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Book Review
Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World’s First Empire
Eckart Frahm's Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World's First Empire is a remarkable scholarly work and a masterful exploration of one of the most intriguing and influential civilizations of the ancient world. Through meticulous research...
Book Review
The Fall of Carthage: The Punic Wars 265-146 BC
“No Roman or Carthaginian could have dreamed in 264 that their states were about to embark on a twenty-four-year struggle which would involve huge casualties, still less that it would be the first of three wars between the two peoples” (65...
Book Review
American Vikings: How the Norse Sailed into the Lands and Imaginations of America
In a globalized world, the convergence of different nationalities and cultures often transforms societal notions of a shared identity. This sometimes results in debates regarding history, heritage, and cultural belonging, which make their...
Book Review
Destroying to Replace: Settler Genocides of Indigenous Peoples
Historical works on settler colonialism and genocide are voluminous, but there are relatively few, if any, works of synthesis geared to advanced high school and undergraduate students. Happily, the author Mohamed Adhikari, Professor of History...
Book Review
Atalanta
There are several versions of Atalanta's story in Greek mythology, and Jennifer Saint, known for writing mythology-based novels, chose to build her story around the most compelling elements that make for a very engaging story to a modern...
Book Review
Dangerous Gifts: Imperialism, Security, and Civil Wars in the Levant, 1798-1864
As Assistant Professor of History at Utrecht University, Ozan Ozavci focuses on the twilight of the Ottoman Empire, a period when its European rivals intervened, economically and militarily, in Ottoman affairs. As a professor of Transimperial...
Book Review
Christ's Samurai: The True Story of the Shimabara Rebellion
The plight of 16-year-old Jerome Amakusa, the supposed leader of the rebellion, and the rebels who accompanied him are at once instantly recognisable to contemporary readers, and yet they were alien, by design, to the populace of Edo Period...
Book Review
Arcadian Days: Gods, Women, and Men from Greek Myths
John Spurling has crafted a lyrical retelling of some well-known Greek myths, weaving these seemingly disparate stories together with subtle themes. The most prominent common factor throughout this collection is that each retelling features...
Book Review
Since Time Immemorial: Native Custom and Law in Colonial Mexico
In Since Time Immemorial, Emory University history professor Yanna Yannakakis explores the meaning of a specific word at a specific time – "custom" – and what it meant during Spain's rule over Mexico. As Spanish leaders sought to consolidate...
Book Review
Elektra: A Novel
Elektra by Jennifer Saint is a novel retelling numerous popular tales from Greek mythology, including Paris of Troy stealing away Helen of Sparta, the Trojan War in response to this disrespect to Menelaus, and the aftermath of Agamemnon's...