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Every border tells a surprising story in this uncommonly enlightening history that will change the way you understand the world
Many lines on the map are worth far more than a thousand words, going well beyond merely marking divisions between nations. In this eye-opening investigation into the most remarkable points on the map, a single boundary might, upon closer inspection, reveal eons of history—from epic tales of conquest, treaties, and alliances to intimate, all-too-human stories of love, greed, and folly. Sometimes rooted in physical geography, sometimes entirely arbitrary, none of the lines we know today were inevitable, and all might have looked quite different if not for the intricate interplay of chance and ambition.
By listening to the stories these borders have to tell, we can learn how political identities are shaped, why the world’s boundaries look the way they do—and what they tell us about our world and ourselves. From the very first maps in Egypt to the Roman attempts to define the boundaries of civilization, from the profound shift in meaning of the Mason–Dixon line to the secret British-French agreement to carve up the Ottoman Empire during the First World War, and from the dark consequences of Detroit’s city limits to the intriguing reason why landlocked Bolivia still maintains a navy, this is a singular look at human history—told through its most spellbinding border stories.
Acclaim for the UK edition
“Totally fascinating and hugely entertaining. This book is a nerd’s paradise without borders—but with jokes. Jonn Elledge has such a gift for looking at complicated bits of the world, then telling you all about them in a way that feels not like a textbook, but like an incredibly fun and interesting conversation in the pub.”—Marina Hyde, author of What Just Happened?!
“The last decade in global politics is a reminder that history never moves in a straight line—but that hasn’t ever stopped politicians and powerbrokers from trying to draw them on the maps that hang on the walls of our classrooms and corridors of power. This addictive book from the ever-curious Jonn Elledge proves that and then some. Full of stories you thought you understood and those even the nerds in your life will never have known, this clever, confounding history will help you see the world from a new angle—if you can ever put it down.”—Patrick Maguire, author of Left Out
“By turns surprising, funny, bleak, ridiculous, or all four of those at once, A Brief History of the World in 47 Borders unknots some of the weird historical and geographical tangles we’ve managed to get ourselves into. And it’s timely too, if only because our preoccupation with drawing lines never seems to abate.”—Gideon Defoe, author of The Atlas of Extinct Countries
“A brilliant account of how these lines on a map shape lives, destinies, and economies. You’ll never look at a map in the same way again.”—Stephen Bush, Financial Times columnist
“This fascinating and surprising history of the world told through the simple lines people have drawn on maps. . . is extraordinary and unreservedly recommended.”—Midwest Book Review
“Somehow, Jonn Elledge turns geo-political history into a funny, fascinating, and revealing insight not only into the world today but into the frailty and determination of the human spirit. Packed with ‘I never knew that’ information (the sort that you read out to anyone in the room with you), A History of the World in 47 Borders shows us that history doesn’t repeat itself, but it plays out in weird ways right under our noses. He’s such a lovely writer. A delight from start to finish.”—Miranda Sawyer, author of Out of Time
“All borders are artificial and every nation is an invention. Jonn Elledge provides a witty grand tour of the fascinating, disturbing, and downright bizarre decisions that made the world what it is today.”—Dorian Lynskey, author of The Ministry of Truth
“This is brilliant fun, explaining the modern world in enjoyably bite-sized chapters. It’s exactly the book you hope it will be.”—Rob Hutton, author of The Illusionist
