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Women and the Crusades
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Zhihui Zou

Women and the Crusades

Between the 11th and 16th centuries, the idea of 'crusading' was dominant in Europe. Helen J. Nicholson's new book reminds us that crusading during this time had a much broader implication than trying to capture Jerusalem. Any journeys or...
Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775-82
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Cameron Ruff

Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775-82

Since its original publication in 2002, Pox Americana has become a hugely influential scholarly work. In this book, Elizabeth A. Fenn argues that while the American Revolution changed political and military conditions throughout the world...
Managing the Wealth of Nations: Political Economies of Change in Preindustrial Europe
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Kelly Palmer

Managing the Wealth of Nations: Political Economies of Change in Preindustrial Europe

Philipp Robinson Rössner’s Managing the Wealth of Nations: Political Economies of Change in Preindustrial Europe aims to reshape how scholars frame early modern European economics and particularly a form of economics called cameralism, commonly...
A History of Ottoman Libraries
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Gemma Masson

A History of Ottoman Libraries

A History of Ottoman Libraries is a timely research that acknowledges the gap in Anglophone scholarship on Ottoman intellectual history. Part of the Ottoman and Turkish Studies series from Academic Studies Press, this book is aimed at scholars...
Making the Carry: The Lives of John and Tchi-Ki-Wis Linklater
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Zada Ballew

Making the Carry: The Lives of John and Tchi-Ki-Wis Linklater

Timothy Cochrane’s Making the Carry chronicles the lives and labors of John (Métis) and Tchi-Ki-Wis (Anishinaabeg/Lac La Croix First Nation) Linklater as they made a place for themselves and their kin in the borderlands between the United...
Cleopatra: Her History, Her Myth
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Arienne King

Cleopatra: Her History, Her Myth

Francine Prose's Cleopatra: Her History, Her Myth is divided into two sections, one focusing on her life and the other on her reception in art. The author draws on all the usual sources to complete the puzzle of Cleopatra's eventful reign...
The Sicilian Sorceress: A Historical Fiction Time Travel Novel
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Samantha Crisford-Eade

The Sicilian Sorceress: A Historical Fiction Time Travel Novel

If you are a history reader who enjoys historical facts mixed with a feminist-led story, then this novel is for you. This story will transport you to Agrigento, Sicily in 440 BCE. Mary Knight presents a wonderful sensory read which I would...
Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester: The Shipwreck that Shocked Restoration Britain
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Severine Angers

Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester: The Shipwreck that Shocked Restoration Britain

In 1682, upon the invitation of his brother King Charles II, James, the Duke of York, came back to England after years of exile in Scotland to take up his position as heir to the throne. James first traveled to England without his wife, with...
Dark Emu: Aboriginal Australia and the Birth of Agriculture
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Mandy Vradenburg

Dark Emu: Aboriginal Australia and the Birth of Agriculture

Dark Emu: Aboriginal Australia and the Birth of Agriculture by Bruce Pascoe is a fascinating contribution to the evolving discovery of the lost histories of Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia, opening up new pathways...
The Ghosts of Cannae: Hannibal and the Darkest Hour of the Roman Republic
Book Review ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ by Philip Mathew

The Ghosts of Cannae: Hannibal and the Darkest Hour of the Roman Republic

In history, famous battles define the generalship and reputation of military leaders, such as Gaugamela for Alexander the Great, Austerlitz for Napoleon, and the Battle of Cannae for Hannibal. Robert L. O’Connell’s book The Ghosts of Cannae...
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