Masters of Warfare - Fifty Underrated Military Commanders from Classical Antiquity to the Cold War

Masters of Warfare - Fifty Underrated Military Commanders from Classical

Antiquity to the Cold War written by Eric G. L. Pinzelli and published by

Pen & Sword Books - £25 - Hardback - Pages 336

In Masters of Warfare, Eric G. L. Pinzelli presents a selection of fifty commanders whose

military achievements, skill or historical impact he believes to be underrated by modern

opinion. He specifically does not include the household names (the ‘Gods of War’ as he

calls them) such as Alexander, Julius Caesar, Wellington, Napoléon, Rommel or Patton

that have been covered in countless biographies.

Those chosen come from every period of recorded military history from the sixth century BC to the Vietnam War. The selection rectifies the European/US bias of many such surveys with Asian entries such as Bai Qi (Chinese), Attila (Hunnic), Subotai (Mongol), Ieyasu Tokugawa (Japanese) and Võ Nguyên Giáp (Vietnamese). Naval commanders are also represented by the likes of Khayr al-Dīn Barbarossa, Francis Drake and Michiel de Ruyter.

These 50 “Masters of War” are presented in a chronological order easy to follow, with a concise overview of their life and career. Altogether they present a fascinating survey of the developments and continuities in the art of command, but most importantly their contribution to the evolution of weaponry, tactic and strategy through the ages.

This book takes a look at military commanders throughout time, men who excelled at strategy, tactics and leadership. The author Pinzelli also openly admits that he has tried to look at the lesser leaders in war, so not your Caesar, Napoleon or Wellington. Then added to that, the book has tried not to have a western bias but concentrate more on an Asian or Eastern theme. Now my knowledge of the Eastern theatre of war isn’t the best yet, but I did enjoy learning more about various military leaders I hadn’t heard of before. So yes, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and I will use this as a good reference book. I suppose my only disappointment was that I would like to see a balanced book from all battles so we could clearly see who the real top military leaders were. A really good book, one for the military enthusiasts.

Style From the Nile Egyptomania in Fashion

Style From the Nile Egyptomania in Fashion written by Isabella Campagnol

and published by Pen & Sword Books - £25.00 - Hardback - Pages 248

In November 1922, the combined efforts of Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon

revealed to the world the 'wonderful things' buried in Tutankhamen’s tomb, Egypt

had already been a source for new trends in fashion for quite some time: in the

early 19th century, for example, Napoleon’s Egyptian campaign contributed to

the popularization of Kashmir shawls, while the inauguration of the Suez Canal

in 1869 stimulated 'Egyptianizing' trends in gowns, jewellery and textiles.

Post-1922, a veritable Egyptomania craze invested all artistic fields, quickly becoming a dominant Art Deco motif: “flapper-style” dresses were elaborately embroidered with beaded “Egyptian” patterns, evening bags were decorated with hieroglyphics, brooches nonchalantly sported ancient scarabs, and the sleek black bobs favoured by the admired icons of the time, Louise Brooks and Clara Bow, looked up to the fabled Egyptian beauty of Nefertiti and Cleopatra.

Egyptomania often resurfaces in 21st-century fashion as well: the awe-inspiring John Galliano’s designs for Dior Spring-Summer 2004 brought back pharaonic crowns in lieu of headdresses in a triumph of gold-encrusted creations, the ancient practice of mummification was referenced by Iris van Herpen’s Fall 2009 collection and Egyptian vibes resonated in Chanel's Métiers d’Art 2018/2019 collection.

Through the combination of rigorous fashion history research, intriguing images and well-informed, but approachable, writing, Style from the Nile offers a comprehensive overview of a fascinating phenomenon that, to this day, continues to have a mesmerizing appeal.

I must apologise because I don’t remember offering to review this book, I must have pressed the wrong button or something. But despite that, I thought it was something different for me so I read it, and what a surprising and very good read it was. The book basically shows how the Egyptian world, culture and fashion has influenced lots of this through time but especially fashion. I’ve always seen Egyptian fashion as very classical and when you look back through fashion you can see the various elements that come through or that are still influencing fashion today, primarily with the influence of Cleopatra. But it’s been very clever to read how it has come up through all these centuries, and in my opinion, it really showed out well in the 1920s to 30s.

I actually found his book very fascinating and I’ve learnt a lot from it. The research and effort that has gone into the writing and knowledge is impressive and really comes out in the text. The author Campagnol has done a great job. The book is also supported by some great photography and pictures. An excellent book, ideal for anyone interested in this part of the fashion world whether you are a beginner or an expert in the fashion world.

Traditional Dyeing

Traditional Dyeing written by Lynn Huggins-Cooper and published

by Pen & Sword Books - £12.99 - Softcover - Pages 176

This book offers a whistle-stop guide to the history of dyeing. The story begins in

prehistory when people discovered and used the glory of colours created by earth

pigments, plants and more. We move through history from the medieval dye gardens

to the horrors of chemical dyes from the Victorian era that damaged watercourses,

created pollution and caused terrible sickness and untold deaths. Today, along with

safe commercial dyes, modern ‘cottage industries’ are once more the leaders in the

innovative use of dye plants.

The second part of the book brings us up to date, via interviews with modern-day artisans. These dye workers generously allowed the author access to their studios and creative lives and discussed the way they use and adapt traditional methods, techniques and tools for the twenty-first century. Photos of their craft offer a unique window into the world of dyes.

Finally, if you are inspired to try your hand at this fascinating craft, the book has a section that explains simple eco-dyeing and planning your own dye garden. It also has a resources section containing a valuable list of suppliers of plants, seeds, dyes, tools and materials, as well as information about training courses, useful websites and more – everything you need to get started!

I would like to say a thank you to Pen & Sword Books for allowing me to review this book, or should I say mostly my wife who works as a freelance crafter in many skills. She has been looking at getting into producing wools and spinning etc, so this has come along at a timely period for her. These are mostly her opinions with mine thrown in too, the book is excellent in that it comes across as very clear, concise and very informative. The book goes through the history of traditional dyeing such as medieval, Georgian, Victorian and modern, this historical knowledge was great as it gives you the background to the craft and this really encourages to learn more and more. My wife really liked the info from the artisan crafters and the links are going to help her pursue this craft much further. A really good and informative book for anyone wanting to get into this craft as a business or for pleasure, I’m now having to do more planting now.