European history Books

Book SynopsisWestern Art and Jewish Presence in the Work of Paul Celan: Roots and Ramifications of the Meridian Speech addresses a central problem in the work of a poet who holds a unique position in the intellectual history of the twentieth century. On the one hand, he was perhaps the last great figure of the Western poetic tradition, one who took up the dialogue with its classics and who responded to the questions of his day from a global concern, if often cryptically. And on the other hand, Paul Celan was a witness to and interim survivor of the Holocaust. These two identities raise questions that were evidently present for Celan in the very act of poetry. This study takes the form of a commentary on Celan's most important statement of his poetics and beliefs, The Meridian, which is an extraordinarily condensed text, packed with allusions and multiple meanings. It reflects his early work and anticipates later developments, so that the discussion of The Meridian becomes a consideration of his oeuvre as a whole. The commentary is an act of listeningan attempt to hear what these words meant to the poet, to see the landscapes from which they come and the reality they are trying to project; and in the light of this, to arrive at a clear picture of the relation between Celan's Jewishness and his vocation as a Western writer.Trade ReviewEsther Cameron brings a novel and genuine aspect to the exhaustive enumeration of Celan's legacy and Celanian literature: a deeply human and personal one. . . .Cameron's book will be of great guiding value to anyone aspiring to understand Paul Celan's poetry and an insightful literary lesson to anyone reading the giants of German, and to a degree, American literature of the pre- and post-Celan writings. * H-Net: Humanities and Social Science Reviews Online *[For Cameron], Celan’s poetry was a path, a way to engage her own existential dilemmas. He was, in short, a poet who changed her life, and this book is her witness. . . .Cameron’s book is an exhaustive analysis and commentary on [Celan’s Georg Buchner prize acceptance] speech: each word, each reference, its themes and allusions, what is said and what is not said. She views this speech not only as a key to Celan’s entire life and oeuvre, but also to the past and future possible relations of contemporary Western and Jewish culture. Her reading of it is passionate, intellectual, religious, poetic, academic, and personal all at once. The exacting, exhaustive word-by-word commentary parallels traditional rabbinic literary modes of interpretation. In an autobiographical note, Cameron writes that her father was a geologist, and there is indeed something geological in her method here as well in the way she lifts and scrapes every fragment, digging slowly and patiently from layer to layer, trying to decipher and put patterns and structures together, probing the crevices. . . .The book is part of her own stated project to create a voice and community responsive to the needs of the contemporary Jewish artistic soul. * B'Or Ha'Torah *Esther Cameron's book is a comprehensive, sensitive, and insightful commentary on one of the most significant and far-reaching poetic manifestos of the modern era. It will be illuminating to both the novice and the seasoned Celan reader, as well as anyone interested in the place and potential of the Jewish tradition in the modern world. -- Michael Eskin, Cofounder and Publisher, Upper West Side Philosophers, Inc.Esther Cameron’s exquisitely written book offers a highly original and compelling meditation on the lyric and thought of one of the greatest poets of our time. -- Amir Eshel, Stanford UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction: The Landscape of Reading Part I: Idolatry, Determinism, and Freedom Part II: Lenz, the Exodic Moment, and the Pathway of Art Part III: The Poem’s Quest for the (Wholly) Other Part IV: Toward the Circumference Part V: Post Meridian

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Book SynopsisAristide Cavaillé-Coll (1811-1899) is often referred to as the greatest organ builder of all time. The pipe-organ, being the most complicated musical instrument mechanically and tonally, as well as the most expensive, adds significantly to that world''s greatest designation. The talents required to be such a person range far from music-making to advanced physics, architecture, and engineering. That, plus the obvious knack to raise vast sums of money. Cavaillé-Coll''s Monumental Organ Project for Saint Peter''s, Rome: Bigger Than Them All, by Ronald Ebrecht, is the story of the quest to build the largest-ever mechanical-action organ in the biggest church at the time. Cavaillé-Coll''s model for that organ and the book he wrote outlining his proposal are the core of Ebrecht''s discussion. Cavaillé-Coll bestrode a century as well as an art-form. His century complicated the project with the most intricate, intractable problems. Saint-Peter''s Square, now a part of the Vatican City State, Trade ReviewIn Mr. Ebrecht’s book we have the first exhaustively researched and documented account of a plan to build the world’s largest organ in the world’s most famous church. There is also a plethora of historic and relative information regarding organ builders, organists, venues, composers, and dignitaries in several countries during the mid-late 19th century. This book should be in every academic library, and anyone involved in teaching, studying, or simply learning about pipe organs will find it a fascinating as well as a significant read. -- Frederick Swann, University Organist and Artist Teacher of Organ, University of RedlandsRonald Ebrecht’s book about the Cavaillé Coll Organ Project in Rome is a must for every pipe organ enthusiast, organ player, organ builder, and everyone interested in this monumental building. The story behind the vision of one of the greatest organ builders of the world, who conducted an organ project for one of the greatest church buildings of the world, gives insight to a previously unknown dimension. -- Philipp C.A. Klais, organbuilder and president of Orgelbau Klais, Bonn GermanyThis is a very well-researched book about a spectacular and unfortunately not realized organ project. Illustrating the historical context, Ebrecht makes the reader understand the path to this terrific project and the reasons why it did not happen. An excellent reading that tells us a fascinating story of a genius organ builder and his time. -- Stefan Stürzer, Managing Director, Glatter-Götz OrgelbauTable of ContentsForeword Preface Introduction Chapter I - An Auspicious Début, a Difficult Era Chapter II - One Hundred Stops, Saint-Sulpice, Paris' Greatest Organ Chapter III - Willis' One Hundred Eleven Stops, and Cavaillé-Coll's Septet of Secular Organs Chapter IV - The Rome Project and Book Chapter V - The Scene: How Developments in France Impacted Italy, and the Organs in Rome Chapter VI - The Vedette: the Model, Its Evaluation and Exhibition Chapter VII - The Jubilee Chapter VIII - Others Build Ever Bigger; Cavaillé-Coll's Final Gloies and Impoverished Death Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe author does, indeed, write about the Polish military hero Roman Rodziewicz in this volume. . . .She . . . [shows] the whole man and [examines] his entire life as it unfolds in his memoir as well as in his retelling. * The Sarmatian Review *I read this book about a Hubal soldier in one breath with delight. It will make such a wonderful contribution to a greater national recognition of what transpired during the difficult war years. It is a story that shouldn't be forgotten, and I think Ziolkowska-Boehm has done extremely well in providing a vivid picture of what was taking place. -- Zbigniew Brzezinski, "Compelling, readable, and very moving!"Recent Polish history abounds with heroic people and deeds, and it is a noble task of talented writers to tell their stories. Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm takes a prominent place among them. In a fascinating, lucid narration she tells us about another hero, Roman Rodziewicz, born 1913 of Polish parents. His first 10 years were spent in Manchuria; in 1923 he repatriated to Poland. After the outbreak of WWII, he volunteered to join the first guerrilla unit of major ‘Hubal’ Dobrzanski, and served with him until his commander’s death. Later on he distinguished himself in many clandestine actions. Imprisoned by the Nazis Germans, he was liberated by the U.S. Army and spent the rest of his colorful life in England where, now 100 years old, he resides. Ziolkowska-Boehm's book represents a first-hand account of his heroic life. -- Jerzy Krzyzanowski, Ohio State UniversityAleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm has done it again— another fine book about Polish courage and character. Polish Hero Roman Rodziewicz carries Roman Rodziewicz— and us—from Japanese-occupied Manchuria in the 1930s to the German invasion of Poland in 1939, and from the unspeakable horrors of Auschwitz to, finally, the life of a brave Polish survivor in postwar Great Britain. It is a story of earthshaking, violent events but also a very personal story of courage, patriotism and lost love. -- Stanley Cloud and Lynne Olson, authors of A Question of Honor: The Kosciuszko Squadron—Forgotten Heroes of World War IIAmong all European wars, World War II stands out, and will always do so, as the most significant and meaningful conflict since the Western tradition stood firm against Orientalism at Actium. It was no mere struggle over borders, but rather a conflict of ideas: of humanism versus barbarism. But the victory of the Allies, while reemphasizing liberal democracy and respect for the human individual over the Hitlerite system of dehumanizing racial exploitation, did not signify a victory for the entire continent. For Poland, the first country of all to stand up to the Nazis in 1939, liberation in 1945 was a hollow phrase, and resulted in merely the replacement of one totalitarianism with another. Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm's new book, Polish Hero Roman Rodziewicz is important in that it brings to the English reader the full diapason of the Polish situation before, during, and after the conflict. It is a welcome addition to the American library of World War II history, told, as always, in the inimitable and engaging prose of a true master of reportage. -- Charles S. Kraszewski, Kings College and The Polish Institute of Arts and SciencesTable of ContentsForeword by Matt DeLaMater Acknowledgments Preface Chapter 1. Early Life in Manchuria Chapter 2. Japanese Occupation Chapter 3. Finally Poland Chapter 4. Zofia’s Dream – Roman’s Dream Chapter 5. Meeting Marshal Pilsudski Chapter 6. More Education Problems Chapter 7. Into the Cavalry Chapter 8. Learning to be a Farmer Chapter 9. All About Bees and Honey Chapter 10. All About Lawski Bród Chapter 11. All About Partridge Chapter 12. Roman the Hunter Chapter 13. Harbinger of War Chapter 14. Decision to Join Colonel Dobrawski Chapter 15. Under Major Dobrzanski’s Command Chapter 16. Hubal – The Journal of Roman Rodziewicz Chapter 17. Warsaw Rendez-vous – Halina Chapter 18. A Belorussian Outpost Chapter 19. The Unlucky Boots Chapter 20. To Jail at Wolozyn Chapter 21. Gestapo Interrogation Chapter 22. To Prison in Stara Wilejka Chapter 23. Train to Auschwitz, Birkenau Chapter 24. Nightmares Relived Chapter 25. Numbered for Life Chapter 26. The Death of 30,000 Jewish Women Chapter 27. To Buchenwald Chapter 28. The Final Roll-Call-German Farewell Chapter 29. Freed by Americans Chapter 30. On to Italy Chapter 31. Meeting Hubal’s Sister and Wankowicz Chapter 32. Letter About Halina Chapter 33. Uncertainty to Return Chapter 34. My Best Friend in England Chapter 35. English Marriage Chapter 36. Visiting Poland Chapter 37. Meeting With Halina Epilogue

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Book SynopsisIn Human Ecodynamics in the North Atlantic: A Collaborative Model of Humans and Nature through Space and Time, Maher and Harrison have compiled a series of separate research projects conducted across the North Atlantic region that each contribute greatly to the area of study.Trade ReviewA human force of nature. Spanning the North Atlantic from the Viking Iron Age to the nineteenth century, the authors navigate a two-way street of interaction between humans and their environment that highlights both the successes and missteps along the way. -- Christyann Darwent, editor of Arctic AnthropologyA remarkable demonstration of the value of close collaboration in interdisciplinary thinking. The human ecodynamics approach of the authors brings together archaeologists, environmental historians, and paleoecologists to provide new theoretical insights and solid scientific evidence to make real-world decisions. As the evidence of the potential threat of climate change continues to accumulate, the authors of this volume take a comprehensive approach to understanding past societies in the North Atlantic region and their relationship to the landscapes and seascapes surrounding them. They ask the question, what can we learn from the past? Being at the climatic extreme of human settlement and a region hyper-sensitive to variations in climate, the experiences and responses of these people may prove to be the ‘canary in the coal mine’ for all of us interested in how to best face climate change in the future. -- Charles Redman, Arizona State UniversityTable of ContentsTable of Contents Preface List of Figures and Tables 1. Humans: A Force of Nature Ruth A. Maher and Ramona Harrison 2. Shaped by the Sea: the Archaeology of Orkney’s Maritime Communities Julie Gibson 3. The Prehistoric Village Old Scatness: A Research Study in Longevity, Ecodynamics and Interactions Stephen J. Dockrill and Julie M. Bond 4. Coupled Human and Natural Systems: a New Perspective on Early Fishing and Fishing Cultures of Northern Norway Colin Amundsen 5. Land of the Dead: Human Ecodynamics of Ritual and Belief in Viking Period Iceland Ruth A. Maher 6. Material Culture and North Atlantic Trade in Iceland and Greenland Aaron Kendall 7. Connecting the Land to the Sea at Gásir: International Exchange and Long-Term Eyjafjörður Ecodynamics in Medieval Iceland Ramona Harrison 8. Losing Sleep Counting Sheep: Early Modern Dynamics of Hazardous Husbandry in Mývatn, Iceland Megan Hicks 9. Sorting Sheep & Goats in Medieval Iceland and Greenland: Local Subsistence, Climate Change or World System Impacts? Thomas H. McGovern, Ramona Harrison, Konrad Smiarowski 10. Climate-Related Farm-to-Shieling Transition at E74 Qorlortorsuaq in Norse Greenland Konrad Smiarowski 11. Landscape legacies of Landnám in Iceland: What has happened to the environment as a result of settlement, why did it happen and what have been some of the consequences Andrew J. Dugmore, Thomas H. McGovern and Richard Streeter 12. North Atlantic Human Ecodynamics Research: Looking forwards from the past Thomas H. McGovern Index About the Authors

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewBased on Russian and US archives and the multinational research efforts of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for the Study of the Consequences of War in Graz, Austria, in conjunction with the Contemporary History Archives (RGANI) in Moscow and the Institute of Contemporary History in Munich-Berlin, this book represents a definitive study of the bilateral Vienna Summit meeting of Nikita Khrushchev and John F. Kennedy. The authors of the various articles are top scholars and, in the case of Ted Sorensen and Viktor Sukhodrev, participants in the summit. This valuable contribution to the history of the Vienna Summit's place in international history and in the history of the Cold War offers fresh assessments of Kennedy, Khrushchev, and the Kremlin's decision-making process. It shows, too, that the US had accepted the Soviet sphere of influence in Eastern Europe. The book is rich in documents and should be in every research library. Includes a useful introduction, index, and bibliography. Summing Up: Essential. All academic levels/libraries. * CHOICE *John Kennedy’s meeting with Nikita Khrushchev in Vienna in early June 1961 spawned a running controversy among political observers and scholars. Did Kennedy encourage Khrushchev’s attempts to take control of West Berlin by appearing weak? Or, did Khrushchev misread Kennedy’s resolve and overplay his hand, leading to the construction of the Berlin Wall (which Khrushchev earlier did not want) and his subsequent humiliation during the Cuban Missile Crisis? This volume provides both key documents and informed commentary that should resolve these controversies. It turns out that the truth is more complicated than the simplistic interpretations that were long current. This collection will be an essential reference for scholars of international relations, of European history, and of the diplomacy of the Cold War. -- Jack F. Matlock, Jr., U.S. Ambassador to the USSR, 1987–1991, Author of Reagan and Gorbachev: How the Cold War EndedTable of ContentsPart I: Introduction and Historical Context 1. Introduction: The Vienna Summit and Its Importance in International History Günter Bischof, Stefan Karner, Barbara Stelzl-Marx 2. Summitry in the Twentieth Century: An Overview David Reynolds Part II: Contextualizing the Vienna Summit United States, France, and Great Britain 3. “The First Test of [. . .] Détente Will Be the Berlin Negotiation”: Berlin, Disarmament, and the 1960 Paris Summit Richard D. Williamson 4. “Vienna, a City that is Symbolic of the Possibility of Finding Equitable Solutions”: John F. Kennedy and His European Summitry in Early June 1961 Günter Bischof and Martin Kofler 5. Great Britain and the Vienna Summit of June 1961 Anne Deighton 6. Paris as Beneficiary of the Unsuccessful Vienna Summit Georges-Henri Soutou Soviet Union 7. Soviet–American Relations in the Early 1960s Vladimir Pechatnov 8. Between Pragmatism and Ideology: The U.S. –Soviet Negotiating Process in the Khrushchev Era Ol’ga Pavlenko Asia and Africa 9. Casting a Long Shadow over Vienna: The Chinese Factor in the Vienna Summit Michail Prozumenshchikov 10. Laos and the Vienna Summit Lawrence Freedman Part III: The Summit 11. Two Days of Drama: Preparation and Execution of the Vienna Summit Barbara Stelzl-Marx 12. A Difficult Education: John F. Kennedy and Nikita S. Khrushchev in Vienna Timothy Naftali 13. “Summit Ladies”: Gender Arrangements, Media Staging, and Symbolic Scenes of the 1961Vienna Summit Talks Ingrid Bauer 14. Moral Masculinity: Gender, Power, and the Kennedy–Khrushchev Relationship Jennifer Lynn Walton 15. On the Significance of Austrian Neutrality for Soviet Foreign Policy under Nikita S. Khrushchev Peter Ruggenthaler 16. The Personal Recollections of a Presidential Adviser in Vienna Ted Sorensen 17. The Personal Recollections of Khrushchev’s Interpreter in Vienna Viktor Sukhodrev Part IV: The Berlin Crisis 18. Khrushchev, the Berlin Wall, and the Demand for a Peace Treaty, 1961–1963 Gerhard Wettig 19. The Vienna Summit and the Construction of the Berlin Wall Manfred Wilke Appendices Appendix 1: Soviet Kennedy Profile Appendix 2: CIA Profile of Krushchev in Kennedy’s Briefing Papers Appendix 4: Krushchev’s Presidium Statement before the Vienna Trip Appendix 3-1: Memorandum of Conversation, Vienna, 3 June 1961, 12:45 p.m. Appendix 3-2: Memorandum of Conversation, Vienna, 3 June 1961, 3 p.m. Appendix 3-3: Memorandum of Conversation, Vienna, 4 June 1961, 10:15 a.m. Bibliography About the Contributors

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Book SynopsisThis translation of Likhachev's Poetika Drevnerusskoy Literatury (The Poetics of Early Russian Literature), provides a description of the basic themes of early (tenth to seventeenth century) Russian literature. Likhachev compares literary narrative with narrative used in the representational arts. Furthermore, Likhachev stresses the genre-based character of medieval Russian literature and shows how choice of style in medieval times depended on a genre with its own specific etiquette and how innovation was discouraged. The text contrasts medieval abstraction and modern realism, as Likhachev shows how realisticness gradually breaks through in specific situationssuch as those of princely crimes. Likhachev draws contrasts in three different areas: the basic stock of symbols and comparisons used in early Russian literature with those used in modern literature, artistic time in folklore and early Russian literature, and artistic space in folklore and early Russian literature. Likhachev traces the gradual development into modern artistic time through a comparison of the chronicle, the first Russian play, the seventeenth century writer Avvakum, and three modern authors, Goncharov, Dostoevsky and Saltykov-Shchedrin. Finally, the text gives a justification for studying early literatures. This book will be invaluable for students of Russian, medieval and comparative literature.Trade ReviewThe present translation is the first of this seminal work, which forms . . . a comprehensive analysis of the classification, problems, and complexities of the literature attributed to early Rusʹ and pre-modern Russia. . . .[The book] provides clear and in-depth consideration of the complexity of early Slavonic literary genres and their formation. . . .The Poetics of Early Russian Literature remains an invaluable resource for those interested in Russian history and literature and comparative medieval literature. . . .This study promotes a line of questioning that will be useful to students and scholars of Slavonic and broader medieval literature alike. * Modern Language Review *It is important to praise Christopher M. Arden-Close’s translation, which reads very easily and maintains a balance between conversational and academic styles. . . .This work constitutes an invaluable resource to Russian studies students but will also be fascinating for any educated reader with a particular interest in medieval literature. * Slavic Review *This is the most important work by Russia’s most significant twentieth-century interpreter of medieval culture. It delivers far more than its title promises. Likhachev’s book is not just an erudite analysis of a somewhat obscure (to anglophone readers) literature. Indeed, Likhachev’s innovation lay partly in his insistence on bringing literary approaches to the study of a broad range of cultural practices—verbal, representational, architectural—which had not normally been associated with ‘literariness’ at all. The result is a broad, subtle, and engaging vision of pre-Modern Russian culture as culture (rather than merely as devotional practice, which is how it tends to have been regarded). Part of Likhachev’s aim was to bring the study of Russia’s cultural past into productive dialogue with the study of other medieval cultures. His insights and methods have much that should interest and intrigue a wider audience. -- Simon Franklin, Clare College, CambridgeTable of ContentsTable of Contents Foreword Acknowledgments Introduction to the English Translation Milena Rozhdestvenkaya Introduction to the Original Text. The Boundaries of Early Russian Literature Chapter 1. The Poetics of Literature as a System of the Whole Chapter 2. The Poetics of Artistic Generalization Chapter 3. The Poetics of Literary Methods Chapter 4. The Poetics of Artistic Time Chapter 5. The Poetics of Artistic Space Instead of a conclusion. Why Study the Poetics of Early Russian Literature? Glossary Bibliography Index About the translator

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Book SynopsisThe 1956 Suez War, fought between Egypt and the improbable coalition of Britain, France, and Israel, was a key turning point in the history of the Middle East and the Arab-Israeli conflict. This book presents a clear, comprehensive narrative of the conflict with a special emphasis on the military decisions.Trade ReviewYagil Henkin…describes and analyzes the Suez War in all of its complexity in this thoughtful and revealing account. In view of the quite extensive body of research already devoted to the origins, course, and consequences of the war, one might be tempted to think that nothing new remains to be said about it. Henkin’s book, however, offers a fresh reconsideration of the war. Through the judicious mining and synthesizing of information collected from a broad range of primary and secondary sources, he sheds new light on various dimensions of the war, especially with regard to the IDF’s actions during Operation Kadesh…. A brief review, of course, cannot do justice to the richness of Henkin’s book. Suffice it to say that with respect to substance, his work is first rate. * Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs *The author of this book has written a very readable and thorough narrative. . . . Henkin is at his best describing the military moves during the conflict, but he is at ease unraveling the tangled web of multilateral interests and actions. . . Ultimately, the author does a nice job of outlining the overall lack of Israeli readiness for war and demonstrates well how the Western powers brought Israel into the conflict. Henkin's book is a good regional military and diplomatic history that properly situates the conflict and helps dispel some long-held misconceptions about the Arab-Israeli crisis. * Historian *Despite the importance of the Suez conflict, no comprehensive military history study of this magnitude has ever been published. This book contributes a methodical military review, along with a thorough description of the battles, wrapped in a description of an additional extensive layer of the various diplomatic and political circles. The book describes the diplomatic thinking and the military execution of each of the participating parties – Egypt, Israel, France and Britain, and even the USSR and the USA. The book does not confine itself to a description of the war but delves into its results in the diplomatic layers as well as in the military strategic and even tactical layers. * Israel Book Review *A real gem. The most recent, as well as much the best, history of the 1956 Suez Campaign ever written. -- Martin van Creveld, Hebrew UniversityThe story of the Suez War has been told many times, by the principals and by historians. But Yagil Henkin’s account stands out. He has finally given the military moves their full due alongside the more famous diplomatic maneuvering. But this is not only military history. Henkin presents events from every possible vantage point—Israeli, British, French, Egyptian, and American—and he integrates this into a seamless narrative, distinguished by its easy readability. No serious shelf on the 1956 war, however full, can do without Yagil Henkin’s indispensable work. -- Martin Kramer, President, Shalem CollegeTable of ContentsChapter 1: Who Was Who in the Middle East, 1954 Chapter 2: Wild Rhetoric and Real Estate: Escalation, 1954-1956 Chapter 3: French Steel, British Will: Planning the Suez War, July-October 1956 Chapter 4: A Collusion Course: An Unlikely Alliance, October 1956 Chapter 5: Flying Cutters and the Paratrooper Gambit: Opening Moves, October 28-30, 1956 Chapter 6: Success and Fiasco at Abu-Ageila: October 30-November 2, 1956 Chapter 7: Exodus in Reverse: Israel Takes Sinai, October 31-November 5, 1956 Chapter 8: The Peacekeeping Attack: October 31-November 5, 1956 Chapter 9: Hot and Cold Wars: The Allied Invasion and the Aftermath, November 5, 1956-March 6, 1957 Epilogue: The Legacy of Suez

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Book SynopsisSecond Generations on the Move in Italy focuses on changes and challenges in the Italian population. It describes second generationsâ lives in a recent immigration country, from relations within families to educational paths, and from transnational to societal values attitudes.Trade ReviewRoberta Ricucci's book Second Generations on the Move in Italy: Children of Immigrants Coming of Age provides an instructive overview as well as an excellent approach and impressive new findings on the situation of Italy's adolescent group of second generation migrants. It clarifies the conditions of growing up and the opportunities and restrictions during adolescence. A very interesting and touching study! -- Vera King, Universität HamburgTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1: A Remarkable Change in Italy Chapter 2: The Second Generations Debate: Integration between School and Citizenship Chapter 3: A Country Where Generations Cohabit Chapter 4: I Am What I study: Identities at School Chapter 5: Religious Belonging at the Mirror: Not only a Muslim Issue Chapter 6: New Frontiers: Identity Games between Interactions On- and Off-Line Chapter 7: Generational Cleavages: Local Societies Faced with New Italians Chapter 8: Conclusions References About the Author

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Book SynopsisA Corner for Everybody is a unique collection of close to five hundred letters from Polish American readers, which were published in the Polish-language weekly Ameryka-Echo between 1902 and 1969. In these letters, Polish immigrants speak in their own words about their American experience, and vigorously debate religion, organization of their community, ethnic identity, American politics and society, and ties to the homeland. The translated letters are annotated and divided into thematic chapters with informative introductions. Polish Americans formed one of the largest European immigrant groups in the United States and their community (Polonia) developed a vibrant Polish-language press, which tied together networks of readers in the entire Polish immigrant Diaspora. Newspaper editors encouraged their readers to write to the press and provided them with public space to exchange their views and opinions, and share thoughts and reflections. Ameryka-Echo, a weekly published from Toledo, Ohio, was one of the most popular and long-lasting newspapers with international circulation. For seven decades, Ameryka-Echo sustained a number of sections based on readers' correspondence, but the most popular of them was a Corner for Everybody, which featured thousands of letters on a variety of topics. The readers eagerly discussed everything from occurrences in local communities, to issues paramount to the formation of their ethnic identity and assimilation, church, religion, gender, politics, relations with new immigrant waves, and other ethnic groups. The letter-writers debated the American labor movement and strikes, described hardships of the Great Depression and World War II, and argued about American domestic politics, and foreign policy. They also keenly followed changes in their homeland and called for work on behalf of the Polish nation. The Ameryka-Echo letters are a rich source of information on the history of Polish Americans, which can serve as primary sources for students and scholars. They also provide a new, fascinating, and lively look into the passions and experiences of individuals who created the larger American historical experience.Trade ReviewThis is a delightful, informative, and poignant book. . . .[The book] provides[s] an excellent history of Polish immigration in the U.S. and a summary of the relevant socio-political issues. . . .[This book] is a valuable contribution to the study of Polish-American immigration. It is a wonderful combination of historical background and primary sources, and it makes for a fascinating, often very moving, reading. * Slavic and East European Journal *This exceptionally well-edited and gracefully translated collection provides unparalleled insight into the evolution of the mentality of the average member of the Polish population of America throughout most of the twentieth century. It represents a prodigious work of scholarship. -- Mieczyslaw B. Biskupski, Central Connecticut State UniversityRarely do scholars benefit from a vast trove of new primary sources such as this collection of letters written over seven decades to the influential Ameryka-Echo. The editor’s insightful comments place the collection in its historical context, while the excellent translations capture the spirit of their authors, not just their words, as they debate critical issues of life, faith, work, and politics. Researchers in immigration, gender, religion, politics or a wide variety of other fields of study will welcome this excellent volume. -- James S. Pula, Purdue UniversityTable of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter One: Religion, Church, and Spiritual Life Chapter Two: Polonia Communities in the United States and in Diaspora Chapter Three: Polish American Identity Chapter Four: The American Nation Chapter Five: Homeland References

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Book SynopsisIn this book, Albert L. Weeks provides a lucid analysis of the Cold War as he dispels the myths that have made their way into contemporary historiography on the topic, while using the conflict as a lens through which to view contemporary crises, such as Russiaâs recent intervention in Ukraine.Trade ReviewAlbert Weeks . . . has produced a concise and polemical book. Myths of the Cold War: Amending Historiographic Distortions pulls you up short with its meticulous survey of how Russia spooked the West into reacting in unusually bellicose terms. . . .Should another cold war emerge, this book will serve as a useful backgrounder. * The American Spectator *Albert L. Weeks's formidable juxtaposition of arguments from Cold War participants and historians contributes much to our understanding of the still rampant controversies, such as the Russian invasion of the Ukraine. Especially valuable are his many translations from Soviet and post-Soviet era documents, supplied in context. These documents have been largely unavailable to those who do not read Russian. This book is an invaluable research compendium for readers, scholars, lay historians, and students alike. -- Richard Raack, California State University, East Bay, author of "Stalin's Drive to the West: 1938-1945, The Origins of the Cold War"Table of ContentsTABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I Introduction; Distorted Cold War Historiography CHAPTER 2 Cold War Basics ·Looming Cold War, 1943-1946 ·Cold War Calendar ·A "New" Postwar Stalin? CHAPTER 3 Myth of Ideological Irrelevance ·Ideology and the Cold War ·The Realist View ·Traditionalist View ·Soviet Diplomatic "Warfare" CHAPTER 4 Fallacy of Stalin's "Defencist Security" ·Stalin's Empty Argument ·Moscow's Post-Soviet Attempts at Unity ·Soviet Doctrine of Expansion ·Finland ·Ukraine ·Other Borderland Countries ·Special Cases of the Baltic States and Poland ·Expansion if the Far East ·American Reaction ·Prewar, Wartime, Postwar Soviet Expansion ·Soviet Expansion, 1940-1946 ·Expansionism of 1939 to June 1941 ·Resistance to Further Expansion CHAPTER 5 Cold War Clash Over New Postwar World ·The Roosevelt Factor ·Stalin's "World" vs. Western Projection ·Clashes Between "Civilizations" CHAPTER 6 Current Russian Texts on the Cold War ·Post-Soviet Textbooks ·Other Post-Soviet Books CHAPTER 7 Lessons for the "Next" Cold War ·China Cold War Case ·Avoiding old Wars ·Preventive Measures ·How "Marxist" Is China? ·Conclusions APPENDIX I OWI/War Department Handbook on USSR (1946) APPENDIX II Stalin's and Molotov's Electoral Speeches, February 1946 APPENDIX III Andrei A. Zhdanov on "Two-World Struggle"

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Book SynopsisDefining the Caymanian Identity analyzes the factions and schisms surging throughout the multicultural, multi-ethnic, and polarized Cayman Islands to identify who or what is considered a Caymanian. In the modern world where Caymanian traditions have all but been eclipsed, or forgotten, often due to incoming, overpowering cultural sensibilities, it is a challenge to know where traditional Caymanian culture begins and modern Caymanian culture ends. With this idea in mind, Christopher A. Williams investigates the pervasive effects of globalization, multiculturalism, economics, and xenophobia on an authentic, if dying, indigenous Caymanian culture. This book introduces and expounds the provocative solution that the continued prosperity of the Cayman Islands and their so-called indigenous people may well depend on a synergistic moral link between Caymanianness and foreignness, between Caymanianness and modernity.Trade ReviewThis book is an insightful study of identity formation, belonging, and indigeneity in the Cayman Islands, a small British dependency in the Caribbean, which has seen high levels of in-migration in recent decades. Its strength is its ‘insider’ perspective, and its presentation of testimonies from a very wide range of present-day natives and residents of these islands. -- Bridget Brereton, Emerita Professor of History, University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad & TobagoThe Cayman Islands, known primarily for tourism and financial services, have thus far attracted little scholarly attention, but, as Christopher Williams shows in this insightful study, they are an ideal case study for inquiries into the effects of globalization and multicultural identity formation. Employing methodologies drawn from history, cultural studies, and sociology, Christopher Williams's lucidly written work shows us the highly contested nature of Caymanian history, and communal and individual identity; just as importantly, he demonstrates that developments in the Caymans offer important lessons for the study of the entire Caribbean region. -- Natalie Zacek, University of ManchesterIn this impressive study, Williams provides an extensive, enriching, and persuasive account of the encounters and impact of globalization on contemporary Caymanian culture and identity. The breadth of this book’s analysis, scope of enquiry, and audacity of its critique will undoubtedly reshape our understanding, and perhaps influence the direction of emerging scholarship on the Caymanian identity. -- Abou Jeng, Centre for Research, Development and Social Justice AdvocacyTable of ContentsChapter One: Becoming Native Caymanian Chapter Two: The More Things Change: The Stubborn Decline of Racialism During Immediate Post-Emancipation Chapter Three: And Then There was Light: The Shaping Conditions of a Distinct National-Cultural Caymanian Identity and its Subsequent Traditionalisms Chapter Four: Bringing Traditionalist Ideas and Conceptions to Bear on a Cultural Caymanian Identity Beset by Material Hardship Chapter Five: The Sustenance of Caymanian Identity in Geographical Displacement: A Case Study Approach Chapter Six: Outgrowing the Surrogate Mother: Accounting for the Dramatic Shift in Caymanian Perceptions toward Jamaica and Jamaicans During the Federation Era Chapter Seven: Proliferating Caymanianness: Accounting for the Factors that Lead to Division within Caymanian Nationality Chapter Eight: Theory in Practice: Bringing the Legitimacy of Carnival and the Carnivalesque to Bear on Fractured Rhetorical Caymanian Culture Conclusion: Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA moving and compelling account of what heroism entails and what suffering can be endured for the sake of a higher cause. -- Zbigniew Brzezinski, "Compelling, readable, and very moving!"In the clutter of books arguing the propriety of the Warsaw Rising, whether it should have taken place or not; in the avalanche of statistics and strategies, the flesh and blood people who lived through the heroic trauma are often overlooked. Ziólkowska-Boehm is a fine writer in the grand tradition of reportage established in Poland by her mentor, Melchior Wankowicz and her friend, Ryszard Kapuscinski. This sensitive and moving portrayal of Kaia deserves a place on the same shelf with Miron Bialoszewski's inimitable Memoir of the Warsaw Uprising. -- Charles S. Kraszewski, Kings College and The Polish Institute of Arts and SciencesIn pages of striking contrast, Kaia moves from a colorful, nearly idyllic life by Polish exiles in southern Siberia earlier in the last century to the graphic horrors of Nazified Poland—and then to the moving aftermath of loss and recovery. -- Stanley Weintraub, author of "The Last Great Victory: The End of World War II, July–August 1945"Kaia’s memories, excellently recorded and commented on by Aleksandra Ziólkowska-Boehm, give the story of her happy childhood and early architectural work in interwar Poland; her active resistance to Nazi occupation; Soviet imprisonment; and of her part, as an architect, in the rebuilding of Warsaw in postwar communist Poland. It is also the story of her husband, Marek Szymanski, deputy to Major 'Hubal,' commander of a Polish Army unit, who refused to surrender in September 1939. Hubal’s Cross of Military Valor served Kaia both as a talisman for survival—and as a key link to her marriage. This is a 'must read' for all those interested in the history of World War II as it played out in a country fatefully placed between Germany and Russia. -- Anna M. Cienciala, University of KansasI read Kaia, Heroine of the 1944 Warsaw Rising, I always believed that Siberia was only a terrible place of suffering and dying, where very few of the expelled people survived the primitive conditions and harsh climate. For me, it was an eye opener to read about the role played by exiled Poles in places like Irkutsk and other Siberian cities and about those who went there voluntarily to participate in the building of the trans-Siberian railroad, as well as numerous Poles who became prominent Russian scientists, engineers, and writers. Kaia’s description of her heroic actions is so lively and masterfully presented that I felt like I was going with her from place to place, witnessing the wounding and death of several fighters and following Kaia through the underground canals. I liked very much the large number of photographs of participants. -- Karl Maramorosch, Rutgers UniversityAt the outbreak of the Warsaw Uprising Kaia provides a vivid description of the valor, fright, and bravery of the workers. For 63 days they fought, avoiding death at all costs. Some were not that successful, with many slaughtered on the streets or tortured in jail. These interviews were provided to the author many years later, but still vivid in Kaia's mind. She is even able to provide humor in the grotesque conditions. The People's Republic of Poland was established in 1945, but a state subordinate to Soviet Russia. Many trials were held, in full mockery of justice, resulting in deaths or life imprisonment. This book provides a personal view of the struggle of Poland and its people to overcome the horrors of war. Kaia is a symbol of hope for the future of Poland—her undaunted faith in the freedom of man, her bravery in helping others and her love of life. A heartfelt book. * Polish American Journal *The author quotes some of the research literature but there is a greater focus on quotes taken from the testimonies of participants of the Uprising and linking these comments to Kaia’s own recollections...The book tries to preserve as much of Kaia’s life as possible for posterity and is also a celebration of Polish heroism and a testimony to Polish suffering...Ziolkowska-Boehm has created a moving testimony to her friend, whose biography is woven into the history of Poland in the 20th century. * Reviews in History *Note also the social history implicit in the narrative. The friendships and the collegiality of the young men and women, the unquestioned equality, their mutual respect and affection; the value attached to education; the high spirits combined with a strong will; the love of freedom and the commitment to their society. It was a very special generation and Kaia is an inspiring example of it * Cosmopolitan *Table of ContentsForeword by Bruce E. Johansen Introduction: The Message of Isaac B. Singer Chapter 1. Poles in Siberia Chapter 2. The Szemiot-Iljin Family Chapter 3. Zaysan at the Foothills of the Altaj Chapter 4. 11 Months by Train from Siberia to Poland Chapter 5. Poland, Bialystok Chapter 6. Vilnius Chapter 7. Warsaw, the 1930s Chapter 8. Outbreak of the War Chapter 9. Zamosc Chapter 10. Warsaw under the German Occupation Chapter 11. The Hubal Soldiers Chapter 12. Arrest of Modest and Death in Auschwitz Chapter 13. “Buzzard”, a Hubal Partisan Chapter 14. The Organization Chapter 15. The Warsaw Uprising Chapter 16. “Thank you, I have a lollipop” Chapter 17. Eastbound Journey to Bialystok Chapter 18. Arrest Chapter 19. NKVD Camp 41 in Ostashkov Chapter 20. Back from Ostashkov Chapter 21. After the Return Chapter 22. Marek Szymanski Chapter 23. Inprisonments: the Lublin Castle and Wronki Chapter 24. Released, then arrested again Chapter 25. Finally, back to normal? Chapter 26. Rebuilding of Warsaw Chapter 27. Trips and Travels Chapter 28. Poland’s Attraction: Kashubia and Sudovia Chapter 29. Communism in Poland Chapter 30. Marek, the Loyal Hubal soldier Chapter 31. Friends Chapter 32. Animals and Pets Chapter 33. Major Hubal’s Virtuti Militari Cross Chapter 34. Farewells Chapter 35. Marek's Death Chapter 36. Poland Independent, Poland Westernized: Fears and Anxieties Chapter 37. Departing Notes Appendix: Images of Siberia and Warsaw Uprising Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThis useful new book uses the life of Turkish intellectual Niyazi Berkes as a window to explore the turbulent times through which he lived. The author Şakir Dinçşahin . . . has written a volume full of details that enrich our understanding of the period. . . .Dinçşahin’s book shows that it [Berkes' life] is a good prism through which to consider important questions of 20th century Turkey. * Hurriyet Daily News *The book can equally be read by experts and undergraduate students, as well as by those who are interested in Turkish history, and still learn a lot from it. The book is informative, and its well-researched material will provide a useful tool for all interested readers in Turkish political history, European history, and also intellectual history. . . . State and Intellectuals in Turkey is a noteworthy contribution in the field of Turkish Studies, as being the first study that takes up the life of one of the most famous intellectuals of Turkey, it fills a clear gap in the literature. Furthermore, the study can be read in various ways, perhaps the most significant of these being the focus on one important individual’s life and how political developments in Turkey so deeply shaped his personality and ideas. Finally, it is a well-written study with a structure that challenges the reader without losing her interest in the subject. * Nations and Nationalism *This is a fascinating book, which informs the reader about the changing nature of state ideology in Turkey and its impact on the life and works of a Turkish scholar, Niyazi Berkes. It allows for better and more informed debates on the place of Nazism, socialism, and liberalism in the intellectual history of Turkey. The arguments and analyses presented in this work are genuinely original based on primary and secondary sources in English and Turkish and it appeals to a wide range of scholars, students, and general readers who are interested in Turkish Politics, Islamic Studies, and Middle Eastern politics. -- Ahmet N. Yücekök, Ankara UniversityThis original and intellectually interesting volume focuses on an academic and intellectual who suffered from the authoritarian policies of the single party regime in Turkey as part of its Cold War politics of anti-communism resulting in his firing from his post at Ankara University. The book is a valuable source for both undergraduate and graduate students as well as scholars studying Middle Eastern politics, Islamic studies, and Turkish politics in departments of history, political science, and sociology. It would also be of interest for the general reader willing to learn more about Turkish intellectual history. -- Umut Uzer, Istanbul Technical UniversityTable of ContentsChapter 1: The Environment and Early Influences Shaping the Political Ideas of Niyazi Berkes in British Cyprus, 1908–1922 Chapter 2: The Education and Early Career of Niyazi Berkes during the Construction of Kemalist State and Ideology, 1922–1933 Chapter 3: Kemalist University Reform, the Great Depression, and the Graduate Education of Niyazi Berkes, 1933–1939 Chapter 4: Niyazi Berkes’s Role in Power Struggles of the Post-Atatürk Period, 1939–1945 Chapter 5: The Ankara University Unrest and the Construction of Right-Wing Ideology in Turkey, 1945–1950 Chapter 6: Niyazi Berkes’s Contributions to Islamic Studies: The Development of Secularism in Turkey, 1950–1960 Chapter 7: The 1960 Coup d’état and Niyazi Berkes’s Formative Kemalist Contributions to the Turkish Left, 1960–1988

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Book SynopsisThis is a detailed study of Irish manuscript recipe books dating from the mid-seventeenth century to the close of the Georgian period (1830) from the perspective of historical archaeology. It is the first published study of the Irish collection of manuscript recipe books, as well as the first published archaeological study of the genre globally.Trade ReviewShanahan's book is a major work in the historical sociology of culinary culture in general, which food historians across the world will need to study carefully. It is also a significant contribution specifically to the study of the history of food in Ireland, which is only now gaining momentum. Through her comprehensive study of manuscript cookery books, she is able to shed light on the interweaving of 'native' traditions and the influences stemming from Ireland's involvement in the British Empire, which is largely concealed by the predominance of cookery books printed in Britain. -- Stephen Mennell, University College DublinFull of fascinating information and ideas, Madeline Shanahan has opened up a new research area in Irish historical studies. -- Mary O'Dowd, Queen's University BelfastTable of ContentsTable of Contents List of Figures Apéritif Introduction Chapter 1: Text and Historical Archaeology Chapter 2: Food and Cookery in Early Modern Ireland Chapter 3: Dining in the Early Modern World Chapter 4: A Short History of Recipe Books Chapter 5: Irish Manuscript Recipe Books: Form, Function and Chronology Chapter 6: Irish Manuscript Recipe Books: Contents Chapter 7: Recipes for Modernity Chapter 8: Texts and Objects in the Early Modern House References Appendix

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewLeaf offers a careful, useful, and balanced study of the anthropology of Eastern and Western religions. Rather than focusing on the philosophy or theology of religion, these volumes discuss religious traditions' ideas about organized human life; the institutions, strategies, and organizations they create to facilitate community; and their constituencies. One volume treats early Vedantic, Jain, Buddhist, Hindu, Chinese, and Japanese traditions and practices. The other volume investigates what generally are considered Western religious traditions because of their widespread influence in Europe and the Americas. Arctic, African, and American Indian cultures are omitted. Leaf economically sets up each volume with introductory chapters that have similar structures but tailor specific content to the volume at hand. Both volumes offer literature reviews rather than anthropological field observations. Eastern Religions begins with a reflection on Vedantan thinking: what 'all experience manifests, and that cannot in any way be shaped or injured by experience.' Next, Leaf offers a philosophical discussion of the Four Noble Truths, right knowledge, rebirth, and organizations before taking up the Buddhist traditions that flowed from Siddhartha's experiences. The discussion of Hinduism focuses on sociological/anthropological concerns, including the Laws of Manu, caste, and property rights, before turning to the gods and bhakti (the guru-disciple relationship). Leaf discusses violence in connection with the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad-Gita. He identifies Sikhism (the Indian religion he knows best) as the most vital of the Indian religions; discusses Sikh organizations, gurdwaras, and institutions; and describes Sikh ceremonies. The discussion of Taoism is confined to beliefs, and Buddhism is treated only briefly. Chinese legalism is subsumed under law, control, and legitimacy. The equally ambitious volume on Western religions describes the backgrounds to medieval and modern Western culture, then moves on to Judaism (from the Bible to the present), early Christianity, Islam, and later Christianity. . . .Leaf writes for a general university-type audience, and does not presuppose knowledge of the history of any of the Western religions. His discussion of African American churches reveals his in-depth knowledge of socioeconomic issues. Both volumes include photographs, some by the author. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through graduate students; general readers. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2: Backgrounds to the West Chapter 3: Judaism Chapter 4: Early Christianity Chapter 5: Islam Chapter 6: Later Christianity Chapter 7: Conclusion Bibliography Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewLeaf offers a careful, useful, and balanced study of the anthropology of Eastern and Western religions. Rather than focusing on the philosophy or theology of religion, these volumes discuss religious traditions' ideas about organized human life; the institutions, strategies, and organizations they create to facilitate community; and their constituencies. One volume treats early Vedantic, Jain, Buddhist, Hindu, Chinese, and Japanese traditions and practices. The other volume investigates what generally are considered Western religious traditions because of their widespread influence in Europe and the Americas. Arctic, African, and American Indian cultures are omitted. Leaf economically sets up each volume with introductory chapters that have similar structures but tailor specific content to the volume at hand. Both volumes offer literature reviews rather than anthropological field observations. Eastern Religions begins with a reflection on Vedantan thinking: what 'all experience manifests, and that cannot in any way be shaped or injured by experience.' Next, Leaf offers a philosophical discussion of the Four Noble Truths, right knowledge, rebirth, and organizations before taking up the Buddhist traditions that flowed from Siddhartha's experiences. The discussion of Hinduism focuses on sociological/anthropological concerns, including the Laws of Manu, caste, and property rights, before turning to the gods and bhakti (the guru-disciple relationship). Leaf discusses violence in connection with the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad-Gita. He identifies Sikhism (the Indian religion he knows best) as the most vital of the Indian religions; discusses Sikh organizations, gurdwaras, and institutions; and describes Sikh ceremonies. The discussion of Taoism is confined to beliefs, and Buddhism is treated only briefly. Chinese legalism is subsumed under law, control, and legitimacy. The equally ambitious volume on Western religions describes the backgrounds to medieval and modern Western culture, then moves on to Judaism (from the Bible to the present), early Christianity, Islam, and later Christianity. . . .Leaf writes for a general university-type audience, and does not presuppose knowledge of the history of any of the Western religions. His discussion of African American churches reveals his in-depth knowledge of socioeconomic issues. Both volumes include photographs, some by the author. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through graduate students; general readers. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgments List of Illustrations Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Vedas and Vedanta Chapter 3: Jain and Buddhist Traditions Chapter 4: Hindu Traditions Chapter 5: China’s Main Religions Chapter 6: Japan’s Religions Traditions Chapter 7: Conclusion Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThe essays in this volume examine selected national, regional European, and international policies of Charles de Gaulle, giving consideration to their significance in his own time, and today. Not everything de Gaulle did withstands the test of time. Nor, obviously, was everything beyond criticism in his own time. Nonetheless, a main finding, in the words of one essayist, is that de Gaulle had an ''uncanny sense of where history was going'' and the skill to position his country accordingly. De Gaulle also stands as a testament to the power of individuals in history, a somewhat unfashionable viewpoint in modern university curriculums. Today, when France''s destiny appears increasingly to depend on structures and institutions beyond its national control, including a Europe weakened by the sovereign debt crisis, and a global economic system accountable to no one, it seems timely to reconsider the record of the twentieth century''s greatest Frenchman, whose skill at dealing with the problemTrade ReviewThis wide-ranging collection offers an illuminating overview of General Charles de Gaulle's foreign policy during his years as French president. The author presents concise but solid interpretive essays and sheds valuable light on all the major issues confronting de Gaulle and his distinctive way of handling them, including his testy relationship with the United States. This book will be very useful not only for undergraduate classes on French postwar history but also for students and scholars interested in the role of major European powers in the Cold War. -- Mark KramerBenjamin Rowland has compiled an excellent collection of essays on France's most influential figure in the 20th century. What makes these essays provocative is the insight of their gifted American and European authors; what makes this volume timely is the enduring relevance of de Gaulle's legacy of ideas and policies to the current geopolitical moment. -- Simon Serfaty, Old Dominion University; director of European Studies, Center for Strategic & International StudiesA compelling study of how de Gaulle's vision and determination could triumph over adversity and fateful circumstance, and of the lessons that this holds for America's role in the world today. -- Ronald Lewis Steel, University of Southern CaliforniaExpert contributors consider what lessons the policies of former French President Charles de Gaulle hold for both the current French leadership and governments around the world, contending that the general had an ‘uncanny sense of where history was going’. * Brief Notices *Table of Contents1 Acknowledgements 2 Preface 3 Introduction 4 1. De Gaulle's Visions for Europe 5 2. De Gaulle and the Dollar 6 3. Gaullist Economic Policies: the Role of Indicative Planning 7 4. The General and Germany 8 5. De Gaulle and the Italians 9 6. The Road to Phnom Penh: de Gaulle, the Americans and Vietnam, 1944-1966 10 7. De Gaulle and the 'Eternal China' 11 8. De Gaulle and the Middle East Conflict 12 9. De Gaulle and American Power

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewClamurro is author of Beneath the Fiction (1997), a study of Cervantes’s 12 exemplary novellas. Here he revisits the narratives to consider recent criticism of the texts and to reflect further on the structure and significance of the individual works and of the collection as a whole. Clamurro always has viewed the novellas as rich, suggestive, and complex, but here he seems more committed to defining multiple options for contextualization, that is, to seeking the tensions inherent in the fictions—and in the age of which they were products—and, he stresses, their relevance for today’s readers. He highlights not only a shared intricacy but also a tone of pessimism and cynicism, or at least the potential for negativity, that often has been unnoticed or underestimated. One conclusion of the study is that social and cultural conventions in the Novelas ejemplares are meticulously plotted and presented in a manner that reveals points of contact between early modern Spanish life (and art) and contemporary concerns. Like its predecessor, the book is clearly written, well thought out, and illuminating. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1. Social Class and the Paradoxes of Privilege Chapter 2. Women and the Limits of Agency Chapter 3. Corruption, Collaboration, and the Structure of Society Chapter 4. Justice, Forgiveness, and the Question of honra Chapter 5. Syncretic Cultures and the Larger Spain Chapter 6. How to Read: The Lessons of the Novelas Conclusion Bibliography About the Author Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewLeaf offers a careful, useful, and balanced study of the anthropology of Eastern and Western religions. Rather than focusing on the philosophy or theology of religion, these volumes discuss religious traditions' ideas about organized human life; the institutions, strategies, and organizations they create to facilitate community; and their constituencies. One volume treats early Vedantic, Jain, Buddhist, Hindu, Chinese, and Japanese traditions and practices. The other volume investigates what generally are considered Western religious traditions because of their widespread influence in Europe and the Americas. Arctic, African, and American Indian cultures are omitted. Leaf economically sets up each volume with introductory chapters that have similar structures but tailor specific content to the volume at hand. Both volumes offer literature reviews rather than anthropological field observations. Eastern Religions begins with a reflection on Vedantan thinking: what 'all experience manifests, and that cannot in any way be shaped or injured by experience.' Next, Leaf offers a philosophical discussion of the Four Noble Truths, right knowledge, rebirth, and organizations before taking up the Buddhist traditions that flowed from Siddhartha's experiences. The discussion of Hinduism focuses on sociological/anthropological concerns, including the Laws of Manu, caste, and property rights, before turning to the gods and bhakti (the guru-disciple relationship). Leaf discusses violence in connection with the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad-Gita. He identifies Sikhism (the Indian religion he knows best) as the most vital of the Indian religions; discusses Sikh organizations, gurdwaras, and institutions; and describes Sikh ceremonies. The discussion of Taoism is confined to beliefs, and Buddhism is treated only briefly. Chinese legalism is subsumed under law, control, and legitimacy. The equally ambitious volume on Western religions describes the backgrounds to medieval and modern Western culture, then moves on to Judaism (from the Bible to the present), early Christianity, Islam, and later Christianity. . . .Leaf writes for a general university-type audience, and does not presuppose knowledge of the history of any of the Western religions. His discussion of African American churches reveals his in-depth knowledge of socioeconomic issues. Both volumes include photographs, some by the author. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through graduate students; general readers. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgments List of Illustrations Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Vedas and Vedanta Chapter 3: Jain and Buddhist Traditions Chapter 4: Hindu Traditions Chapter 5: China’s Main Religions Chapter 6: Japan’s Religions Traditions Chapter 7: Conclusion Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewLeaf offers a careful, useful, and balanced study of the anthropology of Eastern and Western religions. Rather than focusing on the philosophy or theology of religion, these volumes discuss religious traditions' ideas about organized human life; the institutions, strategies, and organizations they create to facilitate community; and their constituencies. One volume treats early Vedantic, Jain, Buddhist, Hindu, Chinese, and Japanese traditions and practices. The other volume investigates what generally are considered Western religious traditions because of their widespread influence in Europe and the Americas. Arctic, African, and American Indian cultures are omitted. Leaf economically sets up each volume with introductory chapters that have similar structures but tailor specific content to the volume at hand. Both volumes offer literature reviews rather than anthropological field observations. Eastern Religions begins with a reflection on Vedantan thinking: what 'all experience manifests, and that cannot in any way be shaped or injured by experience.' Next, Leaf offers a philosophical discussion of the Four Noble Truths, right knowledge, rebirth, and organizations before taking up the Buddhist traditions that flowed from Siddhartha's experiences. The discussion of Hinduism focuses on sociological/anthropological concerns, including the Laws of Manu, caste, and property rights, before turning to the gods and bhakti (the guru-disciple relationship). Leaf discusses violence in connection with the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad-Gita. He identifies Sikhism (the Indian religion he knows best) as the most vital of the Indian religions; discusses Sikh organizations, gurdwaras, and institutions; and describes Sikh ceremonies. The discussion of Taoism is confined to beliefs, and Buddhism is treated only briefly. Chinese legalism is subsumed under law, control, and legitimacy. The equally ambitious volume on Western religions describes the backgrounds to medieval and modern Western culture, then moves on to Judaism (from the Bible to the present), early Christianity, Islam, and later Christianity. . . .Leaf writes for a general university-type audience, and does not presuppose knowledge of the history of any of the Western religions. His discussion of African American churches reveals his in-depth knowledge of socioeconomic issues. Both volumes include photographs, some by the author. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through graduate students; general readers. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2: Backgrounds to the West Chapter 3: Judaism Chapter 4: Early Christianity Chapter 5: Islam Chapter 6: Later Christianity Chapter 7: Conclusion Bibliography Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisRichard Williamson's First Steps toward Détente provides a history of negotiations conducted from 1958-1963 between the United States, its Western allies in Europe, and the Soviet Union, in order to resolve the Berlin crisis. These negotiations established ongoing patterns of backchannel, ambassadorial, foreign minister and heads of state discussions. From Khrushchev''s visit to the United States in 1959 and the difficult Paris 1960 and Vienna 1961 summits to the construction of the Berlin Wall, disarmament remained a parallel concern dependent on Berlin's resolution. Throughout most of 1962, the United States and Soviets made rigorous attempts to break a stalemate at Checkpoint Charlie, though neither side was truly ready to forfeit. Ultimately, the renewal of Berlin harassments and the Cuban missile crisis put an end to these efforts, but the closer relations that had developed through Berlin talks helped to enable the Limited Test Ban Treaty in 1963. The Berlin Crisis signaled a traTrade ReviewThe 'second Berlin crisis' (1958-1963) aggravated East-West relations during a time of great superpower tensions in the Third World. Richard Williamson documents in excruciating detail how the doves in Washington prevailed over the hawks. The late Eisenhower and the Kennedy administrations engaged the Soviets and their principal European allies with protracted and skillful diplomacy instead of giving the nod to the hardliners who were ready to unleash a military crisis over Berlin that could have easily escalated into nuclear war. Similar to the Cuban missile crisis, American diplomacy maintained the peace and prepared the path for détente. No scholarly work has retraced American diplomatic moves during the Berlin crisis as patiently as First Steps toward Détente. This is diplomatic history at its best. -- Günter Bischof, University of New OrleansAs the Cold War recedes from memory, Americans have lost sight of how important the fate of the divided city of Berlin and the future of Germany were to that conflict. Richard Williamson’s First Steps Toward Détente reminds us, focusing on Berlin as the key issue for American diplomacy during the crisis years of 1958–1963. In his fast-paced and well-written account, Williamson makes clear the critical contribution of American leaders toward resolving the Berlin crisis and taking the first steps with the Soviet Union away from the nuclear precipice. This book is both a very important contribution to our understanding of the history of the Cold War, as well as a case example of the value of diplomacy in avoiding international conflict. -- Thomas A. Schwartz, Vanderbilt UniversityWilliamson provides a detailed rendering of the tortuous path of American diplomacy throughout the entirety of Nikita Khrushchev's Berlin crisis. He locates the roots of détente and later superpower summitry in American leaders' concerns about chronic allied disunity over the status of Berlin under the shadow of global war. -- Richard V. Damms, Mississippi State UniversityTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction: First Steps to Détente Prologue: The US, USSR, and Berlin, 1953–1958 Chapter 1: "A Free City, Khrushchev's November Proposals, Allied Response, and a Foreign Minister's Conference," November 1958–May 1959 Chapter 2: "Seeking a Summit," Khrushchev's US Visit, Western Heads of State Meeting, the U-2 incident, and the Paris Summit June 1959–December 1960 Chapter 3: “Vienna & the Wall," Kennedy's First Months,, Vienna Summit, the Acheson Plan, and the Berlin Wall, January–August 1961 Chapter 4: “Salami Tactics,” Allied Collapse, Kennedy's Private Approach, and Showdown at Checkpoint Charlie, September - December 1961 Chapter 5: "Vital Interests," Thompson-Gromyko in Moscow, Rusk-Gromyko in Geneva, and Rusk-Dobrynin in Washington, Geneva ENDC Sessions, and Soviet Missiles in Cuba, January–August 1962 Chapter 6: "A Slippery Slope," New Harassment in Berlin, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Allied Estrangement, and the Limited Test Ban Treaty, September 1962–November 1963 Summary: American Diplomacy in the Berlin Crisis Bibliography

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Book SynopsisWhen careful consideration is given to Nietzsche's critique of Platonism and to what he wrote about Bismarck, Kaiser Wilhelm, and to Germany's place in international relations (die Große Politik), the philosopher's carefully cultivated pose of untimeliness is revealed to be an imposture. As William H. F. Altman demonstrates, Nietzsche should be recognized as the paradigmatic philosopher of the Second Reich, the short-lived and equally complex German Empire that vanished in World War One. Since Nietzsche is a brilliant stylist whose seemingly disconnected aphorisms have made him notoriously difficult for scholars to analyze, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche is presented in Nietzsche's own style in a series of 155 brief sections arranged in five discrete Books, a structure modeled on Daybreak. All of Nietzsche's books are considered in the context of the close and revealing relationship between Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (named by his patriotic father after the King of Prussia) and the SeconTrade ReviewIn this imaginative and refined commentary on Nietzsche's political thought, Altman provides an incisive critique of the achievement of Nietzsche, as well as his limitations. The work is the third volume of a trilogy on German political thought, following the author's earlier studies of Martin Heidegger and Leo Strauss. Utilizing Nietzsche's own aphoristic style as evinced in his Daybreak, the main arguments of the book are presented in the course of five chapters ("books") composed of 155 essays, 63 pages of notes, and other ancillary writings. The first chapter critiques Nietzsche as the classicist who looked to the past, but equally to the future, to evaluate the crisis of liberal institutions in his own time and place. Chapter 2 even more explicitly demonstrates Nietzsche's connection to the political world of the Second Reich. Nietzsche's criticisms of Plato, and his rather limited appreciation of Aristotle, are presented in chapter 3. Nietzsche's defense of aristocratic elitism and his assimilation and use of Platonic themes, especially dualism, are assessed convincingly by the author as well. The two final chapters place Nietzsche within the historical context of the Second Reich, providing insightful reflections on Nietzsche's influence during WW I. Summing Up: Recommended. All readership levels. * CHOICE *In this aphoristic examination of Nietzsche, Altman situates his thought exactly where it is most appropriate and understandable: in the context of German politics and society in the nineteenth century. Altman thus refutes Nietzsche’s own claim that he was an 'untimely' observer and demonstrates instead his many and intricate connections with contemporary events and individuals. Altman’s great service to Nietzsche scholarship is to remove the philosopher from the ethereal realm of philosophical speculation and to place him squarely in the Second Reich. -- Robert C. Holub, Ohio State UniversityAltman’s book explores and illuminates Nietzsche’s complex relationship with the Second Reich, portraying Nietzsche not as a strict anti-nationalist but as perceptively engaging the questions of German domestic and foreign policy, expressing the contradictions of the Bismarckian era so profoundly, that he may be called the philosopher of the Second Reich. -- Don Dombowsky, Bishop's UniversityHistoriography about Nietzsche principally swings between a “hermeneutics of innocence”—which reduces even the most significant and fearsome views of the philosopher to metaphors—and interpretations that transform the hero of “aristocratic radicalism” into an immediate forerunner of Hitler. With good reason Altman instead takes his start from the Second Reich and, with cultivated irony, adopts Nietzche’s own aphoristic genre in order to use it against him. The result is a rigorous book—well documented on philological and historical grounds—that is both fluent and pleasant to read. -- Domenico Losurdo, University of UrbinoAmbitious, innovative and challenging: by placing Nietzsche within his historical context of the Second Reich, against those who want to claim him for the Third Reich, Altman shows, through an aphoristic commentary on Nietzsche’s aphorisms, Nietzsche to be a child of his age, fully engaged in the (geo-)politics of his time, along with foreseeing its final denouement in the first World War. -- Hugo Drochon, St John's College, CambridgeAltman adopts Nietzsche’s aphoristic style, and produces a vibrant reading of a historicized, political Nietzsche. This work is sure to reward those patient, cautious readers interested in Nietzsche’s political thought. -- Frank Cameron, University of GuelphTable of ContentsPreface to “A German Trilogy” Book I Book II Book III Book IV Book V

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Book SynopsisThis clearly written and deeply informed book explores the nature and meaning of work in early modern France. Distinguished historian James R. Farr considers the relationship between material lifespecifically the work activities of both men and womenand the culture in which these activities were embedded. This culture, he argues, helped shape the nature of work, invested it with meaning, and fashioned the identities of people across the social spectrum. Farr vividly traces the daily lives of peasants, common laborers, domestic servants, prostitutes, street vendors, craftsmen and -women, merchants, men of the law, medical practitioners, and government officials. Work was recognized and valued as a means to earn a living, but it held a greater significance as a cultural marker of honor, identity, and status. Constants and continuities in work activities and their cultural aspects shared space with changes that were so profound and sweeping that France would be forever transformed. The auTrade ReviewAn exceptionally rich area of early modern European history, the history of work in France, has received its due in a fine synthesis by James Farr, himself a master in the field. . . . Farr provides a thorough and thoughtful survey of the literature, highlighting important recent work and skillfully integrating the specialized findings of French labor history with the broader concerns of early modern history. * Journal of Modern History *This exceptional book fully deserves the wide audience of scholars and students to which it is addressed. . . . For scholars and teachers, Work of France offers a powerful interpretive model; for their students, a lively and handsomely written introduction to the society and culture of premodern Europe. * Sixteenth Century Journal *A broad-ranging, powerfully argued, and innovative account of the world of work and its relationship to the key transformations of the early modern centuries. It succeeds on many levels—as a lively and accessible introduction to the early modern world for undergraduates and as a provocative interpretative framework for scholars. -- Julie Hardwick, University of Texas at AustinTable of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Peasants Chapter 2: The Menu Peuple (The "Lesser Folk") Chapter 3: Artisans Chapter 4: Merchants, Large and Small Chapter 5: The Professions: Medical Practitioners, Men of the Law, and Government Officials Conclusion

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Book SynopsisThis clearly written and deeply informed book explores the nature and meaning of work in early modern France. Distinguished historian James R. Farr considers the relationship between material lifespecifically the work activities of both men and womenand the culture in which these activities were embedded. This culture, he argues, helped shape the nature of work, invested it with meaning, and fashioned the identities of people across the social spectrum. Farr vividly traces the daily lives of peasants, common laborers, domestic servants, prostitutes, street vendors, craftsmen and -women, merchants, men of the law, medical practitioners, and government officials. Work was recognized and valued as a means to earn a living, but it held a greater significance as a cultural marker of honor, identity, and status. Constants and continuities in work activities and their cultural aspects shared space with changes that were so profound and sweeping that France would be forever transformed. The auTrade ReviewAn exceptionally rich area of early modern European history, the history of work in France, has received its due in a fine synthesis by James Farr, himself a master in the field. . . . Farr provides a thorough and thoughtful survey of the literature, highlighting important recent work and skillfully integrating the specialized findings of French labor history with the broader concerns of early modern history. * Journal of Modern History *This exceptional book fully deserves the wide audience of scholars and students to which it is addressed. . . . For scholars and teachers, Work of France offers a powerful interpretive model; for their students, a lively and handsomely written introduction to the society and culture of premodern Europe. * Sixteenth Century Journal *A broad-ranging, powerfully argued, and innovative account of the world of work and its relationship to the key transformations of the early modern centuries. It succeeds on many levels—as a lively and accessible introduction to the early modern world for undergraduates and as a provocative interpretative framework for scholars. -- Julie Hardwick, University of Texas at AustinTable of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Peasants Chapter 2: The Menu Peuple (The "Lesser Folk") Chapter 3: Artisans Chapter 4: Merchants, Large and Small Chapter 5: The Professions: Medical Practitioners, Men of the Law, and Government Officials Conclusion

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Book SynopsisThis concise yet rich introduction to the French Revolution explores the origins, development, and eventual decline of a movement that defines France to this day. Through an accessible chronological narrative, Sylvia Neely explains the complex events, conflicting groups, and rapid changes that characterized this critical period in French history. She traces the fundamental transformations in government and society that forced the French to come up with new ways of thinking about their place in the world, ultimately leading to liberalism, conservatism, terrorism, and modern nationalism. Throughout, the author focuses on the essential political events that propelled the Revolution, at the same time deftly interweaving the intellectual, social, diplomatic, military, and cultural history of the time. Neely explains how the difficult choices made by the royal government and the revolutionaries alike not only brought on the collapse of the Old Regime but moved the nation into increasingly Trade ReviewNeely combines in one slim volume a clear narrative history with analysis and a few judicious forays into the thickets of revolutionary historiography. An invaluable resource—a good basic text for a survey course, and an outstanding text for professionals. Highly recommended. * CHOICE *A thoughtful, well-written introduction to the Revolution. * Journal of Social History *A welcome addition to the growing number of short textbook treatments of the French Revolution. Instructors offering undergraduate courses on the subject will want to consider adopting this text for the classroom. It is a serious effort to concisely summarize a complex historical event. The text presupposes no prior knowledge of the French Revolution, is written in clear, approachable prose, and is enhanced by easily readable grayscale maps, refreshingly new images, and a detailed timeline. * H-France Review *This is an engaging and thought-provoking introduction to one of the most remarkable periods in human history. Skillfully relating her story within the context of recent scholarly debates, Sylvia Neely has furnished an account of the French Revolution that seamlessly integrates social, cultural, and intellectual forces with the play of individual personality. Her book is especially rewarding in its explication of the international geopolitical framework in which the Revolution unfolded and in its analysis of the ebb and flow of revolutionary political struggles. -- Barry M. Shapiro, Allegheny CollegeThis superb book is exactly what I have been looking for as a text to cover the French Revolution. The writing is engaging and the presentation of the events and people of the revolution clear and informative. -- Robert Bruce, Sam Houston State UniversityNeely provides an excellent introduction to the French Revolution, showing how particular political choices led to reform, revolution, terror, and dictatorship. Political issues are placed in their social context, but politicians emerge as individuals forced to make difficult decisions, which led to unintended consequences that, taken together, defined the trajectory of the Revolution. -- Thomas Kselman, University of Notre DameTable of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: The Ancien Regime, Its Critics and Supporters Chapter 2: The Financial Crisis Chapter 3: The Estates General and the General Assembly Chapter 4: Creating the New Regime Chapter 5: Polarization and the Flight to Varennes Chapter 6: The Failure of Constitutional Government Chapter 7: The Convention Chapter 8: Terror and War Chapter 9: Thermidor and the Directory

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Book SynopsisLaw, crime, and justice are among the most salient issues in any country. This is especially true for a transitional nation like Russia that is facing tremendous social, political, and economic changes, many of which create conditions conducive to crime. These ongoing changes have had profound effects on every major social institution in the country, and the transition from totalitarianism and a command economy toward rule of law and a free market is resulting in shifts in fundamental cultural values. In this environment, governmental agencies are often left without a clear mission, especially given their sometimes dubious roles during the Soviet era, and are rarely provided with the resources necessary to fulfill the difficult duties that are so vital to a functional democracy. This volume, with chapters by highly respected scholars in several disciplines, provides a comprehensive sourcebook of scholarly analysis of the effects of these changes on legal developments and rule of law inTrade ReviewA mine of information about the evolution of crime and the justice system in Russia over the past fifteen years. . . . Highly recommended. * CHOICE *A brave attempt to synthesize many important themes and topics into one volume. . . . The volume as a whole is rewarding. * Stanford Journal of International Law *A comprehensive look at Russian society in flux as reflected in the development of the law, crime, and judicial reform. -- Thomas S. Pearson * International Criminal Justice Review *Pridemore has provided a great service to the English-speaking reader interested in crime and punishment in today's Russia. -- Peter B. Maggs, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign * Slavic Review *This collection is an ambitious undertaking. . . . This is a collection with a broad remit, and succeeds in providing a comprehensive and insightful overview. * Seer *This book shows how hard the transition from dictatorship to democracy really is. It is not just a transition from seventy years of communism but from more than one thousand years of Russia's past. -- Sergei Khruschev, Brown UniversityThis collection provides a wealth of analysis and food for thought on one of the most puzzling problems in Russia's post-communist transition. The huge increase in crime rates after the collapse of the Soviet system was a challenge to the new regime and is an intellectual challenge to us all. As the chapters in the volume show, in a variety of ways, building rule of law and rebuilding the state are as complex and many-sided a task as the more oft-studied processes of moving to market economics and democratic forms of government. -- Timothy J. Colton, Harvard UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction: Law, Crime, and Justice in Transitional Russia Part I: Law Chapter 1: Presidential Power: The Struggle for Hegemony Chapter 2: Russian Political Parties, the Duma, and the Welfare State Chapter 3: The Creation of an Independent Judiciary and the Changing Nature of Courts and the Courtroom Chapter 4: The Criminal Procedure Code of 2001: Will It Make Russian Justice More Fair? Part II: Crime Chapter 5: Flex Organizing and the Clan-State: Perspectives on Crime and Corruption in the New Russia Chapter 6: Patterns of Violent Crime in Russia Chapter 7: Violence against Women in Russia Chapter 8: Russia's Efforts to Combat Human Trafficking: Efficient Crime Groups versus Irresolute Societies and Uncoordinated States Chapter 9: The Ugly Side of Capitalism and Democracy: The Development of the Illegal Drug Market in Post-Soviet Russia Part III: Justice Chapter 10: Injecting Drug Use and HIV: Harm Reduction Programs and the Russian Legal System Chapter 11: Juvenile Crime and Justice in Post-Soviet Russia Chapter 12: Policing in Post-Soviet Russia Chapter 13: The Russian Correctional System during the Transition Conclusion: Whither Russia: Transition or Turmoil?

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Book SynopsisThis deeply informed text sets the government and politics of Britain firmly in the context of Britain''s enduring membership in the European Union. Michael L. Mannin thoroughly applies the concept of Europeanization across the political system to explore how far change is a product of Britain''s interdependent relationship with the EU. He shows how the EU''s treaty relationships present new challenges to sovereign states, especially Britain, whose psyche has long revolved around iconic notions of Parliamentary sovereignty, imperial power, national independence, and an assumed cultural homogeneity. Examining the cultural, economic, and social background to Britain''s twenty-first century politics, Mannin challenges some of the historical myths on which Britain''s exceptionalism is founded. He then analyzes contemporary political institutions and processes in the context of Europeanization, as well as the impact of the EU on policy and policy making. Ideal for courses in British and EurTrade ReviewThis interesting, prescient, and most timely book argues that the political world has been 'turned inside out.' Since the European financial crisis and the May British election, the political world is more topsy-turvy. Happily, Mannin's book is a good guide to this world. British politics, he argues, cannot be understood without fully appreciating the EU's impact. European integration is 'an integral aspect of "what happens"'—of 'how things are.' While he acknowledges other international and domestic forces, his starting point is the 'unusual condition' of EU membership. A textbook, it is formulaic (chapters in tidy order on economy, constitution, parliament, parties, executive, etc.). But Mannin differs by putting the impact of the EU front and center. Thus, constitutional reform cannot be seen as distinct from 'the notion of European integration.' He covers institutions, politics, and policies (economic, environmental, and foreign). Recommended. * CHOICE *While the wide implications of European Union membership have long been evident in Whitehall and elsewhere, texts on British politics have tended to remain strangely insular. By providing a systematic investigation of the ways in which membership has influenced the constitution, institutions, and policies of the British system, Mannin has comprehensively addressed this serious omission. His ambitious and innovative work fills a significant gap in the study of British government and politics. -- John Vogler, Keele UniversityIn this book Michael Mannin has done something very difficult and made it look easy. He has deftly synthesized an immense amount of diverse material in order to produce a panoramic account of Britain in Europe. In lively and accessible prose, Mannin supplies history, context, and a set of alternative perspectives. Thoroughly recommended. -- Christopher Pollitt, Katholieke Universiteit LeuvenTable of ContentsIntroduction: British Politics and Europe Chapter 1: The Development of the British State: Stories and Models Chapter 2: Economic and Social Change Chapter 3: British Politics and Constitutional Change Chapter 4: Parliamentary Representation and the Legislative Process Chapter 5: Beyond Parliament: Multilevel Representation Chapter 6: Parties and Why Citizens Vote for Them Chapter 7: Participation, Pressure Groups, and the Media Chapter 8: The Executive: Managing Decline in a Shrinking World? Chapter 9: The British State and the Policy Process Chapter 10: Economic Policy in Britain Chapter 11: British Environmental Policy: From Smog to Sustainability Chapter 12: Britain's Foreign Policy and External Security Chapter 13: A Conclusion—and Postscript Appendix: The European Union: An Official Interpretation References

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Book SynopsisWhat and where and who is Europe? This unique collection contends that Europe cannot be defined as simply a particular geographic location or a group of citizens who inhabit the same place and share a culture. Instead, Europe is a question to be answered by the teachers and students who study it. A collaborative and multidisciplinary collection, Engaging Europe explores Europe through history, literature, philosophy, music, and ethical narratives. A set of imaginative contributors investigates European identity through a variety of cases, including Greece and Rome, the Bible, the Enlightenment, and the Shoah. Scholars of literature, history, and classics, as well as a composer, grapple with students'' doubts about Europe''s future relevance. The complexity of the topic leads to creativity in each chapter, from a musical composition in words to poetry to a dialogue between Baudelaire and Adam Smith. Engaging Europe is a major part of an experiment that hopes to find more intellectually Trade ReviewTaking a welcome interdisciplinary approach, this brief yet insightful book succeeds in its stated ambition of making readers contemplate 'rethinking a changing continent.' Highly recommended. * CHOICE *This is a delightful volume. Fascinating, illuminating, always intelligent, it collects together a variety of thoughtful reflections that probe the 'Europe' of our history, science, imagination, hopes, fears, dreams, values, and, above all, of our minds. If it is true that one cannot go home again, apparently one can still return for the first time. -- Richard A. Cohen, author of Out of Control: Confrontations between Spinoza and LevinasThis lively, wide-ranging, splendid assortment of essays highlights Europe's grand intellectual traditions, its tragic passions and moral dramas. It casts European history and its future as both a deeply familiar and a de-familiarized, largely uncharted terrain—a space of the mind and a riddle to try to solve. -- Giuseppe Mazzotta, Yale UniversityAn interesting, novel, and stimulating scholarly contribution to our way of conceptualizing the European experience. -- Ulf Hedetoft, Aalborg University, DenmarkTable of ContentsChapter 1: The Idea of Europe: A Collaborative Pedagogical Project Part I: What Is Europe? Chapter 2: A Story of Europe Chapter 3: The Idea of Europe, Levinas, and Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice Part II: Where Is Europe? Chapter 4: Relocating Europe Chapter 5: Idea of Rome, Idea of Europe Chapter 6: Provincia Gallia Narbonensis Part III: Testimony and Witness Chapter 7: Listening and the Art of Survival Chapter 8: Primo Levi's Testimony, or Philosophy between Poetry and Science Chapter 9: Europe in the Wake of the Shoah Part IV: Disciplines, Borders, Crossings Chapter 10: Autonomy and the Mistress Discipline in European Thought Chapter 11: Does Baudelaire Read Adam Smith? Chapter 12: On Charting Europeanness Further Reading: A Bibliographical Essay

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Book SynopsisIn this authoritative book, the only work to cover the full sweep of German foreign policy since the end of World War II, noted scholar Helga Haftendorn explores Germany''s remarkable recovery from wartime defeat and destruction. Offspring of the Cold War, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic entered the international arena in 1949 under three crippling constraints: they were held accountable for the crimes of the Third Reich, they were fully dependent on the occupation powers, and their international room for maneuver was limited by an East-West conflict that placed Bonn and East Berlin on opposite sides of the Iron Curtain. Tracing the FRG''s strategy of multilateralism, Haftendorn convincingly demonstrates how these liabilities transformed into opportunities as Germany found a security guarantee in NATO membership and economic and political rewards in the system of European integration. The author''s overview of past half-century shows a high degree of Trade ReviewThis title is to be welcomed as the first major overview of postwar German foreign policy in English since Wolfram F. Hanrieder's Germany, America, Europe: Forty Years of German Foreign Policy, which first appeared in 1989. * H-Net: Humanities and Social Science Reviews Online *A sober and intelligent overview of German foreign policy in the whole post-World War II period written by one of the most important people in the field. It offers an invaluable historical perspective on Germany's relations today with the rest of the world, especially the United States. -- Marc Trachtenberg, University of California, Los AngelesAmericans will have to take a new look at Germany after the break over the war in Iraq. This book is a good place to start. It is the best single introduction to contemporary German foreign policy in English. Professor Haftendorn knows both her subject and her audience well and conveys a complex history in a clear and accessible style. -- Stephen F. Szabo, Johns Hopkins UniversityA lucid and balanced analysis of Germany's diplomatic evolution and role in the world, especially in the realm of security and strategic issues. It will be a very useful book in courses on postwar Germany. -- Stanley HoffmannTable of ContentsChapter 1: Foreign Policy in the Center of Europe: An Introduction Chapter 2: The Formative Phase of the Federal Republic Chapter 3: Basic Decisions on European Policy Chapter 4: The Federal Republic of Germany in the Atlantic Alliance Chapter 5: The German Democratic Republic as the Second German State Chapter 6: Ostpolitik and Détente: Rapprochement with the East Chapter 7: The Economic Miracle Becomes the Locomotive of the Western Economy Chapter 8: From the NATO Double-Track Decision to the Double-Zero Solution Chapter 9: The Road to Reunification Chapter 10: The European Community and the Path to the European Union Chapter 11: New Challenges after the End of the East-West Conflict Chapter 12: From Self-Restraint to Assertion: Conclusions

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Book SynopsisIn this authoritative book, the only work to cover the full sweep of German foreign policy since the end of World War II, noted scholar Helga Haftendorn explores Germany''s remarkable recovery from wartime defeat and destruction. Offspring of the Cold War, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic entered the international arena in 1949 under three crippling constraints: they were held accountable for the crimes of the Third Reich, they were fully dependent on the occupation powers, and their international room for maneuver was limited by an East-West conflict that placed Bonn and East Berlin on opposite sides of the Iron Curtain. Tracing the FRG''s strategy of multilateralism, Haftendorn convincingly demonstrates how these liabilities transformed into opportunities as Germany found a security guarantee in NATO membership and economic and political rewards in the system of European integration. The author''s overview of past half-century shows a high degree of Trade ReviewThis title is to be welcomed as the first major overview of postwar German foreign policy in English since Wolfram F. Hanrieder's Germany, America, Europe: Forty Years of German Foreign Policy, which first appeared in 1989. * H-Net: Humanities and Social Science Reviews Online *A sober and intelligent overview of German foreign policy in the whole post-World War II period written by one of the most important people in the field. It offers an invaluable historical perspective on Germany's relations today with the rest of the world, especially the United States. -- Marc Trachtenberg, University of California, Los AngelesAmericans will have to take a new look at Germany after the break over the war in Iraq. This book is a good place to start. It is the best single introduction to contemporary German foreign policy in English. Professor Haftendorn knows both her subject and her audience well and conveys a complex history in a clear and accessible style. -- Stephen F. Szabo, Johns Hopkins UniversityA lucid and balanced analysis of Germany's diplomatic evolution and role in the world, especially in the realm of security and strategic issues. It will be a very useful book in courses on postwar Germany. -- Stanley HoffmannTable of ContentsChapter 1: Foreign Policy in the Center of Europe: An Introduction Chapter 2: The Formative Phase of the Federal Republic Chapter 3: Basic Decisions on European Policy Chapter 4: The Federal Republic of Germany in the Atlantic Alliance Chapter 5: The German Democratic Republic as the Second German State Chapter 6: Ostpolitik and Détente: Rapprochement with the East Chapter 7: The Economic Miracle Becomes the Locomotive of the Western Economy Chapter 8: From the NATO Double-Track Decision to the Double-Zero Solution Chapter 9: The Road to Reunification Chapter 10: The European Community and the Path to the European Union Chapter 11: New Challenges after the End of the East-West Conflict Chapter 12: From Self-Restraint to Assertion: Conclusions

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Book SynopsisFor half a century, the United States and the Soviet Union were in conflict. But how and where did the Cold War begin? Jamil Hasanli answers these intriguing questions in At the Dawn of the Cold War. He argues that the intergenerational crisis over Iranian Azerbaijan (19451946) was the first event that brought the Soviet Union to a confrontation with the United States and Britain after the period of cooperation between them during World War II. Based on top-secret archive materials from Soviet and Azerbaijani archives as well as documents from American, British, and Iranian sources, the book details Iranian Azerbaijan''s independence movement, which was backed by the USSR, the Soviet struggle for oil in Iran, and the American and British reactions to these events. These events were the starting point of the longer historical period of unarmed conflict between the Soviets and the West that is now known as the Cold War. This book is a major contribution to our understanding of the Cold WTrade Review[Hasanli] draws on an extraordinary range of newly available documents in this detailed and nuanced examination of an under-explored front in U.S. and Soviet relations. Recommended. * CHOICE *At the Dawn of the Cold War brings to light a great deal of important information about Soviet actions and plans in southern Azerbaijan. . . . The book provides extensive new information. -- Anar Valiyev * Journal of Cold War Studies *This is a well-researched book about the birth and demise of the national government of the autonomous republic of Iranian Azerbaijan in 1945–46. Through his discerning and informed use of abundant Russian, Azerbaijani, Iranian, and Western documents, many of them cited for the first time here, Jamil Hasanli sheds new light on less well-understood areas of the beginning of the Cold War. . . . It adds significantly to the scholarship on the Azerbaijan crisis and makes an important contribution to our understanding of that crucial time and place. * International Journal of Middle East Studies *In dealing with the history of the Iranian crisis of 1945–46, Jamil Hasanli raises very significant and still disputable questions concerning the origins of the Cold War as well as the motives and characteristics of Soviet foreign policy in the first years after the end of the Second World War. The book's undoubted advantage is that the author scrutinized and put into use unique documentary material from the archives of the Azerbaijan Republic, Georgia, and Russia. * Cold War History *Fills some important gaps in our knowledge of the short-lived government of the Democratic Party of Azerbaijan, 1945–46. That long-ago crisis signaled the beginning of the cold war. . . . Of most interest and usefulness to scholars . . . will be Hasanli’s account of the triangular relationship between Tabriz, Baku, and Moscow during these years. . . . In the final days of the Tabriz government, when it was fighting for its life, Hasanli’s account of dogged and heroic resistance on the part of the Azeris presents a remarkably different picture from that available in most Western accounts. * Iranian Studies *Based on a treasure trove of new documents from the Azeri and other archives, Hasanli's book is a major contribution to our understanding of the origins of the Cold War. -- Christian Friedrich Ostermann, director, Cold War International History Project, Woodrow Wilson International Center for ScholarsJamil Hasanli is the leading historian of Azerbaijan. In this ground-breaking volume, he presents the first major English-language study of the Azerbaijan crisis based on both Soviet and Western documentation. Part diplomatic chronicle, part social history, part spy drama, At the Dawn of the Cold War not only brings to light vital new Azerbaijani, Russian, and other sources that clarify in startling detail the roles of Moscow and Baku, it also provides a fascinating analysis that, among other things, underscores the impact of local events on Soviet behavior in the Cold War, and vice versa. It is an important achievement. -- Malcolm Byrne, research director, the National Security Archive at George Washington UniversityTable of ContentsChapter 1: The Penetration of the Soviet Troops into Iran and the Strengthening of the Soviet Position in Iranian Azerbaijan Chapter 2: The Intensification of Soviet Policy in Iranian Azerbaijan Chapter 3: The Struggle for Oil and the Government Crisis in Tehran Chapter 4: End of War in Europe: Decisions of Moscow and Iranian Azerbaijan Chapter 5: Creation of the Democratic Party and the Idea of Autonomy Chapter 6: Decision of the Popular Congress of Azerbaijan Chapter 7: Establishment of the National Government of Iranian Azerbaijan Chapter 8: The Situation in Iranian Azerbaijan and the Moscow Meeting of Foreign Ministers Chapter 9: The National Government of Iranian Azerbaijan: Between Autonomy and Independence Chapter 10: January 1946: Beginning Reforms in Tabriz Chapter 11: February 1946: Qavam As-Saltanah's Moscow Visit Chapter 12: The Starting Point of the Cold War: Iranian Azerbaijan, March 1946 Chapter 13: The Withdrawal from Iranian Azerbaijan and the Oil Policy of the Soviets Chapter 14: The Starting of Negotiations between the Central Government and Azerbaijan Chapter 15: The Strengthening of the U.S. Influence in Iran Chapter 16: The Failure of Stalin's Policy in Iranian Azerbaijan

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Book SynopsisBetween 1967 and 1991, almost half of the entire Jewish population of the Soviet Union left for freedom to Israel, America, and other western countries. This book tells the story of the American Jewish community's involvement in this exodus, and explores how such a massive emigration occurred.Trade ReviewA provocative study of the epic struggle to free Jews trapped behind the Iron Curtain in the Soviet empire. -- Jack Wertheimer, Provost and Professor of American Jewish History, Jewish Theological SeminaryFrom Exodus to Freedom provides an interesting and useful account of the endgame of the Soviet Jewry movement in America. It tells of one of the most successful human rights efforts in history. -- Alan M. Dershowitz, professor, Harvard Law School; author of Taking the Stand: My Life in the LawThis is a must-read for students of American and Soviet history, Jewish studies, and international relations. -- Michael Oren, author of Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle EastThis is a must-read, not only for the thousands of veterans of the movement during the 1980s and 1990s, but for everyone interested in understanding the power of ordinary citizens to promote human rights reform and freedom anywhere in the world. -- Micah Naftalin, Union of Councils for Soviet JewsRabbi Altshuler's book is interesting, compelling, and very important. Now that these events can be viewed in a historical perspective, it is important to analyze and study this unprecedented victory and the role of one of the key players-the Union of Councils-in this dramatic struggle to free Soviet Jewry." -- Natan Sharansky, author of The Case for DemocracyThe political emphasis, along with tactics and insights on choices, makes for an important, revealing guide. * Midwest Book Review *It is helpful for understanding the place of Soviet Jewish emigration in American-Soviet relations in the Gorbachev era. It illuminates the questions that American Jewish organizations had to decide in their desire to aid Soviet Jews. -- Arkadi Zeltser, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem * The Russian Review *Altshuler's indispensable history of the efforts of US Jews on behalf of Soviet Jewry focuses on 1985-91, when more than a million Soviet Jews left the USSR for new homes in the US, Israel, and elsewhere in the West. The author discusses the division between the Jewish establishment that pressured Soviet Jews to emigrate to Israel and grassroots Jewish groups that argued the right of Soviet Jews to migrate to the country of their choosing....Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. -- J. Fischel, emeritus, Messiah College * CHOICE *This is a pathbreaking book on one of the greatest liberation movements of the twentieth century. -- Jonathan D. Sarna, Brandeis UniversityTable of ContentsChapter 1 The Soviet Jewry Movement in America-An Historical Perspective Chapter 2 The Soviet Jewry Movement Before 1985— Gorbachev and the Promise of a New Chapter for Soviet Jews Chapter 3 The United States Government and the Soviet Jewry Movement in America: Bush, Reagan, Congress and the Department of State Chapter 4 Tactics and Strategy of the Soviet Jewry Movement-Loud Voices or Quiet Diplomacy? .. Chapter 5 American Jewry Chooses: Aliya to Israel or Rescue to America Chapter 6 The Last Months: Emigration becomes Reality

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Book SynopsisAfter Stalin''s death in March 1953, the Cold War changed almost overnight. The Soviet Union embarked on a course of reconciliation and greater openness. However, despite an end to the Korean War and progress on many other outstanding East-West questions, the Western world remained mistrustful of Soviet motives and policies and Soviet leaders remained suspicious of Western intentions. Less than a decade after Stalin''s death the Berlin Wall was erected and the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world close to nuclear annihilation. Was this development unavoidable? Was an opportunity missed to overcome and terminate the Cold War? Was there a possibility for the creation of a more stable, less threatening, and less costly world in both human and material terms? It is only now, after the end of the Cold War and based on recently declassified western documents and revelations from once-closed archives in the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and China, that new light can be shed on the naTrade ReviewThis exemplary collection of original essays sheds much new light on the evolution of the Cold War during one of its most dangerous and fluid phases. A model of broadly focused international history, The Cold War after Stalin's Death imaginatively probes paths taken—and not taken—by the Soviets, the Americans, and other key actors during a crucial period. Highly recommended for scholars and general readers alike. -- Robert J. McMahon, The Ohio State UniversityA richly varied collection of original essays addressing a question of enduring fascination and historical importance: what was the meaning of Stalin’s death for the international system? Editors Larres and Osgood have assembled a stellar group of contributors, and together they produce a highly informative, authoritative volume. -- Fredrik Logevall, Cornell University; author of Choosing War: The Lost Chance for Peace and the Escalation of War in VietnamTable of ContentsIntroduction: International Politics in the Early Post-Stalin Era: A Lost Opportunity, a Turning Point, or More of the Same? Part I: The Soviet Union and the United States after Stalin Chapter 1: The Elusive Détente: Stalin's Successors and the West Chapter 2: The Perils of Coexistence: Peace and Propaganda in Eisenhower's Foreign Policy Chapter 3: A Missed Chance for Peace?: Opportunities for Détente in Europe Chapter 4: Poisoned Apples: John Foster Dulles and the Peace Offensive Part II: The Peace Offensives in Cultural Context Chapter 5: Meanings of Peace: The Rhetorical Cold War after Stalin Chapter 6: Stalin's Ghost: Cold War Culture and U.S.-Soviet Relations Part III: Fragile Coalitions, East and West Chapter 7: The Road to Geneva 1955: Churchill's Summit Diplomacy and Anglo-American Tension after Stalin's Death Chapter 8: Alliance Politics after Stalin's Death: Franco-American Conflict in Europe and Asia Chapter 9: Coexistence and Confrontation: Sino-Soviet Relations after Stalin Chapter 10: The New Course: Soviet Policy Toward Germany and the Uprising in the GDR Part IV: Assessing Peaceful Coexistence Chapter 11: Cold War, Détente, and the 1956 Hungarian Revolution Chapter 12: The Robust Assertion of Austrianism: Peaceful Coexistence in Austria after Stalin's Death Chapter 13: The Lure of Neutrality: Finland and the Cold War Chapter 14: Treacherous Ground: Soviet-Japanese Relations and the United States

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Book SynopsisThe pervasiveness of the Christian religion has long been treated as one of the key features of medieval society. Indeed, Europe in the Middle Ages is often described simply as a Christian culture. Yet what do we mean when we say that medieval Europe was a Christian society, and what did it mean to be a Christian in the Middle Ages? These questions are fundamental to any understanding of the Middle Ages, yet the variety of theoretical approaches and conclusions represented in this carefully selected and provocative collection of key works in the field highlights the complexity of the answers. Introducing students to medieval Christianity, James L. Halverson presents a rich array of readings that offers a variety of ways to study the history of religion within a chronological setting. His opening chapter and introductions to each section and selection frame the essays and provide a strong conceptual framework to build upon. Making it clear that scholars have approached religion from manTrade ReviewTwenty-two well-written and informative essays. * Sixteenth Century Journal *Halverson has assembled a wonderful set of readings on the changing nature of medieval Christendom. The selections chosen here reflect old and new approaches and the ongoing work of scholars to questions about what made the Middle Ages Christian, or whether they were Christian at all. Halverson is sensitive to change over time, and also to changing methodologies and angles of approach. I imagine readers coming away with a much richer sense of the debates—still current!—surrounding Europe's religious inheritance. -- John Van Engen, University of Notre DameDemonstrating the various ways in which Christianity shaped medieval culture, this book will be warmly embraced in many medieval European history classrooms as well as in courses on medieval Christianity. Because the readings deal with religion from social and cultural perspectives, it will be valuable even in courses that are not specifically focused on religion. -- Deanna Klepper, Boston UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction Part I: The Extent of Christianization in the Early Middle Ages Chapter 1: Some Historical Reidentification and the Christianization of Kent Chapter 2: Background to Augustine's Mission to Anglo-Saxon England Chapter 3: The Barbarian Conversion from Paganism to Christianity Chapter 4: Popular Religion in Late Saxon England: Elf Charms in Context Chapter 5: Forgetful of Their Sex: Female Sanctity and Society, ca. 500–1100 Chapter 6: The Rise of Western Christendom Part II: The Development of Christendom Chapter 7: The Knight, the Lady, and the Priest: The Making of Modern Marriage in Medieval France Chapter 8: Knightly Piety and the Lay Response to the First Crusade Chapter 9: Sword, Mitre, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy Chapter 10: Under Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle Ages Chapter 11: To the Glory of Her Sex Part III: The Apostolic Life Chapter 12: Religious Movements in the Middle Ages Chapter 13: Religious Poverty and the Profit Economy in Medieval Europe Chapter 14: Holy Anorexia Chapter 15: Women Mystics and Eucharistic Devotion in the Thirteenth Century Chapter 16: The Devil's World: Heresy and Society, 1100–1300 Part IV: Popular Religion in the Late Middle Ages Chapter 17: Religious Life in Germany on the Eve of the Reformation Chapter 18: The Stripping of the Altars: Traditional Religion in England, ca. 1400–1580 Chapter 19: Religion and the Decline of Magic Chapter 20: Women in the Late Medieval English Parish Chapter 21: The Magnificent Ride: The First Reformation in Hussite Bohemia

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Book SynopsisThe pervasiveness of the Christian religion has long been treated as one of the key features of medieval society. Indeed, Europe in the Middle Ages is often described simply as a Christian culture. Yet what do we mean when we say that medieval Europe was a Christian society, and what did it mean to be a Christian in the Middle Ages? These questions are fundamental to any understanding of the Middle Ages, yet the variety of theoretical approaches and conclusions represented in this carefully selected and provocative collection of key works in the field highlights the complexity of the answers. Introducing students to medieval Christianity, James L. Halverson presents a rich array of readings that offers a variety of ways to study the history of religion within a chronological setting. His opening chapter and introductions to each section and selection frame the essays and provide a strong conceptual framework to build upon. Making it clear that scholars have approached religion from manTrade ReviewTwenty-two well-written and informative essays. * Sixteenth Century Journal *Halverson has assembled a wonderful set of readings on the changing nature of medieval Christendom. The selections chosen here reflect old and new approaches and the ongoing work of scholars to questions about what made the Middle Ages Christian, or whether they were Christian at all. Halverson is sensitive to change over time, and also to changing methodologies and angles of approach. I imagine readers coming away with a much richer sense of the debates—still current!—surrounding Europe's religious inheritance. -- John Van Engen, University of Notre DameDemonstrating the various ways in which Christianity shaped medieval culture, this book will be warmly embraced in many medieval European history classrooms as well as in courses on medieval Christianity. Because the readings deal with religion from social and cultural perspectives, it will be valuable even in courses that are not specifically focused on religion. -- Deanna Klepper, Boston UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction Part I: The Extent of Christianization in the Early Middle Ages Chapter 1: Some Historical Reidentification and the Christianization of Kent Chapter 2: Background to Augustine's Mission to Anglo-Saxon England Chapter 3: The Barbarian Conversion from Paganism to Christianity Chapter 4: Popular Religion in Late Saxon England: Elf Charms in Context Chapter 5: Forgetful of Their Sex: Female Sanctity and Society, ca. 500–1100 Chapter 6: The Rise of Western Christendom Part II: The Development of Christendom Chapter 7: The Knight, the Lady, and the Priest: The Making of Modern Marriage in Medieval France Chapter 8: Knightly Piety and the Lay Response to the First Crusade Chapter 9: Sword, Mitre, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy Chapter 10: Under Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle Ages Chapter 11: To the Glory of Her Sex Part III: The Apostolic Life Chapter 12: Religious Movements in the Middle Ages Chapter 13: Religious Poverty and the Profit Economy in Medieval Europe Chapter 14: Holy Anorexia Chapter 15: Women Mystics and Eucharistic Devotion in the Thirteenth Century Chapter 16: The Devil's World: Heresy and Society, 1100–1300 Part IV: Popular Religion in the Late Middle Ages Chapter 17: Religious Life in Germany on the Eve of the Reformation Chapter 18: The Stripping of the Altars: Traditional Religion in England, ca. 1400–1580 Chapter 19: Religion and the Decline of Magic Chapter 20: Women in the Late Medieval English Parish Chapter 21: The Magnificent Ride: The First Reformation in Hussite Bohemia

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Book SynopsisPresents a study of the unfinished nation-building in Belarus. This work draws on the author's two dozen research trips to the country to trace Belarus' history, geography, political situation, society, and economy. It provides the reader a deeper understanding of Belarus, its relationship with Russia, and its national identity.Trade ReviewThe scholarly component in this volume is impressively high, making it perhaps the best study in English of a little-known and under-researched country. . . . [Ioffe] bears an immense knowledge of things Belarusian . . . [and] he sheds much needed light on the polity, economy, and society actually obtaining in [Belarus]. * Eurasian Geography and Economics *An important and timely book, articulating topical and emerging issues in Belarusian studies. . . . [Ioffe] takes a critical look at the established views on such issues as Belarusian identity, language use (Belarusian versus Russian), relations with Russia (unification versus independence), Aliaksandar Lukashenka as a political figure (the reasons behind his genuine popularity among his people and his rejection by the west, despite the west’s acceptance of some much less democratic Central Asian leaders), the growth of the Belarusian economy . . . and, finally, the projections for the opposition. . . . [A] carefully researched and significant book that tries 'to understand Belarus on its own terms.’ * Slavic Review *Effortlessly captivates a much broader audience and essentially calls 'well-known truths’ about the country into question. Understanding Belarus is a book about challenging facts, challenging qualifications and polemic conclusions, a book that touches one personally. . . . It craftily weaves together Belarus’ complicated domestics with its foreign relations, in addition to critically assessing the logic of international society. . . . Ioffe successfully manages to turn Belarus’ regime 'inside-out’ to expose its sui generis logic of survival that responds to the often inflexible politics of great powers. * Nationalities Papers *Grigory Ioffe's thorough and extremely insightful study . . . provides a balanced, well-structured and information introduction to the nature of nation-building and the political regime in contemporary Belarus. * Europe-Asia Studies *Grigory Ioffe’s Understanding Belarus and How Western Foreign Policy Misses the Mark is a profound, learned book that will force the reader to question the conventional dogmas about the meaning of democracy in post-Soviet space. Lucidly written, carefully researched, and extraordinarily insightful about the unique dynamics of emerging Belarusian nationalism, this book is a must-read for any scholar of Belarus or post-Soviet countries. -- Ilya Prizel, University of PittsburghGrigory Ioffe set as his goal to create a 'less ideological and more open approach' to an understanding of the history, politics, social system, and economy of Belarus. He has succeeded in producing a persuasive alternative to the well-known earlier interpretations by Jan Zaprudnik and David Marples. Ioffe’s main focus is on the search for Belarusian identity and an explanation of its peculiar relationship to Russia both historically and contemporaneously. Belarus remains for most of us dimly illuminated and something of an enigma. Good policy toward Belarus needs to be founded on a solid understanding, which Grigory Ioffe has provided in this very useful volume. -- James R. Millar, The George Washington UniversityGrigory Ioffe is perhaps our most insightful analyst of contemporary Belarus, and this is a distinguished study that brings together the insights of first-hand experience and the wider concerns of social science. In particular, this is a study that allows him to explore at length the complex nature of the identity of a small European nation that has historically been torn between East and West. All who are interested in the future of European politics as well as the development of the former Soviet republics will want to read this rich and provocative analysis. -- Stephen White, University of GlasgowTable of ContentsChapter 1: Questions of Language Chapter 2: A Search for Identity Chapter 3: Culture Wars, Soul Searching, and Belarusian Identity Chapter 4: Belarusian Economy Chapter 5: Belarusian Political Landscape Chapter 6: Alexander Lukashenka and His Detractors Chapter 7: Opinion Polls and Presidential Elections in Belarus Conclusion

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Book SynopsisThis groundbreaking study offers a genuinely multidisciplinary exploration of cultural influences on foreign policy. Through an innovative blend of historical analysis, neoclassical realist theory, and cultural studies, Amelia Hadfield-Amkhan shows how national identity has been a catalyst for British foreign policy decisions, helping the state to both define and defend itself. Representing key points of crisis from the past two centuries, her case studies include the 1882 attempt to construct a channel tunnel to France, the frantic 1909 Dreadnought race with Germany, the 1982 Falklands War with Argentina, and the 2003 decision to remain outside the Eurozone. The author argues that these events, marking the decline of a great power, have forced Britain''s society and government into periods of deep self-reflection that are carved into its culture and etched into its policy stances on central issues of sovereignty, territorial integrity, international recognition, and even monetary poliTrade ReviewWorking within the framework of the neoclassical realist school of international relations, which considers the role of variables such as cultural forces in the formulation of foreign policy, Hadfield-Amkhan (Vrije Univ. Brussel) suggests that first English and then also British identity have been significant 'inputs' to the 'outputs' of British foreign policy from the late 19th century to the present. After establishing that theoretical foundation, she presents four case studies that demonstrate different aspects of that identity, drawing well on government documents, newspapers, and popular novels and nonfiction. In the 1882 Channel Tunnel Crisis, opponents of the project charged that England's insular territorial integrity would be jeopardized. The 1909 Naval Scare stemmed from the challenge to English naval dominance and national security posed by Germany in its construction of dreadnoughts. Hadfield-Amkhan argues that in a postimperial environment, the struggle over the Falkland Islands in 1982 represented Britain's determination to maintain its national self-image and a role within the wider state system, and finally, that the decision not to adopt the euro in 2003 was emblematic of its attachment to a degree of economic autonomy from Europe. Summing Up: Recommended. * CHOICE *With this book Amelia Hadfield-Amkhan joins a select band of foreign policy analysts that understands the importance of history. The discipline of international relations started with such splendidly rich literature, but we seem to have lost our way in recent years. This book will do much to redress that balance. -- Andrew Williams, University of St. AndrewsIf any scholar of international relations still believes that external, systemic factors predominate in determining state security behavior, Amelia Hadfield-Amkhan’s masterful book will provide a useful corrective. This book is an important contribution to the renaissance in studies of strategic culture, as well as to the study of cultural effects on state policy making in the field of foreign policy analysis. -- Valerie M. Hudson, Texas A&M UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Conceptual Foundations: Neoclassical Realism, Foreign Policy Analysis, and National Identity Chapter 2: Analyzing National Identity, National Interests, and Foreign Policy Chapter 3: The 1882 Channel Tunnel Crisis: Englishness and Territoriality Chapter 4: The 1909 Navy Scare: Englishness and National Security Chapter 5: The 1982 Falklands Crisis: Englishness, Britishness, and Ontological Security Chapter 6: The 2003 Euro Debate: Englishness, Britishness, and Sovereignty Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisLike snapshots of everyday life in the past, the compelling biographies in this book document the making of the Black Atlantic world since the sixteenth century from the point of view of those who were part of it. Centering on the diaspora caused by the forced migration of Africans to Europe and across the Atlantic to the Americas, the chapters explore the slave trade, enslavement, resistance, adaptation, cultural transformations, and the quest for citizenship rights. The variety of experiences, constraints and choices depicted in the book and their changes across time and space defy the idea of a unified black experience. At the same time, it is clear that in the twentieth century, black identity unified people of African descent who, along with other minority groups, struggled against colonialism and racism and presented alternatives to a version of modernity that excluded and alienated them. Drawing on a rich array of little-known documents, the contributors reconstruct the lives anTrade ReviewThis wonderful addition to the growing scholarship attempts, quite successfully, to add a human face to the black Atlantic. A topical bibliography and a filmography provide instructors and students alike a guide for further research. Highly recommended. * CHOICE *This is the richest and most scholarly collection of individual narratives shaped by the African diaspora since Philip Curtin's Africa Remembered of more than forty years ago. These thirteen biographies span four centuries and offer a compellingly diverse range of the black Atlantic experience. Essential reading for all historians of the Atlantic World. -- David Eltis, Emory UniversityIndispensable for anyone interested in Black Atlantic history. Through well-researched and well-written biographies, the authors move beyond Eurocentric approaches to the past by showing the central role of Africans and their Afro-American descendants in the making of the early modern and modern Atlantic World. -- Walter Hawthorne, Michigan State UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction: People in the Making of the Black Atlantic Chapter 1: Alonso de Illescas (1530s–1580s): African, Ladino, and Maroon Leader in Colonial Ecuador Chapter 2: Gregoria López (1680s): A Mexican Mulata Defends Her Honor Chapter 3: Philip Quaque (1741–1816): African Anglican Missionary on the Gold Coast Chapter 4: Harry Washington (1760s–1790s): A Founding Father's Slave Chapter 5: Rufino José Maria (1820s–1850s): A Muslim in the Nineteenth-Century Brazilian Slave Trade Circuit Chapter 6: Buenaventura Lucumí (1820s–1872): African Slave, Head of a Household, and Lottery Winner in Cuba Chapter 7: Blaise Diagne (1872–1934): Senegal's Deputy to the French National Assembly Chapter 8: Phyllis Ann Edmeade (1920s): Caribbean Migrant Worker Deported from the United States Chapter 9: C. L. R. James (1901–1989): The Black Jacobin Chapter 10: Robert Robinson (1930s): Celebrity Worker in the USSR Chapter 11: Vicente Ferreira Pastinha (1889–1981): The "Angolan" Tradition of Capoeira Chapter 12: Malcolm X (1925–1965): A Pan-African Revolutionary Chapter 13: Romare Bearden (1911-1988): Artist, Intellectual, Activist Suggested Readings by Topic Selected Filmography on the Black Atlantic

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Book SynopsisLike snapshots of everyday life in the past, the compelling biographies in this book document the making of the Black Atlantic world since the sixteenth century from the point of view of those who were part of it. Centering on the diaspora caused by the forced migration of Africans to Europe and across the Atlantic to the Americas, the chapters explore the slave trade, enslavement, resistance, adaptation, cultural transformations, and the quest for citizenship rights. The variety of experiences, constraints and choices depicted in the book and their changes across time and space defy the idea of a unified black experience. At the same time, it is clear that in the twentieth century, black identity unified people of African descent who, along with other minority groups, struggled against colonialism and racism and presented alternatives to a version of modernity that excluded and alienated them. Drawing on a rich array of little-known documents, the contributors reconstruct the lives anTrade ReviewThis wonderful addition to the growing scholarship attempts, quite successfully, to add a human face to the black Atlantic. A topical bibliography and a filmography provide instructors and students alike a guide for further research. Highly recommended. * CHOICE *This is the richest and most scholarly collection of individual narratives shaped by the African diaspora since Philip Curtin's Africa Remembered of more than forty years ago. These thirteen biographies span four centuries and offer a compellingly diverse range of the black Atlantic experience. Essential reading for all historians of the Atlantic World. -- David Eltis, Emory UniversityIndispensable for anyone interested in Black Atlantic history. Through well-researched and well-written biographies, the authors move beyond Eurocentric approaches to the past by showing the central role of Africans and their Afro-American descendants in the making of the early modern and modern Atlantic World. -- Walter Hawthorne, Michigan State UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction: People in the Making of the Black Atlantic Chapter 1: Alonso de Illescas (1530s–1580s): African, Ladino, and Maroon Leader in Colonial Ecuador Chapter 2: Gregoria López (1680s): A Mexican Mulata Defends Her Honor Chapter 3: Philip Quaque (1741–1816): African Anglican Missionary on the Gold Coast Chapter 4: Harry Washington (1760s–1790s): A Founding Father's Slave Chapter 5: Rufino José Maria (1820s–1850s): A Muslim in the Nineteenth-Century Brazilian Slave Trade Circuit Chapter 6: Buenaventura Lucumí (1820s–1872): African Slave, Head of a Household, and Lottery Winner in Cuba Chapter 7: Blaise Diagne (1872–1934): Senegal's Deputy to the French National Assembly Chapter 8: Phyllis Ann Edmeade (1920s): Caribbean Migrant Worker Deported from the United States Chapter 9: C. L. R. James (1901–1989): The Black Jacobin Chapter 10: Robert Robinson (1930s): Celebrity Worker in the USSR Chapter 11: Vicente Ferreira Pastinha (1889–1981): The "Angolan" Tradition of Capoeira Chapter 12: Malcolm X (1925–1965): A Pan-African Revolutionary Chapter 13: Romare Bearden (1911-1988): Artist, Intellectual, Activist Suggested Readings by Topic Selected Filmography on the Black Atlantic

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Book SynopsisThis richly illustrated book details the wide-ranging construction and urban planning projects launched across Germany after the Nazi Party seized power. The authors show that it was an intentional program to thoroughly reorganize Germany’s economic, cultural, and political landscapes in order to create a dramatically new Nazi Germany.Trade ReviewAn indispensable work for anyone interested in urban planning and architecture under National Socialism. Erudite, captivating, and filled with fascinating photos and maps, the book leaves the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted and often contradictory imprint of Nazi ideology on the built landscape of Germany. -- Guntram H. Herb, Middlebury CollegeTable of ContentsList of Tables and Figures Preface 1 Statism, Totalitarianism, and National Socialism 2 Things to Take Your Breath Away: The Führer Cities 3 A Nazi Civic Spirit: Reordering Cities and Towns 4 From Chaos to Order and Back Again: Home, Hearth, and Family Life 5 Mind, Body, and Heart: Turning Germans into Nazis 6 The Machinery of Conquest: The Military-Industrial Complex 7 Working toward Genocide: Camps of Confinement, Enslavement, and Death Epilogue: The Building and Breaking of Nazi Germany Notes Bibliography Index About the Authors

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Book Synopsis

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