Biography: philosophy and social sciences Books

Book SynopsisNew edition of one of the most celebrated books on the Troubles. Famously described as 'Bandit Country' by Merlyn Rees when he was Northern Ireland Secretary, for nearly three decades South Armagh was the most dangerous posting in the world for a British soldier. In this acclaimed work of reportage, originally published in 2000, Toby Harnden stripped away the myth and propaganda associated with the region to produce one of the most compelling and important books on the Troubles. Drawing on secret documents and interviews on South Armagh's recent history, Harnden told the inside story of how the IRA came close to bringing the British state to its knees.

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Book SynopsisPULITZER PRIZE WINNER ? NATIONAL BESTSELLER ? A ?vivid and devastating? (The New York Times) portrait of an indomitable girl?from acclaimed journalist Andrea Elliott ?From its first indelible pages to its rich and startling conclusion, Invisible Child had me, by turns, stricken, inspired, outraged, illuminated, in tears, and hungering for reimmersion in its Dickensian depths.??Ayad Akhtar, author of Homeland ElegiesONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times ? ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Atlantic, The New York Times Book Review, Time, NPR, Library JournalIn Invisible Child, Pulitzer Prize winner Andrea Elliott follows eight dramatic years in the life of Dasani, a girl whose imagination is as soaring as the skyscrapers near her Brooklyn shelter. In this sweeping narrative, Elliott weaves the story of Dasani?s childhood with the history of her ancestors, tracing their passage from slavery to the Great Migration north. As Dasani comes of age, New York City?s homeless crisis has exploded, deepening the chasm between rich and poor. She must guide her siblings through a world riddled by hunger, violence, racism, drug addiction, and the threat of foster care. Out on the street, Dasani becomes a fierce fighter ?to protect those who I love.? When she finally escapes city life to enroll in a boarding school, she faces an impossible question: What if leaving poverty means abandoning your family, and yourself? A work of luminous and riveting prose, Elliott?s Invisible Child reads like a page-turning novel. It is an astonishing story about the power of resilience, the importance of family and the cost of inequality?told through the crucible of one remarkable girl. Winner of the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize ? Finalist for the Bernstein Award and the PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award ? Longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize

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Book SynopsisA unique selection of the greatest thinkers from the fields of philosophy, political theory, sociology, art, architecture and literature, with enjoyable profiles of what they have to teach to us today.

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Book SynopsisFINDING FREEDOM IN THE LOST KITCHEN is Erin French’s rollercoaster memoir about her struggle to follow her dream and bring joy to people through food.

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Book SynopsisThough Michel Foucault is one of the most important thinkers of the twentieth century, little is known about his early life. Even Foucault’s biographers have neglected this period, preferring instead to start the story when the future philosopher arrives in Paris. Becoming Foucault is a historical reconstruction of the world in which Foucault grew up: the small city of Poitiers, France, from the 1920s until the end of the Second World War. Beyond exploring previously unexamined aspects of Foucault’s childhood, including his wartime ordeals, it proposes an original interpretation of Foucault’s oeuvre. Michael Behrent argues that Foucault, in addition to being a theorist of power, knowledge, and selfhood, was also a philosopher of experience. He was a thinker intent on making sense of the events that he lived through. Behrent identifies four specific experiences in Foucault’s childhood that exercised a decisive influence on him and that, in various ways, he later made the subject of his philosophy: his family’s deep connections to the medical profession; his upbringing in a bourgeois household; the German Occupation during World War II; and his Catholic education. Behrent not only reconstructs the specific nature of these experiences but also shows how reference to them surfaces in Foucault’s later work. In this way, the book both sheds light on a formative period in the philosopher’s life and offers a unique interpretation of key aspects of his thought.Trade Review"In this innovative and thought-provoking intellectual history, Michael Behrent paints an intimate portrait of the young Foucault and his family, as well as a panorama of early twentieth-century Poitiers, the town in central France in which they made their lives. In doing so, he gives us a radically new perspective on one of the most important thinkers of modern times. Becoming Foucault should be on the bookshelf of every scholar interested in postwar French thought." * Edward G. Baring, Princeton University *"In what may very well be the definitive work on the topic, Michael Behrent’s innovative and insightful Becoming Foucault shows how understanding the thinker’s early milieu—born of a family of doctors, submitted to middle-class strictures, navigating wartime occupation, surviving local schooling—casts new light on his mature projects and positions. Neither traditional biography nor conventional intellectual history, Behrent’s book breaks new ground by demonstrating the mutual, irreducible relations between thought and experience. Well-written and accessible, based on remarkable archival research, and imaginatively argued, Becoming Foucault will interest anyone devoted to experiencing thought and thinking about experience." * Julian Bourg, Boston College *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A fascinating and poignant story. . . . Revealing, humorous, and provocative."--Library Journal "A searing tale of the traumas and rewards of gender change. . . . A powerful indictment of legal, medical, and institutional obstruction."--Foreword Reviews "A tautly crafted memoir of her transition from Don McCloskey, conservative Chicago school economist, to Deirdre McCloskey, power shopper, domestic superachiever, and campy doyenne of difference feminism." --Ruth Shalit "Lingua Franca " "The very courageous story of someone trying to live an honest life, whatever the consequences."--Jeannie Marshall "National Post " "That an affluent, upper-middle-class person should be so powerless against a mental-health bureaucracy still subscribing to its offical pronouncement that transsexualism is a 'gender identity disorder' makes for gripping reading."--Booklist "This is a woman worth knowing. She has given us a highly readable, dramatic account of her crossing."--Maxine Kumin "New York Times Book Review " "A testimony to her struggles and courage, Crossing invites the reader to enter Deirdre (formerly Donald) McCloskey's mind as she decides to become a woman after a lifetime as a man, husband, and father." --Kirkus Reviews

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Book SynopsisFrom the playgrounds of Glasgow to the villages of Bangladesh; from religious rites to ancient superstitions; from the world's richest people to its powerless and enslaved, Lorna Gibb's masterful Childless Voices paints a global portrait of people without children. Brilliantly grouped by thematic commonality (Those who long, Those who were denied, Those who Choose, etc) the book is a testament to the power of listening, and the power of sharing stories. It is an essential, moving and surprising book on a subject which touches everyone.

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Book SynopsisWho was Jacques Derrida? For some, he is responsible, at least in part, for the contemporary crisis of truth. For the far right, he is one of the architects of Cultural Marxism. To his academic critics, he reduced French philosophy to 'little more than an object of ridicule'. For his fans, he is an intellectual rock star who ranged across literature, politics, and linguistics. In An Event Perhaps, Peter Salmon presents this misunderstood and misappropriated figure as a deeply humane and urgent thinker for our times. Accessible, provocative and beautifully written, this biography will introduce to a new readership to the life and work of a philosopher whose influence over the way we think will continue long into the twenty-first century.Trade ReviewThis is a compulsively readable intellectual biography of Derrida that teases out his endlessly fascinating thought, even when it is at its knottiest, with admirable patience and lucidity. Salmon's book, in vividly transmitting the intellectual excitement of Derrida's times, reminds the reader that, especially in his thinking about ethics, he remains a philosopher who is urgently, politically relevant to our times too. -- Matthew Beaumont, Professor at English at University College, LondonThe life of Jacques Derrida has never been told as elegantly or engagingly as it is in Peter Salmon's new book. In delightfully readable, often laconic prose, Salmon helped me to understand Derrida as never before and demonstrated why he is not, as some detractors called him, the Devil but much more cherishable. A wonderful book. -- Stuart Jeffries, author of Grand Hotel AbyssA precise intellectual biography ... Salmon's ability to render the man and the mind behind Derrida's "notoriously difficult" style accessible make this volume a rich resource for both newcomers to, and fans of, "one of the great philosophers of this or any age. * Publishers Weekly *Peter Salmon's clear-sighted, engaging guide to Derrida's life and ideas is an excellent way to learn about how one of the twentieth century's most complex thinkers continues to influence our world -- Daniel Trilling, author of Lights in the DistanceA scintillating new biography . . . Derrida's life story provides a frame and background for an intellectual biography of his ideas and their development. In the process it also serves as one of the clearest introductions to 20th-century continental philosophy available. -- Julian Baggini * Prospect Magazine *[An Event, Perhaps] comes as manna from heaven ... It's dizzyingly good. * Expressen *

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Book SynopsisPrivate Eye: The 60 Yearbook is a history of the last 60 years, as seen by Britain's first, most successful and indeed only fortnightly satirical magazine. From the Beatles to Brexit, JFK to Trump, the Moon landings to the Mars landings, it tells the story of the past six decades as they were recorded in the Eye's pages. The news stories you remember - and plenty you may have forgotten - are retold in cartoons, covers and the magazine's legendary spoofs as well as extensive extracts from some of its best-loved features like Mrs Wilson's Diary, Dear Bill and The Secret Diary of John Major. It is also the story of the headlines Private Eye made itself, from the earliest stirrings of investigative journalism exposing the Poulson Scandal and Ronan Point, through major miscarriages of justice like the Stephen Lawrence case and the Lockerbie cover-up and national scandals that have cost the country billions in dodgy PFI contracts, government cock-ups and secret sweetheart tax deals. Inside are the stories that led to the fall of two cabinet ministers, countless corrupt business figures and even the official in charge of making sure everyone else in Whitehall's behaviour was above board. It includes writing by such satirical giants as Peter Cook, Richard Ingrams, Craig Brown, Auberon Waugh and Ian Hislop, and pictures by some of the world's best cartoonists including Michael Heath, Gerald Scarfe, Nick Newman, Willie Rushton, Robert Thompson and Ken Pyne.

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Book SynopsisAcademic, writer, figure of melancholy, aesthete – Claude Lévi-Strauss (1908–2009) not only transformed his academic discipline, he also profoundly changed the way that we view ourselves and the world around us. In this award-winning biography, historian Emmanuelle Loyer recounts Lévi-Strauss’s childhood in an assimilated Jewish household, his promising student years as well as his first forays into political and intellectual movements. As a young professor, Lévi-Strauss left Paris in 1935 for São Paulo to teach sociology. His rugged expeditions into the Brazilian hinterland, where he discovered the Amerindian Other, made him into an anthropologist. The racial laws of the Vichy regime would force him to leave France yet again, this time for the USA in 1941, where he became Professor Claude L. Strauss – to avoid confusion with the jeans manufacturer.Lévi-Strauss’s return to France, after the war, ushered in the period during which he produced his greatest works: several decades of intense labour in which he reinvented anthropology, establishing it as a discipline that offered a new view on the world. In 1955, Tristes Tropiques offered indisputable proof of this the world over. During those years, Lévi-Strauss became something of a French national monument, as well as a celebrity intellectual of global renown. But he always claimed his perspective was a ‘view from afar’, enabling him to deliver incisive and subversive diagnoses of our waning modernity.Loyer’s outstanding biography tells the story of a true intellectual adventurer whose unforgettable voice invites us to rethink questions of the human and the meaning of progress. She portrays Lévi-Strauss less as a modern than as our own great and disquieted contemporary.Trade Review"Emmanuelle Loyer has produced a meticulously researched, intelligent and sensitive biography worthy of her subject, one of the greatest Francophone intellectuals of the twentieth century. Critical yet generous, her portrait of Claude Lévi-Strauss rings true and comes alive on the page."—Michael Harkin, University of Wyoming "The inspiration that continues to spring forth from the work of Lévi-Strauss is a mystery to many anthropologists. He has told us of the many influences on his work, and commentators have argued for yet others, but they don't really account for his extraordinary originality and independence. Emmanuelle Loyer's thorough account of his life and work may help us resolve this wonderful puzzle."—Maurice Bloch, London School of Economics "This is the first true biography of one of the greatest French intellectuals of the twentieth century, who lived to be 100 years old and who finished his life covered in glory and honours. Emmanuelle Loyer's book is a marvel of intelligence that holds the reader's attention from beginning to end."—Élisabeth Roudinesco, Le Monde "Loyer's biography offers an unprecedentedly rich sense of the man."—Financial Times "Loyer offers a vivid portrait of the anthropologist and his time. But she also invites us to imagine how Lévi-Strauss might endure as a thinker for our century, as much for his own."—Boston Review "deeply researched . . . engaging and engaged"—The New York Review of BooksTable of ContentsAcknowledgements Foreword Adam Kuper Introduction. The Worlds of Claude Lévi-Strauss Part I Yesterday's Worlds (É-1935) Chapter 1 The Name of the Father Chapter 2 Revelations (1908-1924) Chapter 3 Revolutions (1924-1931): Politics vs. Philosophy Chapter 4 Redemption: Anthropology (1931-1935) Chapter 5 The Enigma of the World Part II New Worlds (1935-1947) Chapter 6 France in São Paulo Chapter 7 In the Heart of Brazil Chapter 8 Massimo Lévi with the Nambikwara Chapter 9 Crisis (1939-1941) Chapter 10 A Frenchman in New York City: Exile and Intellectual Invention (1941-1944) Chapter 11 Structuralism Ð the American Years Part III The Old World (1947-1971) Chapter 12 The Ghosts of Marcel Mauss Chapter 13 Manhood Chapter 14 The Confessions of Claude Lévi-Strauss Chapter 15 Structuralist Crystallization (1958-1962) Chapter 16 The Manufacture of Science Chapter 17 The Scholarly Life Chapter 18 The Politics of Discretion Part IV The World (1971-2009) Chapter 19 Immortal Chapter 20 Metamorphoses Chapter 21 Claude Lévi-Strauss, our Contemporary Notes Works by Lévi-Strauss Archives consulted Abbreviations of Works by Lévi-Strauss Illustration credits Index

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Book SynopsisBrings together some of the author's most personal philosophical and nonphilosophical essays. This title offers an account of his first trip to India, which includes unforgettable vignettes of encounters with strangers and reflections on poverty and begging. It reveals a personal side of one of the influential philosophers of our time.Trade Review"Finding Oneself in the Other works primarily as a memorial to Gerald Allan Cohen, the man, and not his ideas. Both deserve to be remembered. And so the second volume in this trilogy is worth reading, albeit for different reasons than the first."--Peter Stone, Marx and Philosophy Review of Books "The essays are a joy to read--they are fun, engaging and insightful--and they provide a fascinating perspective on Cohen's philosophical development, on the intellectual context in which he was active, and on the way in which he viewed and experienced the world. Accordingly, they will be of interest not just to those working in moral and political philosophy but to a much broader audience."--Ralf Bader, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews "Cohen renders the subject of linguistic morality accessible through a refreshing admixture of humor and diligent explication... Finding Oneself is at once edifying and sincere."--Ross Mittiga, Political Studies Review "Engaging, perceptive, and empathetic, these writings reveal a more personal side of one of the most influential philosophers of our time."--World Book Industry "Finding Oneself in the Other is ideal for philosophers and non-philosophers alike... [It] is a valuable asset."--Eugene Baron, Ethical PerspectivesTable of ContentsEditor's Preface vii Acknowledgments xiii Chapter 1 Isaiah's Marx, and Mine 1 Chapter 2 Prague Preamble to "Why Not Socialism?" 16 Chapter 3 A Black and White Issue 20 Chapter 4 Two Weeks in India 26 Chapter 5 Complete Bullshit 94 Chapter 6 Casting the First Stone: Who Can, and Who Can't, Condemn the Terrorists? 115 Chapter 7 Ways of Silencing Critics 134 Chapter 8 Rescuing Conservatism: A Defense of Existing Value (All Souls version) 143 Chapter 9 Valedictory Lecture: My Philosophical Development(and impressions of philosophers whom I met along the way) 175 Chapter 10 Notes on Regarding People as Equals 193 Chapter 11 One Kind of Spirituality: Come Back, Feuerbach, All Is Forgiven! 201 Works Cited 209 Index 213

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Book SynopsisTells the biography of Karl Marx who has long been recognized as one of the best concise accounts of the life and thought of the man who had, in Berlin's words, a more "direct, deliberate, and powerful" influence on mankind than any other nineteenth-century thinker. This book introduces Marx's ideas and sets them in their context.Trade Review"A model of objective clarity."--Richard Charques, Times Literary Supplement "[Berlin's] book, a perennial classic, has all the virtues of Berlin himself: charm, erudition, and (occasionally) grandiloquence."--Peter E. Gordon, New Republic "The best brief account of the life and thought of Marx."--Saturday Review "Exceptional ... [A]s a portrait of the man and the intellectual climate of the mid-nineteenth century it is, perhaps, the finest we have."--Chimen Abramsky, Jewish Chronicle "[Berlin's] accounts of Marx's theses are sometimes more effective than Marx's own words, and his descriptions of Marx as a man are remarkably vivid."--H. B. Acton, Political Studies "Berlin's attitude to his subject is exemplary, and on the whole it is the best introduction to it that we have... [The book] makes Marx intelligible, both as a person and as a thinker."--A. L. Rowse, Political QuarterlyTable of ContentsEditor's Preface to the Fifth Edition xi Foreword by Alan Ryan xix Preface to the Fourth Edition xxix Note to the Third Edition xxxiii Note to the First Edition xxxv 1 Introduction 1 2 Childhood and Adolescence 22 3 The Philosophy of 'The Spirit' 33 4 The Young Hegelians 57 5 Paris 76 6 Historical Materialism 112 7 1848 149 8 Exile in London: The First Phase 168 9 The International 205 10 'The Red Terror Doctor' 220 11 Last Years 248 Afterword by Terrell Carver 267 Guide to Further Reading by Terrell Carver 291 Index 297

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Sensible and useful. . . . [Vivanti] sets forth the greatness of Machiavelli, not as a figure of his time, the Renaissance, but as a founder of modernity."—Harvey C. Mansfield, Wall Street Journal"A fascinating, concise guide to Machiavelli's life and work."—Joanna Kavenna, The Spectator"[A] learned intellectual biography."—Michael Ignatieff, The Atlantic"Excellent, and accessible to anyone interested in finding out more about Machiavelli."—Jonathan Powell, Prospect"Informative and . . . level-headed."—Keith Miller, The Telegraph

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Book SynopsisPunctuated by gunshots and hoof beats, this engaging collection presents six biographies of hardened lawmen in Old California. Illustrating the dangerous lives of these brave enforcers, this historical study documents how Sheriff Hiram Rapelje rose to the heights and fell to the depths of his profession, while Detective Emil Harris earned a statewide reputation. From William J. Howard''s role in tracking down the infamous bandit, Joaquin Murrieta, to those who were killed gun fighting in the line of duty, this vivid depiction sheds a fascinating light on a number of colourful personalities within a forgotten era.

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Book SynopsisA major biography of the man who, more than any other, made the twentieth century. Written by an author of great repute. The history of the 20th century is Marx's legacy. Not since Jesus Christ has an obscure pauper inspired such global devotion – or been so calamitously misinterpreted. The end of the century is a good moment to strip away the mythology and try to rediscover Marx the man. There have been many thousands of books on Marxism, but almost all are written by academics and zealots for whom it is a near blaspemy to treat him as a figure of flesh and blood. In the past few years there have been excellent and successful biographies of many eminent Victorians and yet the most influential of them has remained untouched. In this book Francis Wheen, for the first time, presens Marx the man in all his brilliance and frailty – as a poverty-stricken Prussian emigre who became a middle-class English gentleman; as an angry agitator who spent much of his adult life in scholarly silence in the British Museum Reading Room; as a gregarious and convivial host who fell out with almost all his friends; as a devoted family man who impregnated his housemaid; as a deeply earnest philosopher who loved drink, cigars and jokes.

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Book Synopsis"How unfair for one man to be blessed with such a torrent of stimulating thoughts. Stimulating is an understatement." —Richard Dawkins A memoir by one of the greatest minds of our age, preeminent philosopher and cognitive scientist Daniel C. Dennett.Trade Review"A delightful memoir from one of our deepest thinkers." -- Kirkus (starred review)"Always an enthusiastic learner with an insatiable curiosity, Dennett’s amiable autodidacticism illustrates a life of the mind intertwined with the rich home life of a true Renaissance man. Highly recommended." -- Booklist (starred review)

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Book SynopsisA portrait of Martin Heidegger as a man and a philosopherTrade Review“In this engaging, lively narrative, Payen masterfully presents the vast trajectory of Heidegger’s intellectual and personal life without flinching from disturbing elements but also without deciding for the reader what the most shocking of these might mean for an assessment of the philosophy, the man, or the intersections of the man and the thinking. What emerges is an intimate and provocative portrait of Heidegger’s life and legacy.”—Gregory Fried, Boston College“Payen’s volume ranks as one of the best biographies of Heidegger in any language. Among its many strengths, his reading of Heidegger’s anti-Semitism is thorough, judicious, and painstakingly grounded in all the available texts.”—Thomas Sheehan, Stanford University

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Book SynopsisSubhas Chandra Bose's secret journeys in 1941 and 1943 as an anti-colonial revolutionary, covering WWII, India's role, plans against British rule, and support for Quit India movement. Essential for modern South Asian history and politics.

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Book SynopsisPULITZER PRIZE FINALIST • The highly anticipated biography of Sylvia Plath that focuses on her remarkable literary and intellectual achievements, while restoring the woman behind the long-held myths about her life and art.“One of the most beautiful biographies I've ever read. —Glennon Doyle, author of #1 New York Times Bestseller, UntamedWith a wealth of never-before-accessed materials, Heather Clark brings to life the brilliant Sylvia Plath, who had precocious poetic ambition and was an accomplished published writer even before she became a star at Smith College. Refusing to read Plath’s work as if her every act was a harbinger of her tragic fate, Clark considers the sociopolitical context as she thoroughly explores Plath’s world: her early relationships and determination not to become a conventional woman and wife; her troubles with an unenlightened mental health industry; her Cambridge years and thunderclap meeting wi

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Book SynopsisDavid Hume, philosopher, historian, economist, librarian, and essayist, was one of the great figures of the European Enlightenment. Unlike some of his famous contemporaries, however, he was not dogmatically committed to idealised conceptions of reason, liberty, and progress. Instead, Hume was a sceptic whose arguments questioned the reach and authority of human rationality, and who put the rivalrous passions of commercial life at the centre of his theory of human nature. He believed that the modern world was in many ways superior to the ancient world, but was acutely conscious of the threats to peace and progress posed by bigotry, factionalism, and imperialism. Today Hume''s works continue to speak to us powerfully in an age of instability and uncertainty. This Very Short Introduction presents a balanced account of Hume''s thought, giving equal attention to his work on human nature, morality, politics, and religion. Weaving together biography, the historical context, and a thoughtful exposition of Hume''s arguments, James A. Harris offers a compelling picture of a thinker who had no disciples and formed no school, but whom no one in his own time was able to ignore, and who has since become central to modern philosophy''s understanding of itself.Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade ReviewHarris' book provides a compelling picture of the shape and significance of Hume's contribution to philosophy. * Jennifer Smalligan Marušić, British Journal for the History of Philosophy *Hume's most important arguments are explained in clear and lucid prose and Harris' own interpretations are presented in a careful and convincing manner * Moritz Baumstark, Hume Studies *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1: Human nature 2: Morality 3: Politics 4: Religion Postscript References Further reading

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Book SynopsisLonglisted for the Orwell Prize and the Samuel Johnson prize for non-fiction; both conservative and subversive, Burke's beliefs have never been more relevant, as MP Jesse Norman explains.Philosopher, statesman, and founder of modern conservatism, Edmund Burke is both the greatest and most under-rated political thinker of the past three-hundred years. Born in Ireland in 1729, and greatly affected by its bigotry and extremes, his career constituted a lifelong struggle against the abuse of power.Amid the 18th century's golden generation that included his companions Adam Smith, Samuel Johnson and Edward Gibbon, Burke's controversial mixture of conservative and subversive theories made him first a marginal figure, and finally a revered theorist a hero of the Romantics. He warned of the effects of British rule in Ireland, the loss of the American colonies, and most famously, he foresaw the disastrous consequences of revolution in France. This he predicted, would trigger extremism, terror anTrade Review‘Jesse Norman has brought back Burke in triumph. This is an overdue reassessment of a politician who was the father of the modern political party, a man who campaigned with equal brio and genius against British exploitation of India and the bloody tyranny of the French Revolution. Anyone who cares about politics will pounce on this book and devour it’ Boris Johnson ‘A must-read for anyone interested in politics and history … Superb’ Matthew D'Ancona, Sunday Telegraph ‘An excellent book, which unites biographical and political insights. The best short biography of Burke for nearly fifty years … and a pleasure to read’ Harvey Mansfield, Professor of Government, Harvard University ‘[Norman] is a subtle historian of ideas. He does an excellent job of extracting from his subject’s speeches and writings why, in his view, Burke is the first and most important conservative thinker’ Charles Moore, Daily Telegraph ‘An intriguing and illuminating picture of the thinker who more than any other exemplifies the contradictions of conservatism’ New Statesman ‘His new book on Edmund Burke seeks to contest the very nature of today’s Tory Party. All power to his elbow … quite brilliantly, Norman … [offers] an immense critique of the present … It is a patriotic tract and an act of great leadership. This is a very significant book’ Independent ‘Personable and thoughtful, [Norman] also has a cavalier streak … This absorbing book gathers pace, and relevance, as it goes along – an important contribution to the annals of conservative thought’ Observer ‘Norman is undoubtedly a fluent and deep thinker … his account of Burke’s life and career is as good as any of equal length on the subject … Admirable’ Spectator ‘Superb … Norman succeeds in elevating his subject, showing what is conservative about Burke, and why he matters today. Ironically, he makes such a strong case that it would seem perverse if only Tories took something from Burke’s legacy’ Financial Times

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Book SynopsisThree francs will feed you till tomorrow, and you cannot think further than thatAs a young man struggling to find his voice as a writer, George Orwell left the comfort of home to live in the impoverished working districts of Paris and London. He would document both the chaos and boredom of destitution, the eccentric cast of characters he encountered, and the near-constant pains of hunger and discomfort.Exposing the grim reality of a life marred by poverty, Down and Out in Paris and London, part memoir, part social commentary, would become George Orwell's first published work.

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Book Synopsis“Enthralling . . . Here we find an ugly, walleyed existentialist philosopher, the elegantly beautiful author of The Second Sex and the Gallic equivalent of a bevy of young starlets who share the bed of one or the other--or sometimes both. Readers will turn these pages alternately mesmerized and appalled.” — Michael Dirda, Washington Post Book WorldPassionate, freethinking existentialist philosopher-writers Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre are one of the world''s legendary couples. Their committed but notoriously open union generated no end of controversy in their day. Biographer Hazel Rowley offers the first dual portrait of these two colossal figures and their intense, often embattled relationship. Through original interviews and access to new primary sources, Rowley portrays Sartre and Beauvoir up close.Tète-à-Tète magnificently details the passion, daring, humor, and contradictions of a remarkably unorthodox relationship.

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Book SynopsisLa apasionante historia de Cambridge Analytica y el Big Data. ¿Está realmente a salvo nuestra democracia tras la victoria de Trump? La dictadura de los datos revela cómo han utilizado nuestros datos y nos advierte cómo podrían volver a hacerlo. Saben lo que compras.   Brittany Kaiser, una novata asesora política especializada en Derechos Humanos y Relaciones Internacionales, creía que los datos recogidos y analizados por los smartphones y las redes sociales estaban en buenas manos hasta que conoció a Alexander Nix, el carismático líder de una nueva empresa de comunicación política llamada Cambridge Analytica. Lo que empezó siendo sólo un puesto de trabajo, pronto se convierte en una operación infame con el objetivo de ayudar a la elección de Trump o interferir en el referéndum que dio paso al Brexit. 

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Book SynopsisThe more we learn about psychedelics, the less we seem to understand them. . . . In this engrossing, sometimes hilarious, always dramatic chronicle, a neuropsychologist deflates the hype, explores the limitless possibilities, and reveals a much-needed perspective about psychedelics, giving us a scientist?s first-person experiment with ten different compounds in ten different settings. Once demonized and still largely illegal, psychedelic drugs are now officially a ?breakthrough therapy? in treating mental illness, used to heal trauma, conquer addiction, and enhance well-being. But as Andy Mitchell reveals, this approach to psychedelics is overhyped, and most importantly, neglects what is so unusual and valuable about them: the psychedelic experience itself.In Ten Trips, Mitchell takes ten different drugs in ten diverse locations?including a neuroimaging lab in London, the Columbian Andes, Silicon Valley and his friend?s basement kitchen?to document their remarkable effects. Along the way he encounters a cast of distinctive characters: scientists and gangsters, venture capitalists and philosophers, psychonauts and shamans, musicians, monks, therapists, poets, and conmen. His experience opens a doorway to psychedelics? full potential: for healing and trauma, for ecstatic one-ness and utter terror, for transcendence and corruption, for profundity and laughter.Mitchell argues that by removing psychedelics from their cultures and rituals, both indigenous and underground, we risk rejecting the expertise and the contexts which hold the key to understanding them?and from which their real benefits may derive. In the drive to standardize, control, and monetize the psychedelic experience, we may ultimately destroy what makes them potent: their ability to transform our whole perspective on mental health and reenchant us with the world.A hallucinogenic experience nearly as mind-blowing as actually taking psychedelics themselves, Ten Trips is Michael Pollan?s How to Change Your Mind written by Hunter S. Thompson with a PhD in neuroscience?a perception-altering odyssey that will change the way we see these substances and the world.

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Book SynopsisThe first ever biography of the founder of Western philosophy Considered by many to be the most important philosopher ever, Plato was born into a well-to-do family in wartime Athens at the end of the fifth century BCE. In his teens, he honed his intellect by attending lectures from the many thinkers who passed through Athens and toyed with the idea of writing poetry. He finally decided to go into politics, but became disillusioned, especially after the Athenians condemned his teacher, Socrates, to death. Instead, Plato turned to writing and teaching. He began teaching in his twenties and later founded the Academy, the world''s first higher-educational research and teaching establishment. Eventually, he returned to practical politics and spent a considerable amount of time and energy trying to create a constitution for Syracuse in Sicily that would reflect and perpetuate some of his political ideals. The attempts failed, and Plato''s disappointment can be traced in some of his later polTrade ReviewPlato of Athens is erudite and fascinating, and realises its aim of showing that his works were magnificent, that "Plato invented philosophy" not as a body of doctrine but an open-ended and insatiable quest. * Jane O'Grady, The Telegraph *If all Western philosophy is as has been claimed a series of footnotes to Plato of Athens, it's fortunate indeed that all his dialogues have survived and attracted translators and interpreters of the caliber of Robin Waterfield. Brilliant, witty, profound--and perplexing: Plato's all those and more (a uniquely resonant stylist too), and it's no mean tribute both to him and to the author to say that Robin Waterfield has done him justice. * Paul Cartledge, author of Thebes: The Forgotten City of Ancient Greece *Whitehead once characterized the history of Western philosophy as a series of footnotes to Plato. Here, at last, we have an authoritative body text for the man himself. 'No philosopher,' Waterfield writes, 'is as accessible to non-specialists as Plato.' The same can be said for this remarkable, impeccably researched biography * M. D. Usher, author of Plato's Pigs and Other Ruminations *Writing a biography of Plato is a tricky endeavor, to say the least. Robin Waterfield nonetheless succeeds in delivering a gripping, plausible, and enlightening portrait. Those new to Plato as well as seasoned scholars will come away from Plato of Athens not only with as rounded a picture of Plato the man as may be possible, but also with an excellent sense of his philosophy and the historical times in which he lived and with which he engaged. * Iakovos Vasiliou, author of Aiming at Virtue in Plato *Waterfield evokes [the Academy's] atmosphere superbly. Indeed, the passages on Plato's teachings, his dialogues and his contribution to the field of philosophy are a particular strength of the book...His account of Plato's failure to reform the tyrant [Dionysius II] and establish a new constitution for him is particularly well done. * Daisy Dunn, Literary Review *Waterfield's narrative is compelling. * The Atlantic *Well-researched and attractively written. * Armand D'Angour, History Today *An admirably solid overview of Platoâs life and works. * David Stuttard, British Museum Magazine *[A] readable and wonderfully enlightening book...a remarkably successful attempt to paint a believable picture of the intellectual journey of someone who is unquestionably one of the great landmarks of European thinking... Plato would have liked that, and that is the highest praise. * John Muir, Classics for All *Learned and highly readable. * Malcom Schofield, Society *Well-researched and attractively written. * Armand D'Angour, History Today *Engaging and accessible...one of the best books available for those who are new to Plato...always looks at the evidence with fresh eyes...a marvelous introductory overview of Plato's philosophy, as it emerged from his intellectual and political milieu. Furthermore, there is no better way than the one provided by Waterfield for beginners to learn about the Academy. * Richard Kraut, Society *Well-researched and attractively written. * Armand D'Angour, History Today *Nobody is better qualified to write this book than Robin Waterfield... He does not talk down to the reader, but neither does he assume any prior knowledge... [a] timely and eloquent book. It encourages the reader to go back to Plato himself and (re)read those texts where the dialogue form is so skilfully used to explore issues which could be a matter of life and death rather than airy philosophy. * John Godwin, Journal of Classics Teaching *Plato of Athens is much to be commended for its discussion resulting in a comprehensive chronology of Plato's life and dialogues. * Andrew David Irvin, TLS *A full, very readable biography...Give[s] a remarkably full picture of the man, his ideas and his influence. * Times Literary Supplement *A thorough and well-structured account of the events of Plato's life whilst placing his many dialogues into a clear chronology. * Sebastian Milbank, The Critic *A highly accessible and significant contribution. * Paradigm Explorer *Attractively fulfils its aim of introducing Platonic philosophy to a general readership by combining elements of historical reconstruction with key values extracted from the written work, the two things synthesised into an imagined portrait of a life.... One can confidently expect that if indeed some of Waterfield's readers may never have tackled any of the dialogues for themselves, they will be stimulated to do so (and in Waterfield's own fine translations) by his eloquent passion for a 'super-important' thinker who is now 'read and studied in, I dare say, every country in the world.' * Stephen Halliwell, Bryn Mawr Classical Review *Fascinating and well-written ... a vivid account of Plato's intellectual background. * Paradigm Explorer *Table of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments Maps List of Illustrations and Tables List of Plato's Dialogues Timeline Introduction The Sources 1. Growing Up in Wartime Athens 2. The Intellectual Environment 3. From Politics to Philosophy 4. Southern Italy and Sicily 5. The Academy 6. The Second and Third Visits to Syracuse 7. Last Years Further Reading Index

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Book SynopsisDavid Friedrich Strauss is a central figure in 19th century intellectual history. The first major source for the loss of faith in Christianity in Germany, his work Das Leben Jesu was the most scandalous publication in Germany during his time. His book was a critique of the claims to historical truth of the New Testament, which had been the mainstay of Protestantism since the Reformation. As the father of unbelief, his critique of Christianity preceded that of Nietzsche, Marx, Feuerbach, and Schopenhauer. His views imposed a harsh fate upon him - he was persecuted for his beliefs by religious and political authorities and was denied employment in the university and government, forcing him to live as a free-lance writer. He led a wandering and isolated life as an outcast. Here, Frederick C. Beiser studies the intellectual development of Strauss and recounts his fate, which began in faith as a young man but finally ended in unbelief.Table of ContentsIntroduction 1: Historical Significance of Das Leben Jesu 2: Reputation and Reality 3: Context and Background 4: Tuebingen Lectures 5: Strauss's Method and its Problems 6: The Theory of Myth 7: Reaction, Demotion, and Exile 8: The Rogue's Gallery 9: Crisis and Compromise 10: The Zurich Affair 11: The Doctrine of the Christian Faith 12: Career in Politics and Political Writings 13: Das Leben Jesu für Das Deutsche Volk 14: Two Polemics of the 1860s 15: The New and the Old Faith 16: Three Critics

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Book SynopsisA revisionist study of Benjamin Hoadly in the context of church, national and international politics in the eighteenth century.Trade ReviewWilliam Gibson's Benjamin Hoadly set a new standard for ecclesiastical biography on its first publication in 2004 and rescued its subject from caricature. This welcome second edition, taking account of the most recent scholarship, restates the convincing case for Hoadly's enduring influence and his centrality to theological debate for most of the eighteenth century. Nigel Aston, Honorary Fellow in History, University of Leicester, and Research Associate, University of YorkTable of ContentsForeword by James E. Bradley Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Hero and Villain 2. Early Life, 1676-1701 3. Political Apprenticeship in a London Pulpit, 1701-1710 4. Sacheverell, Adversity and Triumph, 1710-1717 5. The Years of the Bangorian Controversy, 1717-21 6. Hereford and Salisbury, 1721-1734 7. Hoadly at Winchester, 1734-1761 Conclusion Appendix: Hoadly in Poetry References Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisPenguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers'' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and an

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Book Synopsis''Deeply researched and profoundly absorbing . . . Matthew Stanley traces one of the greatest epics of scientific history . . . An amazing story'' Michael Frayn, author of Tony Award-winning CopenhagenIn 1916, Arthur Eddington, a war-weary British astronomer, opened a letter written by an obscure German professor named Einstein. The neatly printed equations on the scrap of paper outlined his world-changing theory of general relativity. Until then Einstein''s masterpiece of time and space had been trapped behind the physical and ideological lines of battle, unknown. Einstein''s name is now synonymous with ''genius'', but it was not an easy road. He spent a decade creating relativity and his ascent to global celebrity owed much to against-the-odds international collaboration, including Eddington''s globe-spanning expedition of 1919 - two years before they finally met. We usually think of scientific discovery as a flash of individual inspiration, but here we see Trade ReviewRiveting . . . Stanley lets us share the excitement a hundred years later in this entertaining and gripping book. It's a must read if you ever wondered how Einstein became 'Einstein' -- Manjit Kumar, author of 'Quantum'Deeply researched and profoundly absorbing . . . Matthew Stanley traces one of the greatest epics of scientific history . . . An amazing story -- Michael Frayn, author of Tony Award-winning 'Copenhagen'For a century, Einstein's relativity has inspired otherworldly thoughts. Yet as Matthew Stanley demonstrates, Einstein's efforts were deeply enmeshed within our own world - a world riven by the drama and disruption of the First World War. This beautifully written, moving account captures the heady thrills and crushing setbacks of one of the great intellectual adventures of modern times -- David Kaiser, Germeshausen Professor of the History of Science and Professor of Physics, MIT, author of 'How the Hippies Saved Physics'Even if you know a lot about the history of relativity - even if you know the old stories about Sir Arthur Eddington's voyage in 1919 to try to prove Albert Einstein's theories correct - you probably haven't pondered just how unlikely the Einstein/Eddington pairing really was. At a time where the mere hint of fraternization with the enemy could land you in jail as a spy, a Briton embraced the ideas of an enemy scientist, and helped launch the legend of arguably the greatest physicist of modern times. A fascinating story -- Charles Seife, author of Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous IdeaDetailed and readable . . . It is especially revealing about Einstein's scientific work and private life leading up to the momentous events of 1919 -- Peter Coles * Nature *A thrilling history of the development of the theory of relativity . . . a superb account of Einstein's and Eddington's spectacularly successful struggles to work and survive under miserable wartime conditions * Kirkus Reviews, starred review *Impressive . . . Stanley's well-told and impressively readable chronicle delivers a wider, and still relevant, message that how science is performed is inextricable from other aspects of people's lives * Publishers Weekly *He succeeds in wrapping up the global, national and scientific politics of an era in a compelling story of one man's wild theory, lucidly sketched, and its experimental confirmation in the unlikeliest and most exotic circumstances -- Simon Ings * Spectator *Few books about events a century ago carry as relevant a message for today's world of resurgent nationalism as does Matthew Stanley's Einstein's War . . . Stanley is a storyteller par excellence...[his] riveting, blow-by-blow account of Einstein's struggle...is an unusually reader-friendly journey into relativity theory . . . Einstein and Eddington would have liked it * Washington Post *An insightful and elegantly written exploration of the impact of war on science in both Britain and Germany -- PD Smith * TLS *

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Book SynopsisAward-winning women scholars from nontraditional backgrounds have often negotiated an academic track that leads through figurative--and sometimes literal--minefields. Their life stories offer inspiration, but also describe heartrending struggles and daunting obstacles. Reshaping Women''s History presents autobiographical essays by eighteen accomplished scholar-activists who persevered through poverty or abuse, medical malpractice or family disownment, civil war or genocide. As they illuminate their own unique circumstances, the authors also address issues all-too-familiar to women in the academy: financial instability, the need for mentors, explaining gaps in resumes caused by outside events, and coping with gendered family demands, biases, and expectations. Eye-opening and candid, Reshaping Women''s History shows how adversity, and the triumph over it, enriches scholarship and spurs extraordinary efforts to affect social change. Contributors: Frances L. Buss, Nupur Chaudhuri, LisTrade Review"Depositing their papers, journals, and oral histories in archives, the recipients have provided for future generations examples of 'feminist and social justice activism.' . . . The collection significantly contributes to women's history and women's studies." --Journal of American History"One gasps at the life-threatening illnesses, the wrong turns, and the array of discrimination these authors face. At the next moment, the reader cheers them on, wanting to celebrate every success and intellectual discovery. The combined elements of horrific challenges, in some cases, and redemption in all of them make for a rich autobiographical experience that powerfully stirs the reader."--Bonnie G. Smith, author of The Gender of History: Men, Women, and Historical Practice

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Book SynopsisAward-winning women scholars from nontraditional backgrounds have often negotiated an academic track that leads through figurative--and sometimes literal--minefields. Their life stories offer inspiration, but also describe heartrending struggles and daunting obstacles. Reshaping Women''s History presents autobiographical essays by eighteen accomplished scholar-activists who persevered through poverty or abuse, medical malpractice or family disownment, civil war or genocide. As they illuminate their own unique circumstances, the authors also address issues all-too-familiar to women in the academy: financial instability, the need for mentors, explaining gaps in resumes caused by outside events, and coping with gendered family demands, biases, and expectations. Eye-opening and candid, Reshaping Women''s History shows how adversity, and the triumph over it, enriches scholarship and spurs extraordinary efforts to affect social change. Contributors: Frances L. Buss, Nupur Chaudhuri, LisTrade Review"Depositing their papers, journals, and oral histories in archives, the recipients have provided for future generations examples of 'feminist and social justice activism.' . . . The collection significantly contributes to women's history and women's studies." --Journal of American History"One gasps at the life-threatening illnesses, the wrong turns, and the array of discrimination these authors face. At the next moment, the reader cheers them on, wanting to celebrate every success and intellectual discovery. The combined elements of horrific challenges, in some cases, and redemption in all of them make for a rich autobiographical experience that powerfully stirs the reader."--Bonnie G. Smith, author of The Gender of History: Men, Women, and Historical Practice

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Book SynopsisA provocative and original history of the scientists and writers, artists and philosophers who took drugs to explore the hidden regions of the mindTrade Review“Jay is a leading expert on the history of Western drug use, and Psychonauts is the latest in a series of excellent studies in which he has investigated the roots of a kind of psychoactive exploration that we tend to associate with the nineteen-fifties and sixties.”—Clare Bucknell, New Yorker“Psychonauts is a timely reminder that a prohibitive approach to drugs is not the historical norm. Drugs are changing and Jay hopes the term itself will change with them.”—Marcus Ellingham, Financial TimesA New Yorker Best of the Week Pick, 2023“Fascinating book . . . not something you get taught at school.”—Thomas W. Hodgkinson, The Guardian“In this richly detailed and frequently illuminating book, Mike Jay argues that Davis and Weil were merely reviving a centuries-long tradition—inebriation in the name of science.”—Rhys Blakely, Times (UK)“Jay’s book has serious contemporary relevance given our current problems.”—John Quin, The National (Scotland)Listed in New Statesman’s Best Books of the Academic Presses, 2023“Dense with fascinating information, some of it obscure, all of it well referenced, Psychonauts is an essential addition to any psychonaut’s library.”—Andy Roberts, Fortean Times“Provocative, highly readable meditation.”—Andrew Robinson, Nature“Psychonauts is a fascinating study of the cyclical attitudes towards self-experimentation with drugs. As Jay notes, modern-day self-experimentation can add to medical understanding of drugs’ potential.”—Elizabeth K. Gray, History Today“Psychonauts is an engaging survey of the modern, Western history of drug-assisted voyages toward self-discovery . . . historians would do well to add this volume to their library.”—Social History of Medicine“A splendidly curated collection of the accounts brought back from those far worlds by self experimenting travellers; a parade of brave, curious and charismatic characters…” —Charles Foster, Times Literary Supplement “Mike Jay is at the forefront of global research on the history of psychoactive substances. In this moment of renaissance in research on the mind-altering properties of psychedelics, Jay’s Psychonauts offers crucial intel and historical perspective.”—Marcus Boon, author of The Road of Excess“A thought-provoking history of the pioneering questers who self-experimented with drugs in the name of science and creativity. Mike Jay’s account of coked-up doctors, hashish-eating poets, mushroom-munching mystics and toad-licking scientists is an exhilarating read.”—Anna Katharina Schaffner, author of The Art of Self-Improvement“With this rich, nuanced account, Mike Jay posits the War on Drugs as a mere blip on the long, proud, and very influential history of self-experimentation with psychoactive substances by artists, scientists and philosophers—the titular explorers of the mind.”—Carlyn Zwarenstein, author of On Opium“With elegance and erudition, Mike Jay conveys the fascinating, often quixotic history of scientists, philosophers, and other daring ‘psychonauts’ self-experimenting with a pharmacopeia of substances, exploring the mysteries of consciousness by chemically altering the brain. Jay deftly guides the reader through the most confounding puzzles about our mind’s pictures of reality; about meaning-making, truth and illusion. A gorgeously written, page-turning pleasure to read.”—Brian D. Earp, author of Love Is the Drug“Breezy and profound, Psychonauts is a wildly entertaining history of drugs through the writings of stoned intellectuals like Sigmund Freud, William James, and Baudelaire. They got high, saw God, tried to articulate the experience, and mostly failed. But their attempts, like this book, are a total blast.”—Ben Westhoff, author of Fentanyl, Inc.

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Book SynopsisThe compulsively readable and sometimes jaw-dropping story of the life of a notorious madam who played hostess to every gangster, politician, writer, sports star and Cafe Society swell worth knowing, and who as much as any single figure helped make the twenties roar—from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Most Famous Man in America.A fast-paced tale of … Polly’s many court battles, newspaper headlines, mobster dealings and society gossip…. A breathless tale told through extraordinary research.” —The New York Times Book ReviewSimply put: Everybody came to Polly's. Pearl Polly Adler (1900-1962) was a diminutive dynamo whose Manhattan brothels in the Roaring Twenties became places not just for men to have the company of women but were key gathering places where the culturati and celebrity elite mingled with high society and with violent figures of the underworld—and had a

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Book SynopsisHow Tobin Siebers' foundational work in disability studies resonates in the field today

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Book SynopsisFinalist for the 2021 Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Nonfiction   Talusan sails past the conventions of trans and immigrant memoirs. --The New York Times Book Review A ball of light hurled into the dark undertow of migration and survival. --Ocean Vuong, author of On Earth We''re Briefly GorgeousA love story with the heart of Austen classics and a reflective journey of becoming that shift our own perceptions of romance, identity, gender, and the fairness of life.Fairest is a memoir about a precocious boy with albinism, a sun child from a rural Philippine village, who would grow up to become a woman in America. Coping with the strain of parental neglect and the elusive promise of U.S. citizenship, Talusan found comfort from her devoted grandmother, a grounding force as she was treated by others with special preference or public curiosity. As an immigrant to the United States, Talusan came to be perceived a

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Book SynopsisNATIONAL BESTSELLER • Read with Jenna Book Club Pick as Featured on Today • From the creator of Elle’s “Eric Reads the News,” a heartfelt and hilarious memoir-in-essays about growing up seeing the world differently, finding unexpected hope, and experiencing every awkward, extraordinary stumble along the way.“Pop culture–obsessed, Sedaris-level laugh-out-loud funny . . . [R. Eric Thomas] is one of my favorite writers.”—Lin-Manuel Miranda, Entertainment WeeklyFINALIST FOR THE LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD • NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY TEEN VOGUE AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY O: The Oprah Magazine • NPR • Marie Claire • Men’s Health R. Eric Thomas didn’t know he was different until the world told him so. Everywhere he went—whether it was his rich, mostly white, suburban high school, his conservative black church, or his Ivy League college in a big city—he found himself on the outside looking in. In essays by turns hysterical and heartfelt, Thomas reexamines what it means to be an “other” through the lens of his own life experience. He explores the two worlds of his childhood: the barren urban landscape where his parents’ house was an anomalous bright spot, and the Eden-like school they sent him to in white suburbia. He writes about struggling to reconcile his Christian identity with his sexuality, the exhaustion of code-switching in college, accidentally getting famous on the internet (for the wrong reason), and the surreal experience of covering the 2016 election for Elle online, and the seismic changes that came thereafter. Ultimately, Thomas seeks the answer to these ever more relevant questions: Is the future worth it? Why do we bother when everything seems to be getting worse? As the world continues to shift in unpredictable ways, Thomas finds the answers to these questions by reenvisioning what “normal” means and in the powerful alchemy that occurs when you at last place yourself at the center of your own story. Here for It will resonate deeply and joyfully with everyone who has ever felt pushed to the margins, struggled with self-acceptance, or wished to shine more brightly in a dark world. Stay here for it—the future may surprise you.

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Book SynopsisA soaring intellectual narrative starring the radical, brilliant, and provocative philosophers Simone de Beauvoir, Hannah Arendt, Simone Weil, and Ayn Rand by the critically acclaimed author of Time of the Magicians, Wolfram EilenbergerThe period from 1933 to 1943 was one of the darkest and most chaotic in human history, as the Second World War unfolded with unthinkable cruelty. It was also a crucial decade in the dramatic, intersecting lives of some of history’s greatest philosophers. There were four women, in particular, whose parallel ideas would come to dominate the twentieth century—at once in necessary dialogue and in striking contrast with one another.Simone de Beauvoir, already in a deep emotional and intellectual partnership with Jean-Paul Sartre, was laying the foundations for nothing less than the future of feminism. Born Alisa Rosenbaum in Saint Petersburg, Ayn Rand immigrated to the United States in 1926 and was honing one of the most politically influential voices of the twentieth century. Her novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged would reach the hearts and minds of millions of Americans in the decades to come, becoming canonical libertarian texts that continue to echo today among Silicon Valley’s tech elite. Hannah Arendt was developing some of today’s most important liberal ideas, culminating with the publication of The Origins of Totalitarianism and her arrival as a peerless intellectual celebrity. Perhaps the greatest thinker of all was a classmate of Beauvoir’s: Simone Weil, who turned away from fame to devote herself entirely to refugee aid and the resistance movement during the war. Ultimately, in 1943, she would starve to death in England, a martyr and true saint in the eyes of many.Few authors can synthesize gripping storytelling with sophisticated philosophy as Wolfram Eilenberger does. The Visionaries tells the story of four singular philosophers—indomitable women who were refugees and resistance fighters—each putting forward a vision of a truly free and open society at a time of authoritarianism and war.

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Book SynopsisFrom the internationally acclaimed artist, a stunning collection of portraits of ground-breaking women—Joan of Arc, Josephine Baker, Greta Thunberg, Misty Copeland, and many more history-making women whose names have been forgotten and are finally being brought to light. • With a Foreword by Roxane Gay. “This book, as a whole, offers the reader possibility and promise … You will be introduced to many of these women for the first time, because history is rarely kind to women until it is forced to be. You will learn about artists and activists, rulers and rebels.” —Roxane Gay, from the Foreword Original Sisters was born from the COVID-19 quarantine. In early March 2020, locked down in her home-studio in Toronto and longing for inspiration, artist Anita Kunz started researching women on the Internet. She wasn’t sure what she was looking for, but she soon found an array of astonishing people who had done amazing things—some of whom she had heard of, but most of whom she had not. And then she began to paint their pictures and write down their stories. The result is a jaw-dropping feat of historic and artistic research. The wide variety of lives, occupations, time periods, and achievements is absolutely mind-bending.   From Joan of Arc to Josephine Baker, from Hippolyta to Greta Thunberg, from Anne Frank to Misty Copeland: these women made and changed history. But there are just as many whom you’ve never heard of, who were never recognized in their lifetimes, whose achievements need to be brought to light. They include the anti-Nazi activist Sophie Scholl, who was executed at age twenty-one by the Third Reich, and Alice Ball, a young African American scientist who discovered a treatment for leprosy but died tragically before she could receive credit for it. This is not only a breathtaking art book. Original Sisters also recounts a secret history that must be told so that it is a secret no more.

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Book SynopsisAgainst the dominant view of reductive naturalism, John McDowell argues that human life should be seen as transformed by reason so that human minds, while not supernatural, are sui generis. This collection assembles eleven critical essays that highlight the enduring significance and wide ramifications of McDowell's unorthodox position.Trade ReviewThe essays in this volume lend support to the editors’ aim of showing the unity of McDowell's thought. The book will be of great value for those seeking to understand and develop further the philosophy of one of the foremost thinkers of our day. -- David Gordon * Philosophical Quarterly *Superb…The very high quality of discussion is a testament not only to the various authors’ own insights and abilities but also to the value of the idea and its various actualisations in McDowell’s work…I anticipate that his indirect influence will spread even further through careful engagement with this important collection. -- Guy Longworth * Mind *This is an impressive collection of sophisticated essays—worthy of John McDowell, who is surely one of the most important and interesting philosophers of our time. -- Berislav Marušić, University of EdinburghThis collection of essays in honor of John McDowell is superb. It both illuminates McDowell’s own work in new ways and suggests intriguing, very fruitful directions for future research. The excellent essays are held together by the editors’ outstanding introduction, which provides a framework for pursuing underlying interconnections among the essays themselves, and in McDowell’s own approach to the rich assortment of topics they tackle. -- Naomi Elian, University of WarwickA stellar group of philosophers who have long engaged with his work explore the wellsprings of McDowell’s deep and subtle thought, and the common themes, perspectives, and strategies that tie together his insights across the many dimensions of human experience he addresses. Indispensable. -- Robert Brandom, University of Pittsburgh

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Book SynopsisAfter WWII, Ilse Koch became known worldwide as the “Bitch of Buchenwald.” She was assuredly guilty of atrocities, but the most sensational crimes ascribed to her by prosecutors and newspapers went unproven. Tomaz Jardim reveals how Koch’s perceived betrayal of womanhood sealed her fate as a scapegoat for a society seeking absolution.Trade ReviewScrupulous and unsettling, this is a vital reconsideration of a notorious figure from history. * Publishers Weekly *[Jardim] argues that Koch, convicted for her moral and ideological culpability in assaulting prisoners…received a gendered treatment by the American and German presses…This focus on the salacious, sensational, and extraordinary hindered an honest examination of the routinized and bureaucratized slaughter by a regime based on the popular support and participation of many ordinary people. * Choice *The definitive portrait of Ilse Koch, whose caricature as a sadistic nymphomaniac has for too long dominated representations of Nazi female perpetrators. In Jardim’s judicious hands, Koch’s story reveals much about the Nazi system, postwar justice, and the sexism that permeated both, while firmly establishing Koch’s guilt and paranoid antisemitism. -- Wendy Lower, author of Hitler’s Furies: German Women in the Nazi Killing FieldsAn indispensable, superbly researched contribution to the literature on postwar trials of Nazi crimes. Caught between her own obvious prevarications and lack of remorse, the US public’s thirst for sensationalism, and Germany’s need for a spectacular symbol of gender-violating deviance to serve as a convenient scapegoat, Ilse Koch was the rare case of a Nazi perpetrator who was over-prosecuted and over-punished. -- Christopher R. Browning, author of Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in PolandFascinating and highly original. Deploying a number of previously neglected sources, Jardim not only explores Koch’s life and trials, but also raises intriguing questions about how guilt can ever be established when all but the most circumstantial evidence is absent. A high-caliber contribution. -- Elizabeth Borgwardt, author of A New Deal for the World: America’s Vision for Human RightsA gripping account of a Nazi placed on trial after the war, both in court and in the press, for her gruesome acts at Buchenwald concentration camp. Looking closely at Koch’s life and motivations, Jardim offers a brilliant study of postwar Germany and America trying to come to grips with the barbarity of the Nazis, human wickedness, and the role of women perpetrators. -- Susannah Heschel, author of The Aryan Jesus: Christian Theologians and the Bible in Nazi GermanyIn a stroke of genius, Jardim shows how the figure of Ilse Koch—popularly depicted as a bad wife, a worse mother, and a sexually threatening woman—helped frame the Holocaust as being, fundamentally, about psychological perversion and deviation from the gendered norms of civilization. In so doing, he makes the role of gender in postwar Nazi trials not only legible, but inescapable. -- Devin O. Pendas, author of Democracy, Nazi Trials, and Transitional Justice in Germany, 1945–1950A fascinating, revelatory book. Jardim’s deft account of the trials of one of the most infamous Nazi defendants serves as a prism through which he examines such big themes as the postwar reckoning with the camps, the popular (mis)understanding of Nazi crimes, and the politics of memory. -- Nikolaus Wachsmann, author of KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps

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Book SynopsisThe first biography of Zelia Nuttall (18571933), a pioneering Mexican-American anthropologist whose work on Aztec cosmology and mastery of ancient codices helped shape our understanding of pre-Columbian Mexico. Grindle captures the appeal and contradictions of this trailblazing woman, who brought a new rigor to the study of ancient civilizations.Trade ReviewThis vibrant biography follows the complex, captivating figure of Zelia Nuttall, a self-taught scholar of ancient Mesoamerica and a pioneer of modern anthropology…Grindle paints an indelible portrait of a woman both charming and challenging, whose boldness could slip easily into imperiousness, and whose zeal could lead her astray. * New Yorker *Zelia Nuttall was the first anthropologist to accurately decipher the Aztec calendar stone. In this first published biography of the pioneering social scientist, Merilee Grindle examines the then-new field of anthropology, which employed few women. She explores how Nuttall’s dogged research contributed to our understanding of the history and culture of ancient Mexico. * Christian Science Monitor *What a woman! And what a fabulous life to unearth. Zelia Nuttall was incredibly smart, determined, a divorced single mother in a man’s world, a great scholar, and an original thinker—yet today she’s completely forgotten. Merilee Grindle has dug deep into the archives and uncovered her fascinating story. -- Andrea Wulf, author of The Invention of NatureZelia Nuttall comes alive in all her fascinating contradictions in Merilee Grindle’s capable hands. Nuttall came of age in the nineteenth century and thought nothing of removing Mexico’s antiquities, or supporting Porfirio Díaz. But she was also a world-traveling single mother who studied Nahuatl with a native speaker, convinced Franz Boas to take Mexican students, ferreted out a previously unknown pre-Columbian codex, made a leap forward in our understanding of the Mesoamerican calendar, and chose to spend her declining years in her beloved Mexico, her mother’s native country. Grindle’s biography challenges our modern smugness and reminds us that our roots as scholars are more complex than we often acknowledge. -- Camilla Townsend, author of Fifth Sun: A New History of the AztecsGrindle unearths the story of the pioneering anthropologist Zelia Nuttall, whose study of Aztec culture and cosmology transformed our understanding of pre-Columbian Mexico. She was the first to accurately decode the Aztec stone calendar, and also rediscovered countless pre-Columbian texts previously thought to have been lost—all the while juggling single motherhood with her career. * The Millions *This biography of Nuttall…does justice to a remarkable but forgotten scholar. -- Andrew Robinson * Nature *Zelia Nuttall was a major figure in the rediscovery of ancient Mexico, yet today she is barely remembered. Merilee Grindle has marshaled an impressive amount of evidence to tell Nuttall’s story afresh and restore her to her rightful place in the annals of anthropology. -- Toby Wilkinson, author of A World Beneath the Sands: The Golden Age of EgyptologyAs a teenager on a seemingly endless grand tour of Europe, Zelia Nuttall described her globe-trotting Californian family as ‘wanderers in the highway of nations.’ In Merilee Grindle’s deft telling, we see Nuttall grow into a brilliant and focused interpreter of the secrets of ancient nations, a founder of the modern science of anthropology, a bold female traveler on time’s highway whose life story illuminates our twenty-first-century struggle to apprehend the ravages of civilization. -- Megan Marshall, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Margaret Fuller: A New American Life and Elizabeth Bishop: A Miracle for BreakfastZelia Nuttall was a pioneering anthropologist whose many contributions ranged from decoding a giant Aztec calendar to burnishing the reputation of the sixteenth-century English navigator Sir Francis Drake. In this beautifully crafted biography, Grindle situates Nuttall’s work in Mexico in the lead-up to the 1910 revolution. Her research helped Mexicans understand their pre-Columbian national heritage, in its sophisticated engineering, gardening, artistry, and cosmology, as being as glorious as that of Mediterranean societies in the classical era. -- Richard Feinberg * Foreign Affairs *[A] fascinating biography of Mexican-American anthropologist Zelia Nuttall…[whose work] helped shape the field of archaeology and the scientific study of the history of humankind in the Americas…Defying her cultural constrictions, she exerted a significant impact on the values and methodologies of institutions. -- Seonaid Valiant * ReVista *Grindle combines a rousing tale of archaeological discovery with an incisive description of how institutional marginalization occurs, tracing how Nuttall’s legacy was ignored by subsequent generations of anthropologists. This enjoyable account restores to prominence an influential figure in her field. * Publishers Weekly *Grindle does not allow discursions into Nuttall’s scholarly interests to slow down the strong narrative pace of her book. … Specialised knowledge of a particular profession provides captivating details as our protagonist navigates the events and personalities of world history. -- Matthew Restall * History Today *

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