Recommendations based on The Silk Roads: A New History of the Worldby Peter Frankopan

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics

    by Tim Marshall
    Geopolitical exploration of global events and the impact of geography on politics.

    In the bestselling tradition of Why Nations Fail and The Revenge of Geography , an award-winning journalist uses ten maps of crucial regions to explain the geo-political strategies of the world ... (Goodreads)

  2. Homo Deus: A History of Tomorrow

    by Yuval Noah Harari
    An exploration of humanity's future, and the potential paths of our species.

    Yuval Noah Harari, author of the critically-acclaimed, New York Times, bestseller and international phenomenon, Sapiens, returns with an equally original, compelling, and provocative book, turning ... (Goodreads)

  3. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

    by Jared Diamond
    Tracing the origins of human civilizations through the lens of geography, technology, and biology.

    "Diamond has written a book of remarkable scope ... one of the most important and readable works on the human past published in recent years." Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and a national bestseller: ... (Goodreads)

  4. SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome

    by Mary Beard
    An exploration into the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, tracing its impact on the modern world.

    New York Times Bestseller A New York Times Notable Book Named one of the Best Books of the Year by the Wall Street Journal , the Economist, Foreign Affairs , and Kirkus Reviews Finalist for the ... (Barnes & Noble)

  5. Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right

    by Jane Mayer
    Exposes the network of ultra-wealthy individuals who have funded the radical right-wing political agenda for the last four decades.

    Why is America living in an age of profound economic inequality? Why, despite the desperate need to address climate change, have even modest environmental efforts been defeated again and again? Why ... (Goodreads)

  6. World Order

    by Henry Kissinger
    A comprehensive analysis of global politics and the dynamics of international relations.

    Henry Kissinger offers in World Order a deep meditation on the roots of international harmony and global disorder. Drawing on his experience as one of the foremost statesmen of the modern ... (Goodreads)

  7. Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic

    by Tom Holland
    An exploration of the events that led to the fall of the Roman Republic.

    In 49 B.C., the seven hundred fifth year since the founding of Rome, Julius Caesar crossed a small border river called the Rubicon and plunged Rome into cataclysmic civil war. Tom Holland’s ... (Goodreads)

  8. A Short History of Nearly Everything

    by Bill Bryson
    A captivating overview of the natural sciences, spanning the history of the universe.

    In Bryson's biggest book, he confronts his greatest challenge: to understand—and, if possible, answer—the oldest, biggest questions we have posed about the universe and ourselves. Taking as territory ... (Goodreads)

  9. The God Delusion

    by Richard Dawkins
    Scientific exploration of the evidence for and against religious belief.

    A preeminent scientist - and the world's most prominent atheist - asserts the irrationality of belief in God, and the grievous harm religion has inflicted on society, from the Crusades to 9/11. With ... (Goodreads)

  10. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea

    by Barbara Demick
    Exploration of the lives of North Koreans during the famine and repression of the 1990s.

    Nothing to Envy follows the lives of six North Koreans over fifteen years—a chaotic period that saw the death of Kim Il-sung, the unchallenged rise to power of his son Kim Jong-il, and the ... (Goodreads)

  11. Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

    by J.D. Vance
    An exploration of the struggles of working-class Americans, and the power of family and culture to shape one's life.

    Hillbilly Elegy is a passionate and personal analysis of a culture in crisis—that of white working-class Americans. The disintegration of this group, a process that has been slowly occurring now for ... (Goodreads)

  12. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

    by Timothy Snyder
    A study of history and a call to action against the rise of authoritarianism.

    #1, New York Times, Bestseller •, A historian of fascism offers a guide for surviving and resisting America's turn towards authoritarianism., The Founding Fathers tried to protect us from the threat ... (Barnes & Noble)

  13. The Romanovs: 1613-1918

    by Simon Sebag Montefiore
    An exploration of the 300-year rule of the Romanov dynasty, from its rise to its fall.

    The Romanovs were the most successful dynasty of modern times, ruling a sixth of the world’s surface for three centuries. How did one family turn a war-ruined principality into the world’s greatest ... (Goodreads)

  14. Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty

    by Daron Acemoğlu
    Examination of the economic and political forces that shape the success and failure of nations.

    Brilliant and engagingly written, Why Nations Fail, answers the question that has stumped the experts for centuries: Why are some nations rich and others poor, divided by wealth and poverty, health ... (Goodreads)

  15. The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World

    by Stephen Brusatte
    A comprehensive account of the evolution and extinction of dinosaurs, from their origins to their ultimate demise.

    "THE ULTIMATE DINOSAUR BIOGRAPHY," hails, Scientific American,: A thrilling new history of the age of dinosaurs, from one of our finest young scientists. , ,"A masterpiece of science writing." ... (Barnes & Noble)

  16. Brunelleschi's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture

    by Ross King
    A look into the remarkable life and legacy of the pioneering artist and architect, Filippo Brunelleschi.

    The, New York Times, bestselling, award winning story of the construction of the dome of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence and the Renaissance genius who reinvented architecture to build it. On ... (Barnes & Noble)

  17. Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany

    by Norman Ohler
    Examines the Nazi regime's widespread use of drugs to fuel its war machine.

    In this highly original book, a bestseller in Germany, Norman Ohler investigates the murky, chaotic world of drug use in the Third Reich. There have been other books on Dr Morell's cocktail of ... (Goodreads)

  18. Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege, 1942–1943

    by Antony Beevor
    The epic story of the Battle of Stalingrad and its devastating impact on WWII.

    The Battle of Stalingrad was not only the psychological turning point of World War II: it also changed the face of modern warfare. From Antony Beevor, the internationally bestselling author of, ... (Barnes & Noble)

  19. King Leopold's Ghost

    by Adam Hochschild
    A harrowing account of the colonization of the Congo and the exploitation of its people.

    In the 1880s, as the European powers were carving up Africa, King Leopold II of Belgium seized for himself the vast and mostly unexplored territory surrounding the Congo River. Carrying out a ... (Goodreads)

  20. Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress

    by Steven Pinker
    A data-driven argument for the progress of humanity through reason, science, and humanism.

    If you think the world is coming to an end, think again: people are living longer, healthier, freer, and happier lives, and while our problems are formidable, the solutions lie in the Enlightenment ... (Goodreads)

  21. Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945

    by Tony Judt
    History of Europe since the end of World War II, examining the changes and challenges of the region.

    Almost a decade in the making, this much-anticipated grand history of postwar Europe from one of the world's most esteemed historians and intellectuals is a singular achievement. Postwar is the first ... (Goodreads)

  22. Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets

    by Svetlana Alexievich
    A compilation of personal accounts from the last years of the Soviet Union.

    From the 2015 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, Svetlana Alexievich, comes the first English translation of her latest work, an oral history of the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the ... (Goodreads)

  23. Alan Turing: The Enigma

    by Andrew Hodges
    Biographical exploration of the life and work of the British mathematician and computer scientist Alan Turing.

    Alan Turing (1912-54) was a British mathematician who made history. His breaking of the German U-boat Enigma cipher in World War II ensured Allied-American control of the Atlantic. But Turing's ... (Goodreads)

  24. The Fall of Berlin 1945

    by Antony Beevor
    A detailed account of the final days of World War II in Berlin, from the perspectives of both the German and Soviet sides.

    The Red Army had much to avenge when it finally reached the frontiers of the Reich in January 1945. Political instructors rammed home the message of Wehrmacht and SS brutality. The result was the ... (Goodreads)

  25. Leadership: In Turbulent Times

    by Doris Kearns Goodwin
    A study of four US presidents and their leadership styles during times of crisis, providing insights into effective leadership.

    Are leaders born or made? Where does ambition come from? How does adversity affect the growth of leadership? Does the leader make the times or do the times make the leader? In Leadership , Goodwin ... (Goodreads)

  26. We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy

    by Ta-Nehisi Coates
    An exploration of the Obama years, and the racial injustices that still plague America.

    "We were eight years in power" was the lament of Reconstruction-era black politicians as the American experiment in multiracial democracy ended with the return of white supremacist rule in the South. ... (Goodreads)

  27. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

    by Jack Weatherford
    A historical account of Genghis Khan's life and legacy, exploring his impact on the modern world.

    The name Genghis Khan often conjures the image of a relentless, bloodthirsty barbarian on horseback leading a ruthless band of nomadic warriors in the looting of the civilized world. But the ... (Goodreads)

  28. The Gene: An Intimate History

    by Siddhartha Mukherjee
    An exploration of the science of genetics and its implications for humanity.

    Spanning the globe and several centuries, The Gene is the story of the quest to decipher the master-code that makes and defines humans, that governs our form and function. The story of the gene ... (Goodreads)

  29. Long Walk to Freedom

    by Nelson Mandela
    A remarkable story of courage, perseverance and hope in the face of oppression.

    Nelson Mandela is one of the great moral and political leaders of our time: an international hero whose lifelong dedication to the fight against racial oppression in South Africa won him the Nobel ... (Goodreads)

  30. The Hidden Life of Trees: what they feel, how they communicate : discoveries from a secret world

    by Peter Wohlleben
    An exploration of the complex relationships between trees and the environment.

    A, New York Times, bestseller,, With more than 2 million copies sold worldwide, this beautifully-written book journeys deep into the forest to uncover the fascinating—and surprisingly moving—hidden ... (Barnes & Noble)