Ministers have always needed people to carry their bags and to tell them what a wonderful job they are doing

Ms Lees offers a new take on the template, but she is walking a well-trodden path

Much of Wisdom of the Ancients makes one appreciate how we get sidetracked by so much trivial nonsense

This scholarly, readable and objective book will be the standard biography of Sir Edward Grey for decades to come

Should libraries should sell historic manuscripts to solve short-term financial problems

Sanjay Jha’s new book reveals the degeneration of the oldest party in the world’s largest democracy

The story of wine is a glorious story which illuminates the topics of more conventional histories

Macdonald’s prose is full of resonance and beauty, apposite delicacy and memorable evocations, says Matthew Adams

Through history, Mermaids have been treated as more real than legendary, even by those who have had a reputation to uphold

Lisa Hilton finds it hard to imagine that this guide will be of actual use to anyone at all