2025/26 reading list

We have summer reading lists for some of our postgraduate courses, which you might like to peruse.

Please do not look to purchase many of the books listed below. They are suggestions and not exhaustive. Many libraries will have copies of these books and Amazon and Abebooks will hopefully have cheap seconsecond-handes of other works. My favourite book search tool is BookFinder.com – as it searches both new and secondhand databases. Books marked ebook are available from the University Library, via the online catalogue:

http://discovered.ed.ac.uk

It is always a good idea to think about how to go about writing history, for which I can recommend the following:

  • James M. Banner, Jr., Being a Historian: An Introduction to the Professional World of History (2012) - ebook
  • Alastair Bonnett, How to Argue (2012) – an essential skill
  • Jim Cullen, Essaying the Past: How to Read, Write and Think about History (2012)
  • Ann Curthoys & Ann McGrath, How to Write History that People Want to Read (2011) – ebook
  • Umberto Eco, How to Write a Thesis (1977) – ebook

 

Your dissertation

It is never to early to start thinking about your dissertation, although you have time to reflect on this and consider possibilities during the course of your programme – students sometimes begin the programme with an idea in mind but then discover new interests during the course of their studies. Keep an open mind!

If you do have a topic in mind you can email Deputy Programme Director, Dr Ben Weinstein, and he can either look to provide you with some suggestions or put you in contact with a colleague with more expertise in that area.

If you do not have a topic, then the summer can be an opportunity to consider what you may wish to examine. Read widely, and follow your interest. Also, consider what will be practical for a primary source-based dissertation. Will there be sufficient sources that you will have access to (either digitally or physically)? When you have a topic that you are interested in, read a little deeper – what are historians disagreeing over in the more recent journal articles? Where are the frontiers of research on this topic? What methodologies are they employing?

 

Reading for the ‘Core’ courses

One starting point for both of the core courses, which are intended to prepare you for the final dissertation is the following professional autobiography:

  • James M. Banner, Jr., Being a Historian: An Introduction to the Professional World of History (2012) - ebook
Historical Research: Skills & Sources - Semester 1

This course focuses on research skills and the analysis of different types of primary sources. The specific types of sources that the course examines changes from year to year, but you can do some preparatory reading on research skills and sources overall and read introductions to a range of different types of primary sources using the texts below:

  • John Tosh, The Pursuit of History: Aims, Methods and New Directions in the Study of Modern History (2002) – ebook available from the University Library
  • Mary Abbott (ed.), History Skills: A Student's Handbook (2009) – ebook available from the University Library
  • Miriam Dobson & Benjamin Ziemann (eds.), Reading Primary Sources: The Interpretation of Texts from 19th and 20th Century History (2009) – ebook available from the University Library
  • Sarah Barber & Corinna M. Peniston-Bird (eds.), History Beyond the Text: A Student’s Guide to Approaching Alternative Sources (2008) – ebook available from the University Library
Historical Research: Approaches to History - Semester 2

In this course we look at the broader theoretical and methodological developments that have influenced and shaped the historical profession, considering aspects of the 'history of history' and developing an understanding of current approaches and conceptual debates in the theory and practice of History.

  • Marek Tamm 'Introduction', pp. 1-20, and Peter Burke 'Conclusion', pp. 353-363, in Marek Tamm and Peter Burke, eds. Debating New Approaches to History (2019) – ebook available from the University Library
  • John Tosh, "Mapping the Field" in The Pursuit of History, pp. 46-70 - ebook available from the University Library
  • David Cannadine (ed.), What is History Now? (2004) – ebook available from the University Library
  • E.H. Carr, What is History? (1962) – rather showing its age, but still a useful starting and reference point, should be read in conjunction with Cannadine, above

Semester one courses

British Empires, 1601-1948 (online)
  • Philippa Levine, The British Empire: Sunrise to Sunset (2007)
  • Armitage, David, Ideological Origins of the British Empire (2000)
  • Bayly, C.A. Imperial Meridian: The British Empire and the World 1780-1830 (1989)
  • Belich, J. Replenishing the Earth (2011)
  • Hall, Catherine, (ed), Cultures of Empire: A Reader (2000)
  • Hyam, Ronald. Britain's Imperial Century, 1815-1914: A Study of Empire and Expansion, 2nd edition (1993)
  • Jasanoff, Maya, Edge of Empire (2007)
  • Louis, William Roger, (ed), The Oxford History of the British Empire, 5 volumes (1998-99)
  • Mackenzie, John M. Imperialism and Popular Culture (1986)
  • Marshall, P.J. 'Imperial Britain', JI&CH, 23 (1995): 379-94
  • Pagden, Anthony. Lords of All the World: Ideologies of Empire in Spain, Britain and France, c. 1500-1800 (1995)
  • Porter, Bernard. The Absent Minded Imperialists (2009)
Charlemagne and the End of Antiquity (Online)

This course asks where the Frankish ruler Charlemagne stands in relation to Late Antiquity: was he in it, after it, or on the cusp, and how can we tell? As a result, a bit of background reading on both Late Antiquity and on Charlemagne could be useful. 

For Late Antiquity, Peter Brown, The World of Late Antiquity, AD150-750 (London, 1971), is famous for having effectively invented its field (and note the book's stated chronology).

For Charlemagne, probably the best way in is through a biography. There are plenty to choose from, but Roger Collins's Charlemagne (1998) is lively, and its author is an honorary fellow in Edinburgh, which is enough to recommend it here! However, should you prefer something a little more dialogic, then the "The Rest is History" podcast, by Holland and Sandbrook, has 3 episodes on Charlemagne, released in December 2024 (episodes 522-524), which are well done.

Islamic Africa (Online)
  • Rudolph T. Ware, The Walking Qur'an: Islamic Education, Embodied Knowledge, and History in West Africa
  • Michael A. Gomez, African Dominion: A New History of Empire in Early and Medieval West Africa
  • John O. Hunwick, Shari'a in Songhay: The Replies of Al-Maghili to the Questions of Askia Al-Hajj Muhammad
  • Bruce S. Hall, A History of Race in Muslim West Africa, 1600-1960
  • Fahad Ahmad Bishara, A Sea of Debt: Law and Economic Life in the Western Indian Ocean, 1780-1950
  • Cheikh Anta Babou, Fighting the Greater Jihad: Amadu Bamba and the Founding of the Muridiyya of Senegal, 1853-1913
  • Muhammad Sani Umar, Islam and Colonialism: Intellectual Responses of Muslims of Northern Nigeria to British Colonial Rule
  • Ousmane Kane, Muslim Modernity in Postcolonial Nigeria
  • Adeline Masquelier, Women and Islamic Revival in a West African Town
  • Gabeba Baderoon, Regarding Muslims: From Slavery to Post-Apartheid
  • Sylviane A. Diouf, Servants of Allah: African Muslims Enslaved in the Americas
Malfeasance and Misbehaviour in Finance - Perceptions and Realities, c. 1500 to the Present (online)
  • M. Frunza, Introduction to the theories and varieties of modern crime in financial markets
  • G. Robb, White-collar crime in Modern England: Financial fraud and business morality, 1845-1929
  • L. Neal, A Concise History of International Finance
  • K. Ho, Liquidated
  • C. W. Calomiris and S. H. Haber, Fragile by Design: the political origins of banking crises and scarce credit
  • H. Manne, 'In Defense of Insider Trading', Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec 1966, 113-122
  • R. Schotland, 'Unsafe at any price: A reply to Manne, Insider Trading and the Stock Market', Virginia Law Review, 53, 7 (1967), 1425-1478.
  • M. Freeman, R. Pearson & J. Taylor, Shareholder Democracies: Corporate governance in Britain and Ireland before 1850
  • P. Johnson, Making the Market: Victorian Origins of Corporate Capitalism
  • J. Go, Political Power and Social Theory, vol 7: F. Dobbin & D. Zorn, 'Corporate Malfeasance and the Myth of Shareholder Value', pp 179-198.
  • M.S. Mizruchi & H. Kimeldorf, 'The Historical Context of Shareholder Value Capitalism', pp. 213-221
  • J. Hoppit, Risk and Failure in English Business 1700-1800
  • C. Kindleberger, Manias, Panics, and Crashes: a history of financial crises
The Material Culture of Gender in Eighteenth-Century Britain (online)
  • A. Appadurai, The Social Life of Things: Commodities in Cultural Perspective. (1986)
  • Jennie Batchelor and Cora Kaplan, eds. Women and Material Culture, 1660-1830 (2007)
  • M. Berg, Luxury and Pleasure in Eighteenth Century Britain (2005)
  • H. Berry and J. Gregory, eds. Creating and Consuming Culture in North-East England, 1660-1830 (2004)
  • P. Borsay, The English Urban Renaissance: Culture and Society in the Provincial Town (1989)
  • M. Hallett, The Spectacle of Difference: Graphic Satire in the Age of Hogarth (Yale 1999)
  • S. Nenadic, Lairds and Luxury: The Highland Gentry in Eighteenth Century Scotland (2007)
  • M. Snodin and J. Styles, (2001) Design and the Decorative Arts: Britain, 1500-1900. V&A Publications
  • D. H. Solkin, D. H. Painting for Money: The Visual Arts and the Public Sphere in Eighteenth-Century England. London: Yale University Press. 1993
  • Vickery, A. Behind Closed Doors: At Home in Georgian England (2009)
The Shadow of Versailles: Europe Between the Wars, 1918-1939 (online)
  • Richard J. Overy, The Inter-War Crisis (1994, 2007, 2009) – excellent and concise, available as an ebook
  • Philipp Blom, Fracture: Life and Culture in the West (2015)
  • Piers Brandon, The Dark Valley: A Panorama of the 1930s (2000) – evocative of the period

As you will discover, there is little of value written on the interwar period specifically (in continental terms, there is plenty written from an ‘international’ perspective looking at the origins of the Second World War, which is not really the focus of this course), as such I would suggest that a good feel for the continent could be gleaned from looking at the relevant sections of histories of modern Europe, most of which should be freely available in libraries and cheaply second-hand, for example (various editions and variations on these titles)

  • Eric J. Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes: The Short Twentieth Century (1994) - the view from the left
  • Paul Johnson, Modern Times: A History of the World From the 1920s to the Year 2000 (1999) - the view from the right

Also of use:

  • Julian Jackson (ed.), Europe 1900-1945 (2002) – short thematic essays
  • Gordon Martel (ed.), A Companion to Europe, 1900-1945 (2005) – short(er) thematic essays, ebook available via the University Library
  • Ian Kershaw, To Hell and Back: Europe 1914-1949 (2015)
  • Mark Mazower, Dark Continent: Europe’s Twentieth Century (1998)
  • Raymond J. Sontag, A Broken World, 1919-1939 (1972) – dated but still useful
  • Béla Tomka, A Social History of Twentieth-Century Europe (2013) - ebook
  • Richard Vinen, A History in Fragments: Europe in the Twentieth Century (2000)
  • You can also get a feel of interwar Europe through the mass of novels and reportage that was written during this period, I will restrict myself to just three authors:
  • Isaac Babel, Red Cavalry (various editions available)
  • George Orwell, Down and Out in Paris and London (1933), available as an ebook here: https://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/o/orwell/george/o79d/; Homage to Catalonia (1938), his personal account of Spain during the civil war, also available online as an ebook: https://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/o/orwell/george/o79h/
  • Joseph Roth, Rebellion (1924, 1999 Eng. ed.); Hotel Savoy (1924, 1986 Eng. ed.); The Emperor's Tomb (1938, 1984 Eng. ed.)

I would also recommend his reportage:

  • Joseph Roth, The Wandering Jews (2001); What I Saw: Reports from Berlin, 1920-1933
  • (2002); The White Cities: Reports from France, 1925-39 (2004)

Semester two courses

Before Scotland: The Transformation of Northern Britain in the First Millennium CE (Online)
  • Leslie Alcock, Kings and Warriors, Craftsmen and Priests in Northern Britain, AD 550¿850 (2003)
  • Alice Blackwell (ed.), Scotland in Early Medieval Europe (2019)
  • David Clarke, Alice Blackwell and Martin Goldberg, Early Medieval Scotland: Individuals, Communities and Ideas (2012)
  • Ewan Campbell, Saints and Sea-Kings: The First Kingdom of the Scots (1999)
  • James E. Fraser, From Caledonia to Pictland: Scotland to 795 (2009)
  • James Graham-Campbell and Colleen E. Batey, Vikings in Scotland: An Archaeological Survey (1998)
  • Fraser Hunter, Beyond the Edge of Empire: Caledonians, Picts and Romans (2007)
  • Gilbert Márkus, Conceiving a Nation: Scotland to AD 900 (2017)
  • Gilbert Márkus (trans.), Adomnán¿s Law of the Innocents: Cáin Adomnáin. A Seventh-Century Law for the Protection of Non-Combatants (1997)
  • Gordon Noble and Nicholas Evans, Picts: Scourge of Rome, Rulers of the North (2022)
  • Anna Ritchie, Viking Scotland (1993)
  • Alex Woolf, From Pictland to Alba: 789¿1070 (2007)
Medicine and Society in Modern Britain (Online)

There is no single book that covers the course content, but here are some very readable introductory overviews of the history of medicine in modern Britain, all available as ebooks: 

  • W.F. Bynum, The History of Medicine: A Very ShortIntroduction (Oxford, 2008)
  • Mark Jackson, The History of Medicine: A Beginner’s Guide (London, 2014)
  • Roy Porter, ‘The Patient in England, c.1660-c.1800’, in Andrew Wear (ed.), Medicine in
  • Society: Historical Essays (Cambridge, 1992), pp. 91-118
  • Keir Waddington, ‘Health and Medicine’, in Chris Williams (ed.), A Companion to Nineteenth-Century Britain (Oxford, 2008), pp. 412-429 

If you are more interested in literary representations of illness and medicine, there are plenty out there, including: 

  • Various novels by Elizabeth Gaskell contain interesting portraits of doctors and health, including North and South (1854) and Wives and Daughters (1866)
  • George Eliot, Middlemarch: A Study of Provincial Life (1871)
  • George Bernard Shaw, The Doctor's Dilemma (1906)
  • A.J. Cronin, The Citadel (1937)
  • Richard Gordon, Doctor in the House (1952)

And the now televised memoir by Adam Kay, This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor (2017)

Seeking 'Japan' in a Westernizing World: Revolution, Romance, and Imperialism, 1868 - 1945 (online)
  • S. Vlastos, Peasant Protests and Uprisings in Tokugawa Japan (Berkeley, 1986), Introduction.
  • R. Sims, 'The Meiji Renovation', in Japanese Political History Since the Meiji Renovation (London, 2001).
  • Peter Dale, 'On "The Otherness of the Other"', in The Myth of Japanese Uniqueness (1986).
  • L. Humphreys, 'The Background to Army Politics', in The Way of the Heavenly Sword: the Japanese Army in the 1920s (Stanford, 1995).
  • R. Dore, T. Ouchi, 'The Rural Origins of Japanese Fascism' in J. Morley (ed), Dilemmas of Growth in Prewar Japan (Princeton,1971).
  • S. Wilson, 'Rationalizing Imperialism: Women's Magazines in the Early 1930s', in V. Mackie (ed), Feminism and the state in Modern Japan (Melbourne, 1995).
  • J.W. Dower, 'Japanese Artists and the Atomic Bomb', in Japan in War and Peace: Selected Essays (New York, 1993).
The Rise of Modern U.S. Conservatism (online)

A good introduction to the topic as a whole – a book that explores important themes through biographical sketches of key figures – is:

  •  David Farber, The Rise and Fall of Modern American Conservatism: A Short History (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2010)

 An influential book that takes a grassroots perspective on political change in the United States, is:

  •  Lisa McGirr, Suburban Warriors: The Origins of the New American Right (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2001)

 If you are interested in the history of ideas, the following book is reasonably but looks at American history as a whole (far beyond the period covered in our course):

  •  Patrick Allitt, The Conservatives: Ideas and Personalities throughout American History (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009)

 Questions about the relationship between business and conservatism are the key focus of:

  •  Kim Phillips-Fein, Invisible Hands: The Making of the Conservative Movement from the New Deal to Reagan (New York: Norton, 2009)

 If you are interested in the history of the Republican Party, the following books provide an introduction:

  • Robert Mason, The Republican Party and American Politics from Hoover to Reagan (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012)
  • Heather Cox Richardson, To Make Men Free: A History of the Republican Party (New York: Basic, 2014) 

The School of Statecraft: History, Leadership, and Policymaking (online)

  • D. Acheson, Present at the Creation: My Years in the State Department (1969).
  • H. Brands (ed.), The New Makers of Modern Strategy (2023).
  • Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War (there are many compelling translations and editions)

 

 

 

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