Clarissa Woodberry
Why the French Don’t Like Headscarves
Bowen comes to the conclusion that, in passing legislation on this issue, the political elites were perpetuating a French tradition from the time of Rousseau; that ‘political thinkers have long conceived of laws to teach the people moral lessons’.
The Black Hole: Money, Myth and Empire
For an event which had a quasi-mythological hold on the British imagination, the legend of the Black Hole of Calcutta is shrouded in mystery. This book covers the formation of the East India company in great detail and then deals with the impact of the myth of the Black Hole on the British psyche.
Mandela: A Critical Life
Mandela’s life has already been documented so extensively that any potential biographer faces a daunting prospect. This book is not the revisionist account of Mandela’s life that the title might suggest. Where Lodge differs from other biographers is in the attention he pays to Mandela’s background and childhood.
