Books by GM Best
“As the title suggests, this book is about slavery and Bristol and the author is relentless in outlining all the connections between the two. “The slave trade was called the Guinea trade. That is commemorated in one of Bristol’s streets being called Guinea Street.” We learn that between 1730 and 1746 Bristol merchants were responsible for organising 40% of all British voyages to Africa, and overall was responsible for trading around half a million people. Although this was very much a collective effort, the author goes through which individuals should be particularly held to account, and which not so much, investigating whether it matters if you’re a slave trader, or just using slavery to get rich in some other way. He starts with a quick survey of the pre-18th century period and takes it to up to 2020 and the toppling of the statue of Edward Colston. “ Read more...
The Best Nonfiction Books of 2020
Sophie Roell, Journalist
Interviews where books by GM Best were recommended
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1
How to Live a Good Life: A Guide to Choosing Your Personal Philosophy
by Daniel Kaufman, Massimo Pigliucci & Skye C Cleary -
2
Transcendence: How Humans Evolved Through Fire, Language, Beauty, and Time
by Gaia Vince -
3
Slavery and Bristol
by GM Best -
4
War: How Conflict Shaped Us
by Margaret MacMillan -
5
A World Without Work: Technology, Automation, and How We Should Respond
by Daniel Susskind -
6
Twilight of Democracy
by Anne Applebaum
The Best Nonfiction Books of 2020, recommended by Sophie Roell
The Best Nonfiction Books of 2020, recommended by Sophie Roell
As the world went into lockdown early in 2020, many of us without frontline jobs and lucky enough not to fall sick with Covid-19 found more time to read than usual. The sudden change to a slower gear also left more room to reflect on the state of the world and our place as humans in it. Sophie Roell, editor of Five Books, takes us through her personal choice of the best nonfiction books of 2020.
