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From Our Own Correspondent: Dispatches of a Decade from Across the World
by Polly Hope<p>For more than sixty-five years on the air, From Our Own Correspondent has been one of BBC Radio's flagship programmes. It has taken listeners to parts of the world where they have never gone, and perhaps never would: war zones, refugee camps, elite universities, space stations, spy academies and lions' dens of all sorts. Its dispatches introduce audiences to people they might never expect to meet - kingpins, revolutionaries, assassins and outcasts. It has always relied on the power of personal testimony, with its contributors not merely reporting the news, but sharing what they found out along the way, and how it felt. Its correspondents often relate the unexpected: the day they visited the town that is crazy about trout fishing, attended a forty-course Chinese banquet, experienced zero gravity on a flight with Russian cosmonauts, went mud wrestling in Turkey or ballroom dancing in Cameroon.<p> <p>Themed by continent and region, From Our Own Correspondent brings together the most compelling stories of the past ten years. It is a perfect primer for the understanding of the modern world.<p>
Queen Victoria
by Elizabeth LongfordDrawing upon Queen Victoria's previously unpublished journals, Elizabeth Longford's classic biography recalls the contrasts and curiosities of an earlier era with exquisite detail - and transforms the queen from a severe, time-worn effigy into a human being who loved, feared and fumed. Longford probes the contradictions of a woman who wore a bonnet instead of a crown at her Golden Jubilee and yet was recognised always as both dignified and formidable. She chronicles both the Queen's public life and her emotional travails, including surprisingly stormy passages in her and Prince Albert's otherwise loving marriage. A refreshingly human image of the Queen emerges: voluble, passionate, politic and articulate, with an irresistible mixture of grandeur and simplicity.
The Globotics Upheaval: Globalisation, Robotics and the Future of Work
by Richard Baldwin'A manifesto for future-proofing our jobs and prosperity' THE SUNDAY TIMESWe stand on the edge of a new era that will bring change to our world on a par with the Industrial Revolution. Automation, artificial intelligence and robotics are changing our lives quickly - but digital disruption goes much further than we realize. Richard Baldwin, one of the world's leading globalization experts, argues that the inhuman speed of this transformation threatens to overwhelm our capacity to adapt. But while the changes are now inevitable, there are strategies that humanity can use to adapt to this new world, employing the indispensable skills that no machine can copy: creativity and independent thought. THE GLOBOTICS UPHEAVAL will help each of us prepare for the oncoming wave of the advanced robotic workforce.
Dead Doubles: The Extraordinary Worldwide Hunt for One of the Cold War's Most Notorious Spy Rings
by Trevor BarnesTHE PORTLAND SPY RING was one of the most infamous espionage cases from the Cold War. People the world over were shocked when its exposure revealed the shadowy world of deep cover KGB 'illegals' - spies operating under false identities stolen from the dead.The CIA's revelation to MI5 in 1960 that a KGB agent was stealing crucial secrets from the world-leading submarine research base at Portland in Dorset looked initially like a dangerous but contained lapse of security by a British man and his mistress. But the couple were tailed by MI5 'watchers' to a covert meeting with a Canadian businessman, Gordon Lonsdale. The unsuspecting Lonsdale in turn led MI5's spycatchers to an innocent-looking couple in suburban Ruislip called the Krogers.But within weeks the CIA rang the alarm - their critical source of intelligence was to defect within hours - and MI5 was forced to act immediately. The Krogers were exposed as two of the most important Russian 'illegals' ever, whom the Americans had been hunting for years. And Lonsdale was no Canadian, but a senior KGB controller.This astonishing but true story of MI5's spyhunt is straight from the world of John le Carré and is told here for the first time using hitherto secret MI5 and FBI files, private family archives and original interviews. Its tentacles stretch around the world - from America, to the USSR, Canada, New Zealand, Europe and the UK. DEAD DOUBLES is a gripping episode of Cold War history, and a case that fully justified the West's paranoia about infiltration and treachery.
Long Shot: My Life As a Sniper in the Fight Against ISIS
by Azad CudiIn September 2014, Azad Cudi became one of seventeen snipers deployed when ISIS, trying to shatter the Kurds in a decisive battle, besieged the northern city of Kobani. In LONG SHOT, he tells the inside story of how a group of activists and idealists withstood a ferocious assault and, street by street, house by house, took back their land in a victory that was to prove the turning point in the war against ISIS. By turns devastating, inspiring and lyrical, this is a unique account of modern war and of the incalculable price of victory as a few thousand men and women achieved the impossible and kept their dream of freedom alive.
Political Risk: Facing the Threat of Global Insecurity in the Twenty-First Century
by Condoleezza Rice Amy ZegartPolitical risk - the probability that a political action could significantly affect an organisation - is changing fast, and it's more widespread than ever before.In the past, the chief concern used to be whether a foreign dictator would nationalise the country's oil industry. Today, political risk stems from a widening array of agents, from Twitter users and terrorists to hackers and insurgents. What's more, the very institutions and laws that are supposed to reduce uncertainty and risk often increase it instead. This means that in today's globalised world there are no 'safe' bets. Political risk affects companies and organisations of all sizes, operating everywhere from London to Lahore, even if they don't know it.Political Risk investigates and analyses this shifting landscape, suggests what businesses can do to navigate it, and explains how all of us can better understand these rapidly changing geopolitical dynamics.
Foot Work: What Your Shoes Are Doing to the World
by Tansy E. HoskinsFrom the author of STITCHED UP: 'Makes a strong case for nothing less than a revolution' Emma Watson'A superb primer on everything that is wrong with our world - and how we can start to change it' NEW INTERNATIONALISTDO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR SHOES COME FROM?DO YOU KNOW WHERE THEY GO WHEN YOU'RE DONE WITH THEM?In 2018, 66.3 million pairs of shoes were manufactured across the world every single day. They have never been cheaper to buy, and we have never been more convinced that we need to buy them. Yet their cost to the planet has never been greater.In this urgent, passionately argued book, Tansy E. Hoskins opens our eyes to the dark origins of the shoes on our feet. Taking us deep into the heart of an industry that is exploiting workers and deceiving consumers, we begin to understand that if we don't act fast, this humble household object will take us to the point of no return.
Foot Work: What Your Shoes Are Doing to the World
by Tansy E. HoskinsFrom the author of STITCHED UP: 'Makes a strong case for nothing less than a revolution' Emma Watson'A superb primer on everything that is wrong with our world - and how we can start to change it' NEW INTERNATIONALISTDO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR SHOES COME FROM?DO YOU KNOW WHERE THEY GO WHEN YOU'RE DONE WITH THEM?In 2018, 66.3 million pairs of shoes were manufactured across the world every single day. They have never been cheaper to buy, and we have never been more convinced that we need to buy them. Yet their cost to the planet has never been greater.In this urgent, passionately argued book, Tansy E. Hoskins opens our eyes to the dark origins of the shoes on our feet. Taking us deep into the heart of an industry that is exploiting workers and deceiving consumers, we begin to understand that if we don't act fast, this humble household object will take us to the point of no return.
In the Shadow of the Empress: The Defiant Lives of Maria Theresa, Mother of Marie Antoinette, and Her Daughters
by Nancy GoldstoneOut of the thrilling and tempestuous eighteenth century comes the sweeping family saga of beautiful Maria Theresa, a sovereign of extraordinary strength and vision, the only woman ever to inherit and rule the vast Habsburg empire in her own name, and three of her remarkable daughters: lovely, talented Maria Christina, governor-general of the Austrian Netherlands; spirited Maria Carolina, the resolute queen of Naples; and the youngest, Marie Antoinette, the glamorous, tragic queen of France, perhaps the most famous princess in history. Unfolding against an irresistible backdrop of brilliant courts from Vienna to Versailles, embracing the exotic lure of Naples and Sicily, this epic history of Maria Theresa and her daughters is a tour de force of desire, adventure, ambition, treachery, sorrow, and glory.Each of these women's lives was packed with passion and heart-stopping suspense. Maria Theresa inherited her father's thrones at the age of twenty-three and was immediately attacked on all sides by foreign powers confident that a woman would to be too weak to defend herself. Maria Christina, a gifted artist, who alone among her sisters succeeded in marrying for love, would face the same dangers that destroyed the monarchy in France. Resourceful Maria Carolina would usher in the golden age of Naples only to then face the deadly whirlwind of Napoleon. And, finally, Marie Antoinette, the doomed queen whose stylish excesses and captivating notoriety have masked the truth about her husband and herself for two hundred and fifty years.
We Are Displaced: My Journey and Stories from Refugee Girls Around the World - From Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai
by Malala YousafzaiIn this powerful and emotional New York Times bestseller, Nobel Peace Prize winner and activist Malala Yousafzai shares various stories of displacement, including her own. Part memoir, part communal storytelling, We Are Displaced introduces readers to some of the incredible girls Malala has met on her many journeys and lets each tell her story - girls who have lost their community, relatives and often the only world they've ever known, but have not lost hope.Longing for home and fear of an uncertain future binds all of these young women, but each is unique. In a time of immigration crises, war and border conflicts, We Are Displaced is an important reminder that every single one of the 79.5 million currently displaced is a person - often a young person - with dreams for a better, safer world.Includes a new Afterword by the author
The White Devil: The award-winning novel - sex, power and murder in the streets of Rome
by Domenic Stansberry'IMPOSSIBLE TO RESIST' The Irish Times'EXCELLENT: MENACE, MURDER AND EROTICISM LURK' The Times 'EROTIC AND SOPHISTICATED' Sunday Times, Holiday Reads To Chill the Blood 'EVOKES THE ROME OF FELLINI AND SHADES OF PATRICIA HIGHSMITH' Crime Time, Book of the MonthIn the streets of Rome, Vicki Wilson's lovers keep turning up dead Vittoria, as she's known in Italy, is a small-time actress who left behind a dark past in her native Texas and followed her writer husband to Italy. Guided by her controlling, obsessive brother Johnny, Vittoria soon enters the upper circles of Roman society, mingling with shady cardinals and corrupt senators. Among them is Paolo Orsini, who quickly falls prey to Vittoria's charms. Too bad he's married; too bad his wife, an aging film icon, is murdered. From the ravishing beauty of Rome to the pristine beaches of Malibu, Vittoria finds herself at the heart of a lethal chase, spiralling dangerously out of control... An irresistible page-turner loved by readers: 'My, my, my, what a dark and sordid tale of jealousy, desire, and cold-blooded murder... I absolutely loved it' Goodreads review *****'Excellent read, it was tough to put this down... The writing and the tension in the story were phenomenal' Goodreads review ***** 'I couldn't put it down... Just incredible' Goodreads review ***** 'Modern noir as good as it gets' Goodreads review *****
We Need New Stories: Challenging the Toxic Myths Behind Our Age of Discontent
by Nesrine MalikIt is becoming clear that the old frames of reference are not working, that the narratives used for decades to stave off progressive causes are being exposed as falsehoods. Six myths have taken hold, ones which are at odds with our lived experience and in urgent need of revision.Has freedom of speech become a cover for promoting prejudice? Has the concept of political correctness been weaponised to avoid ceding space to those excluded from power? Does white identity politics pose an urgent danger? These are some of the questions at the centre of Nesrine Malik's radical and compelling analysis that challenges us to find new narrators whose stories can fill the void and unite us behind a shared vision.
Call Him Mine: A Telegraph Thriller of the Year
by Tim MacGabhannA TELEGRAPH THRILLER OF THE YEAR 'A wild ride' Ian Rankin'Tough and uncompromising: you'll be glad you read it' Lee Child'Hilarious, gripping, poetic. I loved it' Adrian McKinty, author of The Chain 'Gripping from beginning to end' Independent'Intoxicating and chilling' Observer 'Pacy and exciting' Daily Telegraph'Vivid and lyrical' Guardian'MacGabhann paints an extraordinarily vivid picture of Mexico, in all its seething, sweltering madness and beauty' Irish Independent Nobody asked us to look.Every day, every since, I still wish we hadn't. Jaded reporter Andrew and his photographer boyfriend, Carlos, are sick of sifting the dregs of Mexico's drug war: from cartel massacres to corrupt politicians, they think they've seen it all.But when they find a body even the police are too scared to look at, what started out as just another assignment becomes the sort of story all reporters dream of... ...until Carlos pushes for answers too fast, and winds up murdered, leaving Andrew grief-stricken and flailing for answers, justice, and revenge.
Call Him Mine: A Telegraph Thriller of the Year
by Tim MacGabhannA TELEGRAPH THRILLER OF THE YEAR'A wild ride' Ian Rankin'Tough and uncompromising: you'll be glad you read it' Lee Child'Hilarious, gripping, poetic. I loved it' Adrian McKinty, author of The Chain'Gripping from beginning to end' Independent'Intoxicating and chilling' Observer'Pacy and exciting' Daily Telegraph'Vivid and lyrical' Guardian'MacGabhann paints an extraordinarily vivid picture of Mexico, in all its seething, sweltering madness and beauty' Irish IndependentNobody asked us to look.Every day, every since, I still wish we hadn't.Jaded reporter Andrew and his photographer boyfriend, Carlos, are sick of sifting the dregs of Mexico's drug war: from cartel massacres to corrupt politicians, they think they've seen it all.But when they find a body even the police are too scared to look at, what started out as just another assignment becomes the sort of story all reporters dream of... ...until Carlos pushes for answers too fast, and winds up murdered, leaving Andrew grief-stricken and flailing for answers, justice, and revenge.
How to be Nowhere
by Tim MacGabhannLife is finally on the right track for reporter and recovering addict Andrew: he is slowly coming to terms with the murder of his photographer boyfriend Carlos, pursuing sobriety and building a new home with a new partner. Andrew has almost forgotten about the story that ruined his life - but that story hasn't forgotten about him, and a series of deadly threats forces him into helping the very man whose gang murdered his boyfriend and left him homeless.A literary take on the classic chase movie, HOW TO BE NOWHERE is the sequel to Tim MacGabhann's genre-busting and critically-acclaimed debut CALL HIM MINE, and a blistering thrill-ride deep into the fog of Central America's murky present and tragic future.
How to be Nowhere
by Tim MacGabhannLife is finally on the right track for reporter and recovering addict Andrew: he is slowly coming to terms with the murder of his photographer boyfriend Carlos, pursuing sobriety and building a new home with a new partner. Andrew has almost forgotten about the story that ruined his life - but that story hasn't forgotten about him, and a series of deadly threats forces him into helping the very man whose gang murdered his boyfriend and left him homeless.A literary take on the classic chase movie, HOW TO BE NOWHERE is the sequel to Tim MacGabhann's genre-busting and critically-acclaimed debut CALL HIM MINE, and a blistering thrill-ride deep into the fog of Central America's murky present and tragic future.
The Future Is Asian: Global Order in the Twenty-first Century
by Parag KhannaFive billion people, two-thirds of the world's mega-cities, one-third of the global economy, two-thirds of global economic growth, thirty of the Fortune 100, six of the ten largest banks, eight of the ten largest armies, five nuclear powers, massive technological innovation, the newest crop of top-ranked universities. Asia is also the world's most ethnically, linguistically and culturally diverse region of the planet, eluding any remotely meaningful generalization beyond the geographic label itself. Even for Asians, Asia is dizzying to navigate.Whether you gauge by demography, geography, economy or any other metric, Asia is already the present - and it is certainly the future. It is for this reason that we cannot afford to continue to get Asia so wrong. The Future Is Asian accurately shows Asia from the inside-out, telling the story of how this mega-region is coming together and reshaping the entire planet in the process.
The Future Is Asian: Global Order in the Twenty-first Century
by Parag KhannaFive billion people, two-thirds of the world's mega-cities, one-third of the global economy, two-thirds of global economic growth, thirty of the Fortune 100, six of the ten largest banks, eight of the ten largest armies, five nuclear powers, massive technological innovation, the newest crop of top-ranked universities. Asia is also the world's most ethnically, linguistically and culturally diverse region of the planet, eluding any remotely meaningful generalization beyond the geographic label itself. Even for Asians, Asia is dizzying to navigate.Whether you gauge by demography, geography, economy or any other metric, Asia is already the present - and it is certainly the future. It is for this reason that we cannot afford to continue to get Asia so wrong. The Future Is Asian accurately shows Asia from the inside-out, telling the story of how this mega-region is coming together and reshaping the entire planet in the process.
Olga: A Novel
by Prof Bernhard SchlinkA #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER'Bernhard Schlink speaks straight to the heart' New York Times'Brilliant... A tale of love and loss in 20th century Germany' Evening Standard'A cleverly-constructed tale of cross-class romance' Mail on Sunday'A poignant portrait of a woman out of step with her time' Observer Olga is an orphan raised by her grandmother in a Prussian village around the turn of the 20th century. Smart and precocious, she fights against the prejudices of the time to find her place in a world that sees her as second-best.When she falls in love with Herbert, a local aristocrat obsessed with the era's dreams of power, glory and greatness, her life is irremediably changed.Theirs is a love against all odds, entwined with the twisting paths of German history, leading us from the late 19th to the early 21st century, from Germany to Africa and the Arctic, from the Baltic Sea to the German south-west.This is the story of that love, of Olga's devotion to a restless man - told in thought, letters and in a fateful moment of great rebellion.
Harold Wilson: The Winner
by Nick Thomas-SymondsHarold Wilson is the only post-war leader of any party to serve as Britain's Prime Minister on two separate occasions. In total he won four General Elections, spending nearly eight years in Downing Street. Half a century later, he is still unbeaten, Labour's greatest ever election winner. How did he do it - and at what cost?Critics then and now have painted him as an opportunistic political calculator, even as a Soviet secret agent. In this powerful new portrait, drawing on previously unavailable sources and first-hand parliamentary insight, acclaimed biographer Nick Thomas-Symonds reveals a more complex figure. Wilson was a new kind of politician but, in his own way, this media-savvy harbinger of modernity was also a deeply traditional man, whose actions often suggest nothing less than a spiritual mission.In an intriguing paradox, Wilson, influenced by the distinctively democratic faith of his Yorkshire boyhood, united a fractured Labour Party, ushering in the cultural and social changes of the 'swinging sixties'. His was the government to decriminalise homosexuality, legalise abortion and abolish capital punishment. With a brilliant mind, sure-footed political moves and a feel for public opinion, he was a survivor who over and over again emerged from desperate crises - even, perhaps, conspiracies - to lead his party to victory. It is time at last to learn his secrets.
The Shanghai Free Taxi: Journeys with the Hustlers and Rebels of the New China
by Frank Langfitt'A unique, kaleidoscopic view of Chinese society ... A must read' Qiu Xiaolong, author of Shanghai RedemptionAs any traveller knows, the best and most honest conversations take place during car rides. So when journalist Frank Langfitt wanted to learn more about the real China, he started driving a cab - and discovered a country amid seismic political and economic change.The Chinese economic boom, with its impact on the environment, global trade, and the tech industry, has been one of the most important stories of the twenty-first century. Yet few realise that the boom is largely over, and that the new reality in China is unequal growth, political anxiety and a newly empowered strongman president in Xi Jingping.In order to understand this new world, Frank Langfitt offered the citizens of Shanghai a simple deal: a conversation in exchange for a free taxi ride. Rides turned into follow-up interviews, shared meals and even a wedding invitation. In this adventurous book, we get to know an array of quirky yet representative characters like Beer Horse, the pushy dealer who sells Langfitt his used car; Rocky, a stylishly dressed migrant worker who loves John Denver music; and Xiao Chen, who moved his family to Hawaii to escape China's oppressive education system but was unable to get out of the country himself.Unfolding over the course of several years, The Shanghai Free Taxi is a sensitive and eye-opening book about a rapidly changing country.'Langfitt excels at humanising a country increasingly presented in purely oppositional terms [and] achieves a breadth rarely found in journalistic accounts' Financial Times
The Crown in Crisis: Countdown to the Abdication
by Alexander LarmanIn December 1936, Britain faced a constitutional crisis that was the gravest threat to the institution of the monarchy since the execution of Charles I. The ruling monarch, Edward VIII, wished to marry the American divorcée Wallis Simpson and crown her as his Queen. His actions scandalised the Establishment, who were desperate to avoid an international embarrassment at a time when war seemed imminent.An influential coalition formed against him, including the Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, his private secretary Alec Hardinge, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the editor of The Times. Edward seemed fated to give up Wallis and remain a reluctant ruler, or to abdicate his throne. Yet he had his own supporters, too, including Winston Churchill, the Machiavellian newspaper proprietor Lord Beaverbrook and his brilliant adviser Walter Monckton. They offered him the chance to remain on the throne and keep Wallis. But was the price they asked too high?Using previously unpublished and rare archival material, and new interviews with those who knew Edward and Wallis, The Crown in Crisis is the conclusive exploration of how an unthinkable and unprecedented event tore the country apart. This seismic event has been written about before but never with the ticking-clock suspense and pace of the thriller that it undoubtedly was for all of its participants. Painstakingly researched, incisively written and entirely fresh in its approach, The Crown in Crisis brings the events of that time to thrilling life, and in the process will appeal to an entirely new audience.
Exciting Times: Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2021
by Naoise Dolan'The book of the summer ... Kept me rapt until the final page' THE TIMES'A sharp, smart, witty modern love story. I loved it' David Nicholls, author of ONE DAY'More than lives up to the hype ... Likely to fill the Sally-Rooney-shaped hole in many readers' lives' IRISH TIMES'Droll, shrewd and unafraid - a winning debut' Hilary Mantel, author of WOLF HALL'I've been pushing Exciting Times on everyone I know. Some of Dolan's pithy observations of her characters are the best I've read since Edward St Aubyn' OBSERVER'A frankly sensational book' Pandora Sykes on THE HIGH LOW'In the tradition of Dorothy Parker, Joan Rivers and Nora Ephron ... I found myself purring with pleasure. ...This is comic writing at the highest level' Craig Brown, DAILY MAILWhen you leave Ireland aged 22 to spend your parents' money, it's called a gap year. When Ava leaves Ireland aged 22 to make her own money, she's not sure what to call it, but it involves:- a badly-paid job in Hong Kong, teaching English grammar to rich children;- Julian, who likes to spend money on Ava and lets her move into his guest room;- Edith, who Ava meets while Julian is out of town and actually listens to her when she talks;- money, love, cynicism, unspoken feelings and unlikely connections.Exciting times ensue.
Repentance
by Eloísa DíazA FINANCIAL TIMES 'SUMMER BOOKS OF 2021' PICK'An accomplished, inventive detective novel thrumming with tension and family secrets' Sanaë Lemoine, author of The Margot Affair'An astonishingly assured first novel, both funny and moving'The Times Crime Club'Very impressive... Repentance is an evocative crime thriller with a likeable, self-aware protagonist, but also skilfully explores the darkest period in Argentina's modern history'Financial Times'A powerful crime novel ... Opening old historical wounds that still strongly affect Argentinian society, this is a tale with many layers, many of them painful to evoke and a strong depiction of a country and a period that still simmers between the pages of history books and the crime novel is a perfect way of lancing the boil. Recommended'Maxim Jakubowski, Crime Time BUENOS AIRES, 1981.Argentina is in the grip of a brutal military dictatorship.Inspector Joaquín Alzada's work in the Buenos Aires police force exposes him to the many realities of life under a repressive regime: desperate people, terrified people and - worst of all - missing people.Personally, he prefers to stay out of politics, enjoying a simple life with his wife Paula. But when his revolutionary brother Jorge is disappeared, Alzada will stop at nothing to rescue him.TWENTY YEARS LATER...The country is in the midst of yet another devastating economic crisis and riots are building in the streets of Buenos Aires. This time Alzada is determined to keep his head down and wait patiently for his retirement. But when a dead body lands in a skip behind the morgue and a woman from one of the city's wealthiest families goes missing, Alzada is forced to confront his own involvement in one of the darkest periods in Argentinian history - a time ofcollective horror and personal tragedy.Alternating between two key moments in the life of a man and his country, Repentance is a noir with a difference, featuring an unforgettable character on a quest to solve a case that offers both a painful reminder of all he has lost and a last chance at redemption.
Price Wars: How Chaotic Markets Are Creating a Chaotic World
by Rupert RussellFor Rupert Russell, the shock of the Trump-Brexit victories was only the latest in a decade full of them: the unstoppable war in Syria, huge migrant flows into Europe, beheadings in Iraq, children caged at the US border. In Price Wars he sets out on an improbable journey to investigate what caused the wave of chaos that consumed the world in the 2010s.Armed with a notebook, flak jacket and pink socks, Russell travels to modern apocalypses across five continents, embedding with separatist soldiers in the trenches of Eastern Ukraine, gangs of street kids battling over garbage in Caracas, the UN bomb disposal squad in Iraq and cattle raiders in Northern Kenya. He traces the origins of these conflicts back to dramatic and mysterious swings in the prices of essential commodities. He meets with commodity speculators who describe the inner workings of these volatile markets, explaining how food prices can spike even in years of abundant harvests, causing bread riots and revolutions. Oil prices can surge on rumours, enriching and emboldening dictators and terrorists alike. These price shocks, and many others across the decade, triggered local disasters that became global catastrophes. It is chaotic prices, Russell learned, fuelled by banks and hedge funds in New York and London, that have toppled regimes and fractured the West.Price Wars is a page-turning chronicle of discovery and a ground-breaking expose of the power of price to devastate the world.