Overview

A ground-breaking exploration of how British empire has shaped the world we live in today from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Empireland 2.6 billion people are inhabitants of former British colonies. The empire's influence upon the quarter of the planet it occupied, and its gravitational influence upon the world outside it, has been profound- from the spread of Christianity by missionaries to nearly 1 in 3 driving on the left side of the road, and even shaping the origins of international law. Yet Britain's idea of its imperial history and the world's experience of it are two very different things. -- In Empireworld, award-winning author and journalist, Sathnam Sanghera extends his examination of British imperial legacies beyond Britain. Travelling the globe to trace its international legacies - from Barbados and Mauritius to India and Nigeria and beyond - Sanghera demonstrates just how deeply British imperialism is baked into our world. And why it's time Britain was finally honest with itself about empire.

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9780241691809

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Reviews

A remarkable and important work - one that is finely judged, beautifully written and not just a welcome corrective but a book for our times. This is essential reading. * Peter Frankopan * To read Sathnam Sanghera is to understand the world anew. Vanishingly few writers can lay claim to his breadth of talent. Not only does Empireworld engage in deep research and historical re-analysis, it is also a profoundly moving work of personal insight, nuance, intelligence and compassion, elevated on every page by the sheer quality of his writing. Empireworld is a crucial addition to our understanding of the contradictions and legacies of colonial rule but it is also a book that helps us become better humans. I am in awe of Sanghera for writing it. * Elizabeth Day * Once again, Sathnam Sanghera has advanced the civil conversation we all need to have about empire and its legacies * Jonathan Coe * This is a ground-breaking and eye-opening book, that everyone should read. Written with wit, nuance and academic rigour; it is a long overdue look at Empire and its effect on the world. * Kavita Puri * Essential and absorbing reading for those not afraid to encounter diligently researched, complex, and often contradictory truths about colonial rule and its legacies * Professor Alan Lester *

A remarkable and important work - one that is finely judged, beautifully written and not just a welcome corrective but a book for our times. This is essential reading * Peter Frankopan * An absolute masterpiece * James O'Brien * If you thought Empireland was beautifully written – this follow up takes you even further – on an extraordinary, entertaining and eye-opening journey around the globe * Sadiq Khan * This is history with a personal touch . . . today’s history students will have much to ponder . . . there are plenty of new ideas, argued with passion. If Britain wants to move forward as a key player on the world stage, Sanghera demonstrates, we must take time to understand our past — all warts, and all wonders, considered -- Alice Loxton * The Sunday Times * Once again, Sathnam Sanghera has advanced the civil conversation we all need to have about empire and its legacies * Jonathan Coe * Another smart, compassionate and essential book about the legacy of Empire and our braided histories * Meera Syal * Refined, subtle, accurate, analytical, witty, engaging, and questioning . . . this book puts Sanghera in the firmament of great imperial historians. Furthermore, his lucid and accessible writing reaches out to those with closed minds. For that he deserves all the accolades he is sure to get -- Yasmin Alibhai-Brown * The i * This brave, painful, urgent and timely book, is not, in other words, about 'goodies' or 'baddies'. It is about telling the truth about a nation’s imperial past in all its ambiguity — and creating dialogue between everyone who lays claim to Britishness -- Jerry Brotton * The Financial Times * Engages in deep research and historical re-analysis . . . also a profoundly moving work of personal insight, nuance, intelligence and compassion. Empireworld is a crucial addition to our understanding of the contradictions and legacies of colonial rule * Elizabeth Day * This is a ground-breaking and eye-opening book, that everyone should read. Written with wit, nuance and academic rigour; it is a long overdue look at Empire and its effect on the world * Kavita Puri * Essential and absorbing reading for those not afraid to encounter diligently researched, complex, and often contradictory truths about colonial rule and its legacies * Professor Alan Lester * His writing on empire and colonialism will change how you understand modern Britain * Bella Mackie * One of my favourite writers and Empireworld is a must read if you want to understand the world -- Greg James * BBC Radio * This is history a historian can recognise: a field that demands close study and resists easy generalisation or pat judgments . . . Sanghera’s book admirably marches us into the weeds of peer-reviewed scholarly work -- Quinn Slobodian * The New Statesman * A powerful sequel * The Irish Independent * Empireworld is an ambitious and valuable conversation starter for a long overdue reckoning with Britain’s colonial past * The Tablet *

Author Information

Sathnam Sanghera was born to Punjabi immigrant parents in Wolverhampton in 1976. He entered the education system unable to speak English but went on to graduate from Christ's College, Cambridge with a first class degree in English Language and Literature. He has been shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards twice, for his memoir The Boy With The Topknot and his novel Marriage Material. Empireland has been longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, was named a Book of the Year at the National Book Awards of 2022, and inspired both the Channel 4 series Empire State of Mind and Sanghera's children's book about the British empire Stolen History. He lives in London.

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