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The Basics

About the Book Series

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.

256 Series Titles


Bioethics: The Basics

Bioethics: The Basics

2nd Edition

By Alastair Campbell
June 09, 2017

Bioethics: The Basics is an introduction to the foundational principles, theories and issues in the study of medical and biological ethics. Readers are introduced to bioethics from the ground up before being invited to consider some of the most controversial but important questions facing us today....

Internet Psychology The Basics

Internet Psychology: The Basics

1st Edition

By Yair Amichai-Hamburger
May 30, 2017

We can't imagine our lives without the Internet. It is the tool of our existence; without it we couldn't work, plan our social and leisure activities, and interact with friends. The Internet’s influence on contemporary society extends across every aspect of our personal and professional lives, but ...

Discourse: The Basics

Discourse: The Basics

1st Edition

By Angela Goddard, Neil Carey
May 17, 2017

Humans are social animals and are constantly interacting with each other through conversation, written communication, symbols and other expressions . Discourse: The Basics is an accessible and engaging introduction to the analysis of those interactions and the many forms and meanings they can take....

Men and Masculinity: The Basics

Men and Masculinity: The Basics

1st Edition

By Nigel Edley
May 15, 2017

Men and Masculinity: The Basics is an accessible introduction to the academic study of masculinity which outlines the key ideas and most pressing issues concerning the field today. Providing readers with a framework for understanding these issues, it explores the ways that masculinity has been ...

Modernism: The Basics

Modernism: The Basics

1st Edition

By Laura Winkiel
March 08, 2017

Modernism: The Basics provides an accessible overview of the study of modernism in its global dimensions. Examining the key concepts, history and varied forms of the field, it guides the reader through the major approaches, outlining key debates, to answer such questions as: What is modernism? ...

International Trade The Basics

International Trade: The Basics

1st Edition

By Jessie Poon, David L. Rigby
March 03, 2017

Trade impacts on the lives of all global citizens, influencing the range of commodities available for consumption and where those commodities are produced. Driven increasingly by market exchange, trade shapes the nature of work and how the costs and benefits of that work are distributed around the ...

Logic: The Basics

Logic: The Basics

2nd Edition

By Jc Beall, Shay Allen Logan
February 14, 2017

Logic: The Basics is an accessible introduction to several core areas of logic. The first part of the book features a self-contained introduction to the standard topics in classical logic, such as: · mathematical preliminaries · propositional logic · quantified logic (first monadic, then polyadic)...

World Theatre The Basics

World Theatre: The Basics

1st Edition

By E. J. Westlake
February 06, 2017

World Theatre: The Basics presents a well-rounded introduction to non-Western theatre, exploring the history and current practice of theatrical traditions in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Oceania, the Caribbean, and the non-English-speaking cultures of the Americas. Featuring a selection of case ...

Global Justice: The Basics

Global Justice: The Basics

1st Edition

By Huw Williams, Carl Death
December 14, 2016

Global Justice: The Basics is a straightforward and engaging introduction to the theoretical study and practice of global justice. It examines the key political themes and philosophical debates at the heart of the subject, providing a clear outline of the field and exploring: the history of its ...

Human Genetics: The Basics

Human Genetics: The Basics

2nd Edition

By Ricki Lewis
December 08, 2016

Human genetics has blossomed from an obscure biological science and explanation for rare disorders to a field that is profoundly altering health care for everyone. This thoroughly updated new edition of Human Genetics: The Basics provides a concise background of gene structure and function through ...

Tragedy: The Basics

Tragedy: The Basics

1st Edition

By Sean McEvoy
November 01, 2016

Tragedy: The Basics is an accessible and up-to-date introduction to dramatic tragedy. A comprehensive guide for anyone undertaking a study of the genre, it provides a chronological overview and history of tragic theory. Covering tragedy from the classics to the present day, it explains the ...

Mormonism: The Basics

Mormonism: The Basics

1st Edition

By John Charles Duffy, David Howlett
October 31, 2016

Although often regarded as marginal or obscure, Mormonism is a significant American religious minority, numerically and politically. The successes and struggles of this U.S. born religion reveal much about how religion operates in U.S. society. Mormonism: The Basics introduces the teachings, ...

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