Land

From the bestselling author Simon Winchester, a human history of land around the world: who mapped it, owned it, stole it, cared for it, fought for it and gave it back. In 1889, thousands of hopeful people raced southward from the Kansas state line and westward from the Arkansas boundary to stake claims on the thousands of acres of unclaimed pastures and meadows. Across the twentieth century, water was dammed and drained in Holland so that a new province, Flevoland, rose up, unchartered and requiring new thinking. In 1850, California legislated the theft of land from Native Americans. An apology came in 2019 from the governor, but what of the call for reparations or return? What of government confiscation of land in India, or questions of fairness when it comes to New Zealand’s Maori population and the legacy of settlers? The ownership of land has always been complicated, opaque, and more than a little anarchic when viewed from the outside. In this book, Simon Winchester explores the the stewardship of land, the ways it is delineated and changes hands, the great disputes, and the questions of restoration – particularly in the light of climate change and colonialist reparation. A global study, this is an exquisite exploration of what the ownership of land might really mean – not in dry-as-dust legal terms, but for the people who live on it.

O'Flaherty's thirteenth novel is about the Irish land uprisings during the time of Parnell.Set in Co. Mayo during the early days of the 19th century Land War, this mighty epic of the Irish Land and People tell of the struggles between the British landlords and the Irish tenantry.

O'Flaherty's thirteenth novel is about the Irish land uprisings during the time of Parnell.Set in Co. Mayo during the early days of the 19th century Land War, this mighty epic of the Irish Land and People tell of the struggles between the British landlords and the Irish tenantry.

'You will never understand how the land remembers, how deep the roots grow' A spellbinding story of separation, longing, recovery and survival as a family makes a new home in the aftermath of tragedy. 'A heart-bursting story of resilience and love' Louise Kennedy 'Haunting and elemental' Ferdia Lennon 'Darkly magical. A brilliant and powerful novel' Alice Winn 'This beautiful book swallowed me whole' Charlotte McConaghy 'A work of towering imagination and empathy' Roisín O'Donnell 'As visceral as a novel can get' Yael van der Wouden On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland. The year is 1865, and in a country not long since ravaged and emptied by the Great Hunger, the task is not an easy one. Tomás, however, is determined that his maps will be a record of the disaster. The British soldiers in charge are due to arrive any day, expecting the work to be completed, but Tomás is sent off course by an unsettling encounter in a copse. His life, and those of his family, will never be the same again. Liam is terrified by the sudden change in his taciturn father. What was it that caused such cracks to open in Tomás and how is Liam, aged only ten, going to finish the mapping, and get them both home? Land is a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.

'You will never understand how the land remembers, how deep the roots grow' A spellbinding story of separation, longing, recovery and survival as a family makes a new home in the aftermath of tragedy. 'A heart-bursting story of resilience and love' Louise Kennedy 'Haunting and elemental' Ferdia Lennon 'Darkly magical. A brilliant and powerful novel' Alice Winn 'This beautiful book swallowed me whole' Charlotte McConaghy 'A work of towering imagination and empathy' Roisín O'Donnell 'As visceral as a novel can get' Yael van der Wouden On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland. The year is 1865, and in a country not long since ravaged and emptied by the Great Hunger, the task is not an easy one. Tomás, however, is determined that his maps will be a record of the disaster. The British soldiers in charge are due to arrive any day, expecting the work to be completed, but Tomás is sent off course by an unsettling encounter in a copse. His life, and those of his family, will never be the same again. Liam is terrified by the sudden change in his taciturn father. What was it that caused such cracks to open in Tomás and how is Liam, aged only ten, going to finish the mapping, and get them both home? Land is a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.

"In many ways, Land combines bits and pieces of many of Winchester's previous books into a satisfying, globe-trotting whole. . . . Winchester is, once again, a consummate guide."--Boston Globe The author of The Professor and the Madman, The Map That Changed the World, and The Perfectionists explores the notion of property--bought, earned, or received; in Europe, Africa, North America, or the South Pacific--through human history, how it has shaped us and what it will mean for our future. Land --whether meadow or mountainside, desert or peat bog, parkland or pasture, suburb or city--is central to our existence. It quite literally underlies and underpins everything. Employing the keen intellect, insatiable curiosity, and narrative verve that are the foundations of his previous bestselling works, Simon Winchester examines the fascinating human history of what we human beings are doing--and have done--with the billions of acres that together make up the solid surface of our planet. Land: How the Hunger for Ownership Shaped the Modern World examines in depth the complex topic of land ownership: how we acquire land, how we steward it, how and why we fight over it, and finally, how we can, and on occasion do, come to share it. Ultimately, Winchester confronts the essential questions of property rights: who actually owns the world's land--and why does it matter? A Globe-Trotting World History: Follow the story of property from Europe and Africa to North America and the South Pacific, exploring how our relationship with the ground beneath our feet has shaped nations and cultures. Environmental Stewardship: Go beyond acquisition to explore how we care for the land we own, the challenges of stewardship, and the profound consequences of our choices. A Geopolitical Perspective: Investigate why we fight over territory, from ancient disputes to modern conflicts, and what these battles reveal about our deepest instincts. Narrative Nonfiction at its Finest: Written with the keen intellect and insatiable curiosity that made Simon Winchester a bestselling author, this book makes complex history feel like a gripping story.

"In many ways, Land combines bits and pieces of many of Winchester's previous books into a satisfying, globe-trotting whole. . . . Winchester is, once again, a consummate guide."--Boston Globe The author of The Professor and the Madman, The Map That Changed the World, and The Perfectionists explores the notion of property--bought, earned, or received; in Europe, Africa, North America, or the South Pacific--through human history, how it has shaped us and what it will mean for our future. Land --whether meadow or mountainside, desert or peat bog, parkland or pasture, suburb or city--is central to our existence. It quite literally underlies and underpins everything. Employing the keen intellect, insatiable curiosity, and narrative verve that are the foundations of his previous bestselling works, Simon Winchester examines the fascinating human history of what we human beings are doing--and have done--with the billions of acres that together make up the solid surface of our planet. Land: How the Hunger for Ownership Shaped the Modern World examines in depth the complex topic of land ownership: how we acquire land, how we steward it, how and why we fight over it, and finally, how we can, and on occasion do, come to share it. Ultimately, Winchester confronts the essential questions of property rights: who actually owns the world's land--and why does it matter? A Globe-Trotting World History: Follow the story of property from Europe and Africa to North America and the South Pacific, exploring how our relationship with the ground beneath our feet has shaped nations and cultures. Environmental Stewardship: Go beyond acquisition to explore how we care for the land we own, the challenges of stewardship, and the profound consequences of our choices. A Geopolitical Perspective: Investigate why we fight over territory, from ancient disputes to modern conflicts, and what these battles reveal about our deepest instincts. Narrative Nonfiction at its Finest: Written with the keen intellect and insatiable curiosity that made Simon Winchester a bestselling author, this book makes complex history feel like a gripping story.

'You will never understand how the land remembers, how deep the roots grow' A spellbinding story of separation, longing, recovery and survival as a family makes a new home in the aftermath of tragedy. 'A heart-bursting story of resilience and love' Louise Kennedy 'Haunting and elemental' Ferdia Lennon 'Darkly magical. A brilliant and powerful novel' Alice Winn 'This beautiful book swallowed me whole' Charlotte McConaghy 'A work of towering imagination and empathy' Roisín O'Donnell 'As visceral as a novel can get' Yael van der Wouden On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland. The year is 1865, and in a country not long since ravaged and emptied by the Great Hunger, the task is not an easy one. Tomás, however, is determined that his maps will be a record of the disaster. The British soldiers in charge are due to arrive any day, expecting the work to be completed, but Tomás is sent off course by an unsettling encounter in a copse. His life, and those of his family, will never be the same again. Liam is terrified by the sudden change in his taciturn father. What was it that caused such cracks to open in Tomás and how is Liam, aged only ten, going to finish the mapping, and get them both home? Land is a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.

'You will never understand how the land remembers, how deep the roots grow' A spellbinding story of separation, longing, recovery and survival as a family makes a new home in the aftermath of tragedy. 'A heart-bursting story of resilience and love' Louise Kennedy 'Haunting and elemental' Ferdia Lennon 'Darkly magical. A brilliant and powerful novel' Alice Winn 'This beautiful book swallowed me whole' Charlotte McConaghy 'A work of towering imagination and empathy' Roisín O'Donnell 'As visceral as a novel can get' Yael van der Wouden On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland. The year is 1865, and in a country not long since ravaged and emptied by the Great Hunger, the task is not an easy one. Tomás, however, is determined that his maps will be a record of the disaster. The British soldiers in charge are due to arrive any day, expecting the work to be completed, but Tomás is sent off course by an unsettling encounter in a copse. His life, and those of his family, will never be the same again. Liam is terrified by the sudden change in his taciturn father. What was it that caused such cracks to open in Tomás and how is Liam, aged only ten, going to finish the mapping, and get them both home? Land is a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.