Biography: historical, political and military Books

Book SynopsisOne of the foremost Black writers and intellectuals of his era, Claude McKay (18891948) was a central figure in Caribbean literature, the Harlem Renaissance, and the Black radical tradition. Winston James offers a revelatory account of McKay's political and intellectual trajectory from his upbringing in Jamaica through 1921.Trade ReviewA compelling and provocative rendering of the complex transnational racial geographies that shaped the remarkable Claude McKay. Winston James illuminates underexplored features of post-emancipation history and, through exhaustive research, dramatizes the deep entanglements between place and psyche, poetry and politics, violence and hope. -- Honor Ford-Smith, York UniversityThe wandering poet and revolutionary socialist Claude McKay was one of the twentieth century’s most captivating writers, noted for his intellectual intensity and emotional depth. Combining unparalleled erudition, literary sensitivity, and political nous, Winston James’s book provides a compelling and authoritative account of the life that McKay made and the circumstances within which he made it. -- Peter Hulme, professor emeritus, University of EssexMeticulously researched and superbly written, this is the premier work on Claude McKay’s astonishing artistic range and diverse passions. It is also an incisive examination of the wider Jamaican and Caribbean colonial context, and a major contribution to the history of the Atlantic world, the Harlem Renaissance, and the overlooked connection with the founders of Négritude. -- Franklin W. Knight, Leonard and Helen R. Stulman Professor Emeritus of History, Johns Hopkins UniversityWinston James’s resurrection of the many lives of Claude McKay is a revelation. Page after page, his McKay becomes an increasingly startling figure, never conforming to prevailing expectations. As the narrative gathers pace, McKay shimmers, the life outgrowing the circumstances of his history. The unfolding story presents us with a portrait that is simultaneously compelling and troubling. McKay will never be the same. -- Bill Schwarz, Queen Mary University of LondonJames provides a deep understanding of McKay’s early political formation and radicalization and how these origins structured McKay’s thinking and art. He ably historicizes McKay while retaining a keen sensitivity to McKay’s literary contributions. -- Michelle Ann Stephens, Rutgers University–New BrunswickElegantly written and carefully reasoned, this is a fascinating look at the political evolution of a key literary figure. * Publishers Weekly *James is a perceptive literary critic, and his close readings are some of the most electrifying parts of The Making of a Black Bolshevik. -- Jennifer Wilson * Dissent Magazine *A powerfully relevant study about an iconoclastic Black thinker and poet who was dedicated to economic reform as well as the eradication of racism. -- Thomas Filbin * The Arts Fuse *The revolutionary Jamaican poet Claude McKay deserves a good Marxist biographer and has found one. Winston James’s new book on McKay illuminates the mind and art of one of the most important writers of the early twentieth century as it responded to the seismic contest between capitalism, colonialism, and Socialism in the age of the Russian Revolution. -- Bill Mullen * Tempest Magazine *[In] The Making of a Black Bolshevik, McKay properly joins the greats of black America, now accorded his due respect in this scrupulous and thoughtful study. It is a wonderful book, which draws the reader into McKay’s tempestuous world. At every point James’s interpretation is coolly judicious, bringing a lifetime’s thought to fruition. * History Workshop's Radical Reads of 2022 *Writing with precision and flair and drawing on his own impeccable research, James limns McKay's political life and legacy of influence in American letters . . . Highly recommended. -- L. L. Johnson * Choice Reviews *Claude McKay goes beyond biography. Although an excellent biography of a pivotal period in McKay's early political education, the book is also an important contribution to scholarship in several other fields . . . Few scholars have been so detailed and sympathetic in their treatment of McKay's early experiences. James has succeeded in effectively demonstrating how McKay's ideology was marked by both continuity and change and has given serious weight to the idea that McKay and his black contemporaries were ahead of their time ideologically. -- Jasmine Calver * H-Socialisms *James is the ideal person to author such a work . . . [This] biography makes important interventions. -- Owen Walsh * Radical Americas *A trenchant and astonishing work. James’ care with details, research, and analysis—along with a pleasurable style of writing—make for a captivating biography of the first part of McKay’s radical life. -- Joel Wendland-Liu * People's World *Table of ContentsList of AbbreviationsAcknowledgmentsProloguePart I: Jamaican Beginnings: The Formation of a Black Fabian, 1889–19121. A Son of the Soil: Jamaica’s Claude McKay2. Holding the Negro in Subjection: Claude McKay’s Jamaica3. You Caan’ Mek We Shet Up: McKay’s Jamaican Poetry of Rebellion4. The Man Who Left Jamaica: Claude McKay in 1912Part II: Coming to America: From Fabianism to Bolshevism, 1912–19195. “Six Silent Years”: McKay and America, 1912–19186. Fighting Back: Claude McKay and the Crisis of 1919Part III: England, Their England: McKay’s British Sojourn, 1919–19217. English Innings and Left-Wing Communism: McKay’s Bolshevization in Britain8. Making Spring in New Hampshire, the 1917 Club, Standing Up, and Thinking of EnglandA CodaNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewAn elegant history of Reagan's 'studies' with General Electric. -- John H. Fund The Wall Street Journal A revelation... Definitely worth reading for those who want to know how Ronald Reagan evolved into the 'Great Communicator' of political yore. -- A.G. Gancarski The Washington Times [The Education of Ronald Reagan] fills a hole in Reagan's biography. -- Daniel Oppenheimer Sacramento News and Review Evans's book is essential reading... a reasoned exploration of the shaping of an extraordinary political career. -- Joseph C. Goulden Washington Lawyer This fascinating study sheds new light on Reagan's ideological evolution. Publishers Weekly A better companion to [The Reagan Diaries]... By focusing on the decade or so when Reagan was a traveling spokesman for General Electric--a period that he began as a Democrat and ended as a Republican--Evans does a persuasive job of explaining where Reagan's political views came from. -- Nicholas Lemann, New Yorker The Education of Ronald Reagan admirably fills... [a] gap... One of the most illuminating books ever written about Reagan. -- Jacob Heilbrunn National Interest [The Education of Ronald Reagan]provides fresh revelations on Reagan's ideological development... a 'must' for any college level collection. The Midwest Book Review Evans is undoubtedly correct to home in on the G.E. years as the key period in Reagan's self education. -- Steven F. Hayward Claremont Review of Books Evans provides useful insight into Reagan's GE years and calls attention to the influence of Boulware. -- Emilie Raymond Register of the Kentucky Historical Society I recommend strongly that you get the (book). -- Newt Gingrich BizVoice An important work that ought to be read. -- Ronald W. Schatz Labor HistoryTable of Contents1. A New Dealer to the Core 2. Politics: War by Different Means Part I. A Postgraduate Course in Political Science 3. Boulwarism 4. The Plant Tour 5. Schools, Classes, and Trains Part II. An Apprenticeship for Public Life 6. The Campaign 7. Allies 8. The Speech 9. Two Unions 10. The Art of Negotiation Part III. To Encourage an Increasing Majority of Citizens 11. The Campaign Continues 12. The Presidential Bug 13. A President's Vision Appendix. Speeches of Reuther, Boulware, and Reagan Walter P. Reuther, Labor and the Community Lemuel Boulware, Salvation Is Not Free Ronald Reagan, A Time for Choosing ("The Speech") Acknowledgments Notes References Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewBrilliant and elegant insight into the exact relation of contemporary literary practices and broader cultural changes, explaining how the technologies of distributed digital media exemplified by the World Wide Web have made possible the flourishing of a particular type of literature. -- Professor Craig Dworkin, author of The Consequence of Innovation: Twenty-First-Century Poetics What Goldsmith argues has significant implications for the world of poetry, poetics, and pedagogy. His book contains brilliant moments of exegesis and archival documentation, and its keen attention to, knowledge about, and currency in artistic practice makes it as much a user's manual as a scholar's tome. -- Adalaide Morris, The University of Iowa In these witty, intelligent essays, Goldsmith brings his encyclopedic knowledge of radical artistic practice to bear on how the rise of the internet has irrevocably changed, or should irrevocably change, our existing conceptions of poetry. Goldsmith's practice as artist and critic is deeply interesting. His book is sure to generate lively debate among poets, artists, literary historians, and media theorists. -- Sianne Ngai, University of California, Los Angeles Multimedia artist and executive manager of words, Goldsmith writes a provocative manifesto for writing in the digital era, with a treasure trove of ideas, techniques, and examples that allow us to make it new-again! -- Marcus Boon, author of In Praise of Copying "...a fascinating collection of essays..." Phi Beta Kappa Goldsmith achieves a very difficult feat with this book: he writes lucidly about complex and avant-garde ideas. As a result, he opens up a vital debate for anyone who cares about literature, between notions of traditional creative writing and the set of practices he labels "uncreative writing". -- Douglas Cowie Times Higher Education Selected writers and their practices are reviewed in a series of accessible essays perfect for college-level writers. Midwest Book Review Good. -- James Franco, actor An invigoratingly different style of writing guide, that reveals how jump-starts to one's imagination can be achieved through what seems (at first glance) to be the unlikeliest of means. Library Bookwatch

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Book SynopsisIn the early modern period, hundreds of thousands of Europeans, both men and women, were abducted by pirates, sold on the slave market, and enslaved in North Africa. Barbary Captives brings together a selection of early modern slave narratives in English translation for the first time.Trade ReviewBarbary Captives is a singularly inventive anthology of captivity narratives that charts the experience of Mediterranean captivity and enslavement in the early modern era. These narratives of enslaved Europeans in North Africa provide a remarkably nuanced perspective on religious tensions and political conflicts within Europe and across the Mediterranean region. The experience of captured Europeans enhances our historical knowledge of the experience of Black slavery across the Atlantic. Mario Klarer’s anthology traces a wide interdisciplinary and intertextual arc that bridges historical archives with literary genres. Klarer’s careful editorial eye opens up a world of scholarly inquiry that was hitherto hidden and obscured. -- Homi K. Bhabha, author of The Location of CultureThe published and manuscript narratives compiled by Europeans seized and enslaved by Muslim corsairs are rich but complex and controversial sources. Mario Klarer has done readers interested in the varieties of early modern captivity a great service by combining and editing examples of this genre from nine different European regions and over a span of three centuries. -- Linda Colley, author of The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen: Warfare, Constitutions, and the Making of the Modern WorldAn important and deeply revealing collection of texts. Shedding light on the rise of the novel, the modern autobiography, and the reception of African American slave narratives, this book maps uncharted territory in literature and history alike. -- Stephen Greenblatt, author of The Swerve: How the World Became ModernBarbary Captives is an immensely valuable resource both for the cultural history of Old World slavery represented in the memoirs of Europeans from Iceland to Spain held captive in Muslim lands and for the history of genre, the literary history of the novel and of later narratives of Black slavery with which the memoirs in this collection are intimately entwined. It is a work of global history in granular detail. -- Thomas W. Laqueur, author of Making Sex: Body and Gender from the Greeks to FreudTable of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Balthasar Sturmer, Account of the Travels of Mister Balthasar Sturmer (1558 German manuscript; captivity in Tunis 1534–1535; complete text)2. Antonio de Sosa, Topography of Algiers: Attempted Escape of Miguel de Cervantes (1612 Spanish print edition; captivity in Algiers 1577; selection)3. Ólafur Egilsson, The Travels of Reverend Ólafur Egilsson (undated Icelandic manuscripts; Icelandic raid and captivity in Algiers 1627–1628; selection)4. Emanuel d’Aranda, Short Story of My Unfortunate Journey (undated Dutch manuscript; captivity in Algiers 1640–1641; complete captivity narrative)5. Antoine Quartier, The Religious Slave and His Adventures (1690 French print edition; captivity in Tripoli 1660–1668; selection)6. Andreas Matthäus and Johann Georg Wolffgang, Travels and Wonderful Fortunes of Two Brothers in Algerian Bondage (1767 German print edition; captivity in Algiers 1684–1688; complete text)7. Isaac Brassard, The Tale of Mr. Brassard’s Captivity in Algiers (1878 French print edition; captivity in Algiers 1687–1688; complete captivity narrative)8. Thomas Pellow, The History of the Long Captivity and Adventures of Thomas Pellow ([1740?] British print edition; captivity in Morocco 1715–1738; selection)9. Hark Olufs, The Remarkable Adventures of Hark Olufs (1747 Danish print edition; captivity in Constantine 1724–1735; complete text)10. Maria ter Meetelen, Miraculous and Remarkable Events of Twelve Years of Slavery (1748 Dutch print edition; captivity in Morocco 1731–1743; selection)11. Marcus Berg, Description of the Barbaric Slavery in the Kingdom of Fez and Morocco (1757 Swedish print edition; captivity in Morocco 1754–1756; selection)12. Elizabeth Marsh, Narrative of Elizabeth Marsh’s Captivity in Barbary (undated British manuscript; captivity in Morocco 1756; complete captivity narrative)13. Felice Caronni, The Account of an Amateur Antiquarian’s Short Journey (1805 Italian print edition; captivity in Tunis 1804; selection)Appendix: Selection of European and American Barbary Captivity NarrativesList of Works Cited and General Works on North African Piracy and CaptivityIndex of Persons and Locations

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Book SynopsisIn the early modern period, hundreds of thousands of Europeans, both men and women, were abducted by pirates, sold on the slave market, and enslaved in North Africa. Barbary Captives brings together a selection of early modern slave narratives in English translation for the first time.Trade ReviewBarbary Captives is a singularly inventive anthology of captivity narratives that charts the experience of Mediterranean captivity and enslavement in the early modern era. These narratives of enslaved Europeans in North Africa provide a remarkably nuanced perspective on religious tensions and political conflicts within Europe and across the Mediterranean region. The experience of captured Europeans enhances our historical knowledge of the experience of Black slavery across the Atlantic. Mario Klarer’s anthology traces a wide interdisciplinary and intertextual arc that bridges historical archives with literary genres. Klarer’s careful editorial eye opens up a world of scholarly inquiry that was hitherto hidden and obscured. -- Homi K. Bhabha, author of The Location of CultureThe published and manuscript narratives compiled by Europeans seized and enslaved by Muslim corsairs are rich but complex and controversial sources. Mario Klarer has done readers interested in the varieties of early modern captivity a great service by combining and editing examples of this genre from nine different European regions and over a span of three centuries. -- Linda Colley, author of The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen: Warfare, Constitutions, and the Making of the Modern WorldAn important and deeply revealing collection of texts. Shedding light on the rise of the novel, the modern autobiography, and the reception of African American slave narratives, this book maps uncharted territory in literature and history alike. -- Stephen Greenblatt, author of The Swerve: How the World Became ModernBarbary Captives is an immensely valuable resource both for the cultural history of Old World slavery represented in the memoirs of Europeans from Iceland to Spain held captive in Muslim lands and for the history of genre, the literary history of the novel and of later narratives of Black slavery with which the memoirs in this collection are intimately entwined. It is a work of global history in granular detail. -- Thomas W. Laqueur, author of Making Sex: Body and Gender from the Greeks to FreudTable of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Balthasar Sturmer, Account of the Travels of Mister Balthasar Sturmer (1558 German manuscript; captivity in Tunis 1534–1535; complete text)2. Antonio de Sosa, Topography of Algiers: Attempted Escape of Miguel de Cervantes (1612 Spanish print edition; captivity in Algiers 1577; selection)3. Ólafur Egilsson, The Travels of Reverend Ólafur Egilsson (undated Icelandic manuscripts; Icelandic raid and captivity in Algiers 1627–1628; selection)4. Emanuel d’Aranda, Short Story of My Unfortunate Journey (undated Dutch manuscript; captivity in Algiers 1640–1641; complete captivity narrative)5. Antoine Quartier, The Religious Slave and His Adventures (1690 French print edition; captivity in Tripoli 1660–1668; selection)6. Andreas Matthäus and Johann Georg Wolffgang, Travels and Wonderful Fortunes of Two Brothers in Algerian Bondage (1767 German print edition; captivity in Algiers 1684–1688; complete text)7. Isaac Brassard, The Tale of Mr. Brassard’s Captivity in Algiers (1878 French print edition; captivity in Algiers 1687–1688; complete captivity narrative)8. Thomas Pellow, The History of the Long Captivity and Adventures of Thomas Pellow ([1740?] British print edition; captivity in Morocco 1715–1738; selection)9. Hark Olufs, The Remarkable Adventures of Hark Olufs (1747 Danish print edition; captivity in Constantine 1724–1735; complete text)10. Maria ter Meetelen, Miraculous and Remarkable Events of Twelve Years of Slavery (1748 Dutch print edition; captivity in Morocco 1731–1743; selection)11. Marcus Berg, Description of the Barbaric Slavery in the Kingdom of Fez and Morocco (1757 Swedish print edition; captivity in Morocco 1754–1756; selection)12. Elizabeth Marsh, Narrative of Elizabeth Marsh’s Captivity in Barbary (undated British manuscript; captivity in Morocco 1756; complete captivity narrative)13. Felice Caronni, The Account of an Amateur Antiquarian’s Short Journey (1805 Italian print edition; captivity in Tunis 1804; selection)Appendix: Selection of European and American Barbary Captivity NarrativesList of Works Cited and General Works on North African Piracy and CaptivityIndex of Persons and Locations

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Book SynopsisBryan D. Palmer''s award-winning study of James P. Cannon''s early years (1890-1928) details how the life of a Wobbly hobo agitator gave way to leadership in the emerging communist underground of the 1919 era. This historical drama unfolds alongside the life experiences of a native son of United States radicalism, the narrative moving from Rosedale, Kansas to Chicago, New York, and Moscow. Written with panache, Palmer''s richly detailed book situates American communism''s formative decade of the 1920s in the dynamics of a specific political and economic context. Our understanding of the indigenous currents of the American revolutionary left is widened, just as appreciation of the complex nature of its interaction with international forces is deepened.Trade ReviewWallace K. Ferguson Prize, Canadian Historical Association, 2008. "Palmer's biography is destined to become a classic in the historiography of US Communism. It is the most serious treatment of the Communist movement's history in the 1920s since Draper's two volumes appeared approximately 50 years ago. . . . Palmer is currently preparing the second volume of his Cannon biography, chronicling the subject's Trotskyist years. I can hardly wait to read it."--Left History "Palmer's faithful, moving account of the choices Cannon faced has important lessons for us. One of those lessons is that, even as we weigh the decisions the choices and hopes of previous radical generations, we need to attend to out own imperatives and dreams."--Canadian Dimension"An important contribution to the study of American radicalism."--Journal of American History "An excellent portal through which to experience and better understand the radical Left in the United States."--American Historical Review"One of the most inspiring leaders of the early United States Communist movement has at long last found a biographer worthy to recount the first four decades of his life."--Against the Current"This book is a fitting tribute to Cannon--soapboxer, Wobbly, and American Bolshevik."--International Socialism"Palmer shows a superb grasp of the relevant secondary literature, combing memoirs, the Cannon and Browder papers, FBI reports, and microfilmed Russian documents. His clear writing carries readers through an arcane world of ever-shifting alliances, factions and ideological polemics. The book is particularly strong on Cannon's impoverished Kansas youth, dysfunctional family life, early days as a hobo, organizer for the Industrial Workers of the World, and participant in meetings of the Communist International. Highly recommended."--Choice"Palmer has composed an elegant book that draws readers in with engaging chapter headings and does not disappoint, providing them with an immense amount of intriguing information about Cannon and the American revolutionary Left. Palmer’s writing is engaging and hard to put down; you can feel his passion for his subject."--H-SHGAPE "An exhaustive account of Cannon's life and his place in the various machinations of the revolutionary Left."--Labor History "In this magnificent biography of Cannon, the founder of American Trotskyism, Bryan Palmer recovers the lost history of the Left in the 1920s and completely reframes the debate about the origins and nature of the CPUSA. Beyond Cold War calumny or Popular Front fairy- tale, here is the true story of 'Reds,' told by a master historian."--Mike Davis, author of City of Quartz, Planet of Slums, Buda's Wagon, and other books "Destined to become a path-breaking classic on American Communism, Bryan Palmer's study of Jim Cannon offers a coherent and richly detailed account of that movement's formative decade. Communism in the United States of the 1920s emerges from this volume not as a mere hotbed of sterile sectarianism, but as a promising outgrowth of U.S. radical traditions boldly intersecting with the contradictory realities of Russian Communism."--Paul Le Blanc, author of A Short History of the U.S. Working Class and Marx, Lenin and the Revolutionary Experience

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Book SynopsisThe most complete record ever assembled of the landmark Lincoln-Douglas debates, published on their 150th anniversaryTrade Review"Though based on the same basic transcripts that Lincoln and most subsequent scholars have used, Davis and Wilson have corrected the irregular paragraphing, arbitrary punctuation, and occasionally garbled transcriptions in the originals. The result is a definitive new edition that is far more readable and almost certainly more reliable."--The New York Review of Books"[Davis and Wilson] bring to light a multitude of linguistic, rhetorical, and contextual factors that influenced the formation of an authoritative printed text."--Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association“Davis and Wilson have crafted a clear, unadulterated presentation on the debates by offering them in their entirety. . . . Recommended.”--Choice"One of the highlight Lincoln publications. . . . The first critical edition, parsing what the candidates actually said, regardless of the source, and clarifying and extending the speakers' words by correcting the originals' irregular paragraphing, arbitrary punctuation, and occasionally confused transcriptions."--American Heritage“This edition of the Abraham Lincoln—Stephen Douglas debates surpasses all previous editions and establishes the standard text for the foreseeable future. . . . Davis and Wilson’s edition is accessible and user-friendly.”--The Journal of American History"The words spoken over the course of these debates deserve every ounce of the critical attention that Davis and Wilson have lavished on them. . . . The most reliable text of the debates now available."--The Journal of Southern History"Davis and Wilson have given us an enduring work of scholarship, allowing these political speeches from a time long passed to be read as a work of literature or history."--Journal of Illinois History"The editors deserve high praise for producing an edition of the debates that is not only interesting but useful."--Fides et historia "This is an outstanding achievement of meticulous scholarship, one of supreme importance. This edition will serve as the standard reference work on the debates as well as the most accessible text for students and others encountering the debates for the first time."--David Zarefsky, author of Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery: In the Crucible of Public Debate "This edition of the Lincoln-Douglas debates must certainly become the urtext of those great debates. Along with the useful introductions offered for each of the seven debates, Davis and Wilson have created a fuller version of the debaters' words--even down to the heckling of the crowds--than has ever been available before. No Lincoln library can afford to be without it; no one with even a passing interest in the history of American politics can afford not to read it."--Allen C. Guelzo, author of Lincoln and Douglas: The Debates That Defined America

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Book SynopsisHighlights Clinton Jencks's dramatic influence on the history of labour culture in the American Southwest through a lifetime devoted to progress and change for the social good.Trade Review "This authoritative and engagingly written biography makes a substantial contribution to the scholarship on the legendary labor figure of Clinton Jencks. A useful and welcome volume for historians of labor (especially in the southwest), communism, and Cold War anti-communism."--David Brundage, author of The Making of Western Labor Radicalism: Denver's Organized Workers, 1878–1905 "As new scholarship on the long civil rights movement continue to incorporate studies of the American West and move beyond black-white racial binaries, Palomino rightfully speaks to both of these important historiographical developments."--Western Historical Quarterly "An excellent biography that sheds light on numerous themes of importance to historians of twentieth-century American labor, Chicano history, and Cold War America. This historically rich and well organized study secures James J. Lorence's place as a foremost scholar of American labor history."--Zaragosa Vargas, author of Labor Rights Are Civil Rights: Mexican American Workers in Twentieth-Century America "This biography of labor activist and scholar Clinton Jencks is an important addition to the work of James J. Lorence. In telling Jenck's life story, Lorence reveals how the often-overlooked efforts of leftist activists in the region not only survived the reactionary years after World War II but managed to bring a mix of radicalism and pragmatic organizing to the labor movement, the Mexican American civil rights struggle, and even the otherwise conservative world of academic economists in the Southwest."--Southwestern Historical Quarterly "This book is instructive for organizers as a catalog of campaign skills and as an illustration of "community unionism," whose revival is so loudly proclaimed today."--Labor Studies Journal "This is a fine book, and Lorence is to be commended for the extensive research and attention to detail that went into it. It is more than a biography of Jencks. Rather, it is in many ways the biography of a movement and of a difficult moment in American history."--American Historical Review

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Book SynopsisAn American labor leader's eyewitness perspective on the rise of Nazi power in Weimar-era BerlinTrade Review“[Plotkin] is an astute observer and captures everchanging moods.”--Jewish Book World"A harrowing picture of Berlin ravaged by the Depression, the Weimar Republic's last months and the onset of Nazism. . . . A rich subtle and extremely readable account of a crucial moment in German history."--European Journal of American Studies."A rare jewel. . . . An extremely valuable source for comparative labour historians and for historians of the Weimar Republic and of National Socialism."--Revue Francaise D'etudes Americaines"Once I started reading this work, I could not put it down. Plotkin's diary is a remarkable analysis 'from the bottom up' of German society, working-class institution, and politics in the period of transition from the Weimar Republic to the rise of Hitler. A very important book."--Fraser Ottanelli, University of South Florida"Plotkin's writing is lively and conveys a vivid portrayal of German political and economic life on the eve of the Nazi takeover. It also provides an excellent sense of the impact of the Great Depression on German society. A valuable contribution to German history, labor history, and Jewish history."--Vicki Caron, author of Uneasy Asylum: France and the Jewish Refugee Crisis, 1933-1942"We have almost no eyewitness accounts of this period from nonjournalist observers and certainly none from the perspective of an American working-class observer. This work adds significantly to our knowledge on the history of internationalist trade unionism in the U.S. during the 1920s and 1930s, which is under-researched for this period. Highly recommended."--Dorothee Schneider, coauthor of "My Life in Germany before and after January 30, 1933": Refugee Memoirs and ExperiencesTable of ContentsAcknowledgments vii Abbreviations xi Introduction xiii Catherine Collomp and Bruno GroppoAbraham Plotkin's Diary October-November 1932 3 December 1932 31 January 1933 85 February 1933 137Abraham Plotkin The Destruction of the Labor Movement in Germany 175 Brief Chronology of Political Events in Germany, 1930-33 197 Index 201Illustrations follow page 136

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Book SynopsisUpdated with a new preface and more than a dozen photographs of King and his contemporaries, this edition presents the unforgettable story of King's life and death for a new generation.Trade Review"Shelves devoted to modern American history can't be considered complete without it."--Booklist"An excellent book that will do more to keep Martin Luther King and his 'dream' alive in a different era than would more fulsome tributes."--Louis R. Harlan, American Historical Review "A well-researched, clearly written and well-balanced account."--Charles V. Hamilton, New York Times Book Review "Initially published soon after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., David Levering Lewis's biography was an extraordinary achievement--a readable narrative full of historical insight. He judiciously illuminates King's achievements while also acknowledging his flaws and limitations. Subsequent studies have provided more detailed accounts of various aspects of King's life, but Lewis's perceptive portrait continues to reward readers seeking to understand King's historical significance." --Clayborne Carson, Director, Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute"David Levering Lewis's classic biography of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. captured the voices and feeling of the times in its thoughtful and thorough early review of Dr. King’s legacy. I am deeply grateful it is being introduced to a new generation of readers and commend it to all."--Marian Wright Edelman, President, Children's Defense Fund

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Book SynopsisWilliam H. Herndon aspired to write a faithful portrait of his friend and law partner, Abraham Lincoln, based on his own observations and on hundreds of letters and interviews he had compiled for the purpose. Even more important, he was determined to present Lincoln as a man, rather than a saint, and to reveal things that the prevailing Victorian conventions said should be left out of the biography of a great national hero. A variety of obstacles kept Herndon from writing his book, however, and not until he found a collaborator in Jesse W. Weik did the biography begin to take shape. It finally appeared in 1889, to decidedly mixed reviews. Though controversial from the outset, Herndon's Lincoln nonetheless established itself as a classic, and remains, as Don E. Fehrenbacher declared, the most influential biography of Lincoln ever published. This new edition restores the original text, includes two chapters added in the revised (1892) edition, and traces the history of how Herndon anTrade Review"In this new volume, coeditors Douglas Wilson and Rodney Davis have brought the landmark biography up to date with more than seventy years of Lincoln scholarship, thereby giving us the definitive modern edition of the work. . . . Wilson and Davis's new edition of Herndon's Lincoln will not only help scholars scrutinize the biography itself, but will also afford them the remarkable opportunity to see how the memory of one of America's greatest presidents was constructed."--Journal of the Early RepublicWill Guzman restores Lawrence A. Nixon to his proper place as one of the borderland's leading African American physicians and a pioneering opponent of Jim Crow.--Karl Jacoby, author of Shadows at Dawn: An Apache Massacre and the Violence of HistoryMore than a biography, Will Guzman's book offers a fresh window onto the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. Guzman skillfully brings together African American history, western history, Chicana/o history, and the history of medicine into a fascinating and lively account of civil rights pioneer Lawrence Nixon.--Pablo Mitchell, author of Coyote Nation: Sexuality, Race, and Conquest in Modernizing New Mexico, 1880 -1920

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Book SynopsisWhen at last we were approaching the Harem, the Sultan, surely quite alarmed, said to me in a low voice (was that so the eunuch walking in front of us wouldn't hear, or because in this lonely and dark passageway he was frightened of his own voice?), Ne olacak? 'What is to become of things?' Translated into English for the first time, this memoir provides fascinating first-hand insight into the personalities, intrigues, and inner workings of the Ottoman palace in its final decades. Written by Halid Ziya Usakligil, who was First Secretary to Sultan Mehmed V and would go on to be one of Turkey's most famous novelists, On the Sultan's Service makes available to English readers the remarkable account of life and work in the Ottoman palace chancery-the public, business side of the palace-in its final incarnation. We learn of the court's new role under this second-to-last Sultan in post-Revolution Turkey. No longer exercising political power, the palace negotiated the minefields between politTrade ReviewBrookes' work offers scholars and students a very readable account of palace life during the reign of Mehmed V, first-hand observations of many interesting historical events, and fascinating insights concerning life in general from one of the greatest Turkish novelists. -- Jame N Tallon * The Middle Ground Journal *Table of ContentsForewordIntroductionMapsTimeline of Late Ottoman History Family Tree1. A New Court for a New Monarch2. Redoing the Palaces3. On Show4. The Imperial Household5. The Imperial Family6. Wedding Vows and Dueling Heirs7. Papers, Papers8. Mysterious Yıldız, Daunting Topkapı9. Coming to Call10. Royal Guests11. On Holiday12. Maneuvering, Touring13. No End to Crises14. Caught in the Vise15. Bringing Down the Curtain16. The Man Who Would Be SultanEpilogueGlossary of NamesGlossary of Terms and PlacesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewBrookes' work offers scholars and students a very readable account of palace life during the reign of Mehmed V, first-hand observations of many interesting historical events, and fascinating insights concerning life in general from one of the greatest Turkish novelists. -- Jame N Tallon * The Middle Ground Journal *Table of ContentsForewordIntroductionMapsTimeline of Late Ottoman History Family Tree1. A New Court for a New Monarch2. Redoing the Palaces3. On Show4. The Imperial Household5. The Imperial Family6. Wedding Vows and Dueling Heirs7. Papers, Papers8. Mysterious Yıldız, Daunting Topkapı9. Coming to Call10. Royal Guests11. On Holiday12. Maneuvering, Touring13. No End to Crises14. Caught in the Vise15. Bringing Down the Curtain16. The Man Who Would Be SultanEpilogueGlossary of NamesGlossary of Terms and PlacesBibliographyIndex

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Book Synopsis-First biography of William Stephen Hamilton, son of Founding Father, Alexander Hamilton. William Hamilton left D.C and moved to the midwestern frontier to seek his fortune. -Hamilton's life offers a first-hand account of the formation of the Midwestern states, the realities of life on the frontier, and mass migration caused by the California Gold Rush.Trade Review"William Hamilton's legacy begins with mystery—whose portrait is that—and his life compounds our wonder. Here is the fascinating story, not told in more than a century, of a son of perhaps the nation's most fascinating Founder. It ventures from early New York City to Lincoln's Springfield to wild Wisconsin, then on to the California Gold Rush; and William's mother Elizabeth (Alexander's wife) was along for some of it. A. K. Fielding shows how Revolutionary culture and daring were translated into the Old Northwest and Far West by this astonishing, self-reliant, overlooked man."—James M. Cornelius, former Curator of the Lincoln Presidential Library."All the children of Alexander and Elizabeth Hamilton have something interesting to tell about their life. We knew William went to West Point, fought in the Black Hawk War, was a lead miner in Wisconsin and died in Sacramento looking for gold. A. K. Fielding has also been looking for gold and has done a lot of panning through the internet, old books, manuscripts and letters to reveal the shiny golden nuggets in the life of William Stephen Hamilton. There is gold in this Rough Diamond."—Douglas Hamilton, 5x great-grandson of Alexander Hamilton"Author A.K. Fielding uncovers fascinating new information on Alexander and Elizabeth Hamilton through the eyes and documents of their son William Stephen Hamilton. Like his father, William finds a life far from his childhood home–in this case, the Midwest, and then on to California. Readers will enjoy immersing themselves in William's unique life journey, from coast to coast."—Rand Scholet, Founder, The Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society"Who tells your story? A. K. Fielding tells William Stephen Hamilton's–a poignant and all-American tale of privilege, pioneer spirit, and tragedy."—Richard Brookhiser, author Give Me Liberty: A History of America's Exceptional IdeaTable of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgments1. Broken Beginnings2. The Man3. Life in Illinois4. Black Hawk War5. Gray Gold6. Taming the Frontier7. El Dorado8. Dead EndBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisBoy with a Violin recounts the compelling story of child violin prodigy Yochanan Fein—from his miraculous survival in the Kaunas Ghetto through his daring escape from Soviet Lithuania to Poland, before immigrating to Israeli in 1950.Trade ReviewSuch stories have been told before: A Jewish boy a violin, the pounding of boots, death and grief. Yet this book overwhelmed me. I was swept away, so much so that as I read this book on the train, I was so immersed that I missed my destination. * Het Parool Newspaper *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsPart IPrologue1. Who Was This Man?2. A Jewish Boy and His Parents3. The Goal—Saving the Intellectuals4. The Violin of My Life5. The Story—Back to the Beginning6. The Great Action and the Looting of Those Who Remained7. The Separation from My Parents8. At My Relatives' House9. General Winte10. Activities11. The "Malina"12. The Girl, Ghetta'leh13. The Murder of Children14. My Escape from the Ghetto15. In the Attic and the "Tomato Patch"16. In the Depths of the Pit17. Farewell from a Distance18. The Russian Captive and Rubin, the Jew19. About Anna, Oscar and Otto20. The Sixteen Survivors21. About Hideouts and People22. The Paulavičius'Part II23. There Is No Law and There Is No Judge24. Gražina25. The Return Home26. The Joy of Youth27. Moscow28. A Brief Return HomePart III29. Goodbye Lithuania30. Strangers in Poland31. At the Children's Home32. My Students—My Friends33. The Court34. Solitude35. Goodbye Poland36. Me and My PastEpilogueNotes

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Book SynopsisBoy with a Violin recounts the compelling story of child violin prodigy Yochanan Fein—from his miraculous survival in the Kaunas Ghetto through his daring escape from Soviet Lithuania to Poland, before immigrating to Israeli in 1950.Trade ReviewSuch stories have been told before: A Jewish boy a violin, the pounding of boots, death and grief. Yet this book overwhelmed me. I was swept away, so much so that as I read this book on the train, I was so immersed that I missed my destination. * Het Parool Newspaper *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsPart IPrologue1. Who Was This Man?2. A Jewish Boy and His Parents3. The Goal—Saving the Intellectuals4. The Violin of My Life5. The Story—Back to the Beginning6. The Great Action and the Looting of Those Who Remained7. The Separation from My Parents8. At My Relatives' House9. General Winte10. Activities11. The "Malina"12. The Girl, Ghetta'leh13. The Murder of Children14. My Escape from the Ghetto15. In the Attic and the "Tomato Patch"16. In the Depths of the Pit17. Farewell from a Distance18. The Russian Captive and Rubin, the Jew19. About Anna, Oscar and Otto20. The Sixteen Survivors21. About Hideouts and People22. The Paulavičius'Part II23. There Is No Law and There Is No Judge24. Gražina25. The Return Home26. The Joy of Youth27. Moscow28. A Brief Return HomePart III29. Goodbye Lithuania30. Strangers in Poland31. At the Children's Home32. My Students—My Friends33. The Court34. Solitude35. Goodbye Poland36. Me and My PastEpilogueNotes

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Book SynopsisMoshe's Children presents the inspiring story of Moshe Zeiri, a Jewish carpenter responsible for rescuing hundreds of Jewish refugee children who had survived the Final Solution. During the liberation of Italy, Zeiri, a volunteer in the British Army in Italy, assumed responsibility for and vowed to help around seven hundred Polish, Hungarian, Russian, and Romanian children. Although these orphans of the Shoah had been deprived of a family, a home, and a language and were irreparably robbed of their past, they were able to rebuild their lives through Zeiri's efforts as he founded the largest Jewish orphanage in postwar Europe in Selvino, Italy, where he began to rehabilitate the orphans and to teach them how to become citizens of the new nation of Israel. Moshe's Children also explores Zeiri's own story from birth in a shtetl to his upbringing and Zionist education, his journey to the Land of Israel, and his work there before the war. With narrative verve and scholarly acumen, Sergio Trade Review"Sergio Luzzatto has unearthed a moving story and is telling it masterfully: how after 1945 some 700 young children who survived the Holocaust found refuge in northern Italy and ultimately emigrated to Israel. It is a dramatic story, beautifully and importantly told!"—Alon Confino, author of A World Without Jews"Moshe's Children is a charming work. Written by an Italian scholar and now wonderfully translated into English, it tells the story of a children's house established by a a Polish volunteer in the British Army in Italy that served to offer a haven to orphans of the Holocaust, to rehabilitate them and prepare them for a life in Palestine, which after 1948 became Israel. Moshe's Children presents Zionism in a manner virtually unseen today, as the hope for the transformation of the Jewish people and the role that Zionism played in the rehabilitation of Holocaust survivors."—Michael Berenbaum, American Jewish UniversityTable of ContentsMain CharactersAcknowledgmentsMapsThe Black Box1. Far from Where2. Yehudit3. Close to Where4. Anabasis5. The Drowned and the Saved6. The House of Mussolini7. A Republic of Orphans8. Life after Death9. Kibbutz Selvino?10. In Israel's Waters11. The Road to Jerusalem12. If You SurviveGlossaryNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisMoshe's Children presents the inspiring story of Moshe Zeiri, a Jewish carpenter responsible for rescuing hundreds of Jewish refugee children who had survived the Final Solution. During the liberation of Italy, Zeiri, a volunteer in the British Army in Italy, assumed responsibility for and vowed to help around seven hundred Polish, Hungarian, Russian, and Romanian children. Although these orphans of the Shoah had been deprived of a family, a home, and a language and were irreparably robbed of their past, they were able to rebuild their lives through Zeiri's efforts as he founded the largest Jewish orphanage in postwar Europe in Selvino, Italy, where he began to rehabilitate the orphans and to teach them how to become citizens of the new nation of Israel. Moshe's Children also explores Zeiri's own story from birth in a shtetl to his upbringing and Zionist education, his journey to the Land of Israel, and his work there before the war. With narrative verve and scholarly acumen, Sergio Trade Review"Sergio Luzzatto has unearthed a moving story and is telling it masterfully: how after 1945 some 700 young children who survived the Holocaust found refuge in northern Italy and ultimately emigrated to Israel. It is a dramatic story, beautifully and importantly told!"—Alon Confino, author of A World Without Jews"Moshe's Children is a charming work. Written by an Italian scholar and now wonderfully translated into English, it tells the story of a children's house established by a a Polish volunteer in the British Army in Italy that served to offer a haven to orphans of the Holocaust, to rehabilitate them and prepare them for a life in Palestine, which after 1948 became Israel. Moshe's Children presents Zionism in a manner virtually unseen today, as the hope for the transformation of the Jewish people and the role that Zionism played in the rehabilitation of Holocaust survivors."—Michael Berenbaum, American Jewish UniversityTable of ContentsMain CharactersAcknowledgmentsMapsThe Black Box1. Far from Where2. Yehudit3. Close to Where4. Anabasis5. The Drowned and the Saved6. The House of Mussolini7. A Republic of Orphans8. Life after Death9. Kibbutz Selvino?10. In Israel's Waters11. The Road to Jerusalem12. If You SurviveGlossaryNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"The untold full story of the most paradoxical woman who fought the Israeli Mossad and her marriage to the extreme antizionist Rabbi of Jerusalem. History at its best."—Margalit Shilo, Bar Ilan University"Ruth Blau: A Life of Paradox and Purpose constitutes a landmark study of a heretofore mysterious yet highly significant personage in modern Jewish history. A French convert who married the resolutely anti-Zionist Neturei Karta leader Rabbi Amram Blau, this study of her life provides great insight into our understanding of Jewish ultra-Orthodoxy and the role of women within it. Inbari draws on rich archival resources and extensive interviews to construct this story of her life and its many twists and turns both in Israel and the Diaspora. In so doing, he makes an original and vital contribution to modern feminist and Israeli scholarship."—David Ellenson, Brandeis UniversityTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Childhood2. Resistance3. "Your God Is My God": Lucette's Quest for Spirituality4. "Your People Shell Be My People": Conversion5. Where Is Yossele?6. The Hunt (1962)7. "I Am Also Acquiring Ruth as My Wife": The Marriage of Ruth Ben David and Rabbi Amram Blau8. Ruth Blau: The Rebbetzin9. "Fierce Woman!": Traveling in Muslim Countries10. Ruth Blau, the Ultra-Orthodox Society, and the Israeli Public OpinionEpilogueNotesBibliography

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"The untold full story of the most paradoxical woman who fought the Israeli Mossad and her marriage to the extreme antizionist Rabbi of Jerusalem. History at its best."—Margalit Shilo, Bar Ilan University"Ruth Blau: A Life of Paradox and Purpose constitutes a landmark study of a heretofore mysterious yet highly significant personage in modern Jewish history. A French convert who married the resolutely anti-Zionist Neturei Karta leader Rabbi Amram Blau, this study of her life provides great insight into our understanding of Jewish ultra-Orthodoxy and the role of women within it. Inbari draws on rich archival resources and extensive interviews to construct this story of her life and its many twists and turns both in Israel and the Diaspora. In so doing, he makes an original and vital contribution to modern feminist and Israeli scholarship."—David Ellenson, Brandeis UniversityTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Childhood2. Resistance3. "Your God Is My God": Lucette's Quest for Spirituality4. "Your People Shell Be My People": Conversion5. Where Is Yossele?6. The Hunt (1962)7. "I Am Also Acquiring Ruth as My Wife": The Marriage of Ruth Ben David and Rabbi Amram Blau8. Ruth Blau: The Rebbetzin9. "Fierce Woman!": Traveling in Muslim Countries10. Ruth Blau, the Ultra-Orthodox Society, and the Israeli Public OpinionEpilogueNotesBibliography

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Book SynopsisA revealing biography of a major figure in the Irish Republican MovementTrade ReviewA tour de force. Indispensable for all Irish studies collections. . . . Essential. * Choice *Table of ContentsPreface to the Paperback EditionChronologyForewordAcknowledgementsIntroduction1. Matt Brady and May Caffrey2. The Brady Family: Irish Republicans in the 1930s and 1940s3. Off to College and into Sinn Féin and the IRA: 1950–19544. Arms Raids, Elections, and the Border Campaign: 1955–19565. Derrylin, Mountjoy, and Teachta Dála: December 1956–March 19576. TD, Internee, Escapee, and Chief of Staff: March 1957–June 19597. Marriage and Ending the Border Campaign: June 1959–February 19628. Political and Personal Developments in the 1960s: March 1962–19659. Dream-Filled Romantics, Revolutionaries, and the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association: 1965–August 196810. The Provisionals: September 1968–October 197011. The Politics of Revolution: Éire Nua, November 1970–December 197212. International Gains and Personal Losses: January 1973–November 197413. The Responsibilities of Leadership: November 1974–February 197614. A Long War: March 1976–September 197815. A New Generation Setting the Pace: October 1978–August 198116. "Never, that's what I say to you—Never": September 1981–October 198617. "We are here and we are very much in business": October 1986–May 1998EpilogueAfterword: The Legacy of Ruarí Ó BrádaighNotes on SourcesWorks CitedIndex

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Book SynopsisIn these memoirs, Father Theodore Hesburgh chronicles the transformation of Notre Dame from a somewhat mediocre midwestern university into a major teaching and research institution.Trade Review“Father Hesburgh should be on almost everyone’s list of the most influential figures in American higher education over the past few decades. In these fascinating memoirs, he chronicles the transformation of Notre Dame from a somewhat mediocre midwestern university into a major national teaching and research institution. As president of Notre Dame for 35 years, he used that position as a platform to argue the truly critical issues not only within the academy, but outside as well. The chapters on his involvement with the Civil Rights movement and criticism of early Vatican policy on academic freedom at Catholic universities are most compelling. Recommended for all readers, especially in these days of seeming cynicism and doubt.” —Library Journal“The temptation is to subtitle this book ‘Adventures of Superpriest.’ If Father Hesburgh made it all up, it would still be a wonderful story, a compendium of what-ifs. . . . Its warmth and humanity are infectious, and most readers will not have the nerve to fight off the pleasure of going along.” —Chicago Tribune“Father Hesburgh says that each one of us can do something effective in the cause of a better world. God, Country, Notre Dame itself embodies an obvious refutation of the apathetic notion that ‘in the modern world one person cannot make a difference.'” —Commonweal“William F. Buckley might disagree, but the former university president is clear on the three most important things in life.” —New York Magazine“To read this book is to get acquainted with a great human being, as our Jewish friends say, a real mensch.” —Provident Book Finder

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Book SynopsisFor over half a century, Robert Schmuhl interviewed and wrote about Reverend Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., who served as the president of the University of Notre Dame from 1952 until 1987. Beginning as an undergraduate student during the 1960s, when he covered Hesburgh and Notre Dame for the Associated Press, to 2014 when he conducted his last visit with the frail ninety-seven-year-old priest, Schmuhl maintained a unique relationship with Father Hesburgh. Over time, Hesburgh's meetings with Schmuhl evolved into a friendship, which is documented in this personal and warmhearted portrait of the man who was for decades considered the most influential priest in America. Fifty Years with Father Hesburgh: On and Off the Record contains excerpts and commentary from various interviews Schmuhl conducted with Father Hesburgh about his service as Notre Dame's president, including the most difficult years of his presidency during the 1960s, when Notre Dame and other college campusTrade Review"Consider this slender book a mouth-watering appetizer for the volumes that will ultimately be written about Father Ted Hesburgh. If you knew the man, you will relish the fresh insights. If, somehow, you lived unaware in the same world with Father Ted, this book will be a revelation. Bob Schmuhl fails utterly in concealing his love and admiration for his friend of fifty years. Read on and you will understand why.” —Ted Koppel, news anchor and author of Lights Out"For those of us who had the honor of knowing Father Ted, we will never forget his wry humor, sage advice, and infectious faith. For those who did not, this book offers a sense of the man who was a mentor to me and countless others." —Condoleezza Rice, Thomas and Barbara Stephenson Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and former Secretary of State"Fr. Ted Hesburgh was arguably the most influential American Catholic of the last century. His charm and intellect propelled him to powerful leadership in spiritual, academic, political, and diplomatic circles. His friend and confidant Bob Schmuhl was uniquely positioned to report the candid reflections of this Priest for All Seasons over the last half of his life. The result will inform and inspire readers today and remain priceless for researchers tomorrow." —Matthew V. Storin, former editor of the Boston Globe"Much has been written of Father Hesburgh's leadership roles in American religious life, Catholic education, intercollegiate sports, and civil rights, and this attractively written book now adds the personal reflections of a student, professor, and friend of Father Hesburgh over a period of fifty years. Robert Schmuhl is a professional interviewer, writer, and observer of the American scene, but in this work he is simply a friend, companion, and frequent visitor to Father Hesburgh's office. Distinct from others, this work offers a personal, affectionate, behind-the-scenes picture of this remarkable priest, educator, and public official." —Thomas Blantz, C.S.C., emeritus, University of Notre Dame"Father Hesburgh's rock solid faith, character, and intellect changed Notre Dame, America, and the world forever. Robert Schmuhl's book perfectly captures Father Ted's amazing life." —Joe Donnelly, United States Senator for Indiana"Father Theodore Hesburgh, CSC, often made headlines when he served as Notre Dame’s president from 1952 to 1987. He was frequently interviewed by Schmuhl, the ND professor of American Studies and Journalism who covered him for various outlets and became a friend and confidant. This volume offers both excerpts and commentary from those interviews and a warmhearted view of the influential priest." —Notre Dame Magazine"Robert Schmuhl, the author of this book, is well known in Ireland for his insightful commentaries on American life and politics. . . . He first encountered Fr. Hesburgh in the late 1960s as a young Notre Dame undergraduate, who combined his studies with work as a 'stringer' for the Associated Press (AP) reporting on what was happening on campus. . . . Schmuhl's book is a remarkable tribute to a man whom he confesses to have held in awe, and it succeeds admirably in showing why Theodore Hesburgh had earned that awe." —Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review“Schmuhl interviewed his mentor several times and these interviews are largely the source of this short ‘biographical memoir,’ a term Schmuhl uses to delineate between a memoir that would be about himself and a book about Father Hesburgh through his personal experience.” —The Compass News“An impressively organized and presented, informed and informative, thoughtful and thought-provoking read from beginning to end, Fifty Years with Father Hesburgh: On and off the Record is an extraordinary work and very strongly recommended for seminary and academic library American Biography collections in general and Christian Studies supplemental studies reading lists in particular. A ‘must’ read for anyone who admires Father Hesburgh.” —Midwestbookreview.com“As I looked back at a half-century of watching and working with [Hesburgh], I was struck, again and again, by the variety of experiences in his life and the centrality of his faith (as well as moral concerns) to everything he did. . . . At a time when our politics and civic life have become so polarized, he sought to bridge differences whenever that was possible and to operate from the center. . . . Among his many talents, Hesburgh was a gifted storyteller.” —IrishCentral

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Book SynopsisExamines the life and work of writer and political activist Georg Forster (1754-1794), a participant in Captain Cook’s second voyage and one of the leading figures in the Mainz Republic.Trade Review“Todd Kontje’s book is both an excellent starting point and a significant addition to existing scholarship. The image of Forster that emerges is further removed from modern progressive values, but no less fascinating and important.”—Morgan Golf-French History of European Ideas“A worthy contribution to the scholarship on Forster.”—R. Bledsoe Choice“This book is daring, somewhat provocative yet brilliant. It is an elegant volume, well done and with a helpful index. Above all, this is a major contribution to current scholarly debates on race, travel literature, science, and political and philosophical discourses surrounding the French Revolution and the Mainz Republic.”—Beate Allert German Quarterly“Georg Forster is a well-conceived and important book that comes at a moment of unresolved tension around questions of nationalism and cosmopolitanism, globalization and imperialism, individual identity and group identity, and populism and democracy—questions that were central to Forster’s life and his writings. Written by one of the foremost scholars in German literary approaches to other cultures, it will make an important contribution to the scholarship on Enlightenment travel, thought, and writing.”—John Noyes,author of Herder: Aesthetics Against Imperialism

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Book SynopsisThis book gives a unique perspective on the interwar history of the Middle East; by telling the life story of one man, it illuminates the political and cultural struggles of an era.Table of Contents A Note on Sources Acknowledgments Introduction 1. The Formation of an Arab-Ottoman Gentleman 2. War and Exile 3. Adoption of the Arab Cause 4. Advocate of Islamic Nationalism: The Arab East 5. Mentor to a Generation: North Africa 6. The Integrity of Tradition 7. Toward the Axis 8. Conclusion A Chronology of Shakib Arslan Notes Select Bibliography Index

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisThrough her successive drives for gender equality, human rights, political reform, Taiwan independence, and, currently, environmental protection, Lu has played a key role in Taiwan's evolution from dictatorship to democracy.Trade Review"An engrossing story of a life devoted to Taiwan. . . . A remarkable journey." -- Enru Lin * Taipei Times *"Lu's life story mirrors the story of Taiwan as a country. Both are trying to find their way in the world and break free — one from limiting gender expectations, the other from mainland China. . . . My Fight for a New Taiwan had me cheering on [Lu] and her compatriots as they fought for the country they loved so much." -- Samantha Pak * Northwest Asian Weekly *"An enjoyable narrative that captures how education and other broadening opportunities enabled the career and prominence of a smart and ambitious woman. . . . Lu’s experiences highlight the fragmentation and oppressiveness of Taiwan’s transitions, even as they offer hope that other Asian states might move further down the path of becoming more open societies." -- Madeline Hsu * H-Asia (H-Net) *"A welcome reminder of what is possible when political leaders - government officials and antigovernment activists alike - set aside their own interests and follow the will of the people they claim to serve. . . . Lu’s engaging voice and extraordinary candor make [this] a surprising and inspiring read." -- Shelley Rigger * Foreign Affairs *"[An] extraordinary record of late twentieth-century Taiwan history seen through the eyes of one of its victims, throwing valuable light on the atrocities that the present governing party might prefer [were] forgotten. . . . [The] narrative is told with disarming fluency and a rapidity that makes for breathless reading. . . . Combines historical record with a moving narrative of survival and dedication to the long-suffering people of Taiwan." -- Michael Rand Hoare * The China Quarterly *Table of ContentsForeword Preface Map of Taiwan Introduction 1. Dreams Come True 2. Taiwanese Daughter 3. Lifting Half the Sky 4. A Moth Flying Towards Flame 5. Human Rights Riot 6. Patriotism Imprisoned 7. In Search of Destiny 8. Knocking at the Gate of the UN 9. Political Trash 10. The Glorious Revolution Epilogue Notes Glossary of Names Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"An engrossing story of a life devoted to Taiwan. . . . A remarkable journey." -- Enru Lin * Taipei Times *"Lu's life story mirrors the story of Taiwan as a country. Both are trying to find their way in the world and break free — one from limiting gender expectations, the other from mainland China. . . . My Fight for a New Taiwan had me cheering on [Lu] and her compatriots as they fought for the country they loved so much." -- Samantha Pak * Northwest Asian Weekly *"An enjoyable narrative that captures how education and other broadening opportunities enabled the career and prominence of a smart and ambitious woman. . . . Lu’s experiences highlight the fragmentation and oppressiveness of Taiwan’s transitions, even as they offer hope that other Asian states might move further down the path of becoming more open societies." -- Madeline Hsu * H-Asia (H-Net) *"A welcome reminder of what is possible when political leaders - government officials and antigovernment activists alike - set aside their own interests and follow the will of the people they claim to serve. . . . Lu’s engaging voice and extraordinary candor make [this] a surprising and inspiring read." -- Shelley Rigger * Foreign Affairs *"[An] extraordinary record of late twentieth-century Taiwan history seen through the eyes of one of its victims, throwing valuable light on the atrocities that the present governing party might prefer [were] forgotten. . . . [The] narrative is told with disarming fluency and a rapidity that makes for breathless reading. . . . Combines historical record with a moving narrative of survival and dedication to the long-suffering people of Taiwan." -- Michael Rand Hoare * The China Quarterly *Table of ContentsForeword Preface Map of Taiwan Introduction 1. Dreams Come True 2. Taiwanese Daughter 3. Lifting Half the Sky 4. A Moth Flying Towards Flame 5. Human Rights Riot 6. Patriotism Imprisoned 7. In Search of Destiny 8. Knocking at the Gate of the UN 9. Political Trash 10. The Glorious Revolution Epilogue Notes Glossary of Names Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Kaufman’s cogent analyses of critical episodes and decisions in which Jackson had a part contribute usefully to knowledge of an era, particularly in energy policy, America’s Cold War and international human rights roles, and the travails of liberalism and the Democratic Party." * Choice *Table of ContentsThe Everett Years, 1912-1940 Member of the House, 1941-1953 The Cold War Becomes Colder The Eisenhower Years, 1953-1961 Khrushchev’s Communism Domestic Politics to 1961 Henry Jackson and the New Frontier The TFX Controversy and the “Senator from Boeing” The Great Liberal Crackup, 1964-1969 That Year: 1968 Jackson’s Ascent, the Party’s Descent, 1968-1972 Gearing Up for the 1972 Presidential Campaign Perils of Detente, Part I: 1968-1976 Israel and the Cold War The Ford Administration Not in the Cards: The 1976 Presidential Campaign The 1976 Democratic Primaries Perils of Detente, Part II: 1977-1980 Human Rights, SALT, and Linkage Anybody But Carter: The 1980 Presidential Election Sunset, 1981-1983 The Jackson Legacy Notes Bibliography Index

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Trade Review“At two in the morning of April 15, 1977, twenty armed men in civilian clothes arrested Jacobo Timerman, editor and publisher of a leading Buenos Aires newspaper. Thus began thirty months of imprisonment, torture, and anti-Semitic abuse. . . . Unlike 15,000 other Argentines, ‘the disappeared,’ Timerman was eventually released into exile. His testimony [is] gripping in its human stories, not only of brutality but of courage and love; important because it reminds us how, in our world, the most terrible fantasies may become fact.”—New York Times, Books of the Century|“It ranks with Hannah Arendt’s Eichmann in Jerusalem in its examination of the totalitarian mind, the role of anti-Semitism, the silence.”—Eliot Fremont-Smith, Village Voice|“It is impossible to read this proud and piercing account of [Timerman’s] suffering and his battles without wanting to be counted as one of Timerman’s friends.”—Michael Walzer, New York Review of Books|“Timerman was a living reminder that real prophets are irritants and not messengers of reassurance. He told it like it is, whether in Argentina, Israel, Europe, or the United States.”—Arthur Miller

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Book SynopsisThe Italian educator and physician Maria Montessori (1870-1952) is best known for the teaching method that bears her name. She was also a lifelong pacifist. In this volume, Erica Moretti reframes Montessori's pacifism as the foundation for her educational activism, emphasizing her vision of the classroom as a gateway to reshaping society.Trade ReviewInnovative and extremely well-documented. This volume reframes the life and work of Maria Montessori within the context of international peace studies. She deserves recognition as a pioneer who faced gender barriers and nevertheless almost won the Nobel Peace Prize. Moretti gracefully weaves portraits of historical topics into this narrative of Montessori's intellectual life." - Mary Gibson, John Jay College and the Graduate Center-CUNY"More than just a fascinating account of the life and groundbreaking thought of Maria Montessori, this scrupulously researched book sheds new light on her humanitarianism, feminism, and environmentalism, all contextualized in a transnational framework. It will inspire readers from a variety of disciplines interested in the education and peace." - Lorenzo Benadusi, author of The Enemy of the New Man: Homosexuality in Fascist Italy

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Book SynopsisA short study of Catherine the Great and her reign. This second edition includes a new preface dealing with sources discovered since the publication of the first edition, along with revised interpretations of the period.

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Book SynopsisIn 1912 Captain Robert Falcon Scott confronted defeat and death in the crippling subzero temperatures of Antarctica. This volume finishes the tale of Scott and his British expedition, depicting the staggering 900-mile trek to the South Pole and resolving the debate over the journey's failure.Trade Review“[A] brilliant revisionist account of Scott’s tardy and fatal march for the South Pole in 1911. . . . Highly original, beautifully presented and remarkably modest, the book is the fruit of Solomon’s long-standing professional involvement with Antarctica and its history. . . . [Solomon] has written a marvellous and complex book: at once a detective story, a brilliant vindication of a maligned man, and an elegy both for Scott and his men, and for the ‘crystalline continent’ on which they died.”—Robert MacFarlane, Guardian“[P]ersuasive. . . . [Solomon] reaches important new conclusions about Scott’s expedition. . . . This thorough account . . . will be useful to anyone interested in polar matters.”—Sara Wheeler, New York Times Book Review“This brilliant revisionist account of Scott’s fatal bid for the South Pole by an atmospheric scientist specialising in Antarctica proves that Scott and his men died not from incompetence, but because of exceptional cold on their return march.”—The EconomistA New York Times Book Review ‘Notable Book of 2001’“[Solomon is] one of the world’s leading atmospheric scientists. . . . [The book is] the very neatly, indeed thrillingly, told tale of Scott’s journey, along with Solomon’s expert analysis of the weather he faced and its effect on the expedition. . . . Solomon’s is a fine and interesting book, and it sets the record straight at last.”—Anthony Brandt, National Geographic Adventure“Well researched and well written, and should appeal to a broad readership, as well as to meteorologists and polar historians.”—Cornelia Lüdecke, Nature“Solomon argues her case well, in exact and graceful prose. She suggests an intriguing solution to certain puzzles about the expedition’s finale, and The Coldest March will appeal to anyone with an interest in polar exploration.”—Dennis Drabelle, Washington Post Book World"As a vivid depiction of the ordeals and beauty of the Antarctic, Solomon’s book is outstanding."—Frank Wintle, Daily Express (starred review)“[A] fascinating account that gets under the skin of the tragedy’s players.”—Stuart Wavell, London Times“The book makes for a ripping yarn, not least because Solomon the scientist can also write.”—Charles Laurence, Telegraph Magazine“We will never know all the answers to some of the questions that Solomon addresses. One may not agree with all her conclusions, but the book provides new insight into old problems, and may have come closer to the truth than any other book on Scott, his comrades, and their fateful expedition.”—Bryan C. Storey, The International History Review“Highly original, beautifully presented and remarkably modest, the book is the fruit of Solomon’s long-standing professional involvement with Antarctica and its history. . . . A marvellous and complex book: at once a detective story, a brilliant vindication of a maligned man, and an elegy both for Scott and his men, and for the ‘crystalline continent’ on which they died.”—Robert MacFarlane, The ObserverWinner of the 2001 Colorado Book Award in the Nonfiction CategoryWinner of the 2001 Louis Battan Prize in the adult category, given by the American Meteorological Society“An inspiring chronicle of Antarctic scientific exploration at its most heroic. From the vantage point of history and her personal experience in Antarctica and with all the human and scientific insights of the outstanding scientist that she is, Susan Solomon has written a masterpiece. It is a tale of vision, courage, endurance, patriotism, loyalty, and all the strengths and frailties of the human spirit. Above all, it is good science, good history, and gripping reading.”—J. W. Zillman, president of the World Meteorological Organization“Scott’s South Pole expedition ended in tragedy. This book is a valuable and sympathetic contribution to the great story, written by the leader of an expedition that ended in triumph.”—Jonathan Weiner, author of The Beak of the Finch and Time, Love, Memory“A fresh and captivating look at one of the most tragic sagas in the annals of exploration. Solomon takes the reader on a breathtaking ride through Antarctica’s beauty, history, and uniquely forbidding weather. Carefully researched, innovative, and elegantly written, The Coldest March will fascinate and inform anyone intrigued by polar adventure or the interplay of science and society.”—Paul Ehrlich, author of Human Natures and Wild Solutions “An absorbing, fascinating read . . . a book that will appeal to the explorer in everyone.”—Sally Ride“A great adventure story, made even more compelling by a modern scientific detective.”—Bruce Babbitt, former Secretary of the Interior

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Book SynopsisLeaving so few traces of himself behind, Thomas Aquinas seems to defy the efforts of the biographer. What can be discovered about this man, his mind, and his soul? In this short, compelling portrait, the author clears away the haze of time and brings Thomas vividly to life for contemporary readers.Trade Review'. . . if you require an introduction to the ‘Angelic Doctor’, Turner’s magnificent book will serve you well.'—BBC History Magazine * BBC History Magazine *

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Book SynopsisA transformative portrait of Churchill, whose love of history, theater, and reading was inextricably linked to his life as a statesman This strikingly original book introduces a Winston Churchill we have not known before. Award-winning author Jonathan Rose explores in tandem Churchill's careers as statesman and author, revealing the profound influence of literature and theater on Churchill's personal, carefully composed grand story and on the decisions he made throughout his political life. Rose provides in this expansive literary biography an analysis of Churchill's writings and their reception (he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1953 and was a best-selling author), and a chronicle of his dealings with publishers, editors, literary agents, and censors. The book also identifies an array of authors who shaped Churchill's own writings and politics: George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells, Margaret Mitchell, George Orwell, Oscar Wilde, and many more. Rose investigates the effect of ChuTrade Review“An interesting and at times surprising account of Churchill's tastes as a reader . . . [Rose] is a very good stylist. He is also formidably knowledgeable, and many of his nuggets will be new even to Churchill junkies.”—Ben Downing, Wall Street Journal“Immensely enjoyable . . . marvelous . . . This gracefully written book is an original and textured study of Churchill’s imagination.” —Michael F. Bishop, Washington Post“A most wonderful book for Churchill admirers . . . fascinating . . . the book sparkles and is the best I have ever read on the man.”—Tom Perkins, Wall Street Journal, “Books of the Year”'One of the most remarkable books ever written about Winston Churchill.'—Piers Brendon, Literary Review‘Jonathan Rose. . .has shown how Churchill excelled in the application of language to the exercise of power and concludes that he 'modelled his politics on literature.' The proof is abundant and well presented in this excellent, thorough and enjoyable biography that adds a fresh and fascinating dimension to a great statesman.’—Lawrence James, The Times‘This is no incidental postscript to the hundreds of volumes already published about Churchill, but a painstaking study building a formidable case for taking him seriously not just in political history but in literary history too. . .Rose made his reputation as the historian of the working-class autodidacts in Britain. Now he has consolidated it by writing about an upper-class autodidact, whose intellectual life he captures well.’ —Peter Clark. The Financial Times‘[Rose] assembles a mass of fascinating information about Churchill’s writings, readings, and politicking, much of it until now available only in the archives at Churchill College.’—Cita Stelzer, TLS‘Rose hopes to be breaking new ground in the multitude of books on Churchill and provides us with another highly readable account of the man in the course. Bugger Boris, read Rose.’—Stewart Rayment, InterLib.‘The result of Rose’s careful scholarship is an absorbing account of the complicated overlap between aesthetics and politics. Churchill emerges as a figure largely unable to separate his reading, writing, political decisions and political self-presentation, such that, to use Rose’s closing words, Churchill’s life ‘demonstrates that literature matters, more than we think, in more ways than we imagine.’’—Neil E. Hultgren, British Studies. ‘Incredibly enough, considering the vast existing literature on Churchill, a sufficient number of aspects of his life remain unexplored to enable a gifted author like Professor Rose to present us with this suberb hefty volume.’—Antoine Capet, Cercles. ‘After the millions of words that have been written about Winston Churchill, Jonathan Rose still finds a new angle from which to approach him.’—Alaistair Mabbott, Glasgow Herald, ‘Painstakingly researched and immensely readable, this in-depth study offers a new perspective on a complex personality and national hero, drawing a picture of a man whose sense of the dramatic changed the course of history.’—Good Book Guide. The 2016 New Jersey Committee for the Humanities Book Award in the scholarly humanities non-fiction cateogry.'Lucid, insightful, and authoritative, The Literary Churchill reveals in rich detail how a great political life was shaped by a love of books, a theatrical flair and a brilliant talent for turning a phrase. Unlike many politicians then or now, Churchill believed that literature mattered, and as this book demonstrates convincingly, his deep commitment to the world of the imagination influenced his career at every important turn.' - Michael Shelden, author of Young Titan: The Making of Winston Churchill'One of the most remarkable books ever written about Winston Churchill.'—Piers Brendon, Literary Review -- Piers Brendon * Literary Review *

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Book SynopsisA dazzling translation by Lydia Davis of the first volume of Michel Leiris's masterwork, perhaps the most important French autobiographical enterprise of the twentieth centuryTrade Review"Michel Leiris is the author of the most significant and arresting work of autobiography to have been written in the twentieth century."—John Sturrock"For me his work is not only a document that enriches our knowledge of man, but also a personal testament that touches me deeply."—Francis Bacon

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Book SynopsisThe second volume of Michel Leiris's hugely influential four-volume autobiographical essay, available to English-language readers in a brilliant and sensitive translation by Lydia DavisTrade Review"I read with fervor the literary works of Michel Leiris and in particular the four volumes of Rules of the Game... He is incontestably one of the greatest writers of the century."—Claude Lévi-Strauss"In Leiris's Rules of the Game Volume 2, I found again those qualities that had riveted me in Volume 1: those spirals of words coiling in on themselves and unrolling again into infinity, drilling into the abysses of the past and the heart, yet glittering there in broad daylight, reflecting from image to image toward a secret that vanishes at the very instant it seems it must appear, the search having no other outcome than itself in the slow revolution of its thousand mirrors."—Simon de Beauvoir

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Very readable book”— Neil Gregor, Times Higher Education Supplement “Goeschel has added another interesting book to our reading lists” —R.J.B. Bosworth, Literary Review"An excellent study of the Axis in its own right, Goeschel’s book explores an entirely new dimension of Fascist–Nazi relations by mining the often overlooked, seemingly superficial, aspects of totalitarian diplomacy. Sidelining scholarship that views the Axis through the lens of ideology or a ‘fascist minimum’, Goeschel presents a complex and satisfying story of an alliance driven by self-interest, conflict and strategic manoeuvring"—Michael Ebner, German History“An excellent study of the Axis in its own right, Goeschel’s book explores an entirely new dimension of Fascist–Nazi relations by mining the often overlooked, seemingly superficial, aspects of totalitarian diplomacy”—Michael Ebner, German History“[T]he book is outstanding in its readability.”—Ángel Alcalde, Contemporary European History “Goeschel demonstrates the ambiguity in Nazi-Fascist relations, depicting an alliance that was by no means inevitable, well-planned or coordinated, let alone marked by a linear development to an ‘ever closer Axis’ made of equals.”—Bastian Matteo Scianna, War in History“Through meticulous dissection of the novel choreography and symbolism of modern dictators, with special focus on the constructed imagery of the meetings between Mussolini and Hitler, Christian Goeschel's excellent book is able to cast more light than any previous historian has done on the cynical self-serving character of their increasingly catastrophic ‘special relationship’.”—Ian Kershaw“Fascinating, deeply researched and well-written. This promises to be the definitive study of the Mussolini-Hitler relationship.”—Lucy Riall, author of Garibaldi

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Book SynopsisA major new biography of Antoine Barnave—the politician and writer who advocated for a constitutional monarchy in revolutionary FranceTrade Review“Hardman brings a powerful sense of the importance of contingency to the French Revolution, which is too often made to run along the rails laid down by Gallic patriotic myth.”—John Adamson, Literary Review“Hardman's masterly biography draws on new archival sources to present a rounded portrait of a vital yet oddly neglected figure in the early history of the Revolution. Writing with his customary sharp eye for colourful detail, Hardman also allows us to see the flawed private man as well as the public statesman who, as secret counsellor to Marie-Antoinette, seemed to hold the fate of the whole Revolution in the palm of his hand – and who was to die by guillotine for his pains.”—Colin Jones, author of The Fall of Robespierre “A highly enjoyable and riveting read. Hardman is not only among the best archival historians of our generation, but an accomplished storyteller. He increases the sum of our knowledge about the French Revolution with every book he writes. His new life of Antoine Barnave does not disappoint and is a page-turning tour de force.”—Ambrogio A. Caiani, author of To Kidnap a Pope: Napoleon and Pius VII “A remarkable book. One of the most cogent and original accounts in years of the failure of France's experiment in constitutional monarchy between 1789 and 1791.”—Munro Price, author of Napoleon: The End of Glory“In this carefully researched biography, Hardman dissects the often-contradictory career of Antoine Barnave, champion of constitutional monarchy and founder-member of the Jacobin Club whose secret contacts with Louis XVI and personal communications with Marie-Antoinette left him open to charges of royalism and counter-revolution. He was, in Hardman’s view, at once ‘the man of the people’ and ‘the man of the court’, a political balancing act that hastened his downfall and death on the guillotine.”—Alan Forrest, author of Death of the French Atlantic

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Book SynopsisA monumental biography of one of the most important black women of the nineteenth century.

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Book SynopsisA superb narrative biography of the international diplomat and racial pioneer—the basis for the acclaimed four-part PBS TV series.

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Book SynopsisThe definitive biography of a banker, essayist and editor of the Economist, by an acclaimed financial historian.Trade Review"The most perceptive and brilliant economic and political writer of his time deserves a biographer of equal literary merit. In James Grant, Walter Bagehot has found him." -- Mervyn King, former governor of the Bank of England and author of The End of Alchemy"James Grant [is] one of the most influential contemporary commentators on Wall Street... in Grant’s hands, Bagehot’s life and career provide a superb prism through which to observe the extraordinary revolution in the British economy during the 19th century." -- Simon Nixon - The Times"The book makes a convincing case that Bagehot deserves credit for being a progenitor of a wider political tradition..." -- Moneyweek"A gem of a book: entertaining, wry, and gloriously eccentric." -- Sebastian Mallaby - Foreign Affairs"... excellent... biography" -- Benjamin Schwarz - The International New York Times"... engaging new biography of Bagehot... In this very enjoyable book, Grant demonstrates that he has the measure of a fascinating—and great—Victorian. " -- Financial Times"... his [James Grant's] book is excellent—built on a lot of study (including time in the archives) and written in a gripping style. Mr Grant is at his best when writing about Bagehot’s financial journalism and indeed his career as a banker. His accounts of the collapse of Overend Gurney, supposedly the Rock of Gibraltar of Victorian finance, and of “Lombard Street”, Bagehot’s book about that debacle, are exemplary." -- The Economist

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisThe dramatic arc of Saigo Takamori's life, from his humble origins as a lowly samurai, to national leadership, to his death as a rebel leader, has captivated generations of Japanese readers and now Americans as well - his life is the inspiration for a major Hollywood film, The Last Samurai, starring Tom Cruise and Ken Watanabe.Trade Review“Ravina’s portrait of Saigo is well drawn and sympathetic…” (Asian Affairs, November 2004) "...Reads like a thriller..." (Good Book Guide, February 2004) "...Ravina's writing grips with the intensity of a great adventure story and vividly portrays the upheavals caused to a nation..." (Yorkshire Evening Post, 24 January 2004) "...a pacy narrative that reads like a thriller, complemented by maps and photographs..." (The Good Book Guide, January 2004)Table of ContentsNOTE TO THE READER. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. INTRODUCTION. 1. “POWERFULLY SENTIMENTAL” Saigo’s Early Years in Satsuma. 2. “A MAN OF EXCEPTIONAL FIDELITY” Saigo and National Politics. 3. “BONES IN THE EARTH” Exile and Ignominy. 4. “ TO SHOULDER THE BURDENS OF THE REALM” The Destruction of the Shogunate. 5. “ TO TEAR ASUNDER THE CLOUDS” Saigo and the Meiji State. 6. “THE BURDEN OF DEATH IS LIGHT” Saigo and the War of the Southwest. NOTES. BIBLIOGRAPHY. SOURCES. INDEX.

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