An enormously entertaining account of contemporary France fromthe former Paris bureau chief of The New York Times. Bernsteincombines personal memoir, informed observation, and news-houndcuriosity to offer a stirring and unforgettable panaorama ofFrance--at times exalted, troubling, and occasionally absurd.

Menzies makes the fascinating argument that the Chinese discovered the Americas a full 70 years before Columbus. Not only did the Chinese discover America first, but they also, according to the author, established a number of subsequently lost colonies in the Caribbean. Furthermore, he asserts that the Chinese circumnavigated the globe, desalinated water, and perfected the art of cartography. In fact, he believes that most of the renowned European explorers actually sailed with maps charted by the Chinese. Though most historical records were destroyed during centuries of turmoil in the Far East, he manages to cobble together some feasible evidence supporting his controversial conclusions. Sure to cause a stir among historians, this questionable tale of adventure on the high seas will be hotly debated in academic circles. Margaret Flanagan

"So much nonsense has been written on suburban life and mores that it comes as a considerable shock to read a book by someone who seems to have his own ideas on the subject and who pursues them relentlessly to the bitter end," said LJ's reviewer (LJ 2/1/61) of this novel of unhappy life in the burbs. It is reminiscent of the popular film American Beauty in its depiction of white-collar life as fraught with discontent. Others have picked up on this theme since, but Yates remains a solid read.

Edward III is a major new addition to the Shakespearean canon.Melchiori claims that Shakespeare is the author of a significantpart of the play, the extent of which is discussed in detail. Theintroduction explores the play's historical background and itsrelationship to the early cycle of history plays. The commentaryexamines in depth the play's linguistic and poetic features, whilean extensive appendix on the use of sources explains the stages ofits composition.

In the greatest work of history in the English language,Edward Gibbon compresses thirteen turbulent centuries into agripping epic narrative. It is history in the grandeighteenth-century manner, a well-researched drama charged withinsight, irony, and incisive character analysis. In elegant prose,Gibbon presents both the broad pattern of events and thesignificant revealing detail. He delves into religion, politics,sexuality, and social mores with equal authority and aplomb. Whilesubsequent research revealed minor factual errors about the earlyEmpire, Gibbon's bold vision, witty de*ions of a vast cast ofcharacters, and readiness to display his own beliefs and prejudicesresult in an astonishing work of history and literature, at oncepowerfully intelligent and enormously entertaining. Based on David Womersley's definitive three-volume PenguinClassics edition of The Decline and Fall of the RomanEmpire , this abridgement contains complete chapters from allthree volumes, linked by extended bridging pass

Shortly before noon on October 28, 1728, General Yue Zhongqi,the most powerful military and civilian official in northwestChina, was en route to his headquarters. Suddenly, out of thecrowd, a stranger ran toward Yue and passed him an envelope-anenvelope containing details of a treasonous plot to overthrow theManchu government. This thrilling story of a conspiracy against the Qing dynasty in1728 is a captivating tale of intrigue and a fascinatingexploration of what it means to rule and be ruled. Once again,Jonathan Spence has created a vivid portrait of the rich culturethat surrounds a most dramatic moment in Chinese history. "An infectiously readable narrative . . . on a par withbestselling works of historical reconstruction such as Dava Sobel'sLongitude . . . Eighteenth-century China springs to life." (TheDallas Morning News) "A slice of history told in the lively manner of a novel." (IanBuruma, The New York Times Book Review) "A work of history that pulses with emotion, with v

The 1914-18 conflict was called 'the war to end all wars'. World War I: A Photographic History charts the course of this epic struggle, from the assassin's bullet in Sarajevo which sparked the conflict to the flawed Treaty of Versailles which ended it. Superbly illustrated with photographs from the Daily Mail archives, many reproduced for the first time, these pages capture a defining moment in world history.

One of the most gifted and influential American journalists ofthe 20th century, A. J. Liebling spent five years reporting thedramatic events and myriad individual stories of World War II. As acorrespondent for The New Yorker , Liebling wrote with apassionate commitment to Allied victory, an unfailing attention totelling details, and an appreciation for the literary challengespresented by the “discursive, centrifugal, both repetitive anddisparate” nature of war. This volume brings together three booksalong with 26 uncollected New Yorker pieces and two excerptsfrom The Republic of Silence (1947), Liebling’s collectionof writing from the French Resistance. The Road Back to Paris (1944) narrates Liebling’sexperiences from September 1939 to March 1943, including his shockat the fall of France and dismay at isolationist indifference inthe United States; it contains classic accounts of a winter voyageon a Norwegian tanker during the Battle of the Atlantic, visits tofront-line airfields in

Pausanias's (c. 143-176) account of every Greek city andsanctuary includes historical introductions and a record of localcustoms and beliefs. This volume describes southern Greece,including Olympia, Sparta, Arcadia, and Bassae

As a young boy he re-enacted historic battles with toysoldiers, as a soldier he saw action on three continents, and asthe Prime Minister only a direct edict from King George VI couldkeep him from joining the troops on D-Day. Churchill's War Lab reveals how Churchill's passion for militaryhistory, his unique leadership style, and his patronization ofradical new ideas would lead to new technology and new tactics thatwould save lives and enable an Allied victory. No war generatedmore incredible theories, more technical advances, more scientificleaps, or more pioneering work that lay the foundation for thepost-war computer revolution. And it was Churchill's doggeddetermination and enthusiasm for revolutionary ideas that fuelledthis extraordinary outpouring of British genius. From the coauthorof Cold War comes an exciting new take on Churchill's warleadership and the story of a complex, powerful and inventive warleader.

Includes the complete texts of Common Sense; Rights ofMan, Part the Second; The Age of Reason (part one); FourLetters on Interesting Subjects , published anonymously and justdiscovered to be Paine’s work; and Letter to the AbbéRaynal, Paine’s first examination of world events; as well asselections from The American Crises In 1776, America was a hotbed of enlightenment and revolution.Thomas Paine not only spurred his fellow Americans to action butsoon came to symbolize the spirit of the Revolution. His elegantlypersuasive pieces spoke to the hearts and minds of those fightingfor freedom. He was later outlawed in Britain, jailed in France,and finally labeled an atheist upon his return to America.

Celebrated biographer Ron Chernow provides a richly nuancedportrait of the father of our nation. With a breadth and depthmatched by no other onevolume life of George Washington, thiscrisply paced narrative carries the reader through his adventurousearly years, his heroic exploits with the Continental Army, hispresiding over the Continental Convention, and his magnificentperformance as America's first president. In this groundbreakingwork, based on massive research, Chernow shatters forever thestereotype of a stolid, unemotional figure and brings to vivid lifea dashing, passionate man of fiery opinions and many moods.

In 1986, Charles Henderson first published Marine Sniper-theincredible story of Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock, whose 93confirmed kills in Vietnam have never been matched by any sniperbefore or since. Now, the incredible story of a remarkable Marine continues-withharrowing, never-before-published accounts of courage andperseverance. These are the powerful stories of a man who rose togreatness not for personal gain or glory, but for duty and honor. Arare inside look at the U.S. Marine's most challenging missions-andthe one man who made military history.

Leading a Learning Revolution tells the compelling story of a learning revolution that took place within the U.S. Department of Defense. Written by practitioners who actually walked the walk, this account of the creation of Defense Acquisition University (DAU) provides a clear blueprint that others can follow. It shares, in detail, the best practices they developed, so that the thousands of training organizations worldwide striving to create premier corporate universities can catapult forward. Offering an insider s look at the process, the authors clearly explain how they transformed an outdated training provider into a world-class university. Step-by-step the book outlines the enduring principles that were pivotal to Defense Acquisition University s success and describes the environment, early victories, current methods, and subsequent results. The authors discuss how to establish a mission and vision, develop a performance-based strategic planning process, and tackle change initiative. They also expl

The remarkable life of Alexander the Great, one of thegreatest military geniuses of all time, vividly told by one of theworld's leading exp erts in Greek history. With all theintensity, insight, and narrative drive that made The Spartans sucha hit with critics and readers, Paul Cartledge's Alexander theGreat: glowingly illuminates the brief but iconic life of Alexander(356-323 BC), king of Macedon, conqueror of the Persian Empire, andfounder of a new world order. Cartledge, the distinguished scholarand historian long acknowledged as the leading internationalauthority on ancient Sparta and Greece, brilliantly evokesAlexander's remarkable political and military accomplishments,leads us along the geographical path of his victorious armies, andcompellingly charting the tremendous field of this warrior hero'sinfluence. Alexander's legacy has had an astounding impact onmilitary tacticians, scholars, and statesmen—in his own lifetimeand in ours. In various countries and at various times he has beenseen as

If members of the History Book Club do not recognize the name Joy Hakim, grade school students know her as the grandmother who writes history. Hakim's widely acclaimed 10-volume A History of US has earned a place in classrooms across the nation. Now she aims to bring history into the nation's homes as well with a companion book for the upcoming PBS miniseries Freedom. She considers herself a storyteller, and indeed, she writes U.S. history from colonial times to the new millennium as the story of the march of liberty. As she recounts the struggles of women, workers, blacks, immigrants and other minorities to participate equally in American society and government, she reiterates the ideals of freedom of religion and speech, and the right to vote, to a fair trial and to education. Despite advertising claims that the book is "for families," Hakim seems to be writing for children. Young readers will like the personable characters, lively action and conversational style ("There's a whole lot more to this freedom s

The Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist and best-selling author of The Lexus and the Olive Tree gives a bold, timely, and surprising picture of the state of globalization in the twenty-first century. In this brilliant #1 bestseller, "the most important columnist in America today" (Walter Russell Mead, The New York Times) demystifies the brave new world for readers, allowing them to make sense of the often bewildering global scene unfolding before their eyes. With his inimitable ability to translate complex foreign policy and economic issues, Thomas L. Friedman explains how the flattening of the world happened at the dawn of the twenty-first century; what it means to countries, companies, communities, and individuals; and how governments and societies can, and must, adapt. The World Is Flat is the timely and essential update on globalization, its successes and discontents, powerfully illuminated by one of our most respected journalists.

An absorbing, revelatory, and definitive account ofone of the greatest tragedies in human history Adroitly blending narrative, de*ion, and analysis, RichardJ. Evans portrays a society rushing headlong to self-destructionand taking much of Europe with it. Interweaving a broad narrativeof the war's progress from a wide range of people, Evans revealsthe dynamics of a society plunged into war at every level. Thegreat battles and events of the conflict are here, but just astelling is Evans's re- creation of the daily experience of ordinaryGermans in wartime. At the center of the book is the Naziextermi?nation of the Jews. The final book in Richard J. Evan'sthree-volume history of Hitler's Germany, hailed "a masterpiece" by The New York Times, The Third Reich at War lays bare themost momentous and tragic years of the Nazi regime.

David Kertzer's absorbing history presents an astonishingaccount of the birth of modern Italy and the clandestine politicsbehind the Vatican's last stand in the battle between church andthe newly created Italian state. Taking advantage of a wealth ofsecret documents long buried in the Vatican archives, Prisoner ofthe Vatican begins by looking at the embattled Pius IX. WhenItaly's armies seized the Holy City and claimed it for the Italiancapital, the pope, outraged, retreated to the Vatican and declaredhimself a prisoner, calling on foreign powers to force the Italiansout of Rome. The action set in motion decades of politicalintrigues, little known until now, that hinged on such fascinatingcharacters as Garibaldi, Napoleon III, and Chancellor Bismarck. Noone who reads this eye-opening book will ever think of Italy, orthe Vatican, in quite the same way again.

This second of two volumes gathering the essential writings of one of the towering figures of the American Revolution traces John Adams's career from his leading role in the debate over independence (he was "our Colossus on the floor," remembered Thomas Jefferson), to his tireless efforts to establish the fledgling government of the United States and supply its army in the field, to his crucial diplomatic service in Europe, where he was hailed as "the George Washington of negotiation." It includes the highly influential pamphlet Thoughts on Government (1776); the "Report of a Constitution for Massachusetts," (1780) Adams's blueprint for what remains the world's oldest working political ...

The Crusades were the bridge between medieval and modernhistory, between feudalism and colonialism. In many ways, thelittle explored later Crusades were the most significant of themall, for they made the crisis truly global. The LastCrusaders is about the period?s last great conflict betweenEast and West, and the titanic contest between Habsburg-ledChristendom and the Ottoman Empire in the fifteenth and sixteenthcenturies. From the great naval campaigns and the ferociousstruggle to dominate the North African shore, the conflict spreadout along trade routes, consuming nations and cultures, destroyingdynasties, and spawning the first colonial empires in South Americaand the Indian Ocean. Acclaimed scholar of Islamic history and author Barnaby Rogersonilluminates the Last Crusades in an accessible and skillful manner.He shows how, to this day, the disputed borders of the Crusades erastand as defining frontiers and dividing lines between languages,nations, and religions. From Constantinople to Fez, from Rhode

This is a magisterial new global history of World War II.Beginning in 1937 with the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, EvanMawdsley shows how the origins of World War II lay in a conflictbetween the old international order and the new and then traces theglobalisation of the conflict as it swept through Asia, Europe, andthe Middle East. His primary focus is on the war's military andstrategic history though he also examines the political, economic,ideological, and cultural factors which influenced the course ofevents. The war's consequences are examined too, not only in termsof the defeat of the Axis but also the break-up of colonial empiresand the beginning of the Cold War. Accessibly written andwell-illustrated with maps and photographs, this compelling newaccount also includes short studies of the key figures, events andbattles that shaped the war. · Takes a global approach to the history of the Second World War,integrating events in Asia and the Pacific, India, North Africa,Europe, Russia and

This classic remains one of Karl Popper's most wide-ranging and popular works, notable not only for its acute insight into the way scientific knowledge grows, but also for applying those insights to politics and to history.