 | Guns, Germs and Steel: A short history of everybody for the last 13,000 years by Jared M. Diamond
Buy new: £6.96 / Used from: £3.99 A brave and absorbing book; it may change the way you think about history forever. Topics also covered include biology, ecology and linguistics.
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 | Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World by Niall Ferguson
Buy new: £6.46 / Used from: £1.12 Prof. Niall Ferguson does an excellent job of telling the story of how Britain's Empire came about and how it unraveled during the 20th century. A genuine page turner.
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 | The Greatest Benefit to Mankind: A Medical History of Humanity by Roy Porter
Buy new: £11.95 / Used from: £6.89 A sad loss when Roy Porter died; but at least he has left a fine legacy and this is part of it.
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 | Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West (Arena Books) by Dee Brown
Buy new: £6.72 / Used from: £0.12 Extraordinary and moving.
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 | Austerity Britain, 1945-1951 (Tales of a New Jerusalem) by David Kynaston
Buy new: £5.98 / Used from: £2.45 Vividly tells the story of Britain in the 6 years post WW2. Big events & everyday living, with quotes from Mass Observation. A weighty tome that some may prefer as two volumes.
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 | A History of Britain: British Wars, 1603-1776 v.2: British Wars, 1603-1776 Vol 2 by Simon Schama
Buy used from: £6.98 Simon Schama's personal view of history - 2
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 | Empire of Plants: People and Plants That Changed the World by Toby Musgrave
The fascinating story of seven plants: tea, tobacco, sugar, opium, quinine, cotton & rubber. Worth trying to get your hands on a copy.
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 | The Slave Trade: History of the Atlantic Slave Trade, 1440-1870 by Hugh Thomas
Buy new: £12.77 / Used from: £8.50 I know over 900 pages is a big commitment, but there is no other single volume on the topic as good as this.
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 | Hubbub: Filth, Noise, and Stench in England, 1600-1770 by E Cockayne
Buy new: £17.64 / Used from: £9.99 A good holiday read. Don't forget a peg and ear plugs!
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 | The Little Ice Age: How Climate Made History 1300-1850 by Brian M. Fagan
Buy new: £6.92 / Used from: £5.05 A reminder that climate change has been around a long, long time!
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 | The Origins of the British: A Genetic Detective Story by Stephen Oppenheimer
Buy new: £7.11 / Used from: £4.50 I have only read an uncorrected proof edition. This book may shatter many preconceptions about the English, the Celts, and "Britishness" as a whole. Slightly technical in parts but don't be put off!
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 | The Wooden World: Anatomy of the Georgian Navy by N.A.M. Rodger
Buy used from: £14.27 Not everyone is interested in the Georgian Navy, but if you are this is the most readable book on the subject.
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 | A Social History of English Cricket by Derek Birley
Buy new: £7.17 / Used from: £0.24 The evolution of English cricket through several centuries. It connects what was happening in cricket with changes in the world outside. Award winning sports history book.
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 | Family Britain, 1951-1957 (Tales of a New Jerusalem) by David Kynaston
Buy new: £14.96 / Used from: £14.20 Another 6 years in the story of Britain, this time it's 1951-57. I believe that Orwell once wrote about Britain being a family.
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 | Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive by Jared Diamond
Buy new: £6.59 / Used from: £3.99 Another Jared Diamond text, but given the way the world is heading it might be time you read this!
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 | A History of Britain: At the Edge of the World? - 3000 BC-AD 1603 v.1: At the Edge of the World? - 3000 BC-AD 1603 Vol 1 by Simon Schama
Buy new: £9.97 / Used from: £3.48 Simon Schama's personal view of history - 1
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 | London: The Biography by Peter Ackroyd
Buy new: £9.56 / Used from: £7.00 Either this one or Roy Porter's 'London: A Social History'.
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