Browsing: World History

“Exquisite” (Simon Winchester): This history of seafaring explores the science of navigation — and focuses on one of the devices that made it all possible. A “wide-ranging… informative volume” (Library Journal starred review) that presents a cohesive narrative of maritime discovery.

This New York Times bestseller is the harrowing history of the quest to establish a US settlement in the wild Pacific Northwest. “A page-turning tale of ambition, greed, politics, survival, and loss” (Publishers Weekly), with over 2,000 five-star ratings on Goodreads.

In this “compelling narrative” (The Daily Telegraph), a New York Times bestselling author examines the pivotal battles and flawed military strategies that ultimately led to Axis defeat in World War II. “This is history as it should be written” (Publishers Weekly).

“A moving personal testament to courage” (The New York Times): Gerda Weissmann Klein, a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, shares her harrowing story of surviving horrific Nazi labor camps during the Holocaust. “An unforgettable reading experience” (Library Journal).

“Triumphant” (Publishers Weekly): In her 30s, Helen Fremont made a life-altering discovery — though she was raised Catholic, her parents were Jewish Holocaust survivors living under invented names. A “brave and beautiful” story (Charles Baxter) about one woman’s journey into her family’s past.

A materials scientist gives a fascinating tour of glass, paper, chocolate, and other common substances in this New York Times bestseller and Notable Book of 2014. “Puts the wonder and strangeness back into all the truly magical stuff that comprises our everyday reality” (Kirkus Reviews).

During World War II, a young Jewish woman named Marthe Cohn became a spy for the French Resistance, participating in life-or-death missions to help take down the Nazis. “This compelling memoir is testament to how extraordinary circumstances can transform a life” (Publishers Weekly).

This New York Times bestseller details how the leaders of three powerful nations — the United States, Great Britain, and France — reshaped global politics after World War I. “A treasure” (Booklist) with nearly 3,300 five-star Goodreads ratings.

After surviving the brutality of life in Auschwitz, this Nobel Peace Prize laureate transformed his personal experience of the Holocaust into one of the great masterpieces of 20th-century literature. “[A] slim volume of terrifying power” (The New York Times) that is “required reading for all of humanity” (Oprah Winfrey).

From the author of 1491—the best-selling study of the pre-Columbian Americas—a deeply engaging new history of the most momentous biological…