Geschiedenis

This delightful little book pays homage to the cat through artfully curated Japanese poetry and prints.

No one captures the graces and idiosyncrasies of cats quite like the painters, printmakers, and haiku masters of Japan. From the Edo to the Showa period, many artists turned their gaze toward an unlikely subject: their small feline companions. Closely observed portraits in words ad ink elevate the everyday adventures of cats: taking a nap on a Buddha statue's lap, daintily eating a rice ball, courting the neighbor's cat. This curated collection of poems, prints, and paintings will leave you inspired to cultivate the serenity and wonder embodied by these creators—and by the cats themselves. Presented as a sweet, jacketed paperback with thoughtful design touches, this volume includes each poem in both English and Japanese.

THE ORIGINAL CAT LOVERS: Centuries before the emergence of cat memes and cat cafes, Japanese artists and writers perfected the practice of feline reverence. Cats played pivotal roles in folklore; they were the protectors of scriptures and symbols of good luck and wealth. They also proved to be a wonderful source of creative inspiration. This little compendium showcases Japan's rich cultural heritage.

UNIQUE GIFT: Surprise your cat-loving friends and family with this unusual twist on the cat-themed gift.

PERFECT FOR POETRY LOVERS: Whether they came to poetry through the works of Instagram poets, or have been reading the classics for decades, any lover of verse will enjoy this thoughtfully curated collection. The writers featured include Bashō, Chiyo-ni, Issa, Shiki, and more—all icons of the haiku form.

ENCHANTING ART: Hokusai, Hiroshige, Yoshitoshi, and more: These artists masterfully captured the personalities of cats and their humans. These images, with their delicate lines and soothing colors, have endured through time to bring us quiet joy.

Perfect for:
• Cat lovers
• Poets and poetry readers
• Artists and art lovers
• Anyone who appreciates Japan's arts and culture

Ga op ontdekkingstocht in je eigen tuin met Peter Wohlleben, de auteur van de internationale bestseller Het verborgen leven van bomen.

With a "ghostly torch" passed down from Lafcadio Hearn, Davisson, accomplished author, translator, and folklorist delves into the depths of Japanese folklore to unearth 100 of the most bizarre and haunting creatures to ever grace myth and legend. In this book you'll encounter a vast range of mysterious beings, from malevolent demons and chilling monsters to spectral ghosts and enchanted beasts. Davisson skillfully navigates the elusive realm of Yokai, shedding light on their mysteries and revealing their significance to the cultural tapestry of Japan. Featuring iconic Yokai such as the enigmatic Amabie, the endearing Tofu Kozo, and the pitiful Kyokotsu, alongside lesser-known entities like the repulsive Akaname and the never before catalogued Kaiju, this book offers a comprehensive exploration of Japan's supernatural pantheon. Modern Yokai art by esteemed artists such as Lili Chin, Emi Lenox, and Peach Momoko breathe new life into the age-old legends shared within. Illustrated with over 250 color woodblock prints and paintings, and packed with interesting facts and entertaining stories, this book transports readers into a realm where the line between myth and reality blurs. "A modern day Lafcadio Hearn is picking up his ghostly torch. Zack Davisson is the author, translator, and folklorist following in Hearn's footsteps." —tofugu.com

Acclaimed naturalist and birdwatcher Stephen Moss brings us a year in the life of Britain's favourite bird - the robin.

In The Robin Moss records a year of observing the robin both close to home and in the field to shed light on the hidden life of this apparently familiar bird. We follow its life cycle from the time it enters the world as an egg, through its time as a nestling and juvenile, to the adult bird; via courtship, song, breeding, feeding, migration - and ultimately, death. At the same time, we trace the robin's relationship with us: how did this bird - one of more than 300 species in its huge and diverse family - find its way so deeply and permanently into our nation's heart and its social and cultural history? It's a story that tells us as much about ourselves as it does about the robin itself.

No other bird is quite so ever-present and familiar, so embedded in our culture, as the robin. But how much do we really know about this bird?

'There is no doubt that Moss's book, with its charming cover and quaint illustrations, will make it into many a stocking this year' The Times

SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS 2025

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A journey through the evolution of knowledge, communication, and information.

The debut non-fiction book by best-selling author Chris Haughton.

History, as it is often taught, is a list of kings and queens and treaties and events. It presents the what and when, but it rarely asks why.

Why is it that we had kings and queens at all?

Why then all of a sudden did we abandon them and shift to democracies?

Why did the world’s religions rise around the same time?

Why is society dominated by men?

The answers all come down to the same thing: information. The striving to share information, and – at the same time – the striving to undermine it, explains so much of today's world and connects so many seemingly unconnected things: the rise of religions, states, science, democracy, the west, militarism, racism, fascism, consumerism, big tech, polarisation, and AI.

This history of information is closely connected to the history of visual communication – and as these two are largely the same – it makes sense to tell this story visually: a history of graphics told through graphics. The History of Information, through a mix of timelines, graphics, and illustrations, clearly breaks down and explains each concept for children and adults alike.


The History of Information includes:

• A beautiful look at the story of information; from the first languages and cave paintings, through to how we communicate and record information today.
• Content written and illustrated by world famous and multi-award winning author and illustrator, Chris Haughton.
• A global journey throughout history from the origination of language, how information has been passed on and recorded, and how this affected humanity.

Whilst the First World War had seen an exceptional growth in the use and production of military cartography, the global conflict that followed employed maps, charts, reconnaissance, radar, sonar and the systematic recording and processing of geographical and topographical information on an unprecedented scale. It is impossible to understand the events and outcomes of the Second World War without deep reference to mapping at all levels. Maps themselves became the weapons and had a decisive impact.

In this highly original work Jeremy Black, one of world’s leading military and cartographic historians, shows how fundamental maps were to the conflict as he charts its historical sweep across each of the major theatres. The book’s thematic arrangement – exploring the conflict’s maps through strategic, operational, tactical, reportage and propaganda means – provides a truly ground-breaking perspective. The story is told through 100 key maps, many photographed for the very first time, from the unrivalled collections of the British Library and other major cartographic holdings.

One of the most eminent historians of our age investigates the extraordinary success of five small maritime states “A superb survey of the perennial opportunities and risks in what Herman Melville called ‘the watery part of the world.’”—William Anthony Hay, Wall Street Journal Andrew Lambert, author of The Challenge: Britain Against America in the Naval War of 1812—winner of the prestigious Anderson Medal—turns his attention to Athens, Carthage, Venice, the Dutch Republic, and Britain, examining how their identities as “seapowers” informed their actions and enabled them to achieve success disproportionate to their size. Lambert demonstrates how creating maritime identities made these states more dynamic, open, and inclusive than their lumbering continental rivals. Only when they forgot this aspect of their identity did these nations begin to decline. Recognizing that the United States and China are modern naval powers—rather than seapowers—is essential to understanding current affairs, as well as the long-term trends in world history. This volume is a highly original “big think” analysis of five states whose success—and eventual failure—is a subject of enduring interest, by a scholar at the top of his game.

In the ancient world the magicians of Egypt were considered the best. But was magic harmless fun, heartfelt hope, or something darker? Whether you needed a love charm, a chat with your dead wife, or the ability to fly like a bird, an Egyptian magician had just the thing. Christina Riggs explores how the Egyptians thought about magic, who performed it and why, and also helps readers understand why we’ve come to think of ancient Egypt in such a mystical, magical way in the first place. This book takes Egyptian magic seriously, using ancient texts and images to tackle the blurry distinctions between magic, religion and medicine. Along the way, readers will learn how to cure scorpion bites, why you might want to break the legs off your stuffed hippopotamus toy, and whether mummies really can come back to life. Readers will also (if so inclined) be able to save a fortune on pregnancy tests by simply urinating on barley seeds, and learn how to use the next street parade to predict the future – or ensure that annoying neighbour gets his comeuppance.

Providing the leaders with essential advice on battlefield tactics, managing troops and terrain, and employing cunning and deception, this book has also become a touchstone for the Western struggle for survival and success, whether in battle, in business or in relationships.

‘The very grubby coalface of foreign policy … I found the entire book most horribly addictive’ Independent

‘One of the unexpected responses to reading this masterful study is amazement at the efforts the British and French each put into undermining the other’ Spectator

A fascinating insight into the untold story of how British-French rivalry drew the battle-lines of the modern Middle East.

In 1916, in the middle of the First World War, two men secretly agreed to divide the Middle East between them. Sir Mark Sykes was a visionary politician; François Georges-Picot a diplomat with a grudge. They drew a line in the sand from the Mediterranean to the Persian frontier, and together remade the map of the Middle East, with Britain’s 'mandates' of Palestine, Transjordan and Iraq, and France's in Lebanon and Syria.

Over the next thirty years a sordid tale of violence and clandestine political manoeuvring unfolded, told here through a stellar cast of politicians, diplomats, spies and soldiers, including T. E. Lawrence, Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle. Using declassified papers from the British and French archives, James Barr vividly depicts the covert, deadly war of intrigue and espionage between Britain and France to rule the Middle East, and reveals the shocking way in which the French finally got their revenge.

From the bustling bazaars of Tabriz to the mysterious island of Caldihe, Anthony Bale brings history alive, inviting the reader to travel across a medieval world.

‘A joyful, erudite book . . . A global Middle Ages for our times’ Jerry Brotton
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A Travel Guide to the Middle Ages is no ordinary travel guide.

Journey alongside scholars, spies and saints. From western Europe to the Far East, the Antipodes, and the ends of the world. This is a living atlas that blurs the distinction between real and imagined places, containing everything from profane pilgrim badges, Venetian laxatives to encounters with bandits and trysts with princesses.

Using previously untranslated contemporary accounts from as far and wide as Turkey, Iceland, Armenia, north Africa, and Russia, it offers the reader a vivid and unforgettable insight into how medieval people understood their world - a world of stories, desire and fantasies, of cherished pasts and longed-for futures.
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‘Rich and wonderful . . . This is the world as you’ve never seen it before’ Ian Mortimer

'Wisdom fills the pages of this immensely entertaining history' The New Yorker

'Serious scholarship and a sightseer’s unbridled enthusiasm make for fascinating armchair time travel' Observer

‘Masterful, panoramic, beautifully written and vividly imagined . . . a book to be savoured’ Dr Helen Castor, author of Blood and Roses

‘An enthralling journey into the past and across the world . . . this book takes us to barely imaginable places’ Seb Falk, author of The Light Ages

Ontdek een verborgen stuk sportgeschiedenis dat de basis vormt voor de Olympische wegrit van Parijs 2024.

Alec van der Horst schetst in ‘De interessantste plek op aarde’ een fascinerend portret van de stad Parijs in de turbulente negentiende eeuw.

In ‘Afrika’ vertelt Zeinab Badawi op basis van Afrikaanse bronnen de geschiedenis van het continent vanaf het ontstaan van de mensheid.

A monumental history of the LGBTQ influence on popular culture, fromaward-winning, Sunday Times-bestselling author. An electrifying look at keymoments in music and entertainment history between 1955 and 1979, which helpedmove gay culture from the margins to the mainstream and changed the face ofpop forever - from the ambiguous sexuality of stars such as Little Richard inthe 1950s through to David Bowie, glam rock and Sylvester's 'You Make Me Feel(Mighty Real)'. The Secret Public is a searching examination of the fortitudeand resilience of the gay community through the lens of popular music andculture; it reflects on the freedom found in divergence from the norm andreminds us of the need to be vigilant against those seeking to roll back therights of marginalised groups.

‘Biografie van de Zuiderzee’ vertelt de geschiedenis van de Zuiderzee aan de hand van 25 verhalen, waarin vaak mensen centraal staan.

Over de vormende jaren van een van de grootste cabaretiers van Nederland: Freek de Jonge.

De eerste spoorlijn in Nederland die onverbloemd werd aangelegd uit oogpunt van concurrentie

In Over tirannie reikt historicus Timothy Snyder twintig praktische strategieën aan om de democratie te beschermen tegen een autoritaire overheid en tegen zogeheten sterke leiders.

Geïllustreerd non-fictiewerk over de geschiedenis van de Formule 1 via legendarische circuits. Het behandelt 100 jaar grand-prixgeschiedenis, van Monza tot het stratencircuit van Miami, met aandacht voor de achtergrond van de circuits en memorabele gebeurtenissen. De inhoud wordt aangevuld met foto’s, gedetailleerde kaarten, statistieken en records. De focus ligt op circuits als ingang tot de ontwikkeling en hoogtepunten van de sport.

In 1639 brengt admiraal Maarten Tromp de opmars van de Spaanse Armada tot een halt. Luc Panhuysen vertelt het verhaal van de slag bij Duins, met opmerkelijke details over het leven op zee.

Exquisite, timeless and enduring, Rolex is one of the most recognizable and sought-after luxury watch brands in the world.

Established in 1905, the British-founded Swiss designer and manufacturer, Rolex, revolutionized the watchmaking industry with ground-breaking and innovative designs that continue to dominate worldwide.

From the Oyster and Explorer to the Daytona and Submariner, Little Book of Rolex tells the complete story of the brand. Packed with stunning images alongside authoritative text, this is the perfect book for the numerous fans of the ultimate luxury timepiece and takes the Little Books of Fashion into an exciting new arena of men's accessories.

Dit boek bevat boeiende teksten en meer dan 500 illustraties, waarmee de arbeiders, bouw en bunkertypen worden belicht.

Een uitgebreide verkenning van Henk van Randwijks invloedrijke rol als leider in het Nederlandse verzet tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog en zijn prominente rol in het publieke debat na de oorlog.

De klassieke tekst begrijpelijk gemaakt voor de lezer van nu. Verplichte kost voor jonge revolutionaire én doorgewinterde socialisten!

Een reis langs de verhalen van de Rijn

Beschrijving van de visuele geschiedenis van Rotterdam ten tijde van de Tweede Wereldoorlog