Independent | Eco-friendly | Up to 75% off

Two Minutes to Midnight

1953 – The Year of Living Dangerously

Roger Hermiston
Roger Hermiston’s study focuses on one critical year in the Cold War, as Eisenhower succeeded Truman, Stalin died and Churchill was incapacitated by a stroke. The Korean War ground to a halt, but the arms race underwent a terrifying escalation as Russia tested an atomic bomb and the US detonated the first thermonuclear weapon, creating the largest explosion in history.
Postscript description
Read full publisher description

RRP £20.00

£9.99

Only 5 left

Free UK delivery on orders over £25

Product information:
  • Publisher: Biteback
  • Year: 2021
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 464pp
  • Illustrated: Yes
  • Dimensions: 241x160mm
  • ISBN: 9781785906541
  • Condition: New
  • Weight: 0.7kg
Product code:
518071
Product information
Full publisher description
January, 1953. It is eight years on from the most destructive conflict in human history and the Cold War has entered its most deadly phase. An Iron Curtain has descended across Europe, and hostilities between the United States and the Soviet Union have turned hot on the Korean peninsula, as the two powers clash in an intractable and bloody proxy war.

Meanwhile, the pace of the nuclear arms race has become frenetic. The Soviet Union has finally tested its own atom bomb, as has Britain. But in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the United States has detonated its first thermonuclear device, dwarfing the destruction unleashed on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of the Second World War.

For the first time the Doomsday Clock is set at two minutes to midnight, with the chances of a man-made global apocalypse becoming increasingly likely. As the Cold War powers square up in political and military battles around the globe, every city has become a potential battleground and every citizen a target. 1953 is set to be a year of living dangerously.
Read full publisher description
Reasons to shop at Postscript

Independent bookseller
Established in 1987, we’ve been sharing reading recommendations for decades.

Books you won’t find elsewhere
Discover new authors among our frequently changing bookshelves, along with almost-forgotten gems and a wealth of unusual titles you won’t find elsewhere.

Eco-friendly packaging
Orders are carefully packed in recyclable cardboard boxes, eco-friendly bubble wrap and solvent-free labels, paper and tape.

Condition and price
All our books are new, unused and unread, and they’re all up to 75% off RRP.

FREE monthly catalogue
Featuring over 400 handpicked titles, our unique catalogue is carefully curated and includes new and unusual titles, special features and exclusive collections.

Email newsletters
Our tailored newsletters are written by our booksellers, and we always highlight the books that we have talked about most in the Postscript office.

Footnotes blog
Some books spark ideas and conversations that our catalogue can’t contain – our Footnotes blog offers a deeper dive into a wealth of topics to inspire further reading.

Aftercare
We are all serious book people and we understand the value of reading. This is why we package our books so carefully and employ a helpful in-house customer services team to promptly resolve any queries you may have.

Delivery information - FREE UK delivery on orders over £25

UK

Free UK standard delivery on all online orders over £25

Flat rate for all standard delivery orders: ‬£3.00 (3-5 working days)

Flat rate for Next Day orders (orders must be placed before 1pm, Monday–Friday): ‬£4.50

Flat rate for all Royal Mail Tracked48 orders: ‬£5.50 (2-4 working days)

Standard delivery‭: ‬3-5‭ ‬working days‭ (‬Highlands and Islands 5-7‭ ‬working days‭)‬

Next day delivery‭: ‬Available all UK excluding Highlands and Islands

Collect your order from a local shop – prices and delivery times as above

Overseas

All orders‭: ‬delivery costs for orders outside the UK are based on country of destination and product weight.

You can view your overseas delivery cost using the Summary section within the Basket‭.‬

For more information on delivery/overseas orders please refer to our Delivery Information.