WOWIO New Releases - History

Samurai: The World of the Warrior

Mon, 05 May 2008 17:45:21 CST

Stephen Turnbull

The world of the samurai, the legendary elite warrior cult of old Japan, has for too long been associated solely with military history and has remained a mystery to the general reader. In this exciting book, Stephen Turnbull, the world's leading authority on the samurai, goes beyond the battlefield to paint a picture of the samurai as they really were. The world of the samurai warrior is revealed to be one of great richness, familiar topics such as the cult of suicide, ritualised revenge and...

The Trafalgar Companion

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 13:06:32 CST

Peter Padfield, Edgar Vincent, Nicholas Tracy, et al.

The battle of Trafalgar lasted just five hours, yet those short hours forever shattered Napoleon's dream of adding England to his list of conquests. This book, written by a number of respected authors, examines not only the battle but also the characters and motivation of the men that fought in it, including the great commanders Nelson and Villeneuve. Exploring the political and military aspects of the fighting, it provides detailed analyses of the tactics deployed by both sides, showing how...

Behind Enemy Lines

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 16:07:45 CST

Terry O'Farrell

Another urging hiss from behind me-okay hold onto your horses, I'm going. Five to ten paces takes me over the track, and now I scan the creek ahead trying to peer through the underbrush, to detect signs of enemy presence. Jesus, it's \paraquiet; unnaturally quiet ... another obviously more urgent hiss is sent out to attract my attention. Looking back over my shoulder I see the enemy soldier immediately; he is on the track looking directly at me ... apparently oblivious to my presence. Has he...

Rome in the East: The Transformation of an Empire

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:52:07 CST

Warwick Ball

Rome in the East provides a lavishly illustrated and arresting study of the influence of Near Eastern culture on the Roman world, which overturns received wisdom about Rome as the bastion of European culture.

Rome in Africa

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:52:03 CST

Susan Raven

Nearly three thousand years ago, the Phoenicians set up trading colonies on the coast of North Africa, and ever since successive civilizations, largely from outside, have dominated the local inhabitants. Carthaginians, Romans, Vandals, Byzantines, Arabs, Turks, French and Italians have all occupied the region in their time.

The Romans governed this part of Africa for 600 years. Throughout the region their genius for building was readily apparent. There were about 600 cities, 12,000 miles of...

The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars AD 226-363

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:53:27 CST

Michael H. Dodgeon and Samuel N.C. Lieu (Eds.)

Collects and translates such diverse sources as Zosimus, John Malalas, Al-Tabari and Moses of Chorene, to give us a picture of this complex, fraught period of Roman history.

The History of Civilization

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:53:29 CST

C.K. Ogden (Ed.)

The History of Civilization is a landmark in early twentieth Century publishing. The aim of the general editor, C.K. Ogden, was to "summarise in one comprehensive synthesis the most recent findings and theories of historians, anthropologists, archaeologists, sociologists and all conscientious students of civilization."

The History, which includes titles in the French series L'Evolution de l'Humanite, was published at a formative time in the development of the social sciences, and during a...

Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars AD 363-628

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:51:57 CST

Geoffrey Greatrex and Samuel N.C. Lieu (Eds.)

Late Antiquity was an eventful period on the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire, with the Romans and Persians engaged in almost constant conflict. This book provides translations of key texts on relations between the opposing sides.

Nero: The End of a Dynasty

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:51:06 CST

Miriam T. Griffin

Acclaimed as a classic portrait, Griffin's work is widely considered to be the definitive biography of this notorious emperor.

Nero's personality and crimes have always intrigued historians, novelists and general readers. The first Princeps tol be declared a Public Enemy by the Roman Senate, Nero became one of the canonical tyrants along with Caligula and Domitian, and bears the dubious honor of having essentially brought about the end of the Augustan dynasty.

Griffin observes the emperor...

Nero

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:51:08 CST

David Shotter

Shotter presents an introductory account of the achievements and reputation of one of the most infamous figures in Roman history. Maps, a time-chart, appendices and a glossary are included to aid further study.

Modern Insurgencies and Counter-Insurgencies: Guerrillas and their Opponents since 1750

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:51:00 CST

Ian F. Beckett

Modern Insurgencies and Counter-Insurgencies explores how unconventional warfare tactics have opposed past and present governments all over the world, from eighteenth century guerrilla warfare through to the urban terrorism of today. Insurgency remains one of the most prevalent forms of conflict and presents a crucial challenge to the international community, governments and the military.

In addition to examining the tactics of guerrilla leaders such as Lawrence Mao, Guevara, and Marighela...

Marshals of Alexander's Empire

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:50:43 CST

Waldemar Heckel

The successors of Alexander the Great were neither his closest friends nor his most prominent generals. But because these marshals labored in his shadow, their careers and contributions to Alexander's success have been neglected by historians, ancient and modern. The primary aim of this book is to bring them to light.

Waldemar Heckel presents an interpretative prosopographical study of more than 130 officers who served Alexander the Great. As such, The Marshals of Alexander's Empire is a...

Public Opinion, the First Ladyship and Hillary Rodham Clinton

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:51:45 CST

Barbara Burrell

This second edition presents Clinton's self-repositioning during the 1996 election, her official role during the second term, her role during the impeachment proceedings, and the beginnings of an independent political career.

An Introduction to European Foreign Policy

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:47:05 CST

Fraser Cameron

Written by a Brussels insider, this book examines the origins, workings and priorities of the European Unions foreign policy and its role in world politics, arguing that the EU has become a new and increasingly influential superpower.

This concise introduction reviews the evolution of the EUs international role over the past two decades and illustrates the growing influence of the EU in traditional areas such as trade and development, as well as new areas such as the environment and global...

An Introduction to African Politics

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:47:04 CST

Alex Thomson

An Introduction to African Politics provides an ideal gateway for individuals seeking to learn more about the African continent. Using accessible terms and concepts, the book seeks to make sense of the dynamic and diverse political systems that are a feature of this fascinating part of the world. It charts the region's fall from grace after independence, the rise and fall of the one-party state and Africa's recent struggle to consolidate democracy. This expanded, fully revised and updated...

Heroin Century

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:50:02 CST

Tom Carnwath and Ian Smith

Heroin first saw the light of day a century and a quarter ago in a laboratory in Paddington Station, London. Since then it has spread across most parts of the world in fits and starts, temporarily held up here or blocked there, but pushing on with a persistence that has eventually overcome all obstacles. Despite the reach of heroin, the information on which public debate about heroin is based is quite often wrong.

Tom Carnwath and Ian Smith have written The Heroin Century to set the record...

Hoplites: The Classical Greek Battle Experience

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:50:08 CST

Victor Davis Hanson (Ed.)

Incorporating research from ancient literary, iconographic, epigraphic, and archaeological sources, this one-of-a-kind book explores the experiences of the Hoplites, soldiers who conducted battle on the small plains of Ancient Greece.

The nine contributors to Hoplites -- both British and American scholars -- discuss the pragmatic concerns of Greek infantrymen, covering everything from the mechanics of phalanx advance to the proper procedures for the dedication of spoils. The contributors...

Athens: Its Rise and Fall

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:48:12 CST

Edward Bulwer Lytton, edited by Oswyn Murray

Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton was once Britain's most famous historical novelist, rivaling and outselling Dickens in his day. His best-known book was The Last Days of Pompeii; yet he was also responsible for a great work of history.

Athens: Its Rise and Fall, originally published in 1837, is the most important and readable of the Victorian histories of ancient Greece. It stands alongside Macauley and Carlyle as a great historical work of British Romanticism, and anticipates the thinking of...

Victory in Europe: D-Day to the Fall of Berlin

Sat, 22 Dec 2007 14:24:41 CST

Karen Farrington

The campaign to free Europe from Nazi oppression through the collective operations from D-Day to Berlin marks one of the greatest ever military offensives. The Allies overcame initial setbacks to inflict a devastating defeat on Hitler's crack divisions in France -- a victory that was threatened just months later in the bitter winter fighting of the Battle of the Bulge. The final crossing of the Rhine and the advance into Germany changed the course of European history forever.

Victory in...

To the Ends of the Earth: Journeys of the Great Explorers

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 13:20:26 CST

Jon Balchin

Fascinated by what lies beyond the boundaries of human experience, men and women have throughout history been irresistibly drawn to venture into the unknown.

Lavishly illustrated, To the Ends of the Earth charts the astonishing feats of history's most intrepid explorers. From the early voyages of the Ancient Greek mariner Colaeus, who first discovered that beyond the Mediterranean lay a far greater ocean, to the compelling tale of the race for the Poles, this book encompasses the discovery...

Ohio Confidential: Sex, Scandal, Murder, and Mayhem in the Buckeye State

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 14:23:10 CST

John Boertlein

Ohio's reputation as a moral beacon doesn't tell the whole story-or even much of it, according to Ohio Confidential. The state has seen a tsunami of scandal in the areas of crime, drugs, sports, sex, and politics, and sometimes two together, as when Cincinnati Mayor Jerry Springer wrote a personal check to a prostitute, or Congressman Wayne Hays' mistress started talking. The book even includes murders such as the gruesome Kingsbury Run Torso killings and "Arsenic Anna," a notorious "black...

Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 22:54:21 CST

Richard Hack

Howard Hughes was a true American original: legendary lover, record-setting aviator, award-winning film producer, talented inventor, ultimate eccentric, and, for much of his lifetime, the richest man in the United States. His desire for privacy was so fierce and his isolation so complete that even now, twenty-five years after his death, inaccurate stories continue to circulate, and many have been published as fact.

Hughes explodes the illusion of his life and exposes the man behind the myth...

Puppetmaster: The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:36:36 CST

Richard Hack

J. Edgar Hoover, the most powerful lawman in America for over fifty years, was also the country's most controversial and feared public servant. His career as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation spanned nine different presidential administrations and survived a dozen attempts to sweep him from office.

During that time, Hoover completely reshaped domestic law enforcement as he expanded the reach of the FBI and transformed his G-men into an elite national crime fighting division...

World System History: The Social Science of Long-Term Change

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:54:38 CST

Robert A. Denemark, Jonathan Friedman, Barry K. Gills, and George Modelski (Eds)

This book is the fundamental starting point for the study of continuity and change in the global social, economic and political system over the longest historical term. Bringing together eminent interdisciplinary scholars, World System History considers the nature of social continuity back through history, resulting in a book which cuts across boundaries in social science and deals with at least 5000 years of the human past in a truly global perspective.

No other volume offers so coordinated...

Who's Who in World War II

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:54:19 CST

John Keegan

Who's Who in World War II brings together over 300 of the most important characters from every sphere of responsibility and reflects the truly global nature of World War II.