War: How Conflict Shaped Us, by Margaret MacMillan A. W. Purdue is impressed by a dazzling analysis of the human capacity for violence and how it has moulded our lives By A.W. Purdue 22 October
Winston Churchill: A Life in the News, by Richard Toye A. W. Purdue considers how Britain’s wartime prime minister was a lifelong master at keeping himself in the public eye By A.W. Purdue 6 August
The Battle for Christian Britain: Sex, Humanists, and Secularisation, 1945-1980, by Callum G. Brown A. W. Purdue is sceptical about an analysis of the great debates about sexual and other freedoms that marked the dawn of a more permissive era By A.W. Purdue 2 January
Me, Me, Me?: The Search for Community in Post-war England, by Jon Lawrence Book of the week: A. W. Purdue is impressed by a bold attempt to rethink the relationship between solidarity and ambition By A.W. Purdue 10 October
War and Chance: Assessing Uncertainty in International Politics, by Jeffrey A. Friedman A.W. Purdue is unconvinced by an attempt to put military planning on a more scientific footing By A.W. Purdue 1 August
Command: The Twenty-First Century General, by Anthony King Book of the week: Changes to methods of military leadership raise questions of who’s the boss, finds A. W. Purdue By A.W. Purdue 21 February
Our Boys: The Story of a Paratrooper, by Helen Parr Book of the week: A. W. Purdue finds a work that combines military and social history to be gripping and poignant By A.W. Purdue 18 October
The Rise and Fall of the British Nation: A Twentieth Century History, by David Edgerton Book of the week: A. W. Purdue on an argument that relocates the roots of modern Britain in the post-war period By A.W. Purdue 28 June
To Dare More Boldly: The Audacious Story of Political Risk, by John C. Hulsman A. W. Purdue ponders a historical comparison of advisers to the world’s movers and shakers By A.W. Purdue 19 April
Safe Passage: The Transition from British to American Hegemony, by Kori Schake Book of the week: Only once has a supreme global power peacefully ceded its reign to another, A. W. Purdue writes By A.W. Purdue 8 February
A Thirst for Empire: How Tea Shaped the Modern World, by Erika Rappaport A. W. Purdue on a study that views the drink as the centrepiece of a new international economy By A.W. Purdue 14 September
Leningrad 1941-42: Morality in a City under Siege, by Sergey Yarov A. W. Purdue chews over a grim account of how civilised nature crumbles when starvation looms By A.W. Purdue 22 June
The Locomotive Of War: Money, Empire, Power and Guilt, by Peter Clarke Book of the week: A history of famous liberals shows how global conflict shaped them and us, writes A. W. Purdue By A.W. Purdue 2 March
Searching for Lord Haw-Haw: The Political Lives of William Joyce, by Colin Holmes A.W. Purdue on the man whose narcissism led to his becoming a mouthpiece for the Nazis By A.W. Purdue 17 November
The Vanquished: Why the First World War Failed to End, 1917-1923, by Robert Gerwarth A. W. Purdue on the suffering of populations of multi-ethnic empires in the years after the Great War By A.W. Purdue 29 September
Crusoe’s Island: A Rich and Curious History of Pirates, Castaways and Madness, by Andrew Lambert Tales of marooned mariners helped Britain to see itself as a global power, A. W. Purdue hears By A.W. Purdue 22 September
Disraeli: The Novel Politician, by David Cesarani Fresh perspectives on a 19th-century Tory leader can be gleaned from his fiction, finds A.W. Purdue By A.W. Purdue 26 May
The Habsburg Empire: A New History, by Pieter M. Judson A. W. Purdue on a bold and refreshing revisionist study By A.W. Purdue 12 May
History’s People: Personalities and the Past, by Margaret MacMillan A. W. Purdue on a perceptive look at those who shaped, and were shaped by, their times By A.W. Purdue 7 April
A History of the Royal Navy: Empire and Imperialism, by Daniel Owen Spence In addition to its firepower, Britain’s fleet exerted an immense soft power that underscored the imperial project, A.W. Purdue writes By A.W. Purdue 11 February
Fighters in the Shadows: A New History of the French Resistance, by Robert Gildea A. W. Purdue on a study of the disparate groups in a movement often thought of as a united force By A.W. Purdue 5 November
1916: A 51³Ô¹Ï History, by Keith Jeffery A scholar mounts a strong argument for one year being a decisive one for the world, says A. W. Purdue By A.W. Purdue 24 September
Yanks and Limeys: Alliance Warfare in the Second World War, by Niall Barr A. W. Purdue on the conflicting interests of the Americans and British By A.W. Purdue 30 July
