Reviews

Review

Great Books: E.M. Forster’s The Machine Stops

Although previously dismissed as fanciful and tedious, the world of E.M. Forster’s The Machine Stops in fact bears an unsettling resemblance to our own.

Alastair Benn March 25, 2022

Review

Time running out in China’s waiting game — The Long Game: China’s Grand Strategy to Displace American Order by Rush Doshi review

A goal for China which had recently seemed attainable is beginning once more to recede into the distance, argues Rush Doshi.

Brendan Simms March 11, 2022

Review

Missing the boat in a broad canvas — Twelve Caesars: Images of Power from the Ancient World to the Modern by Mary Beard review

Mary Beard focuses on more tangible aspects of Roman imperial representations

Armand D'Angour March 4, 2022

Review

Do we really know what war is anymore? — The Weaponisation of Everything: A Field Guide To The New Way of War by Mark Galeotti review

This comprehensive – and somewhat bleak – survey of modern warfare questions our assumptions of what war is and details how we can develop the awareness and resilience needed to su..

Gill Bennett February 17, 2022

Review

A hook to uncover hidden histories — My Grandfather’s Knife: And Other Stories of War and Belongings by Joseph Pearson review

By placing objects at the centre of his research, Pearson allows the complexities and conflicts of the Second World War to co-exist.

Katja Hoyer February 11, 2022

Review

A ship without a captain — Collapse: The Fall of the Soviet Union by Vladislav Zubok review

Zubok's mammoth work is a provocative, honest examination of the dissolution of the Soviet empire and Gorbachev's failings. At the end, it strikes a note that is intriguingly perso..

Sergey Radchenko February 11, 2022

Review

The joy of books

The joy of reading does not emerge in silent reflection, grand old libraries and the hallowed halls of academe. It's something more elemental than that - books are like keys in a l..

Peter Frankopan February 11, 2022

Review

Great Books: Ivo Andric’s The Bridge on the River Drina

The 1945 novel presents the ancient bridge as a metaphor for Bosnia’s suffering, its fragility and the country's role as a link between the East and the West.

Edward Thicknesse February 11, 2022

Review

Great Books: Robert Burton’s The Anatomy of Melancholy

First published in 1621, Robert Burton’s The Anatomy of Melancholy is a treatise, an encyclopedia, a self-help manual and more besides. Remarkably ahead of its time, this treasure ..

Malcolm Forbes November 16, 2021