History of the Americas Books

Book SynopsisTHE GLOBAL PHENOMENON THAT HAS TOUCHED THE HEARTS OF OVER 9 MILLION READERS''Mitch Albom sees the magical in the ordinary'' Cecelia Ahern__________Maybe it was a grandparent, or a teacher or a colleague? Someone older, patient and wise, who understood you when you were young and searching, and gave you sound advice to help you make your way through it? For Mitch Albom, that person was Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago.Maybe, like Mitch, you lost track of this mentor as you made your way, and the insights faded. Wouldn''t you like to see that person again, ask the bigger questions that still haunt you?Mitch Albom had that second chance. He rediscovered Morrie in the last months of the older man''s life. Knowing he was dying of ALS - or motor neurone disease - Mitch visited Morrie in his study every Tuesday, just as they used to back in college. Their rekindled relationship turned into one final ''class'': lessons in how to live.Tuesdays with Morrie is a magical chronicle of their time together, through which Mitch shares Morrie''s lasting gift with the world.Don''t miss Mitch''s uplifting new novel THE LITTLE LIAR, available to pre-order now.__________WHAT READERS SAY ABOUT TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE''You cannot put the book down until you reach the end . . . Too good to be missed. It is really an all-time hit''''One of the most beautiful books I''ve read in a long, long time . . . It will always be one of my favourite books''''This book moved me immensely and its teachings will stay with me''''A simple yet moving account of love and loss - but also hope for something better''''A book I will read and re-read''Trade ReviewMitch Albom sees the magical in the ordinary -- Cecilia AhernPowerful . . . Albom has touched the lives of a lot of people he never even knew * Time *Compelling and uplifting -- IndependentA writer with soul -- Los Angeles TimesAlbom breaks hearts with his stories -- Mirror

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Book SynopsisTHE GLOBAL PHENOMENON THAT HAS TOUCHED THE HEARTS OF OVER 9 MILLION READERS''Mitch Albom sees the magical in the ordinary'' Cecelia Ahern__________Maybe it was a grandparent, or a teacher or a colleague? Someone older, patient and wise, who understood you when you were young and searching, and gave you sound advice to help you make your way through it? For Mitch Albom, that person was Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago.Maybe, like Mitch, you lost track of this mentor as you made your way, and the insights faded. Wouldn''t you like to see that person again, ask the bigger questions that still haunt you?Mitch Albom had that second chance. He rediscovered Morrie in the last months of the older man''s life. Knowing he was dying of ALS - or motor neurone disease - Mitch visited Morrie in his study every Tuesday, just as they used to back in college. Their rekindled relationship turned Trade ReviewMitch Albom sees the magical in the ordinary -- Cecilia AhernPowerful . . . Albom has touched the lives of a lot of people he never even knew * Time *Compelling and uplifting -- IndependentA writer with soul -- Los Angeles TimesAlbom breaks hearts with his stories -- MirrorA beautifully written book of great clarity and wisdom that lovingly captures the simplicity beyond life's complexities * M Scott Peck, author of THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED. *This is a true story that shines and leaves you forever warmed by its afterglow * Amy Tan, author of THE JOY LUCK CLUB *A moving tribute to embracing life. * GLASGOW HERALD *Albom is naturally a colourful writer... Morrie Schwartz stands out as inspiring. * IRELAND SUNDAY TRIBUNE *

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Book SynopsisArthur Miller (1915-2005) was arguably the greatest American playwright of the twentieth century. Hist most famous work for the stage includes Death of a Salesman, The Crucible, All My Sons and A View from the Bridge. Six volumes of his plays and a volume of his theatre essays are published by Methuen Drama.Julie Vatain-Corfdir (volume editor) is Lecturer at the Sorbonne University, Paris. A specialist in English-speaking theatre and translation, she is the author of Translate the Living Letter: English duets on the French Scene (2012). Her other publications include articles on English and American theatre, including the work of Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, Tom Stoppard, Thornton Wilder, Tina Howe and Sarah Ruhl), as well as several contributions on the history and practice of theatrical translation. She also translates for the stage.Susan C. W. Abbotson (series editor) is Professor of Dramatic LiteTrade Review[The book has] extensive but not daunting information under headings such as Historical and Social Context, Genres and Themes and Performance History, among other aspects. It’s clearly and accessibly written. * Ink Pellet: The Arts Magazine for Teachers *Table of ContentsChronology Introduction Historical, Social and Cultural Contexts Genre and Themes Play as Performance Production History Academic Debate Behind the scenes –Interview with Director Ivo van Hove on The Young Vic Production of A View from the Bridge Further Study A View from the Bridge Notes

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Book SynopsisIntroducing the Collins Modern Classics, a series featuring some of the most significant books of recent times, books that shed light on the human experience classics which will endure for generations to come.You can turn your back on a person, but never turn your back on a drug especially when it's waving a razor-sharp hunting knife in your eyes'Roaring down the desert highway, Raoul Duke and his attorney Dr. Gonzo are seeking out the dark side of the American Dream. Armed with a drug arsenal of stupendous proportions, they confront casino operators, police officers and assorted Middle Americans, in surreal, chemically enhanced encounters.Hilarious, hallucinogenic and subversive, Hunter S. Thompson's semi-autobiographical novel is a cult classic and a masterpiece of gonzo journalism.A scorching epochal sensation' Tom WolfeTrade Review‘A classic of our time’ Cormac McCarthy ‘Peers into the best and worst mysteries of the American heart’ Rolling Stone ‘There are only two adjectives writers care about…”brilliant” and “outrageous”. Hunter Thompson has a freehold on both of them. Fear and Loathing is a scorching epochal sensation.’ Tom Wolfe ‘What goes on in these pages makes Lenny Bruce seem angelic… the whole book boils down to a mad, corrosive prose poetry that picks up where Norman Mailer’s An American Dream left off and explores what Tom Wolfe left out’ New York Times

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Book SynopsisAn intriguing glimpse into the future provides information detailng the political and social collision that could occur shortly after the millennium, based on a repeating series of eighty to one hundred year cycles, divided into four turnings--a High, Awakening, Unraveling, and Crisis. Reprint.

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Book SynopsisAn exhilarating real-life Cold War thriller about the Americans who fought for Fidel Castro in the Cuban Revolution - then switched sides to try to bring him down Back in 1957, Castro was a hero to many in the USA for taking up arms against Cuba's dictatorial regime. Two dozen American adventurers joined his rebel band in the mountains, including fervent idealists, a trio of teens from the Guantanamo Bay naval base, a sleazy ex-con who liked underage girls, and at least two future murderers. Castro's eventual victory delighted the world - but then he ran up the red flag and some started wondering if they'd supported the wrong side. A gang of disillusioned American volunteers - including future Watergate burglar Frank Fiorini and journalist Alex Rorke, whose 1963 disappearance remains unsolved - changed allegiances and joined the Cuban exiles, CIA agents and soldiers of fortune who had washed up in Miami ready to fight Castro's regime by any means necessary. These larger-than-life characters wreaked havoc across the Caribbean and went on to be implicated in President Kennedy's assassination, a failed invasion of 'Papa Doc' Duvalier's Haiti and the downfall of Richard Nixon. The Cold War had arrived in Miami, and things would never be the same again.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for DramaNow a major motion picture, available on Disney Plus.Goodreads best non-fiction book of 2016From Tony Award-winning composer-lyricist-star Lin-Manuel Miranda comes a backstage pass to his groundbreaking, hit musical Hamilton.Lin-Manuel Miranda''s groundbreaking musical Hamilton is as revolutionary as its subject, the poor kid from the Caribbean who fought the British, defended the Constitution, and helped to found the United States. Fusing hip-hop, pop, R&B, and the best traditions of theater, this once-in-a-generation show broadens the sound of Broadway, reveals the storytelling power of rap, and claims the origins of the United States for a diverse new generation.HAMILTON: THE REVOLUTION gives readers an unprecedented view of both revolutions, from the only two writers able to provide it. Miranda, along with Jeremy McCarter, a cultural critic and theater artTrade ReviewIt is a magnificent book, unlike any previous book about a play * Chicago Tribune *The best piece of art in any form that I have ever seen in my life -- Michelle Obama, on Hamilton

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Book SynopsisIn the tradition of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, a stunningly vivid historical account of the forty-year battle between Comanche Indians and white settlers for control of the American West, centering on Quanah, the greatest Comanche chief of them all. Empire of the Summer Moon spans two astonishing stories. The first traces the rise and fall of the Comanches, the most powerful Indian tribe in American history. The second is the epic saga of the pioneer woman Cynthia Ann Parker and her mixed-blood son Quanah, who became the last and greatest chief of the Comanches. Although readers may be more familiar with the tribal names Apache and Sioux, it was in fact the legendary fighting ability of the Comanches that determined just how and when the American West opened up. Comanche boys became adept bareback riders by age six; full Comanche braves were considered the best horsemen who ever rode. They were so masterful at war and so skillful with their arrows and lances that they stopped the northern drive of colonial Spain from Mexico and halted the French expansion westward from Louisiana. White settlers arriving in Texas from the eastern United States were surprised to find the frontier being rolled backward by Comanches incensed by the invasion of their tribal lands. Against this backdrop Gwynne presents the compelling drama of Cynthia Ann Parker, a nine-year-old girl who was kidnapped by Comanches in 1836. She grew to love her captors and became infamous as the "White Squaw" who refused to return until her tragic capture by Texas Rangers in 1860. More famous still was her son Quanah, a warrior who was never defeated and whose guerrilla wars in the Texas Panhandle made him a legend. S. C. Gwynne's account of these events is meticulously researched, intellectually provocative, and, above all, thrillingly told.Trade ReviewNothing short of a revelation. Gwynne doesn't merely retell the story of Parker's life. he pulls his readers through an American frontier roiling with extreme violence, political intrigue, bravery, anguish, coruption, love, knives, rifles and arrows. Lots and lots of arrow. This book will leave dust on your jeans. * New York Times *Cuts through all the BS - from the left and right - about how the West was won from the Indians and how America began to lose its soul. * James Patterson *A rivetting book. * Economist *Sam Gwynne is a master story-teller and a dogged reporter, and in this book he makes history come to life in a way that everyone will find irresistible. I couldn't put it down. * The Texas Tribune. *S.C. Gwynne's Empire of the Summer Moon is many things-a thrilling account of the Texas frontier in the nineteenth century, a vivid description of the Comanche nation, a fascinating portrait of Cynthia Ann Parker and her son, the mysterious, magnificent Quanah-but most of all it is a ripping good read. Gwynne writes history with a pounding pulse and a beating heart....I couldn't put it down. * Jake Silverstein, Editor, Texas Monthly. *In this sweeping work, S.C. Gwynne recreates the Comanche's lost world with gusto and style-and without sentimentality. * Hampton Sides, author of Blood and Thunder. *Excellent. * Sunday Times *Gwynne has set out to write a western epic, and his narrative is enormously entertaining, but it is hard to discern a coherent historical thesis. * London Review of Books *... an unashamedly exciting narrative of the American West. * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisSince its U.S. debut a quarter-century ago, this brilliant text has set a new standard for historical scholarship of Latin America. It is also an outstanding political economy, a social and cultural narrative of the highest quality, and perhaps the finest description of primitive capital accumulation since Marx. Rather than chronology, geography, or political successions, Eduardo Galeano has organized the various facets of Latin American history according to the patterns of five centuries of exploitation. Thus he is concerned with gold and silver, cacao and cotton, rubber and coffee, fruit, hides and wool, petroleum, iron, nickel, manganese, copper, aluminum ore, nitrates, and tin. These are the veins which he traces through the body of the entire continent, up to the Rio Grande and throughout the Caribbean, and all the way to their open ends where they empty into the coffers of wealth in the United States and Europe. Weaving fact and imagery into a rich tapestry, Galeano fuses sciTrade ReviewA superbly written, excellently translated, and powerfully persuasive expos which all students of Latin American and U.S. history must read.-Choice Well written and passionately stated, this is an intellectually honest and valuable study.-Library Journal A dazzling barrage of words and ideas.-History

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Book SynopsisBlackshirts & Reds explores some of the big issues of our time: fascism, capitalism, communism, revolution, democracy, and ecology--terms often bandied about but seldom explored in the original and exciting way that has become Michael Parenti's trademark. Parenti shows how rational fascism renders service to capitalism, how corporate power undermines democracy, and how revolutions are a mass empowerment against the forces of exploitative privilege. He also maps out the external and internal forces that destroyed communism, and the disastrous impact of the free-market victory on eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. He affirms the relevance of taboo ideologies like Marxism, demonstrating the importance of class analysis in understanding political realities and dealing with the ongoing collision between ecology and global corporatism. Written with lucid and compelling style, this book goes beyond truncated modes of thought, inviting us to entertain iconoclastic views, and to ask

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Book SynopsisIn popular retellings of American history, capitalism generally doesn't feature much as part of the founding or development of the nation. Instead, it is alluded to in figurative terms as opportunity, entrepreneurial vigor, material abundance, and the seven-league boots of manifest destiny. ?In this collection of essays, Steve Fraser, the preeminent historian of American capitalism, sets the record straight, rewriting the arc of the American saga with class conflict center stage and mounting a serious challenge to the consoling fantasy of American exceptionalism. From the colonial era to Trump, Fraser recovers the repressed history of debtors' prisons and disaster capitalism, of confidence men and the reserve armies of the unemployed. In language that is dynamic and compelling, he demonstrates that class is a fundamental feature of American political life and provides essential intellectual tools for a shrew reading of American history.Trade Review"A spirited collection by an erudite and penetrating essayist. Fraser is an analyst of the culture of late capitalism and, among other things, he demonstrates with impressive clarity the connections between the economic changes we call neoliberalism and the psycho-cultural dramas generated by the siren song of faux populism." -- FRANCES FOX PIVEN, AUTHOR OF POOR PEOPLE’S MOVEMENTS"Steve Fraser is our most incisive and encompassing cultural historian of the two gilded ages that structured American society and its economic ethos in the decades that have bracketed the nation's fleeting New Deal interregnum. Fraser has captured the emotive logic of capitalist hegemony and the dark appeal it has so often held for millions of acquiescent Americans." -- NELSON LICHTENSTEIN, AUTHOR OF WHO BUILT AMERICA?"In this collection of bracing essays, Fraser brings to the fore the perils and promise of class warfare and the daunting challenges faced by everyone who hopes to defy history and work for a just society." -- JACQUELINE JONES, AUTHOR OF GODDESS OF ANARCHY"These essays show that Steve Fraser has long been one of the wisest and most eloquent historians of American capitalism and its discontents. Erudite, passionate, and laced with wit, they are essential reading during our era of great perils and budding hopes for change." -- MICHAEL KAZIN, PROFESSOR OF HISTORY, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY"Fraser is our preeminent historian of America as a capitalist civilization. No one is more attuned to the inner vibrations of our monied culture." -- COREY ROBIN, AUTHOR OF THE REACTIONARY MINDOne of our best social historians set the record straight about the mythologies of American capitalism. -- Peter Dreier, author of Place Matters: Metropolitics for the Twenty-first Century[The essays] display his encyclopedic knowledge of U.S. history, especially working-class history. -- Gabriel Winant * New Republic *

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Book Synopsis'Wry, readable and often astonishing... A provocative and absorbing history of the United States' New York TimesThe United States denies having dreams of empire.We know America has spread its money, language and culture across the world, but we still think of it as a contained territory, framed by Canada above, Mexico below, and oceans either side. Nothing could be further from the truth.This is the story of the United States outside the United States – from nineteenth-century conquests like Alaska and Puerto Rico to the catalogue of islands, archipelagos and military bases dotted around the globe. Full of surprises and previously forgotten episodes, this fascinating book casts America’s history, and its present, in a revealing new light.Trade Review[A] smashing new book… fascinating -- Tim Stanley * Daily Telegraph *Lively and fascinating … [Immerwahr] is incapable of writing a dull page, and he has a real gift for making striking and unusual connections -- Noel Malcolm * Sunday Telegraph *To call this standout book a corrective would make it sound earnest and dutiful, when in fact it is wry, readable and often astonishing … It’s a testament to Immerwahr’s considerable storytelling skills that I found myself riveted by his sections on Hoover’s quest for standardized screw threads, wondering what might happen next. But beyond its collection of anecdotes and arcana, this humane book offers something bigger and more profound. How to Hide an Empire nimbly combines breadth and sweep with fine-grained attention to detail. The result is a provocative and absorbing history of the United States — ‘not as it appears in its fantasies, but as it actually is.’ * New York Times *There are many histories of American expansionism. How to Hide an Empire renders them all obsolete. It is brilliantly conceived, utterly original, and immensely entertaining - simultaneously vivid, sardonic and deadly serious. -- Andrew J. Bacevich, author of Twilight of the American CenturyThis book changes our understanding of the fundamental character of the United States as a presence in world history. By focusing on the processes by which Americans acquired, controlled, and were affected by territory, Daniel Immerwahr shows that the United States was not just another “empire,” but was a highly distinctive one the dimensions of which have been largely ignored. -- David A. Hollinger, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of California, Berkeley, and author of Protestants AbroadHow to Hide an Empire is a breakthrough, for both Daniel Immerwahr and our collective understanding of America’s role in the world. His narrative of the rise of our colonial empire outside North America, and then our surprising pivot from colonization to globalization after World War II, is enthralling in the telling -- and troubling for anyone pondering our nation’s past and future. The result is a book for citizens and scholars alike. -- Samuel Moyn, professor of law and history at Yale UniversityA deft disquisition on America, and America in the world, with a raconteur’s touch and keen sense of the absurd -- Stephen Phillips * Spectator *[A] lively new book… Immerwahr peppers his account with colourful characters and enjoyable anecdotes… [How to Hide an Empire] throws light on the histories of everything from the Beatles to Godzilla, the birth-control pill to the transistor radio * Economist *This is an easily readable and vividly written book, filled with numerous fascinating tales, some well known, but many obscure… [How to Hide an Empire] illuminate[s] the wider history of both the United States and its colonies -- Andrew Johnstone * BBC History *How to Hide an Empire…achieves a strong grounding in its sources material and the wider history of empire studies… [it] is timely and raises weighty questions on themes of identity and belong that are all very relevant today * All About History *[A] vivid, and sometimes quirky, retelling of American expansionism… The originality of Immerwahr’s book… [is] in his explanation of how Washington purposely avoided converting its occupations to annexations -- Gavin Jacobson * New Statesman *Daniel Immerwahr… writes in the manner of an entertaining and informative lecturer who cannot wait to tell the class his latest discovery from the archives -- James Michael * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisYou've seen the show, you've sung the songs, now read the full story of America's most misunderstood founding father. 'I was swept up by the story. I thought it 'out-Dickens' Dickens in the unlikeliness of this man's rise from his humble beginnings in Nevis in the Caribbean, to changing, helping shape our young nation. And it's uniquely an immigrant story and it's uniquely a story about writers... It's an amazing biography' LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA Alexander Hamilton was an illegitimate self-taught orphan from the Caribbean who overcame all the odds to become George Washington's aide-de-camp and the first Treasury Secretary of the United States. Few figures in American history are more controversial than Alexander Hamilton. In this masterful work, Chernow shows how the political and economic power of America today is the result of Hamilton's willingness to champion ideas that were often wildly disputed during his time. He charts his titanic feuds with Jefferson, Adams, Madison, Monroe and Burr; his highly public affair with Maria Reynolds; his loving marriage to his loyal wife Eliza; and the notorious duel with Aaron Burr that led to his death in July 1804.Trade ReviewA mammoth work of research that charted the course of Hamilton's dazzling career and the dark controversies that accompanied it * Guardian *A magnificent biography * Spectator *An elegantly written, richly detailed account of Hamilton's tempestuous life * The Times *Nobody has captured Hamilton better than Chernow * New York Times Book Review *Chernow charts his way through Hamilton's hectic life, and the tumultuous times in which he lived, with aplomb * Military History Monthly *That biography is incredible. It out-Dickenses Charles Dickens -- Lin-Manuel MirandaA brilliant recreation of the society and culture of the time: thoughtful and playful, moving and powerful -- Michael Gove

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Book SynopsisThe U.S. Constitution was written more than 230 years ago for a new country on the periphery of the world. Two centuries later, it governs the most powerful nation on earth, and its meaning is constantly debated. The U.S. Constitution in Five Minutes presents fifty-nine essays on subjects central to the meaning and application of the U.S. Constitution. Written by scholars, these essays cover origins; institutions, processes, and structural features; civil rights and liberties; and modes of interpretation and address common questions and misunderstandings about the Constitution, such as: • Can the president start a war? • Does the Constitution protect hate speech? • Does the Second Amendment give everyone the right to have a gun? • Does the Constitution protect noncitizens? • How can we tell what the Constitution means? Intended for anyone who wants a deeper understanding of the underlying principles of the U.S. political system, the book will also be a valuable supplement to political science courses. As with all the “Five Minutes” books, the essays are written in lively and accessible prose and are brief enough to be read in five minutes.Table of ContentsPreface Origins Why do we have a Constitution? James Todd (Palm Beach Atlantic University) Who wrote the Constitution? Madison Shanks and Kirk A. Randazzo (both at University of South Carolina) Human nature and the Constitution David Lay Williams (DePaul University) Racism in the Constitution Leslie F. Goldstein (University of Delaware) Emulation and innovation in the constitutional system A.K. Shauku (SUNY Buffalo) How can we tell what the Constitution means? Sara C. Benesh (University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee) Is the Constitution what the justices say it is? Joseph L. Smith Congress and the States What can states do? John D. Nugent (Connecticut College) What is ‘commerce among the several states,’ and why does it matter? H. W. Perry (University of Texas, Austin) What can’t states do? Joseph L. Smith How can governments use the power to tax? Jolly A. Emrey (University of Wisconsin, Whitewater) Why is it hard to sue a state? Susan W. Johnson (University of North Carolina, Greensboro) Conflicts between the Branches What is the purpose of separation of powers? Joseph L. Smith The President as chief executive David Crockett (Trinity University. San Antonio) The crucial power to appoint and remove officials Robert J. Hume (Fordham University) Who really makes the laws? Eric Heberlig (University of North Carolina, Charlotte) Executive orders: statutes in disguise? Chris Edelson (American University) Can the President start a war? Rebecca U. Thorpe (University of Washington, Seattle) How can we get rid of a bad President? Donald A. Zinman (Grand Valley State University) Judicial review Allyson Yankle (Radford University) The challenge of judicial independence Charles Gardner Geyh (Indiana University) Representative Democracy Who can vote? Greg W. Vonhamme (University of Missouri, Kansas City) Why is my congressional district such a weird shape? Jeffrey L. Bernstein (Eastern Michigan University) Is the Electoral College undemocratic? Sheahan Virgin (Grinnell College) Why do Wyoming and California have the same number of senators? Ben Kassow (University of North Dakota) Term lengths, stability, and responsiveness Beth Henschen (Eastern Michigan University) Can the Constitution handle political parties? Michael Catalano (SUNY, Binghamton) Campaign finance and the First Amendment Bruce Larson (Gettysburg College) Is the administrative state unconstitutional? Christine Kexel Chabot Loyola University Chicago) Individual Liberties Does the Constitution protect hate speech? Tim Johnson (University of Minnesota) Does the Constitution protect the right to lie? Keith Bybee (Syracuse University) Can I be prosecuted for telling someone to break the law? David E. Klein Do the media have special rights? Mark J. Richards (Grand Valley State University) Is all religious behavior protected? Barry Pyle (Eastern Michigan University) Separation of church and state Chris Kromphardt (University of Iowa) Does a Twitter ban violate the Constitution? Lawrence Baum (Iowa State University) Does the Second Amendment give me the right to carry a gun? William Merkel (Charleston School of Law) Private property and the takings clause Bob Howard (Georgia State University) Is there a right to abortion in the Constitution? Chase Porter (California Baptist University) Equality and Civil Rights How did the Civil War amendments change the Constitution? Gbemende Johnson (Hamilton College) Who is a citizen? Anna O. Law (CUNY Brooklyn College) Does the Constitution protect non-citizens? Allen Linken (University of Alabama) Does the equal protection clause cover gender? Laura P. Moyer (University of Louisville) Equal protection beyond race and sex David E. Klein Regulating private discrimination Karen Swenson (Eastern Illinlois University) Does the Constitution permit affirmative action? Kyla K. Stepp (Central Michigan University) Is There a right to same-sex marriage? Robert J. Hume The Criminal Justice Process Homes and the Fourth Amendment Pamela C. Corley (Southern Methodist University) Automobiles and the Fourth Amendment Melinda Gann Hall (Michigan State University) Electronic surveillance and tracking Tinsley Griffin Hill (Alabama Legislative Services Agency) Taking the Fifth David E. Klein Police interrogations and the Miranda Warnings Ryan J. Williams (University of South Alabama) Why do courts throw out good evidence? Wendy L. Martinek (Binghamtpon University) Cruel and unusual punishments Taneisha N. Means (Vassar College) Looking Outward and Forward The U.S. Constitution as an international model Monica Lineberger (University of Wisconsin, Whitewater) Different approaches to national constitutions Matthew Reid Krell (Vassar College) Does the Constitution work in a crisis? David Crockett Does the Constitution cause gridlock? Richard L. Pacelle, Jr. (University of Tennessee) Does the amendment process need amendment? Bruce Peabody (Farleigh Dickinson University)

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Book SynopsisA memoir of land, family and perseverance from one of the most influential writers in America.In this moving and surprising book, Joan Didion reassesses parts of her life, her work, her history and America's. Where I Was From, in Didion''s words, represents an exploration into my own confusions about the place and the way in which I grew up, misapprehensions and misunderstandings so much a part of who I became that I can still to this day confront them only obliquely.The book is a haunting narrative of how her own family moved west with the frontier from the birth of her great-great-great-great-great-grandmother in Virginia in 1766 to the death of her mother on the edge of the Pacific in 2001; of how the wagon-train stories of hardship and abandonment and endurance created a culture in which survival would seem the sole virtue. Didion examines how the folly and recklessness in the very grain of the California settlement led to the California we know today a state mortgaged first to tTrade Review‘Her tough, beautiful, surgically precise prose is like nothing else I’ve ever read.’ Donna Tartt ‘She is a voice like no other in contemporary journalism.’ New York Times ‘Everything Didion writes has a land’s end edginess to it- a hyperattentiveeye on the dramas of the human condition. She writes as someone who has come through great shudders of the earth with a fundamental understanding that everything is subject to instantaneous and complete revision.’ Village Voice ‘She is the best chronicler California has.’ Vogue ‘Valediction and elegy alike, WHERE I WAS FROM is a storm-tossed book… Some writers see Californians as brilliant dreamers; others see failures, seeking a second start. Didion steps over both arguments and portrays the settlers of the state as shrewd entrepreneurs who would stop at nothing to turn dirt into dollars.’ Thomas Curwen, LA Times

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Book SynopsisBecause it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!In a small tight-knit community, gossip and rumour spread like wildfire, inflaming personal grievances until no-one is safe from accusation and vengeance. The Crucible is Arthur Miller''s classic dramatisation of the witch-hunt and trials that besieged the Puritan community of Salem in 1692. Seen as a chilling parallel to the McCarthyism and repressive culture of fear that gripped America in the 1950s, the play''s timeless relevance and appeal remains as strong as when the play opened on Broadway in 1953.This new edition includes an introduction by Soyica Diggs Colbert, that explores the play''s production history as well as the dramatic, thematic, and academic debates that surround it; a must-have resource for any student exploring <Trade Review[The book has] extensive but not daunting information under headings such as Historical and Social Context, Genres and Themes and Performance History, among other aspects. It’s clearly and accessibly written. * Ink Pellet: The Arts Magazine for Teachers *Table of ContentsChronology Introduction Historical, Social and Cultural Contexts Genre and Themes Play as Performance Production History Academic Debate Behind the scenes – Interview with Set Designer Soutra Gilmore on The Old Vic production of The Crucible, directed by Yaël Farber Further Study The Crucible Notes

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Book Synopsis''Hilarious, heartbreaking and utterly extraordinary.'' Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times Books of the YearSuperbly entertaining.' Financial TimesJaw-dropping.' Sunday TimesFascinating.' GuardianGripping.' The TimesTerrific . . . A page-turning history of imperial hubris and nemesis, deceit and delusion, love and betrayal on a grand scale.' Sunday TimesIn 1864, a young Austrian archduke by the name of Maximilian crossed the Atlantic to assume a faraway throne. He had been lured into the voyage by a duplicitous Napoleon III. Keen to spread his own interests abroad, the French emperor had promised Maximilian a hero's welcome. Instead, he walked into a bloody guerrilla war. With a head full of impractical ideals and a penchant for pomp and butterflies the new emperor' was singularly ill-equipped for what lay in store.This is the vivid history of this barely known, barely b

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Book SynopsisThe American West, 1860-1890: years of broken promises, disillusionment, war and massacre.Beginning with the Long Walk of the Navajos and ending with the massacre of Sioux at Wounded Knee, this extraordinary book tells how the American Indians lost their land, lives and liberty to white settlers pushing westward.Trade ReviewOriginal, remarkable and finally heartbreaking...Impossible to put down * New York Times *Shattering, appalling, compelling * Washington Post *An essential insight into modern America * Daily Telegraph *Calculated to make the head pound, the heart ache and the blood boil * The Times *

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Book SynopsisThis is a must read book for all those who love America and want it to be healed.' -- Justin Webb, presenter of the BBC's Today programme and AmericastUnflinching and insightful.' -- Lyse Doucet, the BBC''s Chief International CorrespondentFrom the author of When America Stopped Being Great, an insightful and urgent reassessment of America's past, present and future. With an updated new section covering the ever-changing political landscape.The Forever War tells the story of how America's extreme polarization is 250 years in the making, and argues that the roots of its modern-day malaise are to be found in its troubled and unresolved past.As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the American experiment is failing. Division, mistrust and misinformation are now the country's defining characteristics. The storming of the Capitol, the prosecution of Donald Trump and battles over gun rights and abortion raise the spectre of further political violence.Nick Bryant explains how the hate, divisiveness and paranoia we see today are in fact a core part of America's story. Combining brilliant storytelling, historical research and first-hand reportage, Bryant argues that insurrections, massacres and civil disturbances should sadly not be seen as abnormalities; they are a part of the fabric of the history of America.

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Book SynopsisAn Ernest Hemingway Biography Like No Other“...illuminates his life and works in ways not seen before.” —Sigrid Nunez, National Book Award winner and author of The Friend and What Are You Going Through#1 New Release in Historical Latin America BiographiesDiscover Hemingway’s biography through the eyes of a fellow author and journalist. New York Times bestselling author of Salt, Mark Kurlansky turns his historical eye to the life of Ernest Hemingway. Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, The Importance of Not Being Ernest shows the huge shadow Hemingway casts. The perfect gift for writers. By a series of coincidences, Mark Kurlansky’s life has always been intertwined with Ernest Hemingway's legend, starting with being in Idaho the day of Hemingway’s death. The Importance of Not Being Ernest explores the intersections between Hemingway’s and Kurlansky’s lives, resulting in creative accounts of two inspiring writing careers. Travel the world with Mark Kurlansky and Ernest Hemingway in this personal memoir, where Kurlansky details his ten years in Paris and his time as a journalist in Spain—both cities important to Hemingway’s adventurous life and prolific writing. Paris, Basque Country, Havana and Idaho. Get to know the extraordinary people he met there—those who had also fallen under the Hemingway spell, including a Vietnam veteran suffering from the same syndrome the author did, two winners of the Key West Hemingway look-alike contest, and the man in Idaho who took Hemingway hunting and fishing.In this unique gift for writers, find: A memoir full of entertaining and illuminative stories Little-known historical facts about Hemingway’s life Anecdotes about those who suffer from what the Kurlansky calls “hemitis” Readers of Haruki Murakami’s What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley in Search of America, or The Boys will love The Importance of Not Being Ernest.Trade Review“Kurlansky (Salt: A World History) focuses on all of the coincidental intersections between his life and Ernest Hemingway’s in this multi-genre work. Part travel memoir, part history, it trapeses through France, Spain, Cuba, Idaho, and finally New York, connecting literary and moments and personal experiences in Kurlansky’s and Hemingway’s lives. Reports from Kurlansky’s and Hemingway’s careers as foreign correspondents, then expats, in Spain and Paris blend seamlessly with Kurlansky’s descriptions of regional conflicts and cultures, and each chapter is connected by watercolor stills from Kurlansky’s travel diaries, which add an authentic touch to the storytelling. Beyond his astute humor, Kurlansky handles the contradictions between ‘Hemingway, the man’ and ‘Hemingway, the myth’ with genuine reverence and a critical eye. He gives us another lens through which to view Hemingway’s work: geography; he argues that Hemingway himself impacted the places he traveled as much as did his writing. VERDICT: An absolute delight! Full of personality, Kurlansky’s book will enchant history, literature, and Hemingway fans alike."—Library Journal, Starred Review“The ghost of Hemingway has haunted and inspired at least three generations of American writers. Mark Kurlansky is no exception, and his detailed, self-deprecating account of the presence of that ghost is as brilliantly revealing of Hemingway as it is of Kurlansky himself. He knows his Hemingway, the life and the works, and he knows his Kurlansky, and he’s bitingly honest about both writers. Kurlansky, however, comes off as a hell of a lot more likable.”—Russell Banks, author of Continental Drift, Cloudsplitter, and Lost Memory of Skin“For all that’s already been written about Hemingway,The Importance of Not Being Ernest illuminates his life and works in ways not seen before. Our Not-Ernest is a superbly knowledgeable and entertaining guide, and the book artfully braids the Hemingway narrative with Kurlansky’s own rich experiences as a world-traveling journalist and bestselling author. Kurlansky’s idea for a memoir was inspired; the result is a brilliant and original achievement, a feast for readers, whether fans of Papa or not.”—Sigrid Nunez, author of the National Book Award-winning novel, The Friend, and What Are You Going ThroughTable of ContentsPROLOGUE: A Dream Intrudes CHAPTER ONE: Entrances and Exits CHAPTER TWO: A Writer Must Escape CHAPTER THREE: The Grass in Paris CHAPTER FOUR: The Patent-leather Soul of Spain CHAPTER FIVE: Cuba and the Unspeakable Feast CHAPTER SIX: Idaho and the Last Escape EPILOGUE: Unnatural New York BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Book SynopsisThebrilliant account of the Nixon era, from his 1968 election to his spectacular 1974 demise, now in paperback.Trade Review"A richly detailed descent into the inferno -- that is, the years when Richard Milhous Nixon, 'a serial collector of resentments,' ruled the land." -- Kirkus Reviews"Nixonland is a grand historical epic. Rick Perlstein has turned a story we think we know -- American politics between the opposing presidential landslides of 1964 and 1972 -- into an often surprising and always fascinating new narrative. This riveting book, full of colorful detail and great characters, brings back to life an astonishing era -- and shines a new light on our own." -- Jeffrey Toobin author of The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court"This is a terrific read. What a delight it is to discover the new generation of historians like Rick Perlstein not only getting history correct but giving us all fresh insights and understanding of it." -- John W. Dean Nixon's White House counsel"Rick Perlstein has written a fascinating account of the rise of Richard Nixon and a persuasive argument that this angry, toxic man will always be part of the American landscape." -- Richard Reeves author of President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination"Rick Perlstein's Nixonland digs deep into a decisive period of our history and brings back a past that is all the scarier for its intense humanity. With a firm grasp on the larger meaning of countless events and personalities, many of them long forgotten, Perlstein superbly shows how paranoia and innuendo flowed into the mainstream of American politics after 1968, creating divisive passions that have survived for decades." -- Sean Wilentz Princeton University, author of The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008"The best book written about the 1960s." -- Newsweek

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Book SynopsisCo-author of the groundbreaking Empire and Multitude, Michael Hardt examines The Declaration of Independence and other texts by Thomas Jefferson, arguing that his powerful concept of democracy provides a biting critique of the current American administration. Introducing this collection of Jefferson's writings, Michael Hardt makes a powerful case for re-examining the foundational writings of this American revolutionary in order to reignite the dialogue that first conceived of a "land of the free".Trade Review"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots & tyrants. It is its natural manure."--Thomas Jefferson

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Book Synopsis''This was much more than a bunch of guys out on an exploring and collecting expedition. This was a military expedition into hostile territory''. In 1803 President Thomas Jefferson selected his personal secretary, Captain Meriwether Lewis, to lead a pioneering voyage across the Great Plains and into the Rockies. It was completely uncharted territory; a wild, vast land ruled by the Indians. Charismatic and brave, Lewis was the perfect choice and he experienced the savage North American continent before any other white man. UNDAUNTED COURAGE is the tale of a hero, but it is also a tragedy. Lewis may have received a hero''s welcome on his return to Washington in 1806, but his discoveries did not match the president''s fantasies of sweeping, fertile plains ripe for the taking. Feeling the expedition had been a failure, Lewis took to drink and piled up debts. Full of colourful characters - Jefferson, the president obsessed with conquering the west; William Clark, the rugged frontiersman; Sa

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Book SynopsisAn explosive exposé of the man who devoted his career to shackling democracy — and succeeded. Libertarian billionaires are using their wealth and power to drastically curtail the US democratic process, disempowering ordinary citizens whilst entrenching the influence of corporations as never before. In Democracy in Chains, award-winning historian Nancy MacLean reveals how the ideas of Nobel Prize-winning political economist James McGill Buchanan have been used to undermine the power of voters in a country whose Constitution is founded on the principle ‘We the people’. Now, with Mike Pence as Vice President, this chilling movement has a loyalist in the White House, as well as supporters in the House, the Senate, a majority of state governments, and the courts. Democracy in Chains is a timely, important book, which should be read by anybody interested in the future of democracy.Trade Review‘It’s the missing chapter: a key to understanding the politics of the past half century. To read Nancy MacLean’s new book, Democracy in Chains is to see what was previously invisible.’ -- George Monbiot * The Guardian *'It’s happening: the subversion of our democratic system from within. How did the political right do it? Nancy MacLean tells the long-overlooked story of the political economist who developed the playbook for the Koch brothers. James McGill Buchanan merged states rights’ thinking with free market principles and helped to fashion the inherently elitist ideology of today’s Republican Party. Professor MacLean’s meticulous research and shrewd insights make this a must-read for all who believe in government ‘by the people.' -- Nancy Isenberg, author of White Trash: the 400-year untold history of class in America'This book is mesmerising. Rarely have I encountered a work that speaks to such significant issues, with evidence rooted in conclusive new sources. In clear prose, MacLean reveals how a public once committed to social responsibility and egalitarian values became persuaded that only an unregulated free market could protect ‘liberty’ and ‘choice.’ Because of this, our once cherished democracy is now subject to attack. Everyone who wants to understand today’s confrontational politics should read this important book, now.' -- Alice Kessler-Harris, author of In Pursuit of Equity: women, men, and the quest for economic citizenship in twentieth-century America‘How did we get to where we are today? How did corporations come to possess ‘rights?’ How did democracy come to be defined as selfish individualism? Or money as free speech? Nancy MacLean’s Democracy in Chains provides the answers. It is essential reading in order to understand the ideas that billionaires use to justify their control of our political institutions. I can’t imagine a more timely or urgent book.’ -- Greg Grandin, author of Fordlandia (finalist for the Pulitzer Prize) and The Empire of Necessity (winner of the Bancroft Prize)‘[MacLean] creates a chilling portrait of an arrogant, uncompromising, and unforgiving man … [she] offers a cogent yet disturbing analysis of libertarians' current efforts to rewrite the social contract and manipulate citizens' beliefs … An unsettling exposé of the depth and breadth of the libertarian agenda.’ * Kirkus Reviews *‘MacLean constructs an erudite, searing portrait of how the late political economist James McGill Buchanan (1919 - 2013) and his deep-pocketed conservative allies have reshaped — and undermined — American democracy … A thoroughly researched and gripping narrative, she exposes how Buchanan’s strategies shaped trends in government in favour of ‘corporate dominance’ and against the welfare state … She has delivered another deeply important book … Her work here is a feat of American intellectual and political history.’ STARRED REVIEW * Publisher's Weekly *‘For those who think the Tea Party, Freedom Caucus, and the alt-right are recent constructs, MacLean provides an extensive history lesson that traces the genesis of the right wing back to post-WWII doctrines … A worthy companion to Jane Mayer’s Dark Money, MacLean’s intense and extensive examination of the right-wing’s rise to power is perhaps the best explanation to date of the roots of the political divide that threatens to irrevocably alter American government.’ STARRED REVIEW * Booklist *‘A remarkable new book which argues that the radical right revolution engineered by Charles and his brother David is not just about accruing political and economic power, but about restricting democracy itself.’ * The New Republic *‘[A] vibrant intellectual history of the radical right … [MacLean] has dug deep into her material — not just Buchanan’s voluminous, unsorted papers, but other archives, too — and she has made powerful and disturbing use of it all … The behind-the-scenes days and works of Buchanan show how much deliberation and persistence — in the face of formidable opposition — underlie the anti-governing politics ascendant today. What we think of as dysfunction is the result of years of strategic effort.’ * The Atlantic *‘This sixty-year campaign to make libertarianism mainstream and eventually take the government itself is at the heart of Democracy in Chains … [MacLean] takes the time to meticulously trace how we got here … If you're worried about what all this means for America's future, you should be … And if someone you know isn't convinced, you have just the book to hand them.’ * NPR *‘[A] riveting, unsettling account of 'Tennessee country boy' James McGill Buchanan, key architect of today's radical right.’ * O, The Oprah Magazine *‘Clear and compelling … timely.’ * The Sunday Post *‘A remarkable book … Democracy in Chains is a revelation, as politics and as history.’ * Jacobin *‘Democracy in Chains should be read by every thinking person in the United States. It is disturbing, revealing, and vitally important.’ * new york journal of books *‘Nancy MacLean has done us a true and timely service.’ * New Internationalist *‘This book’s importance cannot be underestimated … powerful and disturbing.’ -- Antony Loewenstein * Weekend Australian *‘Explosive and controversial.’ * Canberra Times *‘Democracy in Chains leaves me with hope: Perhaps as books like MacLean’s continue to shine a light on important truths, Americans will begin to realise they need to pay more attention and not succumb to the cynical view that known liars make the best leaders.’ * New York Times Book Review *‘[T]his book is a superb contribution to our understanding of the rise of libertarian notion and right-wing political power in the US.’ -- Bill McKibbern * TLS *‘Nancy MacLean’s Democracy In Chains is a work of the utmost importance and makes a unique and outstanding contribution in understanding America, in both historic and contemporary terms. It forces us to engage with and think deeply about the use and abuse of power.’ * Economic and Labour Relations Review *

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Book SynopsisThe life of Sir Harry Perry Robinson (1859-1930) unfolds like a Boy''s Own adventure. Born in India and educated at Oxford, Harry fled to the United States to make his name and fortune. After a stint in the gold mines of the American West, he became a major force in the railroad industry and helped to elect a U.S. President. Returning to England, Harry had a celebrated career as a book publisher (discovering the American author Jack London) and as a journalist for The Times, serving as the oldest correspondent during the First World War and going on to have one of the scoops of the century: the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1923.Harry''s incredible journey unfolds against the background of his equally adventurous and accomplished family. His father, Julian, was an Indian Army chaplain and newspaper editor. His aunt was a suffragette and personal friend of both Disraeli and Gladstone. Brother Philip was a dashing foreign correspondent, arrested as a spy during the Spanish-AmerTrade ReviewWhat McAleer has come up with is a forensic yet readable account of the gifted, personally adventurous but politically conservative Robinson. * Dominic Maxwell, The Times *Robinson's journalistic career gave him a ringside seat at some of the most dramatic events of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, from the American Gold Rush of the 1880s to the excavation of Tutankhamun's tomb. He had the three crucial attributes common to all great reporters: an eye for a good story, the wit and tenacity to research it properly and the ability to write it up in an entertaining way ... Joseph McAleer has performed a valuable service in bringing his fine work to the fore. * William Cook, The Spectator *Escape Artist is well researched and, for the most part, well-written * Wall Street Journal *I don't think I've ever enjoyed a memoir as much as I enjoyed this life of Harry Perry Robinson. The book is a 'keeper' that I intend to read more than once. Author Joseph McAleer has done us a great favor by so ably bringing this complex and intriguing character to life again. * David F. Beer, Roads to the Great War *Here is a life out of the ordinary that holds especial interest. * Philip Waller, University of Oxford, author of Writers, Readers, and Reputations: Literary Life in Britain 1870-1918 *Table of ContentsIntroduction: The English Family Robinson 1: Innocent Abroad, 1883-1886 2: Tycoon in Training, 1887-1894 3: Junior Kingmaker, 1895-1899 4: London Bookman, 1900-1905 5: Man of The Times, 1906-1913 6: War Correspondent, 1914-1918 7: World Traveler, 1919-1922 8: Tut Factotum, 1923 9: Elder Statesman, 1924-1929 Epilogue: 1930 Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewLeaders rexamines old notions of leadership - especially the outdated view that history is shaped by great men going it alone. General McChrystal shows us that leadership can take many forms, leaders often have different strengths, and great leaders can come from anywhere -- SHERYL SANDBERG * COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org *Leaders is a superb, thought-provoking challenge to conventional understanding of the nature of leadership. An enlightening, entertaining must-read about why we revere so many leaders who are often deeply flawed and even unsuccessful, and the lessons for thinking about and teaching leadership in the future -- ROBERT M. GATES * former US Secretary of Defense *Leadership, we learn, is complex. At a time when Americans yearn for leaders we can admire and respect, this book... will help you think differently about both leadership and our history -- WALTER ISAACSON * author of Steve Jobs and Leonardo da Vinci *No living American has more convincingly combined the practice and teaching of leadership than General Stanley McChrystal: that's why Yale students flock to his classes. Now, in Leaders, he invites us to join them, with Plutarch as his teaching assistant. No current or aspiring leader can afford to miss this shrewd and surprising book -- JOHN LEWIS GADDIS * Yale University *Leaders is a must-read for all leaders - whether they're just beginning their careers or whether they're already leading an entire organization -- KEN LANGONE * author of I Love Capitalism! *Whenever Stanley McChrystal talks, I take notes. I am so drawn to his ability to cut through pop-culture theories about leadership to get to the core of what actually makes a leader. Leaders takes us deeper than most other leadership books into the true and often messy mechanics of leadership. Anyone who considers themselves a student of leadership must read this book -- SIMON SINEK * optimist and author of Start With Why and Leader Eat Last *

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Book SynopsisAn exploration of the captivating work and mystical outlook of the modern artist Remedios Varo, focusing on her years in Mexico City

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Book SynopsisExam board: EdexcelLevel: A-levelSubject: History First teaching: September 2015First exams: Summer 2016Target success in Edexcel AS/A-level History with this proven formula for effective, structured revision. Key content coverage is combined with exam preparation activities and exam-style questions to create a revision guide that students can rely on to review, strengthen and test their knowledge.- Enables students to plan and manage a successful revision programme using the topic-by-topic planner- Consolidates knowledge with clear and focused content coverage, organised into easy-to-revise chunks- Encourages active revision by closely combining historical content with related activities- Helps students build, practise and enhance their exam skills as they progress through activities set at three different levels- Improves exam technique through exam-style questions with sample answers and commentary from expert authors and teachers- Boosts historical knowledge with a useful glossary and timeline

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Book SynopsisLonglisted for the Booker Prize, a powerful American debut portraying life after slavery in the vein of WASHINGTON BLACKTrade ReviewThe Sweetness of Water is a fine, lyrical novel, impressive at the level of the sentence, and in its complex interweaving of the grand and the intimate, of the personal and political. In presenting two narratives largely overlooked in traditional renderings of the war, Harris breathes new life into a period of history whose stories have grown stale with overtelling * Observer *An insightful first novel... [a] highly accomplished debut * Sunday Times *This debut novel astonished us as much for its wise, lyrical voice as for its dense realisation of a fictional small town in the American South at a rarely written about moment... We were incredibly impressed by the way it probes themes of trans-historical importance - about race, sexuality, violence and grief - through meticulously-drawn characters and a patient examination of their relationships * The Booker Prize Judges *In the right hands, historical fiction can often capture the truth of our own times more successfully than many contemporary attempts. . . Readers will often forget that this is a debut novel; one of Harris's greatest gifts, aside from those beautifully wrought sentences, is his empathy, his ability to slip inside the skins of these men and women . . . in his unsparing examination of both hatred and deep love, Harris will win over the hearts of many readers * Financial Times *Harris is a writer of great lyricism and power . . . an arresting debut * The i *As I read this masterful novel I kept thinking-this young 29-year-old is a first-time author, so how did he do this? As the best writers can do, Nathan takes us back in time, and helps us to feel we are right there with Prentiss and Landry as they get their first taste of freedom. I rooted for them, and feared for them too * Oprah in Associated Press *[An] ambitious debut novel . . . this is impressive stuff * The Times *That this powerful book is Nathan Harris's debut novel is remarkable; that he's only 29 is miraculous. His prose is burnished with an antique patina that evokes the mid-19th century. And he explores this liminal moment in history with extraordinary sensitivity to the range of responses from Black and White Americans contending with a revolutionary ideal of personhood. . . . Harris stacks the timbers of this plot deliberately, and the moment a spark alights, the whole structure begins to burn hot. If this is an era - and a genre - that has no room for encouragement, THE SWEETNESS OF WATER is finally willing to carve out a little oasis of hope * Washington Post *What a gifted, assured writer Nathan Harris is. He does what all novelists are supposed to do-give birth to vivid characters, people worth caring about, and then get out of their way. The result is better than any debut novel has a right to be. With The Sweetness of Water, Harris has, in a sense, unwritten Gone With the Wind, detonating its phony romanticism, its unearned sympathies, its wretched racism -- Richard RussoHarris' lucid prose and vivid characterization illustrate a community at war with itself, poisoned by pride and mired in racial and sexual bigotry. . . Harris' first novel is an aching chronicle of loss, cruelty, and love in the wake of community devastation * Booklist, starred review *As beautiful as it is violent, this moving novel explores how love can bloom even in the most harrowing of circumstances * Buzzfeed *To open Nathan Harris's first novel is to enter a trance. I can't think of any other book out there quite like it. The richness of his language and the exquisite details of the lives he creates produce a kind of waking dream, equally lyrical and threatening -- Luis Alberto Urrea[An] ambitious debut . . . Harris writes in intelligent, down-to-earth prose and shows a keen understanding of his characters . . . Credible and deeply moving * Publishers Weekly, starred review *An impressive debut by a storyteller with bountiful insight and assurance * Kirkus *[The book's] grave beauty is evident immediately * Library Journal *This stunning debut novel probes the limits of freedom in a society where ingrained prejudice and inequality remain the law of the land * Oprah Daily *Harris's tender debut novel captures the yearning for human connection and the risks of departing from social norms * New York Times *A work of great depth and beauty. * Culturefly *An arresting debut * Scotsman *Absolutely stunning, full of vivid descriptions, gripping tension, dynamically complex characters, and a well-woven story -- Yvonne Battle-FeltonAn epic story of love and grief at an incendiary moment in American history * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisA NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERA #1 ABA INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORE BESTSELLERFew in history can match the revolutionary career of the Marquis de Lafayette. Over fifty incredible years at the heart of the Age of Revolution, he fought courageously on both sides of the Atlantic. He was a soldier, statesman, idealist, philanthropist, and abolitionist.As a teenager, Lafayette ran away from France to join the American Revolution. Returning home a national hero, he helped launch the French Revolution, eventually spending five years locked in dungeon prisons. After his release, Lafayette sparred with Napoleon, joined an underground conspiracy to overthrow King Louis XVIII, and became an international symbol of liberty. Finally, as a revered elder statesman, he was instrumental in the overthrow of the Bourbon Dynasty in the Revolution of 1830.From enthusiastic youth to world-weary old age, from the pinnacle of glory to the depths of despair, Lafayette never stopped fighting for the rights of all mankind. His remarkable life is the story of where we come from, and an inspiration to defend the ideals he held dear.

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Book Synopsis'Compelling... A real pleasure to read.' - BBC History MagazineIn 1621, fifty-six English women crossed the Atlantic in response to the Virginia Company of London's call for maids 'young and uncorrupt' to make wives for the planters of its new colony in Virginia.While the women travelled of their own accord, the company was in effect selling them at a profit for a bride price of 150 lbs of tobacco for each woman sold. The rewards would flow to investors in the near-bankrupt company. But what did the women want from the enterprise? Why did they agree to make the perilous crossing to a wild and dangerous land, where six out of seven European settlers died within their first few years? And what happened to them in the end?Trade ReviewI love this kind of historical writing, with the stitching showing... Engaged and thoughtful, she has given her women an existence they would recognise. -- Lucy Moore * Literary Review *An evocative and painstakingly researched account of these early female settlers, who have lacked a voice, an identity, even a name, until now. From 400 years ago, they step from these pages and speak to us. -- Hilary Davies * The Tablet, 'Books of the Year' *Compelling... A real pleasure to read. * BBC History Magazine *With extraordinary scholarship and painstaking use of contemporary texts Potter succeeds in her professed task of bearing witness to the lives of young women unknown to history... Full of sensational material... * Times Literary Supplement *Potter tells the story using a rich range of sources - pamphlets, ballads, sermons - and travels to flesh out gaps... She writes well and hauntingly, of women "penned like chickens in the gloom", of their shock on arrival at a tiny, dilapidated Virginian town thousands of miles from the English capital. * The Times *

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Book SynopsisThis is a surprising portrait of the pastel city, a masterly study of Cuban immigration and exile, and a sly account of vile moments in the Cold War. Miami may be the sunniest place in America but this is Didion's darkest book, in which she explores American efforts to overthrow the Castro regime, Miami's civic corruption and racist treatment of its large black community.

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Book SynopsisThe American South is a distinctive place with a dramatic history, and has significance beyond its regional context in the twenty first century. The American South: A Very Short Introduction explores the history of the South as a cultural crossroads, a meeting place between western Europe and West Africa. The South''s beginnings illuminate the expansion of Europe into the New World, creating a colonial slave society that distinguished it from other parts of the United States but fostered commonalities with other colonial societies. The Civil War and civil rights movement transformed the South in differing ways and remain a part of a vibrant and contested public memory. More recently, the South''s pronounced traditionalism in customs and values was in tension with the forces of modernization that slowly forced change in the twentieth century. Southerners'' creative responses to these experiences have made the American South well known around the world in literature, film, music, and cuisine. Charles Reagan Wilson argues for the significance of creativity in the South, emerging from the diversity of peoples, cultures, and experiences that the regional context fostered. The South has now become the new center of immigration, adding to the complexity of the region''s cultural, social, economic, and political life. In this book, the burdens and tragedies of southern history are placed beside the creative achievements that have come out of the region, producing a portrait of a complex American place.Trade ReviewWilson's account, at 126 pages of text, encompasses a lifetime of knowledge in the subject. * William A. Link, University of Florida , The Journal of Southern History *This is a deftly woven history of the region, spanning from when indigenous southerners shaped the region to when Black activists orchestrated the removal of Confederate monuments from city centers. Charles Reagan Wilson has captured the driving foundational tensions of regionalism — whiteness and otherness, urbanity and rurality, religiosity and secularism — that have long animated our national consciousness. The South remains a mirror and creation of the nation, and Wilson's portrait of America's reflection over time is a precise invitation to look anew at who we have been, who we are, and who we might want to be in a more unified future. * Zandria F. Robinson, author of This Ain't Chicago: Race, Class, and Regional Identity in the Post-Soul South *Table of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Beginnings to 1830 Chapter 2: Civil War Era Chapter 3: Tradition and Modernization Chapter 4: Transformation of Southern Society, 1940-1970 Chapter 5: Contemporary South Chapter 6: Literature Chapter 7: Music Chapter 8: Foodways References Further Reading Index

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Book Synopsis''An irresistible page-turner that reads like the most compelling, sleep defying fiction'' TIME OUT One was an architect. The other a serial killer. This is the incredible story of these two men and their realization of the Chicago World''s Fair of 1893, and its amazing ''White City''; one of the wonders of the world. The architect was Daniel H. Burnham, the driving force behind the White City, the massive, visionary landscape of white buildings set in a wonderland of canals and gardens. The killer was H. H. Holmes, a handsome doctor with striking blue eyes. He used the attraction of the great fair - and his own devilish charms - to lure scores of young women to their deaths. While Burnham overcame politics, infighting, personality clashes and Chicago''s infamous weather to transform the swamps of Jackson Park into the greatest show on Earth, Holmes built his own edifice just west of the fairground. He called it the World''s Fair Trade ReviewFuses history and entertainment to give the dramatic effect of a novel...this truth really is stranger than fiction * The New York Times *Erik Larson tracks [H H Holmes] with practised journalistic skill...Highly readable * Sunday Telegraph *Captures the spirit of an America bursting with pioneering drive...a gripping book * Independent on Sunday *An irresistible page-turner that reads like the most compelling, sleep defying fiction * Time Out *Bursting with so much vitality you half expect it to jump right out of your hands * Yorkshire Evening Post *

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Book SynopsisThis series is for the Cambridge International AS History syllabus (9489) for examination from 2021.Table of ContentsHow to use this book; Introduction; Chapter 1. The Origins of the Civil War, 1820–1861; Chapter 2. Civil War and Reconstruction, 1861–1877; Chapter 3. The Gilded Age and Progressive Era, 1870s-1920 ; Chapter 4. The Great Crash, The Depression and the New Deal policies, 1920-1941; Chapter 5. Preparing for Assessment; Index.

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Book Synopsis''Gripping history that also informs the present'' Sunday Times''Fascinating . . . Wilford writes engagingly with a telling eye for colourful detail'' The Spectator''A spectacular achievement . . . I loved it'' Dominic Sandbrook How the CIA became an instrument of a new covert empire both in America and overseas. In 1947, the United States created the CIA to analyse foreign intelligence, but within a few years the Agency was engaged in other operations - bolstering pro-American governments, overthrowing nationalist leaders, and surveilling domestic dissent - before transforming during the Cold War. Drawing on decades of research, celebrated intelligence historian Hugh Wilford shows how the Agency created a new Western empire, as successive US presidents used the covert powers of the Agency to hide overseas interventions from postcolonial foreigners and anti-imperial Americans alike. Even the CIA''s post-9/11 global hunt for terrorists was haunted by the ghosts of empires past. Original, and gripping, The CIA tells how America adopted unaccountable power and created a new imperial order.

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