Our Book of the Month for October is Myths of Geography: Eight Ways We Get the World Wrong by Paul Richardson.
Is geography really destiny? Our maps may no longer be stalked by dragons and monsters, but our perceptions of the world are still shaped by geographic myths. Myths like Europe being the centre of the world. Or that border walls are the solution to migration. Or that Russia is predestined to threaten its neighbours.
In his punchy and authoritative new book, Paul Richardson challenges recent popular accounts of geographical determinism and shows that how we see the world represented often isn’t how it really is – that the map is not the territory.
Along the way we visit some remarkable places: Iceland’s Thingvellir National Park, where you can
swim between two continents; Bir Tawil in North Africa, one of the world’s only territories not claimed by any country; and we follow the first train that ran across Eurasia between Yiwu in east China and Barking in east London. Written with verve and full of quotable facts, Myths of Geography is a book that will turn your world upside down.
‘Insightful, entertaining and will force you to think differently. It’s a much-needed exploration of the realities of the world around us.’ – Dipo Faloyin, author of Africa is Not a Country
‘Places political geography at the heart of how we understand the challenges of the twenty-first century. A bracing and important book.’ – Jerry Brotton, author of Four Points of the Compass
‘In detailed and fervid prose, Paul Richardson dismantles eight myths we have come to tell ourselves about geography … After reading, no news report, no map, no journey will appear quite the same again.’ – David Rooney, author of About Time
Paul Richardson is Associate Professor in Human Geography at the University of Birmingham in the UK. He is an established scholar in the field of Geography and Russian Studies, and the former President of the Association for Borderland Studies. He has previously held academic positions at Hokkaido University in Japan and the Far Eastern Federal University in Russia. Myths of Geography is his first trade book.
Myths of Geography: Eight Ways We Get the World Wrong is available now for £22