Showing results for "Humans" in Europe

Monsters are central to how we think about the human condition. Join award-winning historian of science Dr. Surekha Davies as she reveals how people have defined the human in relation to everything from apes to zombies, and how they invented race, gender, and nations along the way. With rich, evocative storytelling that braids together ancient gods and generative AI, Frankenstein's monster and E.T., Humans: A Monstrous History shows how monster-making is about control: it defines who gets to count as normal.

In Wilderlands, archaeologist Eloise Kane unearths 12,000 years of our changing relationship with and influence on the landscape. Through prehistory, Roman occupation, the Middle Ages and beyond, we see the unfamiliar beasts of our old wild make way for species such as brown hare and fallow deer, now romanticised as eternal symbols of the British countryside, but introduced much later than we might think. Places free from our influence haven't existed for a very long time. But Eloise Kane invites us to rethink our definition of the wild - not as separate from us.

Brought to you by Penguin. For over three thousand years, the Mediterranean Sea has been one of the great centres of civilization. David Abulafia's The Great Sea is the first complete history of the Mediterranean, from the erection of temples on Malta around 3500 BC to modern tourism. Ranging...

Human Resources explores how the slave trade transformed Britain, using places, objects, institutions, commodities and activities we encounter every day—without ever pausing to think about their origins. It will take you to art galleries and sports events, into offices and financial institutions, and reveal the dark past of the items in your own kitchen cupboard.

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Storyland and Wild, comes a sweeping new legendary of miracles, magic, human frailty and heroic strength. Illustrated with over thirty original paper cutouts by the author. 'Jeffs writes beautifully, erring just on the right side of florid, and her...

'Superbly explained' Washington Post A dazzling new history of the modern world, as told through the remarkable story of population change. Every phase since the advent of the industrial revolution - from the fate of the British Empire, to the global challenges from Germany, Japan and Russia, to...

Discover the Trojan War as you've never experienced it before—through the eyes of those who lived, loved, and died in history's most legendary conflict. From a wedding snub that sparked divine fury to the wooden horse that ended an empire, this masterful retelling brings ancient Troy blazingly to life for modern listeners.

Tourists, armchair travelers, and historians will all delight in this fluid narrative that can be read straight through, dipped into over time, or used as a reference guide to each period in Sicily's fascinating tale. Emigration of people from Sicily often overshadows the importance of the people who immigrated to the island through the centuries. Maps, biographical notes, suggestions for further reading, a glossary, pronunciation keys, and much more make this unique audiobook as essential as it is enjoyable.

Rivers are the great natural arteries that run through our lives. We have navigated them, dammed them and worshipped at them. From the ancient ecosystems of Egypt to the sinking cities of Shanghai and London, what we do with our rivers tells us about who has power and what we value. Now, when a...

For centuries the Alps have seen the march of armies, the flow of pilgrims and Crusaders, the feats of mountaineers and the dreams of engineers - and some 14 million people live among their peaks today. In The Alps, Stephen O'Shea takes listeners up and down these majestic mountains, journeying through their 500-mile arc across France, Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria, and Slovenia.

During World War II, Heinz Drossel saved Soviet prisoners of war and several Jews, including Marianne Hirschfeld. Again and again, he wasn't afraid to risk his own life when others' safety was at risk. Nearly all of Hirschfeld's family members were murdered by Nazis; she survived in hiding - and met Heinz again by coincidence after the war was over. They married in 1946. At that time, starting over was difficult. In the judicial service, Drossel witnessed Nazis continuing with their careers....

It is hard to imagine that the busy townscape of South London was once a great wood, stretching almost seven miles from Croydon to Deptford or that, scattered through the suburbs, from Dulwich to Norwood, a number of oak woodlands have survived since before the Norman Conquest. These woods were intensively managed for a thousand years, providing timber for construction, furniture and shipbuilding, and charcoal for London's blacksmiths, kilns and bakeries. Now they afford important green space, a vital habitat for small mammals, birds and insects.

Employing the popular Don't Know Much About style, with its familiar question-and-answer format, DON'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT MYTHOLOGY will explore the myths of the world, their impact on history, and their continuing role in our lives. It will offer listeners a wide-ranging, comprehensive...

Employing the popular Don't Know Much About style, with its familiar question-and-answer format, DON'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT MYTHOLOGY will explore the myths of the world, their impact on history, and their continuing role in our lives. It will offer listeners a wide-ranging, comprehensive...

The Black Death was the first recorded pandemic in Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. All across the continent, people learned just how gruesome and horrific disease could be as the plague crossed the boundaries of countries and the lines established by society, killing everyone equally. It showed that no one - not even archbishops and kings - was immune from its grasp.

For centuries, whispers of a forbidden ritual have haunted archaeologists and historians, a chilling practice woven into the rise and fall of Egypt’s most powerful rulers. In The Pharaoh’s Kill List: Inside the Ancient Egyptian Tradition of Human Sacrifice, bestselling researcher Davis Truman pulls back the curtain on a world where divine kingship demanded blood, loyalty was enforced through death, and every royal tomb carried secrets meant to stay hidden forever.

Soldier Keith Nightingale has conducted terrain walks in Normandy for over forty years with veterans, active-duty military, and local French civilians. Over the decades Nightingale conducted dozens of formal interviews and informal conversations with many of the principals of the day, including Generals Bradley, Collins, Gavin, Ridgway, and Hill. Added to this rare new primary material from the top brass are numerous conversations with lower-ranking vets who did the heavy lifting.

This book offers a detailed exploration of the Black Plague's journey through medieval Europe, Asia, and Africa. While it details the human suffering and societal breakdowns caused by the pandemic, it also highlights the remarkable resilience of the survivors. The book examines how the plague sparked innovation in public health, inspired artistic and literary masterpieces, and transformed social structures, ultimately leading to the cultural rebirth of the Renaissance.

The Cro-Magnon were Homo sapiens, and the most defining characteristics of the species are the cultural traits that begin to show in the archaeological record. Tools were beginning to be made from multiple materials, and these people would often travel long distances or trade to acquire specific materials for tools. Symbolic material became increasingly common among them, as cave paintings, figurines, shell beads, pendants, and even early burials were more common with modern humans than Neanderthals.

For the first time, the complete, exciting story of the landmark trial that led to the abolition of slavery in the Western world. The 1772 London trial of James Somerset, rescued from a ship bound for the West Indies slave markets, was a decisive turning point in history. As in the Scopes trial, two encompassing world views clashed in an event of passionate drama.