Cultural studies Books

Book SynopsisSUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLERThe most important book of the year' Daily MailThe brilliant and provocative new book from one of the world's foremost political writersThe anti-Western revisionists have been out in force in recent years. It is high time that we revise them in turn'In The War on the West, international bestselling author Douglas Murray asks: if the history of humankind is one of slavery, conquest, prejudice, genocide and exploitation, why are only Western nations taking the blame for it? It's become perfectly acceptable to celebrate the contributions of non-Western cultures, but discussing their flaws and crimes is called hate speech. What's more it has become acceptable to discuss the flaws and crimes of Western culture, but celebrating their contributions is also called hate speech. Some of this is a much-needed reckoning; however, some is part of a larger international attack on reason, democracy, science, progress and the citizens of the West by dishonest scholarsTrade Review‘Murray shows not just how every aspect of western society has come under the iconoclasts’ gaze – from mathematics to music, Kew Gardens to Jane Austen – but how flimsy their case often is.’ – The Sunday Times ‘Murray writes with wonderful lucidity about the many fronts on which the West is waging war against itself. And he writes with a sense of urgency.’ – Real Clear Politics ‘Well executed… a spirited defence against the Left's assault on the Western tradition.’ – The Daily Telegraph ‘The War on the West is a monumental book leading to several pivotal realisations.’ – Lotus Eaters ‘Meticulous, measured… The War on the West is Douglas Murray’s latest blast against loony left wokery.’ – The Spectator Praise for Douglas Murray and The Madness of Crowds ‘Whether one agrees with him or not, Douglas Murray is one of the most important public intellectuals today.’ – Bernard-Henry Levy ‘This is an author who specialises in expressing what everyone sort of knows already and is afraid to say…Well argued, well supported, and well observed.’ – Lionel Shriver ‘Simply brilliant. Reading it to the end, I felt as though I’d just drawn my first full breath in years. At a moment of collective madness, there is nothing more refreshing – or indeed, provocative – than sanity.’ – Sam Harris ‘His latest book is beyond brilliant and should be read, must be read, by everyone. He mercilessly exposes the hypocrisy and embarrassingly blatant contradictions that run rife through the current ‘woke’ vouge.’ – Richard Dawkins ‘Douglas Murray fights the good fight for freedom of speech… A truthful look at today’s most divisive issues.’ – Jordan B. Peterson ‘Extraordinary. Magnificent. Searing. Necessary. I salute il miglior fabbro. ‘And whether they listen or fail to listen… they will know that the prophet has been among them’ (Ezekiel 2:5)’ – Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks

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Book SynopsisHoward Goodall is an Emmy, BRIT and BAFTA award-winning composer of choral music, stage musicals, film and TV scores - among them Red Dwarf, QI and Blackadder - as well as a distinguished broadcaster and the author of Big Bangs: The Story of Five Discoveries that Changed Musical History. In recent years he has been England's first ever National Ambassador for Singing, the Classical Brit Composer of the Year, and Classic FM's Composer-in-Residence. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for services to music education.Trade ReviewGoodall has a prodigious gift for gathering information. People who know nothing about music will learn a lot here * Sunday Tribune *Intelligent, infectious * Observer *Writing a breezy history of music is a tough nut to crack, but Goodall manages it * Independent *

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Book SynopsisAs a young girl in China Xinran heard a rumour about a soldier in Tibet who had been brutally fed to the vultures in a ritual known as a sky burial: the tale frightened and fascinated her. Several decades later Xinran met Shu Wan, a Chinese woman who had spent years searching for her missing husband who had been serving as a doctor in Tibet; her extraordinary life story would unravel the legend of the sky burial. For thirty years she was lost in the wild and alien landscape of Tibet, in the vast and silent plateaus and the magisterial mountain ranges, living with communities of nomads moving with the seasons and struggling to survive.In this haunting book, Xinran recreates Shu Wen''s remarkable journey in an epic story of love, loss, loyalty and survival. Moving, shocking and, ultimately, uplifting Sky Burial paints a unique portrait of a woman and a land, both at the mercy of fate and politics.Trade ReviewA romantic epic of loss and redemption, of stoic constancy in the face of the vagaries of fate * Financial Times *Part family story, part mystical adventure in an alien culture, it's like Wild Swans crossed with Seven Years in Tibet * Condé Nast Traveller *This little-known culture has been brought vividly to life through the incredible love story of Shu Wen. This story of an extraordinary woman written by an extraordinary woman will stay with you long after closing the book * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisThe golden age of cultural theory (the product of a decade and a half, from 1965 to 1980) is long past. We are living now in its aftermath, in an age which, having grown rich in the insights of thinkers like Althusser, Barthes and Derrida, has also moved beyond them. What kind of new, fresh thinking does this new era demand? Eagleton concludes that cultural theory must start thinking ambitiously again - not so that it can hand the West its legitimation, but so that it can seek to make sense of the grand narratives in which it is now embroiled.Trade Review'Showily, and wittily, Eagleton yearns for a species of salvation or transcendence from cultural theories' Prospect'...An original thinker whose passion and zest for life, and writing, remain, after years in the famously desiccating groves of academe, undiminished' the Independent Magazine'After Theory's huge achievement is to show just how formidable a presence the Marxist cultural critic can be, even here in the thronged and dismaying universe of Bush, Blair, Derrida and the celebrated M Jean Baudrilland' Independent on Sunday

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Book SynopsisThorstein Bunde Veblen (1857-1929) was an American economist and sociologist. Educated at Carleton College, Johns Hopkins University and Yale University, his most famous work, The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899), from which this selection is taken, is a satiric look at American society. He coined the widely used phrases "conspicuous consumption" and "pecuniary emulation".

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Book SynopsisProfound and humane, Amartya Sen''s Identity and Violence: The Illusion of Destiny examines some of the most explosive problems of our time and shows how we can move towards peace as firmly as we have spiralled towards war. In this penetrating book, Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen argues that we are becoming increasingly divided along lines of religion and culture, ignoring the many other ways in which people see themselves, from class and profession to morals and politics. When we are put into narrow categories the importance of human life becomes lost. Through his lucid exploration of such subjects as multiculturalism, fundamentalism, terrorism and globalization, he brings out the need for a clear-headed understanding of human freedom and a constructive public voice in Global civil society. The hope of harmony in today''s world lies in a clearer understanding of our sheer diversity. ''Identity and Violence is a moving, powerful essay about tTrade Review'Identity and Violence is a moving, powerful essay about the mischief of bad ideas' Economist

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Book SynopsisIn You are Not a Gadget digital guru and virtual reality pioneer Jaron Lanier reveals how the internet is deadening personal interaction, stifling genuine inventiveness and even changing us as people. Something went wrong around the start of the twenty-first century. The crowd was wise. Social networks replaced individual creativity. There were more places to express ourselves than ever before... yet no one really had anything to say. Does this have to be our future? Showing us the way to a future where individuals mean more than machines, this is a searing manifesto against mass mediocrity, a creative call to arms - and an impassioned defence of the human. ''A provocative and sure-to-be-controversial book ... Lucid, powerful and persuasive''  The New York Times ''There is hardly a page that does not contain some fascinating provocation''   Guardian ''Short and frighteniTrade ReviewFabulous - I couldn't put it down and shouted out Yes! Yes! on many pages . . . This is a landmark book that will have people talking and arguing for years into the future. * Lee Smolin *Lucid, powerful and persuasive . . . Necessary reading for anyone interested in how the Web and the software we use every day are reshaping culture and the marketplace * Michiko Kakutani, New York Times *There is hardly a page that does not contain some fascinating provocation * Guardian *Mind-bending, exuberant, brilliant * Washington Post *A pioneer in the development of virtual reality and a Silicon Valley veteran, Mr. Lanier is a digital-world insider concerned with the effect that online collectivism and the current enshrinement of "the wisdom of the crowd" is having on artists, intellectual property rights and the larger social and cultural landscape. In taking on such issues, he's written an illuminating book that is as provocative as it is impassioned. -- Michiko Kakutani's Top 10 Books of the Year 2010 * New York Times *In the world of technologists, Jaron Lanier is that rare combination: a pioneer and a skeptic. A legendary computer scientist, he did crucial early work in the field of virtual reality (the phrase is his). But he now recoils at the way Web 2.0 and social media sell us short as human beings, both in our relationships and in our sense of who we are. In purposeful, reasoned steps, always informed by a profound understanding of how software really works, he lays out his vision of where it all went wrong and champions the power of the human brain in an age of ever smarter machines. -- Lev Grossman * Time Magazine Top 10 Non-Fiction Books of 2010 *

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Book SynopsisJust after the iron curtain fell on Eastern Europe John Steinbeck and acclaimed war photographer, Robert Capa ventured into the Soviet Union to report for the New York Herald Tribune. This rare opportunity took the famous travellers not only to Moscow and Stalingrad - now Volgograd - but through the countryside of the Ukraine and the Caucasus. A RUSSIAN JOURNAL is the distillation of their journey and remains a remarkable memoir and unique historical document. Steinbeck and Capa recorded the grim realities of factory workers, government clerks, and peasants, as they emerged from the rubble of World War II. This is an intimate glimpse of two artists at the height of their powers, answering their need to document human struggle

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Book SynopsisIf you want to know what anthropology is, look at what anthropologists do. This Very Short Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology combines an accessible account of some of the disciplines guiding principles and methodology with abundant examples and illustrations of anthropologists at work. Peter Just and John Monaghan begin by discussing anthropologys most important contributions to modern thought: its investigation of culture as a distinctively human characteristic, its doctrine of cultural relativism, and its methodology of fieldwork and ethnography. They then examine specific ways in which social and cultural anthropology have advanced our understanding of human society and culture, drawing on examples from their own fieldwork. The book ends with an assessment of anthropologys present position, and a look forward to its likely future. 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.Table of Contents1. FIELDWORK AND ETHNOGRAPHY; 2. CULTURE; 3. SOCIETY; 4. SEX AND BLOOD; 5. CLASS AND CASTE, VILLAGE AND CITY, HOME AND THE WORLD; 6. LANGUAGE AND SOCIAL LIFE; 7. THE CULTURALLY CONSTRUCTED SELF 8. THE FUTURE OF ANTHROPOLOGY; FURTHER READING; INDEX

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Book SynopsisThe `Dutch Golden Age'', the age of Grotius, Spinoza, Rembrandt, Vermeer, and a host of other renowned artists and writers was also remarkable for its immense impact in the spheres of commerce, finance, shipping, and technology. It was in fact one of the most spectacularly creative episodes in the history of the world. In this book, Jonathan Israel gives the definitive account of the emergence of the United Provinces as a great power, and explains the subsequent decline in the eighteenth century. He places the thought, politics, religion, and social developments of the Golden Age in their broad context, and examines the changing relationship between the northern Netherlands and the south, which was to develop into modern Belgium.One of the principal aims of the book is to counter the oversimplification which characterizes so much history writing today, and to provide a new type of integrated history which draws the different dimensions of the discipline firmly together in strictly non-technical language. The result is a comprehensive and lucid account as useful to the reader primarily interested in artistic and cultural history as to the student who needs a survey of the Republic''s institutions, class structure, and economic development. At the same time it will provide an invaluable aid to scholars interested in new research and new interpretations.Trade ReviewThis is a magnificent doorstop of a book ... As an account of what made possible one of the most dazzling "Golden Ages" in European history it is unlikely to be bettered. * Sunday Telegraph *Israel has produced a classic ... Any scholar would be delighted to write a book of such learning, vigour and confidence. Very few indeed have done so, and no other has matched Israel on his topic. * THES *Table of ContentsPART 1: THE MAKING OF THE REPUBLIC, 1477-1588 ; PART 2: THE EARLY GOLDEN AGE, 1588-1647 ; PART III: THE LATER GOLDEN AGE, 1647-1702 ; PART IV: THE AGE OF DECLINE, 1702-1806

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Book SynopsisPostcolonialism explores the political, social, and cultural effects of decolonization, continuing the anti-colonial deconstruction of western dominance. This Very Short Introduction discusses both the history and key debates of postcolonialism, and considers its importance as a means of changing the way we think about the world.Robert J. C. Young examines the key strategies that postcolonial thought has developed to engage with the impact of sometimes centuries of western political and cultural domination. Situating the discussion in a wide cultural and geographical context, he draws on examples such as the status of indigenous peoples, of those dispossessed from their land, Algerian rai music, and global social and ecological movements. In this new edition he also includes updated material on race, slavery, and postcolonial gender politics. Above all, Young argues that postcolonialism offers a political philosophy of activism that contests the current situation of global inequality, which in a new way continues the anti-colonial struggles of the past and enables us to decolonize our own lives in the present.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 readableTable of Contents1: Subaltern knowledge 2: History and power, from below and above 3: Space and land 4: Hybridity 5: Postcolonial feminism 6: Globalization from a postcolonial perspective 7: Translation

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Book Synopsis''Conspicuous consumption of valuable goods is a means of reputability to the gentleman of leisure.''In The Theory of the Leisure Class Thorstein Veblen sets out ''to discuss the place and value of the leisure class as an economic factor in modern life''. In so doing he produced a landmark study of affluent American society that exposes, with brilliant ruthlessness, the habits of production and waste that link invidious business tactics and barbaric social behaviour. Veblen''s analysis of the evolutionary process sees greed as the overriding motive in the modern economy; with an impartial gaze he examines the human cost paid when social institutions exploit the consumption of unessential goods for the sake of personal profit. Fashion, beauty, animals, sports, the home, the clergy, scholars - all are assessed for their true usefulness and found wanting. The targets of Veblen''s coruscating satire are as evident today as they were a century ago, and his book still has the power to shock Table of ContentsIntroductory ; Pecuniary Emulation ; Conspicuous Leisure ; Conspicuous Consumption ; The Pecuniary Standard of Living ; Pecuniary Canons of Taste ; Dress as an Expression of the Pecuniary Culture ; Industrial Exemption and Conservatism ; The Conservation of Archaic Traits ; Modern Survivals of Prowess ; The Belief in Luck ; Devout Observances ; Survivals of the Non-Invidious Interest ; The Higher Learning as an Expression of the Pecuniary Culture

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Book SynopsisMedical doctor turned food scientist and author of DK bestsellers The Science of Cooking (2017), The Science of Spice (2018) and The Science of Living (2020), "Dr Stu" is a science and medical writer, presenter and educator. He makes regular appearances on TV, radio, and at public events, and his writing appears in national and international publications. Stuart is also the founder and editor of online lifestyle-science magazine Guru.

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Book SynopsisIn this cross-cultural study of manhood as an achieved status, the author finds that a culturally sanctioned stress on manliness - on toughness and aggressiveness, stoicism and sexuality - is almost universal, and deeply ingrained in the consciousness of men who otherwise have little in common.Trade Review"The news in this anthropological study is not that so many societies in which the men formerly hunted, fished, performed manual labor and warred have developed rigid codes of masculinity, in which aggression toward other males and possessiveness toward women are rewarded. Rather, it is that there are societies—on Tahiti and in Malaysia, for two—in which men are encouraged to be passive, to allow women easy 'eroticism,’ to eschew sporting competitions because they produce bad feelings. All of which, the author observes, causes consternation among Freudians (not to mention apostles of machismo), who have an investment in believing that fear of castration has engendered universal male anxiety over masculinity as something to be earned and steadfastly maintained."—Washington Post Book World"A scholarly overview suggesting that ’manhood’ in the form of toughness, aggression and stoicism is nearly universal."—Phil McCombs, Washington Post"Colourful and fascinating stuff, painstakingly researched and feelingly described. . . . An absorbing, well-argued, and finely written study."—Nicola Shulman, Sunday Times"Gilmore's subtle and illuminating inversion of ordinary understandings—his insight that male sterness, toughness, acquisitiveness, and aggressiveness serve, in circumstances of threat and scarcity, the same social ends as female tenderness and gentleness—has been suggested elsewhere, but never stated so completely nor in so unmistakably masculine a voice. . . . A signal service."—Beryl Lieff Benderly, New York Times Book Review"This is a superb and necessary text for clinicians and theorists interested in the psychological world of the male. . . . By reviewing the manner in which maleness is manifested around the world, [Gilmore] concludes that the vast majority of cultures perpetuate a male role with three main functions—to impregnate, provide, and protect. . . . With the rapid growth of a new male psychology, this book is essential reading for all psychiatrists and psychotherapists who work with men of any age."—Richard Martinez, Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease"Very fascinating and significant, because it gives us a holistic image of what in means to be a man."—Maeda Toshiko, Asian Folklore Studies"Provocative and absorbing, this book is essential to both academic and general libraries."—Library Journal"A provocative, rewarding cross-cultural survey."—Publishers Weekly"The great virtue of this textbook is to demonstrate clearly that there is nothing natural or inevitable about gender polarity."—Robert Brain, Times Literary Supplement"While many of the recent discussions of men and masculinity have arisen out of the more-or-less direct challenges laid down by feminism, Gilmore’s book would seem to arise much more out of his anthropological fieldwork experiences in Andalusia. It is here that he begins his wide-ranging comparative study of the problems of being a proper man in a variety of different societies. . . . This lively and well-written book will prove to be an excellent source-book and overall survey which may help to overcome some of the ethnocentrism that limits many recent discussions of men and masculinities."—David H. J. Morgan, Journal of Gender Studies"A well-written, accessible, provocative study that raises a wide range of challenging issues and covers a rich variety of ethnographic cases."—Michael Herzfeld, Indiana University

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Book SynopsisThe unvarying essential meanings of around 1,000 symbols and symbolic themes commonly found in the art, literature and thought of all cultures through the ages are clarified.

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Book SynopsisIn Bodies That Matter, renowned theorist and philosopher Judith Butler argues that theories of gender need to return to the most material dimension of sex and sexuality: the body. Butler offers a brilliant reworking of the body, examining how the power of heterosexual hegemony forms the matter of bodies, sex, and gender. Butler argues that power operates to constrain sex from the start, delimiting what counts as a viable sex. She clarifies the notion of performativity introduced in Gender Trouble and via bold readings of Plato, Irigaray, Lacan, and Freud explores the meaning of a citational politics. She also draws on documentary and literature with compelling interpretations of the film Paris is Burning, Nella Larsen's Passing, and short stories by Willa Cather.Trade Review"As a philosopher of gender [Judith Butler] is unparalleled." – Village Voice"Butler gives us a new way to think about the materiality of the body in the discursive performity operative in the materialization of sex. Following a common move in postmodern feminism, Butler sets out to demolish the sex/gender distinction that has formed the mainstay of the de Beauvorian and radical feminism's notion that gender, as a cultural construction, could be critiqued and politicized against the givenness of the body's biological sex. . . .What is new in Bodies That Matter is Butler's attempt to write more directly about race." – Signs"Extending the brilliant style of interrogation that made her 1990 book Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity a landmark of gender theory/queer theory, Butler here continues to refine our understandings of the complexly performative character of sexuality and gender and to trouble our assumptions about the inherent subversiveness of dissident sexualities. . . . indispensable reading across the wide range of concerns that queer theory is currently addressing." – Artforum"What the implications/limitations of 'sexing' are and how the process works comprise the content of this strikingly perceptive book. . . . Butler has written a most significant and provocative work that addresses issues of immediate social concern." – The Boston Book Review "A brilliant and original analysis." – Drucilla Cornell, Rutgers University, USA"...a classic." – Elizabeth GroszTable of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements Part 1: 1. Bodies that Matter 2. The Lesbian Phallus and the Morphological Imaginary 3. Phantasmatic Identification and the Assumption of Sex 4. Gender is Burning: Questions of Appropriation and Subversion Part 2: 5. 'Dangerous Crossing': Willa Cather's Masculine Names 6. Queering, Passing: Nella Larsen Rewrites Psychoanalysis 7. Arguing with the Real 8. Critically Queer. Notes. Index

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Book SynopsisIrishology is the ultimate warm, witty, and irreverent guide to all things Irish. Who else but the Irish can perform minor miracles with a prayer to St Anthony? Or truly appreciate the medicinal purposes of flat 7Up? Not to mention the front room, chipper chips, and the `bad pint.'' From things you''ll only hear and taste in Ireland to tips for surviving any social situation (an Irish wedding anyone?!).

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Book SynopsisCombining recipes from the bestselling Irish Granny's Pocket Recipe Book, Pocket Irish Potato Recipe Book and the Irish Granny's Pocket Farmhouse Kitchen, this large-format cookbook is your complete guide to traditional Irish cooking.Granny has selected her best, most popular recipes to create the ultimate recipe book, something that belongs on every kitchen shelf. Let her teach you all you need to know about delicious, nutritious country cooking.Includes traditional recipes like soda bread, Irish stew, bacon and cabbage, and the best recipe for scones.

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Book SynopsisWhy and how do contemporary questions of culture so readily become highly charged questions of identity? The question of cultural identity lies at the heart of current debates in cultural studies and social theory. At issue is whether those identities which defined the social and cultural world of modern societies for so long - distinctive identities of gender, sexuality, race, class and nationality - are in decline, giving rise to new forms of identification and fragmenting the modern individual as a unified subject.Questions of Cultural Identity offers a wide-ranging exploration of this issue. Stuart Hall firstly outlines the reasons why the question of identity is so compelling and yet so problematic. The cast of outstanding contributors then interrogate different dimensions of the crisis of identity; in so doing, they provide both theoretical and substantive insights into different approaches to understanding identity.Trade Review`This impressive and timely collection of essays addresses the significance of cultural identity as social phenomenon and provides an insight into a number of new approaches for unfolding its complexity.... This is not only a collection of some of the most respected thinkers in the social sciences but reveals the variety of paths that can be followed in pursuit of the question of cultural identity′ - Sociology `This collection of essays brings together contributions from different disciplines and theoretical traditions in an effort to illuminate and advance the debate about cultural identity and its meaning in contemporary social formations. It is of value to those engaged in social and cultural theory, the social sciences, cultural studies, and the humanities′ - Sociological Abstracts `Hall′s opening essay is wide-ranging about theorisations of identities... Ten essay cover many different types of ground, often stimulatingly and at times surprisingly.... As a whole, though dispersed, the book well fulfills its aim to ask why "questions of cultural identity have acquired visibility and salience" across fields of research′ - The Times Higher Education SupplementTable of ContentsIntroduction - Stuart Hall Who Needs `Identity′? From Pilgrim to Tourist - or a Short History of Identity - Zygmunt Bauman Enabling Identity? - Marilyn Strathern Biology, Choice and the New Reproductive Technologies Culture′s In-Between - Homi K Bhabha Interrupting Identities - Kevin Robins Turkey/Europe Identity and Cultural Studies - Is That All There Is? - Lawrence Grossberg Music and Identity - Simon Frith Identity, Genealogy, History - Nikolas Rose Organizing Identity - Paul du Gay Entrepreneurial Governance and Public Management The Citizen and the Man about Town - James Donald

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Book SynopsisYUNIYA KAWAMURA is Professor of Sociology at the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, USA. She is the author of four other Bloomsbury publications: Fashioning Japanese Subcultures (2012), Sneakers (2016), Fashion-ology (2004, 2018), and Doing Research in Fashion and Dress (2011, 2020).Jung-Whan Marc de Jong is Associate Professor of Sociology at Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, USA.Trade ReviewThis is a timely book, given that discussions of what is and is not cultural appropriation are exploding within the academy, museums, fashion design, and social media. Those unfamiliar with the concept will find this to be a fine introduction to the topic, and those well-acquainted with the subject will appreciate the literature review. ... From the beginner to the academic expert (and everyone in between), there is much to learn and appreciate in this thorough recounting of the debates over cultural appropriation. * Fashion, Style & Popular Culture *This is a timely examination of the problems inherent in the way that dominant cultures have taken inspiration from minority groups in ways that have been exploitative. This book makes an important contribution to the wider, political call for an urgent reappraisal of attitudes and inequalities that have had a devastating effect on many communities. -- Janice Miller, Head of School of Critical Studies and Creative Industries, Kingston School of Art, Kingston University, UKTable of ContentsPreface 1. Introduction – Culture Culture in Classical Social Theory Schools of Thought: Value-laden and Value-neutral Culture Conceptual Tools for Cultural Analysis Outline of the Book Conclusion Suggested Further Reading 2. Academic Studies on Cultural Appropriation Definitions, Processes, and Types Logos, Mascots, and Nicknames Gastronomy and Cuisine Literary Works Adornment Conclusion Suggested Discussion Examples 3. Fashion In Pursuit of Exoticism and Novelty Biological, Cultural, and Sartorial Hierarchies Conceptual Typologies The Strength of Weak Virtual Ties Conclusion Suggested Discussion Examples Suggested Further Reading 4. Entertainment What is Sociological about Entertainment? The Commodification of Culture and the Other Conditions of Cultural Appropriation The Production of Culture in Social Media Age Cultural Hybridization and Cultural Appropriation Conclusion Suggested Discussion Examples 5. Ambivalence and Paradox: Derritorialization and Reterritorialization in the Globalized World Cross-cultural Encounters in a Historical Context Globalization and Deterritorialization Immigration and Cultural Globalization through Mediascapes Culture as Epistemological Relativism: Coexisting with Harmonious Differences Ambivalence in Fashion Globalization Cultural Authentication Process: Cultural Integration and Hybridization Conclusion Suggested Further Reading Conclusion

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Book Synopsis''Part autobiography, part heartfelt plea to change the way we look at gender, Girls will be Girls is an excellent primer on feminist theory. Every teenage girl should be given a copy'' HOT PRESSBeing a woman is, largely, about performance - how we dress and modify our bodies, what we say, the roles we play, and how we conform to expectations. Gender stereotypes are still deeply embedded in our society, but Emer O''Toole is on a mission to re-write the old script and bend the rules of gender - and she shows how and why we should all be joining in.Exploring what it means to ''act like a girl'', Emer takes us on a hilarious and thought-provoking journey through her life (including singing ''Get Your Pits Out for the Lads'' on national TV after growing out her body hair). Cross-dressing, booty-shaking, sexual disasters, family dinners and full-body waxing are all lovingly dissected in search of wisdom.With game-changing ideas, academic intelligence and lTrade ReviewA fascinating exploration of how we 'do' gender. From the early labeling of infants to the ironclad enforcement of grooming and interpersonal behavior, gender expression is neither a matter of biological mandate nor individual choice. Emer O'Toole nimbly weaves philosophy and personal experience into a vivid depiction of gender identity as performance art. -- LISE ELIOT, author of PINK BRAIN, BLUE BRAINThe blogger and columnist, who is emerging as one of the leading lights of the new feminism, uses anecdotes from her own life - from 'cross-dressing to pube-growing and full-body waxing' - to illuminate some of the the dos and don'ts for women trying to set themself free from gender stereotypes. * THE GUARDIAN Unmissable books for 2015 *A witty, engaging appeal for everybody to stop conforming so rigidly to gender stereotypes.... As this thoughtful, funny book reminds us, being a girl can mean a lot of things. And with luck one day women will all get to decide for themselves what that is. * IRISH TIMES *An entertaining book that makes you question the conventions of gender. I expect it will attract comparisons with Caitlin Moran's How to be A Woman. Like Moran's work, I wish it could be handed out to every teenage girl as a self-esteem booster. -- Rosamund Urwin * EVENING STANDARD *What I love most about Emer's writing is that she is not only able to explain complex ideas about feminist theory in a way that is engaging and relatable, but it is also really funny. If you love reading feminism which is as entertaining as it is thought-provoking, this book is the obvious next step up from Caitlin Moran. Get your hands on a copy. * abstractmag.com *The book is personal, in that it's her own story of playing a different role, and it's chatty and funny and likeable, much as the author herself seems to be. -- Eithne Tynan * IRISH MAIL ON SUNDAY *Part autobiography, part heartfelt plea to change the way we look at gender, Girls will be Girls is an excellent primer on feminist theory. Every teenage girl should be given a copy. * HOT PRESS *As a possible fourth wave of Western feminism beckons, new titles on the subject are appearing with increasing regularity. O'Toole holds her own in a crowded space, albeit one in need of a greater diversity of female voices. Her accessible approach to theory, interwoven with her chatty, self-reflective style and gender insights from an Irish perspective creates a welcome addition to the current crop of popular feminist writing. -- Mary McGill * IRISH INDEPENDENT *In her excellent and eye-opening book Girls Will Be Girls, Emer O'Toole discusses the impact of the often stereotypical 'lenses' through which we see the world and the importance of examining those lenses in order to better understand our ingrained and normalised prejudice. In her book, How to Be A Woman, Caitlin Moran suggests that things would be easier if some pigeons would shit all over the glass ceiling, because we would then at least be able to see what we are dealing with. O'Toole's book performs a similar function... allowing us to see clearly the boundaries that are often invisible and unquestioned... A witty, pacy and exhilirating lesson in beginning to colour outside the lines. -- LAURA BATES * EVERYDAY SEXISM *Girls will be Girls is a funny and compelling read, combining fascinating, relatable storytelling with meticulous research and real practical advice for challenging patriarchal gender roles in your own small, large, thin, fat, feminine, masculine, hairy, unhairy way (and anything and everything in between!) -- Lusana Taylor * THE F WORD *O'Toole follows the personal example set by Caitlin Moran to such powerful effect, as she explores through anecdote and recollections from childhood and adolescence a powerful concept familiar to those who have studies feminist theory since the 1970s: the notion of one's gender as a performance, a construction that can be altered. * SUNDAY HERALD *A hilarious, honest and probing journey through what it means to be female, from haircutting to sexual discovery. * GRAZIA *Girls Will be Girls is bloody amazing, so go and read it right now. * WRITER'S LITTLE HELPER *Girls will be Girls is a funny and compelling read, combining fascinating, relatable storytelling with meticulous research and real practical advice for challenging patriarchal gender roles in your own small, large, thin, fat, feminine, masculine, hairy, unhairy way (and anything and everything in between!) -- Lusana Taylor * THE F WORD *O'Toole follows the personal example set by Caitlin Moran to such powerful effect, as she explores through anecdote and recollections from childhood and adolescence a powerful concept familiar to those who have studies feminist theory since the 1970s: the notion of one's gender as a performance, a construction that can be altered. * SUNDAY HERALD *

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Book SynopsisBy the author of the #1 bestseller THE BIG SHORT and the original business classic LIAR'S POKER comes a reissue of the definitive and hugely entertaining book about America and Japan.Trade ReviewPraise for LIAR'S POKER: 'An amazing book, readable, funny and mind-boggling ... one of the great business books of all time' * Punch *Read all about it: headlong greed, inarticulate obscenity, Animal House horseplay . . . * The Sunday Times *Immense verve and wit * 20/20 Magazine *A highly immoral book * Daily Mail *Wickedly funny * Daily Express *As traders would say, this book is a buy * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisStep aside Hygge. Lagom is the new Scandi lifestyle trend taking the world by storm. This delightfully illustrated book gives you the lowdown on this transformative approach to life and examines how the lagom ethos has helped boost Sweden to the No.10 ranking in 2017's World Happiness Report. Lagom (pronounced 'lah-gom') has no equivalent in the English language but is loosely translated as 'not too little, not too much, just right'. It is widely believed that the word comes from the Viking term 'laget om', for when a mug of mead was passed around a circle and there was just enough for everyone to get a sip. But while the anecdote may hit the nail on the head, the true etymology of the word points to an old form of the word 'lag', which means 'law'.Far from restrictive, lagom is a liberating concept, praising the idea that anything more than 'just enough' is a waste of time. Crucially it also comes with a selflessness and core belief of responsibility and common good. By living lagom you can: Live a happier and more balanced life Reduce your environmental impact Improve your work-life balance Free your home from clutter Enjoy good food the Swedish way Grow your own and learn to forage Cherish the relationships with those you love

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Book SynopsisThis is a 'Whole Earth Catalog' for the 21st century: an impressive and wide-ranging analysis of what's wrong with our societies, organizations, ideologies, worldviews and cultures - and how to put them right. The book covers the finance system, agriculture, design, ecology, economy, sustainability, organizations and society at large. In it, Daniel Wahl explores ways in which we can reframe and understand the crises that we currently face and explores how we can live our way into the future. Moving from patterns of thinking and believing to our practice of education, design and community living, he systematically shows how we can stop chasing the mirage of certainty and control in a complex and unpredictable world. The book asks how can we collaborate in the creation of diverse regenerative cultures adapted to the unique biocultural conditions of place? How can we create conditions conducive to life? "This book is a valuable contribution to the important discussion of the worldview and value system we need to redesign our businesses, economies, and technologies - in fact, our entire culture - so as to make them regenerative rather than destructive." Fritjof Capra, author of The Web of Life, coauthor of The Systems View of Life: A Unifying Vision. "This is an excellent addition to the literature on ecological design and it will certainly form a keystone in the foundations of the new MA in Ecological Design Thinking at Schumacher College, Devon. It not only contains a wealth of ideas on what Dr Wahl has termed 'Designing Regenerative Cultures' but what is probably more important, it provides some stimulating new ways of looking at persistent problems in our contemporary culture and hence opens up new ways of thinking and acting in the future." Seaton Baxter OBE, Professor in Ecological Design Thinking, Schumacher College, UKTrade Review"Daniel's book Designing Regenerative Cultures is a wonderful and well-referenced primer for a new paradigm." Satish Kumar "Clearly our ways of thinking have gotten us in some trouble--here are concrete suggestions for some new habits of mind that could help us climb out of our hole!";Bill McKibben, author: Eaarth - Making a Life on a Tough New Planet; co-founder 350.org, and Schumann Distinguished Scholar, Middlebury College "This is an impressive, broad and forward looking book that integrates design thinking with a diverse range of contemporary and innovative ideas around sustainability, ecology and transformation. Its attention to not just the problems, but also to how address them is timely and much needed. As such the book is now one of the main core programme texts for our MSc Sustainability at the University of Dundee." Professor Ioan Fazey, Centre for Environmental Change and Human Resilience, University of Dundee. "Daniel Wahl... has the capacity to explain complex and subtle subjects such as systems theory, regenerative design, holistic management, biomimicry, the circular economy, quantum theory ... and much more, succinctly. There are so many paragraphs in this book that I highlighted to return to and savour later on. He is also well versed in the integral, holistic worldview and the processes which support the birth of a new consciousness that will enable these regenerative shifts. His book is not only a collection of well articulated ideas, it is a litany of so many of the world's best projects that are already in existence, balancing theory with practice. There is an unstoppable optimism implicit in this book, however care-worn and cynical the reader may feel." Maddy Harland in Permaculture Magazine. "Designing Regenerative Cultures has gained international acknowledgement for its pragmatic approach to the subject, reframing and questioning the current approaches to the challenges that humankind is currently facing with deeper understanding of the possible solutions surfacing with regenerative design." UNESCO Global Action Programme on ESD Aug 2016 "Daniel Wahl has had an important insight that makes this book an essential read for anyone trying to change the world. The necessary catalyst is in the title of this book: "regenerative systems." To quote Wahl, "Sustainability is not a fixed state to reach and then maintain, it is a community-based learning process aimed at increasing the health and resilience of our communities, our bioregional economies, ecosystems, and of the planetary life-support system as a whole." This is the core realization of Rob Hopkins (Transition Handbook) and David Fleming (Lean Logic) as well, but Wahl's book gets to the assembly language programming, explaining how ecological literacy and the social, technological, and entrepreneurial skills required for the transition are the entry point that leads to everything else. Arguably ecological literacy is already the foundation of much that is new in the world of industrial design - it is called biomimicry. Biological and ecological design intelligence is starting to reinvent the way we design communities, businesses, cities, and industries. This book gets out in front of that with the larger picture. We need to do these things, now, or we may not be here in another century. Wahl says, "We need to dare to envision a sustainable world, by re-designing our food systems, transport systems, energy systems, economic systems, and education systems, but most of all, we need to re-envision how we collaborate and how we relate to each other and the natural world." Whether we have time to make this unprecedented change in our social contract is still in doubt. Set your doubts aside for the moment and let this book give you a sense of "... but what if?" If we are going to get this right, it will begin here." Reviewed by Albert Bates, Ecovillage and Permaculture Pioneer, Right Livelihood Award Winner, and author of Climate in Crisis. "6 Star Handbook for Saving Civilization & Earth. This book makes the jump from 5 stars (generally I don't bother to review a book if it is not a four or five star read) to 6 stars - my top ten percent - because of the combination of Questions Asked, glorious color graphics, and the total holistic nature of the book - this is easily a PhD thesis in holistic analytics, true cost economics, and open source everything engineering. Indeed, this book could be used as a first-year reference across any humanities and science domain, they would be the better for it. It is of value to ministers of government, managers of corporations, administrators of non-profit and educational organizations, labor union and religious stewards, and every single citizen planning to be alive in five years and beyond." Reviewed by Robert David Steele on the Public Intelligence Blog and Amazon "Daniel Wahl has compiled a great deal of useful information in a masterful synthesis. That alone is a significant accomplishment, but he's given us more than that. Designing Regenerative Cultures describes the doorway to a possible, indeed, necessary future. We are not fated to the dystopia in prospect. We have, as he writes, the capacity to design and to organize our societies to protect, enhance, and celebrate life. The blueprint was there all along. The awareness of our possibilities is growing. The art and sciences of ecological design are flourishing. The choice, as always, is ours and that of those who will follow." From the Foreword by David Orr (environmentalist and Paul Sears Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics at Oberlin College and a James Marsh Professor at the University of Vermont). "This book is a treasure for everyone who is looking for a guide to more sustainable living and a roadmap for re-designing our societies , regenerating our communities , cities and societies in harmony with natural systems and our home planet. Author Daniel Wahl has deep experience to share and his knowledge in this beautiful book will help all those aspiring to be responsible global citizens working for our common future." Hazel Henderson, author and President, Ethical Markets Media , Certified B. Corporation, USA & Brazil "Daniel Wahl's Designing Regenerative Cultures provides an exhaustive review of current thinking on our global challenges as well as a refreshing approach to how we can "live into the questions" that will help us create a beautiful future. Anyone working in sustainability or social innovation will find this book to be a tremendously useful reference and provocative guide for framing regenerative solutions. It is a wonderful blend of passionate vision and practical insight." Denise K. DeLuca, Co-Founder & Director, BCI (Biomimicry for Creative Innovation) "The world is converging on integration and systems thinking, and regeneration of the world is the battle cry of any sentient being in the 21st century. Daniel Wahl provides good insights and inspirations on the index of possibilities -in mass scale regeneration of nature and society." Marcin Jakubowski, PhD, Founder & Executive Director of Open Source Ecology. Designing Regenerative Cultures is a wide ranging synthesis of key knowledge to take us into a more resourceful 21st Century. The book brings forth multiple perspectives on the ultimate challenge of our time. This living material will help one get beyond the bread and circus approach that the mainstream media is foisting upon us, and thereby subtlety turning us into bloated modern Romans without a clue on what really matters, let alone the power to create what matters. Shifting from a narrative of separation and scarcity, to interbeing and abundance opens the conceptual door to the next phase of the human enterprise. Read and absorb this powerful treatise, and learn from the dynamic context Daniel Wahl has created with the publication of his new book. Christopher Zelov conceived and produced the award winning film 'Ecological Design: Inventing the Future'. Recent projects include: A Visit With Magnus, City 21, and Design Outlaws. "To me as a life-long activist nourished on systems thinking and Buddhist teachings, this is one of the most intellectually exciting and soul stirring books I've read in years. I had the sense of drinking it, with pleasure and surprise, not having known what I'd so thirsted for. br> By starting with questions and keeping to questions throughout, Daniel engages the reader, and by example frees her from striving for, or pretending to know, any final answers. This approach -- in itself a rare lesson in systems epistemology - invites trust, openness, and a restructuring of the mind. Among the gifts for which I am especially grateful are these: Conceptual tools for perceiving and experiencing our mutual belonging , and especially what I've come to call the great reciprocity at the heart of the universe. The ways Goethe, Bortoft, Bateson, Maturana, and Varela are brought in, and key insights mediated with economy and clarity. The abundant evidence of the Great Turning, the manifold transition underway to a life-sustaining culture. And, especially valuable to those of an apocalyptic bent like myself, the 'adaptive cycle' of resilient systems, showing that at 'the edge of chaos' comes opportunity for the emergence of greater complexity and intelligence. These are but a few of the ways in which this remarkable book will enrich my thought, my teaching, and my life in this turbulent world of ours." Joanna Macy, environmental activist, scholar of Buddhism, general systems theory, and deep ecology and author of World as Lover, World as Self and numerous other books. "This is a seriously rich source of perspective on the nature of whole system design. The future is already here and Daniel Wahl has synthesized the wide ranging progress in the emerging field of `regenerating wholeness'. There is a lot of positive and effective activity happening around the planet! Of particular note, the title addresses "us" as a significant and often missing leverage point in our work towards regenerative relationships: our cultural ability to become collaborative weavers, integral to evolving a condition of long-lasting health. This book shows the powerful potential of how all these dimensions of wholeness are coming together." Bill Reed, Regenesis Group "Life on the Planet has sustained itself for billions of years by continually regenerating itself. Our modern industrial culture has interfered with these natural processes to the point of causing massive extinctions of species and threatening our very survival. This book is a valuable contribution to the important discussion of the worldview and value system we need to redesign our businesses, economies, and technologies - in fact, our entire culture - so as to make them regenerative rather than destructive." Fritjof Capra, author of The Web of Life, coauthor of The Systems View of Life: A Unifying Vision.Table of ContentsFOREWORD ~ David Orr FOREWORD ~ Graham Leicester INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1 - Living the Questions: Why change the narrative now? Questioning dangerous ideologies Facing complexity means befriending uncertainty and ambiguity Caring for Earth is caring for ourselves and our community Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world The 'why' will guide the 'what' and the 'how'Spirituality, soul and solitude in nature Sustainability as a learning journey: pilgrims and apprentices Sustainability is not enough; we need regenerative cultures! CHAPTER 2 - Why choose transformative over sustaining innovation? The Three Horizons of innovation and culture change Evaluating disruptive innovation in the age of transition Transformative innovation is about deep questioning Sensitivity to scale, uniqueness of place and local culture The transformative power of social innovation Collaborative consumption and peer-to-peer collaboration Facilitating systems innovation and culture change CHAPTER 3 - Why do we need to think and act more systemically? Believing is seeing and seeing is believing The whole is more than the sum of its parts From the 'crisis of perception' to the 'systems view of life' Interbeing How can we participate appropriately in complex systems? The IFF World System Model Learning to see nature everywhere Being a process, and seeing in relationships CHAPTER 4 - Why nurture resilience and whole-systems health? Rolling back Earth Overshoot Day Learning to live within planetary boundaries What exactly are resilience and transformative resilience? The adaptive cycle as a dynamic map for resilience thinking Panarchy: a scale-linking perspective of systemic transformation Local and regional community resilience building is going global How can we nurture transformative resilience? From control and prediction to conscious participation, foresight and anticipation CHAPTER 5 - Why take a design-based approach? Design education enables cultural transformation Design is where theory and practice meet Design follows worldview and worldview follows design Ethics and design for regenerative cultures Aesthetics and design Emergence and design Designing for positive emergence (a case study) Scale-linking, salutogenic design for resilience The resurgence of a culture of makers: re-localizing production Collective visioning and design conversations change culture CHAPTER 6 - How can we learn to better design as nature? Ecoliteracy: Learning from living systems Valuing traditional ecological knowledge and indigenous wisdom How does life create conditions conducive to life? Biologically Inspired Innovation Green chemistry and material science Biologically inspired product design Biomimetic architecture Nature's whole system optimization informs community design Living the questions together creates community Industrial ecology and symbiosis are closing the loops Ecologically informed urban and regional planning CHAPTER 7 - Why are regenerative cultures rooted in cooperation? Redesigning agriculture for food sovereignty and subsidiarity Regenerative agriculture: effective responses to climate change Learning from and mimicking healthy ecosystems Redesigning economics based on ecology Creating circular economies Towards a regenerative economy Thriving communities and the solidarity economy Shifting from quantitative to qualitative growth Valuing the commons by cooperatively sharing the gifts of life Earth Law: the enabling constraints of collective living Life's collaborative lessons transform business Co-creating regenerative enterprises Collaboration and empathy as evolutionary success stories Activism revisited: conscious participation and collective intelligence We are coming back to life and this changes everything Learning to listen deeply Inner and outer resilience CONCLUSION - Regenerative cultures are about thriving together

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Book SynopsisAt a time when women are more vocal than ever about our lives, there's one last taboo.We need to talk about porn.‘Briskly confronting...porn is an inescapable part of the environment we all share and should be talked about honestly… this book is an important start.’THE SUNDAY TIMES'Celebrates women's sexuality but also unflinchingly reveals the truth of how women are perceived - and used - in society by men.'A STYLIST best non-fiction pick for 2024When we think about porn today, we still mostly think about men. Men as the producers and the consumers. Women as the product. Most women aren't talking to each other about what they do and don't do with porn - not really. And when we do talk about it, we are divided into unhelpful binaries: for or against? Liberation or coercion? Too sexual or not sexual enough? But in a world where porn sites get more traffic than Netflix, Amazon plus Twitter combined, and one of the leading sites claims a third of its users are women, isn't it time to change that?In this book, interviews with 100 women result in an extraordinary and powerful conversation on pornography. How they first encountered it. How they consume it. How it has affected their sex lives. What they like and what they don't. And what it means for their relationships.Eye-opening, provocative and deeply moving, this book navigates the polarised public debates, to open an intimate window into porn and the sexual lives of women today.Trade Review‘Briskly confronting...porn is an inescapable part of the environment we all share and should be talked about honestly… this book is an important start.’ * Sunday Times *'Celebrates women's sexuality but also unflinchingly reveals the truth of how women are perceived - and used - in society by men.' * Stylist best non-fiction for 2024 *‘A sensitively written and generous piece of work’ * New Statesman *

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Book Synopsis3, 2, 1... inhale, deep. From the Victorian infirmary and the sex clubs of the 1970s, poppers vapour has released the queer potential inside us all. This is the intriguing story of how poppers wafted out of the lab and into gay bars, corner shops, bedrooms and porn supercuts. Blending historical research with wry observation, Adam Zmith explores the cultural forces and improbable connections behind the power of poppers. What emerges is not just a history of pub raids, viral panics and pecs the size of dinner plates. It is a collection of fresh and provocative ideas about identity, sex, utopia, capitalism, law, freedom and the bodies that we use to experience the world. In Deep Sniff, what starts as a thoughtful enquiry into poppers becomes a manifesto for pleasure.Trade Review"A pharmacornucopia of sensory pleasures, Adam Zmith’s Deep Sniff is an entire queer curriculum opened up by poppers.""Absorbing, riotous, keenly-researched and utterly celebratory, Deep Sniff is exactly the kind of queer history we need right now! Through the heady prism of poppers, Zmith explores the queer body with such curiosity and nuance – and explodes just how very political and ongoing the search for autonomous pleasure really is."“A fascinating, joyful social and personal history of an underrated drug. Zmith manages to capture not just the intriguing story of poppers and their role in queer life, but also something of their ineffable chemical pleasure.”“Adam Zmith's Deep Sniff is a fascinating dive into the history of a common, yet rarely remarked upon part of gay male life in the late 20th and early 20th century: poppers. Deftly intermingling history, personal experience, and cultural commentary, Deep Sniff is a remarkable addition to queer history.”“A book on poppers and its dilated pleasures is long-overdue. Knowledgeable and naughty, Deep Sniff is a giddy, unashamed rush that doesn’t need to be kept in the fridge after opening.”

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Book SynopsisIn this comprehensive open access book, written for readers from any or no religious background, Leena El-Ali does something remarkable. Never before has anyone taken on every last claim relating to Islam and women and countered it not just with Qur’anic evidence to the contrary, but with easy-to-use tools available to all. How can a woman’s testimony be worth half of a man’s? How can men divorce their wives unilaterally by uttering three words? And what’s with the obsession with virgins in Paradise? Find the chapter on any of the seventeen topics in this book, and you will quickly learn a) where the myth came from and b) how to bust it. The methodology pursued is simple. First, the Qur’an is given priority over all other literary or “scriptural” sources. Second, the meaning of its verses in the original Arabic is highlighted, in contrast to English translations and/or widespread misunderstanding or misinterpretation. Table of ContentsPart I First the Qur’an, then Islam1. A Spiritual Journey2. Hadith Corpus3. Hadith Content4. Women and the Development of hadith LiteratureAT A GLANCE: First the Qur’an, then IslamPart II The Nature of Women5. Women Were Not Created of Inferior Celestial Material6. Eve Is Not Blamed for the Fall from Eden, Nor Are Women Guilty by Association7. Women Are Not a Constant Source of Social Discord – Nor Naturally Conniving!8. Women Were Created with the Exact Same Spiritual and Intellectual Capacity as Men, So of Course They Can Lead9. When Men Deprive Women of Their Free Will, They Are Not Protecting Anyone: They Are Obstructing God’s Plan10. God Does Not Prefer Sons Over Daughters (!)AT A GLANCE: The Nature of WomenPart III The Rights of Women11. Women Were Not Meant to Be Subordinate to Men12. Inheritance: No, Women Did Not Get the Short End of the Stick13. Nuptials: Women Do Have the Right to Choose Their Own Spouse, and How the Qur’anic Nuptial Agreement Advocates for the Bride14. Marriage: A Sublime Institution, Not Mere Social Contract15. Divorce: Men Do Not Hold all the Cards – The Qur’an Actually Levels the Playing Field Through Mandated Process and EtiquetteAT A GLANCE: The Rights of WomenPart IV Some Inconvenient Truths16. Clothing: There Is No Dress Code for Women Beyond Covering their Private Parts, as with Men17. Segregation: There Is No Restriction on Men and Women Mingling18. Witnesses: A Woman’s Testimony Is Worth the Same as a Man’s, Except in Two Cases Where It May Count for More or LessAT A GLANCE: Some Inconvenient TruthsPart V Carnal Matters19. Sexual Misconduct: What the Qur’an Tells Us About Pre-Marital vs Extra-Marital Sex20. Domestic Violence: The Qur’an Does Not Instruct Husbands to Hit Their Wives for “Disobedience” or Anything Else21. Virgins: There Are No 72 Virgins Waiting for Anyone in Paradise AT A GLANCE: Carnal Matters

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Book SynopsisSUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLERThe most important book of the year' Daily MailThe brilliant and provocative new book from one of the world's foremost political writersThe anti-Western revisionists have been out in force in recent years. It is high time that we revise them in turn'In The War on the West, international bestselling author Douglas Murray asks: if the history of humankind is one of slavery, conquest, prejudice, genocide and exploitation, why are only Western nations taking the blame for it? It's become perfectly acceptable to celebrate the contributions of non-Western cultures, but discussing their flaws and crimes is called hate speech. What's more it has become acceptable to discuss the flaws and crimes of Western culture, but celebrating their contributions is also called hate speech. Some of this is a much-needed reckoning; however, some is part of a larger international attack on reason, democracy, science, progress and the citizens of the West by dishonest scholars, hatemongers, hostile nations and human-rights abusers hoping to distract from their ongoing villainy.In The War on the West, Douglas Murray shows the ways in which many well-meaning people have been lured into polarisation by lies, and shows how far the world's most crucial political debates have been hijacked across Europe and America. Propelled by an incisive deconstruction of inconsistent arguments and hypocritical activism, The War on the West is an essential and urgent polemic that cements Murray's status as one of the world's foremost political writers.Trade Review‘Murray shows not just how every aspect of western society has come under the iconoclasts’ gaze – from mathematics to music, Kew Gardens to Jane Austen – but how flimsy their case often is.’ – The Sunday Times ‘Murray writes with wonderful lucidity about the many fronts on which the West is waging war against itself. And he writes with a sense of urgency.’ – Real Clear Politics ‘Well executed… a spirited defence against the Left's assault on the Western tradition.’ – The Daily Telegraph ‘The War on the West is a monumental book leading to several pivotal realisations.’ – Lotus Eaters ‘Meticulous, measured… The War on the West is Douglas Murray’s latest blast against loony left wokery.’ – The Spectator Praise for Douglas Murray and The Madness of Crowds ‘Whether one agrees with him or not, Douglas Murray is one of the most important public intellectuals today.’ – Bernard-Henry Levy ‘This is an author who specialises in expressing what everyone sort of knows already and is afraid to say…Well argued, well supported, and well observed.’ – Lionel Shriver ‘Simply brilliant. Reading it to the end, I felt as though I’d just drawn my first full breath in years. At a moment of collective madness, there is nothing more refreshing – or indeed, provocative – than sanity.’ – Sam Harris ‘His latest book is beyond brilliant and should be read, must be read, by everyone. He mercilessly exposes the hypocrisy and embarrassingly blatant contradictions that run rife through the current ‘woke’ vouge.’ – Richard Dawkins ‘Douglas Murray fights the good fight for freedom of speech… A truthful look at today’s most divisive issues.’ – Jordan B. Peterson ‘Extraordinary. Magnificent. Searing. Necessary. I salute il miglior fabbro. ‘And whether they listen or fail to listen… they will know that the prophet has been among them’ (Ezekiel 2:5)’ – Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks

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Book SynopsisIn the modern information age, our brain's coping mechanisms have been overloaded, and our irrationality turned up to eleven. Amanda Montell blends cultural criticism and personal narrative to explore our modern cognitive biases and the power, disadvantages and highlights of magical overthinking.Magical thinking can be broadly defined as the belief that one''s internal thoughts can affect unrelated events in the external world. Whether that''s manifesting their way out of poverty, staving off cancer with positive vibes, or transforming an unhealthy relationship to a glorious one through loyalty alone.In a series of razor sharp and introspective chapters, Montell delves into cognitive biases that run rampant in our brains, from how the halo effect cultivates worship (and hatred) of larger-than-life celebrities, to how the sunk cost fallacy can keep us in detrimental relationships long after they no longer serve us.Told with her signature brilliance and wit, Montell''s prevailing message is one of hope and forgiveness for our anxiety riddled human self. If you have all but lost faith in our ability to reason through the noise of information overload, this book aims to make sense of the senseless. To crack open a window in our minds and let the fresh air in. To help quiet the cacophony for a while, and maybe, even hear a melody in it.

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Book SynopsisRoger Deakin, who died in 2006, was a writer, filmmaker and environmentalist of international renown. He was a founder member of Friends of the Earth, and co-founded Common Ground. He lived for thirty-eight years in a moated farmhouse in Suffolk. Waterlog, which was first published in 1999, became a word-of-mouth bestseller, and is now an established classic of the nature writing canon.Trade ReviewI jumped in with both feet and wanted to stay for more.Erudite, funky and passionate, a total delight * Independent on Sunday *Charmingly and elegantly written * Daily Telegraph *A delicious, cleansing, funny, wise and joyful book, so wonderfully full of energy and life. I loved itHighly entertaining...Waterlog is a book about a cold, wet subject written with a warmth and passion it surely deserves, but has rarely had before * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisFollowing his profoundly influential study, Orientalism, Edward Said now examines western culture. From Jane Austen to Salman Rushdie, from Yeats to media coverage of the Gulf War, Culture and Imperialism is a broad, fierce and wonderfully readable account of the roots of imperialism in European culture.Trade ReviewCulture and Imperialism has an eloquent, urgent topicality rare in books by literary critics -- Camille PagliaReaders accustomed to the precision and elegance of Edward Said's analytical prowess will not be disappointed by Culture and Imperialism. Those discovering Said for the first time will be profoundly impressed -- Toni MorrisonEdward Said helps us to understand who we are and what we must do if we are to aspire to be moral agents, not servants of power -- Noam Chomsky

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA parable written for the age of technological disruption . . . brilliantly told -- James McConnachie * Sunday Times *Remarkable . . . a work of art . . . one puts this book down shaking one's head at the folly and human cost of it all -- Paul Kennedy * Wall Street Journal *Gripping . . . in Gladwell's deft hands, the Air Force generals of World War II come back to life as the stirring 20th-century equivalent of Adm. Horatio Nelson and his band of audacious captains from the age of fighting sail . . . Gladwell is a wonderful storyteller -- Thomas E. Ricks * The New York Times *Impassioned . . . engagingly written -- Saul David * Telegraph *Riveting . . .The Bomber Mafia looks at one of the greatest moral challenges of the Second World War -- Michael Lewis * author of The Fifth Risk *Told with the muscular, driving narrative and fizzingly charismatic (real-life) characters of a movie -- Ed Grenby * Radio Times *A thought-provoking, accessible account of how people respond to difficult choices in difficult times . . . Gladwell's easy conversational style works well . . . his portraits of individuals are compelling -- Diana Preston * Washington Post *Unexpected empathy . . . fabulistic energy * Esquire *Lively, engaging . . . a fascinating story -- Gerard DeGroot * The Times *Important and characteristically readable . . . Gladwell is possibly the most confident storyteller in non-fiction. He always knows exactly where he is going, and he takes you with him in pleasure and comfort. -- Simon Kuper * New Statesman *Gladwell's eloquence and flair for lateral thinking make for a compelling read -- Simon Griffith * Mail on Sunday *

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Book SynopsisBefore the Renaissance and Reformation, holy images were treated not as "art" but as objects of veneration which possessed the tangible presence of the "Holy", Hans Belting traces in this volume the long history of the sacral image and its changing role in European culture.

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Book SynopsisIn essays on literary images of lesbianism from Defoe and Diderot to Virginia Woolf and Djuna Barnes, on the homosexual reputation of Marie Antoinette, on the lesbian writings of Anne Lister, Sylvia Townsend Warner, and Janet Flanner, and on Henry James's The Bostonians, Castle shows how a lesbian presence can be identified in the literature, history, and culture of the past three centuries.

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Book SynopsisTable of Contents1. An Introduction to Culture and Psychology 2. Cross-Cultural Research Methods 3. Enculturation 4. Culture and Development 5. Culture, Self, and Identity 6. Culture and Personality 7. Culture and Gender 8. Culture and Cognition 9. Culture and Emotion 10. Culture and Communication 11. Culture and Physical Health 12. Culture and Mental Health 13. Culture and Psychological Interventions 14. Culture and Social Behavior 15. Culture and Organizations

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Book SynopsisFrom breaking the law to breaking a promise, how do people lie and how can they be caught?Trade Review"[A] wealth of detailed, practical information about lying and lie detection and a penetrating analysis of the ethical implications." -- Jerome D. Frank, The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

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Book SynopsisOffers a framework for understanding contemporary debates as they have evolved in Europe and the United States. From the visionary museums of Boullee in the eighteenth century to the new Guggenheim in Bilbao and beyond, this book explores various aspects of museum theory and practice: ideals and mission; architecture; the public and commercialism.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Ideals and Mission Architecture Collecting, Classification, and Display The Public Commercialism Restitution and Repatriation Conclusion Appendix Notes List of Illustrations Index

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Book Synopsis* “Children around the world go to sleep in different beds in this ingeniously illustrated picture book…Read this before bedtime to ensure a world of sweet dreams.”--Kirkus Reviews, starred reviewDelightful rhymes and charming hand-stitched art celebrate the many ways we sleep across the world. Perfect for a baby shower gift and for fans of This Is How We Do It.My bed rocks on waterMy bed sways in the breeze.My bed’s beneath a curtainMy bed’s aloft in trees . . . In the Netherlands, some beds rock on water. In Brazil they might sway in the breeze. From Canada to Japan, Afghanistan to Norway, sleep has taken many forms and shapes throughout history. Astonishing, hand-stitched illustrations and a delightful narrative tell the story of sleeping traditions across the world.Trade Review★ "Children around the globe go to sleep in different kinds of beds in this ingeniously illustrated picture book.... All readers will want to return to pore over the details of these imaginative depictions.... A concluding note about the creation of the illustrations will be fascinating to adults and may prompt them to work with children to make some fabric collages. Read this before bedtime to ensure a world of sweet dreams." —Kirkus, STARRED review "This eye-catching volume looks at bedtime....While the text is helpful, it’s secondary to the photos that showcase Mavor’s wonderfully detailed, diorama-like scenes, created with fabrics, beads, wood, and wire and richly, meticulously embellished with embroidery in thread and yarn. Featuring vibrant, harmonious colors, interesting patterns, and folk art charm, the illustrations will impress craft-minded viewers with the artist’s ingenuity and attention to detail. A handsome book to share with young children."—Booklist "Mavor’s immersive signature illustrations charm; the intricately stitched art, handcrafted from fabric, beads, wire, and yarn on embroidered fabric backgrounds, will assuredly catch readers’ attention....this meditation on global similarities and differences is worth poring over for the fabric relief art alone." —Publishers Weekly —

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Book SynopsisIn this collection of psychoanalytic essays on a wide range of relatively unexplored subjects, the author evolves his own distinctive version of psychoanalysis as part of a wider cultural conversation. The essays combine literary and philosophical commentary with clinical vignettes.

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Book SynopsisAre the “culture wars” over? When did they begin? What is their relationship to gender struggle and the dynamics of class? In her first full treatment of postcolonial studies, a field that she helped define, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, one of the world’s foremost literary theorists, poses these questions from within the postcolonial enclave.Trade ReviewGayatri Spivak’s most recent text, A Critique of Postcolonial Reason, brings together in a single volume a wide range of her work in postcolonial studies… She weaves together these multiple levels of critique brilliantly, presenting a rigorous reading of the discourses of imperialism… A Critique of Postcolonial Reason presents a scrupulous discussion of imperialism in European philosophy, literature, history, and culture. -- Rachel Riedner * American Studies International *Gayatri Spivak’s long-awaited book…sets out to challenge the very fields Spivak has herself been most associated with—postcolonial studies and third world feminism… [A Critique of Postcolonial Reason] is remarkable for the warnings it provides—powerful critiques of diverse positions structure the author’s stance—as guardian in the margin. Spivak forcefully interrogates the practices, politics and subterfuges of intellectual formations ranging from nativism, elite poststructuralist theory, metropolitan feminism, cultural Marxism, global hybridism, and ‘white boys talking postcoloniality.’ -- Yogita Goyal * New Formations *A Critique of Postcolonial Reason is almost above all else self-conscious, self-aware, self-deprecating. In 139 brilliant footnotes to ‘Culture,’ Spivak carries on a running engagement with the flotsam and jetsam (what Walter Benjamin called the ‘detritus’ of culture or ‘Trash of History’) of what passes for public life and the attendant information and culture industry in this global thing we live in: ad campaigns by clothing designers, articles and stories from the New York Times or ‘Good Morning America’… Spivak’s tone makes the book a constant pleasure. A mocking smile seems always present, along with sincere engagement with important issues… From the first page of the preface to her footnote almost 400 pages later about the exchange with the World Bank official at the European Parliament, Spivak focuses on the ignorant, arrogant Eurocentric destruction of people and the environment and the enabling practices of culture that make it possible… This is a most important and significant book. -- David S. Gross * World Literature Today *Spivak focuses on the relationship of debates in philosophy, history, and literature to the emergence of a postcolonial problematic. Overall, she seeks to distance herself from mainstream postcolonial literature and to reassert the value of earlier theorists such as Kant and Marx… Those already interested in the postmodern and postcolonial debates may find her style invigorating. -- Kent Worcester * Library Journal *Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, one of the foremost thinkers in postcolonial theory, looks at the place of her discipline in the academic ‘culture wars.’ A Critique of Post-Colonial Reason includes a reworking of her most influential essay, ‘Can the Subaltern Speak?’ which has previously appeared in only one anthology. * Publishers Weekly *Gayatri Spivak works with remarkable complexity and skill to evoke the local details of emergent agency in an international frame. Her extraordinary attention to the texts she reads and her ability to track the reach of global power make her one of the unparalleled intellectuals of our time. -- Judith Butler, author of The Psychic Life of PowerA founder of postcolonial studies surveys the current state of the field and finds much to criticize. This is vintage Spivak—dazzling, often exasperating, but unfailingly powerful. -- Partha Chatterjee, author of The Nation and Its FragmentsIn these pages Gayatri Spivak performs what often seems either impossible or purely gestural—a critique of transnational globalization which manages to be equally attuned to its cultural and economic effects. This book deserves to be read for its modulated defense of Marxism and feminism alone. It will be welcomed as the clearest statement to date of Spivak’s own relationship to the postcolonial theory with which she herself—wrongly, as she forcefully argues here—is so often identified. With a brilliance that is uniquely hers, Spivak issues a challenge which will be very hard to avoid to the limits of theory and of academic institutions alike. -- Jacqueline Rose, author of States of FantasyGayatri Spivak tells us that here she charts her progress from colonial discourse studies to transnational cutlural studies. She does so brilliantly. And she does so much more. She constructs this extraordinary progress through an intricate labyrinth, but one with blazing lights in every corner. -- Saskia Sassen, author of Globalization and Its DiscontentsTable of Contents* Preface *1. Philosophy *2. Literature *3. History *4. Culture * Appendix: The Setting to Work of Deconstruction * Index

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