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This Little Britain How One Small Cou...
Brief Summary
Celebratory, witty and incredibly insightful, Harry Bingham explores the eccentricities and customs of the British nation in a bid to answer a question which has everyone debating – Who are we?
For the British, ‘Who are we?’ is an oddly difficult question. Although our national self-assessment usually notes a number of good points (we’re inventive, tolerant and at least we’re not French), it lists a torrent of bad ones too. Our society is fragmented and degenerate. Our kids are thugs, our workers ill-educated, and our public services abysmal. We drink too much. Our house prices are crazy, our politicians sleazy, our roads jammed, our football team rubbish. When ‘The Times’ invited readers to suggest new designs for the backs of British coins, one reader wrote in saying, ‘How about a couple of yobs dancing on a car bonnet or a trio of legless ladettes in the gutter?’
Is there really nothing to be proud of? British inventors have been responsible for myriad marvels we now take for granted, from the steam engine to the World Wide Web. British medical and public health innovations – vaccination, integrated mains sewerage, antiseptic surgery – have saved far more lives than all other medical innovations put together. And why stop there? The British Empire covered a quarter of the earth’s surface but used an army smaller than that of Switzerland to exert its rule.
The world speaks our language. Our scientists have won vast numbers of Nobel Prizes. The evolution of ‘habeas corpus’, trial by jury and the abolition of torture aren’t purely British in inspiration, but owe more to us than to anyone else. Our parliamentary democracy has been hugely influential in spreading ideals of liberty and representative government round the world.
If the modern world is richer, freer, more peaceful, more democratic and healthier than it was, then Britain has played a leading role in that transformation. This book is about just that. Taking a particular interest in the many things that we did first, or best, or most, or were the only ones ever to do, this book focuses especially on those of our oddities that spread across the world – everything from football to the rule of law.
ISBN:9780007258482
Author:Harry Bingham
Until I Find You by John Irving
Brief Summary
Every major character in Until I Find You has been marked for life – not only William Burns, a church organist who is addicted to being tattooed, but also William's song, Jack, an actor who is shaped as a child by his relationships with older women.
And Jack's mother, Alice – a Toronto tattoo artist – has been permanently damaged by William's rejection of her. This is a novel about the loss of innocence, on many levels.
ISBN:9780345479723
Author:John Irving
Rise of the Robots Technology and the...
Brief Summary
What are the jobs of the future? How many will there be? And who will have them? We might imagine—and hope—that today's industrial revolution will unfold like the last: even as some jobs are eliminated, more will be created to deal with the new innovations of a new era. In Rise of the Robots, Silicon Valley entrepreneur Martin Ford argues that this is absolutely not the case.
As technology continues to accelerate and machines begin taking care of themselves, fewer people will be necessary. Artificial intelligence is already well on its way to making "good jobs” obsolete: many paralegals, journalists, office workers, and even computer programmers are poised to be replaced by robots and smart software.
As progress continues, blue and white collar jobs alike will evaporate, squeezing working- and middle-class families ever further. At the same time, households are under assault from exploding costs, especially from the two major industries—education and health care—that, so far, have not been transformed by information technology. The result could well be massive unemployment and inequality as well as the implosion of the consumer economy itself.
In Rise of the Robots, Ford details what machine intelligence and robotics can accomplish, and implores employers, scholars, and policy makers alike to face the implications. The past solutions to technological disruption, especially more training and education, aren't going to work, and we must decide, now, whether the future will see broad-based prosperity or catastrophic levels of inequality and economic insecurity.
Rise of the Robots is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand what accelerating technology means for their own economic prospects—not to mention those of their children—as well as for society as a whole.
ISBN:9780465059997
Author:Martin Ford
Why Dont Penguins Feet Freeze And 114...
Brief Summary
Why Don't Penguins' Feet Freeze? is the latest compilation of readers' answers to the questions in the 'Last Word' column of New Scientist, the world's best-selling science weekly. Following the phenomenal success of Does Anything Eat Wasps? - the Christmas 2005 surprise bestseller - this new collection includes recent answers never before published in book form, and also old favorites from the column's early days.
Yet again, many seemingly simple questions turn out to have complex answers. And some that seem difficult have a very simple explanation.
New Scientist's 'Last Word' is regularly voted the magazine's most popular section as it celebrates all questions - the trivial, idiosyncratic, baffling and strange. This new selection of the best is popular science at its most entertaining and enlightening.
ISBN:9781861978769
Author:Mick O'Hare
The Wonder by Emma Donoghue
Brief Summary
The Irish Midlands, 1859. An English nurse, Lib Wright, is summoned to a tiny village to observe what some are claiming as a medical anomaly or a miracle - a girl said to have survived without food for months.
Tourists have flocked to the cabin of eleven-year-old Anna O'Donnell, and a journalist has come down to cover the sensation.
The Wonder is a tale of two strangers who transform each other's lives, a psychological thriller, and a story of love pitted against evil.
ISBN:9780316393874
Author:Emma Donoghue
A Woman in Charge
Brief Summary
Drawing from hundreds of interviews with colleagues, friends and with unique access to campaign records, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Carl Bernstein offers a complex and nuanced portrait of one of the most controversial figures of our time: Hillary Clinton. He has given us a book that enables us, at last, to address the questions Americans are insistently—even obsessively—asking: What is her character? What is her political philosophy? Who is she? What can we expect from her?
ISBN:9780375407666
Author:Carl Bernstein
The Wisdom of Whores Bureaucrats Brot...
Brief Summary
When people ask Elizabeth Pisani what she does for a living, she says, "Sex and drugs." As an epidemiologist researching AIDS, she's been involved with international efforts to halt the disease for fourteen years.
With swashbuckling wit and fierce honesty, she dishes on herself and her colleagues as they try to prod reluctant governments to fund HIV prevention for the people who need it most—drug injectors, gay men, sex workers, and johns.
Pisani chats with flamboyant Indonesian transsexuals about their boob jobs and watches Chinese streetwalkers turn away clients because their SUVs aren't nice enough. With verve and clarity, she shows the general reader how her profession really works; how easy it is to draw wrong conclusions from "objective" data; and, shockingly, how much money is spent so very badly. "Exhibit A": the 45 billion taxpayer dollars the Bush administration is committing to international AIDS programs.
ISBN:9780393066623
Author:Elizabeth Pisani
The World According to Garp
Brief Summary
This is the life and times of T. S. Garp, the bastard son of Jenny Fields--a feminist leader ahead of her times. This is the life and death of a famous mother and her almost-famous son; theirs is a world of sexual extremes--even of sexual assassinations. It is a novel rich with "lunacy and sorrow"; yet the dark, violent events of the story do not undermine a comedy both ribald and robust.
In more than thirty languages, in more than forty countries--with more than ten million copies in print--this novel provides almost cheerful, even hilarious evidence of its famous last line: "In the world according to Garp, we are all terminal cases."
The World According to Garp is a comic and compassionate coming-of-age novel that established John Irving as one of the most imaginative writers of his generation. A worldwide bestseller since its publication in 1978, Irving's classic is filled with stories inside stories about the life and times of T. S. Garp, novelist and bastard son of Jenny Fields--a feminist leader ahead of her time. Beyond that, The World According to Garp virtually defies synopsis.
ISBN:9780345915597
Author:John Irving
The Yellow House
Brief Summary
The Yellow House: Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Nine Turbulent Weeks in Provence
From October to December of 1888, Paul Gauguin shared a yellow house in the south of France with Vincent van Gogh. They were the odd couple of the art world -- one calm, the other volatile -- and the denouement of their living arrangement was explosive. Making use of new evidence and Van Gogh’s voluminous correspondence, Martin Gayford describes not only how these two hallowed artists painted and exchanged ideas, but also the texture of their everyday lives.
Gayford also makes a persuasive analysis of Van Gogh’s mental illness -- the probable bipolar affliction that led him to commit suicide at the age of thirty-seven. The Yellow House is a singular biographical work, as dramatic and vibrant as the work of these brilliant artists.
ISBN:9780618990580
Author:Martin Gayford
The Best Advice I Ever Got Lessons fr...
Brief Summary
What was the tipping point for Malcolm Gladwell? What unscripted event made Meryl Streep who she is? In this inspiration-packed book, Katie Couric reports from the front lines of the worlds of politics, entertainment, sports, philanthropy, the arts, and business—distilling the ingenious, hard-won insights of leaders and visionaries, who tell us all how to take chances, follow our passions, cope with criticism, and, perhaps most important, commit to something greater than ourselves.
Among the many voices to be heard here are financial guru Suze Orman on the benefits of doing what’s right, not what’s easy; director Steven Spielberg on listening rather than being listened to; quarterback Drew Brees on how his (literal) big break changed his life; and novelist Curtis Sittenfeld on the secrets of a great long-term relationship (she suggests marrying someone less neurotic than you); not to mention:
• Michael Bloomberg: "Eighty percent of success is showing up . . . early.”
• Eric Stonestreet: "Remember that the old lady who’s taking forever in line is someone’s grandma.”
• Joyce Carol Oates: "Read widely—what you want to read, and not what someone suggests that you should read.”
• Jimmy Kimmel: "When in doubt, order the hamburger.”
• Apolo Ohno: "It’s not about the forty seconds; it’s about the four years, the time it took to get there.”
• Madeleine K. Albright: "Never play hide-and-seek with the truth.”
Along the way, Couric reflects on the good advice—and the missteps—that have guided her from her early days as a desk assistant at ABC to her groundbreaking role as the first female anchor of the CBS Evening News. She reveals how the words of Thomas Jefferson helped her deal with her husband’s tragic death from cancer, and what encouraged her to leave the security of NBC’s Today show for a new adventure at CBS.
Delightful, empowering, and moving, The Best Advice I Ever Got is the perfect book for anyone who is thinking about the future, contemplating taking a risk, or daring to make a leap into the great unknown.
ISBN:9780812982589
Author:Katie Couric
Whats Mine Is Yours The Rise of Colla...
Brief Summary
In the 20th century humanity consumed products faster than ever, but this way of living is no longer sustainable. This new and important book shows how technological advances are driving forms of `collaborative consumption' which will change forever the ways in which we interact both with businesses and with each other. The average lawn mower is used for four hours a year. The average power drill is used for only twenty minutes in its entire lifespan.
The average car is unused for 22 hours a day, and even when it is being used there are normally three empty seats. Surely there must be a way to get the benefit out of things like mowers, drills and even cars, without having to carry the huge up-front costs of ownership? There is indeed. Collaborative consumption is not just a buzzword, it is a new win-win way of life.
This insightful and thought-provoking new book by Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers is an important and fast-moving survey of the dramatic changes we are seeing in the way we consume products. Many of us are familiar with freecycle, eBay, couch surfing and Zipcar. But these are just the beginning of a new phenomenon.
Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers have interviewed business leaders and opinion formers around the world to draw together the many strands of Collaborative Consumption into a coherent and challenging argument to show that the way we did business and consumerism in the 20th century is not the way we will do it in the 21st century.
ISBN:9780007395910
Author:Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers
Portfolios of the Poor How the Worlds...
Brief Summary
Nearly forty percent of humanity lives on an average of two dollars a day or less. If you've never had to survive on an income so small, it is hard to imagine. How would you put food on the table, afford a home, and educate your children? How would you handle emergencies and old age? Every day, more than a billion people around the world must answer these questions. Portfolios of the Poor is the first book to systematically explain how the poor find solutions to their everyday financial problems.
The authors conducted year-long interviews with impoverished villagers and slum dwellers in Bangladesh, India, and South Africa--records that track penny by penny how specific households manage their money. The stories of these families are often surprising and inspiring. Most poor households do not live hand to mouth, spending what they earn in a desperate bid to keep afloat. Instead, they employ financial tools, many linked to informal networks and family ties.
They push money into savings for reserves, squeeze money out of creditors whenever possible, run sophisticated savings clubs, and use micro financing wherever available. Their experiences reveal new methods to fight poverty and ways to envision the next generation of banks for the "bottom billion."
Indispensable for those in development studies, economics, and microfinance, Portfolios of the Poor will appeal to anyone interested in knowing more about poverty and what can be done about it.
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ISBN:9780691141480
Author:Daryl Collins, Jonathan Morduch, Stuart Rutherford and Orlanda Ruthven
Battling Injustice 16 Women Nobel Pea...
Brief Summary
'Supriya Vani's book will educate people about gender equality and inspire women to rise up to their potential. It will inspire parents not to clip the wings of their daughters. All our girls are meant for stars, and they need equality and freedom to flourish.' -Nobel Peace laureate Malala Yousafzai and her father Ziauddin Yousafzai Malala Yousafzai, Tawakkol Karman, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee, Shirin Ebadi - these women and others like them shaped the history of their peoples through their fight against political persecution, social deprivation and gender discrimination.
The Nobel Peace Prize memorializes their achievements and courage and ability to inspire hope in others. Through the life portraits of sixteen women Nobel Peace laureates, peace activist and journalist Supriya Vani argues that the fate of the world is inextricably tied to the emancipation of women, and that the cause of world peace urgently requires women leaders. These stories, the result of six years of painstaking research and many interviews, show how we have much to learn from the laureates, from the events that shaped their work to their inner journey of spirit.
Women in the workplace, at home, as mothers and nurturers, as leaders, will all find something to take away from this collection. Battling Injustice is an authentic record of women's cultural history, told through the lives of some of the most remarkable women since modernity. 'The lives of the women Nobel Peace laureates detailed in this book by Supriya Vani are clear evidence of my belief that women are naturally more sensitive to others' needs and well-being.
They have greater potential for expressing love and affection. Therefore, when, as now, compassionate leadership is required, women should take on a greater role in making this world a better place.' -His Holiness the Dalai Lama 'Supriya Vani's stories of Nobel Peace laureates amount to much more than a sincere tribute to some of the world's most fearless women. By bringing us their voices, their vulnerabilities, their wisdom, she inspires us all to make a difference in the world by tapping into our better selves.' -Arianna Huffington, co-founder of The Huffington Post 'A monumental effort by a vivacious young woman on the human potential for goodness.' -Sharon Stone, American actress and human rights activist 'Since 1999, Nobel Peace Prize laureates have been gathering to reaffirm their commitment to peaceful means of resolving the world's problems.
I admire the contribution of women laureates, their energy and warmth. As shown in this book by Supriya Vani, they give their hearts to our common efforts and to the younger generations that will continue their great work.' -Mikhail Gorbachev, former president of the Soviet Union 'Supriya Vani's book is for everyone across the globe. I am sure it will spur many souls to tread the path of humanitarian service, to choose a life of peace and love.' -Nobel Peace laureate Tawakkol Karman 'This book will inspire and motivate young people to work for peace.' -Cherie Blair, British barrister and spouse of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair 'I recommend this book to the youth.
It can inspire them to reach their goals.' -Nobel Peace laureate Shirin Ebadi 'Supriya Vani rightly highlights the fact that the world needs more women leaders, who are spiritually, mentally and emotionally equipped to bring peace to our planet.' -Nobel Peace laureate Rigoberta Menchu Tum 'I hope those who read this book will feel inspired to work for disarmament and peace.' -Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Maguire 'In February of 2017, at the XVI World Summit of Nobel Peace laureates held in Bogota, I had the happy opportunity to meet with six of my fellow female laureates. They represent the values of courage, determination, generosity and solidarity shared by millions of women around the planet, who strive each day to
ISBN:9789351778332
Author:Supriya Vani
Not That Bad Dispatches from Rape Cul...
Brief Summary
In this valuable and revealing anthology, cultural critic and bestselling author Roxane Gay collects original and previously published pieces that address what it means to live in a world where women have to measure the harassment, violence, and aggression they face, and where they are "routinely second-guessed, blown off, discredited, denigrated, besmirched, belittled, patronized, mocked, shamed, gaslit, insulted, bullied” for speaking out.
Contributions include essays from established and up-and-coming writers, performers, and critics, including actors Ally Sheedy and Gabrielle Union and writers Amy Jo Burns, Lyz Lenz, Claire Schwartz, and Bob Shacochis.
Covering a wide range of topics and experiences, from an exploration of the rape epidemic embedded in the refugee crisis to first-person accounts of child molestation, this collection is often deeply personal and is always unflinchingly honest. Like Rebecca Solnit’s Men Explain Things to Me, Not That Bad will resonate with every reader, saying "something in totality that we cannot say alone.”
Searing and heartbreakingly candid, this provocative collection both reflects the world we live in and offers a call to arms insisting that "not that bad” must no longer be good enough.
ISBN:9780062413505
Author:Roxane Gay
Women and the Informal Economy in Urb...
Brief Summary
Women and the Informal Economy in Urban Africa: From the Margins to the Centre
In this highly original work, Mary Njeri Kinyanjui explores the trajectory of women's movement from the margins of urbanization into the centers of business activities in Nairobi, Kenya and its accompanying implications for urban planning.
While women in much of Africa have struggled to gain urban citizenship, and continue to be weighed down by poor education, low incomes and confinement to domestic responsibilities, a new form of urban dynamism partly informed by the informal economy is now enabling them to manage poverty, create jobs and link women to the circuits of capital and labour.
Relying on social ties, reciprocity, sharing and collaboration, women's informal 'solidarity entrepreneurialism' is taking them away from the margins of business activity and catapulting them into the centre.
Bringing together key issues of gender, economic informality and urban planning in Africa, Kinyanjui demonstrates that women have become a critical factor in the making of a postcolonial city.
ISBN:9781780326306
Author:Mary Njeri Kinyanjui
This Will Be My Undoing Living at the...
Brief Summary
This Will Be My Undoing: Living at the Intersection of Black, Female, and Feminist in (White) America
From one of the fiercest critics writing today, Morgan Jerkins’ highly-anticipated collection of linked essays interweaves her incisive commentary on pop culture, feminism, black history, misogyny, and racism with her own experiences to confront the very real challenges of being a black woman today—perfect for fans of Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist, Rebecca Solnit’s Men Explain Things to Me, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s We Should All Be Feminists.
Morgan Jerkins is only in her twenties, but she has already established herself as an insightful, brutally honest writer who isn’t afraid of tackling tough, controversial subjects. In This Will Be My Undoing, she takes on perhaps one of the most provocative contemporary topics: What does it mean to "be”—to live as, to exist as—a black woman today? This is a book about black women, but its necessary reading for all Americans.
Doubly disenfranchised by race and gender, often deprived of a place within the mostly white mainstream feminist movement, black women are objectified, silenced, and marginalized with devastating consequences, in ways both obvious and subtle that are rarely acknowledged in our country’s larger discussion about inequality.
In This Will Be My Undoing, Jerkins becomes both narrator and subject to expose the social, cultural, and historical story of black female oppression that influences the black community as well as the white, male-dominated world at large
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The Republic of Imagination America i...
Brief Summary
Ten years ago, Azar Nafisi electrified readers with her million-copy bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran, which told the story of how, against the backdrop of morality squads and executions, she taught The Great Gatsby and other classics to her eager students in Iran. In this exhilarating follow-up, Nafisi has written the book her fans have been waiting for: an impassioned, beguiling and utterly original tribute to the vital importance of fiction in a democratic society. What Reading Lolita in Tehran was for Iran, The Republic of Imagination is for America.
Taking her cue from a challenge thrown to her in Seattle, where a skeptical reader told her that Americans don’t care about books the way they did back in Iran, she challenges those who say fiction has nothing to teach us.
Blending memoir and polemic with close readings of her favorite American novels—from Huckleberry Finn to The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter—she invites us to join her as citizens of her "Republic of Imagination," a country where the villains are conformity and orthodoxy, and the only passport to entry is a free mind and a willingness to dream.
ISBN:9780670026067
Author:Azar Nafisi
Hit Makers How Things Become Popular
Brief Summary
What makes a hit a hit? In Hit Makers, Atlantic Senior Editor Derek Thompson puts pop culture under the lens of science to answer the question that every business, every producer, every person looking to promote themselves and their work has asked.
Drawing on ancient history and modern headlines - from vampire lore and Brahms's Lullaby to Instagram - Thompson explores the economics and psychology of why certain things become extraordinarily popular. With incisive analysis and captivating storytelling, he reveals that, though blockbuster films, Internet memes and number-one songs seem to have come out of nowhere, hits actually have a story and operate by certain rules. People gravitate towards familiar surprises: products that are bold and innovative, yet instantly comprehensible.
Whether he is uncovering the secrets of JFK and Barack Obama's speechwriters or analyzing the unexpected reasons for the success of Fifty Shades of Grey, Thompson goes beyond the cultural phenomena that make the news by revealing the desires that make us all human. While technology might change, he shows, our innate preferences do not, and throughout history hits have held up a mirror to ourselves.
From the dawn of Impressionist art to the future of Snapchat, from small-scale Etsy entrepreneurs to the origin of Star Wars, Derek Thompson tells the fascinating story of how culture happens - and where genius lives.
ISBN:9781101980323
Author:Derek Thompson
A Wrinkle in Time
Brief Summary
It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.
"Wild nights are my glory," the unearthly stranger told them. "I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me be on my way. Speaking of way, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract".
Meg's father had been experimenting with this fifth dimension of time travel when he mysteriously disappeared. Now the time has come for Meg, her friend Calvin, and Charles Wallace to rescue him. But can they outwit the forces of evil they will encounter on their heart-stopping journey through space?
ISBN:9781250153272
Author:Madeleine L'Engle
Relational Intelligence How Leaders C...
Brief Summary
An insightful and practical guide for developing relational leadership skills and engaging new paradigms of influence
Relational Intelligence reveals how leaders can become smarter in the way they conduct their relationships, and as a result, catalyze their impact. This book unwraps the hidden power of a relational genius and the practical pursuits that contribute to increasing one's relational quotient (RQ). Steve Saccone offers thought-provoking and compelling pathways into understanding the synergistic effect of relational intelligence, mission, and influence. He demonstrates how critical the art of relational intelligence is for leaders who desire to better serve those they lead, as well as the organizations and communities they love.
• Offers practical wisdom, engaging anecdotes, and compelling stories that show leaders how to develop relational intelligence
• Delineates the essential skills that make leaders relationally intelligent
• Unwraps six roles of a relational genius and how these transform our approaches to influence
• Includes Foreword by Erwin Raphael McManus
• A new book in the popular Leadership Network Series
The author reveals how to increase one's awareness of the nuances in relational dynamics and suggests ways to help navigate relationships more intelligently and productively.
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ISBN:9780470438695
Author:Steve Saccone