30 Great Books That Made History (Paperback)

Jaume Aurell

ISBN 10: 1509562419 / ISBN 13: 9781509562411

Published by Polity Press, Oxford, 2025

About this Item

Paperback. Today, many readers could easily list thirty classic authors, or thirty classic works of art, literature, music, philosophy, or science. But would they be able to name thirty classic works of history? In spite of history's outsized influence in the world of ideas, the books that made - and-remade - the history we know so well are often forgotten. In this panoramic book, distinguished historian Jaume Aurell sets out to introduce readers to a new canon of historical writing. Taking a global approach, he places the work of Herodotus, Thucydides, Gibbon, Michelet and Braudel alongside masterpieces from a myriad of periods and civilizations, from Sima Qian, Anna Komnene, al-Masudi and Fukuzawa Yukichi to Edmundo O'Gorman, C. L. R. James and Natalie Zemon Davis. At the same time, Aurell argues that we should not see these books as a definitive canon - instead, any canon should be seen as a list-in-progress to be contested and debated anew with each generation. It is only by being exposed to these diverse and deeply significant works that we can fully perceive the shape of the discipline, and carve out a new appreciation for the art of history writing. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781509562411

Bibliographic Details

• Title: 30 Great Books That Made History (Paperback)
• Publisher: Polity Press, Oxford
• Publication Date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1509562419
• ISBN 13: 9781509562411
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

Today, many readers could easily list thirty classic authors, or thirty classic works of art, literature, music, philosophy, or science. But would they be able to name thirty classic works of history? In spite of history's outsized influence in the world of ideas, the books that made - and-remade - the history we know so well are often forgotten.

In this panoramic book, distinguished historian Jaume Aurell sets out to introduce readers to a new canon of historical writing. Taking a global approach, he places the work of Herodotus, Thucydides, Gibbon, Michelet and Braudel alongside masterpieces from a myriad of periods and civilizations, from Sima Qian, Anna Komnene, al-Masudi and Fukuzawa Yukichi to Edmundo O'Gorman, C. L. R. James and Natalie Zemon Davis. At the same time, Aurell argues that we should not see these books as a definitive canon - instead, any canon should be seen as a list-in-progress to be contested and debated anew with each generation. It is only by being exposed to these diverse and deeply significant works that we can fully perceive the shape of the discipline, and carve out a new appreciation for the art of history writing.

About the Author

Jaume Aurell is Professor of Medieval History at the Department of History at the University of Navarra.