The causes of war
The Australian historian Geoffrey Blainey surveys wars of the past few centuries to ask what actually drives nations to fight. His central argument inverts the usual question: peace, not war, is what needs explaining, and wars begin when rival states disagree about their relative strength. He examines the roles of optimism, miscalculation, and the way each side predicts its own victory. First published in 1973, it remains a widely cited, readable work of international-relations history. For a club it offers a clear thesis to test against examples and to argue over.