in exploring the nuances of Hoxha’s rule and they are not afraid to voice what some will find uncomfortable opinions. They masterfully explain how to understand Hoxha we need to see the continuity rather than the breaks between Zog and fascism and finally his rule. The interplay of Hoxha’s Marxist-Leninist worldview and Albanian nationalism is fascinating, as is the way the dictator sought immortality though his legacy. Finally, the authors explain how it is crucial to understand this very legacy in order to understand the often tragic course of Albanian history in the wake of communism." - Tim Judah, special correspondent for The Economist and author of Kosovo: War and Revenge"This magisterial history of social connoisseurship by a leading cultural historian covers the field in the last 500 years. Following the codification of the methodology in the 17th and then in the 18th century Peter Burke presents a rich insight and critical assessment of the achievement, as well as the limitations, of the methodology in the development of modern art history over the last 200 years." - Jean Michel Massing, King's College, Cambridge"In this magisterial work, Ronald Bruce St John – one of the world’s foremost scholars of Libya – draws on nearly a half-century of deep study of the country to present an accessible and fully-realized portrait of Muammar Qaddafi’s life. Steering well-clear of the clichés and tropes that have long coloured Western depictions, he situates the late dictator within the story of Libya’s troubled post-colonial history and the political upheavals of the twentieth century Middle East. Written with verve, clarity and flashes of wit, this is by far the best Qaddafi biography yet and a must-read for anyone wishing to understand Libya’s past and present." - Frederic Wehrey, Senior Fellow, Middle East Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and author of The Burning Shores: Inside the Battle for the New Libya"Peter Ackroyd, the celebrated biographer of T.S. Eliot, has now turned his attention to Eliot’s great successor as an Anglo-American poet. Auden is an eminently readable and well-paced account, rich in anecdote, sympathetically following the man all the way from prodigious youth to senior man of letters." - Seamus Perry, Fellow of Balliol College and Professor of English Literature, University of Oxford"Whispers from Celtic Seas offers the tantalizing possibility that what are commonly dismissed as myths or “good yarns” may have their origins in remembered experiences of coasts that have changed dramatically in the past 10,000 years. In this current era of marked climate change, Patrick Nunn prompts us to consider the twin issues of our changing environment and how we will respond to the new circumstances that it presents." - Andrew Cooper, Professor of Coastal Studies, Ulster University"Antisemitisms: A History of Jew Hating is the fruit of decades of profound learning. Divided into five evocative parts – Making, Seeing, Healing, Wandering and Unmaking of Jews – Sander L. Gilman reveals the vast, unstable and inconsistent entanglements of Jewish history and antisemitism. Drawing on an exceptionally wide range of examples from politics, art, science and culture, his work weaves together non-Jews, Jews and representations of Jews. Gilman introduces two groundbreaking claims that will transform the field: the use of “antisemitisms”, in the plural, and the development of the “wobbly” as a core category for understanding the phenomenon. This is, quite simply, Gilman’s definitive statement on the subject." - Amos Morris-Reich, The Geza Roth Chair of Modern Jewish History and Professor at the Cohn Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Ideas, Tel Aviv University"Musical instruments exemplify the development of highly specialised and elaborate technologies, designed for mutual compatibility in collaborative contexts. In this fascinating book, Deirdre Loughridge and Thomas Patteson uncover a quite different strata of invention in which speculative, impossible and deeply strange instruments live and function within the imagination. They demonstrate conclusively that, despite the dazzling range of existent instruments, there is in human culture an appetite for musical forms that cannot be heard." - David Toop, musician, writer and Emeritus Professor"Using a wide range of scholarly sources, Kerry Brown describes how Mao Zedong still influences China today. Fifty years after his death, some of the legends are fading but his ruthless rise to power and consistent nationalism continue to dominate. This clear and very readable account sets out his extraordinary life and personality and the persistence of his ideas." - Frances Wood, Former Curator, British Library China Collections"The Museum of Imaginary Musical Instruments makes tangible – and page-by-page, more fantastical and curious – the elusive question of what music is, and what we wish it could be." - Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis, Professor and Director of the Music Cognition Lab at Princeton University"A delightful, engaging tour of coastal legends of the British Isles and northern France. Patrick Nunn makes a strong case that stories of places such as Lyonesse, Doggerland and Hy Brasil, as well as figures like the Hebridean Huntress, are not mere fictions spun by so-called “dreamy Celts”. Rather, these narrative “whispers” encode the experiences of ancient peoples living during the last ice age." - Timothy J. Burbery, Professor of English, Marshall University"This intelligent, well-crafted and highly accessible contribution to the literature places Qaddafi and his 42-year rule into historical perspective in an engaging and entertaining way. It reaches beyond the myths to offer a unique perspective on how and in what ways Qaddafi was able to stay in power for so long. St John’s deep knowledge and understanding of the country are evident throughout, making this book essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the man, the myth and his place in the world." - Alison Pargeter, author of Tribes and the State in Libya and Iraq"Albania is one of the least-known European countries in large part because of one man: Enver Hoxha. He emerged as the unchallenged communist leader of the country in the aftermath of the Second World War. In power for over forty years, he bears much of the responsibility for the deep traumas which a free Albania has struggled to overcome. Yet despite his importance for the country and the Balkans more generally, Hoxha has yet to find a judicious biography in English. Until now. In measured elegant prose, Robert C. Austin and Artan R. Hoxha give a 360-degree picture of this remarkable, ruthless leader from his middle-class origins to his position of total power. Nobody was safe from Hoxha’s machinations, including some of his most trusted colleagues." - Misha Glenny, author of McMafia and The Balkans"Boria Sax’s gentle, attentive prose is informed as much by philosophy as cultural history. His latest book takes the reader flying and fluttering through a realm of thought in which apparently fixed categories of form – such as human and insect – dissolve and rearrange themselves in a kind of eternally active interplay suggestive of what we might call, not merely “metamorphosis,” but the process of cosmic being itself. Clarifying, provocative and inherently pleasurable, this is an exemplary contribution to contemporary animal studies sure to inspire scholars and general readers for years to come." - Adam Dodd, The University of Queensland, author of Beetle"This engaging and richly researched book leads us through the multiple ways the prehistoric monuments of Britain, Ireland and France have inspired countless tales and stories. For centuries people have filled in the gaps left behind by their silent architects with their own stories; this book offers a rewarding and entertaining guide to navigating these cultural interpretations. From folklore to filmsets, via Druids, ley lines and aliens, Paul Robichaud’s book reveals how prehistoric stone monuments have long had the power to enchant and enthral." - Katy Soar, Senior Lecturer in Classical Archaeology, University of Winchester"This is the most comprehensive and thoroughly researched history of Taiwan in the English language. Among the foremost historians of Taiwan in the Anglosphere, Evan N. Dawley masterfully distills millennia of history, from Indigenous settlement to Taiwan’s democratization, into one book. Dawley underscores the profound and multifarious effects of settler colonialism on Taiwanese peoples and, consequently, the emergence of a layered and complex Taiwanese identity and nationhood." - James Lin, University of Washington"Lydia Towns offers a much-needed corrective to the notion that Columbus’ Atlantic venture was new and unique, correctly placing the “great” Atlantic explorers in their proper context of trade and merchant enterprises. In Search of Trade and Fortune illuminates the British activities in the North Atlantic, demythologizing Columbus and Spanish successes in the process." - Marguerite Ragnow, Curator of the James Ford Bell Library, University of Minnesota"We are so fortunate to have someone as articulate and empathetic as Jonathan Romain to make this crucial argument." - Daniel Finkelstein OBE"Way Makers offers a wonderful array of excerpts from prose and poetry spanning 400 years, assembled by Kerri Andrews. Women walk for necessity as well as fun, to see the world, rejoice in nature and experience the awe of new vistas. Overall these pieces conjure an exhilarating sense of the freedom conferred on women by walking, despite the dangers and challenges." - Mary Blanche Ridge, The Tablet"An important book about the world’s most dangerous mercenary outfit. Margolin unearths new details that will surprise readers." - Sean McFate, National Defense University and author of The New Rules of War"A richly enjoyable and illuminating account of Plato's life and its social and political contexts. Atack handles the wealth of scholarship with a deft touch: she provides considered support for her interpretations but never obscures the main, vivid narrative, into which she skilfully weaves a number of Plato's key ideas and arguments." - Angie Hobbs, Professor of the Public Understanding of Philosophy, University of Sheffield"Navigations provides a much-needed re-examination of the Portuguese Empire of the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, one that considers a varied and wide cast of participants. Persuasively argued and masterfully written, this book interlaces Portugal's "Age of Discoveries" with its European antecedents, context and impacts in vital ways." - Jorge Flores, University of Lisbon"The Point of the Needle explores the multifaceted practice of sewing, both the home practice and large-scale global manufacturing. A writer and former academic, Burman seeks to understand what motivates individuals to sew and what they value in the making and in finished pieces. Focusing on clothing/fashion, the book explores stitching’s rich history and culture, and the language that brings together this creative community. Through the structure of stories and storytelling, Burman reveals new voices, presents stories involving the memory of people and places, and shows how the use of cloth and the function of sewing has changed over time. The book illustrates that how we sew, including materials and tools and their storage, is deeply connected to why we sew, and it addresses real-world issues of consumption, change, and defiance. The Point of the Needle is accessibly written to stimulate thoughtful discussions. The oral histories stitched into the chapters make the book a delight to read. Readers will find that Burman’s observations and insights invite them to think about their own histories with sewing and to look at their daily engagement with cloth with a curiosity that encourages responsibility, resilience, and well-being. Highly recommended." - Choice"A timely, well-researched book coming at a point when sewing has been reclaimed by a population free from the limiting gendered experience of school domestic science. The Point of the Needle sets the scene for sewing’s renaissance." - Polly Leonard, founder and editor, Selvedge magazine"Navigations is at once a history of the politics and economy of the world that drew Portuguese mariners ever further from their home ports and an exploration of the complex networks of people who facilitated their voyages, ranging from women in royal households to ship crews and local pilots who guided Portuguese ships to safe anchorages. Drawing on a long career as a historian and synthesizing the most recent scholarship, Malyn Newitt transforms the Portuguese age of discovery from the exploits of a few dozen heroic men into a scholarly discovery of contested interactions among technology, economics, cultural encounters, human frailties, and social ambitions. This book is an engaging and at times unsettling meditation on the long-term consequences of discovery and our need to reexamine their continuing global impacts." - Elizabeth Mancke, Professor of History and Canada Research Chair in Atlantic Canadian Studies, University of New Brunswick"Philosophy is just the beginning in Carol Atack's page-turner. From Plato’s own travels and troubles to the strange life and peculiar death of his teacher Socrates, the struggles of his city at the hands of enemies at home and abroad to the efforts of its citizens to make sense of things in an era of unending crisis, this is a gripping account of Classical Athens under siege told through the sharp eyes and shifting ideas of its most notable son." - Josephine Quinn, Professor of Ancient History, University of Oxford and author of How the World Made the West: A 4,000-Year History"With an almost encyclopaedic knowledge of all things Wagner, Margolin takes readers deep into the shadowy underworld of the notorious mercenary group. A must read for anyone interested in understanding the history of the “Orchestra” and its most important “musicians.”" - Clarissa Ward, CNN Chief International Correspondent and author of On All Fronts: The Education of a Journalist"An anthology that celebrates the literary heritage created by generations of women walker-writers." - Scottish Wildlife Magazine"The best and most balanced account of the assisted dying debate. It favours assisted dying in a way that addresses all its aspects. And it’s very moving as it describes the ways a death may be experienced and marked. It is truly a brilliant, insightful book." - Charlie Falconer, former Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary"This debut book from Lydia Towns reconnects exploration history with one of its most unknowable subjects – John Cabot – about whom scholars have scarcely any reliable documentation. Until Towns’s important intervention, we have been forced to wade through decades of scholarship bubbling with unfounded mythologies, untenable assumptions, and unimportant questions. Towns places Cabot’s past in the context of a broader movement toward European expansionism in the centuries preceding his life alongside the public memory that has largely constructed him as an idealized explorer over the last two centuries. By revisiting sources produced in the 1490s, secondary literature, as well as archival materials from Canada, the UK, and the USA, Towns has produced a seminal work of scholarship centered on Cabot at his intersection with the Colombian lore with which he has become enmeshed. By understanding Cabot’s own alliances and self-interests, Towns for the first time forays beyond superficial knowledge about the man to establish the depth of his involvement in European expansionism into North America. Of particular note is Towns’s study of the contested memory of Cabot in the scholarly and public spheres." - Lauren Beck, Canada Research Chair in Intercultural Encounter and Professor of Visual and Material Culture Studies, Mount Allison University"Too often, Taiwan is regarded as the object of other nations’ ambitions. Evan N. Dawley rejects that approach, making Taiwan’s people the subject of their own story and the agents of Taiwan’s extraordinary history. Dawley describes the waves of human settlers who populated the island to reveal the distinctiveness and complexity of contemporary Taiwanese society." - Shelley Rigger, Davidson College"As a former hospice CEO, I recognise both the power and the limits of end-of-life care. Jonathan Romain’s compassionate case for assisted dying sets out beautifully the essential reform we need to offer terminally ill adults true dignity and choice." - Mark Jarman-Howe, former Chief Executive of St Helena Hospice"Bringing together 75 works across numerous genres from the eighteenth century through the present day, Way Makers stands as a testament to women’s longstanding creative engagement with the deceptively simple practice of walking. Although the first of its kind in some ways, Way Makers joins a small but rich body of popular literary histories of walking that attend to women’s experience . . . a welcoming, meditative exploration of the complex and often contradictory meanings that can emerge when women take to the road or the trail . . . an eminently readable volume . . . Ultimately, Way Makers is sure to provide scholarly and casual readers alike with a fresh perspective on what it means to move through the world on foot. Andrews has given us an invigorating look at what the literature of women’s walking has to offer, and I hope this volume will inspire others to follow in her footsteps." - Trish Bredar, Women’s Writing"Margolin builds to a fascinating portrait of a modern Russian political sphere governed by symbolism and performance (Prigozhin’s dramatic killing in a private jet explosion was meant as a response to his “theatrical statements”) and a global order in which violence easily permeates civil society by posing as mere business. It’s a vital window onto the weird world of secretive, privatized modern warfare." - Publishers Weekly"This excellent book unpicks the culture of sewing in fascinating detail. Exploring the history and use of its most basic requirements – cloth, thread, needle and scissors – Barbara Burman delves deeper into the skill, the joy, the challenge of needlework through the words of past and present stitchers to offer an inspiring insight into why sewing matters." - Clare Hunter, author of Threads of Life"Barbara Burman's insightful journey through the art of sewing delves into its transformative power, weaving together the threads of history, craftsmanship, and personal stories, inviting readers to embrace the profound joys and remarkable significance found within this remarkable craft." - Sarai Mitnick, founder of Seamwork and author of The Colette Sewing Handbook"Jack Margolin, an independent researcher and expert on modern mercenaries, provides a deeply reported history of the Wagner private military company." - Miles Johnson, Financial Times"Jack Margolin takes the reader through an extensive array of leaks, first-hand accounts and original documented evidence to reveal the inner workings of Russia’s infamous mercenary army . . . Margolin demonstrates that Wagner is not an aberration, but a manifestation of the new geopolitical order of global capital, global crime and the entrepreneurs that thrive in it." - History of War Magazine"This is a very human history of the complex meanings of sewing. Burman skilfully conveys the message that sewing has multiple lives, from the emotionally-charged making of gifts for loved ones to the waste-mountain producer that is the modern fashion industry. Above all it showcases how important sewing is to human experience and the huge impact it has on those who experience it." - Ruth Singer, artist and author"A book chockfull of historical research and oral history that looks deeply into why and how humans sew, make and repair fabric. A beautiful reminder of how sewing can extend further than ourselves – it can connect us with past, present and future sewists; help us gain awareness of and autonomy from fast fashion; and give us the tools to show up more authentically as we do so." - Betsy Greer, author of Craftivism: The Art of Craft and Activism"In The Wagner Group: Inside Russia’s Mercenary Army, Jack Margolin, an investigative journalist, tells the full story, offering portraiture and political context and taking us from Leningrad to Moscow, from the killing fields in Syria to the burned-out cities of Ukraine, from the louche underworld of post-Cold War Russia to the upper reaches of the Kremlin. Along the way, he describes the ever-growing role of private military and security companies—so-called PMSCs. It’s a tale of violence and political intrigue that reads like a Tom Clancy novel written by Fyodor Dostoyevsky." - Arthur Herman, Wall Street Journal"Investigative researcher Jack Margolin tells its story, from the group’s inception to the fiery death of its leader in a jet plane ‘accident’ . . . as riveting and as exciting as any thriller." - Michael Glitz, Parade"The Point of the Needle delves into more than the depth of the fibre of cloth and gives evidence why sewing is a matter of more than a moment or a far-gone memory of a past time . . . This book isn’t about the wearable, it isn’t about one element of sewing or genre. It is timely and key to our lives, yet timeless in its documentation of this subject . . . delightful and alternatively thought provoking." - Ailish Henderson, Textile Artist"Meticulously researched . . . Margolin’s gripping narrative describes how this power struggle [between Prighozin and Putin] led to Wagner’s aborted mutiny in June 2023, after which Prigozhin acted as if he could avoid the normal fate of traitors. In August 2023, his aircraft exploded in the sky." - Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs"Chronicle[s] his extraordinary, villainous career and how Wagner came to be." - The Economist