from my old stamp album: exotic tales of lost countries

A fresh and intoxicating mix of history, geography and art, offering a fascinating glimpse into the colonial past

Pick up an old stamp album and flick through it. You’ll find a host of exotic and unfamiliar names: Cyrenaica, Fernando Poo, Fiume, North Ingria, Obock, Priamur, Stellaland, Tuva, Wenden - distant lands, vanished territories, lost countries. Do they still exist? If not, where were they? What happened to them?

This book goes in search of the truth about these and many other amazing places. Stuart Laycock and Chris West unearth stories of many kinds. Some take you to long-disappeared empires; others throw light on today’s most pressing conflicts. You are invited to enjoy them all, in a collection of historical narratives as broad and enticing as an old stamp album that you’ve just discovered in the attic.

STUART LAYCOCK studied Classics at Jesus College, Cambridge, and has written a number of history books, including Britannia: The Failed State (which was nominated for Current Archaeology Book of the Year), Warlords: The Struggle for Power in Post-Roman Britain and All the Countries We’ve Ever Invaded.

CHRIS WEST studied Philosophy and Economics at the London School of Economics and writes fiction and non-fiction. His latest work of fiction is The Hillwalker. He has written a number of history books, including First Class: A History of Britain in 36 Postage Stamps. His most recent work in this field is Eurovision! A History of Modern Europe through the World’s Greatest Song Contest.