Historic Biography Books

Winner of the Baillie Gifford Prize and the Baillie Gifford 'Winner of Winners' award in 2023How did Shakespeare go from being a talented poet and playwright to become one of the greatest writers who ever lived? In this one exhilarating year we follow what...

Delve into the remarkable life of King Edward I, the indomitable monarch who left an indelible mark on British history. In "A Great and Terrible King," Marc Morris masterfully unveils the complex tapestry of Edward's reign, weaving together the threads of his unwavering character,...

Alford triumphs. in recreating the historical moment. By immersing himself in Cecil's vast archive, he draws the reader deep into his working environment, capturing the closeness of his study and the chaos of the court. this is turn-of-century England as it really was -...

Woven into the fabric of a simple cotton sack is a powerful story of resilience, love, and the unbreakable bonds of family. In "All That She Carried," Tiya Miles masterfully traces the journey of this humble keepsake across three generations of Black women, beginning...

Riveting; as fresh and relevant today as it was almost 50 years ago. The words fire off the page with humour, anger and eloquence' GuardianA powerful and commanding account of the life of trailblazing political activist Angela DavisEdited by Toni Morrison and first published...

Barbara Hepworth is one of the most important artists of the 20th century, yet she has been the subject of relatively few monographs in comparison to her male counterparts. This biography moves beyond the traditional narratives of modernism, truth to materials, and the landscape...

The definitive modern biography of the great slave leader, military genius and revolutionary hero Toussaint LouvertureThe Haitian Revolution began in the French Caribbean colony of Saint-Domingue with a slave revolt in August 1791, and culminated a dozen years later in the proclamation of the...

THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017SUNDAY TIMES TOP 10 BESTSELLERWhen he receives an invitation to deliver a lecture in the Ukrainian city of Lviv, international lawyer Philippe Sands begins a journey on the trail of his family's secret history. In...

Hailed as the star of her generation by historian Dan Snow, Alice Loxton's "Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives" has been acclaimed as a brilliantly original and wonderfully perceptive work by bestselling author James Holland. Bursting with ideas and images, as...

A luminous exploration of exile - the people who have experienced it, and the places they inhabit - from the award-winning travel writer and author of The Immeasurable World and The Moor. 'Breathtakingly good . . . Exiles is completely sui generis.'EDMUND DE WAAL'Atkins...

The beautifully illustrated and authoritative biography of Frida Kahlo'Frida will hold its place as the first comprehensive biography of this most visceral of artists' Observer'Mesmerizing' TimeFrida is the story of one of the twentieth century's most extraordinary women, the painter Frida Kahlo. Born near...

It is so good, after so many years of public indifference, even hostility towards Vincent and his work, to feel towards the end of my life that the battle is won.' JO VAN GOGH-BONGER TO GUSTAVE COQUIOT, 1922`It is a sacrifice for the sake...

Acclaimed historian and broadcaster Helen Castor tells the story of Joan of Arc as you have never read it before. 'Popular history at its best.' Daily TelegraphHelen Castor brings us afresh a gripping life of Joan of Arc. Instead of the icon, she gives...

A�NEW YORK TIMES�BESTSELLER *SELECTED AS ONE OF��BARACK�OBAMA'S�FAVOURITE BOOKS OF�2023*Vividly written and exhaustively researched, Jonathan Eig's�King is the first major biography in decades of the civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. - and the first to include recently declassified FBI files. � In this...

This groundbreaking 1941 memoir by a trailblazing female war correspondent offers an unparalleled eyewitness account of life on the frontlines of wartime Europe, hailed as an 'unforgettable' (The Times) rediscovered classic, introduced by Christina Lamb. Virginia Cowles was present at pivotal moments, from Paris...

Matilda: Empress, Queen, Warrior by Catherine Hanley shines a light on the extraordinary life of the woman who battled fiercely to ascend the English throne in the 12th century. This gripping historical biography explores Matilda's unwavering determination to claim her birthright and rule as...

Over seventy years since his premature death, George Orwell (1903-50) has become one of the most significant figures in western literature. His two dystopian masterpieces, Animal Farm (1945) and Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949) have together sold over 40 million copies. Even now, he continues to...

You haunt me everywhere.' So wrote Edward Burne-Jones to Frances Graham, his muse for the last 25 triumphant years of his life: 'I haven't a corner of my life or my thoughts where you are not'. He drew her obsessively, included her in some...

*A FOYLES TOP TEN READ FOR APRIL*`A superb portrait of the complex imprint the countryside makes on the life of the mind . A treasure' Doireann N� Ghr�ofaIn Rural Hours, Harriet Baker tells the story of three very different women, each of whom moved...

Winner of the British Book Awards History Book of the YearLonglisted for the Samuel Johnson PrizeThis thrilling biography of Stalin and his entourage during the terrifying decades of his supreme power transforms our understanding of Stalin as Soviet dictator, Marxist leader and Russian tsar....

Katherine Rundell's "Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne" is a critically acclaimed biography that delves into the multifaceted life of the renowned poet and cleric, John Donne. Garnering accolades such as a Sunday Times top ten bestseller, and shortlisted for prestigious literary awards like...

`A wonderful book . Holmes sublimely illuminates Sylvia's extraordinary life' The Times`A masterpiece' Vanessa Redgrave _______________Born into one of Britain's most famous activist families, Sylvia Pankhurst was a natural rebel. A free spirit and radical visionary, history placed her in the shadow of her...

**WINNER OF PULITZER PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHY****WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD (Nonfiction)**Shortlisted for the HWA Non-Fiction Crown AwardFinalist, LA Times Book PrizeA landmark biography of one of the twentieth century's most compelling figures, rewriting much of the known narrative. Les Payne, the renowned Pulitzer...

When Elspeth Huxley's pioneer father buys a remote plot of land in Kenya, the family sets off to discover their new home: five hundred acres of Kenyan scrubland, infested with ticks and white ants, and quavering with heat. What they lack in know-how they...

**WINNER OF THE COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD**Edmund de Waal uncovers the history of a family through a turbulent century through 264 objects. 264 wood and ivory carvings, none of them bigger than a matchbox: Edmund de Waal was entranced when he first encountered the collection...

WINNER OF THE 2015 COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARDWINNER OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY SCIENCE BOOK PRIZE 2016'A thrilling adventure story' Bill Bryson'Dazzling' Literary Review 'Brilliant' Sunday Express'Extraordinary and gripping' New Scientist'A superb biography' The Economist'An exhilarating armchair voyage' GILES MILTON, Mail on Sunday Alexander von Humboldt...

A captivating narrative that unveils a remarkable yet largely overlooked chapter in history. Edward Shawcross masterfully recounts the astonishing tale of Maximilian, an Austrian archduke who found himself entangled in a web of deceit and ambition orchestrated by the cunning Napoleon III. Lured by...

Manet, Monet, Pissarro, C�zanne, Renoir, Degas, Sisley, Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt. Though they were often ridiculed or ignored by their contemporaries, astonishing sums are paid today for the works of these artists. Their dazzling pictures are familiar - but how well does the...

REVISED AND UPDATED EDITION'Masterly . . . a wonderfully alert and moving portrait' Mail on Sunday---------------------Two artistic giants. One small house. From October to December 1888 a pair of at the time largely unknown artists lived under one roof in the French provincial town...

Born in a rural Kenyan village in 1940, Wangari Maathai was already an iconoclast as a child, determined to get an education even though most African girls then were uneducated. In her remarkable and inspiring autobiography, she tells of her studies with Catholic missionaries,...

I know for sure that I have an instinct for colour, and painting is in the very marrow of my bones' The life of Van Gogh has gone down in legend as the archetypal artist's existence. He was irascible and short-tempered, hugely passionate and...

Truly wonderful... Anna Funder has written another brilliant human portrait.' - Claire Tomalin A BLAZING, GENRE-BENDING MASTERPIECE FROM ONE OF THE MOST INVENTIVE WRITERS OF OUR TIMELooking for wonder and some reprieve from the everyday, Anna Funder slips into the pages of her hero...

OVER 13M COPIES SOLD - THE INTERNATIONALLY BESTSELLING PHENOMENON - NUMBER 8 ON SUNDAY TIMES BEST OF THE BESTSELLER LIST Few books have had such an impact as Wild Swans: a popular bestseller which has sold more than 13 million copies and a critically...

LONGLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2024A vital re-examination of the trailblazing and controversial artist Paul Gauguin - and the first full biography in over thirty years - written by the award-winning author of I Am Dynamite!: A Life of Nietzsche. *Gorgeously...

Fascinating' The Times'Blakeian in its singularity' New Statesman'A wonderful adventure' Irish Times'Rich, complex and original' Tom Holland'A crisp, ambitious and thoroughly contemporary introduction' Times Literary SupplementPoet, artist, visionary and author of the unofficial English national anthem 'Jerusalem', William Blake is an archetypal misunderstood genius....

Winner of the Wolfson History Prize, and described by A.S.Byatt as 'one of the finest biographies ever published', this is Fiona MacCarthy's magisterial biography of William Morris, legendary designer and father of the Victorian Arts and Crafts movement. 'Thrilling, absorbing and majestic.' Independent'Wonderfully ambitious...

Winner of the Costa Biography AwardWhat makes a Stalin? Was he a Tsarist agent or Lenin's bandit? Was he to blame for his wife's death? When did the killing start? Based on revelatory research, here is the thrilling story of how a charismatic cobbler's...