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Description

Bloomsbury presents The Library of Lost Maps by James Cheshire, read by Elliot Chapman.

Join renowned geographer James Cheshire on a tour through a forgotten collection of maps that shaped over 200 years of Western history.


Tucked just beyond offices and a lecture hall in the heart of London lies a turquoise door. Intrigued, James Cheshire stepped through and was astonished by what he found inside: thousands of maps and atlases, spilling out of wooden drawers. It was a map library.

In The Library of Lost Maps, Cheshire transports us to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, when the library's maps were wielded for war and negotiated during peace; when its charts traced, for the first time, the icy peaks of the Himalayas. Maps have played a vital role in shaping our scientific knowledge of the world, inspiring the theory of plate tectonics and showing the impact of climate change. They have also guided politicians, encouraging both beneficial reforms and horrific conquests, the consequences of which we live with today.

Brimming with surprising discoveries, The Library of Lost Maps unveils the power of maps to remind us of our past and inspire us toward a better future.

Product details

Published Nov 04 2025
Format Audiobook
Duration 7 hours and 24 minutes
ISBN 9781639734306
Imprint Bloomsbury Publishing
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

James Cheshire

James Cheshire is Britain’s only Professor of Geog…

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