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How the Good Guys Finally Won: Notes from an Impeachment Summer
by Jimmy BreslinAfter the Watergate scandal corrupted American democracy, it took a gang of honest politicians to restore honorNot long after burglars were caught raiding the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Hotel, Congressman Tip O'Neill noticed that Democratic fundraising efforts for the 1972 election had stalled. Major contributors were under IRS investigation, and Republican lackeys were threatening further trouble if those donors didn't close their checkbooks. O'Neill sensed a conspiracy coming from the Nixon administration, but it wasn't until the scandal broke that he connected the threatened donors with the Watergate burglary. In the boldest move of his career, he did something that would shock the nation: O'Neill decided to impeach the President. To his fellow members of the House of Representatives, this was an ugly idea. But as evidence mounted against Nixon and his cronies, O'Neill led the charge against the President. This blow-by-blow, conviction-by-conviction account is a gripping reminder of how O'Neill and his colleagues brought justice to those who abused their power, and revived America after the greatest political scandal in its history. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Jimmy Breslin including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the author's personal collection.
How the Gospels Became History: Jesus and Mediterranean Myths (Synkrisis)
by M. David LitwaA compelling comparison of the gospels and Greco-Roman mythology which shows that the gospels were not perceived as myths, but as historical records Did the early Christians believe their myths? Like most ancient—and modern—people, early Christians made efforts to present their myths in the most believable ways. In this eye-opening work, M. David Litwa explores how and why what later became the four canonical gospels take on a historical cast that remains vitally important for many Christians today. Offering an in-depth comparison with other Greco-Roman stories that have been shaped to seem like history, Litwa shows how the evangelists responded to the pressures of Greco-Roman literary culture by using well-known historiographical tropes such as the mention of famous rulers and kings, geographical notices, the introduction of eyewitnesses, vivid presentation, alternative reports, and so on. In this way, the evangelists deliberately shaped myths about Jesus into historical discourse to maximize their believability for ancient audiences.
How the Great Pyramid Was Built
by Craig B. Smith Zawi Hawass Mark LehnerGoing beyond even the expertise of archaeologists and historians, world-class engineer Craig B. Smith explores the planning and engineering behind the incredible Great Pyramid of Giza. How would the ancient Egyptians have developed their building plans, devised work schedules, managed laborers, solved specific design and engineering problems, or even improvised on the job? The answers are here, along with dazzling, one-of-a-kind color photographs and beautiful hand-drawn illustrations of tools, materials, and building techniques the ancient masters used. In his foreword to the book, Egypt's Undersecretary of State for the Giza Monuments Zahi Hawass explains the importance of understanding the Great Pyramid as a straightforward construction project.
How the Hangman Lost His Heart
by K. M. GrantWhat's a nice girl like Alice doing with a hangman called Dan Skinslicer? He likes a good clean killing and a hearty supper afterwards. She likes pretty dresses and riding a well-bred horse. But fate throws them together on a mission of mercy -- to save Alice's poor uncle Frank's head and restore his dignity. Soon they find themselves on the run from every soldier in London. It could be their necks next!
How the Heartland Went Red: Why Local Forces Matter in an Age of Nationalized Politics (Princeton Studies in American Politics: Historical, International, and Comparative Perspectives #212)
by Stephanie TernulloHow local contexts help us understand why White voters in America&’s heartland are shifting to the rightOver the past several decades, predominantly White, postindustrial cities in America&’s agriculture and manufacturing center have flipped from blue to red. Cities that were once part of the traditional Democratic New Deal coalition began to vote Republican, providing crucial support for the electoral victories of Republican presidents from Reagan to Trump. In How the Heartland Went Red, Stephanie Ternullo argues for the importance of place in understanding this rightward shift, showing how voters in these small Midwestern cities view national politics—whether Republican appeals to racial and religious identities or Democrat&’s appeals to class—through the lens of local conditions.Offering a comparative study of three White blue-collar Midwestern cities in the run-up to the 2020 election, Ternullo shows the ways that local contexts have sped up or slowed down White voters&’ shift to the right. One of these cities has voted overwhelmingly Republican for decades; one swung to the right in 2016 but remains closely divided between Republicans and Democrats; and one, defying current trends, remains reliably Democratic. Through extensive interviews, Ternullo traces the structural and organizational dimensions of place that frame residents&’ perceptions of political and economic developments. These place-based conditions—including the ways that local leaders define their cities&’ challenges—help prioritize residents&’ social identities, connecting them to one party over another. Despite elite polarization, fragmented media, and the nationalization of American politics, Ternullo argues, the importance of place persists—as one of many factors informing partisanship, but as a particularly important one among cross-pressured voters whose loyalties are contested.
How the Hippies Saved Physics: Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival
by David Kaiser"Meticulously researched and unapologetically romantic, How the Hippies Saved Physics makes the history of science fun again."--Science In the 1970s, an eccentric group of physicists in Berkeley, California, banded together to explore the wilder side of science. Dubbing themselves the "Fundamental Fysiks Group," they pursued an audacious, speculative approach to physics, studying quantum entanglement in terms of Eastern mysticism and psychic mind reading. As David Kaiser reveals, these unlikely heroes spun modern physics in a new direction, forcing mainstream physicists to pay attention to the strange but exciting underpinnings of quantum theory.
How the Homosexuals Saved Civilization: The True and Heroic Story of How Gay Men Shaped the Modern World
by Cathy CrimminsA shrewd and irreverent cultural history of the customs, fashions, and figures of gay life in the twentieth and the early twenty-first centuries--and how they have changed all of us for the better. The "global queering" of America has been gradually shaping the way straight people talk, think, dress, and eat. Over the past fifty years, the line between what is "straight" and what is "gay" has blurred to the point that most heterosexuals are unaware of the vast contributions gay men have made to American culture. How the Homosexuals Saved Civilization presents a broad yet incisive look at how an unusual "immigrant" group, homosexual men, have become so influential on mainstream American culture. The general public's tastes and consumer choices in food, fashion, humor, literature, and body image are becoming decidedly more gay. And America has shown a real interest in TV shows with gay content and themes, such as Queer Eye for the Straight Guy; Will & Grace; and Six Feet Under. Overall, it's hip to be gay, even if you're straight. How the Homosexuals Saved Civilization tells us something about ourselves as a society. It celebrates the unique perspective of gay men and explains how essential their vitality has been to our civilization.
How the Idea of Religious Toleration Came to the West
by Perez ZagorinReligious intolerance, so terrible and deadly in its recent manifestations, is nothing new. In fact, until after the eighteenth century, Christianity was perhaps the most intolerant of all the great world religions. How Christian Europe and the West went from this extreme to their present universal belief in religious toleration is the momentous story fully told for the first time in this timely and important book by a leading historian of early modern Europe. Perez Zagorin takes readers to a time when both the Catholic Church and the main new Protestant denominations embraced a policy of endorsing religious persecution, coercing unity, and, with the state's help, mercilessly crushing dissent and heresy. This position had its roots in certain intellectual and religious traditions, which Zagorin traces before showing how out of the same traditions came the beginnings of pluralism in the West. Here we see how sixteenth- and seventeenth-century thinkers--writing from religious, theological, and philosophical perspectives--contributed far more than did political expediency or the growth of religious skepticism to advance the cause of toleration. Reading these thinkers--from Erasmus and Sir Thomas More to John Milton and John Locke, among others--Zagorin brings to light a common, if unexpected, thread: concern for the spiritual welfare of religion itself weighed more in the defense of toleration than did any secular or pragmatic arguments. His book--which ranges from England through the Netherlands, the post-1685 Huguenot Diaspora, and the American Colonies--also exposes a close connection between toleration and religious freedom. A far-reaching and incisive discussion of the major writers, thinkers, and controversies responsible for the emergence of religious tolerance in Western society--from the Enlightenment through the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights--this original and richly nuanced work constitutes an essential chapter in the intellectual history of the modern world.
How the Indians Lost Their Land: Law and Power on the Frontier
by Stuart BannerBetween the early seventeenth century and the early twentieth,nearly all the land in the United States was transferred from AmericanIndians to whites. This dramatic transformation has been understood in two very different ways--as a series of consensual transactions, but also as a process of violent conquest. Both views cannot be correct. How did Indians actually lose their land? Stuart Banner provides the first comprehensive answer. He argues that neither simple coercion nor simple consent reflects the complicated legal history of land transfers. Instead, time, place, and the balance of power between Indians and settlers decided the outcome of land struggles. As whites' power grew, they were able to establish the legal institutions and the rules by which land transactions would be made and enforced. This story of America's colonization remains a story of power, but a more complex kind of power than historians have acknowledged. It is a story in which military force was less important than the power to shape the legal framework within which land would be owned. As a result, white Americans--from eastern cities to the western frontiers--could believe they were buying land from the Indians the same way they bought land from one another. How the Indians Lost Their Land dramatically reveals how subtle changes in the law can determine the fate of a nation, and our understanding of the past.
How the Internet Became Commercial
by Shane GreensteinIn less than a decade, the Internet went from being a series of loosely connected networks used by universities and the military to the powerful commercial engine it is today. This book describes how many of the key innovations that made this possible came from entrepreneurs and iconoclasts who were outside the mainstream--and how the commercialization of the Internet was by no means a foregone conclusion at its outset.Shane Greenstein traces the evolution of the Internet from government ownership to privatization to the commercial Internet we know today. This is a story of innovation from the edges. Greenstein shows how mainstream service providers that had traditionally been leaders in the old-market economy became threatened by innovations from industry outsiders who saw economic opportunities where others didn't--and how these mainstream firms had no choice but to innovate themselves. New models were tried: some succeeded, some failed. Commercial markets turned innovations into valuable products and services as the Internet evolved in those markets. New business processes had to be created from scratch as a network originally intended for research and military defense had to deal with network interconnectivity, the needs of commercial users, and a host of challenges with implementing innovative new services.How the Internet Became Commercial demonstrates how, without any central authority, a unique and vibrant interplay between government and private industry transformed the Internet.
How the Irish Became White
by Noel IgnatievOne way to be white, according to Ignatiev (history, Massachusetts College of Art) is to make sure nobody thinks you are Black. Ignatiev, also well known as a co-founder of the journal Race Traitor, notes that the Irish fled a homeland under foreign occupation and a caste system that reduced them to the lowest form of humanity. When they came to America they found their identity was defined instead by the color of their skin. Quickly, the oppressed became the oppressors and the new Irish immigrants proved they could be more brutal in their oppression of African Americans than those who had come before, with the Irish Protestant Ascendancy serving as role models. Published in 1995 and a source of controversy ever since, this is a significant part of Ignatiev's stated agenda to abolish the white race. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
How the Irish Became White (Routledge Classics)
by Noel Ignatiev'…from time to time a study comes along that truly can be called ‘path breaking,’ ‘seminal,’ ‘essential,’ a ‘must read.’ How the Irish Became White is such a study.' John Bracey, W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies, University of Massachussetts, Amherst The Irish came to America in the eighteenth century, fleeing a homeland under foreign occupation and a caste system that regarded them as the lowest form of humanity. In the new country – a land of opportunity – they found a very different form of social hierarchy, one that was based on the color of a person’s skin. Noel Ignatiev’s 1995 book – the first published work of one of America’s leading and most controversial historians – tells the story of how the oppressed became the oppressors; how the new Irish immigrants achieved acceptance among an initially hostile population only by proving that they could be more brutal in their oppression of African Americans than the nativists. This is the story of How the Irish Became White.
How the Irish Saved Civilization (The Hinges of History)
by Thomas CahillNATIONAL BESTSELLER • A book in the best tradition of popular history—the untold story of Ireland's role in maintaining Western culture while the Dark Ages settled on Europe. • The perfect St. Patrick's Day gift!Every year millions of Americans celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but they may not be aware of how great an influence St. Patrick was on the subsequent history of civilization. Not only did he bring Christianity to Ireland, he instilled a sense of literacy and learning that would create the conditions that allowed Ireland to become "the isle of saints and scholars"—and thus preserve Western culture while Europe was being overrun by barbarians. In this entertaining and compelling narrative, Thomas Cahill tells the story of how Europe evolved from the classical age of Rome to the medieval era. Without Ireland, the transition could not have taken place. Not only did Irish monks and scribes maintain the very record of Western civilization -- copying manuscripts of Greek and Latin writers, both pagan and Christian, while libraries and learning on the continent were forever lost—they brought their uniquely Irish world-view to the task. As Cahill delightfully illustrates, so much of the liveliness we associate with medieval culture has its roots in Ireland. When the seeds of culture were replanted on the European continent, it was from Ireland that they were germinated. In the tradition of Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror, How The Irish Saved Civilization reconstructs an era that few know about but which is central to understanding our past and our cultural heritage. But it conveys its knowledge with a winking wit that aptly captures the sensibility of the unsung Irish who relaunched civilization.
How the Irish Won the American Revolution: A New Look at the Forgotten Heroes of America?s War of Independence
by Phillip Thomas TuckerWhen the Continental Congress decided to declare independence from the British empire in 1776, ten percent of the population of their fledgling country were from Ireland. By 1790, close to 500,000 Irish citizens had immigrated to America. They were was very active in the American Revolution, both on the battlefields and off, and yet their stories are not well known. The important contributions of the Irish on military, political, and economic levels have been long overlooked and ignored by generations of historians. However, new evidence has revealed that Washington’s Continental Army consisted of a far larger percentage of Irish soldiers than previously thought--between 40 and 50 percent--who fought during some of the most important battles of the American Revolution. Romanticized versions of this historical period tend to focus on the upper class figures that had the biggest roles in America’s struggle for liberty. But these adaptations neglect the impact of European and Irish ideals as well as citizens on the formation of the revolution. Irish contributors such as John Barry, the colonies’ foremost naval officer; Henry Knox, an artillery officer and future Secretary of War; Richard Montgomery, America’s first war hero and martyr; and Charles Thomson, a radical organizer and Secretary to the Continental Congress were all instrumental in carrying out the vision for a free country. Without their timely and disproportionate assistance, America almost certainly would have lost the desperate fight for its existence. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
How the Irish Won the West
by Myles DunganHere is the full story of the Irish immigrants and their decedents whose hard work helped make the West what it is today. Learn about the Irish members of the Donner party, forced to consume human flesh to survive the winter; mountain men like Thomas Fitzpatrick, who discovered the South Pass through the Rockies; Ellen "Nellie" Cashman, who ran boarding houses and bought and sold claims in Alaska, Arizona, and Nevada; and Maggie Hall, who became known as the "whore with a heart of gold." A fascinating and entertaining look at the history of the American West, this book will surprise many and make every Irish American proud.
How the Just So Stories Were Made: The Brilliance and Tragedy Behind Kipling's Celebrated Tales for Little Children
by John BatchelorA fascinating, richly illustrated exploration of the poignant origins of Rudyard Kipling&’s world-famous children&’s classic&“In this concise and remarkable book . . . Batchelor guides us expertly . . . drawing on multiple sources and making intriguing connections between Kipling&’s stories for children and for adults.&”—John Carey, The Sunday Times From "How the Leopard Got Its Spots" to "The Elephant&’s Child," Rudyard Kipling&’s Just So Stories have delighted readers across the world for more than a century. In this original study, John Batchelor explores the artistry with which Kipling created the Just So Stories, using each tale as an entry point into the writer&’s life and work—including the tragedy that shadows much of the volume, the death of his daughter Josephine. Batchelor details the playful challenges the stories made to contemporary society. In his stories Kipling played with biblical and other stories of creation and imagined fantastical tales of animals' development and man's discovery of literacy. Richly illustrated with original drawings and family photographs, this account reveals Kipling&’s public and private lives—and sheds new light on a much-loved and tremendously influential classic.
How the Left Can Win Arguments and Influence People: A Tactical Manual for Pragmatic Progressives (Critical America #58)
by John K WilsonIf we were to rely on what the pundits and politicians tell us, we would have to conclude that America is a deeply conservative nation. Americans, we hear constantly, detest government, demand lower taxes and the end of welfare, and favor the death penalty, prayer in school, and an absolute faith in the free market. And yet Americans believe deeply in progressive ideas. In fact, progressivism has long been a powerful force in the American psyche. Consider that a mere generation ago the struggle for environmentally sound policies, for women's rights, and for racial equality were fringe movements. Today, open opposition to these core ideals would be political suicide. Drawing on this wellspring of American progressivist tradition, John K. Wilson has penned an informal handbook for the pragmatic progressive. Wilson insists that the left must become more savvy in its rhetoric and stop preaching only to the converted. Progressives need to attack the tangible realities of the corporate welfare state, while explicitly acknowledging that "socialism is," as Wilson writes, "deader than Lenin." Rather than attacking a "right-wing conspiracy," Wilson argues that the left needs one, too. Tracing how well-funded conservative pressure groups have wielded their influence and transformed the national agenda, Wilson outlines a similar approach for the left. Along the way, he exposes the faultlines of our poll- and money-driven form of politics, explodes the myth of "the liberal media," and demands that the left explicitly change its image. Irreverent, practical, and urgently argued, How The Left Can Win Arguments and Influence People charts a way to translate progressive ideals into reality and reassert the core principles of the American left on the national stage.
How the Left Lost Teen Spirit: (and How They're Getting It Back!)
by Danny GoldbergIncludes Goldberg’s groundbreaking book Dispatches from the Culture Wars, plus a new author introduction and additional chapters.“Danny Goldberg’s memoir contains the powerful reflections of the most progressive activist in the recording industry. His candor, vision and sense of humor is infectious.” —Cornel West“If Lester Bangs and Maureen Dowd had a love child, he’d have written this book.” —Arianna HufflingtonWhen did American government become the enemy of American pop culture?Music insider and progressive activist Danny Goldberg has spent decades tuning in to the rhythms and voices that speak straight to the hearts and desires of America’s youth. In that time, one fact has become increasingly clear: Our venerable political leaders are too often tone deaf. In this startling, provocative book, Goldberg shows how today’s professional public servants have managed to achieve nothing less than the indefensible, wholesale alienation of an entire generation.
How the Marquess Was Won
by Julie Anne LongThe Scandal Sheets call him Lord Ice. Ruthless, cold, precise, Julian Spenser, Marquess Dryden, tolerates only the finest- in clothes, in horseflesh, in mistresses. And now he's found the perfect bride, the one whose dowry will restore his family's shattered legacy and bring him peace at last: the exquisite heiress Lisbeth Redmond. She's about to play with fire... But one unforgettable encounter with Lisbeth's paid companion, Phoebe Vale, and the Marquess is undone. This quiet girl with the wicked smile and a wit to match is the first person to see through the icy faÇade to the fiery man beneath. But their irresistible attraction is a torment as sweet as it is dangerous, for surrendering to their desire could mean losing everything else they ever wanted.
How the Maya Built Their World
by Elliot M. AbramsMaya architecture is often described as "massive" and "monumental," but experiments at Copan, Honduras, convinced Elliot Abrams that 300 people could have built one of the large palaces there in only 100 days. In this groundbreaking work, Abrams explicates his theory of architectural energetics, which involves translating structures into volumes of raw and manufactured materials that are then multiplied by the time required for their production and assembly to determine the labor costs of past construction efforts. Applying this method to residential structures of the Late Classic period (A. D. 700-900) at Copan leads Abrams to posit a six-tiered hierarchic social structure of political decision making, ranging from a stratified elite to low-ranking commoners. By comparing the labor costs of construction and other economic activities, he also prompts a reconsideration of the effects of royal construction demands on commoners.
How the Mind Changed: A Human History of our Evolving Brain
by Joseph JebelliThe extraordinary story of how the human brain evolved... and is still evolving. We've come a long way. The earliest human had a brain as small as a child's fist; ours are four times bigger, with spectacular abilities and potential we are only just beginning to understand.This is How the Mind Changed, a seven-million-year journey through our own heads, packed with vivid stories, groundbreaking science, and thrilling surprises. Discover how memory has almost nothing to do with the past; meditation rewires our synapses; magic mushroom use might be responsible for our intelligence; climate accounts for linguistic diversity; and how autism teaches us hugely positive lessons about our past and future.Dr Joseph Jebelli's In Pursuit of Memory was shortlisted for the Royal Society Science Book Prize and longlisted for the Wellcome. In this, his eagerly awaited second book, he draws on deep insights from neuroscience, evolutionary biology, psychology, and philosophy to guide us through the unexpected changes that shaped our brains. From genetic accidents and environmental forces to historical and cultural advances, he explores how our brain's evolution turned us into Homo sapiens and beyond.A single mutation is all it takes.
How the Mind Changed: A Human History of our Evolving Brain
by Joseph JebelliThe extraordinary story of how the human brain evolved by Royal Society Prize shortlisted neuroscientist, Joseph Jebelli.No other life form on the planet has generated a brain like ours. How did a bundle of cells weighing just 1.2 kg give rise to conscious, self-aware beings capable of understanding time, language, mathematics and music, of exploring outer space and sequencing their own DNA? The answer to such questions is a 7 million year saga. How the Mind Changed is the definitive audiobook on human brain evolution: a sweeping natural history. Beginning with the first primate brain and the rise of our present-day, large human brain, it will describe the remarkable origin of our species' most mysterious organ, how it has developed, and how it will change in the future. To study the brain is to study the essence of what makes us human.(P) 2022 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
How the NHS Coped with Covid-19
by Ellen Welch2020 will forever be remembered as the year the Coronavirus pandemic changed life as we know it across the World. Economies crashed, livelihoods were eradicated, and thousands of lives were shortened or devastated by the effects of this novel virus. In the UK, the National Health Service was thrust into the limelight as the country watched our healthcare system respond to the consequences of this disease. This book traces a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting key events in how the UK and the NHS approached these unparalleled events. Comparisons are made with tactics used around the globe and the decisions of our leaders questioned. Alongside the facts, are stories. Every one of us has a ‘Covid story’ to tell, and this book is a collection of some of these stories from our frontline staff. As the country went into rapid lockdown in March, the staff of the NHS donned their PPE and continued to go to work. They tell us what peak pandemic was like in the emergency departments, wards, ICUs, GP practices, care homes and the ambulances of the UK. We hear from a nurse who became a covid patient in her own ICU; staff from the rapidly constructed Nightingale hospital; a GP who returned from retirement to assist with the response; as well as stories from international healthcare professionals such a as a cruise ship nurse in the Caribbean, a public health consultant in Australia and ED doctors in South Africa.
How the Nagas Were Pleased by Harsha & The Shattered Thighs by Bhasa (Clay Sanskrit Library #48)
by Harṣa and Bhāa, Translated by Andrew SkiltonTwo tragic plays that break the rules: both show the hero dying on stage, a scenario forbidden in Sanskrit dramaturgy. King Harsha's play, composed in the seventh century, re-examines the Buddhist tale of a magician prince who makes the ultimate sacrifice to save a hostage snake (naga). The Shattered Thighs, attributed to Bhasa, the illustrious predecessor to ancient Kali·dasa, transforms a crucial episode of the Maha·bhárata war. As he dies from a foul blow to the legs delivered in his duel with Bhima, Duryódhana's character is inverted, depicted as a noble and gracious exemplar amidst the wreckage of the fearsome battle scene.
How the Navy Won the War: The Real Instrument of Victory, 1914–1918
by Jim RingVerdun, the Somme, Tannenberg and Passchendaele. These epics of destruction and futility are such bywords for the First World War that – Jutland apart – we forget the role played by sea power in the war to end war. The great global conflict is too often narrowed to the fields of Flanders and the plains of Picardy. Now, award-winning biographer and naval historian Jim Ring has revisited the story to redress the balance. He emphasises how Great Britain, ‘the great Amphibian in Churchills words, was able to move its army anywhere in the world. The Navys very existence deterred any attempt at invasion, and its great ships kept the German High Sea fleet at bay; lastly, the Navy gradually starved the Kaisers nation of war materiel and food. Choosing fourteen turning-points of the war, he explores the relative contributions made by land and sea power to the eventual outcome of the conflict in 1918. For example, the abandonment of the Imperial German Navys ambition for a decisive naval surface battle was at least as important as Jutland itself, while Lloyd Georges imposition of the convoy system on, it must be said, a reluctant Admiralty turned the battle against the U-boats; the mine and the submarine altered the course of war as much or more so than the tank. The book is also a study of character as well as of action, of decision-making as much as the sweep of battle, and his critique of the warlords of both the Entente and the Central Powers – of Ludendorff and Churchill, of Haig, Kitchener and Foch, of Fisher, Jellicoe, Beatty and Scheer – is refreshing, his conclusions surprising. ‘The Great War was fought on land but won at sea. Not so, says Ring, but much closer to the truth than we tend to believe. A century after the catastrophic events of the Great War, in the midst of a time at which the country is once again pondering its identity, it is worth reciting the words of John Keegan: ‘No Britain of my generation, raised on food fought through the U-boat packs in the battle of the Atlantic can ever ignore the narrowness of the margin by which sea power separates survival from starvation in the islands he inhabits. The Royal Navy was key to the survival of Great Britain and to eventual victory in 1918. Written with passion and verve, this book offers a very different way of looking at the conflict – if you think you understand the Great War, think again.