Search results for ""Kent State University Press""

Tells how five beloved Cleveland theatres escaped the wrecking ball and inspired city-wide urban renewal. Richly illustrated and featuring interviews with the central figures involved, this is a powerful story that will remind readers of the significant role the performing arts serve in shaping a city's culture.

Read more less

In this fresh examination of seventeenth-, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century American captivity narratives, author Lorrayne Carroll argues that male editors and composers impersonated the women presumed to be authors of these documents. This ""gender impersonation"" significantly shaped the authorial voice and complicated the use of these texts as examples of historical writing and as women's literature. Carroll contends that gender impersonation was pervasive and that not enough critical attention has been paid to male intervention in female accounts. ""Rhetorical Drag"" examines the familiar territory of captivity narratives, including versions of Hannah Duston's captivity, and widens it by analyzing numerous examples, placing each in a deeply historicized context. For example, Mary Rowlandson's ""The Sovereignty and Goodness of God"" is viewed as a template against which later authors might differentiate their works rather than as a model. In this vein, Carroll looks at how Cotton Mather shaped the narrative of Hannah Swarton in light of Rowlandson's text (itself thought to have been edited by his father) and according to the ideals of female behavior outlined in his conduct book for women, ""Ornaments for the Daughters of Zion"". A chapter on Quaker captivities illuminates the practices of censorship among Friends. Furthermore, Carroll does original archival work on the provenance of Susannah Johnson's narrative and makes some interesting discoveries about the practices of gender impersonation and collaborative composition that produced Johnson's text. Using this narrative, which appeared in the late eighteenth century, Carroll discusses the shift and evolution of gender norms in the representation of women's voices and embodied experience. Those interested in early American literary studies and historiography as well as women's and gender studies will find ""Rhetorical Drag"" a fascinating and important addition to the literature.

Read more less

In this reassessment of the career of Nelson A. Miles - which he began as a volunteer officer in the Civil War - the author suggests that comments made by his enemies influenced the way Miles's career has been viewed by historians and tries to readdress this.

Read more less

Tolkien's enchanted worldview as literary form and as psychological struggleFocusing on the themes of enchantment and loss in the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, this unique study incorporates elements of developmental psychology to explore both Tolkien's life and art, deepening our understanding of the interrelationship between his biography and writing.As John Rosegrant relates, Tolkien's early years saw a good deal of trauma: the loss of both parents, serious illness, poverty, and battlefield action during World War I, including the loss of close friends. Yet he presents an enchanted worldview in the stories of Middle-earth, and that tension between enchantment and disenchantment—as it results from significant trauma and loss—lies at the very heart of Tolkien's creative endeavors. In short, Tolkien's creative effort can be understood, especially from the perspective of his own psychological development, as a way to maintain a sense of enchantment in the face of great personal loss. Throughout our lives, at several stages we must surrender earlier forms of enchantment and develop more mature forms so that life does not become barren, drab, or dismal. As Rosegrant argues, Tolkien found ways to use his personal losses and struggles to address universal psychological issues in his art, giving his work great emotional sophistication and complexity. Tolkien, Enchantment, and Loss both deepens our understanding of Tolkien and helps us to recognize how Tolkien widens and enriches our understanding of life.

Read more less

Ohio's Craft Beers celebrates the variety of craft brewing in Ohio, offers appreciations of its quality, and reports on the renaissance of the brewer's art throughout the Buckeye State. Beautifully illustrated with color photographs, the book takes readers on a tour of more than 40 of Ohio's larger and more influential breweries and provides detailed descriptions of most of the others.Author and photographer Paul L. Gaston visited all of the featured breweries, talked to the owners and brewers, and tasted their beers, while photographing the pubs, brews, and customers. A generous "sampler" of the state's prime destinations for fans of good beer, Ohio's Craft Beers offers fascinating perspectives on brewing, regional history, and the distinctive cultures of a rapidly growing but highly principled industry.With Ohio's Craft Beers as your guide, you can sip an amber ale on the front porch of Mt. Carmel in suburban Cincinnati, make your way to the industrial chic of Warped Wing in Dayton, enjoy the historic ambience of Portsmouth, and still find exceptional beers in the more utilitarian settings of MadTree in Cincinnati, Actual in Columbus, or Hoppin' Frog in Akron. And in Willoughby you can return to the days of interurban travel while enjoying a full menu and creative brews at Willoughby Brewing Co.Above all, beer is about community. Brewers enjoy their craft, and craft beer drinkers enjoy meeting other craft beer drinkers. Put a copy of this book under your arm, make an excursion, walk in with a thirst, and toast your new friends with Ohio's Craft Beers

Read more less

Having previously tied the world record, Eddie Hart was a strong favorite to win the 100-meter dash at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany. Then the inexplicable happened: he was disqualified after arriving seconds late for a quarterfinal heat. Ten years of training to become the “World’s Fastest Human,” the title attached to an Olympic 100-meter champion, was lost in a heartbeat. But who was to blame? Hart’s disappointment, though excruciating, was just one of many subplots to the most tragic of Olympic Games, at which eight Arab terrorists assassinated eleven Israeli athletes and coaches as the world watched in horror. Five terrorists were killed, but three escaped to their homeland as heroes and were never brought to trial. Swimmer Mark Spitz won seven gold medals but was rushed out of Germany afterward because he was Jewish. Other American athletes, besides Hart, seemed jinxed in Munich. The USA men’s basketball team thought it had earned the gold medal, but the Russians received it instead through an unprecedented technicality. Bob Seagren, the defending pole vault champion, was barred from using his poles and forced to compete with unfamiliar poles. And swimmer Rick DeMont lost one gold medal and the possibility of winning a second because of an allergy drug that had passed U.S. Olympic Committee specifications but was disallowed by the International Olympic Committee. It was that kind of Olympics, confusing to some, fatal to others. Hart traveled back to Munich forty-three years later to relive his utter disappointment. He returned to the same stadium where he did earn a gold medal in the 400-meter relay. In Disqualified, his interesting life story, told with author Dave Newhouse, sheds entirely new light on what really happened at Munich. It includes interviews with Spitz and the victimized American athletes and conversations with two Israelis who escaped the terrorists. And Hart finally learned who was responsible for his disqualifications and those of Rey Robinson, who was in the same heat, leading to an interesting epilogue in which these two seniors reflect on the opportunity denied them long ago.

Read more less

An abolitionist Civil War soldier and prisoner of war reflects on life during wartimeMore than 3 million men served in the American Civil War. In Yours Affectionately, Osgood, editors Sarah Tracy Burrows and Ryan W. Keating have assembled a collection of letters from one of those soldiers—Osgood Vose Tracy of the 122nd New York Infantry. Sarah Tracy Burrows, a descendant of Col. Osgood Tracy, has compiled this expansive collection from her family's private papers. Paired with illuminating discussion and historical context from noted Civil War historian Ryan W. Keating, Tracy's letters home follow his journey as a soldier and prisoner of war from his enlistment in September 1862 through the end of the war in May 1865, as Tracy then readjusted to civilian life. The letters in Yours Affectionately, Osgood, primarily written to his mother, provide a uniquely detailed perspective of everyday life in the Army of the Potomac, adding considerably to the existing literature on the experiences of citizen soldiers in America's Civil War. A well-educated young man, Tracy offers his opinion on pressing social and political issues of the time, including his definite abolitionist sentiments; ruminates on the Union war effort and its campaigns; and demonstrates his deep commitment to family back home. Tracy's letters constitute an incredibly rare primary source volume that will be both fascinating and foundational in the scholarly community and for more general interest readers of the history of the Civil War.

Read more less

"You ain't no damn game warden, are ya?" the poacher snarled. I looked him straight in the eye and lied. "Game warden . . . ? I ain't no game warden!"The poacher paused, mulling over my answer, and added quietly, "Then why you askin' so many questions?"Thus begins the story of R. T. Stewart's career as an undercover wildlife law enforcement officer with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife. For nearly two decades, Stewart infiltrated poaching rings throughout Ohio, the Midwest, and beyond. Poachers Were My Prey chronicles his many exciting undercover adventures, detailing the techniques he used in putting poachers behind bars. It also reveals, for the first time, the secrets employed by undercover wildlife officers in catching the bad guys.Poaching—the illegal taking of wild game—goes on every day in the United States and throughout the world. Millions of dollars change hands annually from the illegal sale or trade of antlers, hides, horns, meat, feathers, fur, teeth, claws, gall bladders, and other wild-animal parts. As a result, wildlife populations suffer— including endangered and threatened species—and legitimate, law-abiding sport hunters get a bad reputation. R. T. Stewart dedi- cated his professional career to stopping such slaughter by actu- ally living with poachers for months or even years. "In essence, being an undercover officer involves living a lie," quips Stewart. "You're always pretending to be someone you're not."Undercover law enforcement is dangerous work and, as a re- sult, extremely stressful. Stewart recalls one particular case during which he realized he was too deeply undercover and came close to forgetting his real identity. Many undercover officers have crossed the line to become the very person they initially swore to stop. In Poachers Were My Prey, readers look over R. T. Stewart's shoulder as he deals with the temptations offered to an undercover officer, including money, sex, and drugs, and watch as he gets the job done and brings the poachers to justice.Poachers Were My Prey will be enjoyed by readers interested in law enforcement, wildlife, preservation, hunting, fishing, and the outdoors.

Read more less

In this second volume of the Interpreting American History series, experts on the 1930s address the changing historical interpretations of a critical period in American history. Following a decade of prosperity, the Great Depression brought unemployment, economic ruin, poverty, and a sense of hopelessness to millions of Americans. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal programs aimed to bring relief, recovery, and reform to the masses. More than seventy-five years after Roosevelt took the oath as president, Americans are still debating what did and did not happen in the 1930s to help the nation recover from its worst economic depression. Proponents and detractors have cast the successes and failures of the New Deal in many lights. Historians have argued that the New Deal went too far, that it did not go far enough, that it created more problems than it solved, and even that its shaky foundations are the reason for the economic and social instability of the Great Recession of the early twenty-first century.The contributors to this volume explore how historians have judged the nature, effects, and outcomes of the New Deal. Arranged in three sections, the essays discuss Roosevelt's New Deal revolution, explore the groups on the fringes of the New Deal, and consider the legacies of 1930s reform. Chapters focus on specific areas of study, including politics, agriculture, the environment, labor, African Americans, the economy, social programs, the arts, mobilization for World War II, and memory. These fields represent today's emerging interpretations of one of the most significant decades of the twentieth century.Interpreting American History: The New Deal and the Great Depression introduces readers to this important period by examining the major historical debates that surround the 1930s, giving students a succinct and indispensable istoriographic overview.

Read more less

The insightful letters of a Harvard-educated staff officer's experience in the Army of the PotomacaCharles J. Mills, the scion of a wealthy, prominent Boston family, experienced a privileged upbringing and was educated at Harvard University. When the Civil War began, Mills, like many of his college classmates, sought to secure a commission in the army. After a year of unsuccessful attempts, Mills was appointed second lieutenant in the Second Massachusetts Infantry in August 1862; however, he was seriously wounded at Antietam a month later. Following a nearly yearlong recovery, Mills eventually reentered the service as a staff officer, although he remained physically disabled for the rest of his life. He was initially with the Ninth Corps during the Overland and Petersburg Campaigns and later at the Second Corps headquarters.During his time in the army, Mills served under seven different generals and witnessed some of the most intense fighting of the war. Mills's letters to his family offer enlightening insights about the Civil War in the East as seen from the perspective of an educated, impressionable, and opinionated Bostonian Brahmin.Compiled, edited, and privately published in a limited edition in 1982 by the late Gregory A. Coco, Through Blood and Fire did not achieve widespread attention and has been out of print for decades. This new edition of the Mills letters, extensively revised and edited by J. Gregory Acken, incorporates additional letters and source material and provides exhaustive annotations and analysis, revitalizing this important primary source for understanding a crucial era of our history.

Read more less

Tom Batiuk was a junior high school art teacher in Elyria, Ohio, when he created a comic panel aimed at teens for the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram. That panel was the precursor to what became Batiuk's award-winning comic strip Funky Winkerbean. Since its debut on March 27, 1972, Funky Winkerbean has chronicled the lives of a group of students from the fictitious Westview High School. This volume, which presents the strip's first three years, introduces the strip's title character, Funky, and his friends Crazy Harry Klinghorn, Bull Bushka, Livinia Swenson, Les Moore, Holly Budd, and Roland Mathews. Principal Burch, counselor Fred Fairgood, and band director Harry L. Dinkle also make their first appearances.Funky fans will relive Les's misadventures in gym class and his unintentional attendance at the homecoming dance as he remains stuck on a climbing rope high above the gymnasium floor. They will remember Crazy Harry's ability to play pizzas like records and his air guitar virtuosity, and majorette Holly who never removed her uniform. They will recall the school's winless football team, and Harry Dinkle's attempts to win the Battle of the Bands despite the contest always coinciding with a natural disaster.Volume 1 contains a charming autobiographical introduction by Tom Batiuk that shares his early attempts at cartooning, discusses his teaching career, and explains the genesis of Funky. Subsequent volumes will each contain three years of Funky comic strips and will be published annually. Batiuk has been recognized for his humorous and entertaining portrayals of the students and staff at Westview and acclaimed for his sensitive treatment of social and educational issues.

Read more less

A remarkable collection of photographs by one of rock's early championsBetween 1955 and 1960, popular Cleveland deejay Tommy Edwards photographed the parade of performers who passed through the WERE-AM radio studio for on-air interviews, shooting more than 1,700 Ektachrome slides. Following his death in 1981, most of the collection vanished and was presumed lost. The few images that remained were often reprinted and rarely credited to Edwards, labeled "photographer unknown." Until now.Discovered by musician Chris Kennedy in 2006, Tommy Edwards's candid photographs capture the birth of rock 'n' roll at its flashpoint: Elvis Presley while he was still dangerous; a raw and incomplete Chuck Berry before his star ascended; and some beady-eyed, high-voiced kid named Roy Orbison. It wasn't just the architects of rock music whom Edwards had in his viewfinder. There were also pop and country music's biggest stars, mysterious, unknown hopefuls, and vulnerable, deglamourized Hollywood celebrities. Edwards's passion for photography immortalized hundreds of pioneers of rock 'n' roll and pop culture in the radio studio, a setting that was often unseen. His photos offer a rare look behind a closed door.In 2009, Kennedy located the only surviving copy of the "T.E. Newsletter" collection, Tommy Edwards's self-published weekly two-page recap of Cleveland radio and record news for music business insiders, spanning from 1953 through 1960. The wealth of information and dates contained in the newsletters are the photo collection's indispensable companion piece, and Edwards's anecdotal quips are interspersed throughout the text of the book.1950s Radio in Color gives Tommy Edwards his due recognition as the deejay responsible for perhaps the most important photographic and written documentation of twentieth-century music ever produced. Featuring over 200 color photographs, this book will transport readers back in time, allowing them to step into Edwards's shoes for a moment and to feel the wonder and excitement he must have felt every day while witnessing a cultural revolution.

Read more less

An essential biography of one of Ohio's most influential—but overlooked—historical figuresThe Brilliance of Charles Whittlesey offers the first full-length biography of one of the most outstanding and influential Americans of the 19th century, Charles Whittlesey (1808–1886). Whittlesey advanced numerous fields, including geology, exploration, history, archaeology, and military strategy. However, until now, much of Whittlesey's work has been treated as a mere footnote of American history and largely neglected by historians. Stanley M. Totten's recovery of Whittlesey's life and work relies on Whittlesey's own insights and private papers, which provide a unique window into his many talents and interests as well as the hardships he endured. This exhaustive volume uncovers—perhaps most significantly—Whittlesey's important geological discoveries. Notably, Totten describes how Whittlesey accurately determined the amount by which oceans lowered during the height of the Ice Age. His geological maps of Native American earthworks were informational and enhanced our understanding of these ancient structures, although, as Totten persuasively argues, other geologists have undeservedly been given credit for Whittlesey's work. Totten also highlights Whittlesey's contributions during the Civil War and his work as a preservationist of historic materials on both the national and local levels. Drawing extensively from papers housed in the Western Reserve Historical Society, The Brilliance of Charles Whittlesey is an overdue, exhaustive biography that will undoubtedly serve as an important foundational text for future scholarship into each of these areas.

Read more less

Lord Peter Wimsey-amateur detective, man of fashion, talented musician, and wealthy intellectual-is known to legions of readers. His enduring presence and popularity is a tribute to his creator, Dorothy L. Sayers, who brought Lord Peter to life during “the long week-end” between the First and Second World Wars, as British aristocracy began to change, making way for a modern world.In Conundrums for the Long Week-End, Robert McGregor and Ethan Lewis explore how Sayers used her fictional hero to comment on, and come to terms with, the social upheaval of the time: world wars, the crumbling of the privileged aristocracy, the rise of democracy, and the expanding struggle of women for equality.

Read more less

A compelling and authoritative reading of Hemingway's final collection of short storiesWritten in 1933 and one of Hemingway's lesser-known books, Winner Take Nothing was his third and final collection of short stories. These stories are about loners and losers and misfits and ne'er-do-wells. Its characters are ill, tortured, maligned, and frustrated by Hemingway's world. Like the characters it depicts, Winner Take Nothing is likewise a misfit in Hemingway's career, a volume of short stories that, as of this writing, is not even in print. Its more popular predecessors, In Our Time (1925) and Men without Women (1927),are held up as iconic collections in the American short story tradition. The grotesqueries of these 14 stories are outcasts in Hemingway's corpus and have been neglected virtually from the beginning. Editors Cirino and Vandagriff recover an underrated work that still reflects contemporary concerns.Through line-by-line annotations and accompanying commentary, this book weaves together the biographical, historical, and cultural threads of one of Hemingway's more overlooked works, thus providing much needed guidance for Hemingway scholars and general readers alike.Included in this Collection: Introduction-Mark Cirino and Susan Vandagriff "After the Storm"-Kirk Curnutt "A Clean Well-Lighted Place"-Alberto Lena "The Light of the World"-Bryan Giemza "God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen"-Suzanne del Gizzo "The Sea Change"-Carl Eby "A Way You'll Never Be"-Mark Cirino "The Mother of a Queen"—Krista Quesenberry "One Reader Writes"-Robert W. Trogdon "Homage to Switzerland"-Boris Vejdovsky "A Day's Wait"—Verna Kale "A Natural History of the Dead"-Ryan Hediger "Wine of Wyoming"-Susan Vandagriff "The Gambler, the Nun, and the Radio"-Nicole J. Camastra "Fathers and Sons"-Donald A. Daiker

Read more less

Former Ohio governor Richard Celeste's remarkable journey from humble beginnings in northeast Ohio to Yale, Oxford, Washington DC, India, the governor's residence, and beyond"Dick, remember this admonition: to whom much is given, much is expected." As the eldest child in his Italian American family, Richard F. Celeste frequently heard his maternal grandmother repeat this aphorism. His paternal grandmother's advice was, "Bresta your cards." This divergent advice reverberated within him for years to come, informing Celeste's approach to what has become a life of serving others.In the Heart of it All recounts Celeste's childhood in Lakewood, Ohio, where his politically ambitious father eventually served as mayor. Awarded a scholarship to attend Yale University, Celeste studied history and later became a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford; while living overseas, he met and quickly married his first wife, Dagmar Braun. Upon returning from Oxford, Celeste expected to begin a teaching career but was recruited to serve as a liaison for Peace Corps volunteers in Latin America, and the young couple relocated to Washington, DC, where they became friendly with Chet and Steb Bowles. When President Kennedy appointed Chet Bowles US ambassador to India, he invited Dick to work as his personal assistant. There, under Bowles's tutelage, Dick began to consider a political career of his own.Celeste returned to Ohio and successfully ran for the Ohio House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1970. After serving two terms, he was elected lieutenant governor in 1974 but lost the 1978 governor's race by a slim margin. Celeste worked in DC as director of the Peace Corps while plotting his next move, and in 1982, his gubernatorial campaign resulted in a landslide victory. He served two terms as Ohio's governor, tackling an epic savings and loan crisis along with mental health reform and job creation.Celeste describes candidly why he considered and dismissed a presidential campaign in 1988. He went on to serve as ambassador to India under President Clinton, traveling there with his second wife, Jacqueline Lundquist, and bringing his career full circle. Shortly after that position ended, Celeste became president of Colorado College, serving from 2002 to 2011.In each position, Celeste has used his grandmothers' wisdom to guide his decision making, putting the needs of his various constituents—Ohio citizens, Peace Corps volunteers, diplomatic colleagues, and college students—above his ego and popularity ratings, and, as he poignantly reflects, sometimes even before his family. In the Heart of It All offers a remarkably frank and expansive account of Celeste's personal and professional life, including his disappointing defeats and thrilling victories.

Read more less

A critical and nuanced look at societal perceptions of Black hair, past and present Black Hair in a White World is an in-depth study of the cultural history, perceptions, and increasing acceptance of Black hair in the broader American society. The essays in this anthology discuss representations and responses to Black hair, including analysis of research findings about marketing messages and depictions of Black hair in popular culture, discussions of workplace discrimination, and stories about the origins of the natural hair movement and how many Black people have learned to embrace and celebrate their natural hair.Beginning with a close analysis of historical and contemporary books, media, and ads, Black Hair in a White World illustrates both positive and negative responses to Black hair. In the second section, Ellington features contributions from diverse scholars and activists who argue that natural Black hair has often explicitly been––and still is––criticized by non-Blacks and Blacks who believe that the natural texture of Black hair is a problem that must be solved and believe that natural Black hair is unacceptable, unprofessional, and unattractive. Authors of the volume's final essays conclude by pushing against this narrative and describing the emergence of the natural hair movement, which has pushed for increased mainstream acceptance of Black hair.Black Hair in a White World is a groundbreaking, serious examination of perceptions of Black hair and makes an important contribution to ongoing discussions about gender, sociology, and self-expression.

Read more less

Author Evan Maina Mwangi explores the intersection of translation, sexuality, and cosmopolitan ethics in African literature. Usually seen as the preserve of literature published by Euro-American metropolitan outlets for Western consumption, cultural translation is also a recurrent theme in postcolonial African texts produced primarily for local circulation and sometimes in African languages. Mwangi illustrates how such texts allude to various forms of translation to depict the ethical relations to foreigners and the powerless, including sexual minorities. He also explains the popularity of uent models of translation in African literature, regardless of the energetic critique of such models by Western-based postcolonial theorists. While bringing to the foreground texts that have received little critical attention in African literary studies, Translation in African Contexts engages a wide range of foundational and postcolonial translation theorists. It considers a rich variety of works, including East African translations of Shakespeare, writings by Ng?g? wa Thiong’o and Gakaara wa Wanja?, a popular novel by Charles Mangua, and a stage adaptation by the Tanzanian playwright Amandina Lihamba, among others.

Read more less

In 1956, J. R. R. Tolkien famously stated that the real theme of The Lord of the Rings was "Death and Immortality." The deaths that underscore so much of the subject matter of Tolkien's masterpiece have a great deal to teach us. From the heroic to the humble, Tolkien draws on medieval concepts of death and dying to explore the glory and sorrow of human mortality. Three great themes of death link medieval Northern European culture, The Lord of the Rings, and contemporary culture: the way in which we die, the need to remember the dead, and above all the lingering apprehension of what happens after death. Like our medieval ancestors, we still talk about what it means to die as a hero, a traitor, or a coward; we still make decisions about ways to honor and remember the departed; and we continue to seek to appease and contain the dead. These themes suggest a latent resonance between medieval and modern cultures and raise an issue not generally discussed in contemporary Western society: our deeply rooted belief that how one dies in some way matters.While Tolkien, as a medieval scholar, naturally draws much of his inspiration from the literature, folklore, and legends of the Middle Ages, the popularity of his work affirms that modern audiences continue to find these tropes relevant and useful. From ideas of "good" and "bad" deaths to proper commemoration and disposal of the dead, and even to ghost stories, real people find comfort in the ideas about death and dying that Tolkien explores."The Sweet and the Bitter": Death and Dying in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings examines the ways in which Tolkien's masterwork makes visible the connections between medieval and modern conceptions of dying and analyzes how contemporary readers use The Lord of the Rings as a tool for dealing with death.

Read more less

Searching for a home and a homerun-an overlooked era of Giants and San Francisco historyThe San Francisco Giants have been one of the most successful franchises in baseball in the twenty-first century as evidenced by the three World Series Championship flags flying in the breeze over Oracle Park, one of the most beautiful baseball venues in the world. However, the team was not always so successful on or off the field. The Giants and Their City tells the story of a Giants franchise that had no recognizable stars, was last in the league in attendance, and had more than one foot out the door on the way to Toronto when a local businessman and a brand new mayor found a way to keep the team in San Francisco. Over the next 17 years, the team had some very good years, but more than few terrible ones, while trying to find a home in a city with a unique and confounding political culture.The Giants and Their City relates how the team struggles to win ballgames, find its way back to the playoffs, but also to stay in San Francisco when, at times, it wasn't clear the city wanted them. This book is a baseball story about beloved Giants players like Vida Blue, Willie McCovey, Kevin Mitchell, and Robby Thompson, and includes interviews with Art Agnos, Frank Jordan, Dianne Feinstein, John Montefusco, Will Clark, Kevin Mitchell, Mike Krukow, Dave Dravecky and Bob Lurie among others. The book features descriptions of important events in Giants history like the Mike Ivie grand slam, the Joe Morgan home run, the 1987 playoffs, the 1989 team, the Dave Dravecky game and the earthquake World Series. It's also a uniquely San Francisco story that shows how sports teams and cities often have very complex relationships.

Read more less

A small area of western Pennsylvania around Pittsburgh has produced almost 25 percent of the modern era quarterbacks enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. That percentage is wildly disproportionate to the number of superstar quarterbacks any one state might claim, let alone a mere sliver of a state—an area representing just one-fifth of one percent of the total country.The list of the greats starts with George Blanda, the “old man” of the game, and continues with the incomparable Johnny Unitas, followed by “Broadway” Joe Namath, Joe “the Comeback Kid” Montana, Dan Marino, and Jim Kelly.Their stories, feats, and statistics are brought to life in America’s Football Factory through riveting anecdotes, extensive research, and exclusive interviews with their coaches, friends, family, and peers. Readers will appreciate getting to know these athletes as people, not merely as football heroes. Stewart also explores the many theories as to why one part of the nation has churned out so many greats.Hall of Famers Raymond Berry and Mike Ditka lavished praise on the first edition of this book. “Any fan of my era, of my friend Johnny Unitas, or, for that matter, any fan of football in general should enjoy Wayne Stewart’s book,” said Berry. Ditka, himself a Western Pennsylvanian, wrote in the book’s introduction, “You can’t get much better than the primary six men featured in this book.” He’s correct—upon their retirement, all six of the book’s featured quarterbacks were in the top 12 for touchdown passes, and five of them were in the top 10.America’s Football Factory also features other greats from the Pittsburgh vicinity, including Johnny Lujack, Babe Parilli, and Marc Bulger, and the area’s best high school programs for producing quarterbacks are also discussed.

Read more less

Illuminating the central struggle in The Lord of the Rings to deepen understanding of the whole of Tolkien's legendariumIn this remarkable work of close reading and analysis, Thomas P. Hillman gets to the heart of the tension between pity and the desire for power in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. As the book traces the entangled story of the One Ring and its effects, we come to understand Tolkien's central paradox: while pity is necessary for destroying the Ring, it cannot save the Ring-bearer from the Ring's lies and corruption.In composing The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien explored the power of the Ring and the seeming powerlessness of pity. All the themes his mythology had come to encompass—death and immortality, fate and free will, divine justice and the problem of evil, power and war—took on a new dimension in the journey of Frodo Baggins. Hillman's attention to specific etymologies and patterns of words used in the text, complemented by his judicious use of Tolkien's letters, earlier drafts of the novels, and Tolkien's essays, leads to illuminating and original insights. Instead of turning his interpretation to allegory or apologetics, Hillman demonstrates how the story works metaphorically, allowing Tolkien to embrace both Catholic views and pagan mythology.With this fresh understanding of familiar material, Pity, Power, and Tolkien's Ring will ignite new discussions and deeper appreciation among Tolkien readers and scholars alike.

Read more less

Exploring the significant influences of Turkish dress on French fashion While French fashion has historically set the bar across the Western world, the cultural influences that inspired it are often obscured. Dressing à la Turque examines the theatrical depictions of Ottoman costumes, or Turkish dress, and demonstrates the French fascination for this foreign culture and its clothing. The impact, however, went far beyond costumes worn for art and theater, as Ottoman-inspired fashions became the most prominent and popular themes in French women's fashion throughout the 18th century.The newly invented fashion press used Ottoman-inspired styles to reconcile fashion consumption with Enlightenment dress reforms. At the same time, Turkish-inspired fashions were increasingly associated with long-criticized ideas about luxury, stereotypes about the connection between a woman's interest in fashion and "lascivious" behavior, and French perceptions of the Ottoman Empire. This backlash is epitomized by the public criticism of Queen Marie-Antoinette, who popularized Turkish-inspired fashion, embraced a lifestyle of excess, and is still remembered for her singular sense of style.Kendra Van Cleave includes numerous detailed images and dress patterns, enhancing her rich discussion of French styles during this important era.

Read more less

Winner of the 2021 Stan and Tom Wick Poetry Prize

Read more less

Although C. S. Lewis is best known for his prose and for his clear, lucid literary criticism, Christian apologetics, and imaginative Ransom and Narnia stories, he considered himself a poet for the first two and a half decades of his life. Owen Barfield recalls that anyone who met Lewis as a young man in the early 1920s at Oxford University quickly learned he was one ""whose ruling passion was to become a great poet. At that time if you thought of Lewis you automatically thought of poetry."" The Collected Poems of C. S. Lewis offers readers, for the first time, a one-volume collection of Lewis's poetry, including many poems that have never appeared in print. With the poems arranged in chronological order, this volume allows readers the opportunity to compare the poetry Lewis was writing while he was also writing his fiction and nonfiction prose.Beginning with his earliest lyric poems from 1907, The Collected Poems of C. S. Lewis follows Lewis's efforts to write long, narrative poems, which were particularly influenced by Norse mythology. His outburst of lyric poetry as a young man in the trenches during World War I culminates in his first published work, Spirits in Bondage (1919), followed by his most ambitious narrative poem, Dymer (1926). Both volumes afford unique insights into Lewis the atheist.After his conversion to Christianity in 1930, Lewis wrote a collection of sixteen religious lyrics that he included in The Pilgrim's Regress (1933); as a group, these are considered among his best poems. Until his death in 1963, Lewis continued writing and publishing poetry, often appearing in journals and magazines under his pseudonym N. W., shorthand for the Anglo-Saxon nat whilk, ""[I know] not whom."" As a whole, these latter poems are either occasional verses, burlesques, and erudite satires or they are contemplative poems musing upon the human condition and its pain, joy, suffering, pride, love, doubt, and faith.The Collected Poems of C. S. Lewis demonstrates a dedicated, determined, and passionate poet at work and illustrates the degree and depth to which poetry shaped Lewis's literary, intellectual, ?áemotional, and spiritual life.

Read more less

A facsimile edition of the 1953 history of the Philadelphia PhilliesFred Lieb and Stan Baumgartner's history of the Philadelphia Phillies was originally published in 1953 as part of the celebrated series of major league team histories published by G. P. Putnam. With their colorful prose and delightful narratives, the Putnam books have been described as the Cadillac of the genre and have become prized collectibles for baseball readers and historians.Together Lieb and Baumgartner chronicle the Phillies franchise's turbulent past—from its frustrating early decades, through its heartbreaking loss to the Boston Red Sox in the 1915 World Series, to its exciting "Whiz Kids" pennant of 1950. Phillies legends like Grover Cleveland Alexander, Chuck Klein, and Ed Delahanty fill these pages, and their colorful anecdotes are woven into the fabric of each season's story.In addition to its comprehensive and intimate examination of the team's history, The Philadelphia Phillies addresses the challenge of rooting for an often-struggling home team in a city known for its passionate baseball fans. Lieb's devotion to his hometown Phillies and overall love of the game and Baumgartner's unique insight as a Philadelphia sportswriter and former player often lead to thoughtful advice and comfort for long-suffering Phillies fans. A trip through a rocky but remarkable past, The Philadelphia Phillies is another enjoyable addition to the Writing Sports Series.

Read more less

C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, the creators of Narnia and Middle-earth, were close friends, colleagues, and members of the Inklings, a writers group that met in Oxford in the 1930s and 1940s, sharing and discussing their works-in-progress. This important study challenges the standard interpretation that Lewis, Tolkien, Charles Williams, Owen Barfield, and the other Inklings had little influence on one another's work, drawing on the latest research in composition studies and the sociology of the creative process.Diana Glyer invites readers into the heart of the group, examining diary entries and personal letters and carefully comparing the rough drafts of their manuscripts with their final, published work. Her analysis not only demonstrates the high level of mutual influence that characterized this writers group but also provides a lively and compelling picture of how writers and other creative artists challenge, correct, and encourage one another as they work together in community.

Read more less

Examining the life and career of Harriet Dame, Civil War battlefield nurse, and her major contributions to the Union causeIn June of 1861, 46-year-old Harriet Patience Dame joined the Second New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry Regiment as a matron. No Place for a Woman recounts her dedicated service throughout the Civil War. She camped with the regiment on campaign, nursed its wounded after many major battles, and carried out important wartime missions for her state and the Union cause. Late in the 19th century, she battled alongside her friend Dorothea Dix to overcome prejudice against bestowing pensions on women who nursed during the war.Historian Mike Pride traces Harriet Dame's service as a field nurse with a storied New Hampshire infantry regiment during the Peninsula campaign, Second Bull Run, Gettysburg, and Cold Harbor. Twice during that service, Dame was briefly captured. In early 1863, she spent months running a busy enterprise in Washington, DC, that connected families at home to soldiers in the field. Later, at the behest of New Hampshire's governor, she traveled south by ship to check on the care of her state's soldiers in Union hospitals along the coast. She then served as chief nurse and kitchen supervisor at Point of Rocks Hospital near Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's headquarters in Virginia. Dame entered Richmond shortly after the Union victory and rejoined her regiment for the occupation of Virginia. After the war, she worked as a clerk in Washington well into her 70s and served as president of the retired war nurses' organization. She also became a revered figure at annual veterans' reunions in New Hampshire.No Place for a Woman draws on newly discovered letters written by Harriet Dame and includes many rare photographs of the soldiers who knew Dame best, of the nurses and doctors she worked with, and of Dame herself. This biography convincingly argues that in length, depth, and breadth of service, it is unlikely that any woman did more for the Union cause than Harriet Dame.

Read more less

Honoring and embodying the cultural heritages of a region through the beauty of shared outdoor spacesFrom their beginnings as private farmland to their current form as monuments to cultural and ethnic diversity, the unique collection of landscaped, themed gardens that compose Cleveland's Cultural Gardens holds a rich history. John J. Grabowski guides readers through this story, using both archival images and Lauren R. Pacini's stunning contemporary photography to illustrate their development and importance. The effect is a comprehensive view of the factors that made the Cultural Gardens possible, from Cleveland's geographical features to international conflicts.First erected as the Shakespeare Garden in 1916, the land bordering Doan Brook slowly began to incorporate tributes to immigrants, reflecting Cleveland's role as a key location for eastern European immigrants. Through this chronicle of the gardens' changing landscapes, Grabowski shapes a gripping narrative of shifting attitudes toward immigration, both locally and nationally. Throughout both world wars, the Cold War, and more recent events, the gardens' composition has changed to reflect more diversity, now encompassing 33 individual gardens that honor cultures and countries with connections to Cleveland. Today, each garden features plants native to the corresponding culture, from German to Vietnamese and from Ethiopian to Finnish. This vast cultural inclusivity makes Cleveland's Cultural Gardens a forerunner in the push for greater representation of cultures and people of color in memorials and public spaces.The gardens also highlight a growing emphasis on collaboration and coexistence among cultures, as symbolized in the Peace Garden of the Nations and its crypt of intermingled soil from historic shrines around the world. This book will be of interest to field specialists and nonexperts alike for its excellent illustrations and for its discussion of culture, inclusion, and diversity both on a local and national scale.

Read more less

People from around the world reflect on the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccine through poetryWhen so much in our lives ground to a halt in the spring of 2020, no one knew how long the COVID-19 pandemic would last. After long months of shutdowns, social distancing, and worry, the first coronavirus vaccines were released in December 2020. In March 2021, the Wick Poetry Center at Kent State University and the University of Arizona Poetry Center launched the website for the Global Vaccine Poem project, inviting anyone to share experiences of the pandemic and vaccination through poetry. Dear Vaccine features selections from over 2,000 poetry submissions to the project, which come from all 50 states and 118 different countries. Internationally acclaimed author Naomi Shihab Nye, in her introduction, highlights the human dimensions found across the responses. Richard Carmona, the 17th Surgeon General of the United States, provides a foreword that contextualizes the global scope of the problem, as well as the political and public health dimensions. Making use of poetry's powerful tools to connect us across division, Dear Vaccine reminds us that medical advances alone are not enough to solve the vexing challenges of the pandemic; the arts—and poetry—have a profound and critical role to play.

Read more less

Seven decades of the intense Steelers-Browns rivalry.Football historians regard the games between the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers as the basis for one of the greatest rivalries in NFL history. Authors Richard Peterson and Stephen Peterson, in telling the engaging story of these teams who play only a two-hour drive along the turnpike from each other, explore the reasons behind this intense rivalry and the details of its ups and downs for each team and its fans.The early rivalry was a tale of Browns dominance and Steelers ineptitude. In the 1950s and 1960s, the Browns-led by Hall of Famers ranging from Otto Graham and Marion Motley in the 1950s to Jim Brown, Bobby Mitchell, and Leroy Kelly in the 1960s-won 32 of the first 40 games played against the Steelers. In the 1970s, the Steelers-led by Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, and the Steel Curtain-finally turned things around. When the AFL and NFL merged in 1970, Art Rooney agreed to move the Steelers only if the Browns also moved into the AFC and played in the same division so that their rivalry would be preserved.Despite the fierce rivalry, these cities and their fans have much in common, most notably the working-class nature of the Steeler Nation and the Dawg Pound and their passion, over the decades, for their football teams. Many fans are able to regularly making the 130-mile trip to watch the games.From the first game on October 7, 1950, where Cleveland defeated the Steelers 30–17, to last season's infamous helmet incident with Mason Rudolph and Myles Garrett, the rivalry remains as intense as ever.

Read more less

While a number of published collections of World War II letters are available to readers, few rise to the level of war literature. A Young Sailor at War: The World War II Letters of William R. Catton Jr. is remarkable for the narrative skill of its letter writer, for his exuberance and candor, and for his youthful but thoughtful commentary. Edited by his son Theodore, Catton's letters give us a truly intimate look into an essential piece of history.William R. Catton Jr. volunteered for navy service on his 17th birthday in January 1943 and served as a plane handler onboard the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga from August 1944 through the end of WWII. He learned how to rebuild an aircraft engine and fire a 50-caliber machine gun before he was 18 and made two voyages across the Pacific and saw a year of combat before he was 20. He was wounded in a devastating kamikaze attack in January 1945, and he was on deck to watch the sunrise on Mount Fuji when Ticonderoga entered Tokyo Bay after the Japanese surrender seven months later.Bill was a prolific correspondent who displayed a wide-eyed sense of adventure and a self-conscious pride in being a witness to history. He reported events and personal interactions in clear, often colorful prose. Upon returning home, his sea stories mostly went untold, his Purple Heart medal and stripes went into a box of mementos never to be shown, while his letters from the war—carefully saved by his mother—went unread until his son began to examine them after his father's death. Bill Catton, who went on to become a sociologist well known for his work on the environment and human ecology, has indeed left us a unique commentary.

Read more less

Exploring the uncanny perception of depth in Tolkien's writing and world-building A Sense of Tales Untoldexamines the margins of J. R. R. Tolkien's work: the frames, edges, allusions, and borders between story and un-story and the spaces between vast ages and miniscule time periods. The untold tales that are simply implied or referenced in the text are essential to Tolkien's achievement in world-building, Peter Grybauskas argues, and counter the common but largely spurious image of Tolkien as a writer of bloated prose. Instead, A Sense of Tales Untold highlights Tolkien's restraint—his ability to check the pen to great effect. The book begins by identifying some of Tolkien's principal sources of inspiration and his contemporaries, then summarizes theories and practices of the literary impression of depth. The following chapters offer close readings of key untold tales in context, ranging from the shadowy legends at the margins of The Lord of the Rings to the nexus of tales concerning Túrin Turambar, the great tragic hero of the Elder Days. In his frequent retellings of the Túrin legend, Tolkien found a lifelong playground for experimentation with untold stories. "A story must be told or there'll be no story, yet it is the untold stories that are most moving," wrote Tolkien to his son during the composition of The Lord of the Rings,cutting straight to the heart of the tension between storytelling and world-building that animates his work. From the most straightforward form of an untold tale—an omission—to vast and tangled webs of allusions, Grybauskas highlights this tension. A Sense of Tales Untold engages with urgent questions about interpretation, adaptation, and authorial control, giving both general readers and specialists alike a fresh look at the source material of the ongoing "Tolkien phenomenon.

Read more less

President Nixon's announcement on April 30, 1970, that US troops were invading neutral Cambodia as part of the ongoing Vietnam War campaign sparked a complicated series of events with tragic consequences on many fronts.In Cambodia, the invasion renewed calls for a government independent of western power and influence, eventually resulting in a civil war and the rise of the Khmer Rouge. Here at home, Nixon's expansion of the war galvanized the longstanding anti–Vietnam War movement, including at Kent State University, leading to the tragic shooting deaths of four students on May 4, 1970.This short book concisely contextualizes these events, filling a gap in the popular memory of the 1970 shootings and the wider conceptions of the war in Southeast Asia. In three brief chapters, James A. Tyner and Mindy Farmer provide background on the decade of activism around the United States that preceded the events on Kent State's campus, an overview of Cambodia's history and developments following the US incursion, and a closing section on historical memory—poignantly tying together the subject matter of the preceding chapters.As we grapple with the legacy of the Kent State shootings, Tyner and Farmer assert, we should also grapple with the larger context of the protests, of the decision to bomb and invade a neutral country, and the violence and genocide that followed.

Read more less

A central figure in Reconstruction-era politics, Adelbert Ames and his contributions during a significant and uncertain time in American history are the focus of Michael Megelsh's fascinating study. Megelsh's work unearths Ames's important and underappreciated contributions to this transitional time in American history and politics.

Read more less

Bromfield's personal account of life and environmental practice at his Malabar Farm Both memoir and environmental commentary, this unique and classic work by Louis Bromfield engages and educates us as he demonstrates the importance of sustainable agriculture practices—not only for restoring the land but for restoring the home of the people who live there.

Read more less

The definitive account of audacious con woman Cassie Chadwick, the Carnegie Imposter.Queen of the Con tells the true story of Cassie Chadwick, a successful swindler and “one of the top 10 imposters of all time,” according to Time magazine. Born Betsy Bigley in 1857 in Canada, she first operated as Madame Devere, a European clairvoyant, and in 1890 was arrested for defrauding a Toledo bank of $20,000. In the mid-1890s, while working as a madam in Cleveland, Cassie met and married a widowed physician with a coveted Euclid Avenue address.At the dawn of the 20th century, Cassie borrowed $2 million (worth roughly $50 million today) throughout northern Ohio, Pittsburgh, New York, and Boston by convincingly posing as the illegitimate daughter of wealthy industrialist-turned-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.When the fraud collapsed in 1904, it was a nationwide sensation. “Yes, I borrowed money in very large amounts,” she told reporters, “but what of it? You can’t accuse a poor businesswoman of being a criminal, can you?” Carnegie, who never responded to the claim, merely joked that Mrs. Chadwick had demonstrated that his credit was still good.This meticulously researched book is the first full-length account of this fascinating woman’s notorious career, the forerunner to more recent female scammers like Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes or fake heiress Anna Sorokin, the “Soho Grifter.” Crowl’s engaging storytelling also leads readers to consider aspects of gender stereotypes, social and economic class structures, and the ways in which we humans can so often be fooled.

Read more less

Shared joys and concerns across cultures and language, expressed in the poetry of children.When school children from Kent, Ohio and Florence, Italy, were invited to express their thoughts about "Where I'm From" in poetry, the connections that emerged between these students from different continents were remarkable. Their responses to this prompt—"lo vengo da" in Italian—demonstrate the underlying importance of home, families, the natural world, and the creative identities that children harbour within them.The 40 poems in I Hear the World Sing, printed in both English and Italian, presents these poems in three sections—"The Chirp of Little Birds," "Witness the River," and "I Write to Grow a World"—which explore and celebrate the commonalities between us. Anyone can be a poet, no matter the language one speaks or writes. And by presenting each poem in two languages, this collection emphasises how successfully poetry transcends both physical and linguistic boundaries, no matter the age of the poet.Originally composed in workshops facilitated by the Wick Poetry Center's Traveling Stanzas project and translated by students in Kent State University's Italian translation program, I Hear the World Sing is an invitation for students of poetry, of Italian, and readers of any age to reflect on language and how it shapes our lives.

Read more less

First published in 1948, Lee Allen's history of the Reds, like Franklin Lewis's history of the Cleveland Indians, was originally published by G. P. Putnam's Sons. Allen narrates the historic organization's success, beginning shortly after the Civil War with baseball's rising popularity among Cincinnati's elite. Eventually, as interest increased, America's first professional baseball team was established in 1868 - Cincinnati's Red Stockings. ""The Cincinnati Reds"" chronicles each season from the organization's early years, most notably the 1882 American Association pennant and the 1919 and 1940 National League pennants, and World Series championships, including the infamous Chicago White Sox scandal. Allen retells many of the early Reds stories likely forgotten or unknown by today's fans. This book is as thorough as it is absorbing, and will be enjoyed by those interested in the early days of America's favourite passtime.

Read more less

“I wondered if it was possible to use photographic and documentary evidence to re-create the first generation of Americans—those men, women, and children bound together by having lived during the Revolutionary War. . . .While there were many images in public collections or owned by collectors, I knew through my work as a curator and as a collector that there were likely even more in private family collections.”—from the Introduction. A remarkable work of documentary history, The Last Muster is a collection of rare nineteenth-century photographic images—primarily daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, and `carte des visite’ paper photographs—of the Revolutionary War generation. This extraordinary collection of images assigns faces to an un-illustrated war and tells the stories of our nation’s founding fathers and mothers, updating and supplementing research last collected and published over a century ago. In her comprehensive introduction, author Maureen Taylor explains how she came to this project and collected the images. She also describes her exhaustive primary source research involved in dating and identifying each image and investigating the story and genealogy of each subject. The array of seventy images is expansive and includes veterans, loyalists, Native Americans, African Americans, children who witnessed battles and aided soldiers, and women who nursed the wounded and even took up arms themselves. Although the faces that gaze at the reader are old and wizened, the stories they tell are of youthful bravery in the young days of the republic. The Last Muster is a much-needed contribution to the history of the American Revolution, the early Republic, and the history of photography. Through these portraits and the accompanying narrative, readers will have the opportunity to relive the Revolutionary War. Maureen Taylor is an internationally known expert on photo identification. She travels extensively giving presentations on photo identification, photo preservation, and family history. She has been featured in The Wall Street Journal and on NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s The View, and NPR.

Read more less

The Kent State University Press is excited to reissue these classic true crime detective stories by Allan Pinkerton, the Scottish American detective and spy who founded the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in 1850. His agency was the largest private law enforcement organization in the world at the height of its power, and its well-known logo of a large, unblinking eye actually served as inspiration for the term "private eye."In The Somnambulist and the Detective, Allan Pinkerton Pinkerton travels to Atkinson, Mississippi, to investigate the murder of bank teller George Gordon and the theft of more than $130,000 in the City Bank of Atkinson. Atkinson appears at first to be no more than a quiet town of shopkeepers, laborers, and businessmen. But dark secrets lurk beneath the town's Southern facade, and Pinkerton wastes no time in discovering them. Traveling under the guise of a cotton speculator, Pinkerton makes inquiries into the crime without drawing suspicion.Although George's body was discovered in the morning, he was in the habit of remaining in the bank after hours. And upon learning that George would never let anyone into the locked bank save "only one or two personal friends," Pinkerton is certain George must have known his killer! But without much hard evidence, the Scottish detective must use all of his cunning to deduce the identity of the murderous thief and extract a confession.

Read more less

During World War II the ability of American ground forces to advance in the face of fierce resistance was largely dependent on the precision of artillery barrages. Aerial observation was frequently the only effective means to locate enemy targets. For this mission the Army air corps used prewar light civilian airplanes (usually reconfigured Piper Cubs) known as Grasshoppers for their ability to take off from and land in tight places like dirt roads, grass fields, and ships. In addition to pinpointing enemy artillery, these aircraft were often assigned other missions—medical evacuations, reporting on enemy troop movements, and reconnaissance—often armed only with handguns.Julian W. Cummings began flying lightweight Piper Cubs as a young man and was recruited for the experimental and high-risk aerial reconnaissance unit of the U.S. Army’s Third Infantry Division. In this memoir he chronicles his daring missions from first flights in the North African campaign through the end of the war. He flew 485 missions in both theaters, and for his extraordinary bravery in Sicily he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.Grasshopper Pilot gives long-overdue attention and credit to the crucial role these courageous men played in combat and adds valuable information to an understudied dimension of the war.

Read more less

One young woman's correspondence with her community's servicemen, maintaining connection and boosting morale throughout the Civil WarDuring the American Civil War, soldiers frequently wrote letters to friends and family members as a way of maintaining their connections to loved ones at home. However, most of the published collections of Civil War letters contain correspondence between just two individuals. Letters to Lizzie: The Story of Sixteen Men in the Civil War and the One Woman Who Connected Them All contains a collection of letters exchanged between 16 men—15 soldiers and a quartermaster at a military hospital—and one young woman, Lizzie Brick. Since Lizzie herself could not bear arms, she took up her pen and through ongoing correspondence helped these Union soldiers sustain their motivation for the cause.The men served in 11 different regiments in the Army of the Potomac, and their correspondence reveals unique insights into the connections between home front and battlefront during the Civil War and into the dynamics of male-female friendships in the 19th century. The letters span the entire war, and within them, the soldiers share their opinions about the people of the South, describe their experiences on the battlefield, and voice their frustrations with their commanders and the conduct of the war.Letters to Lizzie presents a complex portrait of a young woman during wartime as well as the concerns of soldiers, thus contributing to our understanding of the connections between servicemen and their communities and the role that women played during the Civil War in sustaining these relationships.

Read more less

Winner of the 2018 Stan and Tom Wick Poetry PrizeThe Many Names for Mother is an exploration of intergenerational motherhood; its poems reach toward the future even as they reflect on the past. This evocative collection hovers around history, trauma, and absence—from ancestral histories of anti-Semitic discrimination in the former Soviet Union to the poet’s travels, while pregnant with her son, to death camp sites in Poland. As a descendant of Holocaust survivors, Dasbach ponders how the weight of her Jewish-refugee immigrant experience comes to influence her raising of a first-generation, bilingual, and multiethnic American child.A series of poems titled “Other women don’t tell you” becomes a refrain throughout the book, echoing the unspoken or taboo aspects of motherhood, from pregnancy to the postpartum body. The Many Names for Mother emphasises that there is no single narrative of motherhood, no finite image of her body or its transformation, and no unified name for any of this experience. The collection is a reminder of the mothers we all come from, urging us to remember both our named and unnamed pasts.

Read more less

Using a philosophical lens to more deeply examine, appreciate, and understand C. S. Lewis's writingsDrawing on C. S. Lewis's essays, sermons, and fiction, The Lion's Country offers a comprehensive exploration of Lewis's understanding of reality—important, Charlie W. Starr argues, to more fully understand Lewis's writing but also to challenge and inform our own thought about what constitutes the Real.For Lewis, reality is not simply a matter of what we can ascertain with our senses; the Real includes but also transcends the physical. Indeed, for Lewis, who is perhaps the most influential Christian writer of the 20th century, God is the most Real thing there is. Yet during the modernist era when Lewis lived, taught, and wrote, the prevailing view was that the only legitimate knowledge was that which could be derived from empirically provable facts. Lewis's rejection of such a narrow belief prompted him to ask, "What are facts without interpretation?" and led to his lifelong pursuit of experiencing and understanding the Real. Much of his fiction, including The Chronicles of Narnia, is fundamentally about how we can encounter reality and be certain of what we know.Starr's unique look at Lewis's philosophical and theological underpinnings extends even to a discussion of heaven and what it would be like to see the face of God. Including a never-before-released passage from Lewis's unpublished Prayer Manuscript, The Lion's Country is an essential contribution to Lewis studies.

Read more less

Though it highlights just one year of writing, this third volume of The Collected Stories of Ray Bradbury represents a crucial moment at the midpoint of his first full decade as a professional writer. The original versions of the 1940s stories recovered for The Collected Stories of Ray Bradbury, presented in the order in which they were written and first sent of to find life in the magazine market, suggest that Bradbury’s masks didn’t always appeal to his editors. The Volume 3 stories were all written between March 1944 and March 1945, and the surviving letters of this period reveal the private con ict raging between Brad- bury’s efforts to define a distinct style and creative vision at home in Los Angeles and the tyranny of genre requirements imposed by the distant pulp publishing world in New York. Most of the twenty-two stories composed during this pivotal year in his development re ect the impact of these creative pres- sures. is period also produced important markers in his maturing creativity with “The Miracles of Jamie,” “Invisible Boy,” and “Ylla,” which were among the rst wave of Bradbury tales to reach the mainstream markets. The early versions of Bradbury’s stories recovered for Volume 3, some emerging from his surviving typescripts and several that restore lost text preserved only in the rare Canadian serial versions, provide an unprecedented snapshot of his writing and his inspirations. Un- derlying this year of creativity was the expanding world of readings in modern and contemporary literature that would prove to be a crucial factor in his development as a master storyteller. The Collected Stories of Ray Bradbury is edited in compliance with the highest scholarly standards by the Center for Ray Bradbury Studies and bears the Modern Language Association’s seal of approval for scholarly editions. Each volume includes a general introduction, biographical timeline, summary of unpublished stories, historical commentaries for each story, textual apparatus, and a chronological catalog.

Read more less