Embark on a grand tour of art history with this guide to the story of art, and the big ideas and themes behind the world's most important artistic movements, artworks, and artists.
The Art Book explores the more than 80 of the world's most groundbreaking artworks by history's most influential painters, sculptors, and artists with stunning visuals and insightful quotations. Discover key artworks and artists from across the globe, stretching from the prehistoric Altamira cave paintings and Chinese jade carvings to more impressionism, symbolism, cubism, and pop art.
Understand the ideas that inspired masterpieces by Botticelli, Rembrandt, Klimt, Matisse, Picasso, and dozens more, with The Art Book's fascinating overview of painting, drawing, printing, sculpture, conceptual art, and performance art, from ancient history to the modern day.

The Business Book is the perfect primer to key theories of business and management, covering inspirational business ideas, business strategy and alternative business models. 100 key quotations introduce you to the work of great commercial thinkers, leaders and gurus from Henry Ford to Steve Jobs and to topics spanning from start-ups to ethics.

From Mozart to Mendelssohn, this comprehensive guide to classical music history and classical music biography is the perfect latest addition to the bestselling Big Ideas series. Easy to understand and clear to follow, this history of classical music explores and explains music theory and the impact of seminal pieces, while also providing fascinating stories about the lives of crucial composers and performers. Including an insightful foreword by Katie Derham, The Classical Music Book analyses over 90 works by famous composers. From Thomas Tallis in the early period to baroque masters like Bach and Handel, to the classical genius of Beethoven and Wagner and beyond to the modern day, The Classical Music Book explores the key ideas underpinning the world's greatest classical compositions and musical traditions, and defines their importance to the musical canon, placing them into their wider social, cultural, and historical context. The unique approach to the subject makes this book the perfect classical music guide for everyone.

From Jack the Ripper to the modern day drug cartels, discover the most notorious crimes and criminals in history.
With a foreword by bestselling crime author Peter James, The Crime Book explores over 100 crimes and examines the science, psychology and sociology of criminal behaviour. See the gory details of each crime and how it was solved, with renowned quotes and detailed criminal profiles letting you delve into the criminal mind.
The Crime Book looks at the big ideas and concepts in criminology spanning from pirates, kidnapping and political plots to modern con artists, serial killers and rogue traders, including the Black Dahlia investigation, the Mississippi Scheme, and the notorious Jeffrey Dahmer.
The Crime Book is the perfect introduction to law enforcement and criminology across history's most infamous crimes.

All the big ideas, simply explained - an innovative and accessible guide to economicsBring economics to life with The Economics Book, an essential guide to more that 100 of the big ideas in economic theory and practice covering everything from ancient theories right up to cutting-edge modern developments.From Aristotle to John Maynard Keynes and beyond, all the greatest economists and their theories are featured and the innovative graphics, step-by-step summaries and mind maps help clarify hard-to-grasp concepts.The Economics Book is perfect for economic students and anyone who has an interest in how economies work.

Step into the world of cinema with 'The Film Book' - the films, the directors, the genres and the styles. Profiling 100 of the world's most influential directors and 100 key cinematic works, the book will take you through the changing experience of cinema from the earliest silent movies to the modern 3D cinematic phenomenon.

Discover the key themes and big ideas behind more than 80 of the world's most important historical events - from the dawn of civilization to the 21st century.
From the origins of Homo sapiens to the Space Race, and from the French Revolution to the Digital Revolution, this instalment in the bestselling Big Ideas series offers an essential exploration of the human timeline up to and including the rise of modern Islam, the world wide web, and the global financial crisis.
Making big historical ideas accessible and easy to understand, with stunning visuals and memorable quotes, The History Book is perfect for students, adults, or anyone who wants to travel back in time and understand the fascinating past of mankind.

Exploring more than 100 of the world's most important literary works and the literary geniuses that created them, this book is the perfect introduction to the subject of literature and writing. The Literature Book features over 100 of the world's most celebrated books, plays, and poetry, including Latin American and African fiction, and best-selling masterpieces from the most renowned authors ever to have lived. Stunning images and inspirational quotes jump out from the pages, while detailed plot summaries and feature boxes bring the timeless works of literature to life and set them into their wider social and cultural context. The book also offers a deeper look into the famed fiction of Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde, and more, as in-depth literary criticism and interesting authorial biographies give each work of literature a new meaning.

For over 40 years, John Seymour has inspired thousands to make more responsible, enriching, and eco-friendly choices with his advice on living sustainably. The New Complete Book of Self-Sufficiency offers step-by-step instructions on everything from chopping trees to harnessing solar power; from growing fruit and vegetables, and preserving and pickling your harvest, to baking bread, brewing beer, and making cheese. Seymour shows you how to live off the land, running your own smallholding or homestead, keeping chickens, and raising (and butchering) livestock. In a world of mass production, intensive farming, and food miles, Seymour's words offer an alternative: a celebration of the joy of investing time, labour, and love into the things we need. While we aren't all be able to move to the countryside, we can appreciate the need to eat food that has been grown ethically or create things we can cherish, using skills that have been handed down through generations. With refreshed, retro-style illustrations and a brand-new foreword by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, this new edition of Seymour's classic title is a balm for anyone who has ever sought solace away from the madness of modern life.

Explaining more than 100 of the most important big ideas and groundbreaking theories of key philosophers in a clear and simple way, this is the perfect introduction to philosophy and the history of how we think. Untangling knotty theories and shedding light on abstract concepts, The Philosophy Book makes use of innovative graphics and easy-to-follow explanations to demystify complex ideas. Explore the history of philosophy, from ancient Greece and China to today, and find out how theories from over 2,000 years ago are still relevant to our modern lives. Follow the progression of human ideas and meet the world's most influential philosophers - from Plato and Confucius through Descartes and Mary Wollstonecraft to Wittgenstein, Chomsky, and Derrida. With clever illustrations, clear explanations, a philosopher directory, and a vocabulary glossary, The Philosophy Book is a perfect and comprehensive introduction to a fascinating subject.

More than 100 groundbreaking ideas in the history of politics are helpfully broken down so that abstract topics, such as theoretical foundations and practical applications become real. Topics span from ancient political thought and medieval politics all the way to world war and modern politics. Features a handy reference section complete with a glossary of political terms and a directory of political thinkers, such as Plato, John Locke, and Karl Marx.

All the big ideas, simply explained - an innovative and accessible guideto the study of human nature `The Psychology Book` clearly explains more than 100 groundbreaking ideas in this fascinating field of science. How does the brain remember faces? What makes us choose one decision over another? Where does language come from? With the use of powerful and easy-to-follow images, quotations from all the major thinkers, and explanations that are easily understandable, this book demystifies hard-to-grasp concepts and shows how these have shaped our knowledge of the human mind. All the schools of psychology are covered from cognitiveto behavioural psychology making this ideal for students or for anyone with a general interest in this popular area. If you're fascinated by the human mind then `The Psychology Book` will get you thinking.

This essential guide to religion explains the key tenets and big ideas behind the world's five main religions - Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism - alongside newer faiths. The Religions Book clearly explains the key concepts behind the earliest religious beliefs right up to the world's newest faiths, getting to the heart of what it means to believe with jargon-free descriptions, step-by-step diagrams, and witty illustrations that encapsulate every aspect of religious thinking. Examine major historical developments and ideas with a universal timeline, providing a global perspective on the origins and major events that have contributed to the growth and spread of religion and spirituality.

Exploring more than 80 of the world's most scientific theories and big ideas across the fields of physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, geology, and maths, this book offers a fascinating look at the history of science. Discover how Galileo worked out his scientific theories of motion and inertia, why Isaac Newton gets the credit for them, and what the discovery of DNA meant. All the big scientific ideas are brought to life with quirky graphics, pithy quotes and step-by-step "mind maps" - from evolution and continental drift to black holes and genetic engineering - using eye-catching artworks to show how the ideas of famous scientists have affected our understanding of the world. Whether you are a science student, a historian, or just have an interest in scientific ideas, The Science Book is a perfect way to explore this fascinating subject.

This is the perfect study guide to the complete works of Shakespeare, covering everything from the romantic comedy of Romeo and Juliet to the tragedy Macbeth, alongside his Elizabethan history plays, sonnets, and other poems. With detailed plot summaries and an in-depth analysis of the major characters and themes, this is a brilliant, innovative exploration of the entire canon of Shakespeare plays, sonnets and poetry, from the comedies of Twelfth Night and As You Like It to the tragedies of Julius Caesar and Hamlet, plus lost plays and lesser known works of poetry.

Exploring more than 80 of the big ideas and key theories in the field of sociology in a clear and simple way, this is the perfect introduction to the study of how humans live and interact with each other. Covering diversity and equality, globalization, human rights, modern urban living, and the role of work and institutions, The Sociology Book looks at the big questions of how we co-operate: What is society? What makes it tick? Why do we interact in the way that we do with our friends, co-workers, and rivals? The perfect way to explore this fascinating subject, The Sociology Book profiles the world's most renowned sociologists and more than 80 of their biggest ideas, from the early pioneers Karl Marx and Auguste Comte to the groundbreaking work of Sharon Zukin and Judith Butler. Each sociological theory is made crystal clear with the help of quirky graphics, pithy quotes, and step-by-step summaries that explain each idea in an easy-to-grasp way.

If you love your tools, want to understand them, look after them, own the very best, and use them effectively, then this is the book for you. A complete visual guide featuring more than 800 images, and a foreword from Nick Offerman, The Tool Book pays homage to generations of craftsmanship, ingenuity, and know-how. It looks at tools from every angle, so you can understand the structure and make-up of your trusted tool, and includes illustrations of tools in action. Gallery pages display different types of hammer, spade, or chisel, and there's expert advice on what to look for when choosing a tool. Clear step-by-step photography walks you through how to use your tools like a pro, while easy-to-use charts provide tips on how best to care for them. The Tool Book explores, in loving detail, why each tool is the right tool for the job, and why it deserves pride of place in your tool shed, workshop, or studio.

More than 80 classic myths retold and explained, from early creation beliefs to classical hero narratives and the recurring theme of the afterlife. The latest title in the bestselling Big Ideas series, The Mythology Book explores the compelling worlds and characters depicted in myths and legends. Delve into each myth and discover the meanings behind these stories, getting to the heart of their significance to different cultures worldwide. More than just stories, myths are testament to the amazing creativity of humans striving to explain and make sense of the world around them. Revisit your favourite myths and discover brand new ones- discover Zeus, god of the sky and ruler of the Olympian gods, Loki, the cunning trickster with a knack for causing havoc, Thor with his mighty hammer, and Hades, ruler of the underworld. Beyond the gods and goddesses of Ancient Greek, Roman, and Norse myths this book delves into the stories woven by the Australian aborigines, the Cherokee, and Aztecs, each brimming with amazing characters and insightsinto human existence.