Peter Hargreaves

“Scoff; a History of Food and Class in Britain” by Pen Vogel (2021) Assessment 5 out of 10

April 26, 2024No Comments

I liked the title, “Scoff” meaning both “referring to someone in a way that shows you have a low assessment of what they think or have to say” and “eating food quickly and with enthusiasm, gulping it down”. The author’s name, Pen Vogle, also seemed singularly appropriate for a writer. However, I found the book … Continue reading “Scoff; a History of Food and Class in Britain” by Pen Vogel (2021) Assessment 5 out of 10

Germany and the Holy Roman Empire Volume I 1493-1648 by Joachim Whaley (2012) Assessment 8 out of 10

April 26, 2024November 16, 2025No Comments

This is a detailed book running to 644 closely printed pages, before the glossary, bibliography, and index, to be read if it is a subject you are interested in, a complex story reflecting the complexity of the sources and for many of us unfamiliarity with the subject. In 1500 the Imperial Estates consisted of 7 … Continue reading Germany and the Holy Roman Empire Volume I 1493-1648 by Joachim Whaley (2012) Assessment 8 out of 10

Between Meals; an Appetite for Paris (1959) by AJ Liebling Assessment 9 out of 10

April 2, 2024March 12, 2025No Comments

AJ Liebling (1904-1963) was a journalist. This homage to France and French cooking is both an autobiography and a history of his times. It was published posthumously in 1959 by his Estate based on his articles for the New Yorker, which recalled his life in Paris in the 1920s. He was married three times, the first two … Continue reading Between Meals; an Appetite for Paris (1959) by AJ Liebling Assessment 9 out of 10

The Handover; How We Gave Control of Our Lives to States, Corporations and AIs by David Runciman (2023) Assessment 8 out of 10

April 2, 2024April 3, 2024No Comments

This is a wide-ranging book covering in 275 pages (before notes, index etc) a long view and where we may go from here. Runciman raises a number of questions, each of which justify further investigation. Those include: They are artificial, non-natural automatons created by humans, but which are given or develop (apparent) agency of their … Continue reading The Handover; How We Gave Control of Our Lives to States, Corporations and AIs by David Runciman (2023) Assessment 8 out of 10

Review of Hitler’s Beneficiaries;Plunder, Racial War and the Nazi Welfare State by Gotz Aly (2016) Assessment 7 out of 10

April 2, 2024April 3, 2024No Comments

Aly’s thesis is persuasive. It confirms that wars are as much about propaganda, what people think and how wars are financed as they are about fighting. The book was repetitive with conclusions at different points in the text. However, that they were so important, they bore repetition. Maybe the faults were those of translation. However, … Continue reading Review of Hitler’s Beneficiaries;Plunder, Racial War and the Nazi Welfare State by Gotz Aly (2016) Assessment 7 out of 10

Mothers and Others; The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy (2009) Assessment 8 out of 10

December 29, 2023January 9, 2024No Comments

Hrdy considers how Humans evolved their large brain size and prolonged childhood. She suggests a key factor was that Hominins were cooperative breeders as are 9% of bird species, generally those which are non-migratory, and 3% of mammals. Australian fairy-wren females are attracted to a male with its own territory. They are joined by up … Continue reading Mothers and Others; The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy (2009) Assessment 8 out of 10

Review of Martin Luther; Renegade and Prophet by Lyndal Roper (2016) Assessment 9 out of 10

November 20, 2023November 20, 2023No Comments

This biography explores a man whose life was critical to the disjunction between Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Luther was a theologian and linguist. Roper describes his greatest achievement as the translation of the Bible into German, significantly influencing the creation and development of the German language. What Roper doesn’t say is that he was … Continue reading Review of Martin Luther; Renegade and Prophet by Lyndal Roper (2016) Assessment 9 out of 10

Review: The Edge of the Plain; How Borders Make and Break our World by James Crawford (2022) Assessment 9 out of 10

September 21, 2023September 28, 2023No Comments

This is a great book, beautifully written, taking a long view of borders and territoriality. They have always been with us, but in different forms, leaving traces which persist. All borders are also stories. It is suggested Paleolithic cave art marked that this was “our” place. Aboriginal Huner-gatherers buried bodies at the edge of tribal … Continue reading Review: The Edge of the Plain; How Borders Make and Break our World by James Crawford (2022) Assessment 9 out of 10

Aftermath; Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich by Harald Jähner Assessment 9 out of 10

September 13, 2023March 4, 2024No Comments

This is a great book translated from the German. It is focused on the “No Man’s Years” 1945- 1949 before establishment of the Federal Republic and DDR. The phrase “No Man’s Years” is adapted from the territorial “No Man’s Land”. Throughout there are insights into how the Germany which embraced Naziism and fought the war … Continue reading Aftermath; Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich by Harald Jähner Assessment 9 out of 10

“The Flame of Resistance; the untold story of Josephine Baker’s Secret War” by Damien Lewis Assessment 8 out of 10

August 10, 2023November 9, 2023No Comments

This is not a book I would have chosen to read, so thanks to the Book Club that I read it. It is not a biography of the super star diva and her extraordinary life, but the war story of the group she was involved in who continued the fight after the Fall of France. … Continue reading “The Flame of Resistance; the untold story of Josephine Baker’s Secret War” by Damien Lewis Assessment 8 out of 10