Publisher: GIANLUCA
The Pensées is a collection of fragments on theology and philosophy written by 17th-century philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal. Pascal’s religious conversion led him into a life of asceticism and this was in many ways his life’s work.
“Sheds new light on the history of Theodore Roosevelt and the legendary exploits of his illustrious ‘cowboy’ regiment?the Rough Riders.” —Bonnie M. Miller, author of From Liberation to Conquest At the turn of the twentieth century, Theodore Roosevelt personified American confidence. A New York City native and recovered asthmatic who spent his twenties in the wilds of the Dakota Territory, Roosevelt leapt into Spanish American War with gusto. He organized a band of cavalry volunteers he called the Rough Riders and, on July 1, 1898, took part in their charge up a Cuban hill the newspapers called San Juan, launching him to national prominence. Without San Juan, Van Atta argues, Roosevelt—whom the papers credited for the victory and lauded as a paragon of manhood—would never have reached a position to become president. In Charging Up San Juan Hill, John R. Van Atta recounts that pivotal assault by Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. Describing the battle’s background and its ramifications for Roosevelt, both personal and political, Van Atta explains how Roosevelt’s wartime experience prompted him to champion American involvement in world affairs. Tracking Roosevelt’s rise to the presidency, this book argues that the global expansion of American influence—indeed, the building of an empire outward from a strengthened core of shared values at home—connected to the broader question of cultural sustainability as much as it did to the increasing of trade, political power, and military might. “Van Atta adeptly links Roosevelt’s deep immersion in Western American culture to his investment in American imperialism in a readable cultural and military history . . . a worthy addition to the shelves of Western historians.” —Western Historical QuarterlyShow book
The journalist’s “brutally affecting [and] powerful” memoir of her quest to uncover the life of the man who raped her twenty-one years earlier (Guardian, UK). Joanna Connors was thirty years old and on assignment for the Cleveland Plain Dealer to review a college theater production when she was held at knifepoint and raped by a stranger who had grown up five miles away from her. Once her assailant was caught and sentenced, Joanna never spoke of the trauma again . . . until her daughter was about to go to college. Resolving to tell her children about her rape, Connors began to realize that the man who assaulted her was one of the most formative people in her life. She embarked on a journey to find out who he was, who his friends were, and what his life was like. What she discovers stretches beyond one violent man’s story and back into her own, interweaving a narrative about strength and survival with one about rape culture and violence in America. I Will Find You is a “deeply humane and harrowing” memoir, as well as a brave and timely consideration of race, class, education, and the families that shape who we become (Boston Globe).Show book
“Excellent. . . .The book gives one a clear understanding of the relationship of Guevara's thought to traditional Russian and Marxist philosophy.” —Choice Reviews In this seminal exploration of Che Guevara’s contributions to Marxist thinking, Michael Löwy traces Che's ideas about Marxism both as they related to Latin America and to more general philosophical, political, and economic issues. Now revised and updated, this edition includes a chapter on Guevara's search for a new paradigm of socialism and a substantive essay by Peter McLaren on Che’s continued relevance today. Löwy portrays Guevara as a revolutionary humanist who considered all political questions from an internationalist viewpoint. For him, revolutionary movements in Latin America were part of a world process of emancipation. Löwy considers especially Che's views on the contradiction between socialist planning and the law of value in the Cuban economy and his search for an alternative road to the “actually existing socialism” of the Stalinist and post-Stalinist Soviet bloc. Che’s varied occupations—doctor and economist, revolutionary and banker, agitator and ambassador, industrial organizer and guerrilla fighter—were expressions of a deep commitment to social change. This book eloquently captures his views on humanity, his contributions to the theory of revolutionary warfare, and his ideas about society’s transition to socialism, offering a cohesive, nuanced introduction to the range of Guevara's thought. “An excellent classroom tool for anyone teaching about Latin America or revolution.” ―Science & Society “[This book] provides us with the picture of [Guevara’s] great, flexible, and searching mind.” —Carleton Beals “Michael Löwy’s brief but penetrating book takes Che Guevara not as a romantic adventurer but as a serious revolutionary militant.” ―TelosShow book
Hastings Rashdall (1858–1924) was not only one of the leading churchmen of his time, whose opinion on a range of issues carried weight and influence; he also made substantial and lasting contributions to three fields of knowledge –history, philosophy, and theology. Yet he is not much remembered in today’s Church, although the concerns he addressed and the solutions he proposed still have relevance to the challenges of articulating an intellectually convincing and spiritually satisfying Christian faith in the modern world. This book, written to mark the centenary of Rashdall’s death, provides a brief and clear introduction to his thought, set in the historical context of his life and time. The opening chapters provide a biographical framework, drawing extensively on archival research. They are followed by separate accounts of his historical, philosophical, and theological work, concentrating on his many publications. Theory and practice come together in an exploration of Rashdall’s engagement with public life, and the book concludes with an assessment of what he might have to offer to today’s Church.Show book
The acclaimed author “excavates his own tormented life—and its relation to the land he loves—in a series of powerful, imagistic autobiographical essays” (Kirkus Reviews). “Romping drunkenly into Mexico, protesting the Vietnamese war at the University of Wisconsin, marching on the capitol in Washington, hiking into the Pinacate, returning to the family farm in Germantown, Iowa. These and other scenes flash before the reader in Charles Bowden’s Mezcal, the final piece of his Southwest trilogy . . . Although the book is ostensibly autobiographical, Bowden’s overriding concern is with trying to make sense of the Sunbelt Phenomena.” —Dick Kirkpatrick, Western American Literature “In Mezcal . . . Bowden drops the journalistic veil, exploring the ecology of his interior landscape at least as thoroughly as the changing scenery that surrounds him . . . Others—Aldo Leopold, Edward Abbey—have already staked inviolate claims on the Southwestern deserts. But Bowden owns the complex terrain where, like a mezcal-inspired mirage, the Sonoran sun-belt overlaps the gray convolutions of the American mind.” —Los Angeles Times “Mezcal is also a lyrical meditation upon the ultimate strength of the land, specifically the desert Southwest, and how that land prevails and endures despite every effort of modern industry and development to rape and savage it in the name of progress. Mezcal lingers in the mind as only the very best books manage to do.” —Harry Crews, author of A Feast of SnakesShow book
Teachers are the people Martin Fletcher met throughout his work as a news correspondent, often on the worst day of their lives. He watched as they picked up the pieces following personal tragedy and discovered the invaluable lesson of carrying on, no matter the circumstances. Through intimate profiles, Martin Fletcher's Teachers details the struggles of everyday people in extraordinary circumstances—war, revolution, natural disasters and yes, life. Fletcher's writing is uplifting as he examines the truth of resilience despite hardship. These are the people he sought out in his international reporting, detailing their woes while celebrating their will to survive and recover. Teachers offers a unique take on reporting, as it features a traveling photo exhibit that Fletcher created to accompany the book. Each chapter is paired with an extraordinary digital montage to illustrate the stories taken directly from his reporting from NBC news programs. At a time when news coverage is often dismissed as fake or biased, Teachers is a welcome reminder of the integrity, devotion and empathy that goes into true reporting of the world. As Tom Brokaw wrote, "Fletcher has a calling."Show book
