Harry Mount Books

A fascinating and witty tour of Britain's architectural history from the bestselling author of AMO, AMAS, AMAT AND ALL THAT - out now in paperback

A return to the wit and wisdom of Boris Johnson – Brexiteer, Foreign Secretary, Prime Minister. New and updated edition. 2019 – the year that Boris took on the 'lingering gloomadon-poppers', pledged to steer the UK between the 'Scylla and Charybdis of Corbyn and Farage' and into the calmer waters of political freedom. Of course there was always bound to be 'a bit of plaster coming off the ceilings of Europe's Chanceries'. Harry Mount has updated his edited collection of the Prime Minister's wit and wisdom with three new chapters dealing with Boris's time as Brexiteer-in-chief; Foreign Secretary and 'On the Threshold of Downing Street'. He describes Boris's Brexit campaign, his leadership breakdown in 2016, his ups and downs as Foreign Secretary, his time outside the political establishment, his turbulent private life and how Boris felt it was his manifest destiny to become the prime minister. So buckle up for a riotous tour of the million-pound NHS funder, golden wonder, pro-having, pro-eating blond behemoth. This is The Wit and Wisdom of Boris Johnson.

An expose of what goes on behind the ancient walls of London's inns of court, Harry Mount's account of his hellish year as a "pupil" - a trainee barrister in The Temple - dares to reveal the grim secrets of one of England's most archaic institutions.

"There are so many Latin phrases in everyday use that often we use them without understanding the background and context within which they were actually used. 'Carpe diem'; 'Stet'; 'Memento mori'; 'Et tu Brute' - examples would fill a book. And often these phrases are also used in English translation: 'The die is cast'; 'crossing the Rubicon'; 'Rome was not built in a day'. Many of these phrases are humorous, but they are also a rich source of wisdom: the wisdom of the ancients. The chapters of this book include: Latin for Gardeners, the Great Latin Love Poets, Cicero on How to Grow Old Gracefully and Seneca's Stoic Guide to Life. Each chapter starts with a quotation and is lightly sprinkled with many more, with accompanying English translations and entertaining cartoons and illustrations dotted throughout. The background to each quotation is explained so that the context is fully understood. Who crossed the Rubicon and why, for example? At a time of great political and social turbulence, more and more people are turning back to ancient wisdom as a guide to life. Here they are in touch with two classical scholars of distinction who have the common touch and can help make Latin accessible to all, not to mention fun!"-- From Amazon

"If you know someone who missed out on Latin at school and wants to live a happier life, you could do no better than give them Harry Mount's entertainingly educative Latin primer." Know Latin and - mirabile dictu - you will know Wilfred Owen's misery, Catullus's aching heart and the comedy of a thousand bachelor schoolmasters.

"In this fascinating and witty book, Harry Mount explains how our national characteristics - our sense of humour, our hobbies, our favourite foods and our behaviour with the opposite sex - are all defined by our nation's extraordinary geography, geology, climate and weather. You will learn how we would be as freezing cold as Siberia without the Gulf Stream; why we drive on the left-hand side of the road; why the Midlands became the home of the British curry. It identifies the materials that make England, too: the faint pink Aberdeen granite of kerbstones; that precise English mix of air temperature, smell and light that hits you the moment you touch down at Heathrow." -- Provided by publisher

Harry Mount's Odyssey: Ancient Greece in the Footsteps of Odysseus is a journey round Greece inspired by the heroes, locations and tales of the Odyssey and tracing ancient Greek civilization at its height. Architecture, art, sculpture, economics, mathematics, science, metaphysics, comedy, tragedy, drama and epic poetry were all devised and perfected by the Greeks. Of the four classical orders of architecture, three were invented by the Greeks and the fourth, the only one the Romans could come up with, was a combination of two of the former.The powerful ghost of ancient Greece still lingers on in the popular mind as the first great civilization and one of the most influential in the creation of modern thought. It is the starting block of Western European civilization. In his new Odyssey, eminent writer Harry Mount tells the story of ancient Greece while on the trail of its greatest son, Odysseus. In the charming, anecdotal style of his bestselling Amo, Amas, Amat and All That, Harry visits Troy, still looming over the plain where Achilles dragged Hector's body through the dust, and attempts to swim the Hellespont, in emulation of Lord Byron and the doomed Greek lover, Leander. Whether in Odysseus's kingdom on Ithaca, Homer's birthplace of Chios or the Minotaur's lair on Crete, Mount brings the Odyssey - and ancient Greece - back to life.

The inside story of the madness that ensued following the UK's vote to leave the European Union. This is the only book that combines close, personal knowledge of all the main combatants with a blow-by-blow account of the biggest act of political hara-kiri in British history.

The Top Ten Sunday Times Bestseller How to put a little Latin in your life, from bestselling author and journalist Harry Mount

Harry Mount's exploration of English identity is filled with astonishing facts and captivating stories. For instance, the narrowness of English train seats traces back to the Romans, as early Victorian trains were built to match horse-drawn wagons that fit the ruts left by Roman chariots. This witty examination reveals how national characteristics—humor, hobbies, favorite foods, and social behaviors—are shaped by England's unique geography, geology, climate, and weather. Readers will discover why the Gulf Stream prevents England from being as frigid as Siberia, the rationale behind driving on the left, and how the Midlands became the heart of British curry. The book also highlights the materials that define England, from the faint pink granite of kerbstones to the distinctive air and light that greet travelers at Heathrow. Praised for its readability and depth, Mount’s work is described as illuminating, intelligent, and charmingly fact-stuffed. An accomplished author and journalist, Mount has written extensively, including on Latin and British architecture, and has a background in classics and history from Oxford. He currently resides in north London.