The Basics is a highly successful series of accessible guidebooks which provide an overview of the fundamental principles of a subject area in a jargon-free and undaunting format.
Intended for students approaching a subject for the first time, the books both introduce the essentials of a subject and provide an ideal springboard for further study. With over 50 titles spanning subjects from Artificial Intelligence to Women’s Studies, The Basics are an ideal starting point for students seeking to understand a subject area.
Each text comes with recommendations for further study and gradually introduces the complexities and nuances within a subject.
By Sean McEvoy
October 29, 2024
Shakespeare: The Basics is a lively and accessible introduction to reading and studying Shakespeare. Exploring all aspects of Shakespeare’s plays, Sean McEvoy considers the language, cultural contexts, and modern interpretations. This essential guide to a range of contemporary Shakespearean ...
By Sandra Walklate
October 24, 2024
The fourth edition of Criminology: The Basics has been fully revised and updated to offer an engaging and concise introduction to the main themes and concerns of this compelling and complex subject and giving an overview of the main theoretical and conceptual approaches to crime and justice. Topics...
By Philip Winn, Madeleine Grealy
October 15, 2024
Biopsychology: The Basics is a concise, accessible and illuminating introduction to the field of biopsychology. The book explores what psychology is in the broadest sense and how combining it with a biological perspective offers a deeper understanding of behavior and mental life. Key topics include...
By Bas van der Vossen
October 10, 2024
This book offers an introduction to political philosophy, the study of the role of government in our lives. It discusses what political philosophy is about, its most important and enduring questions, and how to do political philosophy well. Throughout the book discusses issues like: •...
By Mark Holton
October 01, 2024
This text outlines the relative merits of qualitative interviewing to new and emerging scholars in an accessible way. This is achieved not by providing an exhaustive ‘how to…’ guide but in introducing researchers to the interview technique and using examples of ‘best practice’ from across the ...
By Christopher Gill, Brittany Polat
September 05, 2024
At a time of unprecedented interest in Stoicism, this book offers a comprehensive introduction to Stoic ethics for students and for readers interested in Stoic life-guidance. It combines an explanation of the main philosophical ideas in ancient Stoic ethics by Christopher Gill with discussion of ...
By Stefani Goerlich, Elyssa Helfer
August 22, 2024
BDSM and Kink: The Basics provides an essential overview of knowledge that every clinician should have about alternative sexualities. In an accessible, user-friendly format, the authors offer a high-level yet comprehensive introduction to the world of Bondage and discipline, Dominance and ...
By Molly Ludlam
August 08, 2024
Couple Therapy: The Basics provides a comprehensive introduction to couple therapy. Taking both a general overview and a psychoanalytic focus, it addresses the basic questions which both couples and those interested in becoming couple therapists can expect to ask. Using jargon light language, this ...
By Megan Burke
August 08, 2024
Simone de Beauvoir: The Basics provides an accessible introduction to the life, work and ground-breaking ideas of author, philosopher, and feminist Simone de Beauvoir. The book offers readers “the basics” of Beauvoir, affording new and continuing readers a guide to her works and ideas. The book ...
By Ethan Nowak
July 31, 2024
This book provides beginners with a sense of the questions and methods that make up the philosophy of language. The first four chapters develop the idea that language is a system that allows us to exchange information with each other, and the second four chapters the idea that language is a tool we...
By Jacques Berlinerblau
July 22, 2024
Secularism: The Basics is a concise and engaging introduction to confusing and contradictory public discussions of secularism across the globe. In this lively and lucid book, Jacques Berlinerblau addresses why secularism is defined in so many ways and why it so ignites people’s passions. In ...
By sissy lykou
July 09, 2024
Therapy: The Basics is an introductory book to psychotherapy and its different theoretical approaches. It attempts to demystify and de-stigmatise therapy by answering some common questions posed by prospective clients. lykou presents an accessible overview of psychotherapy and counselling, mapping ...