MENU
SHOPS
SEARCH
0
Joinplus before checkout to earn stamps on your order and be eligible for plus rewards.
Basket
Your basket is empty.
-
- Books
Blog
The Best Books of 2022: History
Whether it's uncovering shocking injustice with Philippe Sands, spotlighting the formidable women of the Middle Ages with Janina Ramirez or escaping from Colditz with Ben Macintyre, bring the past to vibrant life courtesy of our hand-picked selection of the very finest history books of 2022.
£22.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Giving voice to the influential women of the Middle Ages who have been silenced by male gatekeepers, Ramirez's sweeping account not only highlights unjustly forgotten pioneers but also demonstrates how easily historical narratives can be manipulated.
£35.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
Recounting nothing less than the history of humanity through the overarching theme of family, Montefiore weaves an epic, page-turning story that features everyone from the Leopard-King of Benin to Margaret Thatcher.
£20.00
Hardback
We can order this from the publisher
Usually dispatched within 2 weeks
From mothers of invention to the unsung heroines of the stage, the bestselling author of the Burning Chambers series delivers a joyous and beautifully illustrated volume that celebrates 1000 extraordinary women from around the globe, as well as sharing a fascinating detective story of her own family history.
£30.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
From iconic figures such as Queen Victoria to unnamed geishas and soldiers, the third, visually stunning book in The Colour of Time series makes magnificent use of Marina Amaral's acclaimed photographic colourisation techniques and Dan Jones' skilful text to tell a multitude of women's stories from the middle of the nineteenth century to the dawn of second-wave feminism.
£30.00
Hardback
We can order this from the publisher
Usually dispatched within 2 weeks
From superpower leaders to Cuban peasants, the acclaimed military historian and author of Operation Pedestal takes a panoramic look at the most nerve-jangling episode in twentieth-century history, when Cold War tensions threatened to explode into nuclear conflagration.
£30.00
£14.29
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Through a series of searching profiles of twentieth century leaders the eminent historian and author of Hitler analyses how both totalitarian states and democracies have relied on charismatic figureheads to achieve their ends.
£25.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Tracing a path of catastrophe and cover-up through six iconic nuclear disasters, the celebrated author of Chernobyl presents a shocking saga of scientific negligence and political duplicity at its most deadly.
£25.00
Hardback
We can order this from the publisher
Usually dispatched within 2 weeks
From ancient Babylon to modern-day Beijing, the author of the acclaimed The Florentines paints evocative pictures of ten cities that dominated and defined their eras in this immersive and nimbly written panoramic history.
£25.00
Hardback
Out of stock
Drawing on original Achaemenid sources rather than the loaded words of the Ancient Greeks, Llewellyn-Jones delivers a monumental new history of the Persian empire in all its vivid and colourful glory.
£30.00
Hardback
5+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Chronicling the birth of modern Turkey, Gingeras’ eye-opening volume charts the final years of the Ottoman empire, unravelling the complex story of how a nation state emerged in this ethnically and religiously entangled region.
£16.99
Hardback
Out of stock
Brimming with humour and intellect, Faloyin's fascinating volume mines the rich and varied span of histories and cultures of the continent's many countries, delivering a punchy corrective against lazy sterotypes of Africa.
£40.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
From a Florentine bookseller to the keeper of the British Museum, the author of Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts traces the stories of an extraordinary cast of characters who dedicated their lives to working with illustrated manuscripts, in wondrous prose that brims with passion and scholarship.
£25.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
Leading the reader on a breathtaking journey into the past, Tutankhamun’s Trumpet takes the objects buried with the boy-king as the primary source material for painting a vivid portrait of life in Ancient Egypt.
£20.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Written in the present tense to imbue an already scintillating narrative with an added dimension of urgency, de Bellaigue's account of Suleyman the Magnificent's tilt at destroying Western Christendom makes for enthralling reading.
£27.99
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
Interrogating the problematic legacy of Margaret Mitchell's iconic bestseller Gone With the Wind, author and academic Churchwell confronts the conflict between white feminism and ugly racism inherent in the novel and how both themes speak powerfully to the crises engulfing America today.
£30.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
A sweeping history both of one of the nineteenth-century's most colourful and extraordinarily successful trading dynasties and the rapidly changing, increasingly globalised world that they were an integral part of, Sassoon's riveting chronicle of his remarkable family is panoramic narrative non-fiction of the highest order.
£20.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Charting the story of the young Austrian archduke and his ill-starred reign on the Mexican throne, Shawcross’ fascinating volume plunges the reader into the midst of nineteenth-century guerrilla wars, conspiracy plots and ruthless power battles between old European and new American imperialisms.
£18.99
Hardback
5+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
The beloved author whose oeuvre has covered everything from maps to the colour mauve delivers a fascinating history of encyclopaedias, paying homage to those who invented this ground-breaking publishing phenomenon and thus allowed unprecedented access to information.
£17.99
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Through the careers and theories of thirteen prominent anthropologists, Moore tells the fascinating story of the groundbreaking era when the study of 'otherness' became a fashionable quasi-scientific study.
£16.99
£8.50
Hardback
5+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Through one woman's fight for justice, the award-winning author of East West Street recounts the shocking events that marked the 1965 establishment of the British Indian Ocean Territory with his characteristic expertise, insight and compelling storytelling ability.
£20.00
Hardback
Temporarily unavailable
Currently not available to order
Across seven themed chapters the acclaimed author of former Waterstones Book of the Year-shortlisted Storyland presents an inspiring excavation of the British countryside through a rich diversity of medieval texts.
This product is currently unavailable online. Click to be notified when it is back in stock or to collect in store.
Email me when available
Enter your email below and we will notify you when this item is next available to order.
Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain (Hardback)
£20.00
Thank you
we will contact you when this item is next available to order
£14.99
Hardback
5+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
A true story so outlandish and improbable that it simply demands to be read, Knight's page-turning volume spotlights a network of psychic visionaries working out of a run-down 1960's mental hospital and the extraordinary effects wrought by two young 'percipients' in particular.
£20.00
Hardback
We can order this from the publisher
Usually dispatched within 2 weeks
From Roman cremations to Christian burials, the anthropologist and author of the bestselling Ancestors explores the ways in which Ancient Britons bade farewell to their dead in an eye-opening slice of popular history.
£16.99
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
Based on the popular radio show in which he is a star performer and executed in his customarily uproarious style, Gyles Brandreth’s endlessly entertaining volume takes the reader on an unforgettable tour of British history in which each topic is presented in dizzying one-minute instalments.
£25.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Casting an authoritative eye over the nine forgotten realms of Dark Ages Britain, the author of Viking Britain paints a vivid portrait of the medieval world and examines how different the future map of Britain could have looked.
£20.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
Tracing a haunting path through the ruins of vanished Britain, Shadowlands abounds in astonishing information and keening tragedy as Green tells the tales of what happened to Dunwich, Trellech, Capel Celyn and more in elegant, engaging prose.
£16.99
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Hugely important to the history of the British Isles yet commonly misunderstood and neglected by contemporary audiences, the story of the Celts is finally told in a coherent and engaging fashion by the bestselling author of A Short History of England.
£25.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Full of fascinating and quirky detail from both momentous historical events and everyday life, the first part in Engel’s epic examination of the second Elizabethan age takes a lingering look at post-war Britain from the death of King George VI and the coronation of Elizabeth II to the eve of Margaret Thatcher’s election as PM in 1979.
£25.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
At a time when nationalism and secession are rapidly mobilizing forces, Philip Parker’s fascinating cartographical history raises salient arguments about what being British really means.
£20.00
Hardback
We can order this from the publisher
Usually dispatched within 2 weeks
Making inspired links through time, Groom's monumental history of the North of England abounds in colourful characters and enthralling incident, from the Venerable Bede to the Miners' Strike, and marshals a vast array of material into a compulsively readable whole.
£20.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
From the Bronze Age to the era of the ocean liner, the author of former Waterstones Non-Fiction Book of the Month Seashaken Houses compiles the ultimate British vessel in this beautifully written and highly original maritime history.
£20.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
The author of Hanns and Rudolf and The House by the Lake delivers a blazingly eloquent and unflinching examination of Britain's pernicious role in the slave trade through the prism of the Demerara Uprising and its aftermath.
£30.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
A blistering, monumental history of the British Empire that spotlights the methods and means of violent force and coercion employed over two hundred years in pursuit of the relentless subjugation of indigenous peoples.
£20.00
Hardback
Out of stock
Interrogating the peculiarly British yearning to return to an imaginary bygone age, Woods' trenchant and enlightening critique traces a history from sixteenth century desires for the renewal of 'Merry England' to contemporary nostalgia for a pre-globalised society.
£25.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
From the Cheshire lawyer who tried Charles I to the countess who fought to defend the Isle of Man for the king, Keay's brilliant history of Cromwell's Republic places the accounts of real people centre stage to humanise a tempestuous period of Britain's national story.
£25.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Meriting comparisons to Renaissance Italy's Borgias, the ambitious and manipulative Dudley dynasty held incalculable influence throughout the Tudor era and Paul's riveting account of their turbulent fortunes is both meticulously researched and utterly compelling.
£25.00
Hardback
Out of stock
Authoritative and enthralling, Corfield's survey of the dramatic changes and innovations of the Georgian era spotlights both the remarkable characters at the heart of events and the views of ordinary people whose world was transforming around them.
£22.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Reflecting on six decades of James Bond and The Beatles, Higgs' crafts an incisive analysis of two overwhelming British cultural institutions and the contrasting visions of the nation that they represent.
£25.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
The master storyteller of real-life espionage turns his attention to the Second World War's most notorious prison and the rich cast of colourful characters who attempted to break free from its walls.
£20.00
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Both a thrilling story of escape and fortitude and a profoundly important contribution to Holocaust literature, Freedland's expertly crafted account of two Jewish inmates who broke out of Auschwitz and alerted the world to the horrors practiced there is an instant classic of World War II writing.
£30.00
Hardback
Out of stock
Drawing on memoirs and personal interviews, Caddick-Adams delivers the definitive account of the last hundred days of the Second World War in Europe as the Allies swept into Germany but faced devastating last-ditch resistance.
£22.00
Hardback
5+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Recounting tales of military derring-do with his characteristic aplomb, the author of The Flame of Resistance chronicles the birth of the SAS during the most desperate days of the Second World War.
£20.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
Perfect reading for fans of Max Hastings and James Holland, the pulsating story of the most audacious commando raid of World War II is rendered in unputdownable prose by the author of Bridge of Spies.
£25.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
An enthralling account of one of the most innovative and successful fighter planes of the Second World War, Price's meticulously researched volume merges technical information with riveting human drama.
£20.00
£10.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
The acclaimed comedian and military history buff pens his first serious narrative non-fiction book with this enthralling and accessible account of World War II's key Allied commanders and how their strategic vision across multiple theatres of war ensured ultimate victory.
£25.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
With a propulsive narrative drive and drawing from the first-person accounts of veterans, the master historian and author of Crucible of Hell charts the story of the first US troops to take part in the Second World War, from their first mission on the Guadalcanal to their final entanglement on the shores of Japan.
£35.00
Hardback
Out of stock
Spanning the entirety of Nazi-occupied Europe, Kochanski's monumental history of wartime collaboration and resistance takes a profoundly humane as well as forensically analytical look at the life-or-death decisions being made during the Second World War's darkest days.
£30.00
Hardback
Not available
Currently not available to order
The forging of the Soviet Union recounted in thrilling detail by the celebrated historian and author of Stalingrad, as the Russian Revolution segues into bloody Civil War shaping the tumultuous story of the twentieth century.
£25.00
£12.50
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
From the bestselling author of A People's Tragedy and Natasha's Dance comes a vibrant, authoritative history of the competing ideologies and self-perpetuating mythologies that have informed Russian history from the formation of the state of Rus to Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
£12.99
£6.50
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
From the Russian Revolution to Glasnost, this welcome addition to the acclaimed Shortest History series focuses on the tumultuous story of the Soviet Union and the pervasive influence of Communism throughout Europe and the world.
£25.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
The historian and author of the Six Tudor Queens series turns her attention to the formidable females of the Plantagenet dynasty, many of whom defied the idea of royal brides as mere trophies and participated actively in the events that shaped the kingdoms of France and England in the Middle Ages.
£16.99
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
The former ambassador and Russia expert delivers an authoritative history of one of the world's most complex and powerful nations, from its founding as Rus to its current incarnation as the Russian Federation.
Russia is not an enigma, but its past is violent, tragic...
£20.00
Hardback
10+ in stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Discussing well-known characters as well as drawing from previously unpublished eye-witness accounts, the bestselling author of Dresden and The Secret Life of Bletchley Park delivers a compelling biography of the German capital in the twentieth century through the eyes of its inhabitants.
£25.00
Hardback
We can order this from the publisher
Usually dispatched within 2 weeks
From Ancient Gaul to Napoleon and beyond, Robb's rollicking history of France streamlines thousands of years of tumultuous events into a pulsating narrative rich in intrepid adventure.
£25.00
Hardback
Out of stock
Examining exactly what Spanish identity means in a nation where invasion and immigration have been such a rich part of its narrative, Tremlett's concise history casts this fascinating country in a revealing new light.
£14.99
Hardback
In stock
Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days
Detailing the remarkable determination of the East German secret police to weaponise poetry for the Communist cause, Oltermann's marvellously quixotic and quirky history is both a group biography of hardened soldiers-turned-lovers of lyrical verse and an eye-opening account of the enduring power of literature to sow sedition.
Related articles
Sign In / Register
Not registered? CREATE AN ACCOUNTCREATE A plus ACCOUNT
Sign In
Download the Waterstones App
Would you like to proceed to the App store to download the Waterstones App?
Click & Collect
Reserve online, pay on collection
Thank you for your reservation
Your order is now being processed and we have sent a confirmation email to you at
When will my order be ready to collect?
Following the initial email, you will be contacted by the shop to confirm that your item is available for collection.
Call us on or send us an email at
Unfortunately there has been a problem with your order
Please try again or alternatively you can contact your chosen shop on or send us an email at
Comments
I’m surprised there are no comments! So here are mine. The regular emails about upcoming books and the recent communication about best books of the year are INVALUABLE. Much better than the algorithm driven recommendations I receive from other sources. Thank you Waterstones.
Heather HonourNew reply
Please sign in to respond to comments.