Ezgi Başaran, coordinator of the Programme on Contemporary Turkey at Oxford University’s St Anthony’s College, on “Frontline Turkey: The Conflict at the Heart of the Middle East.” The book is a breezy 200-page summary of the country’s current impasse, addressing how the long-running conflict with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the rise and fall … Continue reading
Set in Alexandria, Out of Egypt chronicles the exploits of André Aciman (author of Call Me By Your Name, now an Oscar-nominated film adaptation) and his colourful Sephardic Jewish family from its arrival in Egypt at the turn of the century to its forced departure three generations later. Aciman tells a story of childhood innocence, of intricate … Continue reading
As 2017 draws to a close, the I.B.Tauris staff have again taken the chance to reflect on their favourite books, from our own (strong) stable – and from further afield. As usual, there’s a wonderfully eclectic range, so dive in! Madeleine Hamey-Thomas; Visual Culture Editor I.B.Tauris Book of the Year: China’s Forgotten People: Xinjiang, … Continue reading
The 1943 battle to free the Soviet Black Sea port of Novorossiisk from German occupation was fought from the beach head of Malaia zemlia, where the young Colonel Leonid Brezhnev saw action. Despite widespread scepticism of the state’s appropriation and inflation of this historical event, the heroes of the campaign are still commemorated in Novorossiisk … Continue reading
Created by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, ‘Yugoslavia’ was a combination of ethnically and linguistically diverse peoples – Slovenes, Croats and Serbs but also Bosnians, Kosovans, Macedonians, Muslims and Montenegrins. The Great Powers believed that a coherent identity could be formed in which all the differing people of the state could identify with a … Continue reading
With summer reaching its traditional drizzly climax, I’m sure your thoughts are turning to the most important issue of the season: which books to take on holiday? Here at IBT we’ve come up with a few suggestions, both from our own stables and from further afield. We hope you enjoy our picks! ~ Tom Stottor … Continue reading
To mark London Pride Month 2017, read on for an exclusive extract from ‘Fighting Proud: The Untold Story of the Gay Men Who Served in Two World Wars’ by Stephen Bourne. Continue reading
As it’s black history month in the United States, I wanted to do a quick list of my favourite African American Artists. You can find out more information about some of them (noted in the text) in Derek Conrad Murray’s Queering Post-Black Art (I.B.Tauris 2016). If you like Matisse and Kandinsky, and have not yet … Continue reading
Alice Bacon was one of the twentieth-century’s most remarkable female politicians. Born and raised in the Yorkshire town of Normanton, she defied the odds to be elected Labour MP for Leeds North East in the 1945 General Election. Famed in her home town for her unlikely love of sports cars, she was a much-respected, no-nonsense, … Continue reading
As an uncertain and turbulent political era begins in the United States, the need for assertive and potent resistance has never been stronger. Rafael Torrubia’s new work Black Power and the American People provides both a comprehensive history of the movement – and a powerful call to arms for today’s activists. Just a scant few days ago, the White House’s … Continue reading
Turkey stands at the crossroads of world politics: caught between the West and the Middle East; bordering Syria and the frontiers of ISIS; excluded from the EU and governed by an increasingly hard-line leader. Recent events – both the failed military coup and Erdoğan’s subsequent nationwide crackdown – have propelled this young democracy into a new chapter of turbulence. Continue reading
Alex Wright, Executive Editor at I.B.Tauris, talked to Philip Almond about his new book Afterlife: A History of Life After Death, which is published on 9 June 2016. ALEX: Phil, I realise to my great satisfaction and pride that you and I have been working together since 1988, the year I published The British Discovery … Continue reading
From the Gulf to Ararat, G.E. Hubbard’s memoir of his time in the Middle East as he negotiated the border that runs from the Persian Gulf to Mouth Ararat, will be reissued this November. His granddaughter, Sue Hubbard, talks about his memories of some of the issues that faced the Turco-Persian Frontier Commission in 1913. Continue reading
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