Join us

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Newsletter

Gideon Defoe

An Atlas of Extinct Countries

Cover: An Atlas of Extinct Countries - Gideon Defoe

Gideon Defoe

An Atlas of Extinct Countries

2022, pp. 256, Paperback
ISBN: 9781609457662
Region: Britain
Book collection: Europa Compass
Available as ebook Available as ebook Available as ebook
$ 17.95
READ NOW READ NOW READ NOW

The book

Prisoners of Geography meets Bill Bryson: a funny, fascinating, beautifully illustrated – and timely – history of countries that, for myriad and often ludicrous reasons, no longer exist.

“Countries are just daft stories we tell each other. They’re all equally implausible once you get up close.”

Countries die. Sometimes it’s murder, sometimes it’s by accident, and sometimes it’s because they were so ludicrous they didn’t deserve to exist in the first place. Occasionally they explode violently. A few slip away almost unnoticed. Often the cause of death is either ‘got too greedy’ or ‘Napoleon turned up’. Now and then they just hold a referendum and vote themselves out of existence.

This is an atlas of 48 nations that fell off the map. The polite way of writing an obituary is: dwell on the good bits, gloss over the embarrassing stuff. This book refuses to do so, because these dead nations are so full of schemers, racists, and con men that it’s impossible to skip the embarrassing stuff.

Because of this – and because treating nation-states with too much reverence is the entire problem with pretty much everything – these accounts are not concerned with adding to the earnest flag saluting in the world, however nice some of the flags might be.

The author

Gideon Defoe
Gideon Defoe is the author of The Pirates! book series and wrote the screenplay for the Oscar nominated Aardman film The Pirates in an Adventure with Scientists. He has written about how animals have sex and penned a computer game tie-in novel for Gollancz. He does film development work with Locksmith Animation and Studio Canal, and is developing a sitcom with BBC studios.

Press

From the same country

  • Cover: My Father’s House - Joseph O’Connor

    Joseph O’Connor

    My Father’s House

    2024, pp. 368, $ 18.95
    From the acclaimed, bestselling author of Star of the Sea and winner of the 2021 Irish Book Awards Book of the Year for Shadowplay, comes...
  • Cover: I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning - Keiran Goddard

    Keiran Goddard

    I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning

    2024, pp. 208, $ 27.00
    Told from the alternating perspectives of five friends who grew up together on the same council estate, I See Buildings Fall like Lightning...
  • Cover: The Fair Folk - Su Bristow

    Su Bristow

    The Fair Folk

    2024, pp. 400, $ 18.00
    From prize-winning author Su Bristow comes a fascinating coming-of-age novel about magic and the choices that define future generations.
  • Cover: Bournville - Jonathan Coe

    Jonathan Coe

    Bournville

    2023, pp. 400, $ 28.00
    A tender and wickedly funny portrait of England told through four generations of one family.
  • Cover: Mr. Wilder and Me - Jonathan Coe

    Jonathan Coe

    Mr. Wilder and Me

    2023, pp. 256, $ 16.95
    A New York Times Editors’ Choice FROM THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF THE ROTTERS’ CLUB AND MIDDLE ENGLAND...
  • Cover: Hourglass - Keiran Goddard

    Keiran Goddard

    Hourglass

    2023, pp. 208, $ 25.00
    A short, lyrical debut novel about love, loss, work, time, and the unquenchable desire for connection with others—for fans of Jenny Offill, Mieko...

More suggestions

  • Cover: The Passenger: Naples - AA.VV.

    AA.VV.

    The Passenger: Naples

    2024, pp. 192, $ 22.00
    Fully-illustrated, The Passenger collects the best new writing, photography, art and reportage from around the world.    IN THIS VOLUME:...
  • Cover: Moving the Moon: A Night at the Acropolis Museum - Andrea Marcolongo

    Andrea Marcolongo

    Moving the Moon: A Night at the Acropolis Museum

    2024, pp. 144, $ 26.00
    From one of Europe’s most original and brilliant classicists, an inspiring and deeply personal reflection on loss, memory, and what we owe the past...
  • Cover: The Ogre’s Daughter - Catherine Bardon

    Catherine Bardon

    The Ogre’s Daughter

    2024, pp. 384, $ 28.00
    The turbulent life story of Flor de Oro Trujillo, the eldest child of one of the world’s most brutal dictators.
  • Cover: The Passenger: South Korea - AA.VV.

    AA.VV.

    The Passenger: South Korea

    2024, pp. 192, $ 22.00
    Fully-illustrated, The Passenger collects the best new writing, photography, art and reportage from around the world.   IN THIS VOLUME:...
  • Cover: Living with our Dead - Delphine Horvilleur

    Delphine Horvilleur

    Living with our Dead

    2024, min., $ 26.95
    Read by Jenna Rose Stein WINNER OF THE 2021 BABELIO PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION A timely, powerful reflection on our relationship to death...
  • Cover: Living with our Dead - Delphine Horvilleur

    Delphine Horvilleur

    Living with our Dead

    2024, pp. 144, $ 24.00
    WINNER OF THE 2021 BABELIO PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION A timely, powerful reflection on our relationship to death and an invitation to accept...

Join Our Newsletter and receive a FREE eBook!

Stay updated on Europa’s forthcoming releases, author tours and major news.

Are you a bookseller? Click here!

Are you a librarian? Click here!

X