Support Us
 
Search
MENUMENU
  • Nonfiction
        • Art
          • Architecture
          • Art History
          • Design & Illustration
          • Fashion & Style
          • Modern and Contemporary Art
          • Photography
        • Business
          • How to Invest
          • Leadership
          • Marketing
        • Economics
          • Behavioural Economics
          • Development Economics
          • Economic History
          • Finance
          • Financial Crisis
          • Globalisation & Inequality
          • World Economies
        • Environment
          • Climate Change
          • Environmental Ethics
        • Food & Cooking
          • The Best Cookbooks
          • Food & History of Food
          • Wine & Drinks
        • Health & Lifestyle
          • Death & Dying
          • Education
          • Family & Relationships
          • Happiness
          • Sex & Sexuality
        • History
          • Ancient History (up to 500)
          • Historical Figures
          • Military History
          • Medieval History (500-1400)
          • Modern History (1800-1945)
        • Language
          • Grammar & Punctuation
          • Learning Languages
          • Linguistics
        • Law
        • Literary Nonfiction
          • Biography
          • Essays
          • Memoir
          • Artists' Biographies
          • Travel
          • True Crime
        • Music & Drama
          • Classical Music & Opera
          • Film & Cinema
          • Music
          • Theatre
        • Nature
          • Dinosaurs & the Prehistoric World
          • The Earth
          • Plants, Trees & Flowers
        • Philosophy
          • Ancient Philosophy
          • Ethics & Moral Philosophy
          • Great Philosophers
          • Social & Political Philosophy
        • Politics & Society
          • Conflict & War
          • Feminism
          • Foreign Policy & International Relations
          • Human Rights
          • Terrorism
        • Psychology
          • Mental Health
          • Neuroscience
          • Psychoanalysis
          • Psychology Research
          • Self Help
        • Religion
          • Best Atheist Books
          • Buddhism
          • Christian
          • Islamic
          • Jewish
          • Religious History
        • Science
          • Astronomy
          • Biology
          • Geoscience
          • Maths & Statistics
          • Moon Landing
          • Popular Science
          • Physics
        • Sports, Games & Hobbies
          • Football (Soccer)
          • Gardening
          • Hobbies
          • Sport & Sporting Culture
        • Technology
          • Artificial Intelligence
          • Computing
          • Digital Age
          • History of Technology
          • Internet
  • Fiction & Literature
        • Classic English Literature
        • Contemporary Fiction
          • NEW Fiction
        • Literary Criticism
        • Literary Figures
        • Classical Studies
        • Romance
        • Comics & Graphic Novels
        • Fairy Tales & Mythology
        • Crime Novels
        • Mystery
        • Historical Fiction
        • Horror
        • Humour
        • Memoir
        • Poetry
        • Science Fiction
        • Short Stories
        • Thrillers
        • Fantasy
  • World
        • Africa
          • Egypt
          • Ghana
          • Nigeria
          • Rwanda
          • South Africa
          • Zimbabwe
        • Americas
          • Latin America
            • Argentina
            • Brazil
            • Chile
            • Cuba
            • Mexico
          • United States
          • Canada
        • Arctic & Antarctica
        • Asia
          • Afghanistan
          • Burma
          • China
          • India
          • Japan
          • Korea
          • Pakistan
          • Bangladesh
          • Sri Lanka
          • Singapore
          • Vietnam
        • Australia
        • Europe
          • Belgium
          • Britain
          • France
          • Germany
          • Greece
          • Ireland
          • Italy
          • Netherlands
          • Norway
        • Middle East
          • Iran
          • Iraq
          • Israel
          • Syria
          • Turkey
          • Yemen
        • Russia & FSU
          • Azerbaijan
          • Georgia
          • Russia
          • Ukraine
  • Kids
    • Ages 3-5
    • Ages 6-8
    • Ages 9-12
    • Young Adult
    • Best New Kids' Books
    • High School Teachers Recommend Books by Subject
    • Novels & Novelists
    • By Kids for Kids
  • Best Books of 2020
        • Politics
        • Biography
        • Memoirs and Autobiography
        • Cookbooks
        • Business
        • Philosophy
        • Fiction
          • Crime Fiction
          • Science Fiction
          • Historical Fiction
          • Romance
          • Mysteries
          • Thrillers
        • Nonfiction
        • Art
        • Economics
        • History
        • Science
        • Self Help
        • Audiobooks
        • Poetry
        • Kids Books
        • Kids Science
  • New Books
        • All new books
        • History
        • Philosophy
        • Science
        • Mathematics
        • Physics
        • Fiction
        • Biographies
        • Economics
        • Paperbacks
        • New Editions (of old books)
        • Our in-house reviews (nonfiction)
        • Our in-house reviews (fiction)
        • Gifts for Book Lovers
  • Audiobooks
    • Actors Read Great Books
    • Best Audiobooks for Kids
    • Books Narrated by Their Authors
    • Best Audiobook Thrillers
    • Best History Audiobooks
  • Book Awards
    • Booker Prize
    • Baillie Gifford Prize
    • Royal Society
    • Wolfson Prize
    • Walter Scott Prize
    • Arthur C Clarke Prize
    • Audie Awards
    • Nobel Prize
  • Experts

Wolfson Prize

The Wolfson History Prize is the UK's most prestigious history prize. Each year the four judges—all professional historians—sort through the hundreds of history books that are written by UK-based authors to find outstanding books that are both important and readable. To find the winner, the judges apply two criteria: deep scholarship and accessibility—the perfect combination for any good history book.

We've also included any interviews we have with shortlisted and winning authors, including Mary Fulbrook on Auschwitz and Peter Marshall on the English Reformation.

    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Richard Evans

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist - The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

    1

    The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper
    by Hallie Rubenhold

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist - The Boundless Sea: A Human History of the Oceans by David Abulafia

    2

    The Boundless Sea: A Human History of the Oceans
    by David Abulafia

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Chaucer: A European Life by Marion Turner

    3

    Chaucer: A European Life
    by Marion Turner

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist - A History of the Bible by John Barton

    4

    A History of the Bible
    by John Barton

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist - A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution by Toby Green

    5

    A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution
    by Toby Green

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Cricket Country: An Indian Odyssey in the Age of Empire by Prashant Kidambi

    6

    Cricket Country: An Indian Odyssey in the Age of Empire
    by Prashant Kidambi

The Best History Books: the 2020 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Richard Evans

If you’re looking for the best history books published this past year, the annual Wolfson History Prize is a great place to start. Each year, the judges pick out outstanding books that are both originally researched and readable. Historian and Wolfson judge Richard Evans talks us through the six history books that made the 2020 shortlist.

    The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List, recommended by Marion Turner

  • Read
    The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List - The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer

    1

    The Canterbury Tales
    by Geoffrey Chaucer

  • Read
    The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List - The House of Fame by Geoffrey Chaucer

    2

    The House of Fame
    by Geoffrey Chaucer

  • Read
    The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List - The Decameron by Boccaccio

    3

    The Decameron
    by Boccaccio

  • Read
    The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List - Refugee Tales as told to Ali Smith, Patience Agbabi, Abdulrazak Gurnah and many others

    4

    Refugee Tales
    as told to Ali Smith, Patience Agbabi, Abdulrazak Gurnah and many others

  • Read
    The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List - Social Chaucer by Paul Strohm

    5

    Social Chaucer
    by Paul Strohm

The Canterbury Tales: A Reading List, recommended by Marion Turner

Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales not only revolutionized English poetry—they’re also extremely funny and moving. Oxford Professor Marion Turner, who has written the first full-length biography of Chaucer in a generation, tells us about the extraordinary man who wrote them and why we should all read the Canterbury Tales. 

    The best books on Indian Cricket, recommended by Prashant Kidambi

  • Read
    The best books on Indian Cricket - Stray Thoughts on Indian Cricket by J M Framjee Patel

    1

    Stray Thoughts on Indian Cricket
    by J M Framjee Patel

  • Read
    The best books on Indian Cricket - History of Indian Cricket by Edward Docker

    2

    History of Indian Cricket
    by Edward Docker

  • Read
    The best books on Indian Cricket - Patrons, Players, and the Crowd: The Phenomenon of Indian Cricket by Richard Cashman

    3

    Patrons, Players, and the Crowd: The Phenomenon of Indian Cricket
    by Richard Cashman

  • Read
    The best books on Indian Cricket - A Corner of a Foreign Field: The Indian History of a British Sport by Ramachandra Guha

    4

    A Corner of a Foreign Field: The Indian History of a British Sport
    by Ramachandra Guha

  • Read
    The best books on Indian Cricket - Migrant Races: Empire, Identity and K.S. Ranjitsinhji by Satadru Sen

    5

    Migrant Races: Empire, Identity and K.S. Ranjitsinhji
    by Satadru Sen

The best books on Indian Cricket, recommended by Prashant Kidambi

South Asia has become the beating heart of cricket, with wild enthusiasm for the game at every level of society. Historian Prashant Kidambi—whose book, Cricket Country, was shortlisted for the 2020 Wolfson History Prize—takes us through the history of cricket in India, from its traditional, colonial roots through to the colourful, frenetic national game of today.

    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Diarmaid MacCulloch

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Oscar: A Life by Matthew Sturgis

    1

    Oscar: A Life
    by Matthew Sturgis

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Empress: Queen Victoria and India by Miles Taylor

    2

    Empress: Queen Victoria and India
    by Miles Taylor

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Birds in the Ancient World: Winged Words by Jeremy Mynott

    3

    Birds in the Ancient World: Winged Words
    by Jeremy Mynott

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Reckonings: Legacies of Nazi Persecution and the Quest for Justice by Mary Fulbrook

    4

    Reckonings: Legacies of Nazi Persecution and the Quest for Justice
    by Mary Fulbrook

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Trading in War: London's Maritime World in the Age of Cook and Nelson by Margarette Lincoln

    5

    Trading in War: London's Maritime World in the Age of Cook and Nelson
    by Margarette Lincoln

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Building Anglo-Saxon England by John Blair

    6

    Building Anglo-Saxon England
    by John Blair

The Best History Books: the 2019 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Diarmaid MacCulloch

Every year the Wolfson History Prize sets out to pick the very best history books written in the past year. Historian and Wolfson prize judge, Diarmaid MacCulloch, talks us through the wonderful books that made the 2019 shortlist: history books that are both great reads and serious scholarship.

    The best books on Auschwitz, recommended by Mary Fulbrook

  • Read
    The best books on Auschwitz - Auschwitz and After by Charlotte Delbo

    1

    Auschwitz and After
    by Charlotte Delbo

  • Read
    The best books on Auschwitz - Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl

    2

    Man's Search for Meaning
    by Viktor Frankl

  • Read
    The best books on Auschwitz - The Search: The Birkenau Boys by Gerhard Durlacher

    3

    The Search: The Birkenau Boys
    by Gerhard Durlacher

  • Read
    The best books on Auschwitz - The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law by Devin O Pendas

    4

    The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law
    by Devin O Pendas

  • Read
    The best books on Auschwitz - Underground in Berlin: A Young Woman's Extraordinary Tale of Survival in the Heart of Nazi Germany by Marie Jalowicz-Simon

    5

    Underground in Berlin: A Young Woman's Extraordinary Tale of Survival in the Heart of Nazi Germany
    by Marie Jalowicz-Simon

The best books on Auschwitz, recommended by Mary Fulbrook

Why were so few of the Nazis involved in running Auschwitz brought to justice? Why did some Germans during the Holocaust risk death to hide Jewish people from Nazi persecution, while others were passive bystanders? Historian Mary Fulbrook—author of Reckonings, which won the 2019 Wolfson History Prize—recommends essential reading for understanding Auschwitz and its aftermath.

    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Carole Hillenbrand

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Out of China: How the Chinese Ended the Era of Western Domination by Robert Bickers

    1

    Out of China: How the Chinese Ended the Era of Western Domination
    by Robert Bickers

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist - The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister’s Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine by Lindsey Fitzharris

    2

    The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister’s Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine
    by Lindsey Fitzharris

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist - A Deadly Legacy: German Jews and the Great War by Tim Grady

    3

    A Deadly Legacy: German Jews and the Great War
    by Tim Grady

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Black Tudors: The Untold Story by Miranda Kaufmann

    4

    Black Tudors: The Untold Story
    by Miranda Kaufmann

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Heretics and Believers: A History of the English Reformation by Peter Marshall

    5

    Heretics and Believers: A History of the English Reformation
    by Peter Marshall

  • Read
    The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist - Heligoland: Britain, Germany, and the Struggle for the North Sea by Jan Rüger

    6

    Heligoland: Britain, Germany, and the Struggle for the North Sea
    by Jan Rüger

The Best History Books: the 2018 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Carole Hillenbrand

Which were the best history books published this past year? Each year, the UK’s Wolfson Prize tries to sort through the hundreds of history books that are published to find outstanding books that are both important and readable. Wolfson Prize judge Carole Hillenbrand introduces the six books that made 2018 shortlist.

    The best books on The Reformation, recommended by Peter Marshall

  • Read
    The best books on The Reformation - Christianity In The West 1400-1700 by John Bossy

    1

    Christianity In The West 1400-1700
    by John Bossy

  • Read
    The best books on The Reformation - Salvation at Stake: Christian Martyrdom in Early Modern Europe by Brad Gregory

    2

    Salvation at Stake: Christian Martyrdom in Early Modern Europe
    by Brad Gregory

  • Read
    The best books on The Reformation - Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet by Lyndal Roper

    3

    Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet
    by Lyndal Roper

  • Read
    The best books on The Reformation - The Voices of Morebath: Reformation and Rebellion in an English Village by Eamon Duffy

    4

    The Voices of Morebath: Reformation and Rebellion in an English Village
    by Eamon Duffy

  • Read
    The best books on The Reformation - For The Sake Of Simple Folk: Popular Propaganda for the German Reformation by R W Scribner

    5

    For The Sake Of Simple Folk: Popular Propaganda for the German Reformation
    by R W Scribner

The best books on The Reformation, recommended by Peter Marshall

On October 31st 1517, Martin Luther, an unknown friar in an obscure town in eastern Germany may or may not have posted a list of complaints to the door of his local church. His actions would lead to what was later called ‘the Reformation’ — a grisly period in European history that nonetheless paved the way for a more tolerant and pluralistic society. Peter Marshall, one of the period’s leading scholars, talks us through the best books on the Reformation.

About

We ask experts to recommend the five best books in their subject and explain their selection in an interview.

This site has an archive of more than one thousand interviews, or five thousand book recommendations. We publish at least two new interviews per week.

Five Books participates in the Amazon Associate program and earns money from qualifying purchases.

Newsletter Contact us Privacy Policy Terms of Service

© Five Books 2021