Social impact of disasters Books

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Book Synopsis'One of the most perceptive and thought-provoking books …Essential reading for these turbulent times.' Amitav Ghosh, author of The Great Derangement 'Dougald Hine’s brilliant book demands we stare into that abyss and rethink our securest certainties about what is actually going on in the climate crisis. It’s lucidly unsettling and yet in the end empowering. There is something we can do, and it starts with where we look, how we see and what we choose to change.’ Brian Eno, Musician ‘[A] rich book, which like a poetic or religious text deserves multiple readings’ Richard Smith, British Medical Journal ‘I consider this book a must-read for all those activists feeling lost, desperate and perhaps subject to ‘press-on-itis'.’ Gail Bradbrook, cofounder, Extinction Rebellion Dougald Hine, world-renowned environmental thinker, has spent most of his life talking to people about climate change. And then one afternoon in the second year of the pandemic, he found he had nothing left to say. Why would someone who cares so deeply about ecological destruction want to stop talking about climate change now? At Work in the Ruins explores that question. ‘Climate change asks us questions that climate science cannot answer,’ Dougald says. Questions like, how did we end up in this mess? Is it just a piece of bad luck with atmospheric chemistry – or is it the result of a way of approaching the world that would always have brought us to such a pass? How we answer such questions also has consequences. Through our over-reliance on the single lens of science, Dougald writes that we are blinded to the nature of the crises around and ahead of us, leading to ‘solutions’ that can only make things worse. At Work in the Ruins is his reckoning with the strange years we have been living through and our long history of asking too much of science. He offers guidance by standing firmly forward and facing the depth of the trouble we are in, to ultimately, helps us find the work that is worth doing, even in the ruins.Trade Review'Drawing on decades of experience in climate journalism and activism, Dougald Hine’s At Work in the Ruins is one of the most perceptive and thought-provoking books yet written about the multiple intersecting crises that are now upending our once-familiar world. Of particular importance is Hine’s deeply respectful yet unsparing analysis of the strengths and limitations of science in reckoning with these crises. At Work in the Ruins is essential reading for these turbulent times.' Amitav Ghosh, author of The Great Derangement‘As it begins to dawn on us all that we won’t “stop” climate change or “solve” the climate crisis, we are left looking into something of an abyss. Dougald Hine’s brilliant book demands we stare into that abyss and rethink our securest certainties about what is actually going on in the climate crisis. It’s lucidly unsettling and yet in the end empowering. There is something we can do, and it starts with where we look, how we see and what we choose to change.’ Brian Eno, Musician'In this age of confusion and corruption, Dougald Hine has always had a great gift for asking the right questions. Here he makes a stab at some answers, too – and, more bravely, identifies the places where ‘answers’ are not available and that the real work is rebooting our entire way of seeing. There are far too many books about climate change around, but this book is about something more unsettling: what our response to climate change reveals about us – and what we can’t do about it, as well as what we can. You are certain to come away rethinking some of your own assumptions.' Paul Kingsnorth, author of Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist'Dougald Hine’s book At Work in the Ruins is a deep reflection on the foundations of the destructive path humanity has been pushed on, driven by colonialism, modernity and fossil fuel addiction, by its love for centralization, control, consumerism, certainty. By stopping to talk about climate change and the other problems we face, Dougald invites us to make deeper shifts by making a turn in our hearts and minds, seeking smaller paths, paths to be discovered and walked along by individuals and communities, paths of diversity and decentralization. And trust uncertainty.' Vandana Shiva, author of Terra Viva'I’ll get right to it: every time the world ends, it leaves a mark. Yes. Implicitly, the apocalypse is not new. There have been many before. But this mark I speak of...it is like a signature. A prophetic molecule of sorts. A sense of discomfort with the rush of the familiar. A taste for questions too slippery for the public imagination. A slant of the eye. An initiation that queers the flesh. Like fungal spores inseminating a zombie ant in the forest. A virus. Not to worry: Not everyone is so marked. But Dougald Hine clearly is. Dougald Hine is mad. And he has my full attention and trust. In this sonorous swoosh of earnest prose composed with the cadence of a fugitive journalist who has a news story that should end all other stories – as well as the unmistakable lilt of an elder who would have sat at the edge of my Nigerian village – Dougald ushers us into the Gordian knots of our strange times where ‘following the science’, ‘solving the climate challenge’ and ‘saving the world’ no longer hold much cartographical promise. Ironically, talking this way about a phenomenon that calls into question humanity’s claims to sovereignty is how the modern machine keeps reproducing the fires we want to extinguish. Pushing past popular tropes, Dougald helps us see that how we talk about and address this end-of-world crisis is the crisis. Something else is needed. Mutiny of some kind. An apostasy. Definitely more than a manifesto, a new solution or a new campaign. Let Dougald Hine’s masterful storytelling mark you; let his song of loss and longing, his call to fugitivity, dispossess you of your steady gait and poise. Perhaps then we, collectively infected, might together witness the incomprehensible.' Bayo Akomolafe, author of These Wilds Beyond our Fences'I’ve long felt Dougald Hine an elder to our environmental movements. In this timely book, he is asking us to pause and consider where we are now and how we got here – to think about the deeper causes of the polycrisis. I consider this book a must-read for all those activists feeling lost, desperate and perhaps subject to "press-on-itis". Let’s find our curiosity together, hold each other as we navigate the turbulence and face our lack of roadmap. For me, reading this book was like having a long and honest supper with an old friend around a warming fire. I finished it with a relieving sigh, feeling nourished, heart opened, humanity seen. Let our longings guide our actions. Thank you, Dougald.' Gail Bradbrook, cofounder Extinction Rebellion'I love reading Hine’s writing. Here is a work that began with a feeling that was sensed before it was thought. The result is a book of rare originality and depth – profound, far-reaching, mind-altering stuff.' Helen Jukes, author of A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings'There is great storytelling woven within Dougald’s timely and sometimes-disturbing book. Hine addresses the blessings and chaos of this moment without ever moving into relentless naysaying or vapid optimism, which makes it hugely refreshing. He seeks a third, truer position. A bigger one. At Work in the Ruins carries the weight of many years at the front line of thinking around climate emergency. This isn’t a weary, trotted-out mandate; it wonderingly tugs at what we think we know and points towards what we may not.' Martin Shaw, author of Courting the Wild Twin'Dougald Hine’s very personable book makes a persuasive and welcome case for a new view of science. He shows clearly how movements that live by science – in its current, institutionalized meaning – will also die by science. At Work in the Ruins speaks up for practical judgment, common sense and the wisdom of heart as guides on the ‘small and branching path’ that Hine contrasts with the big highway of surveillance and regulation by which scientized technocracy proposes to address climate change. The Covid years have revealed a stark choice, long foreseen by the prophetic thinkers, such as Ivan Illich, by whom Hine is inspired. I hope many will heed Hine’s invitation to friendship and intellectual modesty, and join him on the adventure of the small path.' David Cayley, author of Ivan Illich: An Intellectual Journey'If the hourglass has come to stand for the time of endings in which we find ourselves, Dougald Hine looks beyond it to recall the myriad encounters with thinkers and knowledges which have shaped his sense-making over the past two decades, and which shed light on our predicament. When our gaze returns to the hourglass, the reader might question its shape, the width of the opening, where the sand was taken from and who gets to turn it. What actually happens once the sand has drained? Or what happens if it doesn’t? What would happen if the glass cracked and the sand was allowed to spill out onto the table? Hine makes tentative maps with that spilt sand, tracing lines with his finger that are clear, compelling and cathartic; reverent to the unknown and unknowable.' Sarah Thomas, author of The Raven’s Nest'Here is a book that explores the public understanding of science around climate change, Covid and social movements. Asking if we demand too much of science, Hine points beyond the "dark hubris" of despair. With eloquence and honesty, he invites us to the hope of deeper mystery that life on Earth might yet unfold.' Alastair McIntosh, author of Soil and Soul and Riders on the Storm'We’ve tried browbeating people into saving the planet. It doesn’t work, both because most people don’t like to be told what to do and because it is pure folly to imagine that individual microchoices are sufficient to lift us out of this crisis. Why not try, instead, to invite people to think together with us in a spirit of honesty, not only about the crisis and possible ways out of it, but also about the deeper reasons why we cherish the world we have been told we must save? This is Dougald Hine’s approach, and it is timely indeed – a desperately needed change of register in contemporary environmental thinking.' Justin E.H. Smith, author of The Internet Is Not What You Think It Is'In this book, Dougald Hine invites us to repurpose the ruins of the modern structures of organisation and existence (within and around us) that have led us on the path of premature extinction. The end of the world as we know it is the end of a world that needs hospicing, and perhaps, through this hospicing, humanity can learn to be taught by the violence it has inflicted on itself and the rest of nature. It is pretentious to think we (humans) can ‘birth’ a new world; but since we are part of nature and not the centre of it, we can learn to trust the healing capacity of its metabolism to work through us, if we can decentre ourselves to allow it to happen.' Vanessa Machado de Oliveira, author of Hospicing Modernity'It’s hard to exaggerate the importance and sheer nerve of Hine’s prophetic call to face the facts. This is an elegant and acute examination of our personal and societal pathology, and a stirring but never polemical insistence that we must start the treatment. What’s wrong with us? Our storylessness, our pathetic clutching at polarities, and our ludicrous faith in progress rather than process. And the therapy? Stories that are worthy of us, because we’re huge and enduring – unlike politics or institutions or ideas. These are apocalyptic times. Hine reminds us that apocalypse means "unveiling" and prepares us for what we might see if we’ve still got eyes.' Charles Foster, author of Being a Human and Being a Beast"Without dismissing the importance of governments or science, Hine writes that an important first step is acknowledging that governments and science don't have ready solutions for all the problems people face. . . Looking ahead, he seeks options, not optimism, and works to advance the conversation around climate change and other global crises from a Western perspective, with the aim of encouraging dialogue beyond binary ideologies. VERDICT A thought-provoking suggestion for readers well versed in climate discourse." Library Journal‘[A] rich book, which like a poetic or religious text deserves multiple readings’ Richard Smith, British Medical Journal'(Hine's) powerful performance of this important message will make listeners question their unexamined assumptions about the planet's future and what they can do about it.' AudioFile Magazine

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Book SynopsisWinner of the Moore Prize for Human Rights Writing in 2023 "This book will stay with me for years." ADAM KAY, author of This is Going to Hurt "Black puts a human and profoundly humane face on what it's like to be a doctor." FORBES A brilliant, painful and honest book. Read it. MARY HARPER, BBC Africa Editor Benjamin Black has the most amazing gift for telling a story. I could not put the book down. VICTORIA MACDONALD, Channel 4 News Courage meets crisis in a doctor''s extraordinary true account on the frontlines of maternal healthcare during a deadly epidemic in Sierra Leone. In May 2014, as the country grapples with the highest maternal mortality rate globally, a new, invisible threat emerges: Ebola. Dr. Benjamin Black finds himself at the centre of the outbreak. From the life-and-death decisions on the maternity ward to moral dilemmas in the Ebola Treatment Centers, every moment is a crossroads where a single choice could tip the balance between survival and catastrophe. The tension is palpable, and the stakes are unimaginably high. One mistake, one error of judgment, could spell disaster. Belly Woman is a powerful piece of reportage and advocacy that draws parallels between two global outbreaks of infectious diseases: Ebola and COVID-19. Black''s firsthand experience on the frontlines of a global health crisis bears witness to the raw emotions, tough decisions, such as the need to carry out medically-mandated abortions to save lives, and the unwavering dedication that defines the lives of those who step up when the world needs them most. Compelling for readers with an interest in medical memoirs, social justice, and humanitarianism, as well as healthcare professionals and maternal health caregivers.

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Book SynopsisDuring a Biblical seven years in the middle of the nineteenth century, fully a quarter of Ireland''s citizens either perished from starvation or emigrated in what came to be known as Gorta Mor, the Great Hunger. Waves of hungry peasants fled across the Atlantic to the United States, with so many dying en route that it was said, you could walk dry shod to America on their bodies. In this sweeping history Ireland''s best-known historian, Tim Pat Coogan, tackles the dark history of the Irish Famine and argues that it constituted one of the first acts of genocide. In what The Boston Globe calls his greatest achievement, Coogan shows how the British government hid behind the smoke screen of laissez faire economics, the invocation of Divine Providence and a carefully orchestrated publicity campaign, allowing more than a million people to die agonizing deaths and driving a further million into emigration. Unflinching in depicting the evidence, Coogan presents a vivid and horrifying pic

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Book Synopsis''One of the most perceptive and thought-provoking books Essential reading for these turbulent times.''Amitav Ghosh, author ofThe Great Derangement''Dougald Hine's brilliant book demands we stare into that abyss and rethink our securest certainties about what is actually going on in the climate crisis. It's lucidly unsettling and yet in the end empowering. Thereissomething we can do, and it starts with where we look, how we see and what we choose to change.'Brian Eno, Musician[A] rich book, which like a poetic or religious text deserves multiple readings'Richard Smith,British Medical JournalI consider this book a must-read for all those activists feeling lost, desperate and perh

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Book SynopsisWhen Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top.  No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn't made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist

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Book SynopsisIt was 8.46 a.m. on 9/11 when Elia Zedeño, who had worked in the World Trade Center for twenty-one years, heard a booming explosion and felt the building lurch violently to the south. She grabbed her desk, taking her feet off the floor, and screamed, ''What''s happening?''How would you react to a disaster? Would you be paralysed with fear? Would you panic and lose control? Or might you suddenly discover hidden strengths in yourself?In The Unthinkable, award-winning journalist Amanda Ripley investigates some of the most harrowing catastrophes in history in order to piece together exactly how we react in a crisis. Through compelling interviews with survivors and experts she uncovers our instinctive reactions, shows how primitive parts of our brains take over when we''re put under pressure, and demonstrates that we can, in fact, train ourselves to do better.We all have a ''disaster personality'' that reveals itself at moments of crisis. In The UnthinkaTrade ReviewA must read. We need books like this to help us understand the world in which we live. -- Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of 'The Black Swan' and 'Fooled By Randomness'A fascinating book ... The Unthinkable is part study of the science of reaction to extreme fear, part indictment of the US government's response to the terrorist threat, part call to arms -- Robert Crampton * The Times *Excellent and accessible study of how people react in disasters ... aside from the sound advice, one of the main strengths of this book is the wealth of anecdotal material and startling facts' 4 stars * London Lite *Ripley's survey of a vast area of research is impressively handled and eminently readable and, should disaster strike, the insights she provides into how you and those around you may respond might just save your life * New Humanist *Spiced with surprising factoids, this book might save your life one day. Just don't read it on a trans-Atlantic flight * Bloomberg *

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Book SynopsisThe world almost conquered famine. Until the 1980s, this scourge killed ten million people every decade, but by early 2000s mass starvation had all but disappeared. Today, famines are resurgent, driven by war, blockade, hostility to humanitarian principles and a volatile global economy. In Mass Starvation, world-renowned expert on humanitarian crisis and response Alex de Waal provides an authoritative history of modern famines: their causes, dimensions and why they ended. He analyses starvation as a crime, and breaks new ground in examining forced starvation as an instrument of genocide and war. Refuting the enduring but erroneous view that attributes famine to overpopulation and natural disaster, he shows how political decision or political failing is an essential element in every famine, while the spread of democracy and human rights, and the ending of wars, were major factors in the near-ending of this devastating phenomenon. Hard-hitting and deeply informed, Mass Starvation explains why man-made famine and the political decisions that could end it for good must once again become a top priority for the international community.Trade Review"A scholarly and passionate book. De Waal is impressive in his ability to conceptualize such a broad topic."Geographical"This is the most important book on famine to appear for some time. Alex de Waal's ideas on famine crimes and atrocities are particularly relevant and we must take heed of his warnings that the decline in famine deaths in the last few decades could be reversed."Peter Atkins, Durham University "Alex de Waal's new book makes a persuasive case that the large decline in famine death over the past three decades is in part attributable to the success of the international humanitarian aid system, even with its kinks and weaknesses. This book should be required reading for donor government policymakers, particularly those who propose slashing aid budgets." Andrew S. Natsios, Executive Professor, George H.W. Bush School of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University"For the first time in decades, mass starvation threatens multiple countries. Alex de Waal has written an important and timely book explaining how famine has made a comeback. Each famine is unique, but de Waal guides us through the complexities to highlight the element common to all today’s famines: the weaponization of starvation and the roll-back of humanitarian norms. Mass Starvation is a both a fine work of scholarship and an urgent call to action."Jean-Marie Guéhenno, President & CEO, International Crisis Group and Former UN Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations"Drawing on Alex de Waal's unrivalled understanding and experience of famines and written with his usual flair, this book presents some good news (that human-made famines have been on the decline) along with a stark warning that they may now be on the rise again, especially in the Middle East."David Keen, LSE​ "An authoritative history of modern famines."Green Left “An ambitious, intelligent, and original book”Canadian Journal of HistoryTable of Contents Contents Preface and Acknowledgements Part I: Perspectives on Famine and Starvation Chapter 1: An Unacknowledged Achievement Chapter 2: Famines as Atrocities Chapter 3: Malthus’s Zombie Chapter 4: A Short History of Modern Famines Part II: How Famines Were Almost Eliminated Chapter 5: Demography, Economics, Public Health Chapter 6: Politics, War, Genocide Chapter 7: The Humanitarian International Chapter 8: Ethiopia: No Longer the Land of Famine Part III: The Persistence and Return of Famines Chapter 9: The Famine that isn’t Coming Chapter 10: The New Atrocity Famines Chapter 11: Mass Starvation in the Future Notes References Index

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Book SynopsisExamining cultures as diverse as long-house dwellers in North Borneo, African farmers, Welsh housewives, and postindustrial American workers, this title redefines the anthropological study of menstrual customs.Trade Review"The first book on the anthropology of menstruation to be published by a major university press." -- Becky Vorpagel Journal of American Folklore "A major innovation is the deliberate and consistent focus on women's views and their participation in social responses to bodily processes." -- Terence Hays Journal of the History of Sexuality "Reclaiming the female body, retrieving it piece by piece from the grip of patriarchal culture and medical practice, has been a central feminist goal for each of the last two decades. Menstruation ... is now front and center on the feminist agenda as a topic that needs to be rethought ... Blood Magic ... [is] among a larger set of books that are seeking simultaneously to dismantle the traditional formulations and to replace them with a woman-centered set of understandings ... [the book]... not only clear[s] and point[s] the way for a new woman-centered scholarship on menstruation but demonstrate[s] its significance to the feminist agenda." -- Anna Meigs Signs "The first major collection on anthropological interpretations of menstruation... The editors contribute a lengthy, useful introduction to this biological phenomenon and the interpretations given to it by different peoples; moreover, they provide discussions for each section ... A well-edited and useful contribution to the continually growing literature on the cultural constructions of gender." -- L. Beck Choice, "Outstanding Title!" "Menstrual taboos have long been a favorite subject of ethnographic inquiry, but in the past their study has suffered from both an ethnocentric and male-centered bias. Burdened by their own set of 'menstrual taboos,' ethnographers have too often assumed they knew what those of another culture meant. Blood Magic, a collection of essays by nine fieldworkers in anthropology and related disciplines, marks a welcome departure from earlier studies in a number of ways. It derives its perspective from women's studies in recognizing the need to focus on women's experiences as well as those of men, and in recognizing the importance of female fieldworkers to do this. This is the first book-length collection of essays to grow out of recent cultural anthropological research on menstruation. Never before has the study of menstruation been so well informed by a combination of fieldwork and theoretical approaches to the study of gender and the symbolism of the body. This is the first book-length collection of essays to grow out of recent cultural anthropological research on menstruation. Never before has the study of menstruation been so well informed by a combination of fieldwork and theoretical approaches to the study of gender and the symbolism of the body ... This is a well-constructed and well-researched collection, grounded in received anthropological theory, yet looking far beyond it." -- Jennifer Livesay Folklore ForumTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Editors' Note PART I INTRODUCTION 1. A Critical Appraisal of Theories of Menstrual Symbolism Thomas Buckley and Alma Gottlieb PART II MENSTRUAL IMAGES, MEANINGS, AND VALUES 2. Menstrual Cosmology among the Beng of Ivory Coast Alma Gottlieb 3. Mortal Flow: Menstruation in Turkish Village Society Carol Delaney 4. Menstruation among the Rungus of Borneo: An Unmarked Category Laura W. R. Appell PART III THE SOCIOLOGY OF MENSTRUAL MEANINGS 5. Menstrual Politics: Women and Pigs in Rural Portugal Denise L. Lawrence 6. Menstrual Symbolism in South Wales 137 Vieda Skultans 7. Premenstrual Syndrome: Discipline, Work, and Anger in Late Industrial Societies Emily Martin PART IV EXPLORATORY DIRECTIONS: MENSES, CULTURE, AND TIME 8. Menstruation and the Power of Yurok Women Thomas Buckley 9. Heavenly Bodies: Menses, Moon, and Rituals of License among the Temne of Sierra Leone Frederick Lamp 10. Menstrual Synchrony and the Australian Rainbow Snake Chris Knight Notes References Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisThe fire was visible from seventy miles away and the heat generated was so intense that a helicopter could only circle the rig at a perimeter of one mile. On the surface of the sea, a converted fishing trawler inched as close as possible, but the paint on the vessel’s hull blistered and burnt. In the water surrounding the inferno, men’s heads could be seen bobbing like apples as their yellow hard hats melted with the heat.On 6 July 1988 a series of explosions ripped through the Piper Alpha oil platform, 110 miles north-east of Aberdeen in the North Sea. Ablaze with 226 men on board, the searing temperatures caused the platform to collapse in just two hours. Only sixty-one would survive by leaping over 100 feet into the water below.Newly updated for the thirtieth year since the tragedy, Fire in the Night by journalist Stephen McGinty tells in gripping detail the devastating story of that summer evening. Combining interviews with survivors, witness statements and transcripts from the official inquiry into the disaster, this is the moving and vivid tale of what remains the worst offshore oil-rig disaster to date.Trade ReviewFire in the Night is rare and riveting, among the classics of Scottish reporting. -- Andrew O’HaganGenuinely gripping reading...[McGinty] has an eye for the illuminating detail, both human and technical * The Scotsman *The stories of how survivors escaped from 'the inferno' of the rig are truly heart-stopping * The Herald (Glasgow) *

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsPreface: How Did We Get Here?AcknowledgmentsPart I. Psychological First Aid: First, Study the ScienceChapter 1. Psychological First Aid: Definition, History, and Foundational ResearchChapter 2. Structure and Mechanisms of Psychological First AidChapter 3. Psychological Consequences of Trauma: What You Will Encounter in the FieldChapter 4. In the Wake of Disaster: The Large-Scale Context for PFAPart II. Psychological First Aid: Practicing the ArtChapter 5. R–Rapport and Reflective Listening: Establishing a RelationshipChapter 6. A–Assessment: Listening to the StoryChapter 7. P–Psychological Triage: PrioritizationChapter 8. I–Intervention: Tactics to Stabilize and Mitigate Acute DistressChapter 9. D–Disposition: Facilitating Access to Continued CarePart III. Psychological First Aid: Further ConsiderationsChapter 10. RAPID PFA Considerations with ChildrenChapter 11. Cultural Awareness and Psychological First AidChapter 12. Expanding Surge Capacity: Strengthening the Fabric of Community Mental Health ServicesChapter 13. Self-Care: Taking Care of Others Begins (and Ends) with Taking Care of YourselfReferencesAppendix: A Breathing TechniqueIndex

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Book Synopsis"The Ostrich Paradox boldly addresses a key question of our time: Why are we humans so poor at dealing with disastrous risks, and what can we humans do about it? It is a must-read for everyone who cares about risk." —Daniel Kahneman, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow We fail to evacuate when advised. We rebuild in flood zones. We don't wear helmets. We fail to purchase insurance. We would rather avoid the risk of "crying wolf" than sound an alarm. Our ability to foresee and protect against natural catastrophes has never been greater; yet, we consistently fail to heed the warnings and protect ourselves and our communities, with devastating consequences. What explains this contradiction? In The Ostrich Paradox, Wharton professors Robert Meyer and Howard Kunreuther draw on years of teaching and research to explain why disaster preparedness efforts consistently fall short. Filled with heartbreaking stories of loss and resilience, the book addresses: •How people make decisions when confronted with high-consequence, low-probability events—and how these decisions can go awry •The 6 biases that lead individuals, communities, and institutions to make grave errors that cost lives •The Behavioral Risk Audit, a systematic approach for improving preparedness by recognizing these biases and designing strategies that anticipate them •Why, if we are to be better prepared for disasters, we need to learn to be more like ostriches, not less Fast-reading and critically important, The Ostrich Paradox is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand why we consistently underprepare for disasters, as well as private and public leaders, planners, and policy-makers who want to build more prepared communities.Trade Review"The Ostrich Paradox boldly addresses a key question of our time: Why are we humans so poor at dealing with disastrous risks, and what can we humans do about it? It is a must-read for everyone who cares about risk." * Daniel Kahneman, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow *"At a time when we face looming short- and long-term risks as varied as terrorism, cyberattacks, and climate change, this timely book diagnoses the innate psychological barriers to effective disaster planning and mitigation. Drawing on a variety of historical lessons and integrating insights into psychology, the authors prescribe practical approaches to disaster preparation. The Ostrich Paradox is a must-read, whether you are protecting the nation or your own family." * Michael Chertoff, Former United States Secretary of Homeland Security *"The Ostrich Paradox is an essential, sobering read for anyone interested in assessing and responding to tomorrow's hazards today. Robert Meyer and Howard Kunreuther don't just help us understand why we don't prepare for disasters as we should, they also show us how to alter those behaviors and improve preparedness." * Alan Schnitzer, Chief Executive Officer, The Travelers Companies, Inc. *"Good things typically come in threes. In The Ostrich Paradox, however, Meyer and Kunreuther skillfully distill a large body of recent psychological insights on the barriers to action in the face of potential peril into four steps of a behavioral risk audit and into four guiding principles to ensure preventive action." * Elke U. Weber, Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment and Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs, Princeton University *

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Book SynopsisA compelling history of the Black Death that scoured Europe in the mid 14th-century killing twenty-five million people. It was one of the worst human disasters in history.The bodies were sparsely covered that the dogs dragged them forth and devoured themAnd believing it to be the end of the world, no one wept for the dead, for all expected to die.' Agnolo di Turo, Siena, 1348In just over a thousand days from 1347 to 1351 the ''Black Death'' travelled across medieval Europe killing thirty per cent of its population. It was a catastrophe that touched the lives of every individual on the continent. The deadly Y. Pestis virus entered Europe in October 1347 by Genoese galley at Messina, Sicily. In the spring of 1348 it was devastating the cities of central Italy, by June 1348 it had reached France and Spain, and by August England. At St Mary's, Ashwell, Hertfordshire, an anonymous hand carved the following inscription for 1349: Wretched, terrible, destructive year, the remnants of the peoplTrade Review‘Kelly is a fair-minded and reliable guide, with a gift for providing racy and vivid background for those who know nothing of the Middle Ages.’ Independent on Sunday ‘There has never been a better researched, better written or more engaging account of the worst epidemic the world has ever known than this.’ Simon Winchester, author of ‘The Professor and the Madman and Krakatoa’ ‘Kelly approaches the story of the greatest tragedy in history like a forensic detective who must first recreate the life of the victims before examining their deaths. While writing with a keen eye for the telling details of the past, Kelly’s book might also be a warning about our own future.’ Jack Weatherford, author of ‘Genghis Khan’

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Book SynopsisA landmark investigation into how communities respond to disasters, and what we can learn from these displays of altruism and generosity in the face of adversity.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the Duff Cooper and Lionel Gelber prizesIn 1932-33, nearly four million Ukrainians died of starvation, having been deliberately deprived of food. It is one of the most devastating episodes in the history of the twentieth century. With unprecedented authority and detail, Red Famine investigates how this happened, who was responsible, and what the consequences were. It is the fullest account yet published of these terrible events.The book draws on a mass of archival material and first-hand testimony only available since the end of the Soviet Union, as well as the work of Ukrainian scholars all over the world. It includes accounts of the famine by those who survived it, describing what human beings can do when driven mad by hunger. It shows how the Soviet state ruthlessly used propaganda to turn neighbours against each other in order to expunge supposedly ''anti-revolutionary'' elements. It also records the actions of extraordinary iTrade ReviewMeticulously researched, blisteringly written -- Dominic Sandbrook * The Sunday Times (Books of the Year) *Magisterial and heartbreaking -- Simon Sebag Montefiore * Evening Standard *Compelling in its detail and in its empathy -- Nick Rennison * The Sunday Times *Her account will surely become the standard treatment of one of history's great political atrocities -- Timothy Snyder * Washington Post *An exhaustive, authoritative and eloquent book. She deals with questions that have hitherto lacked unequivocal answers -- Donald Rayfield * Literary Review *

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsContents List of Illustrations Introduction 1 • Naming the Nuclear Ghosts 2 • Spirited Away 3 • Kaleidoscopic Harm 4 • The Compensation Game 5 • Radioactive Mosquitos and the Science of Half-Lives 6 • Between Fūhyō and Fūka 7 • Frecon Baggu and the Archive of (Half-)Lives 8 • In Search of the Invisible 9 • A Wild Boar Chase Epilogue Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisOn Thursday, July 13, 1995, Chicagoans awoke to a blistering day on which the temperature would eventually climb to 106 degrees. This book reveals how in coming decades the effects of climate change will intensify the social and environmental pressures in urban areas around the world.Trade Review"Klinenberg draws the lines of culpability in dozens of directions, drawing a dense and subtle portrait of exactly what happened." (Malcolm Gladwell) "Revelatory." (Chicago) "Should be required reading for all public officials." (Choice)

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Book SynopsisA global catastrophic risk is one with the potential to wreak death and destruction on a global scale. In human history, wars and plagues have done so on more than one occasion, and misguided ideologies and totalitarian regimes have darkened an entire era or a region. Advances in technology are adding dangers of a new kind. It could happen again.In Global Catastrophic Risks 25 leading experts look at the gravest risks facing humanity in the 21st century, including asteroid impacts, gamma-ray bursts, Earth-based natural catastrophes, nuclear war, terrorism, global warming, biological weapons, totalitarianism, advanced nanotechnology, general artificial intelligence, and social collapse. The book also addresses over-arching issues - policy responses and methods for predicting and managing catastrophes. This is invaluable reading for anyone interested in the big issues of our time; for students focusing on science, society, technology, and public policy; and for academics, policy-makers, and professionals working in these acutely important fields.Trade ReviewReview from previous edition This volume is remarkably entertaining and readable...It's risk assessment meets science fiction. * Natural Hazards Observer *The book works well, providing a mine of peer-reviewed information on the great risks that threaten our own and future generations. * Nature *We should welcome this fascinating and provocative book. * Martin J Rees (from foreword) *[Provides] a mine of peer-reviewed information on the great risks that threaten our own and future generations. * Nature *Table of ContentsI BACKGROUND; II RISKS FROM NATURE; III RISKS FROM UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES; IV RISKS FROM HOSTILE ACTS

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Book SynopsisThe Great Famine, an Gorta Mór in Irish, was a period of mass starvation, disease and emigration in Ireland between 1845 and 1852. Often referred to as the Irish Potato Famine, particularly outside Ireland, as around forty percent of the population were reliant on this crop. Over a million people died and over a million more emigrated, often in appalling circumstances. This book explains what happened before and during the Famine, with an account of the consequences of this epic tragedy.

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Book SynopsisThe Future as Catastrophe offers a novel critique of the fascination with disaster. Analyzing the catastrophic imaginary from its historical roots to the contemporary popularity of disaster fiction and end-of-the-world blockbusters, Eva Horn argues that apocalypse always haunts the modern idea of a future that can be anticipated and planned.Trade ReviewThe end of the world and the extinction of the human species will be a catastrophe without event, survivor, or witness. Eva Horn's brilliant and copiously informed historical study explores the potential of 'future fictions' as epistemic tools to anticipate the unknowable—to imagine it by giving it shape, investing it with meaning and affect and thereby making it 'real.' -- Aleida Assmann, author of Cultural Memory and Western Civilization: Functions, Media, ArchivesWho would ever have imagined that a book about catastrophes could be informative, entertaining, and helpful? In this magnificent volume, Eva Horn has achieved this trifecta. As a bonus, the book is erudite and paints a picture of thinking about disaster as a strident criticism of modernity’s blind faith in human progress. Read it! -- John Casti, author of X-Events: Complexity Overload and the Collapse of Everything'Why do we imagine ourselves as Last Men​?' Eva Horn's imaginative, incisive, and wide-ranging exploration of this arresting question doubles up an arresting genealogy of the modern fear of the future as catastrophe. An illuminating read, not only for students of modernity but also those pondering the looming crisis of climate change. -- Dipesh Chakrabarty, author of The Calling of History: Sir Jadunath Sarkar and His Empire of TruthTacking between the fictional and the real, Horn provides the most comprehensive analysis to date of why we are such avid consumers of dystopian disasters and what these not-so-artificial scenarios mean for our ability to contend with these portentous events. The Future as Catastrophe examines the content, sources, history, and function that the catastrophic has for politics, knowledge, and the human capacity to imagine its own destruction. -- Anson Rabinbach, author of In the Shadow of Catastrophe: German Intellectuals Between Apocalypse and EnlightenmentWith the notion of the 'Anthropocene,' we have learned to think, in an entirely secular and scientific way, the end times of human life on the planet. With breathtaking erudition and in stunning and precise prose, Eva Horn guides us through the ways in which the natural and social sciences, economic and political theory, and above all literature and popular culture, have, over the last two centuries, sought to rehearse scenarios of the end and its aftermath. As Horn also shows, the future perfect tense of catastrophe—all this will have been—serves as a remarkable diagnostic lens for the revelation—the 'apocalypse'—of the present tense of catastrophic ways of living. -- Eric L. Santner, author of The Royal Remains: The People's Two Bodies and the Endgames of SovereigntyThe Future as Catastrophe is theoretically rich and its arguments are bolstered by the sheer breadth oftexts with which it engages...a valuable contribution to environmental studies. -- Jason Ludwig, Cornell University * H-Environment *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Last Men2. Catastrophe Without Event: Imagining Climate Disaster3. Survival: The Biopolitics of Catastrophe4. The Future of Things: Accidents and Technical Safety5. The Paradoxes of PredictionConclusionNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisMuch like the large commercial companies, most humanitarian aid organisations now have departments specifically dedicated to protecting the security of their personnel and assets. The management of humanitarian security has gradually become the business of professionals who develop data collection systems, standardized procedures, norms, and training meant to prevent and manage risks. A large majority of aid agencies and security experts see these developments as inevitable -- all the more so because of quantitative studies and media reports concluding that the dangers to which aid workers are today exposed are completely unprecedented. Yet, this trend towards professionalisation is also raising questions within aid organisations, MSF included. Can insecurity be measured by scientific means and managed through norms and protocols? How does the professionalisation of security affect the balance of power between field and headquarters, volunteers and the institution that employs them? What is its impact on the implementation of humanitarian organizations' social mission? Are there alternatives to the prevailing security model(s) derived from the corporate world?Building on MSF's experience and observations of the aid world by academics and practitioners, the authors of this book look at the drivers of the professionalization of humanitarian security and its impact on humanitarian practices, with a specific focus on Syria, CAR and kidnapping in the Caucasus.Trade Review'Humanitarian work has always been dangerous, though cultures and perceptions of risk have changed -- ranging from the heroic spirit of chivalry to the mundanity of actuarial calculus. In this comprehensive and critical -- and rivetingly frank -- collection, MSF once again shows its capacity for thoughtful engagement with the toughest humanitarian dilemmas.' * Alex de Waal, Executive Director, the World Peace Foundation, Tufts University *'Dealing with one of the most pressing security issues in our present age of conflict -- the safety of those who save others -- this book directly confronts some of the painful tensions between the desire to increase the safety of volunteer medical workers and the frustrations of that process. This is essential reading not only for risk management and voluntary organisation experts, but also for a wider audience as a testimony of our times.' * Michael Power, Professor of Accounting, London School of Economics, former Director of the Centre for the Analysis of Risk and Regulation, and author of Organized Uncertainty: Designing a World of Risk Management *'At a time when gaining humanitarian access is increasing difficult and dangerous for international aid workers, MSF's Saving Lives and Staying Alive is essential reading for anyone wanting a candid first-hand account of the fraught policy, practical and political issues that accompany the attempt to help others in a polarised world.' * Mark Duffield, Emeritus Professor, Global Insecurities Centre, University of Bristol *'A timely and important contribution to debates about humanitarian security and the security management sector. Drawing upon decades of operational experience, MSF challenges accepted wisdom and offers a thoughtful critique of the evolution and professionalization of the sector. The book is a must-read for humanitarians everywhere.' * Larissa Fast, author of Aid in Danger: The Perils and Promise of Humanitarianism *'Is it worth risking lives to save lives? Is the humanitarian spirit of sacrifice a delusion, requiring harsh security restraints, or is risk management a contradiction in terms? This book questions the validity of a remotely controlled, apolitical and technical approach to staff security, and argues that, in a climate of operational uncertainty, nothing trumps trust in the judgment of seasoned staff on the ground.' * Dirk Salomons, Professor of International Affairs, Columbia University *

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Book SynopsisOn 21 October 1966, 116 children and 28 adults died when a mountainside coal tip collapsed, engulfing homes and part of a school in the village of Aberfan below. It is a moment that will be forever etched in the memories of many people in Wales and beyond. Aberfan - Government & Disaster is widely recognised as the definitive study of the disaster. Following meticulous research of public records - kept confidential by the UK Government’s 30-year rule - the authors, in this revised second edition, explain how and why the disaster happened and why nobody was held responsible. Iain McLean and Martin Johnes reveal how the National Coal Board, civil servants, and government ministers, who should have protected the public interest, and specifically the interests of the people of Aberfan, failed to do so. The authors also consider what has been learned or ignored from Aberfan such as the understanding of psychological trauma and the law concerning ‘corporate manslaughter’. Aberfan - Government & Disaster is the revised and updated second edition of Iain McLean and Martin Johnes’ acclaimed study published in 2000, which now solely focuses on Aberfan.Trade Review'The full truth about Aberfan' The Guardian; 'The research is outstanding...the investigation is substantial, balanced and authoritative...this is certainly the definitive book on the subject...Meticulous.' John R. Davis, Journal of Contemporary British History; 'Excellent...thorough and sympathetic.' Headway 2000 (Aberfan's Community Newspaper); 'Definitive...authoritative...anyone who wants to understand the process of government and its obsession with secrecy should read this book.' Ron Davies, Secretary of State for Wales 1997-1998; 'Intelligent and moving' PlanetTable of ContentsForeword Preface 1. The Last Day before Half-term 2. On Moles and the Habits of Birds: The Unpolitics of Aberfan 3. Uneasy Relationships: The Aberfan Disaster, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council and Local Politics 4. The Management of Trauma 5. Regulating and Raiding Gifts of Generosity: The Aberfan Disaster Fund 6. Aberfan Then and Now Bibliography

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Book SynopsisFrom the international bestselling author of The Post-American World ''An intelligent, learned and judicious guide for a world already in the making'' The New York TimesSince the end of the Cold War, the world has been shaken to its core three times. 11 September 2001, the financial collapse of 2008 and - most of all - Covid-19. Each was an asymmetric threat, set in motion by something seemingly small, and different from anything the world had experienced before. Lenin is supposed to have said, ''There are decades when nothing happens and weeks when decades happen.'' This is one of those times when history has sped up.In this urgent and timely book, Fareed Zakaria, one of the ''top ten global thinkers of the last decade'' (Foreign Policy), foresees the nature of a post-pandemic world: the political, social, technological and economic consequences that may take years to unfold. In ten surprising, hopeful ''lessons'', he writes about the acceleration of natural and biological risks, the obsolescence of the old political categories of right and left, the rise of ''digital life'', the future of globalization and an emerging world order split between the United States and China. He invites us to think about how we are truly social animals with community embedded in our nature, and, above all, the degree to which nothing is written - the future is truly in our own hands.Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World speaks to past, present and future, and will become an enduring reflection on life in the early twenty-first century.Trade ReviewIt is an intelligent, learned and judicious guide for a world already in the making. -- Josef Joffe * New York Times *

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Book SynopsisExamining a series of El Niño-induced droughts and the famines that they spawned around the globe in the last third of the 19th century, Mike Davis discloses the intimate, baleful relationship between imperial arrogance and natural incident that combined to produce some of the worst tragedies in human history. Late Victorian Holocausts focuses on three zones of drought and subsequent famine: India, Northern China; and Northeastern Brazil. All were affected by the same global climatic factors that caused massive crop failures, and all experienced brutal famines that decimated local populations. But the effects of drought were magnified in each case because of singularly destructive policies promulgated by different ruling elites. Davis argues that the seeds of underdevelopment in what later became known as the Third World were sown in this era of High Imperialism, as the price for capitalist modernization was paid in the currency of millions of peasants' lives.Trade ReviewDavis has given us a book of substantial contemporary relevance as well as great historical interest...this highly informative book foes well beyond its immediate focus. -- Amartya Sen * The New York Times *Davis's range is stunning...He combines political economy, meteorology, and ecology with vivid narratives to create a book that is both a gripping read and a major conceptual achievement. Lots of us talk about writing 'world history' and 'interdisciplinary history': here is the genuine article. -- Kenneth Pomeranz, author of The Great DivergenceThe global climate meets a globalizing political economy, the fundamentals of one clashing with the fundamentalisms of the other. Mike Davis tells the story with zest, anger, and insight. -- Stephen J. Pyne, author of World FireDavis, a brilliant maverick scholar, sets the triumph of the late-nineteenth-century Western imperialism in the context of catastrophic El Niño weather patterns at that time ... This is groundbreaking, mind-stretching stuff. * Independent *Late Victorian Holocausts will redefine the way we think about the European colonial project. After reading this, I defy even the most ardent nationalist to feel proud of the so-called 'achievements' of empire. * Observer *Devastating. * San Francisco Chronicle *Eloquent and passionate, this is a veritable Black Book of liberal capitalism. -- Tariq AliGenerations of historians largely ignored the implications [of the great famines of the late nineteenth century] and until recently dismissed them as 'climatic accidents'...Late Victorian Holocausts proves them wrong. * Los Angeles Times (Best Books of 2001) *Wide ranging and compelling...a remarkable achievement. * Times Literary Supplement *A masterly account of climatic, economic and colonial history. * New Scientist *A hero of the Left, Davis is part polemicist, part historian, and all Marxist. -- Dale Peck * Village Voice *The catalogue of cruelty Davis has unearthed is jaw-dropping . Late Victorian Holocausts is as ugly as it is compelling. -- Sukhdev Sandhu * Guardian *Controversial, comprehensive, and compelling, this book is megahistory at its most fascinating-a monument to times past, but hopefully not a predictor of future disasters. * Foreign Affairs *Devastating. * San Francisco Chronicle *

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Book SynopsisWINNER, 2024 Jock Young Criminological Imagination Book Award, given by the Division on Critical Criminology & Social Justice of American Society of CriminologyA riveting indictment of a government that fails to help citizens in need of aid, protection, andhumanityThe Shaming State argues that Americans have been abandoned by a government that has relinquished its duties of care toward its citizens. Sara Salman describes a government that withholds care in times of need and instead shames the very citizens it claims to serve, both poor and middle class. She argues that the state does so by emphasizing personal responsibility, thus tacitly blaming the needy for relying on state programs. This blame is pervasive in the American cultural imagination, existing in political discourse and internalized by Americans. This book explores how shaming is exhibited by state and political institutions by showing the ways in which the state withholds care, and how people who need that care are humiliTrade Review"The Shaming State offers a brilliant ethnographic analysis of how the supposedly compassionate welfare state produced just the opposite of its explicitly stated intentions. Focusing on problems faced by immigrants in Michigan and by people traumatized by Hurricane Sandy in New York City, Sara Salman shows similarities and differences in the two U.S. cases while calling for a genuinely more caring approach to public policies and governmental assistance. Scholars, policymakers, and activists will learn much from this detailed, insightful, and beautifully written study." * Lynn S. Chancer, author of After the Rise and Stall of American Feminism: Taking Back a Revolution *"In moments of acute need and social vulnerability arising from displacement and persecution, how does the state respond in aid to groups in need? Salman examines with rigor, humanity, and beautiful prose how two seemingly dissimilar groups experience cultural notions of worthiness, precarity, suspicion, and responsibility. As the book centers the psychology of shame and moral worth, readers learn how government bureaucracies communicate deservingness to groups and in so doing the limits of a caring state and the American Dream." * Lauren Duquette-Rury, author of Exit and Voice: The Paradox of Cross-Border Politics in Mexico *"This is an intriguing, timely, and insightful book that examines how care is administered and vulnerability is mitigated in the US. Or not administered or mitigated because of longstanding hostility to such assistance from whichever political party is in office. Instead, these aspects of American society have made it a shaming state." * John Pratt, author of Law, Insecurity and Risk Control: Neo-Liberal Governance and the Populist Revolt *

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Book SynopsisThroughout history, apocalypse fiction has explored social injustice through fantasy, sci-fi and religious imagery, but what can we learn from it? Why do we escape very real disaster via dystopia? Why do we fantasise about the end of the world?The word apocalypse has roots in ancient Greek, with apo (off) and kalýptein (cover) combining to form apokálypsis, meaning to uncover or reveal. In considering apocalypse fiction across culture and its role in how we manage, manifest and imagine social, economic and political crises, Goh navigates what this genre reveals about our contemporary anxieties, and why we turn to disaster time and again. From blockbusters like War of the Worlds to The Handmaid's Tale and far beyond, we venture through global pandemics to the climate crisis, seeking real answers in the midst of our fictional destruction. Let's journey to the end.

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Book SynopsisPandemic, climate change, or war: our era is ripe with the odor of doomsday. In movies, books, and more, our imaginations run wild with visions of dreadful, abandoned cities and returning to the land in a desperate attempt at survival.In The Next Apocalypse, archaeologist Chris Begley argues that we completely misunderstand how disaster works. Examining past collapses of civilizations, such as the Maya and Rome, he argues that these breakdowns are actually less about cataclysmic destruction than they are about long processes of change. In short: it's what happens after the initial uproar that matters. Some people abandon their homes and neighbors; others band together to start anew. As we anticipate our own fate, Begley tells us that it was communities, not lone heroes, who survived past apocalypses-and who will survive the next.Fusing archaeology, survivalism, and social criticism, The Next Apocalypse is an essential read for anxious times.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewAn original contribution to the history of humanitarian relief, child-welfare work, and the social impact of the First World War in Central Europe. Richly detailed and deeply researched, Budapest's Children traces the dire effects of war and demise of Hapsburg rule on conditions in Hungary's capital city and examines the diversity and interaction of organizations and actors, foreign and domestic, concerned with aiding children and mothers. An insightful analysis of social conditions, relief work, and their representation, Budapest's Children elucidates the evolution and dynamics of interwar humanitarianism as well as the politics informing it. -- Heide Fehrenbach, Board of Trustees Professor, Northern Illinois UniversityContemporaries referred to Budapest in the immediate postwar years as the 'capital of human misery.' Friederike Kind-Kovács's meticulously researched and original study provides a compelling, and tragically topical, analysis of the impact of war and social disintegration on children. It also examines the ways in which suffering was instrumentalized in humanitarian aid programs, and the relationship between philanthropy and national prestige. It is an important contribution both to the history of childhood, and to the social and cultural history of imperial collapse in the interwar decades. -- Catriona Kelly, Senior Research Fellow, Trinity College, University of Cambridge, UKBudapest's Children is a compelling, deeply researched, and all too timely account of the dire humanitarian crisis that gripped Budapest after World War I and of the valiant efforts of local and international aid workers to care for refugee children displaced by the collapse of the Habsburg empire. Rich with insights about the interaction of nationalist and internationalist politics and about the power that images of children's suffering have to move consciences and inspire action, this book is a magnificent contribution to the growing literature on war and its aftermath in East-Central Europe. -- Paul Hanebrink, Rutgers UniversityTable of ContentsACKNOWLEDGMENTSINTRODUCTION1. MIGRATION: LIFE IN A DISPLACEMENT HUB2. HUNGER: STARVING IN THE CAPITAL CITY3. DEGENERATION: EMBODYING POSTWAR SUFFERING4. INSTITUTIONS: THE GENESIS OF CHILD PROTECTION5. INFRASTRUCTURES: MATERIALIZING 'GLOCAL' RELIEF6. BODIES: FEEDING BUDAPEST'S HUNGRY CHILDREN7. (INTER)NATIONALISM: THE POLITICS OF MATERIAL AID8. DISPLACEMENT: THE AMBIGUITY OF CHILD TRANSPORTS9. EDUCATION: WORKROOMS TO TEACH THE CHILDRENCONCLUSION: TRANSFORMATION: FROM AID TO SELF-HELPBIBLIOGRAPHYINDEX

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Book Synopsis* Natural disasters regularly reach a high degree of prominence in the media, but we rarely see the political aspects of the ways that disasters are managed and dealt with. * This book offers a comprehensive survey of the political history of disaster management, from World War I onwards.Trade Review"An enjoyable, easily accessible read." Global Journal "This fluent, critical and accessible book provides a wealth of detail and insight into the political and social pressures that shape discourse, international organization and policy for disaster management. A strongly recommended text for students of humanitarianism, disaster risk management, and international development policy, and a wake-up call for practitioners." Mark Pelling, King’s College London "This volume highlights the interplay of normative, political, and institutional factors steering how we conceptualize and respond to disasters. As such it provides readers with an understanding of how actors at different levels actually make sense of disasters, a perspective that is rarely explored in the current literature." Ian Christoplos, Danish Institute for International Studies "...comprehensive and applicable to any border region. The book is easy to read..." D. Rick Van Schoik, North American Research Partnership "An important read for researchers and advanced students interested in the politics of international emergency management and disaster assistance." ChoiceTable of ContentsAcknowledgments vi Glossary of Abbreviations and Acronyms viii Text Boxes x Introduction 1 1 The Disaster Politics Nexus 6 2 The Global Policy Field of Natural Disasters 18 3 The Kindness of Strangers 42 4 A Safer World? 59 5 Climate of Concern 78 6 Disaster Politics as Game Playing 97 7 Mass Media and the Politics of Disaster 115 8 Disaster Politics: A Discursive Approach 130 9 Conclusion 146 Notes 159 References 167 Index 188

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Book SynopsisEarthquake Children is the first book to examine the origins of modern Japan's infrastructure of resilience. Janet Borland vividly demonstrates that Japan's contemporary culture of disaster preparednessand its people's ability to respond calmly in times of emergencyare the results of learned and practiced behaviors inspired by earlier tragedies.Trade ReviewAn absorbing book…Narrates the vivid and emotional stories of how children experienced and made sense of the earthquake, how teachers and other adults interpreted the children’s experience, and the subsequent initiatives to develop disaster-preparedness in the public…Succeeds in illuminating the contemporary relevance of this historical study. -- Kaori H. Okano * Journal of Japanese Studies *This fascinating and well-researched volume makes a clear case for the important roles played by children and those thinking about children in the aftermath of the Great Kantō Earthquake…This book will be a worthwhile addition to libraries and useful for scholars of disasters and childhood. -- Alex Bates * Pacific Affairs *Earthquake Children is essential reading for historians of childhood and of disaster, but it has much to inform other histories as well. Women and men (and other adults somewhere in between) are not the only movers and shakers of scientific advances, technological innovations, and social change; generation and childhood contribute as well, and we should consider them much more often. -- Sabine Frühstück * Contemporary Japan *[Borland’s] research is thorough, her writing is often vivid, and the book is very well illustrated. Whether using her own words or those of Japan’s children, the author is able to convey a vivid sense of the horror of an event like the Great Kanto Earthquake and the difficulties faced by many survivors…Earthquake Children will appeal to anyone interested in social responses to earthquakes and other disasters in urban areas, to those interested in the history of children, and to anyone interested in the modern history of Tokyo. -- Gregory Smits * Monumenta Nipponica *Borland’s work is as intellectually rigorous as it is inspiring…This groundbreaking book explains how Japan came to be positioned at the forefront of disaster preparedness globally and highlights the role that children, schools, and education played in that dramatic transformation…I absolutely loved this book and have continued to think about it long after I finished reading the last page. It stands as an unforgettable reminder of how important it is to listen to what children have to say and to invest in their futures. -- Lori Peek * International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters *

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Book SynopsisA groundbreaking new perspective on catastrophes throughout human history, with vital lessons for our future''This book upended my understanding of the ancient world'' Zoë Schlanger, author of The Light Eaters''Lizzie Wade is an exceptional journalist and a master storyteller'' Ed Yong, author of An Immense WorldThe history of humanity is one of devastating, once-in-a-thousand-year events: rising seas that make land uninhabitable, decades-long droughts, civilisational collapse, epidemics like the Black Death and the Spanish Flu that reduce a city's population by fifty percent. And yet, despite enormous destruction and very real tragedy, these catastrophes all share one common denominator: we survived.In APOCALYPSE, Lizzie Wade reframes the story of human history to show how we can learn from these apocalyptic moments, seeing them not just as violent, world-ending events but as moments of progress and transformation. We travel back in deep time to when homo sapiens replaced other human species including the Neanderthals, witness the fall of the kingdom of Old Egypt, the end of the Mayans and the Black Death, as well as lesser-known catastrophes. To weave this unique narrative, Lizzie introduces us to a new generation of archaeologists using cutting-edge technology to tell new stories about our deep past, including flying planes equipped with lasers over Mayan ruins deep in the jungle, scuba diving to the bottom of the ocean, and sequencing the DNA of ancient people to show how we are far more connected to our ancestors than we think.Written in a gripping style that reads like an Indiana Jones mystery, APOCALYPSE offers a refreshingly optimistic take on the crises our own generation and those after us will face arguing that yes, catastrophes are painful and destructive, but we can and will survive them.

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Book SynopsisDepicts the spread of the epidemic of the black death throughout Europe, and examines the disease's impact on the society of the middle ages.

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Book SynopsisSuitable for moms who know that the well-being of their brood relies on them, this book provides the information you need to know about food storage, water and sanitation, fuel and energy, medical preparedness, communication protocols and more. It allows us to see that being proactive in the face of uncertainty isn't paranoid.Trade Review"In this impressively comprehensive manual, suburban mom Bedford helps readers learn about, prepare for, and respond to all manner of disasters...Bedford's matter-of-fact yet supportive tone will keep the willies at bay." -- Publishers Weekly "Given the recent prevalence of floods, tornadoes, and power outages, this book comes at a good time. Bedford... discusses how to handle emergencies, from purifying water and storing food to making lists of financial records and establishing a safe room. [R]eaders... would do well to prepare." -- Library Journal "Lisa Bedford's Survival Mom is a much needed resource of practical preparedness and survival knowledge that anybody (even 'Survival Dads') will find an indispensable addition to their self-reliance library!" -- Ed Corcoran, Editor, Survivalist Magazine "Lisa Bedford has given every family an upbeat and useful step-by-step guide to getting through these alarming times. Hurrah for Survival Mom." -- Lew Rockwell, editor, lewrockwell.com "This 'stockpiled guide' to self-sufficiency emergency preparedness is a wealth of information for both the novice and seasoned 'survival mom'!" -- Roxanne L. Griswold, Co-Owner, Ready Made Resources/Founder, Ready Made Woman Blog + No Candidate "Well-referenced, with fresh insights, Survival Mom is funny and well-written." -- Don Aslett, author of Is There Life After Housework? "Lisa Bedford's book, like her blog, is full of up-to-date, useful information from reputable sources. Survival Mom is a good read, and has a place in any prepper/survivalist library." -- Leon Pantenburg, author of survivalcommonsense.com "Lisa Bedford explains preparedness not just as a long term goal for the future, but as an everyday lifestyle for today. This manual is a great read for anyone concerned about their own well-being and security, and that of their loved ones." -- Paul M. Munsen, President, Sun Ovens International "Lisa Bedford has written an outstanding book! Survival Mom is chock full of valuable tips and perspectives that had never crossed my mind, showing me how valuable the female perspective is when it comes to prepping and survival! This book is a keeper!" -- Matthew Stein, author of When Disaster Strikes: A Comprehensive Guide to Emergency Planning and Crisis Survival "After you become a mom, your head often swims with 'what-ifs.' But you can ease your mind with a little preparation, says Lisa Bedford, blogger and author of Survival Mom : How to Prepare Your Family for Everyday Disasters and Worst-Case Scenarios." -- USA Weekend

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Book SynopsisNew York Times BestsellerFrom Neal Stephenson—who coined the term “metaverse” in his 1992 novel Snow Crash—comes a sweeping, prescient new thriller that transports readers to a near-future world in which the greenhouse effect has inexorably resulted in a whirling-dervish troposphere of superstorms, rising sea levels, global flooding, merciless heat waves, and virulent, deadly pandemics.“Stephenson is one of speculative fiction’s most meticulous architects. . . . Termination Shock manages to pull off a rare trick, at once wildly imaginative and grounded.” — New York Times Book ReviewOne man—visionary billionaire restaurant chain magnate T. R. Schmidt, Ph.D.—has a Big Idea for reversing global warming, a master plan perhaps best described as “elemental.” But will it work? And just as important, what are the consequences for the planet and all of humanity should it be applied?Ranging from the Texas heartland to the Dutch royal palace in the Hague, from the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas to the sunbaked Chihuahuan Desert, Termination Shock brings together a disparate group of characters from different cultures and continents who grapple with the real-life repercussions of global warming. Ultimately, it asks the question: Might the cure be worse than the disease?Epic in scope while heartbreakingly human in perspective, Termination Shock sounds a clarion alarm, ponders potential solutions and dire risks, and wraps it all together in an exhilarating, witty, mind-expanding speculative adventure.

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Book Synopsis“This debut novel traces a group of survivors who fall under the spell of an authoritarian cult leader in the days following Hurricane Maria’s destruction in Puerto Rico. It is deeply imagined and deeply felt - imagistic and strange and haunting - and simmering with grief and rage.”  -- Gabriela Garcia, New York Times bestselling authorSet in the wake of Hurricane Maria, Xavier Navarro Aquino’s unforgettable debut novel follows a remarkable group of survivors searching for hope on an island torn apart by both natural disaster and human violence.Camila is haunted by the death of her sister, Marisol, who was caught by a mudslide during the huracán. Unable to part with Marisol, Camila carries her through town, past the churchyard, and, eventually, to the supposed utopia of Memoria. Urayoán, the idealistic, yet troubled cult leader of Memoria, has a vision for this new societ

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Table of ContentsForeword PART 1: MITIGATION FRAMEWORK Chapter 1 – Introduction Chapter 2 – Mitigation Rules and Regulations Chapter 3 – The Role of Governments in Hazard MitigationChapter 4 – Mitigation in Private Sector PART 2: RISK ASSESSMENTS Chapter 5 – Hazard Identification - Natural Hazards Chapter 6 – Hazard Identification - Man-made HazardsChapter 7 – Vulnerability Assessment and Impact AnalysisChapter 8 – Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA) PART 3: MITIGATION STRATEGIES, TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES Chapter 9 – Mitigation Strategies for Natural Hazards Chapter 10 – Mitigation Strategies for Man-made Hazards Chapter 11 – Mitigation Tools Chapter 12 – Mitigation Best Practices and Resources Epilogue – Tying it All Together

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsPART 1: INTRODUCTION 1. Climate Change: A complex problem 2. The Role of Atmospheric Gases in Climate Change PART 2: TOOLS USED TO INVESTIGE AND PREDICT CLIMATE CHANGE 3. Climate Change through Earth's History 4. Numerical Modelling of the Global Climate and Carbon-cycle System PART 3: INDICATORS 5. Global Surface Temperatures and Climate Change 6. Sea Ice and Climate Change 7. Antarctic Sea Ice Changes and their Implications 8. Land Ice: indicator and integrator of Climate Change 9. Glaciers and Climate Change 10.Poleward Expansion of the Atmospheric Circulation and Climate Change 11. Rising Sea levels and Climate Change 12. Ocean Current Changes 13. Ocean Acidification and Climate Change 14. Permafrost and Climate Change 15. The Jet Stream and Climate Change 16. Extreme Weather and Climate Change 17. Bird Ecology and Climate Change 18. Insect Communities and Climate Change 19. Sea Life, Pelagic Ecosystems, and Climate Change 20. Changes in Coral Reef Ecosystems as a result of Climate Change 21. Marine Biodiversity and Climate Change 22. Intertidal Indicators of Climate and Global Change 23. Lichens and Climate Change 24. Plant Pathogens as Indicators of Climate Change 25. Invasive Plants and Climate Change 26. Biological Diversity and Climate Change 27.The Role of Forests in the Carbon Cycle and Climate Change PART 4: OTHER POSSIBLE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS TO CLIMATE CHANGE 28. The Variation of the Earth’s Movements (orbital, tilt and precession) and Climate Change 29. The Role of Volcanic Activity in Climate and Global Change 30. Atmospheric Aerosols and their Role in Climate Change 31. Climate Change and Agriculture 32. Widespread surface solar radiation changes and their effects on the Climate: dimming and brightening 33. Space Weather and Cosmic Ray effects and Climate Change PART 5: SOCIETAL ASPECTS OF GLOBAL CHANGE 34. Engineering Aspects of Climate Change 35. Societal Adaptation to Climate Change

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Book Synopsis*WINNER OF THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2018**WINNER OF THE PUSHKIN HOUSE BOOK PRIZE 2019*''As moving as it is painstakingly researched. . . a cracking read'' Viv Groskop, Observer''A riveting account of human error and state duplicity. . . rightly being hailed as a classic'' Hannah Betts, Daily TelegraphOn 26 April 1986 at 1.23am a reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Soviet Ukraine exploded. While the authorities scrambled to understand what was occurring, workers, engineers, firefighters and those living in the area were abandoned to their fate. The blast put the world on the brink of nuclear annihilation, contaminating over half of Europe with radioactive fallout.In Chernobyl, award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy draws on recently opened archives to recreate these events in all their drama. A moment by moment account of the heroes, perpetrators and victims of a trTrade ReviewAn insightful and important book, that often reads like a good thriller, and that exposes the danger of mixing powerful technology with irresponsible politics -- Yuval Noah Harari, author of SapiensAs moving as it is painstakingly researched, this book is a tour de force and a cracking read. . . Without losing any detail or nuance, Plokhy has a knack for making complicated things simple while still profound -- Viv Groskop * Observer *A work of deep scholarship and powerful stroytelling. Plokhy is the master of the telling detail -- Victor Sebestyen * Sunday Times *A compelling history of the 1986 disaster and its aftermath. . . Plokhy's well-paced narrative plunges the reader into the sweaty, nervous tension of the Chernobyl control room -- Daniel Beer * Guardian *The first comprehensive history of the Chernobyl disaster. . . here at last is the monumental history the disaster deserves -- Julie McDowall * The Times *Plokhy, a Harvard professor of Ukrainian background, is ideally placed to tell the harrowing story of Chernobyl. . . he has an immense knowledge of Russian and Ukrainian history and maintains the highest standards of scholarship -- Tony Barber * Financial Times *A meticulous account of the disaster - and how the Soviet authorities tried to cover it up. . . A worthy winner of this year's Baillie Gifford prize for nonfiction -- Robbie Millen * The Times Books of the Year *A riveting account of human error and state duplicity. . . rightly being hailed as a classic -- Hannah Betts * Daily Telegraph *A masterful retelling. . . Mr Plokhy's book will endure as a definitive history * Economist *

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Book Synopsis''Remarkable . . . grips with the force of a thriller'' Robert Macfarlane''The most brilliant and essential book on Chernobyl since that of Nobel Prize-winner Svetlana Alexievich'' Irish Times** National Book Critics Circle Finalist 2019 **The official death toll of the 1986 Chernobyl accident, ''the worst nuclear disaster in history'', is only 54, and stories today commonly suggest that nature is thriving there. Yet award-winning historian Kate Brown uncovers a much more disturbing story, one in which radioactive isotopes caused hundreds of thousands of casualties, and the magnitude of the disaster has been actively suppressed.For years after, Soviet scientists, bureaucrats and civilians were documenting staggering increases in birth defects, child mortality, cancers and other life-altering diseases. Worried that this evidence would blow the lid on the effects of radiation release from Cold War weapons-testing, scientTrade ReviewA magisterial blend of historical research, investigative journalism and poetic reportage, Kate Brown sets out to uncover Chernobyl's true medical and environmental effects . . . an awe-inspiring journey. * The Economist *This thrilling, frightening book tells the truth about the Chernobyl disaster . . . the most brilliant and essential book on Chernobyl since that of Nobel Prize winner Svetlana Alexievich. * The Irish Times *An astonishing unconventional history. * The Times *Brown's page-turner skilfully weaves an original narrative on the long-term medical effects of the Chernobyl disaster... Her capacity to immerse herself and pick up on nuances brings these stories from factory workers, technicians, doctors and villagers alive. * Nature *Exemplary ... Brown is an indomitable researcher -- Luke Harding * Observer *Full of passion . . . [an] admirable uncovering of the hidden story behind Chernobyl. * The Guardian *Vital work, making a convincing case for the catastrophic long-term medical and ecological effects of the disaster -- Tobie Mathew * Literary Review *A troubling book, passionately written and deeply researched ... the book moves from science to thriller and realm of conspiracy... there is no doubt about Brown's gift for vivid narrative. Her conclusion is chilling. * The Sunday Times *A humane book about the irreversible things a technological disaster does to people and landscapes. * Owen Hatherley, New Statesman, 'Best Books of 2019' *A magnificent monograph that stands out among the multiple books on Chernobyl simply because it tells us the truth - the whole unadulterated truth - about one of the worst disasters in history. As such, it may itself be regarded as a survival manual of sorts. And a guide to the future, too. * Engineering and Technology *Help[s] us comprehend, both emotionally and rationally, a disaster so great that future scholars will detect it thousands years from now, whether they have written accounts of it or not. * The Evening Standard *Kate Brown [...] shows that there are still many ways to tell this story, and that the lessons of Chernobyl remain unresolved ... Brown argues persuasively that [researchers] are grossly underestimating the scale of the damage. * The New York Review *Manual For Survival is a remarkable book, distinguished by Kate Brown's rare combination of skills: formidable archival history, investigative research, and vivid storytelling. There are parts of this book that grip with the force of a thriller - but again and again, the plot is proved true. A decade's work has gone into uncovering the real human cost of Chernobyl. This is a book about even bigger subjects than the disaster at its core, however: about how politics processes disaster, about the unseen legacies of the 'friendly atom', and about the Anthropocene futures faced by the human species, surviving in an epoch of ruin.This deftly written, impassioned, courageous book should make the world think twice about what's at stake when we unleash nuclear reactions.Kate Brown presents a convincing challenge to the official narrative of the Chernobyl disaster. Deeply reported and elegantly written, "Manual for Survival" is chilling.Combining the skills of a historian, investigative reporter, and detective Kate Brown has blown the lid off the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster and decades of official efforts to suppress its grim truths. Disturbing in its conclusions, destined to incite controversy, Manual for Survival is first-rate historical sleuthing.Gripping . . . Kate Brown's relentless, tenacious reporting shows that Chernobyl isn't the past at all. Nothing, she makes clear, can stop its radiation from seeping through all attempts to bury the truth, for a long time to come. This deftly written, impassioned, courageous book should make the world think twice about what's at stake when we unleash nuclear reactions.This engagingly written book reads like a cold war thriller and uncovers the devastating effects of one of the world's worst nuclear disasters.

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Book Synopsis''Magisterial ... Immensely readable'' Douglas Alexander, Financial Times''Insightful, productively provocative and downright brilliant'' New York Times A compelling history of catastrophes and their consequences, from ''the most brilliant British historian of his generation'' (The Times) Disasters are inherently hard to predict. But when catastrophe strikes, we ought to be better prepared than the Romans were when Vesuvius erupted or medieval Italians when the Black Death struck. We have science on our side, after all. Yet the responses of many developed countries to a new pathogen from China were badly bungled. Why? While populist rulers certainly performed poorly in the face of the pandemic, Niall Ferguson argues that more profound pathologies were at work - pathologies already visible in our responses to earlier disasters. Drawing from multiple disciplines, including economics and network science, Trade ReviewMagisterial reach ... immensely readable ... Ferguson [applies] his prodigious intellect to placing the present pandemic on a wider historic canvas. -- Douglas Alexander * Financial Times *This is not just about a virus but a collision of politics, panic, digital media, human behaviour and incompetence. Niall Ferguson's Doom looks at each of these aspects, putting them into historical perspective in a book of dazzling range and rigour. -- Fraser Nelson * The Spectator *Niall Ferguson's Doom is often insightful, productively provocative and downright brilliant. * New York Times *A superb history of the lost art of handling a crisis. * The Telegraph *Stimulating ... Each chapter of this thought-provoking book is worth reading for the ideas, perceptiveness and well-told stories of landmark events ... It's a useful reminder that what may feel like having unprecedented restrictions imposed on our lives today is nothing new... readers will find much to relish. -- Martin Bentham * Evening Standard *Elegant, pacey, gripping ... a wealth of deep research. * The Economist *Doom covers an impressive sweep of history at a lively narrative clip and weaves a lot of disparate strands together into an engaging picture. -- Rafael Behr * The Guardian *Timely and refreshing ... An informative, amusing and thought-provoking read that is full of steadying good sense for these troubled times. -- Peter Neville-Hadley * South China Morning Post *Performs a crucial public service ... Doom is far more than just a page-turner, though that it certainly is: it's that most precious of things in a history book - an account of the past that truly helps us understand where we are today. -- Ryan Bourne * CapX *

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Book SynopsisOne of our most celebrated historians shows how we can use the lessons of the past to build a new post-covid society in BritainThe ''duty of care'' which the state owes to its citizens is a phrase much used, but what has it actually meant in Britain historically? And what should it mean in the future, once the immediate Covid crisis has passed?In A Duty of Care, Peter Hennessy divides post-war British history into BC (before covid) and AC (after covid). He looks back to Sir William Beveridge''s classic identification of the ''five giants'' against which society had to battle - want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness - and laid the foundations for the modern welfare state in his wartime report. He examines the steady assault on the giants by successive post-war governments and asks what the comparable giants are now. He lays out the ''road to 2045'' with ''a new Beveridge'' to build a consensus for post-covid Britain with the ambition and on the sTrade ReviewPeter Hennessy is a historian and a dreamer ... Here is the vision of a kinder Britain, shared by the creators of the welfare state in the first postwar years ... Hennessy's book is a recital of reflections upon a long and often brilliant career as a social and political observer ... He sees huge challenges ahead in social care, social housing, climate change, artificial intelligence, technical education and the fragility of the Union, which present policies are quite inadequate to address. ... At the heart of the author's thesis is his contention that the British people during the pandemic have shown themselves to be much better than their rulers; that we must find means to mobilise our true national spirit through a nobler politics ... His enthusiasm and, yes, virtue shine through its pages, together with his rage towards those who fail us in the "duty of care" of his title. It is an inspirational work. -- Max Hastings * Sunday Times *deeply thoughtful ... the book is testament to Hennessy's own deep humanity as well as his expertise in the history of Britain since 1945, the era of the post-war consensus, about which he writes with such conviction. It is a valuable and exceptionally well-reasoned guide to how we might turn round a country battered not by war, as in 1945, but by a wave of disease unknown in living memory. -- Simon Heffer * Sunday Telegraph *Peter Hennessy's A Duty of Care is a call from the deep for civility, compromise and cooperation. Coming from one of our most distinguished political historians, it can hardly be ignored. But A Duty of Care is much more than just an appeal for a politics of sanity and mutual respect. It is also, no less importantly, and more interestingly, a Confucian appeal for a politics of benevolence. -- Oliver Letwin * The Tablet *Part history, part manifesto ... The warmth and wisdom of Hennessy's book, peppered with personal reflection and marked by his deeply held commitment to a society of equals, is inspiring. -- Nick Pearce * Financial Times *The detailed prescriptions for a better future advanced in this book deserve to be read by anyone actively engaged in politics today. Nobody knows more about the world of high politics in the United Kingdom than Peter Hennessy. -- Richard Evans * Times Literary Supplement *Peter Hennessy understands just how Britain ticks. ... In this latest short, but compelling, book he brings all that knowledge and sense of perspective to a remarkable analysis -- Lord Cormack * The House Magazine *In A Duty of Care, Peter Hennessy draws a link between the history of the postwar welfare state and the post-pandemic case for a new settlement ... Admirably concise, it is proof that a strong political case does not require hundreds of pages to make its point. -- Robert Shrimsley * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisCHOSEN AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR BY SUNDAY TIMES AND HISTORY TODAY''Absolutely stunning. . . a formidable achievement. A six-part historical thriller that is essential reading for both our politicians and the ordinary citizen'' Kai BirdBest-selling historian Serhii Plokhy returns with an illuminating exploration of the atomic age through the history of six nuclear disasters In 2011, a 43-foot-high tsunami crashed into a nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan. In the following days, explosions would rip buildings apart, three reactors would go into nuclear meltdown, and the surrounding area would be swamped in radioactive water. It is now considered one of the costliest nuclear disasters ever. But Fukushima was not the first, and it was not the worst. . .In Atoms and Ashes, acclaimed historian Serhii Plokhy tells the tale of the six nuclear disasters that shook the world: Bikini Atoll, Kyshtym, Windscale, Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima. Based on wide-ranging research and witness testimony, Plokhy traces the arc of each crisis, exploring in depth the confused decision-making on the ground and the panicked responses of governments to contain the crises and often cover up the scale of the catastrophe.As the world increasingly looks to renewable and alternative sources of energy, Plokhy lucidly argues that the atomic risk must be understood in explicit terms, but also that these calamities reveal a fundamental truth about our relationship with nuclear technology: that the thirst for power and energy has always trumped safety and the cost for future generations.Trade ReviewA timely and enthralling study of the atomic age and its perils . . . a meticulously researched history -- Lawrence Freedman * Financial Times *A superbly crafted but enormously frightening history of nuclear disasters . . . without ever preaching, Plokhy constructs a formidable case for consigning nuclear power to the past -- Gerard DeGroot * The Times *Plokhy's gripping, measured accounts of human error and staggering heroism in the face of the terrifying forces of nuclear power get under the skin -- Simon Ings * The Telegraph *Frightening . . . With catastrophic climate change bearing down on us, nuclear power has been promoted by some as an obvious solution, but this sobering history urges us to look hard at that bargain for what it is -- Jennifer Szalai * New York Times *A revealing tour of some of the most terrifying experiences involving nuclear power. Plokhy excels in unpacking the human and systemic factors that contribute to nuclear disasters * Nature *Gripping . . . Plokhy combines newspaper interviews, memoirs, government reports and secondary sources to give a vivid account of the perils of nuclear power * TLS *Expertly concise. . . this account of the downhill slide of atomic power since its heyday in the 1950s illustrates why it can never be the solution to global heating -- Robin McKie * Observer *Absolutely stunning. A formidable achievement. Plokhy has written a six-part historical thriller that is essential reading for both our politicians and the ordinary citizen. We have survived the Nuclear Age for three-quarters of a century, but this book calmly reminds us that accidents happen?and will surely happen again. His stories of nuclear accidents are riveting and frightening -- Kai Bird, co-author of American Prometheus

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Book SynopsisDuring the Cultural Revolution the piano, the musical embodiment of Western culture, became the object of intense hostility. This book examines the evolution of China's ever-changing disposition towards European music and Western influences generally.Trade Review'deserves to become a classic ... masterful and engrossing book' Gary Zabel, Musical Times

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Book SynopsisWhen news of the Darfur famine in the ''80s broke in the West, relief experts predicted that, without massive food aid, millions of people would starve to death. Food aid on this scale did not arrive, but millions did not starve to death. Analyzing the famine from the perspective of the rural people in the region who suffered it, Alex de Waal uncovers a number of new and important insights into the dynamics of famine and famine relief. The author argues that deaths during the famine were not due to starvation, but instead were caused by disease, which ensued in the aftermath of the social disruption caused by the famine. In addition, the priority for rural people during the crisis was not to try to save every possible life, but to preserve their way of life for the future. Consequently, he concludes, the huge international relief effort was largely irrelevant to their survival. De Waal''s findings have profound implications, not just for famine relief, but for our very conception of ''Trade Review...an interesting new preface in which he comments on events in the region since the early 1980s...a useful case study of the dynamics of famine. * Foreign Affairs *

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