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  The Melodramatic Thread -...

  James R. Lehning

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  “This ambitious undertaking is concerned with the melodramatic form in theatre and film and its impact on French political culture.” —H-France Review 
   
  In France, both political culture and theatrical performances have drawn upon melodrama. This “melodramatic thread” helped weave the country’s political life as it moved from monarchy to democracy. By examining the relationship between public ceremonies and theatrical performance, James R. Lehning sheds light on democratization in modern France. He explores the extent to which the dramatic forms were present in the public performance of political power. By concentrating on the Republic and the Revolution and on theatrical performance, Lehning affirms the importance of examining the performative aspects of French political culture for understanding the political differences that have marked France in the years since 1789. 
   
  “In this thoroughly researched and persuasive book, Lehning provides a fascinating reading of public performances in modern France . . . This is an important contribution to the study of French culture and the democratization process . . . Essential.” —Choice 
   
  “Lehning’s application of the themes of melodrama to French political culture offers new insights into French history. His style is lively, clear, and highly readable.” —Venita Datta, Wellesley College 
   
  “The analyses in this book make a real contribution to debates about the ways in which art, particularly popular art, and politics interact; how politics itself is theatrical in the French case; and the role of ritual in politics and the function of politics as ritual and ceremony.” —John Gaffney, Aston University

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  From #Indyref to Eternity - The...

  Douglas Lindsay

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  The repercussions of Scotland's indyref will echo down the years, for evermore, for proud Scotia's sons and daughters, from here to eternity.
  DR IAN SHACKLETON, 19 SEPTEMBER 2014
  
  From David Cameron striding across the border, wearing nothing but a kilt and brandishing a claymore soaked in the blood of his enemies, to Alex Salmond's naked mud wrestling bout with Alistair Darling, the campaign to win Scotland's independence from the Evil Empire in Westminster had everything.
  
  Now, with in-depth analysis from renowned political expert, Dr Ian Shackleton, and relying on actual quotes from friends of sources close to aides to senior Holyrood insiders,
  From #Indyref To Eternity tells the true story of the momentous political event, that historians will call 'that vote about the thing that happened in Scotland in 2014.'

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  We Are Afghan Women - Voices of...

  George W. Bush Institute

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  Afghanistan has been described as "the worst nation in the world to be a woman." More than fifty percent of girls who are forced into marriage are sixteen or younger. Too many women live in fear, and in many areas education and employment for women are still condemned. The women featured in We Are Afghan Women are fighting to change all that. From rug weavers to domestic violence counselors to business owners, educators, and activists, these courageous women are charting a new path for themselves, their families, their communities, and their nation. 
   
   
   
  Meet Dr. Sakena Yacoobi, who ran underground schools for girls until the Taliban fell, and today has established educational centers across Afghanistan to teach women and girls basic literacy. Or Freshta Hazeq, who as a female business owner has faced death threats, sabotage, and even kidnapping threats against her children. Here too you will find the story of Naheed Farid, the youngest female member of Afghanistan's parliament. 
   
   
   
  With an introduction by former first lady Laura Bush, We Are Afghan Women chronicles the lives of the determined women who are defying the odds to lead Afghanistan to a better future.

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  Before the First Shots Are Fired...

  Tony Koltz, Tony Zinni

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  For the better part of the last half century, the United States has been the world's police, claiming to defend ideologies, allies, and our national security through brute force. But is military action always the most appropriate response? Drawing on his vast experience, retired four-star general Tony Zinni argues that we have a lot of work to do to make the process of going to war—or not—more clear-eyed and ultimately successful. He examines the relationship between the executive and the military; the challenges of working with the UN, coalition forces, and NATO; and the difficult choices that need to be made to create tomorrow's military. Among his provocative points: 
  Virtually every recent American military operation follows a disconnected series of actions that lead to outcomes we never foresaw or intended. 
  We need to assign accountability for the political decisions that can make or break a mission. 
  Words and ideas are as important to victory in today's conflicts as bullets. 
  From the Oval Office to the battlefield, Before the First Shots Are Fired is a hard-hitting analysis of the history of America's use of military action and a spirited call for change.

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  Breakthrough Community Change -...

  Paul Born, John McKnight

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  Discover a powerful methodology for bringing communities together to uncover hidden assets and transform deep-rooted challenges. 
   
  Veteran community organizer Paul Born's work has contributed to lowering cancer rates in Maine, improving mental health for young people in Florida, and reducing poverty rates in Canada by 20 percent. In this much-needed new book, he shares stories of how he was able to catalyze local communities and guide them to make significant progress on seemingly intractable community problems.  
   
  Born has found that the secret to success is to organize and unite around a common agenda. This is not a list of topics, like a meeting agenda, nor a strategic plan. He offers a process for bringing leaders from businesses, human service organizations, and governments together with people who have a lived experience of a specific community problem. A common agenda is a statement of shared aspirations, a map of the assets in the community, and a road map for how to work together to make those aspirations a reality.  
   
  Part I of this book describes how to identify your community's readiness for change; form leadership, action, and strategy teams; create a common agenda; and establish plans for community engagement. Part II presents the approaches and skill sets needed to do the work described in part I. 
   
  Remarkably, enormous systemic problems such as climate change, poverty, disease, racism, housing, and many more issues can be best addressed at the local level. Communities can develop solutions tailored to their unique circumstances and can collaborate at a magnitude that can result in a truly transformative impact. This book shows how to make change happen.

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  The Crisis of Zionism

  Peter Beinart

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  A dramatic shift is taking place in Israel and America. In Israel, the deepening occupation of the West Bank is putting Israeli democracy at risk. In the United States, the refusal of major Jewish organizations to defend democracy in the Jewish state is alienating many young liberal Jews from Zionism itself. In the next generation, the liberal Zionist dream—the dream of a state that safeguards the Jewish people and cherishes democratic ideals—may die.In The Crisis of Zionism, Peter Beinart lays out in chilling detail the looming danger to Israeli democracy and the American Jewish establishment's refusal to confront it. And he offers a fascinating, groundbreaking portrait of the two leaders at the center of the crisis: Barack Obama, America's first "Jewish president," a man steeped in the liberalism he learned from his many Jewish friends and mentors in Chicago; and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister who considers liberalism the Jewish people's special curse. These two men embody fundamentally different visions not just of American and Israeli national interests but of the mission of the Jewish people itself.Beinart concludes with provocative proposals for how the relationship between American Jews and Israel must change, and with an eloquent and moving appeal for American Jews to defend the dream of a democratic Jewish state before it is too late.

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