Search results for ""author alex"

Voice is the next technology - remarkably similar in potential impact to the internet and mobile computing - poised to change the way the world works. Tobias Dengel is in the vanguard of this breakthrough, understanding the deep, wide-ranging implications voice will have for every industry. In The Sound of the Future, he connects the dots about this emerging paradigm to vividly illustrate how business leaders can stay ahead of the game, rather than scrambling to catch up, as voice technology gradually reveals its power, creating a host of new winners and losers. Using fascinating, colorful stories, Dengel explains how the "voice-first" experience is becoming part of the global technology mainstream, exploring the ways voice will do a better job of serving basic human needs such as safety, speed, accuracy, convenience, and fun, as well as making it possible for hundreds of millions of people around the planet to participate more fully and productively in today's high-tech world by making interactions with technology virtually effortless. A pervasive technology like the internet and mobile, voice, with applications in marketing, sales, service, manufacturing, and logistics, will change the way we work at every level and every function, driving down costs, boosting productivity, and enabling the creation of entirely new business models.This is not simply about Siri and Alexa. They are the tantalizing but incomplete precursors of the ultimate interface that will make technology easier, faster, more accurate, and more human.

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The Leader of the Future 2 follows in the footsteps of the international bestseller The Leader of the Future, which has been translated into twenty-eight languages, and is one of the most widely distributed edited collections on leadership to date. In twenty-seven inspiring and insightful essays, this book celebrates the wisdom of some of the most recognized thought leaders of our day who share their unique vision of leadership for the future. Returning Contributors: Ken Blanchard with Dennis Carey, Stephen Covey, Marshall Goldsmith, Charles Handy, Sally Helgesen, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Jim Kouzes & Barry Posner, Richard Leider, Ed Schein, Peter Senge, and Dave Ulrich with Norm Smallwood. New Contributors: John Alexander, Darlyne Bailey, Howard Gardner with Lynn Barendsen, Usman Ghani, Ronald Heifetz, Joe Maciariello, Jan Masaoka, John Mroz, Brian O'Connell, Jeff Pfeffer, Ponchitta Pierce, Srikumar Rao, General Eric Shinseki, R. Roosevelt Thomas, Noel Tichy with Chris DeRose, and Tom Tierney. "Hesselbein and Marshall Goldsmith, one of the USA's top executive coaches, edited the collection The Leader of the Future 2. Its 27 eloquent essays provide a kind of hopeful, idealistic best-case scenario for future leaders of non-profits and businesses. This is not a cookie-cutter, how-to approach. The job of the essayists is to provide food for thought and goals. The high quality of writing here should inspire anyone who has aspirations for leadership." —Bruce Rosenstein, USA Today

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A book that challenges our most basic assumptions about Judeo-Christian monotheismContrary to popular belief, Judaism was not always strictly monotheistic. Two Gods in Heaven reveals the long and little-known history of a second, junior god in Judaism, showing how this idea was embraced by rabbis and Jewish mystics in the early centuries of the common era and casting Judaism's relationship with Christianity in an entirely different light.Drawing on an in-depth analysis of ancient sources that have received little attention until now, Peter Schäfer demonstrates how the Jews of the pre-Christian Second Temple period had various names for a second heavenly power—such as Son of Man, Son of the Most High, and Firstborn before All Creation. He traces the development of the concept from the Son of Man vision in the biblical book of Daniel to the Qumran literature, the Ethiopic book of Enoch, and the Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria. After the destruction of the Second Temple, the picture changes drastically. While the early Christians of the New Testament took up the idea and developed it further, their Jewish contemporaries were divided. Most rejected the second god, but some—particularly the Jews of Babylonia and the writers of early Jewish mysticism—revived the ancient Jewish notion of two gods in heaven.Describing how early Christianity and certain strands of rabbinic Judaism competed for ownership of a second god to the creator, this boldly argued and elegantly written book radically transforms our understanding of Judeo-Christian monotheism.

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The Farnese Cup: the largest cameo hardstone cup to have survived from the ancient world. A treasured piece that travelled over centuries. A meticulously prepared publication illustrating the Farnese Cup in varying perspectives. A tour de force of a carver's skill and craftsmanship, the Farnese Cup is the largest cameo hardstone cup to have survived from the ancient world. Thought to be made in Hellenist Egypt sometime between 300 BC and 30 BC, the Cup was not an archaeological find but rather a treasured piece that travelled over centuries through many hands from Alexandria to Rome to Constantinople and back to Rome before joining the Farnese Collection now housed at the National Archeological Museum of Naples. The Cup, carved out of sardonyx agate, remains the subject of scholarly debate: what do the enigmatic figures in the inner scene mean? And the terrifying face of the Gorgon on the outside? Why was it made? And in what context? Whatever its inherent meaning, the piece itself is commanding, requiring a close-up view of each hand-carved detail, the balance and impact of the whole, and the subtle variations in the material itself. This book provides that close-up in a series of photographs and varying perspectives that pull back from the delicate infinitesimal cut to the magnificent, perfect whole. There is no better way - in fact no possible way - for the general reader or connoisseur to fully appreciate the Farnese Cup than through the pages of this meticulously prepared publication.

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The French is one of Black's soundest defences to 1 e4 and is very popular at all levels of chess. Club players enjoy its super-solid structure, while at the top it's played by famous grandmasters such as Vishy Anand and the young Russian star Alexander Morozevich. With his first two moves Black obtains a substantial foothold in the centre, and a structure that is incredibly difficult to break down. In this user-friendly book, International Master Byron Jacobs revisits the basic principles behind the French Defence and all of its variations. Throughout the reader is helped along by a wealth of notes, tips, warnings and exercises. This book is ideal for the improving player. The Caro-Kann Defence has a well-deserved and established reputation as an incredibly solid and, at the same time, dynamic defence to 1 e4. The Caro-Kann appeals to all types of players, but is especially useful to black players who prefer a sound platform on which to build and who are resourceful in both defence and counter-attack. Star players who enjoy using the Caro-Kann include Vishy Anand, Michael Adams and the legendary Anatoly Karpov. In this easy-to-read guide, Grandmaster Joe Gallagher goes back to the basics of the Caro-Kann, studying the key principles of its many variations. Throughout the book there is an abundance of notes, tips, warnings and exercises to help the improving player, while important strategies, ideas and tactics for both sides are clearly illustrated.

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Parisian churches are revered around the globe. Their stunning stained-glass windows and intricate Gothic architecture are accomplishments of unrivalled elegance. Churches of Paris gathers 37 of the finest in the City of Light, spanning the 12th to the 19th centuries. Each entry is embellished with beautiful colour photography and behind-the-scenes historical commentary. Offering insight into the buildings’ construction and genesis, this book narrates how each church was shaped by war, revolution and time. With information on restoration and preservation, this is an invaluable guide for Francophiles and curious armchair travellers alike. Featured churches include: Basilique du Sacré-Coeur de Montmartre, Basilique Sainte-Clotilde, Basilique Cathédrale de Saint-Denis, Notre-Dame Cathedral, La Chapelle de l’Epiphanie des Missions Etrangères et la Salle des Martyrs, La Chapelle Notre-Dame de la Médaille Miraculeuse, La Chapelle Saint-Vincent-de-Paul, La Madeleine, Notre-Dame-de-Lorette, Notre-Dame-des-Blancs-Manteaux, Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, Cathedral Saint-Alexandre-Nevsky, Saint-Augustin, La Sainte-Chapelle, Sainte-Élisabeth-de-Hongrie, Sainte-Marguerite, Saint-Étienne-du-Mont, La Sainte-Trinité, Saint-Eugène-Sainte-Cécile, Saint-Eustache, Saint-François-Xavier, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois, Saint-Gervais-Saint-Protais, Saint-Jacques-du-Haut-Pas, Saint-Joseph-des-Carmes, Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre, Saint-Louis-en-l’Île, Saint-Merry, Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis, Saint-Pierre de Montmartre, Saint-Roch, Saint-Séverin, Saint-Sulpice, Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, Saint-Vincent-de-Paul, The American Cathedral in Paris

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Birmingham would definitely not be the place that it is today, without Eddie Fewtrell. Born one of ten children in the 1930s, in the backstreets of Aston, much of Eddie's childhood was spent keeping house and caring for his younger brothers. An alcoholic father and an invalid mother prevented him from attending school and leading a normal life - a scenario a million light years away from the vast nightclub empire that he was destined to build. By the 1970s he had become the most powerful man in Birmingham's Clubland. With the support of his large family, in particular his seven brothers, he went on to achieve even greater success.Eddie's first club, the Bermuda Club, was in Navigation Street, Eddie moved to pastures new, in the form of the Cedar Club, on Constitution Hill. Over the next few years Eddie opened Rebecca's, Abigail's, Boogie's nightclub, Boogie's Brasserie, Edward's No.7, Edward's No.8, the Paramount pub and Goldwyn's. Barbarella's became the top showcase for many up and coming UK pop groups. In 1989, he sold his clubs to Ansells but he returned three years later to open a new wave of clubs. Professional success came at a high price; Eddie reveals how his millionaire lifestyle and the pursuit of wealth led to tragic consequences.Other contributors include Laurie Hornsby, Kenny Lynch, Patti Bell, Tony Christie, Raymond Froggatt and H. Cain, Mike Alexander, BBC WM presenter Phil Upton, pop legends Bev Bevan, Steve Gibbons and Chuck Botfield. Comedians Don Maclean, Dave Ismay and Eddie's good friend Bernard Manning, interviewed shortly before his tragic death.

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'What a wonderful, honest, refreshing book, full of free-spirited adventure, humour and profound thoughts to provide inspiration to anyone who simply dreams of getting out and doing their own thing' SIR CHRIS BONINGTON'Ernest Shackleton listed those qualities an explorer should possess over a century ago: optimism, patience, idealism with imagination, and courage. Vanessa's qualities are truly akin to these' ALEXANDRA SHACKLETONWhen Vanessa O'Brien was made redundant in 2008 as part of the recession, she moved to Hong Kong with her husband for his career and resigned herself to being 'just the wife'. There she was, aged 46, bored, uninspired, unemployed. Was this going to be how she was going to live the rest of her life?One night in the infamous Kee Club, over shots of tequila, a friend suggested O'Brien climb Everest, and that was the start of an epic journey she never looked back from as she climbed Everest, K2 and many other mountains.This is her inspirational story. As O'Brien says, she couldn't explain to her readers how she got to the top of K2 at the age of 52 without being honest about what came before. In To the Greatest Heights, she reveals the trials and tribulations of her difficult childhood, and the result is a life-affirming book that shows how she achieved these climbs in spite of and because of her past.To read To the Greatest Heights is to know that there is a path to overcoming the worst of what happens to us, a path that helps us reach the summit of our lives too, whatever our age.

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'Vivid, amusing and immensely enjoyable . . . A triumph' Alexander McCall SmithMeet Tannie Maria: the loveable writer of recipes in her local paper, the Klein Karoo Gazette.One Sunday morning, as Maria stirs apricot jam, she hears her editor Harriet on the stoep. What Maria doesn't realise is that Harriet is about to deliver a whole basketful of challenges and the first ingredient in two new recipes - recipes for love and murder.A delicious blend of intrigue, milk tart and friendship, join Tannie Maria in her first investigation. Consider your appetite whetted for a whole new series of mysteries . . .

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The authoritative edition of Henry IV, Part 1 from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers. Family relationships are at the center of Henry IV, Part 1. King Henry IV and Prince Hal form one major father-son pair, with Henry in despair because Hal lives a dissolute life. The father-son pair of Hotspur (Lord Henry Percy) and his father, the Earl of Northumberland, is in seeming contrast; the king envies Northumberland “his Harry,” wishing he could claim the gallant Hotspur as his own. Meanwhile, Hal has entered into a quasi-father-son relationship with a disreputable but amusing knight, Sir John Falstaff. Another strand of action centers on still more family relationships. Hotspur’s stand against Henry focuses on Hotspur’s brother-in-law, Mortimer. Mortimer, who fought against the Welsh magician Owen Glendower, was defeated and captured and has married Glendower’s daughter. King Henry pronounces Mortimer a traitor whom he will not ransom. Hotspur, in declaring war on Henry, sees himself as fighting for Mortimer, his wife’s brother. This edition includes: -Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play -Full explanatory notes conveniently placed on pages facing the text of the play -Scene-by-scene plot summaries -A key to the play’s famous lines and phrases -An introduction to reading Shakespeare’s language -An essay by a leading Shakespeare scholar providing a modern perspective on the play -Fresh images from the Folger Shakespeare Library’s vast holdings of rare books -An annotated guide to further reading Essay by Alexander Leggatt The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare’s printed works, and a magnet for Shakespeare scholars from around the globe. In addition to exhibitions open to the public throughout the year, the Folger offers a full calendar of performances and programs. For more information, visit Folger.edu.

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From the fury of the Punic Wars to the icy waters of Dunkirk, relive 5,000 years of world-changing combat with this guide to the most famous battles in history. This military history book takes you on a journey through the battlefields of history, from the ancient world to the American Civil War, World War 1, World War 2, the Cold War, and beyond. Maps, paintings, and photographs reveal the stories behind more than 90 of the most important battles ever to take place, and show how fateful decisions led to glorious victories and crushing defeats. From medieval battles and great naval battles to the era of high-tech air battles, key campaigns are illustrated and analyzed in detail – the weapons, the soldiers, and the military strategy. Dive into the past to discover: - Specially commissioned maps show how each of the featured battles played out.- Entries tell the story behind each battle – why it happened, and the lasting historical impact it left on both the parties involved and the wider world.- Chapter directory sections cover other key battles of the period bringing the total number of battlesFamous military leaders are profiled, including Alexander the Great, Napoleon, and Rommel, and crucial arms, armor, and equipment are explained. Whether at Marathon, Agincourt, Gettysburg, or Stalingrad, Battles that Changed History takes you into the thick of combat and shows how kingdoms and empires have been won and lost on the battlefield. A must-have volume for history and military history enthusiasts, university students, and armchair generals of all ages.

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The authoritative edition of Titus Andronicus from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers.Titus Andronicus is the earliest tragedy and the earliest Roman play attributed to Shakespeare. Titus, a model Roman, has led twenty-one of his twenty-five sons to death in Rome’s wars; he stabs another son to death for what he views as disloyalty to Rome. Yet Rome has become “a wilderness of tigers.” After a death sentence is imposed on two of his three remaining sons, and his daughter is raped and mutilated, Titus turns his loyalty toward his family. Aaron the Moor, a magnificent villain and the empress’s secret lover, makes a similar transition. After the empress bears him a child, Aaron devotes himself to preserving the baby. Retaining his thirst for evil, he shows great tenderness to his little family—a tenderness that also characterizes Titus before the terrifying conclusion. This edition includes: -Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play -Full explanatory notes conveniently placed on pages facing the text of the play -Scene-by-scene plot summaries -A key to the play’s famous lines and phrases -An introduction to reading Shakespeare’s language -An essay by a leading Shakespeare scholar providing a modern perspective on the play -Fresh images from the Folger Shakespeare Library’s vast holdings of rare books -An annotated guide to further reading Essay by Alexander Leggatt The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare’s printed works, and a magnet for Shakespeare scholars from around the globe. In addition to exhibitions open to the public throughout the year, the Folger offers a full calendar of performances and programs. For more information, visit Folger.edu.

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A well-know bibliophile is found hanged days after selling a rare manuscript of Alexander Dumas's classic, The Three Musketeers. Across Madrid, Spain's wealthiest book dealer has finally laid his hands on a 17th-century manual for summoning the devil. Lucas Corso, solitary and obsessive, is the detective hired to authenticate both texts. But the further he follows the trail of devil worship, the more it leads him back to Dumas. He's the unwitting protagonist in someone's evil plot, but is he sleuth or hero, Sherlock Holmes or d'Artagnan?

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This textbook is endorsed by OCR and supports the specification for AS and A-Level Ancient History (first teaching September 2017). It covers the whole of Component 1, both the compulsory Period Study and the three optional Depth Studies: Period Study: Relations between Greek states and between Greek and non-Greek states, 492–404 BC by Steve Matthews and James Renshaw Depth Study: The Politics and Society of Sparta, 478–404 BC by Charlie Cottam Depth Study: The Politics and Culture of Athens c. 460–399 BC by David L. S. Hodgkinson and James Renshaw Depth Study: The Rise of Macedon, 359–323 BC by Lucy Nicholas How and why did a small group of city states defy the might of the Persian Empire? Why did the same city states subsequently descend into 60 years of conflict among themselves? Were Sparta and Athens very different? How did Alexander later redefine the Greek world? These are the sort of questions that you are required to consider for A-Level Ancient History. This book investigates how the birth of democracy and the defeat of Persia allowed a flourish of political and philosophical thought that subsequently defined western civilisation. It further explores the contrasts between Spartan and Athenian culture. The ideal preparation for the final examinations, all content is presented by experts and experienced teachers in a clear and accessible narrative. Ancient literary and visual sources are described and analysed, with supporting images. Helpful student features include study questions, further reading, and boxes focusing in on key people, events and terms. Practice questions and exam guidance prepare students for assessment. A Companion Website is available at www.bloomsbury.com/ anc-hist-as-a-level.

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Henry Hunter Calvert died at his family house at Çannakale in 1880 a few months after escaping from the rioting in Alexandria where he was British consul. The consulate was sacked and his collections destroyed. He had however sent an annotated list of his Greek amphora stamps to the British Museum, presumably to Charles Newton, with whom he and his brother Frank had frequent correspondence. This list was forgotten until the present writer ‘found’ it in a box-file in the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities (its title at the time). Henry Hunter Calvert’s Collection of Amphora Stamps and that of Sidney Smith Saunders publicly presents that material.

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Individual sections of this significant work have been edited and annotated by such outstanding scholars as Robert J. Alexander, Frederick C. Barghoorn, George F. Kennan, and others. Originally published in 1964. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

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Among early directors, Sergei Eisentein stands alone as the maker of a fully historical cinema. James Goodwin treats issues of revolutionary history and historical representation as central to an understanding of Eisentein's work, which explores two movements within Soviet history and consciousness: the Bolshevik Revolution and the Stalinist state. Goodwin articulates intersections between Eisentein's ideas and aspects of the thought of Walter Benjamin, Georg Lukács, Ernst Bloch, and Bertolt Brecht. He also shows how the formal properties and filmic techniques of each work reveal perspectives on history . Individual chapters focus on Strike, Battleship Potemkin, October, Old and New, projects of the 1930s, Alexander Nevsky, and Ivan the Terrible.

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The Borgias have become a byword for pride, lust, cruelty, avarice, splendour and venomous intrigue. An inspiration for many works of fiction, most famously Mario Puzo's The Godfather, they have aroused abomination and fascination in almost equal measure, while their patronage of the arts created some of the great masterpieces of the Renaissance. From the powerful, merciless Rodrigo Borgia, better known as Pope Alexander VI, to the beautiful Lucrezia and the debauched and murderous Cesare, Mary Hollingsworth's account of the dynasty's dramatic rise from its Spanish roots to the heights of Renaissance society forms a compelling tale of brutality, incest, unparalleled corruption and extortionate greed.

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As the 9 million players of World of Warcraft (the most popular multiplayer online game) eagerly await the games new expansion, WRATH OF THE LICH KING, WildStorm and Blizzard have created this hardcover graphic novel that takes readers inside this new realm. Written by Blizzard Creative Director Micky Neilson and featuring art by Ludo Lullabi and Tony Washington, this rollicking adventure follows as the Lich King's plague of undeath ravages the human kingdom of Lordaeron. Hidden away, a mighty blade is forged from a dark orb! In the hands of Highlord Alexandros Mograine, the blade will become legend. In time, both blade and man will become . . . Ashbringer.

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This is a story studded with extraordinary achievements and historic moments, from the building of the pyramids and the conquest of Nubia, through Akhenaten's religious revolution, the power and beauty of Nefertiti, the glory of Tutankhamun's burial chamber, and the ruthlessness of Ramesses, to Alexander the Great's invasion, and Cleopatra's fatal entanglement with Rome. As the world's first nation-state, the history of Ancient Egypt is above all the story of the attempt to unite a disparate realm and defend it against hostile forces from within and without. Combining grand narrative sweep with detailed knowledge of hieroglyphs and the iconography of power, Toby Wilkinson reveals Ancient Egypt in all its complexity.

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The Vitra Design Museum Collection is one of the most important design collections in the world. It totals around 20,000 items, including 7,000 pieces of furniture, over 1,000 lighting objects and archives and estates from designers such as Charles and Ray Eames, Verner Panton and Alexander Girard. In summer 2016, the museum opened a building by architects Herzog & de Meuron to permanently present this collection: the Vitra Schaudepot. The centerpiece of the Schaudepot is a permanent exhibition of more than 400 key objects of modern furniture design from 1800 to the present. This presentation is complemented by smaller temporary exhibitions on themes related to the collection, a material library and an extensive digital catalogue. The Schaudepot constitutes the largest permanent exhibition on modern furniture design and at the same time a ‘transparent design museum’, making visible the work of the museum in all its facets. The publication sheds light on different aspects of the Schaudepot. The iconic building is illustrated in largescale photographs and drawings. The presentation of the collection in the interior is likewise shown using insightful imagery, augmented by a chronological overview of the exhibited objects. Short essays embed the objects within the context of design history and bring to light the curatorial decision-making behind the presented objects. The book is an attractive field guide through the history of furniture design and act as a portal to understand the Vitra Design Museum’s unique collection – at the same time being the publication on one of the latest buildings by star architects Herzog & de Meuron.

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The Handbook on Gender in World Politics serves as a compendium of cutting-edge scholarship on gender in world politics across a number of academic disciplines. It encompasses the key research areas in the field to provide readers with a gateway to further study. Featuring leading experts writing from diverse perspectives, this Handbook focuses on women as a category of analysis, masculinities, sexualities, LGBT rights and transgender identities. The topics discussed include statecraft, citizenship and the politics of belonging, international law and human rights, media and communications technologies, political economy, development, global governance and transnational visions of politics and solidarities.Students and scholars of gender and international relations and gender in world politics will find this Handbook to be an indispensible guide to the subject. It will also be of interest to practitioners in the field looking to pave the way for new policies and regulations.Contributors include: A.M. Agathangelou, N. Al-Ali, K. Alexander, D.K. Barker, A. Biricik, E. Boris, K.E. Brown, C. Brunner, D. Buss, G. Caglar, T. Carver, H. Charlesworth, C. Chinkin, A.K. Darkwah, A. den Boer, P. Drumond, A.C. Drury, R.C. Eichenberg, C. Eschle, E.A. Foster, J. Freedman, P. Griffin, C. Harrington, J. Hearn, P. Higate, C. Hoskyns, V.M. Hudson, T.A.M. Johnson, J. Joachim, R. Jacobson, J.S. Jaquette, J. Kantola, H.M. Kinsell, P. Kirby, E. Kofman, B. Maiguashca , C. Masters, L. McLeod, S. Parashar, D. Peksen, Z. Pflaeger Young, N. Pratt, E. Prügl, S.M. Rai, B.M. Read, A. Roberts, C. Rowley, J. Russel, A. Sisson Runyan, L.J. Shepherd, L. Sjoberg, N. Smith, J. Steans, M. Stern, D. Tepe-Belfrage, J. True, H.M. Turcotte, T.P. van der Weide, H. Weber, A.T. Wibben, G. Youngs, M. Zalewski, S. Zimmermann, S. Zwingel

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Imitations of Life views Russian melodrama from the eighteenth century to today as an unexpectedly hospitable forum for considering social issues. The contributors follow the evolution of the genre through a variety of cultural practices and changing political scenarios. They argue that Russian audiences have found a particular type of comfort in this mode of entertainment that invites them to respond emotionally rather than politically to social turmoil. Drawing on a wide variety of sources, including plays, lachrymose novels, popular movies, and even highly publicized funerals and political trials, the essays in Imitations of Life argue that melodrama has consistently offered models of behavior for times of transition, and that contemporary televised versions of melodrama continue to help Russians cope with national events that they understand implicitly but are not yet able to articulate. In contrast to previous studies, this collection argues for a reading that takes into account the subtle but pointed challenges to national politics and to gender and class hierarchies made in melodramatic works from both the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Collectively, the contributors shift and cross borders, illustrating how the cultural dismissal of melodrama as fundamentally escapist and targeted primarily at the politically disenfranchised has subverted the drama’s own intrinsically subversive virtues. Imitations of Life will interest students and scholars of contemporary Russia, and Russian history, literature, and theater.Contributors. Otto Boele, Julie Buckler, Julie Cassiday, Susan Costanzo, Helena Goscilo, Beth Holmgren, Lars Lih, Louise McReynolds, Joan Neuberger, Alexander Prokhorov, Richard Stites

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The premier scholar-poet of the Hellenistic age.Callimachus (ca. 303–ca. 235 BC), a proud and well-born native of Cyrene in Libya, came as a young man to the court of the Ptolemies at Alexandria, where he composed poetry for the royal family; helped establish the Library and Museum as a world center of literature, science, and scholarship; and wrote an estimated 800 volumes of poetry and prose on an astounding variety of subjects, including the Pinakes, a descriptive bibliography of the Library’s holdings in 120 volumes. Callimachus’ vast learning richly informs his poetry, which ranges broadly and reworks the language and generic properties of his predecessors in inventive, refined, and expressive ways. The “Callimachean” style, combining learning, elegance, and innovation and prizing brevity, clarity, lightness, and charm, served as an important model for later poets, not least at Rome for Catullus, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, and the elegists, among others.This edition, which replaces the earlier Loeb editions by A. W. Mair (1921) and C. A. Trypanis (1954, 1958), presents all that currently survives of and about Callimachus and his works, including the ancient commentaries (Diegeseis) and scholia. Volume I contains Aetia, Iambi, and lyric poems; Volume II Hecale, Hymns, and Epigrams; and Volume III miscellaneous epics and elegies, other fragments, and testimonia, together with concordances and a general index. The Greek text is based mainly on Pfeiffer’s but enriched by subsequently published papyri and the judgment of later editors, and its notes and annotation are fully informed by current scholarship.

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The premier scholar-poet of the Hellenistic age.Callimachus (ca. 303–ca. 235 BC), a proud and well-born native of Cyrene in Libya, came as a young man to the court of the Ptolemies at Alexandria, where he composed poetry for the royal family; helped establish the Library and Museum as a world center of literature, science, and scholarship; and wrote an estimated 800 volumes of poetry and prose on an astounding variety of subjects, including the Pinakes, a descriptive bibliography of the Library’s holdings in 120 volumes. Callimachus’ vast learning richly informs his poetry, which ranges broadly and reworks the language and generic properties of his predecessors in inventive, refined, and expressive ways. The “Callimachean” style, combining learning, elegance, and innovation and prizing brevity, clarity, lightness, and charm, served as an important model for later poets, not least at Rome for Catullus, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, and the elegists, among others.This edition, which replaces the earlier Loeb editions by A. W. Mair (1921) and C. A. Trypanis (1954, 1958), presents all that currently survives of and about Callimachus and his works, including the ancient commentaries (Diegeseis) and scholia. Volume I contains Aetia, Iambi, and lyric poems; Volume II Hecale, Hymns, and Epigrams; and Volume III miscellaneous epics and elegies, other fragments, and testimonia, together with concordances and a general index. The Greek text is based mainly on Pfeiffer’s but enriched by subsequently published papyri and the judgment of later editors, and its notes and annotation are fully informed by current scholarship.

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In recent decades, architecture has been seen as a field of practice that contributes greatly to the performativity of public space. In spite of the explosion of virtual communities through social media and the limitations imposed by pandemics, architecture today still holds an active role in (literally) building our societies. Bearing in mind its acute politicisation in past years, Living Politics in the City looks at public space from the perspective of architecture and its effective contribution, not as a prop but as an actual catalyst for embodying politics. The essays gathered here span five continents, activating various disciplinary approaches to architecture and examining it in different contexts: from a Palestinian refugee camp to the most vibrant urban axis in Sao Paolo, from the numerous city squares around the world crowded with rebellious populations, to the proximal politics of housing in Australia. Contributors: Endriana Audisho (University of Technology Sydney), Maja Babic (Charles University ), Alexandra Biehler (Ecole Nationale Superieure d'Architecture de Marseille), Tracey Bowen (University of Toronto Mississauga), Etienne Delprat (Rennes 2 University), Claudia Faraone (IUAV Venice School of Architecture, ETICity), Caterina Frisone (Oxford Brookes University), Catherine Grout (ENSAPL Lille), Pavel Kunysz (University of Liege), Flavia Marcello (Swinburne University of Technology), Eric Le Coguiec (University of Liege), Tova Lubinsky (University of Technology Sydney), Giovanna Muzzi (IUAV Venice School of Architecture, ETICity), Can Onaner (Ecole Nationale Superieure d'Architecture de Bretagne), Shadi Saleh (KU Leuven), Frederic Sotinel (Ecole Nationale Superieure d'Architecture de Bretagne), Karolina Wilczynska (Adam Mickiewicz University), Ian Woodcock (Swinburne University of Technology)

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5 Starred Reviews! "This slim novel strikes a strong chord"-Publishers Weekly (starred review) "This complex tale of family and forgiveness has heart." -School Library Journal (starred review) "Strong characterizations and vivid musical scenes add layers to this warm family story." -Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "An appealing, realistic story with frequent elegant turns of phrase." -The Horn Book (starred review) "Garcia-Williams skillfully finds melody in words." -Booklist (starred review) From beloved Newbery Honor winner and three-time Coretta Scott King Award winner Rita Williams-Garcia comes a powerful and heartfelt novel about loss, family, and love that will appeal to fans of Jason Reynolds and Kwame Alexander. Clayton feels most alive when he's with his grandfather, Cool Papa Byrd, and the band of Bluesmen-he can't wait to join them, just as soon as he has a blues song of his own. But then the unthinkable happens. Cool Papa Byrd dies, and Clayton's mother forbids Clayton from playing the blues. And Clayton knows that's no way to live. Armed with his grandfather's brown porkpie hat and his harmonica, he runs away from home in search of the Bluesmen, hoping he can join them on the road. But on the journey that takes him through the New York City subways and to Washington Square Park, Clayton learns some things that surprise him.

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Innovation is a core issue for public services and is a key element of public services reform - particularly in this age of austerity where policymakers urge the need to 'innovate to do more with less'. This comprehensive and accessible Handbook explores the potential for creating efficient and effective public services.Leading researchers from across the globe review the state-of-the-art in research on innovation in public services, providing an overview of key issues from a multi-disciplinary perspective. Topics explored include: context for innovation in public services and public service reform; managerial change challenges; ICT and e-government; and collaboration and networks. The theory is underpinned by seven wide-ranging case studies of innovation in practice.Taking the field forward and providing a baseline for future research, this highly unique and original Handbook will prove essential reading for academics, researchers, students, policymakers and practitioners across the fields of innovation, public policy, social policy and public management.Contributors include: D. Alexander, R. Andrews, S. Baines, J. Barlow, C. Barton-Sweeney, V. Bekkers, G.A. Boyne, J.M. Bryson, K. Brown, M. Carter, C. Chew, B.C. Crosby, M. Considine, I. Cunningham, J. Edler, M. Farr, S. Goldfinch, T. Greenhalgh, J. Hartley, G. Harvey, B. Head, B. Jæger, A. Johnston, P. Joyce, R. Keast, T. Kinder, J.M Lewis, C. Longley, L.E. Lynn, Jr., F. Lyon, K. McLaughlin, M.P. Mandell, M. Macaulay, F. Macfarlane, M. Martin, V. Mele, I. Miles, D. Nickson, H. Noke, D. Norris, Z. Radnor, M.L. Rhodes, N.C. Roberts, K. Strokosch, J.M Svara, J. Torfing, E. Uyarra, R.M. Walker, J. Wallis, J. Waterhouse, R. Wilson, P. Windrum

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The past fifty years are conventionally understood to have witnessed an uninterrupted expansion of sexual rights and liberties in the United States. This state-of-the-art collection tells a different story: while progress has been made in marriage equality, reproductive rights, access to birth control, and other areas, government and civil society are waging a war on stigmatized sex by means of law, surveillance, and social control. The contributors document the history and operation of sex offender registries and the criminalization of HIV, as well as highly punitive measures against sex work that do more to harm women than to combat human trafficking. They reveal that sex crimes are punished more harshly than other crimes, while new legal and administrative regulations drastically restrict who is permitted to have sex. By examining how the ever-intensifying war on sex affects both privileged and marginalized communities, the essays collected here show why sexual liberation is indispensable to social justice and human rights. Contributors. Alexis Agathocleous, Elizabeth Bernstein, J. Wallace Borchert, Mary Anne Case, Owen Daniel-McCarter, Scott De Orio, David M. Halperin, Amber Hollibaugh, Trevor Hoppe, Hans Tao-Ming Huang, Regina Kunzel, Roger N. Lancaster, Judith Levine, Laura Mansnerus, Erica R. Meiners, R. Noll, Melissa Petro, Carol Queen, Penelope Saunders, Sean Strub, Maurice Tomlinson, Gregory Tomso

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A new, expansive study on Futurism which explores for the first time its relationships with other European avant-gardes during 1912 to 1939Futurism & Europe: The Aesthetics of a New World examines for the first time the many interconnections between Futurism and other European avant-gardes as varied as the Bauhaus in Germany, De Stijl in the Netherlands, Omega Workshops in Britain, Constructivism in Russia and Esprit Nouveau in France. Featuring over twenty essays by an international team of experts, this expansive book covers a range of topics and mediums including painting, sculpture, architecture, interior and stage designs, graphic work, fashion, theatre and cinema, as well as a diverse variety of functional objects from furniture and carpets to ceramics and toys. Spanning various avant-gardes from 1912 to 1939, artists featured include Italian futurists such as Giacomo Balla, Umberto Boccioni and Fortunato Depero, alongside other European artists including Sonia Delaunay, Le Corbusier, Fernand Léger, Walter Gropius, Alexander Rodchenko, Fritz Lang, László Moholy-Nagy, Wassily Kandinsky, Hans Arp, Duncan Grant, Natalia Goncharova and Vladimir Tatlin. Broad in scope, this pioneering book examines the intersections between Futurism and other European avant-garde movements in their shared quest for a new aesthetic, triggering a lively exchange of new ideas, friction and rivalry. Exhibition Schedule:Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo (April 29–September 3 2023)

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Aided by this book the gardener can now answer the question "What's in a name?" and they and their garden will benefit from understanding the wealth of information that has hitherto lain hidden within the mysterious world of Latin names.' - Financial Times OnlineRHS Latin for Gardeners is an informative, entertaining and beautifully illustrated unravelling of the mysteries of botanical Latin. Over 3,000 Latin names are listed alphabetically, showing how plant names can reveal where a plant originally comes from (and thus its preferred growing conditions), along with such properties as its shape, form, colour, taste, and smell. Each name is clearly defined and accompanied by a pronunciation guide, and the pages are filled with attractive botanical illustrations. Fascinating feature spreads retell the adventures of important plant hunters such as Sir Joseph Banks and Alexander von Humboldt, and explain how their discoveries affect the way our gardens look today. Individual plants are also profiled throughout, showing how their names can illuminate their hidden histories. Aided by this book, every gardener, and their garden, will benefit from uncovering the wealth of information that lies within the remarkable world of Latin binomials. A little Latin can do a lot of good - apply the lore of Latin to your own garden!Contents includes...The A-Z Listings of Latin Plant NamesPlant ProfilesPlant HuntersPlant Themes...And Much More!

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'An exceptional novel ... a cause for celebration' Washington Post'The most accomplished Native American writer of her generation' The New York Times Book Review Tayo, a young Second World War veteran of mixed ancestry, is coming home. But, returning to the Laguna Pueblo Reservation, he finds himself scarred by his experiences as a prisoner of war, and further wounded by the rejection he finds among his own people. Only by rediscovering the traditions, stories and ceremonies of his ancestors can he start to heal, and find peace.'Ceremony is the greatest novel in Native American literature. It is one of the greatest novels of any time and place' Sherman Alexie

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This Norton Critical Edition of Thomas Middleton and Thomas Dekker’s The Roaring Girl is based on the text from English Renaissance Drama: A Norton Anthology. It is accompanied by generous explanatory annotations, five illustrations, and a detailed introduction. “Contexts” is thematically arranged to include almost all known documents from the period concerning Mary Frith (aka Moll Cutpurse), among them records of her court appearances, letters recounting the same, and her last will. Also reprinted are significant passages from her purported 1662 “autobiography,” The Life and Death of Mrs. Mary Frith. While of dubious veracity, the “autobiography” is useful for comparing the play’s portrayal of Moll with later developments in Moll Cutpurse lore, which the Norton Critical Edition traces through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Perhaps most engaging for classroom discussion are substantial excerpts from the 1620 cross-dressing pamphlets—Hic Mulier; or, The Man-Woman and Haec Vir; or, The Womanish Man—which appear in annotated, modern-spelling versions. Together they give insight into how gender-bending trends in clothing, similar to those practiced by Moll, were understood in the early seventeenth century. A related passage from A Sermon of Apparel adds another perspective on cross-dressing practices. Fourteen critical essays chart the development of scholarly interest in The Roaring Girl, from the first half of the twentieth century, when the play received only passing reference, through the work on city comedy in the 1970s and 1980s, to the explosion of analyses in the late 1980s and 1990s, when the play became a major focus for early modern gender studies. The more recent critical essays move beyond a strict focus on gender and cross-dressing to explore The Roaring Girl’s depiction of other aspects of early modern London, including consumer culture and the contemporary fascination with the language of the criminal underworld. Contributors include, among others, T. S. Eliot, Alexander Leggatt, Mary Beth Rose, Jonathan Dollimore, Jean E. Howard, and Jonathan Gil Harris. A Selected Bibliography is also included.

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A star-studded BBC radio production of Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion – plus bonus drama The ‘B’ Word, telling the story of the play’s scandalous opening nightIrascible phonetics professor Henry Higgins makes a bet with his friend Colonel Pickering that he can train Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle to talk ‘like a lady’ and pass as a duchess at the Ambassador’s Ball. As the day of reckoning approaches, can Eliza convince the assembled aristocrats that she’s one of them? And what will become of her afterwards?This effervescent radio version of Shaw’s classic comedy features a stellar cast, including award-winning comedians Alistair McGowan as Henry Higgins, Morgana Robinson as Eliza Doolittle and Al Murray as Alfred Doolittle.Also featured on this release is The ‘B’ Word, written by and starring Alistair McGowan as Bernard Shaw. Centring on the shocking opening night of Pygmalion – the first time that the word ‘bloody' was used on the British stage – it also explores the passionate love-hate relationship between Shaw; his leading man, Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree (Richard McCabe) and his leading lady, Mrs Patrick Campbell (Charlotte Page), who played the 19-year-old Eliza Doolittle at the age of 49.Cast and creditsPygmalionHenry Higgins……………………Alistair McGowanEliza Doolittle……………………Morgana RobinsonAlfred Doolittle……………………Al MurrayColonel Pickering……………………Hugh FraserMrs Higgins……………………Siân PhillipsMrs Pearce/Maid……………………Charlotte PageMrs Eynsford-Hill……………………Georgie GlenClara Eynsford-Hill……………………Maeve Bluebell WellsFreddy Eynsford-Hill.....……………………Tom ForristerNepommuck……………………David SturzakerAmbassador……………………John DougallAmbassador's wife……………………Sarah RidgewayBystander……………………David SterneWritten by Bernard ShawProduced and directed by Emma HardingThe ‘B’ WordBernard Shaw……………………Alistair McGowanGeorge Alexander……………………David SturzakerMrs Patrick Campbell.....……………………Charlotte PageSir Herbert Beerbohm Tree……………………Richard McCabeCharlotte Shaw……………………Georgie GlenMerivale……………………Philip FoxGurney/Fishman……………………Simon LuddersBell……………………Charlie ClementsMaid……………………Sarah RidgewayWritten by Alistair McGowanProduced and directed by Emma HardingProduction Coordinator: Jenny MendezStudio Managers: Alison Craig, Caleb Knightley and Thomas GlasserDuration: 2 hours 45 mins approx.

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'One of the great novels of the 20th century' ObserverIn April 1942, Hitler and Mussolini plan the huge offensive on the Eastern Front that will culminate in the greatest battle in human history.Hundreds of miles away, Pyotr Vavilov receives his call-up papers and spends a final night with his wife and children in the hut that is his home. As war approaches, the Shaposhnikov family gathers for a meal: despite her age, Alexandra will soon become a refugee; Tolya will enlist in the reserves; Vera, a nurse, will fall in love with a wounded pilot; and Viktor Shtrum will receive a letter from his doomed mother which will haunt him forever.The war will consume the lives of a huge cast of characters - lives which express Grossman's grand themes of the nation and the individual, nature's beauty and war's cruelty, love and separation.For months, Soviet forces are driven back inexorably by the German advance eastward and eventually Stalingrad is all that remains between the invaders and victory. The city stands on a cliff top by the Volga River. The battle for Stalingrad - a maelstrom of violence and firepower - will reduce it to ruins. But it will also be the cradle of a new sense of hope.Stalingrad is a magnificent novel not only of war but of all human life: its subjects are mothers and daughters, husbands and brothers, generals, nurses, political officers, steelworkers, tractor girls. It is tender, epic, and a testament to the power of the human spirit.'You will not only discover that you love his characters and want to stay with them - that you need them in your life as much as you need your own family and loved ones - but that at the end... you will want to read it again' Daily Telegraph THE PREQUEL TO LIFE AND FATE NOW AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH FOR THE FIRST TIME, STALINGRAD IS A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND NOW A MAJOR RADIO 4 DRAMAWINNER OF MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATION "LOIS ROTH AWARD" FOR TRANSLATIONS FROM ANY LANGUAGE

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Humana Festival 2008: The Complete Plays brings together all eleven scripts from the 2008 Humana Festival of New American Plays, the 32nd annual cycle of world premiere productions staged at Actors Theatre of Louisville. The seven full-length plays and four ten-minute plays represent an exceptional array of work by some of the most exciting new voices in American theater -- from a scathing comedy about a blind date gone awry (Becky Shaw); to a documentary drama about the evangelical phenomenon in Colorado Springs (This Beautiful City); to a suburban street being undermined by zombies from a video game (Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom). Humana Festival 2008: The Complete Plays features a diverse selection of theatrical works that challenge and captivate audiences through movement, song, and bold explorations of what it means to be human. Includes the plays All Hail Hurricane Gordo by Carly Mensch, Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo, Dead Right by Elaine Jarvik, Game On by Zakiyyah Alexander, Rolin Jones, Jon Spurney, Alice Tuan, Daryl Watson, Marisa Wegrzyn, and Ken Weitzman, Great Falls by Lee Blessing, In Paris You Will Find Many Baguettes but Only One True Love by Michael Lew, Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom by Jennifer Haley, One Short Sleepe by Naomi Wallace, the break/s by Marc Bamuthi Joseph, This Beautiful City by Steven Cosson, Michael Friedman, and Jim Lewis, Tongue, Tied by M. Thomas Cooper"

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Bernard Ollivier pushes onward in his attempt to become the first person to walk the entire length of the Great Silk Road.“A gripping account. More than just a travel story—this is a quest for the Other.”—Alexis Liebaert, L’Événement Picking up where Walking to Samarkand left off, Winds of the Steppe continues the astonishing tale of journalist Bernard Ollivier’s 7,200-mile walk from Turkey to China along the Silk Road, the longest and most mythical trade route of all time. Taking readers from the snows of the Pamir Mountains to the backstreets of Kashgar—a Central Asian city that could be the setting for One Thousand and One Nights—to the Tian Shan Mountains to the endless Taklamakan and Gobi Deserts of China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Bernard Ollivier continues his epic foot journey along the Great Silk Road hoping to make his way to Han China and reach, at long last, the legendary city of Xi’an. After traveling through a region dotted with former Buddhist shrines, Ollivier finds himself craving the warm welcome of Islamic lands, where, regardless of their culture or nationality, travelers are often treated as esteemed guests. Beyond the occasional vestige of the old Silk Road, Ollivier comes face to face with sites of religious significance, China’s Great Wall, and of course thousands of everyday people along the way. As Ollivier tries to make sense of his journey and find connections between these people’s daily lives and the so-called “modern” world, he does so with a sense of humility that transforms his personal journey into a universal quest.

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Axel Honneth has been instrumental in advancing the work of the Frankfurt School of critical theorists, rebuilding their effort to combine radical social and political analysis with rigorous philosophical inquiry. These eleven essays reclaim the relevant themes of the Frankfurt School, which counted Theodor W. Adorno, Max Horkheimer, Walter Benjamin, Jürgen Habermas, Franz Neumann, and Albrecht Wellmer as members. They also engage with Kant, Freud, Alexander Mitscherlich, and Michael Walzer, whose work on morality, history, democracy, and individuality intersects with the Frankfurt School's core concerns.Collected here for the first time in English, Honneth's essays pursue the unifying themes and theses that support the methodologies and thematics of critical social theory, and they address the possibilities of continuing this tradition through radically changed theoretical and social conditions. According to Honneth, there is a unity that underlies critical theory's multiple approaches: the way in which reason is both distorted and furthered in contemporary capitalist society. And while much is dead in the social and psychological doctrines of critical social theory, its central inquiries remain vitally relevant. Is social progress still possible after the horrors of the twentieth century? Does capitalism deform reason and, if so, in what respects? Can we justify the relationship between law and violence in secular terms, or is it inextricably bound to divine justice? How can we be free when we're subject to socialization in a highly complex and in many respects unfree society? For Honneth, suffering and moral struggle are departure points for a new "reconstructive" form of social criticism, one that is based solidly in the empirically grounded, interdisciplinary approach of the Frankfurt School.

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Between 1948 and 1957, a period that witnessed two wars between Egypt and Israel, 60,000 members of Egypt’s 75,000-strong Jewish population left the country, compelled by growing hostility to them because of their presumed links to Zionism, economic insecurity, and after 1956, overt expulsion. Decades later, during the 1980s and 1990s, the personal reminiscences of eight Egyptian Jewish women, presently residents of New York who had left Egypt, were meticulously collected by Nayra Atiya. While Atiya’s sample of eight narrators represents only a tiny percentage of the Jews who left Egypt, their accounts tell us much about the middle- and upper-class Jews who migrated to the Americas and Europe, giving us a vivid sense of their lives in Egypt before their departure and the dynamic role they played in Egyptian society. They were the children or grandchildren of generations of Jews who migrated to Egypt from around or near the Mediterranean to escape economic hardship and persecution or, in one case, a family conflict. With one exception, Atiya’s interlocutors resided in relatively upscale neighborhoods in Egypt near other Jewish families. They lived in elegant apartments, with servants, fine foods, memberships in elite clubs, and summers spent near Alexandria or in Europe. In Zikrayat, Atiya movingly captures the essence of these women’s characters and experiences, the fabric of their day-to-day lives, and the complex, many-layered mood of those times in Egypt. In doing so she brings to life the ties that bind all Egyptians, offering a glimpse into a now vanished world—and the heartbreak of exile and migration.

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The ancient Greeks perceived the human body as an object of sensory delight and its depiction as the expression of an intelligent mind. This sumptuous photographic book explores ancient Greek sculptures of the body from every angle. With an introduction outlining the use of the body in Greek art from the prehistoric simplicity of Cycladic figurines to the realism of the Hellenistic age, seven thematic sections then feature stunning photographs of close ups taken from the British Museum’s outstanding collection of marble, bronze and terracotta sculpture. The gods and heroes of Greek religion and mythology are conceived in the image of mankind, as supermen and superwomen, while other supernatural beings such as centaurs and satyrs combine human with animal parts as symbols of their otherworldliness. Human shape is also given to the inanimate phenomena of nature, such as wind and moon, as well as intangible human experiences such as sleep and death. A salient feature of Greek art is human nudity, which was celebrated rather than considered shameful. The great majority of female nudes that have come down to us are representations of Aphrodite, goddess of erotic love. In the Hellenistic age, Alexander’s conquest and hellenisation of the peoples formerly included in the Persian empire created a new and cosmopolitan world. Greek artists were made more aware than ever before of the social and ethnic diversity of humanity. They delighted in classifying humankind in all its variety, representing a range of ages, beauty standards, physical capabilities, body sizes and social classes. The Hellenistic period, more than any previous, was also truly an age of portraiture, reflecting love in compelling and unusual images.

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Hamilton Easy Piano Selections presents music from the critically acclaimed musical about Alexander Hamilton. The show debuted on Broadway in August 2015 to unprecedented advanced box office sales and has already become one of the most successful Broadway musicals ever. This collection features 9 songs arranged for easy piano from the music penned by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Already a winner of 11 Tony Awards, a Grammy and a Pulitzer Prize, Sir Cameron Macintosh's production opened in London's West End in December 2017.

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Noir Affect proposes a new understanding of noir as defined by negative affect. This new understanding emphasizes that noir is, first and foremost, an affective disposition rather than a specific cycle of films or novels associated with a given time period or national tradition. Instead, the essays in Noir Affect trace noir’s negativity as it manifests in different national contexts from the United States to Mexico, France, and Japan and in a range of different media, including films, novels, video games, and manga. The forms of affect associated with noir are resolutely negative: These are narratives centered on loss, sadness, rage, shame, guilt, regret, anxiety, humiliation, resentment, resistance, and refusal. Moreover, noir often asks us to identify with those on the losing end of cultural narratives, especially the criminal, the lost, the compromised, the haunted, the unlucky, the cast-aside, and the erotically “perverse,” including those whose greatest erotic attachment is to death. Drawing on contemporary work in affect theory, while also re-orienting some of its core assumptions to address the resolutely negative affects narrated by noir, Noir Affect is invested in thinking through the material, bodily, social, and political–economic impact of the various forms noir affect takes. If much affect theory asks us to consider affect as a space of possibility and becoming, Noir Affect asks us to consider affect as also a site of repetition, dissolution, redundancy, unmaking, and decay. It also asks us to consider the way in which the affective dimensions of noir enable the staging of various forms of social antagonism, including those associated with racial, gendered, sexual, and economic inequality. Featuring an Afterword by the celebrated noir scholar Paula Rabinowitz and essays by an array of leading scholars, Noir Affect aims to fundamentally re-orient our understanding of noir. Contributors: Alexander Dunst, Sean Grattan, Peter Hitchcock, Justus Nieland, Andrew Pepper, Ignacio Sánchez Prado, Brian Rejack, Pamela Thoma, Kirin Wachter-Grene

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We live in the grip of a great illusion about politics, Pierre Manent argues in A World beyond Politics? It's the illusion that we would be better off without politics--at least national politics, and perhaps all politics. It is a fantasy that if democratic values could somehow detach themselves from their traditional national context, we could enter a world of pure democracy, where human society would be ruled solely according to law and morality. Borders would dissolve in unconditional internationalism and nations would collapse into supranational organizations such as the European Union. Free of the limits and sins of politics, we could finally attain the true life. In contrast to these beliefs, which are especially widespread in Europe, Manent reasons that the political order is the key to the human order. Human life, in order to have force and meaning, must be concentrated in a particular political community, in which decisions are made through collective, creative debate. The best such community for democratic life, he argues, is still the nation-state. Following the example of nineteenth-century political philosophers such as Alexis de Tocqueville and John Stuart Mill, Manent first describes a few essential features of democracy and the nation-state, and then shows how these characteristics illuminate many aspects of our present political circumstances. He ends by arguing that both democracy and the nation-state are under threat--from apolitical tendencies such as the cult of international commerce and attempts to replace democratic decisions with judicial procedures.

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In many respects, Their Four Hearts is a book of endings and final things. Vladimir Sorokin wrote it in the year the Soviet Union collapsed and then didn’t write fiction for ten years after completing it––his next book being the infamous Blue Lard, which he wrote in 1998. Without exaggerating too much, one might call it the last book of the Russian twentieth century and Blue Lard the first book of the Russian twenty-first century. It is a novel about the failure of the Soviet Union, about its metaphysical designs, and about the violence it produced, but presented as God might see it or Bataille might write it. Their Four Hearts follows the violent and nonsensical missions carried out by a group of four characters who represent Socialist Realist archetypes: Seryozha, a naive and optimistic young boy; Olga, a dedicated female athlete; Shtaube, a wise old man; and Rebrov, a factory worker and a Stakhanovite embodying Soviet manhood. However, the degradation inflicted upon them is hardly a Socialist Realist trope. Are the acts of violence they carry out a more realistic vision of what the Soviet Union forced its “heroes” to live out? A corporealization and desacralization of self-sacrificing acts of Soviet heroism? How the Soviet Union truly looked if you were to strip away the ideological infrastructure? As we see in the long monologues Shtaube performs for his companions––some of which are scatological nonsense and some of which are accurate reproductions of Soviet language––Sorokin is interested in burrowing down to the libidinal impulses that fuel a totalitarian system and forcing the reader to take part in them in a way that isn’t entirely devoid of aesthetic pleasure. As presented alongside Greg Klassen’s brilliant charcoal illustrations, which have been compared to the work of Bruno Schulz by Alexander Genis and the work of Ralph Steadman as filtered through Francis Bacon by several gallerists, this angular work of fiction becomes a scatological storybook-world that the reader is dared to immerse themselves in.

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From the mighty halls of ancient Alexandria to the coffered ceilings of the Morgan Library in New York, human beings have had a long, enraptured relationship with libraries. Like no other concept and like no other space, the collection of knowledge, learning, and imagination offers a sense of infinite possibility. It’s the unrivaled realm of discovery, where every faded manuscript or mighty clothbound tome might reveal a provocative new idea, a far-flung fantasy, an ancient belief, a religious conviction, or a whole new way of being in the world.In this new photographic journey, Massimo Listri travels to some of the oldest and finest libraries to reveal their architectural, historical, and imaginative wonder. Through great wooden doors, up spiraling staircases, and along exquisite, shelf-lined corridors, he leads us through outstanding private, public, educational, and monastic libraries, dating as far back as 766. Between them, these medieval, classical, baroque, rococo, and 19th-century institutions hold some of the most precious records of human thought and deed, inscribed and printed in manuscripts, volumes, papyrus scrolls, and incunabula. In each, Listri’s poised images capture the library’s unique atmosphere, as much as their most prized holdings and design details.Featured libraries include the papal collections of the Vatican Apostolic Library and the Trinity College Library, home to the Book of Kells and Book of Durrow. With meticulous descriptions accompanying each featured library, we learn not only of the libraries’ astonishing holdings—from which highlights are illustrated—but also of their often lively, turbulent, or controversial pasts. Like the Franciscan monastery in Lima, Peru, with its horde of archival Inquisition documents.At once a bibliophile beauty pageant, an ode to knowledge, and an evocation of the particular magic of print, this compact edition of our best-selling XXL-title is above all a cultural-historical pilgrimage to the heart of our halls of learning, to the stories they tell, as much as those they gather in printed matter along polished shelves.

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Torchwood are on the run. As the world puts itself back together, Torchwood are there to pick up the pieces. And they find something nasty hiding in them. A housing estate where everyone's gone mad, an industrial estate interrogation facility, a lighthouse in Iceland, the comments section of a newspaper. Trouble is everywhere. And so are Torchwood. 7.1 Aliens Next Door by Ash Darby. Mrs Betty Clerihew has an exciting secret in her spare room. Torchwood are hiding out there, watching the comings and goings of her estate. Apparently, monsters are living on the cul-de-sac. 7.2 Colin Alone by Una McCormack. Colin Colchester-Price has been left behind. But he's kept calm and he's carried on. He knows his husband is out there, saving the world for Torchwood. And he'll comeback for him. One day. Soon. Surely. 7.3 Misty Eyes by Tim Foley Gwen Cooper and Rhys Williams have made a new life for themselves in Iceland. Away from death and aliens and horror and Torchwood. Until there's a knock on the door from the last person they want to see. 7.4 Moderation by James Goss. Tyler Steele has a job moderating the comments section of a website. His old friend Petra is a star reporter for the newspaper. And Tyler realises the newspaper is going to kill her. CAST: Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper), Kai Owen (Rhys Williams), Samantha Béart (Orr), Paul Clayton (Mr Colchester), Jonny Green (Tyler Steele), Alexandria Riley (Ng), Helena Breck (Mrs Penis-Implant / Supermarket Employee / Mum), Silas Carson (Barry Beans), Rosalie Craig (Sophie), Barnaby Edwards (Noel), Mark Elstob (Policeman / Gammon), Raj Ghatak (Hakan), Lowri Gwynne (Colleague), Mia Hope (The Child), Sandra Huggett (Mira), Chris Jarman (Jeff), Melanie Kilburn (Betty), Daniel Llewellyn-Williams (Heggsy), Luke Nunn (Bank Employee / Charlie), Nicholas Nunn (Kieran), Maya Saroya (Petra Malik), Joplin Sibtain (Colin), Sam Stafford (Mr Penis-Implant / Building Manager / Brin). Other parts played by members of the cast.

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Christopher Eccleston makes his long-awaited, much-anticipated debut with Big Finish as the Ninth Doctor, in this limited vinyl edition set containing three new stories. Travelling the universe alone, the Doctor can’t help running into people. Some are new acquaintances, and some have a much longer history, back through all of his lives. But every one of them knows that in the face of danger, and when the monsters arrive, there’s no better friend to have by their side. 4.1 Fond Farewell by David K Barnes. Fond Farewell is the intergalactic funeral parlour with a difference: the deceased attend their own wake! Invited by celebrated naturalist Flynn Beckett to his memorial, the Doctor finds he’s not quite the man he was. But who would steal the memories of the dead? 4.2 Way of the Burryman by Roy Gill. Young Sam Bishop is at a crossroads with girlfriend Fiona: she’s staying in Scotland, he wants to travel the world. As the Burryman celebrations begin, ghosts haunt the Forth Bridge. Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart arrives to investigate – and so does the Doctor… 4.3 The Forth Generation by Roy Gill. The Forth Generation have emerged. The Doctor, the Brigadier, Sam and Fiona are at their mercy. Is there a way to defeat them? Has UNIT learned from the past? And can the enemy’s nature be changed for the future? CAST: Christopher Eccleston (The Doctor), Jon Culshaw (Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart), Warren Brown (Sam Bishop), Elinor Lawless (Fiona McCall) Alexander Cobb (Foreman/UNIT Courier/Sergeant Lowe), James Doherty (Professor Flynn Beckett/Other Flynn), Amanda Drew (Commander Jane Wardie), Sienna Guillory (Idara Beckett), Charlie Hamblett (Thomas/Attendants), Martin Quinn (Cameron Lawther), Juliet Stevenson (Winifred Whitby), Emily Taaffe (Sasha Yan), Nicholas Briggs (The Cybermen). Other parts played by members of the cast.

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In a world where the built environment seems ever more shaped by invisible market forces, where modern architecture can seem to dissolve into a generic void, sometimes it takes a very special person to make a difference. Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was Mayor of London from 2008 until 2016, during which time he took a remarkably keen interest in the built environment, commissioning, guiding, and shaping all manner of different projects. With his achievements he showed us all that massive privilege, leaping ambition, no concern for detail and a wasp's attention span needn't hold you back when it comes to creating terrible architecture. Nincompoopolis examines the built legacy of Johnson's tenure, from his embarrassing follies to the folly of his policies, and wonders if there's anything that can be learned from letting someone like him have a go at one the world's great cities.

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