Berridge, Virginia (professor of History and Director, Centre for History in Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)

In Demons, Virginia Berridge explores the factors that have affected social attitudes to tobacco, alcohol, and a variety of drugs, through history. Ge

The City: A World History tells the story of the rise and development of urban centers from ancient times to the twenty-first century. It begins with

Diaspora: A Very Short Introduction examines the origins of diaspora as a concept, its changing meanings over time, its current popularity, and its ut

Ranging across both standard philosophical territory and the landscape of cutting-edge cognitive science, Mindware: An Introduction to the Philosophy

This Very Short Introduction provides an analytical narrative of the main events and developments in Soviet Russia between 1917 and 1936. It examines

There were tens of thousands of different local law-courts in late-medieval England, providing the most common forums for the working out of disputes

How women increasingly became economic agents in early modern Europe is the focus of this stimulating book, which highlights how female agency was cru

The Persian Empire was the world's first hyperpower, with territory stretching from Central Asia to Northeastern Africa and from Southeastern Europe t

The later twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a pivotal period for the development of European government and governance. A mentality emerged that t

Part geographical location, part time period, and part state of mind, the American West is a concept often invoked but rarely defined. Though popular

In the decade after 1945, as the Cold War freeze set in, a new Europe slowly began to emerge from the ruins of the Second World War, based on a broad

Histories you can trust. In 14 original essays, The Oxford History of the Book reveals the history of books in all their various forms, from the an

From around 900 to 400 BC, the Etruscans were the most innovative, powerful, wealthy, and creative people in Italy. Their archaeological record is bot

Unsurpassed in authority, reliability and accuracy; the 15th edition has been fully revised and updated to incorporate all relevant legislation for in

This Very Short Introduction addresses the themes, developments, and controversies that have shaped Modern China. Covering a range of social issues, R

For thousands of years bloodlines have been held as virtually unassailable credentials for leadership, with supreme political power perceived as a fam

Why are women still often not properly listened to? Why are they sometimes perceived to be less interesting than they are? Why do women tend to ru

The three centuries which followed the conquests of Alexander are perhaps the most thrilling of all periods of ancient history. This was an age of cu

The Enlightenment shaped modernity. Western values of representative democracy and basic human rights, gender and racial equality, individual liberty,

In recent decades, culture—the values, attitudes, beliefs, and myths of a particular society and the objects through which they are organized—has earn