Search results for ""goliath""

The fourth book in the ingenious Thursday Next series, from Number One bestselling author Jasper Fforde.'Don't ask, just read it. Fforde is a true original' - Sunday Express on Lost in a Good BookThursday Next, Head of JurisFiction and ex-SpecOps agent, returns to her native Swindon accompanied by a child of two, a pair of dodos and Hamlet, who is on a fact-finding mission in the real world. Thursday has been despatched to capture escaped Fictioneer Yorrick Kaine but even so, now seems as good a time as any to retrieve her husband Landen from his state of eradication at the hands of the Chronoguard. It's not going to be easy. Thursday's former colleagues at the department of Literary Detectives want her to investigate a spate of cloned Shakespeares, the Goliath Corporation are planning to switch to a new Faith based corporate management system and the Neanderthals feel she might be the Chosen One who will lead them to genetic self-determination. With help from Hamlet, her uncle and time-travelling father, Thursday faces the toughest adventure of her career. Where is the missing President-for-life George Formby? Why is it imperative for the Swindon Mallets to win the World Croquet League final? And why is it so difficult to find reliable childcare?

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In the 1966 NCAA basketball championship game, an all-white University of Kentucky team was beaten by a team from Texas Western College (now UTEP) that fielded only black players. The game, played in the middle of the racially turbulent 1960s—part David and Goliath in short pants, part emancipation proclamation of college basketball—helped destroy stereotypes about black athletes. Filled with revealing anecdotes, The Baron and the Bear is the story of two intensely passionate coaches and the teams they led through the ups and downs of a college basketball season. In the twilight of his legendary career, Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp (“The Baron of the Bluegrass”) was seeking his fifth NCAA championship. Texas Western’s Don Haskins (“The Bear” to his players) had been coaching at a small West Texas high school just five years before the championship. After this history-making game, conventional wisdom that black players lacked the discipline to win without a white player to lead began to dissolve. Northern schools began to abandon unwritten quotas limiting the number of blacks on the court at one time. Southern schools, where athletics had always been a whites-only activity, began a gradual move toward integration. David Kingsley Snell brings the season to life, offering fresh insights on the teams, the coaches, and the impact of the game on race relations in America.

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Kids ages six and up will love this exciting comic-book style collection depicting ten of the greatest superheroes of the Bible. Each short story tells the tale of one biblical hero fighting against the odds, battling foes, and/or enduring great tests of faith and strength to prevail in the name of the Lord. From Joshua who fought bravely against a great army in the siege of Jericho; to Elijah the prophet who stood up to a powerful king and wielded flaming fireballs from heaven; to David who battled and defeated the giant, Goliath, there are plenty of captivating tales to inspire kids of all ages. Families will love seeing their children dive into these colorful stories of faith and kids will enjoy the full-color illustrations that bring dramatic Biblical scenes to life. Each ten to twelve page story is just the right length for active or reluctant readers, bedtime reading sessions, and church groups. Entertaining and character-building, this story collection is the perfect addition to any home library. Discover the amazing feats of God as displayed through ten incredible Bible heroes! Reinforces Christian values/teachings and highlights how God can work through anyone. Engaging, comic book-style art helps kids of all reading levels and ages relate to the characters and dive into the story. An illustrated, full-color adventure that’s fun for the whole family!

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The Beginner’s Bible Preschool Math Workbook will encourage young children ages 3 to 5 to grow in their faith and have fun while learning their numbers and number concepts, practicing fine motor skills, and more.A strong foundation in number sense directly impacts a child’s success in math throughout their school career. The Beginner’s Bible Preschool Math Workbook teaches number sense to your preschooler with a wide variety of fun educational activities!Parents will appreciate how The Beginner’s Preschool Math Workbook: Provides preschool level practice of numbers and basic number sense Helps develop creativity and problem-solving skills Can be taken wherever you go—to church, to a friend’s, or on the road Features activities designed to help children learn preschool math skills while also learning of God’s love for them Children ages 3 to 5 will enjoy nearly 200 pages of educational activities: Writing numbers and number words Counting activities problem-solving comparisons and simple measurement Activities that promote number sense such as connect-the-dots, matching games, color-by-number, and more The simple, pencil-and-paper activities in The Beginner’s Bible Preschool Math Workbook incorporate classic Bible stories and characters such as Adam and Eve, Noah’s Ark, Moses, David and Goliath, the life of Jesus, and more. Get ready for your children to enjoy this interactive, Bible-story based approach to learning numbers!

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While surrounded by the Axis powers in World War II, Switzerland remained democratic and never succumbed to the Nazi goliath. This book tells the story with emphasis on two voices rarely heard. One voice is that of scores of Swiss who lived in those dark years, told through oral history. They mobilised to defend the country and laboured on the farms. The other voice is that of Nazi Intelligence, those who spied on the Swiss and planned subversion and invasion. Exhaustive documents from the German military archives reveal a chilling rendition of attack plans which would be dissuaded in part by Switzerland's armed populace and Alpine defences.Laced with unique maps and photos, the book is organised into four units. The first, A War of Words and Nerves, depicts how the Swiss mobilised an active"spiritual defence" of their country. The second unit, To Resist to the Death, concerns military preparations. Swiss soldiers recall an epoch when every day could have been "the day" when all hell would break lose and they would meet the enemy. Blitzkrieg plans against Switzerland devised by the German Wehrmacht in 1940 are described in detail.Struggle for Survival: Food, Fuel and Fear, the third unit, presents oral histories of daily life during the war with its shortages, alarms, and rumours. Espionage and Subversion, the fourth and final unit, covers strategic issues and intelligence activities. In total, Halbrook brings together a complete picture of the unfaltering tenacity of the Swiss at War.

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Minecraft has taken the gaming world by storm. Parents of children who play Minecraft will love this fun, educational collection of Bible stories. With the world of Minecraft as a backdrop using vivid, full-color screenshots, this book allows children to experience the Bible as never before. Authors Christopher Miko and Garrett Romines are teachers who have used Minecraft to create imaginative worlds in their classrooms. Now, they have created Bible stories with virtual blocks to produce vibrant, 3-D worlds filled with adventure and astonishing imagination. With fascinating scripture and narrative simplified to teach young readers the most powerful stories ever told, this is the perfect gift. The images created feature not only magnificent, vast terrains often found in Minecraft but also artfully re-created Bible characters, such as Adam and Eve, and superb designs of Noah’s ark. Engaging stories including the Tower of Babel and the story of David and Goliath are here. With more than 250 images, young readers will explore the story of creation, the journey of Abraham, Moses’s great journey, Jonah and the whale, and more! The Unofficial Holy Bible for Minecrafters: Old Testament makes the Bible more entertaining, engaging, and accessible for children than ever! This adventure series is created especially for readers who love the fight of good vs. evil, magical academies like Hogwarts in the Harry Potter saga, and games like Minecraft, Terraria, and Pokemon GO.

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Send your baby, toddler, or preschooler into peaceful sleep with this glow-in-the dark handled bedtime board book of your favorite Bible stories told with simple language and essential truths that young children can understand. Your kids will fall fast asleep knowing that God is a good God who loves to help His children and hears when they pray. Dear God, Good Night: 2-Minute Bible Stories for Bedtime shows children the many times in the Bible that God demonstrated His goodness, such as in the stories of Joseph and his brothers, David and Goliath, Jesus blessing the children, and Jesus dying on the cross includes interactive prayers after each story that encourage you and your child to thank God for how He loves us features a glow-in-the-dark cover and a fun take-along handle, which are sure to capture the attention of little ones as they get ready for bed each night will capture your child’s heart with its message of God’s love and help your little one start their faith journey with Jesus offers families a quick bedtime read-aloud with foundational Christian teaching A fun and meaningful gift for baby showers, dedications, christenings, birthdays, Easter baskets, and holiday gifting, Dear God, Good Night helps kids talk to God every day and learn to thank Him for His goodness to them as they tell Him good night before snuggling up for sleep.

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A David and Goliath story about Ireland’s role as prime real estate for the world’s largest tech multinationals, and the considerable impact it has had on us as individuals. At the start of the millennium, the Tech giants landed on Ireland’s shores. Dublin, once one of Europe’s poorest cities, became a beacon of Silicon Valley’s promise of progress and power. As the face of the capital was remade in the image of Big Tech, Irish society embraced technology like no other. Romantic Ireland was dead and gone: social media was here to stay. In this provocative account, Aoife Barry explores the human cost of Ireland’s Faustian pact with Big Tech, from the local communities uprooted by Google to the traumatised moderators squirrelled in the capital’s pockets, keeping the internet safe at a terrible price. Unsettling, insightful, and wryly funny, she paints a portrait of a country addicted to the internet, refreshing the news, refreshing Twitter, scrolling and scrolling towards a feverish future. She turns an equally honest eye on her own life online, from her humble beginnings using dial-up in her parent’s kitchen to working for Ireland’s first digital-only newsroom, and asks what we bargain in exchange for life in the metaverse. Social Capital is the coming of age story of Ireland 3.0: set against the backdrop of the tech revolution, it chronicles how we collapse the boundary between physical and virtual reality, and where we might go from here.

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This children's bible is filled with stories that provide a good foundation for religious values. Walk through the bible with this wonderful book filled with over 130 stories! These bible stories for kids will teach them about the most important Christian texts and give them information around the stories' context and archaeology. This study bible for children places the stories in both a religious and historical context and includes: - Detailed stories that are easy to understand for children 9 years and older- Vibrant illustrations that bring each telling to life- Additional information to help children understand the significance and meaning of the text- The Old and New Testament - Biographies of key biblical figuresChildren's Bible Stories explores the books of the bible in a way that is suited to pre-adolescent children and older. Kids will learn notable stories such as David and Goliath, The Last Supper, the poetry of The Book of Psalms, and Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Each story holds a significance that is explored and further captivates the child by including artefacts, maps, fact, and information on life in biblical times. This Christian book for children is also a perfect reference that can be used in bible studies, Sunday school classrooms, or family readings. This illustrated bible answers many of children's questions around important religious events and the meaning thereof.This rich resource for children is the perfect gift or keepsake to mark special religious milestones in their lives, such as baptism confirmation.

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A trenchant analysis of how public education is being destroyed in overt and deceptive ways—and how to fight back “A powerful analysis of the predatory, profit-seeking forces that threaten our nation’s public schools. . . . If you care about the future of our society, read this book.” —Diane Ravitch, author of Slaying Goliath and Reign of ErrorIn the “vigorous, well-informed” (Kirkus Reviews) A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door, the co-hosts of the popular education podcast Have You Heard expose the potent network of conservative elected officials, advocacy groups, funders, and think tanks that are pushing a radical vision to do away with public education. “Cut[ing] through the rhetorical fog surrounding a host of free-market reforms and innovations” (Mike Rose), Jack Schneider and Jennifer Berkshire lay bare the dogma of privatization and reveal how it fits into the current context of right-wing political movements. A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door “goes above and beyond the typical explanations” (SchoolPolicy.org), giving readers an up-close look at the policies—school vouchers, the war on teachers’ unions, tax credit scholarships, virtual schools, and more—driving the movement’s agenda. Called “well-researched, carefully argued, and alarming” by Library Journal, this smart, essential book has already incited a public reckoning on behalf of the millions of families served by the American educational system—and many more who stand to suffer from its unmaking. “Just as with good sci-fi,” according to Jacobin, “the authors make a compelling case that, based on our current trajectory, a nightmare future is closer than we think.”

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Investigates physical evidence, history, and myths to reveal the lost race of giants that once dominated the world • Reveals suppressed archaeological and scientific discoveries supporting the existence of a worldwide race of giants • Examines giant myths and legends from ancient religious texts and literature from around the world • Includes findings from throughout Europe (Britain, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, and Russia), the Middle East (Israel, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Iran), Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and the Far East (China, Japan, Malaysia, and the Philippines) From the Nephilim and Goliath in the Bible to the Titans in Greek mythology and the Fomorians and Frost Giants in Celtic and Nordic lore, almost every culture around the world has spoken of an ancient race of giants. Giant footprints left in the geological bedrock, tens of thousands of years old, have been discovered in India, China, and the war-torn lands of Syria. Giant bones and full skeletons have been found in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, and Asia. Yet despite mounting evidence, mainstream science continues to consign these findings to the fringe. Examining global myths, historical records, megalithic ruins, and archaeological findings, Xaviant Haze provides compelling evidence for a lost race of giants in Earth’s prehistory. Covering legends and finds from throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and the Far East, Haze also presents--in its entirety--The Book of Giants, a portion of the Dead Sea Scrolls suppressed due to its overwhelming support for the existence of giants in antiquity.

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Once in a lifetime an astonishing true story comes along that not only captivates but also makes you re-evaluate your beliefs. Red Amaryllis is one of those stories. So, get ready for a thought- provoking and remarkable true story of a naive couple pitted against one of the world's financial giants in a decade- long legal battle which will evoke amazement and horror at the lengths corporate avarice will go to. David Vs Goliath is nothing on the even more amazing fight-back from Denise and Michael, two determined and relentless individuals. However, there is much more to this story than meets the eye. Denise's desperation transforms her into a survivor...a bona fide juggernaut and force of nature who refuses to take 'no' for an answer. In a story which smartly mixes unflagging inspiration with humour, it slowly becomes clear that in her drive to win her case, her uncanny ability to uncover hidden evidence has far greater implications. Denise's life journey will demonstrate her extraordinary and proven ability to unlock the past, expose the present, and see the future when, in a dramatic twist, the story showcases a terrifying warning to us all. For the past 36 years Denise has foreseen an atomic WWIII looming, and now it is just a few short years away - unless we all make our voices heard and demand that those with power turn back from the brink. The future of the planet is in our hands and time is running out.

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To mark the 20th anniversary of the lifting of the British Armed Forces gay ban' on 12 January 2020, this book brings together a selection of LGBTQ servicemen and women who have served in the Armed Forces since the Second World War. Their stories are profoundly moving testaments to their loyalty, their courage on the battlefield, and their unswerving sense of right and wrong. Included are ten accounts of members of our Armed Forces who have lived remarkable lives. In some cases they were dismissed in disgrace or forced to resign when asked questions about their private lives. Their stories are those of remarkable sacrifice and courage in their units (and in battle), but who were forced to live in secret before their services were removed at the stroke of a pen after being declared 'no longer required' or dismissed in disgrace'. These are the stories of the David and Goliath battle for equality, through every court in the UK and Europe. For others their story is one of remarkable careers at the front line of operations worldwide, with accounts of service in the Second World War, the Falklands War, the Gulf Wars and the war in Afghanistan. This book celebrates the lives of servicemen and women who have stood tall and taken their place with pride and dignity in the fighting units of the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Royal Air Force and the British Army. These are the inspiring stories of people who have created amazing careers and sought and found a welcome denied to so many.

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From the man who wrote the songs that outsold the Beatles and the Rolling Stones in 1967-1968, comes the story of the first decades of his life in Hollywood and New York. Immerse yourself in Grammy, Golden Globe, and Academy Award nominated songwriter Bobby Hart's world as he shares the story behind his success; from humble beginnings comes a musical goliath.Psychedelic Bubble Gum is an exclusive glimpse into Hart's personal journey as he moves on the fast track to fame. This vivid narrative follows Hart's gradual rise in the music industry as half of the duo Boyce and Hart, as he and his friend and partner Tommy Boyce wrote the songs that launched the Monkees to stardom, and eventually reaching over a hundred million in sales. Along the way is all the heartbreak and drama that accompanies fame and fortune—an uprooted life, conflicted morals, and the sacrifice of his wholesome high school sweetheart Becky.With unbending sincerity, Hart details a life of extravagance, betrayal, loss, disillusionment, and an unstoppable personal struggle to find spiritual balance, peace, and love. Psychedelic Bubble Gum is a rollercoaster ride through the 1960s and 1970s during America's whirlwind era of free speech, mysticism, and psychedelic pop culture, and, of course, rock 'n' roll. Packed with intimate behind-the-scenes encounters with pop star royalty, Psychedelic Bubble Gum is tempered by humor, honesty, and a singular understanding of the industry,

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Children will be inspired to be brave for God as they read this biography collection of Bible heroes who took action and did courageous things with God’s help.Little Faithfuls is the first Christian series of ”Little” biography collections for kids. Fans of the Little People, Big Dreams series, Who Was? series, and This Little Trailblazer and This Little Dreamer will love introducing their children to the best role models of all, straight out of Scripture.This beautiful picture book for 4 to 8-year-olds tells God’s big story of bravery, from David fighting Goliath, Esther risking her life to save her people, and Mary believing the angel's announcement that she would be the mother of Jesus features 12 godly men and women from your favorite Bible stories in the Old and New Testaments reminds young readers what it means to be brave, why bravery is an exciting opportunity from God, and how they can be a brave part of God's story too teaches that God helps people be brave and uses them for good in the world empowers kids to take action and do the right thing even when it’s scary With a bright, contemporary cover, eye-catching art, and age-appropriate biographical bonus facts, You're So Brave focuses on God's big story of bravery, culminating in Jesus' ultimate bravery on the cross. Children will learn that God's people were brave because they loved following God. As it points young readers back to the true source of their bravery, this inspiring picture book draws kids in to learn more about heroes of faith and to be brave right where they are.

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On the frontlines of the battle for democracy in ChinaThe rise of Hong Kong is the story of a miraculous post-War boom, when Chinese refugees flocked to a small British colony, and, in less than fifty years, transformed it into one of the great financial centers of the world. The unraveling of Hong Kong, on the other hand, shatters the grand illusion of China ever having the intention of allowing democratic norms to take root inside its borders. Hong Kong’s people were subjects of the British Empire for more than a hundred years, and now seem destined to remain the subordinates of today’s greatest rising power.But although we are witnessing the death of Hong Kong as we know it, this is also the story of the biggest challenge to China’s authoritarianism in 30 years. Activists who are passionately committed to defending the special qualities of a home they love are fighting against Beijing’s crafty efforts to bring the city into its fold—of making it a centerpiece of its “Greater Bay Area” megalopolis. Jeffrey Wasserstrom, one of America’s leading China specialists, draws on his many visits to the city, and knowledge of the history of repression and resistance, to help us understand the deep roots and the broad significance of the events we see unfolding day by day in Hong Kong. The result is a riveting tale of tragedy but also heroism—one of the great David-versus-Goliath battles of our time, pitting determined street protesters against the intransigence of Xi Jinping, the most ambitious leader of China since the days of Mao.

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A trenchant analysis of how public education is being destroyed in overt and deceptive ways—and how to fight back “A powerful analysis of the predatory, profit-seeking forces that threaten our nation’s public schools. . . . If you care about the future of our society, read this book.” —Diane Ravitch, author of Slaying Goliath and Reign of ErrorIn the “vigorous, well-informed” (Kirkus Reviews) A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door, the co-hosts of the popular education podcast Have You Heard expose the potent network of conservative elected officials, advocacy groups, funders, and think tanks that are pushing a radical vision to do away with public education. “Cut[ing] through the rhetorical fog surrounding a host of free-market reforms and innovations” (Mike Rose), Jack Schneider and Jennifer Berkshire lay bare the dogma of privatization and reveal how it fits into the current context of right-wing political movements. A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door “goes above and beyond the typical explanations” (SchoolPolicy.org), giving readers an up-close look at the policies—school vouchers, the war on teachers’ unions, tax credit scholarships, virtual schools, and more—driving the movement’s agenda. Called “well-researched, carefully argued, and alarming” by Library Journal, this smart, essential book has already incited a public reckoning on behalf of the millions of families served by the American educational system—and many more who stand to suffer from its unmaking. “Just as with good sci-fi,” according to Jacobin, “the authors make a compelling case that, based on our current trajectory, a nightmare future is closer than we think.”

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Following a deadly car crash, small-town lawyer Lance Cooper risked everything to battle one of the most powerful auto corporations in the world to get justice for a young woman. A fast-paced, journalistic account of tragedy turned to triumph, despair to hope, Cobalt Cover-Up is an inspirational, thoroughly compelling, and victorious read. In the midst of his own family struggles, small-town Georgia lawyer Lance Cooper agreed to defend Ken and Beth Melton and investigate the deadly accident that killed their daughter Brooke after she inexplicably lost control of her Chevy Cobalt. But what started as a heartbreaking yet all too common lawsuit quickly escalated into a David vs. Goliath case when Cooper discovered shocking evidence that General Motors concealed an ignition switch defect for nearly a decade--resulting in 124 deaths, including Brooke's, and risking the lives of millions more.­­Despite GM's settlement offers and attempts to bury evidence, Cooper refused to back down and worked tirelessly to expose the truth. Locked in a tenacious legal fight, Cooper and the Meltons faced incredible odds--Ken and Beth losing jobs and suffering the difficulty of grieving a beloved daughter during a court battle, Cooper risking his reputation and private practice against the overwhelming opposition from GM's team of lawyers, and both parties facing massive financial strain. Yet, in the relentless pursuit for justice and to protect future innocent lives, this small-town lawyer and a working-class American couple stared down the biggest US auto manufacturing mogul and ultimately transformed the entire industry.

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A tale of obsession and very big fish from Jeremy Wade, the presenter of ITV's RIVER MONSTERS.Over ten feet long, it weighs in at nearly a quarter of a ton. Covering its back are armoured plates made of bone. Five hundred stiletto-sharp teeth line its long crocodilian jaws. It's a prehistoric beast of staggering proportions; a fearsome creature from the time of the dinosaurs.But the Alligator Gar, an air-breathing survivor from the Cretaceous period is still with us today, patrolling inland rivers, hunting in murky waters shared by human communities.And for Jeremy Wade, described as the 'greatest angling explorer of his generation', the Gar and other outlandish freshwater predators have been an obsession for all his adult life. With names like Arapaima, Snakehead, Goonch, Goliath Tigerfish and Electric Eel, many of them have acquired an almost mythical status.In a quest that has taken him from the Amazon to the Congo, and from North America to the mountains of India, Wade has pursued the truth about these little known, often misunderstood animals. Along the way he's survived a plane crash, malaria and a fish-inflicted blow to the chest that, according to a later scan, caused permanent scarring to his heart.In RIVER MONSTERS, Wade delivers a sometimes jaw-dropping blend of adventure, natural history, legend and detective work. It reads like a hunt for the Loch Ness Monster. But it's all true. These are fisherman's tales like you've never heard before. The stories of the ones that didn't get away ...

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Lee Johnson was a man with simple dreams. All he wanted was a steady job and a nice home for his wife and children, something better than the hard life he knew growing up. He never imagined that he would become the face of a David-and-Goliath showdown against one of the world’s most powerful corporate giants. But a workplace accident left Lee doused in a toxic chemical and facing a deadly cancer that turned his life upside down. In 2018, the world watched as Lee was thrust to the forefront of one the most dramatic legal battles in recent history. The Monsanto Papers is the inside story of Lee Johnson’s landmark lawsuit against Monsanto. For Lee, the case was a race against the clock, with doctors predicting he wouldn’t survive long enough to take the witness stand. For the eclectic band of young, ambitious lawyers representing him, it was a matter of professional pride and personal risk, with millions of dollars and hard-earned reputations on the line. For the public at large, the lawsuit presented a question of corporate accountability. With enough money and influence, could a company endanger its customers, hide evidence, manipulate regulators, and get away with it all, for decades? Readers will be astounded by the depth of corruption uncovered, captivated by the shocking twists, and moved by Lee’s quiet determination to see justice served. With gripping narrative force that reads like fiction, The Monsanto Papers takes readers behind the scenes of a gruelling legal battle, pulling back the curtain on the frailties of the American court system and the lengths to which lawyers will go to fight corporate wrongdoing.

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The story of Thermopylae, the battle that helped define the identity of the ancient Greeks: how it was fought, how it has been remembered, and what it means for us today. During the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, a Greek force of approximately 7,000 faced the biggest army ever seen in the Greek peninsula. For three days, the Persians—the greatest military force in the world—were stopped in their tracks by a vastly inferior force, before the bulk of the Greek army was forced to retreat with their rear guard wiped out in one of history's most famous last stands. In strict military terms it was a defeat for the Greeks. But like the British retreat from Dunkirk or the massacre at the Alamo, this David and Goliath story has taken on the aura of success. Thermopylae has acquired a glamour exceeding the other battles of the Persian Wars, passing from history into myth, and lost none of that appeal in the modern era. In Thermopylae, Chris Carey analyses the origins and course of this pivotal battle, as well as the challenges facing the historians who attempt to separate fact from myth and make sense of an event with an absence of hard evidence. Carey also considers Thermopylae's cultural legacy, from its absorbtion into Greek and Roman oratorical traditions, to its influence over modern literature, poetry, public monuments, and mainstream Hollywood movies. This new volume in the Great Battles series offers an innovative view of a battle whose legacy has overtaken its real life practical outcomes, but which showed that a seemingly unstoppable force could be resisted.

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A Wall Street Journal Bestseller! Dan Bongino’s brutally honest, deeply personal, unforgettable stories about how he transformed failures into victories will enthrall, entertain, and inspire readers.In The Gift of Failure, leading conservative commentator Dan Bongino identifies failures in his life and how those failures led to bigger and better things. With the same laser-focused intensity that has made him one of America’s most popular voices, Bongino uncompromisingly cuts to the heart of failure with a collection that is inspirational, motivational, entertaining, touching, and redemptive. The former Secret Service agent currently hosts one of the country’s most listened to radio programs along with a top-rated podcast and the popular Fox News television show, Unfiltered. Throughout his career, Bongino has helped trailblaze a fight for free speech and free expression, garnering many national headlines for taking on some of the biggest tech companies in the world to challenge their seemingly draconian censorship policies. Along the way, through his many David vs. Goliath battles, Bongino has learned the hard way why failure matters. In The Gift of Failure, he shares, in vivid detail, many of these experiences—from high-profile, front-page stories involving the drama behind Parler and Rumble, to never-before-shared personal tales covering his childhood, the Secret Service, the media, a recent serious health battle, and much more. Bongino’s vulnerability coupled with his trademark in-your-face, unapologetic honesty and humor help illuminate many life lessons. This is unforgettable storytelling as only Bongino can deliver. Whether you agree with him or not, there’s something here for everyone.

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'Powerful...His extensively reported tales of individual whistleblowers and their often cruel fates are compelling...They reveal what it can mean to live in an age of fraud.' Washington Post'Tom Mueller's authoritative and timely book reveals what drives a few brave souls to expose and denounce specific cases of corruption.' George SorosWe are living in a time of mind-boggling corruption, but we are also, as it happens, living in a golden age of whistleblowing. Over the past two decades, the brave insiders who decide to expose wrongdoing have gained unprecedented legal and social stature, emerging as the government's best weapon against corporate misconduct - and the citizenry's best defense against government gone bad. They are also forcing us to consider fundamental questions about our democracy, especially the proper balance between free speech and state secrecy, and between individual rights and corporate power.Drawing on relentless original research, including in-depth interviews with more than 200 whistleblowers and the elite coterie of legal trailblazers who have armed them for battle - plus scores of politicians, intelligence analysts, government watchdogs, cognitive scientists, and other experts - Crisis of Conscience is a modern-day David-and-Goliath saga, told through a series of riveting cases drawn from Big Pharma, the military, and beyond. Whistleblowers are not only heroes who expose and anatomize corruption and ensure that it is punished usually at enormous cost to themselves - Mueller shows how they are also models we all must think and act more like if our democracy is to survive.

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While gay rights are on the national agenda now, activists have spent decades fighting for their platform, seeing themselves as David against the religious right’s Goliath. At the same time, the religious right has continuously and effectively countered the endeavors of lesbian and gay activists, working to repeal many of the laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and to progress a constitutional amendment “protecting” marriage. In this accessible and grounded work, Tina Fetner uncovers a remarkably complex relationship between the two movements—one that transcends political rivalry. Fetner shows how gay activists and the religious right have established in effect a symbiotic relationship in which each side very much affects the development of its counterpart. As lesbian and gay activists demand an end to prejudice, inclusion in marriage, the right to serve in the military, and full citizenship regardless of sexual orientation, the religious right has responded with antigay planks in Republican party platforms and the blocking of social and political change efforts. Fetner examines how the lesbian and gay movement reacts to opposition by changing rhetoric, tone, and tactics and reveals how this connection has influenced—and made more successful—the evolution of gay activism in the United States. Fetner addresses debates that lie at the center of the culture wars and, ultimately, she demonstrates how the contentious relationship between gay and lesbian rights activists and the religious right—a dynamic that is surprisingly necessary to both—challenges assumptions about how social movements are significantly shaped by their rivals.

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Winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction'At heart a David and Goliath story fit for the movies ... [A] valuable, discomforting book' The New York Times Book ReviewSeven years in the making, Amity and Prosperity tells the story of the energy boom's impact on a small town at the edge of Appalachia and of one woman's transformation from a struggling single parent to an unlikely activist.Stacey Haney is a local nurse working hard to raise two kids and keep up her small farm when the fracking boom comes to her hometown of Amity, Pennsylvania. Intrigued by reports of lucrative natural gas leases in her neighbours' mailboxes, she strikes a deal with a Texas-based energy company. Soon trucks begin rumbling past her small farm, a fenced-off drill site rises on an adjacent hilltop, and domestic animals and pets start to die. When mysterious sicknesses begin to afflict her children, she appeals to the company for help. Its representatives insist that nothing is wrong.Alarmed by her children's illnesses, Haney joins with neighbours and a committed husband-and-wife legal team to investigate what's really in the water and air. Against local opposition, Haney and her allies doggedly pursue their case in court and begin to expose the damage that's being done to the land her family has lived on for centuries. Drawing on seven years of immersive reporting, prizewinning poet and journalist Eliza Griswold reveals what happens when an imperilled town faces a crisis of values, and a family wagers everything on an improbable quest for justice.

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An Exploration of the Old and New Testament for Young Readers Unlike Any You’ve Ever Seen Before Minecraft has swept the world by storm. More than one hundred million games have been sold. Parents of children who play Minecraft will love this fun, educational collection of Bible stories. With the world of Minecraft as a backdrop using vivid, full-color screenshots, children will experience the Bible as never before. Authors Garrett Romines and Christopher Miko are teachers who have used Minecraft to create imaginative worlds in their classrooms. Now, they have created Bible stories with virtual blocks to produce vibrant, 3-D worlds filled with adventure and astonishing imagination. With fascinating scripture and narrative simplified to teach young readers, this is the perfect gift. The images created are not only of magnificent, vast terrains often found in Minecraft but also feature artfully re-created Bible characters, such as Adam and Eve, and superb designs of the pyramids and Noah’s ark. A range of biblical characters such as Jesus and Pharaoh are offered in fun, colorful scenes kids will treasure. Engaging stories including the Tower of Babel and the story of Abram and Lot, to name a few, are here. With over 470 images, young readers will explore the story of creation, the journey of Abraham, David and Goliath, Moses’s great journey, the birth of Jesus, the Last Supper, and many more stories! The Unofficial Holy Bible for Minecrafters makes the Bible more entertaining, engaging, and accessible for children than ever! This adventure series is created especially for readers who love the fight of good vs. evil, magical academies like Hogwarts in the Harry Potter saga, and games like Minecraft, Terraria, and Pokemon GO.

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Featured in The New York Times, Bloomberg, and Vox, The Shopping Revolution is "a brisk and thought-provoking anatomy of shopping in the 21st century" (Kirkus Reviews). The retail industry was already in the midst of unparalleled disruption. Then came COVID-19. In a fully updated and expanded edition of The Shopping Revolution: How Retailers Succeed in an Era of Endless Disruption Accelerated by COVID-19, Wharton professor Barbara E. Kahn, a foremost retail expert, examines the companies that have been most successful during a tsunami of change in the industry. She offers fresh insights into what we can learn from these companies' ascendance and continued transformation in the face of unprecedented challenges. Kahn, also the author of Global Brand Power: Leveraging Branding for Long-Term Growth, examines:In a brand-new chapter, how companies in China, like Alibaba, JD.com, and Pinduoduo have changed the game;How Amazon became the retailer of choice for a large portion of the US population, and how other companies have chosen to work with them or have to compete against them; How Walmart beat out other grocers in the late 1990s to become the leader in food retailing, and how they must pivot to hold their leadership position today; How Warby Parker dared to compete against Luxottica in the lucrative eyewear business, and what that can tell start-ups about how to carve out a niche against a Goliath; How Sephora drew away customers from once-dominant department stores to become the go-to retailers for beauty products. Kahn argues we are just witnessing the start of the radical changes in retail that have been hastened by the pandemic and will revolutionize shopping in every way. Building on these insights, Kahn offers a framework that any company can use to create a competitive strategy to survive and thrive in today's—and tomorrow's—retail environment.

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The story behind the historic Mineral King Valley case, which reveals how the Sierra Club battled Disney’s ski resort development and launched a new environmental era in America. In our current age of climate change–induced panic, it’s hard to imagine a time when private groups were not actively enforcing environmental protection laws in the courts. It wasn’t until 1972, however, that a David and Goliath–esque Supreme Court showdown involving the Sierra Club and Disney set a revolutionary legal precedent for the era of environmental activism we live in today. Set against the backdrop of the environmental movement that swept the country in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Dawn at Mineral King Valley tells the surprising story of how the US Forest Service, the Disney company, and the Sierra Club each struggled to adapt to the new, rapidly changing political landscape of environmental consciousness in postwar America. Proposed in 1965 and approved by the federal government in 1969, Disney’s vast development plan would have irreversibly altered the practically untouched Mineral King Valley, a magnificently beautiful alpine area in the Sierra Nevada mountains. At first, the plan met with unanimous approval from elected officials, government administrators, and the press—it seemed inevitable that this expanse of wild natural land would be radically changed and turned over to a private corporation. Then the scrappy Sierra Club forcefully pushed back with a lawsuit that ultimately propelled the modern environmental era by allowing interest groups to bring litigation against environmentally destructive projects. An expert on environmental law and appellate advocacy, Daniel P. Selmi uses his authoritative narrative voice to recount the complete history of this revolutionary legal battle and the ramifications that continue today, almost 50 years later.

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From Wall Street Journal columnist Spencer Jakab, the real story of the GameStop squeeze - and the surprising winners of a rigged game. 'Jakab adeptly skewers the popular but dangerously wrong narrative of Reddit's David thumping Wall Street's Goliath, and shows how the casino always wins in the end. DeepF***ingRespect for an important book with lessons far more durable than GameStop's stock market levitation.' Robin Wigglesworth, author of Trillions During one crazy week in January 2021, a motley crew of retail traders on Reddit's r/wallstreetbets forum had seemingly done the impossible - they had brought some of the biggest, richest players on Wall Street to their knees. Their weapon was GameStop, a failing retailer whose shares briefly became the most-traded security on the planet and the subject of intense media coverage. The Revolution That Wasn't is the riveting story of how the meme stock squeeze unfolded, and the real architects (and winners) of the GameStop rally. Drawing on his years as a stock analyst at a major bank, Jakab exposes technological and financial innovations like Robinhood as ploys to part investors from their money, within the larger story of evolving social and economic pressures. The surprising truth? What appeared to be a watershed moment - a revolution that stripped the ultra-powerful hedge funds of their market influence, placing power back in the hands of everyday investors only increased the chances of the house winning. Online brokerages love to talk about empowerment and 'democratising finance' - while Wall Street thrives on chaos. In this nuanced analysis, Jakab shines a light on the often-misunderstood profit motives and financial mechanisms to show how this so-called revolution is, on balance, good for Wall Street. But, Jakab argues, there really is a way for ordinary investors to beat the pros: by refusing to play their game.

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'People have it in their minds that he would have been a match for Alexander, had Alexander turned his arms on Europe.' So Livy characterizes Papirius Cursor, one of Rome's famous generals in the fourth century BC. In Books 6 to 10 of his monumental history of Rome, Livy deals with the period in which Rome recovered from its Gallic disaster to impose mastery over almost the entire Italian peninsula in a series of ever greater wars. Along with Papirius, Livy paints vivid portraits of other notable figures, such as Camillus, who rescued the city from its Gallic captors in 390, young Manlius Torquatus, victor in a David-versus-Goliath duel with a Gallic chieftain, and Appius Claudius who built Rome's first major highway, the Appian Way. Livy's blend of factual narrative and imaginative recreation brings to life a critical era for the rise of Rome, and Books 6 to 10 of his work are the one complete account we have, as the city passes from myth and legend into the increasing light of reliable history. John Yardley's fluent translation is accompanied by an introduction and notes that set Livy in the context of Roman historiography. The complete Livy in English, available in five volumes from Oxford World's Classics. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

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Winner of the 2015 PROSE Award for US History A “fascinating, encyclopedic history…of greater New York City through an ecological lens” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)—the sweeping story of one of the most man-made spots on earth.Gotham Unbound recounts the four-century history of how hundreds of square miles of open marshlands became home to six percent of the nation’s population. Ted Steinberg brings a vanished New York back to vivid, rich life. You will see the metropolitan area anew, not just as a dense urban goliath but as an estuary once home to miles of oyster reefs, wolves, whales, and blueberry bogs. That world gave way to an onslaught managed by thousands, from Governor John Montgomerie, who turned water into land, and John Randel, who imposed a grid on Manhattan, to Robert Moses, Charles Urstadt, Donald Trump, and Michael Bloomberg. “Weighty and wonderful…Resting on a sturdy foundation of research and imagination, Steinberg’s volume begins with Henry Hudson’s arrival aboard the Half Moon in 1609 and ends with another transformative event—Hurricane Sandy in 2012” (The Plain Dealer, Cleveland). This book is a powerful account of the relentless development that New Yorkers wrought as they plunged headfirst into the floodplain and transformed untold amounts of salt marsh and shellfish beds into a land jam-packed with people, asphalt, and steel, and the reeds and gulls that thrive among them. With metropolitan areas across the globe on a collision course with rising seas, Gotham Unbound helps explain how one of the most important cities in the world has ended up in such a perilous situation. “Steinberg challenges the conventional arguments that geography is destiny….And he makes the strong case that for all the ecological advantages of urban living, hyperdensity by itself is not necessarily a sound environmental strategy” (The New York Times).

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Today, most of the 2,800 tranquil acres that make up Wye Island are managed by the Maryland Park Service. However, from 1973 to 1974, the island was the site of a raging controversy. A major developer, James Rouse, wanted to build a compact waterfront village that would be surrounded by large estates, protected farms, and wetlands. A boyhood resident of nearby Easton, Maryland, Rouse hoped that the island could avoid the sprawl of unplanned subdivisions that were marring so many other places along the Eastern Shore. Combining history, journalism, character sketches, and sharp sociological insight, Boyd Gibbons presents the conflict over Wye Island in its multiple dimensions - as an example of the emerging community-based activism of the 1960s and 70s, and of a community that, while exercising its right to preserve its identity, denies opportunities for its members to improve their lives through change. In fact, Wye Island proves not to be the environmental David-Goliath struggle that might be expected. For one thing, residents opposed a development plan that can be regarded as an early model for 'smart growth.' And many were no more favorably disposed to a park or preserve than to a planned village. Their interest was in protecting the community from an invasion of immigrants from ethnically diverse Baltimore and Washington, and, where the wealthy were concerned, protecting some very private views of the water. In the end, rich landowners, poor 'natives,' and many recent newcomers opposed the Rouse project - distrusting change, and, above all, fearing 'outsiders.' The special reprint of Wye Island includes a new foreword by distinguished environmental historian Adam Rome, who explores the enduring themes of Wye Island in context of the current debates about land use, development, and sprawl.

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Explore the animal kingdom like never before with the Animal Atlas from Lonely Planet Kids. Unfold maps to reveal animals from every continent and lift the flaps to see their unique environments and habitats. Discover a world of animal facts, life-size photos and creature features - from a bear's paw and a baby turtle to an anteater's tongue and a goliath birdeater, the world's heaviest spider. EEK! All drawn to scale so you can measure yourself against them. You'll find animals living on freezing ice caps, high on snowy mountain peaks, in parched deserts and down in the dark depths of the ocean. They fly through the air, crawl among trees, burrow into the earth, plunge through the seas, and prowl the forests - and range from the tiniest of insects too small to see without a magnifying glass to the blue whale, which is longer than three buses! The book is divided into seven sections: North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australasia, Oceania & Antarctica - each with a map of the major environments as well as illustrated and photographic depictions of some of the animals living there. Are you ready for this round-the-world animal adventure? About Lonely Planet Kids: Lonely Planet Kids - an imprint of the world's leading travel authority Lonely Planet - published its first book in 2011. Over the past 45 years, Lonely Planet has grown a dedicated global community of travellers, many of whom are now sharing a passion for exploration with their children. Lonely Planet Kids educates and encourages young readers at home and in school to learn about the world with engaging books on culture, sociology, geography, nature, history, space and more. We want to inspire the next generation of global citizens and help kids and their parents to approach life in a way that makes every day an adventure. Come explore!

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In the animal kingdom, surviving to adulthood is hardly child’s play. Enter the perilous world of animal babies, where Mother Nature is at her most ingenious—and biologists keep finding fresh surprises. It’s time to pay attention to baby animals. From egg to tadpole, chick to fledgling, they offer scientists a window into questions of immense importance: How do genes influence health? Which environmental factors support—or obstruct—life? Entire ecosystems rest on the shoulders (or tentacles, or jointed exoskeletons) of animal babies. At any given moment, babies represent the majority of animal life on Earth. In Nursery Earth, researcher Danna Staaf invites readers into the sibling (and, sometimes, clashing) fields of ecology and developmental biology. The tiny, hidden lives that these scientists study in the lab and in the wild reveal some of nature’s strangest workings: A salamander embryo breathes with the help of algae inside its cells. The young grub of a Goliath beetle dwarfs its parents. The spotted beak of a parasitic baby bird tricks adults of other species into feeding it. Mouse embryos can absorb cancerous cell grafts—and develop into healthy adults. Our bias toward adult animals (not least because babies can be hard to find) means these wonders have long gone under-researched. But for all kinds of animals, if we overlook their babies, we miss out on the most fascinating—and consequential—time in the lives of their species. Nursery Earth makes the case that these young creatures are not just beings in progress but beings in their own right. And our planet needs them all: the maggots as much as the kittens!

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Frogs are amazingly diverse-ranging from the massive goliath frog, which weighs several pounds, to the recently discovered gold frog, which measures a mere three-eighths of an inch when fully grown-and have inhabited the earth for more than 200 million years. Today, however, these amphibians face more challenges than any other vertebrate group. In this fun and informative book, herpetologists Mike Dorcas and Whit Gibbons answer common and not-so-common questions people may have about these fascinating animals. Dorcas and Gibbons discuss how frogs evolved, which species currently exist in the world, and why some have recently gone extinct. They reveal what frogs eat and what eats them, their role in cultures across the globe, why many populations are declining and what we can do to reverse this dangerous trend, why there are deformed frogs, and much more. They answer expected questions such as "What is the difference between a frog and a toad?" and "Why do some people lick toads?" and unexpected ones such as "Why do some frogs lay their eggs in the leaves of trees?" and "Do frogs feel pain?" The authors' easy-to-understand yet thorough explanations provide insight into the amazing biology of this amphibian group. In addressing conservation questions, Dorcas and Gibbons highlight the frightening implications of the current worldwide amphibian crisis, which many scientists predict will bring extinction rates experienced by frog species to levels not seen in any vertebrate animal group in millions of years. Packed with facts and featuring two color galleries and 70 black-and-white photographs, Frogs: The Animal Answer Guide is sure to address the questions on the minds of curious naturalists.

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Frogs are amazingly diverse-ranging from the massive goliath frog, which weighs several pounds, to the recently discovered gold frog, which measures a mere three-eighths of an inch when fully grown-and have inhabited the earth for more than 200 million years. Today, however, these amphibians face more challenges than any other vertebrate group. In this fun and informative book, herpetologists Mike Dorcas and Whit Gibbons answer common and not-so-common questions people may have about these fascinating animals. Dorcas and Gibbons discuss how frogs evolved, which species currently exist in the world, and why some have recently gone extinct. They reveal what frogs eat and what eats them, their role in cultures across the globe, why many populations are declining and what we can do to reverse this dangerous trend, why there are deformed frogs, and much more. They answer expected questions such as "What is the difference between a frog and a toad?" and "Why do some people lick toads?" and unexpected ones such as "Why do some frogs lay their eggs in the leaves of trees?" and "Do frogs feel pain?" The authors' easy-to-understand yet thorough explanations provide insight into the amazing biology of this amphibian group. In addressing conservation questions, Dorcas and Gibbons highlight the frightening implications of the current worldwide amphibian crisis, which many scientists predict will bring extinction rates experienced by frog species to levels not seen in any vertebrate animal group in millions of years. Packed with facts and featuring two color galleries and 70 black-and-white photographs, Frogs: The Animal Answer Guide is sure to address the questions on the minds of curious naturalists.

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A David and Goliath battle for truth A specialist in GM foods and pesticides, the biologist Gilles-Éric Seralini has studied their toxicity and effects on people's health for many years. In September 2012, for the first time in a major scientific journal (Food and Chemical Toxicology), he published a study showing the effect on the liver and kidneys of two of Monsanto's flagship products: Roundup weedkiller and the GM foods created to absorb it. Images from the study of tumor-ridden rats fed with GM foods and Roundup went viral. The study was a PR disaster for Monsanto. The multinational soon bounced back and did everything in its power to cover up the study—leaning on the publishers to retract the findings. Monsanto began a series of smear campaigns to discredit Seralini and fellow researchers and intimidate their supporters, while pumping out their own collection of fake research findings and testimonies. These practices were met with huge suspicion, but there was no concrete evidence until, in 2017, Monsanto was ordered to publish tens of thousands of confidential documents in a class-action lawsuit presented by thousands of individuals afflicted with serious illnesses from their use of Roundup. The "Monsanto Papers" that were produced subsequently proved the company’s cynical attempts at a cover-up as well as its fraudulent practices. Gilles-Éric Seralini and Jérôme Douzelet delved into the documents and discovered how, in the pursuit of its own short term economic interests, Monsanto used sophisticated methods of deceit to bypass legislation devised to protect millions of people. Seralini and Douzelet discovered how Monsanto managed to provide phony assessments to conceal the poisons its products contain, thus deceiving the public authorities and the scientific and medical communities.

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In Strategy: A History, Sir Lawrence Freedman, one of the world's leading authorities on war and international politics, captures the vast history of strategic thinking, in a consistently engaging and insightful account of how strategy came to pervade every aspect of our lives. The range of Freedman's narrative is extraordinary, moving from the surprisingly advanced strategy practiced in primate groups, to the opposing strategies of Achilles and Odysseus in The Iliad, the strategic advice of Sun Tzu and Machiavelli, the great military innovations of Baron Henri de Jomini and Carl von Clausewitz, the grounding of revolutionary strategy in class struggles by Marx, the insights into corporate strategy found in Peter Drucker and Alfred Sloan, and the contributions of the leading social scientists working on strategy today. The core issue at the heart of strategy, the author notes, is whether it is possible to manipulate and shape our environment rather than simply become the victim of forces beyond one's control. Time and again, Freedman demonstrates that the inherent unpredictability of this environment-subject to chance events, the efforts of opponents, the missteps of friends-provides strategy with its challenge and its drama. Armies or corporations or nations rarely move from one predictable state of affairs to another, but instead feel their way through a series of states, each one not quite what was anticipated, requiring a reappraisal of the original strategy, including its ultimate objective. Thus the picture of strategy that emerges in this book is one that is fluid and flexible, governed by the starting point, not the end point. A brilliant overview of the most prominent strategic theories in history, from David's use of deception against Goliath, to the modern use of game theory in economics, this masterful volume sums up a lifetime of reflection on strategy.

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Just before the 2002 season opens, the Oakland Athletics must relinquish its three most prominent (and expensive) players and is written off by just about everyone—but then comes roaring back to challenge the American League record for consecutive wins. How did one of the poorest teams in baseball win so many games? In a quest to discover the answer, Michael Lewis delivers not only “the single most influential baseball book ever” (Rob Neyer, Slate) but also what “may be the best book ever written on business” (Weekly Standard). Lewis first looks to all the logical places—the front offices of major league teams, the coaches, the minds of brilliant players—but discovers the real jackpot is a cache of numbers?numbers!?collected over the years by a strange brotherhood of amateur baseball enthusiasts: software engineers, statisticians, Wall Street analysts, lawyers, and physics professors. What these numbers prove is that the traditional yardsticks of success for players and teams are fatally flawed. Even the box score misleads us by ignoring the crucial importance of the humble base-on-balls. This information had been around for years, and nobody inside Major League Baseball paid it any mind. And then came Billy Beane, general manager of the Oakland Athletics. He paid attention to those numbers?with the second-lowest payroll in baseball at his disposal he had to?to conduct an astonishing experiment in finding and fielding a team that nobody else wanted. In a narrative full of fabulous characters and brilliant excursions into the unexpected, Michael Lewis shows us how and why the new baseball knowledge works. He also sets up a sly and hilarious morality tale: Big Money, like Goliath, is always supposed to win . . . how can we not cheer for David?

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The New Orleans Flood, U.S. Corruption, and Disasters "Rosenthal employs the surgical precision of an investigative journalist and the craft of a memoirist to expose the flaws, natural and human, behind the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina." —The Eric Hoffer Award Program 2020 Nautilus Silver Winner #1 New Release in Civil Engineering & Environmental, Urban & City Planning, Development, and Disaster Relief In the aftermath of one of the worst disasters in U.S. history, Words Whispered in Water tells the story of one woman’s fight—against all odds—to expose a mammoth federal agency—and win. It’s a horror story, a mystery, and David and Goliath story all in one. In 2005, the entire world watched as a major U.S. city was nearly wiped off the map. The levees ruptured and New Orleans drowned. But while newscasters attributed the New Orleans flood to “natural catastrophes” and other types of disasters, citizen investigator Sandy Rosenthal set out to expose the true culprit and compel the media and government to tell the truth. This is her story. When the protective steel flood-walls broke, the Army Corps of Engineers—with cooperation from big media—turned the blame on natural types of disasters. In the chaotic aftermath, Rosenthal uncovers the U.S. corruption, and big media at root. Follow this New Orleans hero as she exposes the federal agency’s egregious design errors and eventually changes the narrative surrounding the New Orleans flood. In this engaging and revealing tale of man versus nature and man versus man, Words Whispered in Water proves that the power of a single individual is alive and well. If you enjoyed books like The Johnstown Flood, Breach of Faith, or The Great Deluge, then Words Whispered in Water is your next read!

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The Old Testament book 1 Samuel (known as 1 Kings in modern Bibles) contains one of the most dramatic stories in the Old Testament, with its tense narrative about Israel’s first attempts to govern itself by kingship, and a cast of famous characters who drive the story — the priest and prophet Samuel, the tragic figure of King Saul, and chiefly David himself, the youngest son of Jesse, who slays the Philistine’s champion, Goliath, and gains God’s favour in replacement for Saul. The Venerable Bede (672-735 AD), Anglo-Saxon England’s foremost interpreter of the Bible, wrote many commentaries on the Old Testament, but his treatment of 1 Samuel stands out in particular: it is one of his longest commentaries, one of his first sustained attempts to deal with the Old Testament without support from an earlier commentary, and one of the few commentaries he wrote that can be dated precisely. Bede sets out to read the story of 1 Samuel as full of details which demonstrate the prophetic nature of Old Testament history, an attempt that is boldly experimental in its application of the allegorical method of interpretation.Historically, the commentary is of special interest for its detailed reference to the departure of Abbot Ceolfrith from Wearmouth-Jarrow in June 716 AD, which has allowed scholarship to firmly date the work and explore some potential links to the turbulent political scene in Northumbria that marked that decade. This English translation is the first rendering of the Latin into another language. The translation is preceded by a substantial introduction that places the work in the context of Bede’s oeuvre, discusses his sources and exegetical methods, and offers a reading of the work’s contemporary context in the light of current scholarly debate.

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A classic David & Goliath tale, complete with colourful heroes, cold-hearted villains, and nail-biting games—with the hockey rink serving as an arena for a nation’s resistance. During the height of the Cold War, a group of small-town young men would lead their underdog hockey team from the little country of Czechoslovakia against the Soviet Union, the juggernaut in their sport. As they battled on the ice, the young players would keep their people’s quest for freedom alive, and forge a way to fight back against the authoritarian forces that sought to crush them. From the sudden invasion of Czechslovakia by an armada of tanks and 500,000 Warsaw Pact soldiers, to a hockey victory over the Soviets that inspired half a million furious citizens to take to the streets in an attempt to destroy all representations that they could find of their occupiers, Freedom to Win ranges from iconic moments in history to courageous individual stories. We will witness the fearless escape by three brothers who made up the core of the national team, thrilling world championship games and gold medal matches. We will watch as a one brave player takes a stand and leads ten thousand people in a tear-filled rendition of the Czechoslovak national anthem amid chants of “freedom!” while a revolution raged in the streets of Prague. At the heart of Freedom to Win is the story of the Holíks, a Czechoslovak family whose resistance to the Communists embodied the deepest desires of the people of their country. Faced with life under the cruel and arbitrary regime that had stolen their family butcher shop, the Holík boys became national hockey icons and inspirations to their people. Filled with heart-pounding moments on the ice and unforgettable slices of history, Freedom to Win is the ultimate tale of why sports truly matter.

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Featured in The New York Times, Bloomberg, and Vox, The Shopping Revolution is "a brisk and thought-provoking anatomy of shopping in the 21st century" (Kirkus Reviews). The retail industry was already in the midst of unparalleled disruption. Then came COVID-19. In a fully updated and expanded edition of The Shopping Revolution: How Retailers Succeed in an Era of Endless Disruption Accelerated by COVID-19, Wharton professor Barbara E. Kahn, a foremost retail expert, examines the companies that have been most successful during a tsunami of change in the industry. She offers fresh insights into what we can learn from these companies' ascendance and continued transformation in the face of unprecedented challenges. Kahn, also the author of Global Brand Power: Leveraging Branding for Long-Term Growth, examines:In a brand-new chapter, how companies in China, like Alibaba, JD.com, and Pinduoduo have changed the game;How Amazon became the retailer of choice for a large portion of the US population, and how other companies have chosen to work with them or have to compete against them; How Walmart beat out other grocers in the late 1990s to become the leader in food retailing, and how they must pivot to hold their leadership position today; How Warby Parker dared to compete against Luxottica in the lucrative eyewear business, and what that can tell start-ups about how to carve out a niche against a Goliath; How Sephora drew away customers from once-dominant department stores to become the go-to retailers for beauty products. Kahn argues we are just witnessing the start of the radical changes in retail that have been hastened by the pandemic and will revolutionize shopping in every way. Building on these insights, Kahn offers a framework that any company can use to create a competitive strategy to survive and thrive in today's—and tomorrow's—retail environment.

Read more less

Selected as a Financial Times Best Book of 2013 In Strategy: A History, Sir Lawrence Freedman, one of the world's leading authorities on war and international politics, captures the vast history of strategic thinking, in a consistently engaging and insightful account of how strategy came to pervade every aspect of our lives. The range of Freedman's narrative is extraordinary, moving from the surprisingly advanced strategy practiced in primate groups, to the opposing strategies of Achilles and Odysseus in The Iliad, the strategic advice of Sun Tzu and Machiavelli, the great military innovations of Baron Henri de Jomini and Carl von Clausewitz, the grounding of revolutionary strategy in class struggles by Marx, the insights into corporate strategy found in Peter Drucker and Alfred Sloan, and the contributions of the leading social scientists working on strategy today. The core issue at the heart of strategy, the author notes, is whether it is possible to manipulate and shape our environment rather than simply become the victim of forces beyond one's control. Time and again, Freedman demonstrates that the inherent unpredictability of this environment-subject to chance events, the efforts of opponents, the missteps of friends-provides strategy with its challenge and its drama. Armies or corporations or nations rarely move from one predictable state of affairs to another, but instead feel their way through a series of states, each one not quite what was anticipated, requiring a reappraisal of the original strategy, including its ultimate objective. Thus the picture of strategy that emerges in this book is one that is fluid and flexible, governed by the starting point, not the end point. A brilliant overview of the most prominent strategic theories in history, from David's use of deception against Goliath, to the modern use of game theory in economics, this masterful volume sums up a lifetime of reflection on strategy.

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When the hail starts to fall, Atina Diffley doesn’t compare it to golf balls. She’s a farmer. It’s “as big as a B-size potato.” As her bombarded land turns white, she and her husband Martin huddle under a blanket and reminisce: the one-hundred-mile-per-hour winds; the eleven-inch rainfall (“that broccoli turned out gorgeous”); the hail disaster of 1977. The romance of farming washed away a long time ago, but the love? Never. In telling her story of working the land, coaxing good food from the fertile soil, Atina Diffley reminds us of an ultimate truth: we live in relationships—with the earth, plants and animals, families and communities. A memoir of making these essential relationships work in the face of challenges as natural as weather and as unnatural as corporate politics, her book is a firsthand history of getting in at the “ground level” of organic farming. One of the first certified organic produce farms in the Midwest, the Diffleys’ Gardens of Eagan helped to usher in a new kind of green revolution in the heart of America’s farmland, supplying their roadside stand and a growing number of local food co-ops. This is a story of a world transformed—and reclaimed—one square acre at a time.And yet, after surviving punishing storms and the devastating loss of fifth-generation Diffley family land to suburban development, the Diffleys faced the ultimate challenge: the threat of eminent domain for a crude oil pipeline proposed by one of the largest privately owned companies in the world, notorious polluters Koch Industries. As Atina Diffley tells her David-versus-Goliath tale, she gives readers everything from expert instruction in organic farming to an entrepreneur’s manual on how to grow a business to a legal thriller about battling corporate arrogance to a love story about a single mother falling for a good, big-hearted man.

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"School Board is a total joy to read, as full of sass and subversive brass as its 18-year-old hero, the political neophyte and Houston school board candidate Tucker 'Catfish' Davis ... I hope School Board is the first of many more to come from this gifted young writer."-Ben Fountain, author of National Book Critics Circle Award winner Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk and Brief Encounters with Che Guevara “Into the riotous cavalcade of great American literary characters tumbles a new class clown, Tucker 'Catfish' Davis, high school senior and aspiring politician. One part Ignatius J. Reilly from A Confederacy of Dunces, one part Hazel Motes from Wise Blood, and several parts Willie Stark from All the King's Men, Catfish Davis is a singular presence on the page. Mike Freedman hasn't just written the funniest book about a school board election, he's written the kind of David-and-Goliath story that gets all of us 'little people' cheering and laughing in equal measure.”-David Abrams, author of Fobbit Houston, Texas, 1999. Enter Tucker "Catfish" Davis, a high school senior with high-flying political ambitions as the self-proclaimed heir to populist Louisiana Governors Huey and Earl Long. Armed with idealism and a fedora, he embarks on a quixotic campaign to get elected to the local school board in an effort to help the "little people" of Houston. In the wild days that follow, Catfish's long-shot bid gains traction through guerilla campaigning against a questionable tax deal supported by his opponent, a powerful executive at an Enron-esque energy company. With the help of his classmates, an indicted Louisiana governor, a gay journalist with nascent mayoral ambitions and an ex-Green Beret trained to wage unconventional warfare, Catfish makes it a race Houston will never forget. Based on an actual 1999 news story, School Board is an entertaining but satirical debut novel that revels in the diversity, madness and absurdities of the Bayou City.

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The astonishing true story of the Scottish coal miner’s daughter who took on the Mafia-backed creators of the world’s biggest financial fraud and helped the FBI to convict them Soon to be a major Hollywood film directed by Scott Z Burns ‘In the 1990s, Erin Brockovich showed what a difference one smart, angry woman can make in a world that marginalized her. Jen McAdam stepped forward in our time to shut down a diabolical fraud that preys those most desperate.’ Scott Z Burns, Director (Contagion and The Bourne Ultimatum)As featured on the hit BBC podcast The Missing CryptoqueenJen McAdam was a victim of the OneCoin global cryptocurrency fraud, which stole an estimated $27 billion from ordinary people around the world. The evil genius of the scam was its target, society’s ‘unbanked,’ not wealthy investors, and it robbed millions of their livelihood and futures. The poor became poorer. The brutal plundering led by self-styled Cryptoqueen Ruja Ignatova defied all legal and banking barriers bamboozling financial authorities — until Jen McAdam fought back. With a £15,000 inheritance from her father, saved from a careful life in a west of Scotland mining town, Jen wanted to invest wisely for her family’s future and was enraptured by the possibilities offered by OneCoin’s promotional material and convincing endorsements from celebrities and financial institutions. They, like all Dr Ruja’s flamboyant promises, were bogus. Jen McAdam was the first victim brave enough to fight back and despite death threats and an intimidating campaign to shut her down, and through a debilitating illness, strived tirelessly for justice – for herself, her family and friends, and the millions around the world who lost everything. She created and continues to lead victims ’support groups and in 2023, as the OneCoin bandits were being punished by international courts, spearheaded a move to get financial compensation for the many whose life hopes were cruelly crushed by the Cryptoqueen. This is a true David-and-Goliath story. It shows us the power we can have as individuals, even when things seem hopeless.

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Paul Runyan—the Arkansas farm boy who stood five feet, six inches and weighed 130 pounds—shocked the golf world by defeating long and lean, sweet-swinging Sam Snead in the finals of the 1938 PGA Championship, thus earning the nickname “Little Poison.” Runyan did more than beat Snead: he shellacked him as decisively as David toppled mighty Goliath. His resounding victory was so convincing, so dominant, that even Snead had to shake his head when it was finished and wonder how the porkpie-wearing, pint-sized golf pro had gotten the better of him in the thirty-six-hole final. One bookmaker made Snead a 10-to-1 favorite before the match. Despite Snead’s physical gifts—he routinely outdrove Runyan by fifty yards or more—Snead was no match for Runyan, the underdog victor in one of golf’s four major championships.Little Poison is the story of a man who made a career out of punching above his weight on the golf course. Runyan won twenty-nine PGA tournaments between 1930 and 1941, as well as another major championship in 1934. Runyan served in the navy during World War II, joining Snead and other prominent professionals who played exhibition matches to entertain troops and help raise money. After the war he played sparingly—but successfully—and focused on his career as an instructor, teaching his revolutionary short-game techniques. Little Poison follows Runyan throughout these stages of his life, from anonymity to stardom and into golf mythology. At the heart of Runyan’s story is his Depression-era grit. He believed passionately that proper technique and relentless hard work would outlast talent and brawn. Americans who emerged from the Great Depression likely had a little Runyan in them, too, making him the perfect sports hero for the era. His story began not on the immaculate fairways of a country club but on a farm in Hot Springs, Arkansas, near a golf course with oiled sand greens. A disadvantage, some would say—but not Runyan. On those sand surfaces he developed a sustainable technique that became the bedrock of his hall of fame career.

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