Books

This examination of space exploration has its feet firmly on the ground, writes Monica Grady

The British statesman had a surprising interest in the affairs of Muslims, says Charles Townshend

Ashley M. L. Brown discovers that imagination is often perceived as the greatest threat of all

A counterfactual imagining of a fateful meeting in Munich raises some interesting possibilities, says Hasia R. Diner, but is it history?

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Liz Young discovers how failures in governance exacerbated the severity of historical famines

Tara Brabazon on an ethnographical study of the internet users who ‘swarm’ in order to cause maximum pain

A tax rate of 67.5% is part of an economist’s plan to stem excessive inequality, finds Danny Dorling

Richard Larschan on an examination of the conflicting ‘emotional styles’ of two camps of poets of the 1950s and 1960s

Jane O’Grady on a collection that stresses the importance of creativity, beauty and self-fulfilment

Les Gofton on a compelling study of a musical subculture

An overview of the action in Europe also examines present-day attitudes towards the conflict, says Niamh Gallagher

Kathryn Ecclestone on a study examining the underside of the new fixation on inner feelings

Daydreaming relies on memory and our past helps us imagine future possibilities, finds Luna Centifanti

E. Stina Lyon on a complex account of the trajectory of adult life in the modern world

Neil Gregor praises an assiduously researched, humane book that examines the incarceration of German-Jews prior to 1939

Rising inequality can be addressed without taking to the barricades, Victoria Bateman suggests

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

A major figure’s rise and fall reveals a gap between discourse and reality, Barbara Graziosi finds

The tales of a society on the margins and a researcher’s struggle to integrate into that society make for a readable account about real people, says Joy Hendry

This valuable work sheds light on the building of an ‘international sisterhood’ to further the struggle for women’s rights, says June Purvis

Robyn Arianrhod welcomes an unsentimental study of the first woman to win a Nobel prize

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Amy Whitworth on a rich examination of philosophers’ ultimate sacrifice

Clare Griffiths on a well-researched book that reappraises the role of fathers in social history

The idea that there is too much going on in our lives is itself full of complexities, says Mary Evans

Dick Hobbs on a study of a career criminal that demystifies gangs and a society that has tried to marginalise them

David Palfreyman on the effect that the forces of marketisation have had power dynamics within academia

Managers remain in thrall to bad ideas about how to run companies, learns Helga Drummond

A lupine alliance may have helped Homo sapiens to beat the competition, says Simon Underdown

Elizabeth Greene applauds this compelling examination of the American poet’s achievement

A study of American couples who married out of their socio-economic culture intrigues Mary Evans

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Victoria Harris relishes a clear-eyed study of the experiences of ordinary men called to serve

A network of ‘smart systems’ to make our lives easier must be greeted with caution, says John Gilbey

Ayesha Ahmad on a thoughtful contribution to a controversial debate

Danny Dorling on an unusual study that reveals much about what is wrong with political culture

A.W. Purdue is impressed by a daring new interpretation of the Allied victory

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Richard Joyner on the dwindling role of German and Russian in the communication of research

Robert Mayhew on how geographical texts of the early 18th century preferred an aesthetic of the ‘exotic’ over accuracy

Helen Bynum on the exciting and vital ‘molecular chatter’ taking place in the human microbiome

A wide-ranging examination of garment recycling should whet the appetite of readers for more research on the subject, says Ruth Pearson

Thomas Docherty on a study of the academy today and working conditions

Jonathan Mirsky on the undistinguished qualities of a president who wants China to ‘learn from Chairman Mao’

The first act in an entertaining study of gifted stage performers is the most powerful, says Lisa Hopkins

Jane Shaw on a compelling study of how an American housewife’s visions of the Virgin Mary led to friction with the institutional Church

Is an innovative project reshaping the US academy to better serve society or undermining its foundations? asks Ferdinand von Prondzynski

A sense of not belonging coloured an outsider’s journey to the avant-garde, learns Tracey Warr

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Janet Sayers on stories from the couch concerning Nietzsche, broken hearts, self-hatred and money

Donald M. MacRaild on an exploration of imperial expansion in the 17th century

Robert Lee Maril on a timely study of an important issue in the run-up to another US presidential election

Wherever you stand on the career ladder, this guide has fresh advice, says Sandra Leaton Gray

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

A sensitive study of transgression breaks new ground for queer theory, says Rachel Moss

An detailed account of the bigger picture around the astronomer’s discoveries interests Robyn Arianrhod

Hester Vaizey is impressed by a collection of interviews with young victims of the purges

Is legal training fit for purpose? A global study asks all the right questions, says Caroline Hunter

Robert Gellately on a study analysing the dictator’s perceptions