Ancient Greece’s legacy can be seen all around us, including in our political system — but many of us don’t know that much about it. Fortunately, we have someone who has devoted his life to studying this remote time and place to give us a reading list. Chris Pelling, Emeritus Regius Professor of Greek at Oxford, recommends his top five books on Ancient Greece.

How should we live our lives? How can we best help others? What is the meaning of religious belief? The philosopher Nigel Warburton introduces us to some of the best philosophy books published in 2017.

It’s no longer enough for military history to be just about battles told from the the winning side. One of the great military historians of our time, Hew Strachan, talks us through what makes a great military history.

The EU started life as a small trading bloc but now spans 28 (soon to be 27) countries with half a billion people. What can be done to help its institutions catch up with the new reality? Giles Merritt, author of Slippery Slope: Brexit and Europe’s Troubled Future, has some ideas.

You don’t have to be a professional arachnologist to study and get excited about spiders—nor do you need to travel away from home. The author of Britain’s Spiders, Lawrence Bee, recommends all the books you need to become an amateur arachnologist.

With an array of intriguing and accessible books coming out, there’s no excuse not to be reading about economics. The ‘Enlightened Economist,’ Diane Coyle, recommends the best economics books that hit the shelves this past year.

Without the cultivation of the life of the mind, you will never understand anything about your own life or the world that we live in, says cultural critic Rob Riemen. To get you started for the new year, he recommends the best humanist books (that he read) published in 2017.    

To brand is human, says practitioner and professor Robert Jones. He recommends the five best books on branding.

Free speech is the bedrock of a healthy society, but how do we deal with the torrents of horrible comments—and worse—we see on the internet every day? Timothy Garton Ash, author of Free Speech: Ten Principles for A Connected World, outlines a plan for navigating the complexities and recommends the best books to help us think about free speech.

When we see a rainbow or another beautiful spectacle in nature, what is that sense of wonder we are filled with? How can we nurture it? Caspar Henderson, author of A New Map of Wonders (and Five Books science and environment editor) recommends the best books to help us develop our sense of wonder.

Old age. We all hope to reach it, but there are big differences between a ‘good’ old age and one beset by dementia or Alzheimer’s. Neuroscientist and science writer, Kathleen Taylor, talks us through the latest science on ageing and the literary works that can give us a clearer picture of what it’s all about.

At school, children get tested a lot. How do those tests impact their learning? How can tests be made fairer? Educational psychologist Jacqueline Leighton introduces the best books in the evolving field of educational testing.

Nearly everyone has had to sit a standardised test at some point in their lives and felt the grip it might hold over their future—and not always in a good way. André Rupp, research director at ETS, the nonprofit company that runs some of the most well-known tests, talks us through what’s going on at the forefront of research and the new kinds of tests that are being developed.

Half a millennium ago this month, 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.

Nearly every aspect of our life is determined by economics, and yet it’s easy to go through life understanding very little about it. Author and columnist Tim Harford (aka the ‘Undercover Economist’) introduces the best books to get you thinking like an economist.

Philosophy is sometimes assumed to be a dry, academic subject but it also has much to say about how we live, love and relate to each other. Emrys Westacott chooses the best books on philosophy and everyday living.

What kind of books should we read to get a broader sense of history? Peter Frankopan,  professor of global history at Oxford University, talks us through the books that inspired him.

When, in 1688, William of Orange came from Holland to take the English throne was it a foreign invasion or a revolution from within? Yale historian, Steven Pincus, talks us through the conflicting views on the Glorious Revolution and argues for new perspective.

The US, the UK and many other countries have become far less equal over the past 30 years. The MIT economics professor says it’s important we understand how and why this happened, and what it means for our societies.

How can one get to grips with a subject as huge as the history of Christianity, a 3000 year-old religion with adherents in every corner of the globe? The popular and distinguished Oxford historian, Diarmaid MacCulloch, recommends books that will help you make a start.

What is historical fiction? Does it have to be historically accurate? Zimbabwean novelist Tendai Huchu talks us through five important examples of historical novels, including three set in Africa.

If you’re going to look at the past, you have to understand the people who were living there and see the world through their eyes, says historian and Renaissance specialist Kenneth Bartlett. He explains that while Machiavelli is much misunderstood and maligned, Donald Trump is a Machiavellian in the truest sense of the word. He picks the best books of the Italian Renaissance.

Communicating physics is difficult, partly because the underlying ideas can be hard to grasp, even for experts. Popular science writer, Jim Baggott, talks us through some of his favourite physics books.

As is the norm in many countries with proportional representation, the United Kingdom’s government now finds itself depending on a small political party to stay in power. Who are the Irish unionists? What is the ideology that guides them? Historian and pro-vice principal of Glasgow University, Murray Pittock, recommends the best books to read to better understand Irish unionism.

Humanist ideas are not a recent phenomenon, but have been around for millennia, says Andrew Copson, chief executive of Humanists UK. He explains why it’s worth making a positive choice to be a humanist and recommends a great humanist reading list.

Distinguished economic historian, Peter Temin, talks us through some of his favourite books. His own latest book, The Vanishing Middle Class, charts America's regression towards a pre-industrial society: with many poor, a few rich, and not much in between.

In the 20th century, Germany suffered defeat in two world wars and withstood two kinds of dictatorship. Yet today it is Europe’s strongest economy. Hester Vaizey, fellow of Clare College, Cambridge, and author of Born in the GDR, selects five brilliant books on a tumultuous century.

Much as some Brexiteers like to pretend it isn’t, England is not only in Europe, but has been, in various centuries and in various ways, at the very heart of it. The former Deputy Prime Minister of the UK, Nick Clegg, discusses his favourite European novels and the founding text of his own political ideology, liberalism.

Why did Brexit happen? What does the future hold for Britain outside the European Union? Can trade economists help? The economist and former head of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, a non-partisan think tank, recommends the best books (and one blogpost) on Brexit.

Heroes are universal to human culture and, in Christian culture, they manifested themselves as saints. Historian Simon Yarrow recommends the best books to understand the saints, from their widespread appearance in late antiquity to their continuing influence in modern America.

When dealing with epidemics, science does not have all the answers and relying on a new miracle drug is not always the solution. We must also learn the lessons of history, argues the veteran doctor of the HIV/Aids epidemic, Arthur Ammann. He picks the best books on ‘plagues.’

Texts about military strategy take us back into the mists of time but what it is, and what the nature of war is, remains hotly debated. Antulio Echevarria II of the US Army War College talks us through key books, both old and new, on military strategy.

Churchill hailed the Allied victory at the Battle of El Alamein as “the end of the beginning” for Hitler in World War II. But in that very same speech, he downplayed its significance. Historian Simon Ball separates clichés from facts and chooses the best of the vast number of books written about El Alamein, the Desert War and World War II in general.

The Vikings discovered America and traded slaves in Baghdad. They sometimes buried their dead in ships, but probably did not burn them. And they did not wear horned helmets. Historian Eleanor Barraclough separates myth from reality and recommends books on the medieval Norse pillagers who have fascinated everyone from Hollywood to Hitler.

The failure of the Stuarts to win back the English or Scottish throne changed the course of history, enabling the buildup of a highly centralized British state and, possibly, America’s war for independence. Murray Pittock chooses the best books on Jacobitism, the 18th century phenomenon that nearly overthrew the British government.

After a tumultuous year in politics, ‘populism’ is on everybody’s lips. But what is it? Is it good or bad for democracy? How is it that populist movements often have superrich leaders? Political scientist and longtime populism observer Cas Mudde recommends the best books on populism.

He was the most popular novelist of the Victorian era, a convivial family man who always championed the underdog. But he also harboured dark secrets that only came out after his death. Jenny Hartley recommends the best books by and about the phenomenon that was and is Charles Dickens.

Game theory is marketed as a system you can apply to any sphere of life, but does it really have much to offer in terms of practical application? The distinguished game theorist, Ariel Rubinstein, suggests not. He recommends the best books on game theory.

There is much left to be understood about how economies work, but an increasing number of popular books means you no longer have to be a professional economist to get a good grasp of the subject. The distinguished British economist, Diane Coyle, recommends this year’s best economics books.

Which are the best books on American history? Brent Glass, Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, the world’s largest museum devoted to telling the story of America, chooses five standout books in a crowded field.

Stephanie Flanders, chair of this year’s Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, talks us through some of the best nonfiction books of 2016.

What role did culture play in human evolution? Why did human brains get so big so quickly? When and why did inequality first emerge in human society? Harvard professor and author Joe Henrich picks some of the best books for understanding ‘cultural evolution.’

It’s a dictionary that seeks to document any word that exists—or ever existed—in the English language and track its evolution over time. Lexicographer Peter Gilliver chooses books to help understand the enormous undertaking that is the Oxford English Dictionary.

We can all be more aware of our surroundings and our decision-making process, says the professor of psychology and behavioural economics, Dan Ariely. He recommends five books to help us maximise our prosperity and well-being.

Most people are illiterate when it comes to food, their views based on a combination of personal beliefs, semi-truths and not fully substantiated scientific claims. Dutch food and agricultural scientist, and author, Louise Fresco, picks five books to help us better understand the food we eat.