-Titulo Original : Utopia For Realists How We Can Build The Ideal World-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: Universal basic income. A 15-hour workweek. Open borders. Does it sound too good to be true? One of Europes leading young thinkers shows how we can build an ideal world today. A more politically radical Malcolm Gladwell. -- New York Times After working all day at jobs we often dislike, we buy things we dont need. Rutger Bregman, a Dutch historian, reminds us it neednt be this way -- and in some places it isnt. Rutger Bregmans TED Talk about universal basic income seemed impossibly radical when he delivered it in 2014. A quarter of a million views later, the subject of that video is being seriously considered by leading economists and government leaders the world over. Its just one of the many utopian ideas that Bregman proves is possible today. Utopia for Realists is one of those rare books that takes you by surprise and challenges what you think can happen. From a Canadian city that once completely eradicated poverty, to Richard Nixons near implementation of a basic income for millions of Americans, Bregman takes us on a journey through history, and beyond the traditional left-right divides, as he champions ideas whose time have come. Every progressive milestone of civilization -- from the end of slavery to the beginning of democracy -- was once considered a utopian fantasy. Bregmans book, both challenging and bracing, demonstrates that new utopian ideas, like the elimination of poverty and the creation of the fifteen-hour workweek, can become a reality in our lifetime. Being unrealistic and unreasonable can in fact make the impossible inevitable, and it is the only way to build the ideal world. Review A more politically radical Malcolm Gladwell...To the extent that bookish economic historians can rampage, Bregman is on one...He combines a detailed approach to economic policy with a utopian vision of a better future...Bregman argues that it is only by dreaming about what seems to be unachievable that society can make good things possible. Patrick Kingsley, New York TimesBoth a fun read and a breath of fresh air to anyone who lived through the ghastly experience of last years presidential election season . . . Utopia for Realists argues, with humor and sympathy, that weve all suffered from forgetting how to dream of a better world....Whats so interesting about modern America is our hostility to the mere idea of trying to create an easier and happier life. Were a country that was once rich with social experimentation . . . Now we dont really even try, and mostly just scream at each other on the Internet. That doesnt seem like it will get us there. Maybe free money and a three-hour workday wont, either, but it sure seems like it would be more fun to try. Matt Taibbi, Rolling StoneConvincing . . . Entertaining and reasoned . . . Bregmans book makes for enjoyable reading, and it is packed with colorful factual asides . . . Utopia for Realists should make for good conversation at the next dinner party. Benjamin Cunningham, Los Angeles Review of BooksProvocative and ambitious...The book is lively, well-researched, and full of unlikely pieces of history. Tim Harford , Financial TimesUtopia for Realists is fantastic. A quick glance turned into hours of riveting reading. Very seldom does a book change the way you think about some of most intractable problems of society, and of life. This one did. Read this book. Sydney Finkelstein, director of the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College and author of Superbosses: How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent If youre bored with hackneyed debates and decades-old right-wing and left-wing cliches, you may enjoy the bold thinking, fresh ideas, lively prose, and evidence-based arguments in Utopia for Realists. Steven Pinker, New York Times bestselling author of The Blank Slate and The Better Angels of Our NatureBregman speaks with impressive authority . . . His solutions are quite simple and staunchly set against...

-Titulo Original : The Arms Of Krupp The Rise And Fall Of The Industrial Dynasty That Armed Germany At War-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The Krupp family were the premier German arms manufacturers from the middle of the 19th century until the end of World War II, producing artillery pieces and submarines that set the standard for effectiveness. This book relates the history of this influential company. About the Author William Manchester was a hugely successful popular historian and biographer whose books include The Last Lion, Volumes 1 and 2, Goodbye Darkness, A World Lit Only by Fire, The Glory and the Dream, The Arms of Krupp, American Caesar, The Death of the President, and assorted works of journalism...

-Titulo Original : Move Fast And Break Things How , Google, And Amazon Cornered Culture And Undermined Democracy-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The book that started the Techlash. A stinging polemic that traces the destructive monopolization of the Internet by Google, and Amazon, and that proposes a new future for musicians, journalists, authors and filmmakers in the digital age. Move Fast and Break Things is the riveting account of a small group of libertarian entrepreneurs who in the 1990s began to hijack the original decentralized vision of the Internet, in the process creating three monopoly firms -- , Amazon, and Google -- that now determine the future of the music, film, television, publishing and news industries. Jonathan Taplin offers a succinct and powerful history of how online life began to be shaped around the values of the men who founded these companies, including Peter Thiel and Larry Page: overlooking piracy of books, music, and film while hiding behind opaque business practices and subordinating the privacy of individual users in order to create the surveillance-marketing monoculture in which we now live. The enormous profits that have come with this concentration of power tell their own story. Since 2001, newspaper and music revenues have fallen by 70 percent; book publishing, film, and television profits have also fallen dramatically. Revenues at Google in this same period grew from $400 million to $74.5 billion. Today, Googles YouTube controls 60 percent of all streaming-audio business but pay for only 11 percent of the total streaming-audio revenues artists receive. More creative content is being consumed than ever before, but less revenue is flowing to the creators and owners of that content. The stakes here go far beyond the livelihood of any one musician or journalist. As Taplin observes, the fact that more and more Americans receive their news, as well as music and other forms of entertainment, from a small group of companies poses a real threat to democracy. Move Fast and Break Things offers a vital, forward-thinking prescription for how artists can reclaim their audiences using knowledge of the past and a determination to work together. Using his own half-century career as a music and film producer and early pioneer of streaming video online, Taplin offers new ways to think about the design of the World Wide Web and specifically the way we live with the firms that dominate it. Review Praise for Move Fast and Break ThingsA New York Times Book Review Editors ChoiceAn Amazon Best Business & Leadership Book of the yearLonglisted for Financial Times/McKinsey Business Book of the Year A strategybusiness Best Business Book of the yearAn Inside Higher ED Best Book of the yearJonathan Taplins Move Fast and Break Things argues that the radical libertarian ideology and monopolistic greed of many Silicon Valley entrepreneurs helped to decimate the livelihoods of musicians and is now undermining the communal idealism of the early internet. Walter Isaacson, New York Times Book ReviewTaplin is uniquely poised to deliver us Move Fast and Break Things, a relentless critique that seeks to answer the above question of why the internet has hindered, rather than helped, those trying to make a living in the arts. New York Daily NewsA scathing indictment of these tech companies greed and arrogance. The GuardianA radical remedy. The EconomistA necessary book that shows how the Internet revolution has damaged the way we interact as human beings, along with democracy itself. The NationTaplin brings an informed perspective to his task, and an idiosyncratic background...[his] broader explanation of the upheaval in the music and media industries is illuminating. Wall Street JournalAn impassioned new book...Taplin is at his strongest when he pulls back the curtain on vague and lofty terms such as digital disruption to reveal the effects on individual artists...His prose is bold...his overall point is an important one. Washington PostA solid qualitative and quantitative analysis...most every ...

-Titulo Original : The Upstarts Uber, Airbnb, And The Battle For The New Silicon Valley-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: A look deep inside the new Silicon Valley, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Everything Store. Ten years ago, the idea of getting into a strangers car, or a walking into a strangers home, would have seemed bizarre and dangerous, but today its as common as ordering a book online. Uber and Airbnb have ushered in a new era: redefining neighborhoods, challenging the way governments regulate business, and changing the way we travel. In the spirit of iconic Silicon Valley renegades like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, another generation of entrepreneurs is using technology to upend convention and disrupt entire industries. These are the upstarts, idiosyncratic founders with limitless drive and an abundance of self-confidence. Led by such visionaries as Travis Kalanick of Uber and Brian Chesky of Airbnb, they are rewriting the rules of business and often sidestepping serious ethical and legal obstacles in the process. The Upstarts is the definitive story of two new titans of business and a dawning age of tenacity, conflict and wealth. In Brad Stones riveting account of the most radical companies of the new Silicon Valley, we discover how it all happened and what it took to change the world. Review Praise for The UpstartsOne of Amazons Top Ten Books of February 2017 Brad Stones The Upstarts reads like a detective story: A page turning who-did-it on the creation of billion dollar fortunes and the ruthless murder of traditional businesses. No single book will tell you more about what life feels like inside companies like Airbnb and Uber as they grow from mere ideas into merciless machines for innovation, riches and unease. The sweat. The stress. The power highs of new instant fortunes. Its all here. You wont be able to put The Upstarts down. And when you finally do, youll look at your own company and career in a totally fresh way. Joshua Cooper Ramo, author of The Seventh SenseIn The Upstarts, Brad Stone has vividly captured the cultural and economic upheaval brought about by the latest generation of Internet superpowers. His book is a magnificent expose of how companies like Uber and Airbnb came to be, the people that profited and lost out along the way and the ramifications that this technology will have on the world for decades to come. Stone remains the preeminent chronicler of the Internet Age and a master story teller. Ashlee Vance, author of Elon MuskBrad Stone gives us a lively, fascinating picture of the new new thing in technology - startups like Uber and Airbnb that are disrupting old businesses across the world. He provides a much needed glimpse into the companies that fail as well as the ones that make it big. And he points to the broad policy issues raised by these new technologies, which are surely no fun for the people whose lives are being disrupted. Fareed Zakaria, author of The Post-American World and host of CNNs Fareed Zakaria GPSWith precision, wit, and insight, Brad Stone tells the tale of two very different CEOs whose skills, innovations and willingness to pursue a totally crazy idea toppled two very different industries. No one in business today can afford to miss this compelling tale of trust, technology, and very big piles of loot. Steven Levy, author of In the Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our LivesOver the last few years, Silicon Valley has become the new Wall Street. Brad Stone introduces us to the new tech Masters of the Universe, a collection of characters that are just as insatiable as the robber barons of finance, and even more entertaining. Rana Faroohar, author of Makers and TakersStone (The Everything Store) turns his attention to the sharing economy in this dual portrait of two of the fastest growing startups...At both Uber, the ride-sharing app, and Airbnb, the homestay rental platform, Stone finds commonality among the CEOs, who lead their respective companies with an idealistic vision and aggressive business pract...

-Titulo Original : The One Device The Secret History Of The Iphone-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The secret history of the invention that changed everything-and became the most profitable product in the world. The One Device is a tour de force, with a fast-paced edge and heaps of analytical insight.-Ashlee Vance, New York Times bestselling author of Elon Musk A stunning book. You will never look at your iPhone the same way again. -Dan Lyons, New York Times bestselling author of Disrupted Odds are that as you read this, an iPhone is within reach. But before Steve Jobs introduced us to the one device, as he called it, a cell phone was merely what you used to make calls on the go. How did the iPhone transform our world and turn Apple into the most valuable company ever? Veteran technology journalist Brian Merchant reveals the inside story you wont hear from Cupertino-based on his exclusive interviews with the engineers, inventors, and developers who guided every stage of the iPhones creation. This deep dive takes you from inside One Infinite Loop to 19th century France to WWII America, from the driest place on earth to a Kenyan pit of toxic e-waste, and even deep inside Shenzhens notorious suicide factories. Its a firsthand look at how the cutting-edge tech that makes the world work-touch screens, motion trackers, and even AI-made their way into our pockets. The One Device is a roadmap for design and engineering genius, an anthropology of the modern age, and an unprecedented view into one of the most secretive companies in history. This is the untold account, ten years in the making, of the device that changed everything. Review Shortlisted for the 2017 Financial Times Business Book of the Year Award and the 1-800-CEO-READS AwardOne of the Best Business Books of 2017 - CNBC, Bloomberg, 1-800-CEO-Read, Financial Times, Marginal Revolution. Business InsiderA New York Times Book Review Editors ChoiceA remarkable tale... the story it tells is compelling, even addictive--almost as addictive as the iPhone itself. Wall Street JournalLike the best historians, Merchant... unpacks the history of the iPhone in a way that makes it seem both inevitable in its outline and surprising in its details. The GuardianApples culture of secrecy is no match for Brian Merchant in The One Device....Merchant tells a far richer story than I--having covered Apple for years as a journalist--have seen before... The iPhone masquerades as a thing not made by human hands. Merchants book makes visible that human labor, and in the process dispels some of the fog and reality distortion that surround the iPhone. Lev Grossman, New York Times Book Review A fascinating story. MarketplaceMerchant does the important work of excavating and compiling large numbers of details and anecdotes about the development of the iPhone, many of them previously unrecorded... Merchant tells a far richer story than the outside world has seen before. Minneapolis Star-TribuneBrian Merchant takes readers on an epic journey. ParadeBrian Merchant gives us a rare look inside Apple, chronicling the development of the iPhone with details about everything from the selection of raw materials to the products famous launch event. GizmodoFascinating... the author writes in the style of a fast-paced novel, with vivid details that help readers really understand how the iPhone was devised and launched. John Rampton, EntrepreneurA wild ride. San Francisco ChronicleAn excellent book. Tyler Cowen, Marginal RevolutionThe One Device is a tour de force. Brian Merchant has dug into the iPhone like no other reporter before him, traveling the world to find the untold stories behind the devices creation and uncover the very real human costs that come with making the iPhone. Packed with vivid detail, the book carries the reader from one unexpected revelation to the next with a fast-paced edge and heaps of analytical insight. Ashlee Vance, New York Times bestselling author of Elon MuskThis is a stunning book-a comprehensive, fascinati...

-Titulo Original : Chaos Charles Manson, The Cia, And The Secret History Of The Sixties-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: A journalists twenty-year fascination with the Manson murders leads to shocking new revelations about the FBIs involvement in this riveting reassessment of an infamous case in American history.Over two grim nights in Los Angeles, the young followers of Charles Manson murdered seven people, including the actress Sharon Tate, then eight months pregnant. With no mercy and seemingly no motive, the Manson Family followed their leaders every order -- their crimes lit a flame of paranoia across the nation, spelling the end of the sixties. Manson became one of historys most infamous criminals, his name forever attached to an era when charlatans mixed with prodigies, free love was as possible as brainwashing, and utopia -- or dystopia -- was just an acid trip away.Twenty years ago, when journalist Tom ONeill was reporting a magazine piece about the murders, he worried there was nothing new to say. Then he unearthed shocking evidence of a cover-up behind the official story, including police carelessness, legal misconduct, and potential surveillance by intelligence agents. When a tense interview with Vincent Bugliosi -- prosecutor of the Manson Family and author of Helter Skelter -- turned a friendly source into a nemesis, ONeill knew he was onto something. But every discovery brought more questions:Who were Mansons real friends in Hollywood, and how far would they go to hide their ties?Why didnt law enforcement, including Mansons own parole officer, act on their many chances to stop him?And how did Manson -- an illiterate ex-con -- turn a group of peaceful hippies into remorseless killers?ONeills quest for the truth led him from reclusive celebrities to seasoned spies, from San Franciscos summer of love to the shadowy sites of the CIAs mind-control experiments, on a trail rife with shady cover-ups and suspicious coincidences. The product of two decades of reporting, hundreds of new interviews, and dozens of never-before-seen documents from the LAPD, the FBI, and the CIA, Chaos mounts an argument that could be, according to Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Steven Kay, strong enough to overturn the verdicts on the Manson murders. This is a book that overturns our understanding of a pivotal time in American history. Review “This is a book I can wholeheartedly recommend…It’s fucking amazing…This shit goes deep and it’s fascinating.” Joe RoganChaos is less a definitive account of the murders than a kaleidoscope swirl of weird discoveries and mind-bending hypotheticals that reads like Raymond Chandler after a tab of windowpane. The New York TimesWhat if everything we thought we knew about the Manson murders was wrong? ONeill spent 20 years wrestling with that question, and Chaos is his final answer. Timed to the 50th anniversary of the Manson murders, its a sweeping indictment of the Los Angeles justice system, with cover-ups reaching all the way up to the FBI and CIA. Entertainment WeeklyONeills discoveries are stunning, especially when hes discussing the inexplicable leniency shown by law enforcement officials and by Mansons parole officer. The Washington PostIf Helter Skelter whets your whistle, then ONeills blistering account of the conspiracy to cover up the flaws in the Manson prosecution is definitely your cup of tea. NerdistA page-turner stacked with gobsmacking facts. The RingerONeills skillful accumulation of facts, untainted by bluffery, is a victory for honest discourse ... The discoveries that ONeill has shared with the world-about lies, suppressions, and conflicts of interest-should scare the hell out of us. Sean Howe, BookforumForget Tarantinos film, journalist ONeill has been working on this book for 20 years and has found all kind of interesting things, including unreleased documents and new interviews that show legal misconduct... Conspiracy or not, this is what you call beach reading. Style Weekly (Richmond)Whatever you think you know about t...

-Titulo Original : What Made Maddy Run The Secret Struggles And Tragic Death Of An All-american Teen-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The heartbreaking story of college athlete Madison Holleran, whose life and death by suicide reveal the struggle of young people suffering from mental illness today in this #1 New York Times Sports and Fitness bestseller. If you scrolled through the feed of 19-year-old Maddy Holleran, you would see a perfect life: a freshman at an Ivy League school, recruited for the track team, who was also beautiful, popular, and fiercely intelligent. This was a girl who succeeded at everything she tried, and who was only getting started. But when Maddy began her long-awaited college career, her parents noticed something changed. Previously indefatigable Maddy became withdrawn, and her thoughts centered on how she could change her life. In spite of thousands of hours of practice and study, she contemplated transferring from the school that had once been her dream. When Maddys dad, Jim, dropped her off for the first day of spring semester, she held him a second longer than usual. That would be the last time Jim would see his daughter. What Made Maddy Run began as a piece that Kate Fagan, a columnist for espnW, wrote about Maddys life. What started as a profile of a successful young athlete whose life ended in suicide became so much larger when Fagan started to hear from other college athletes also struggling with mental illness. This is the story of Maddy Hollerans life, and her struggle with depression, which also reveals the mounting pressures young people -- and college athletes in particular -- face to be perfect, especially in an age of relentless connectivity and social media saturation. Review Praise for What Made Maddy RunSemi-Finalist for the PEN/ESPN Award for Literary SportswritingA poignant study of the converging pressures of mental illness, college athletics and social media. Carlos Lozada, Washington PostGripping and universal Trevor Noah, The Daily ShowFagan does an exceptional job laying out [Maddys] pain in a narrative style that is both persuasive and honest . . . a comprehensive, essential, and well-written piece about mental health, as well as a small step toward reducing the stigma around anxiety and depression. Erin McCarthy, Philadelphia InquirerA compassionate and frank look at depression and the social pressure faced by many college students as seen through the eyes of one young woman. KirkusWith immense empathy, [Fagan] shares insights particular to student athletes, but presents them in universally accessible language and connects with the non-athlete through vivid examples Shelf-AwarenessFagan delivers the sequence of events in such a heartfelt but very real way Caitlyn Pilkington, Womens RunningHolleran seems so alive on the page; her messages and Fagans prose create someone who seems a real, living thing, so much so that by the end, this reader was rooting for her to talk to someone FlotrackThe book goes beyond telling a heartbreaking story; it encourages compassion toward young adults struggling with mental health issues and will ultimately help us think about ways to prevent similar tragedies. National Book ReviewFagans book is well-researched and the message is timely and important. Publishers WeeklyIt is impossible not to be affected by Hollerans heart-wrenching story. An appropriate (if difficult) read for current and future college athletes, their coaches, and parents. Library Journalthe must-read book of 2017 for runners or competitive athletes of all kinds...thoroughly researched, written with sensitivity Sinead Mulhern, Canadian RunningCovering an issue as sensitive as a teen suicide is no easy task and Fagans compassion and desire to prevent more students from following Hollerans path shows in her writing. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to be better informed about mental health issues among college students. Carina Julig, cuindependent A provocative and thoughtful look at a student-athlete suicide th...

-Titulo Original : Surprise, Kill, Vanish The Secret History Of Cia Paramilitary Armies, Operators, And Assassins-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: From Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen, the untold USA Today bestselling story of the CIAs secret paramilitary units.Surprise . . . your target. Kill . . . your enemy. Vanish . . . without a trace. When diplomacy fails, and war is unwise, the president calls on the CIAs Special Activities Division, a highly-classified branch of the CIA and the most effective, black operations force in the world.Originally known as the presidents guerrilla warfare corps, SAD conducts risky and ruthless operations that have evolved over time to defend America from its enemies. Almost every American president since World War II has asked the CIA to conduct sabotage, subversion and, yes, assassination.With unprecedented access to forty-two men and women who proudly and secretly worked on CIA covert operations from the dawn of the Cold War to the present day, along with declassified documents and deep historical research, Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen unveils -- like never before -- a complex world of individuals working in treacherous environments populated with killers, connivers, and saboteurs.Despite Hollywood notions of off-book operations and external secret hires, covert action is actually one piece in a colossal foreign policy machine.Written with the pacing of a thriller, Surprise, Kill, Vanish brings to vivid life the sheer pandemonium and chaos, as well as the unforgettable human will to survive and the intellectual challenge of not giving up hope that define paramilitary and intelligence work. Jacobsens exclusive interviews -- with members of the CIAs Senior Intelligence Service (equivalent to the Pentagons generals), its counterterrorism chiefs, targeting officers, and Special Activities Divisions Ground Branch operators who conduct todays close-quarters killing operations around the world -- reveal, for the first time, the enormity of this shocking, controversial, and morally complex terrain. Is the CIAs paramilitary army Americas weaponized strength, or a liability to its principled standing in the world? Every operation reported in this book, however unsettling, is legal. Review Praise for Surprise, Kill, VanishAs fast paced as a thriller. Fred Burton, Stratfor Talks Pen and Sword PodcastJacobsen here presents a tour de force exploring the CIAs paramilitary activities...this excellent work feels like uncovering the tip of the iceberg. VERDICT: Highly recommended for those seeking a better understanding of American foreign policy in action. Jacob Sherman, Library Journal In SURPRISE, VANISH, KILL, Annie Jacobsen takes us inside the darkest and most morally ambiguous corner of our government, where politicians ask brave men and women to kill-up close and personal-on Americas behalf. She offers, in cinematic detail, the real story of recent geopolitical history, the plots and assassinations that in some instances presidents and diplomats have denied for years, including the CIAs biggest successes and its biggest fiascos. Garrett M. Graff, author of Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Governments Secret Plan to Save Itself--While the Rest of Us DieA behind-the-scenes look at the most shadowy corners of the American intelligence community...Well-sourced and well-paced, this book is full of surprises. KirkusHaving already demonstrated her remarkable aptitude for unearthing government secrets in books like Area 51 (2011) and The Pentagons Brain (2015), Jacobsen pulls back the curtain on the history of covert warfare and state sanctioned assassinations from WWII to the present...Jacobsens work revealing a poorly understood but essential slice of warfare history belongs in every library collection. BooklistPraise for The Pentagons BrainPulitzer Prize Finalist in HistoryOne of The Washington Posts Notable Nonfiction Books of 2015One of The Boston Globes Best Books of 2015One of Amazons Top 100 Books of 2015A brilliantly researched account of a small but powerful ...

-Titulo Original : The Soul Of A New Machine-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: Tracy Kidders riveting (Washington Post) story of one companys efforts to bring a new microcomputer to market won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award and has become essential reading for understanding the history of the American tech industry. Computers have changed since 1981, when The Soul of a New Machine first examined the culture of the computer revolution. What has not changed is the feverish pace of the high-tech industry, the go-for-broke approach to business that has caused so many computer companies to win big (or go belly up), and the cult of pursuing mind-bending technological innovations.The Soul of a New Machine is an essential chapter in the history of the machine that revolutionized the world in the twentieth century. Fascinating...A surprisingly gripping account of people at work. --Wall Street Journal Review It has the ring of truth....For readers who would like to know what it takes to make a computer, how computers are organized, and who the people are who put them together, I strongly recommend The Soul of a New Machine. I do not know anything quite like it.-- Jeremy Bernstein, New York Review of Books From the Back Cover Computers have changed since 1981, when Tracy Kidder indelibly recorded the drama, comedy, and excitement of one companys efforts to bring a new microcomputer to market. What has changed little, however, is computer culture: the feverish pace of the high-tech industry, the mystique of programmers, the go-for-broke approach to business that has caused so many computer companies to win big (or go belly up), and the cult of pursuing mind-bending technological innovations. By tracing computer culture to its roots, by exploring the soul of the machine that has revolutionized the world, Kidder succeeds as no other writer has done in capturing the essential spirit of the computer age...

-Titulo Original : Boyd The Fighter Pilot Who Changed The Art Of War-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: About the Author Robert Coram was twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for his work as a reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He is the author of seven novels and four nonfiction books, including American Patriot: The Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day and Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War. He lives in Atlanta. John Boyd may be the most remarkable unsung hero in all of American military history. Some remember him as the greatest U.S. fighter pilot ever -- the man who, in simulated air-to-air combat, defeated every challenger in less than forty seconds. Some recall him as the father of our countrys most legendary fighter aircraft -- the F-15 and F-16. Still others think of Boyd as the most influential military theorist since Sun Tzu. They know only half the story. Boyd, more than any other person, saved fighter aviation from the predations of the Strategic Air Command. His manual of fighter tactics changed the way every air force in the world flies and fights. He discovered a physical theory that forever altered the way fighter planes were designed. Later in life, he developed a theory of military strategy that has been adopted throughout the world and even applied to business models for maximizing efficiency. And in one of the most startling and unknown stories of modern military history, the Air Force fighter pilot taught the U.S. Marine Corps how to fight war on the ground. His ideas led to Americas swift and decisive victory in the Gulf War and foretold the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. On a personal level, Boyd rarely met a general he couldnt offend. He was loud, abrasive, and profane. A man of daring, ferocious passion and intractable stubbornness, he was that most American of heroes -- a rebel who cared not for his reputation or fortune but for his country. He was a true patriot, a man who made a career of challenging the shortsighted and self-serving Pentagon bureaucracy. America owes Boyd and his disciples -- the six men known as the Acolytes -- a great debt. Robert Coram finally brings to light the remarkable story of a man who polarized all who knew him, but who left a legacy that will influence the military -- and all of America -- for decades to come . . . Review Fascinating....An excellent book....Coram captures the dazzling diversity of John Boyd--fighter pilot, aerial tactician, engineer, and scholar...

-Titulo Original : Little Weirds-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: Step into Jenny Slates wild imagination in this magical (Mindy Kaling), delicious (Amy Sedaris), and poignant (John Mulaney) New York Times bestseller about love, heartbreak, and being alive -- this book is something new and wonderful (George Saunders). You may know Jenny Slate from her Netflix special, Stage Fright, as the creator of Marcel the Shell, or as the star of Obvious Child. But you dont really know Jenny Slate until you get bonked on the head by her absolutely singular writing style. To see the world through Jennys eyes is to see it as though for the first time, shimmering with strangeness and possibility. As she will remind you, we live on an ancient ball that rotates around a bigger ball made up of lights and gasses that are science gasses, not farts (dont be immature). Heartbreak, confusion, and misogyny stalk this blue-green sphere, yes, but it is also a place of wild delight and unconstrained vitality, a place where we can start living as soon as we are born, and we can be born at any time. In her dazzling, impossible-to-categorize debut, Jenny channels the pain and beauty of life in writing so fresh, so new, and so burstingly alive, we catch her vision like a fever and bring it back out into the bright day with us, where everything has changed.One of Vanity Fairs Great Quarantine Reads. Review This book is something new and wonderful--honest, funny, positive, completely original, and inspiring in the very best way: it made me remember I was alive. GEORGE SAUNDERSA man on the 2 Express Train read some of Jenny Slates Little Weirds over my shoulder. What kind of book is this? he asked. The best kind, I replied. JOHN MULANEYThis book is like a stovetop goulash, delicious and varied ingredients, prepared perfectly and excellent with bread...Im sorry, I lost track of the simile. AMY SEDARISLuminous, emotional, lovely, and a little mysterious, this book is something you will savor like a half-remembered, gorgeous dream. Youll finish it feeling like Jenny Slate is your new best friend. SUSAN ORLEAN, author of THE LIBRARY BOOK and THE ORCHID THIEFIndescribable, but eminently readable, the actor-comedians book consists of a carnival of observations, ideas and events that may or may not make up a memoir. Basically, Little Weirds is performance art in high-caliber prose. THE WASHINGTON POSTJennys writing is wide open, tuneful, tender. She sees the world (and feels the world) like a bug might, two antennae poking out from her head like sensory wands. Reading Little Weirds made me feel tipsy. DURGA CHEW-BOSE,author of TOO MUCH AND NOT THE MOODSlate invites us for a glorious swim inside her imagination as she explores romance, heartbreak and self-love in this poetry-memoir-fiction mash-up. Its a work that breaks the mold. PEOPLEAt once warm, heartbreaking, and erotic...a strange, witty, sad journey into the depths of their authors imagination...devastating in their unfiltered honesty, even optimism...showcasing [Slates] singular poetic forms of expression. ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLYA singularly hilarious and horny, but also poignant and tender, collection of writing that beautifully captures Slates inimitable voice, which is one that, once youve heard it, you want to listen to forever. NYLONReading Jenny Slates Little Weirds is like digesting Shakespearean sonnets: Its different enough from ordinary English that it takes your brain a few, very-long sentences to adjust to its sweet, flowery prose. But once youve recalibrated, the actress/comedians book becomes a dreamy dessert for the eyeballs that uses playful language to express deep sentiments about heartbreak, anger, wonder and friendship. USA TODAYA poetic and dreamlike book, a testament to the power of fantasy and language to hit your feelings where facts and pictures cant. . .Slates voice never loses its capacity for strangeness, for finding it in the littlest, weirdest corners. An...

-Titulo Original : Goodbye, Darkness A Memoir Of The Pacific War-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: This emotional and honest novel recounts a young mans experiences during World War II and digs deep into what he and his fellow soldiers lived through during those dark times. The nightmares began for William Manchester 23 years after WW II. In his dreams he lived with the recurring image of a battle-weary youth (himself), angrily demanding to know what had happened to the three decades since he had laid down his arms. To find out, Manchester visited those places in the Pacific where as a young Marine he fought the Japanese, and in this book examines his experiences in the line with his fellow soldiers (his brothers). He gives us an honest and unabashedly emotional account of his part in the war in the Pacific. The most moving memoir of combat on WW II that I have ever read. A testimony to the fortitude of man...a gripping, haunting, book. --William L. Shirer About the Author William Manchester was a hugely successful popular historian and biographer whose books include The Last Lion, Volumes 1 and 2, Goodbye Darkness, A World Lit Only by Fire, The Glory and the Dream, The Arms of Krupp, American Caesar, The Death of the President, and assorted works of journalism...

-Titulo Original : Ghost In The Wires My Adventures As The Worlds Most Wanted Hacker-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: In this intriguing, insightful and extremely educational novel, the worlds most famous hacker teaches you easy cloaking and counter-measures for citizens and consumers in the age of Big Brother and Big Data (Frank W. Abagnale). Kevin Mitnick was the most elusive computer break-in artist in history. He accessed computers and networks at the worlds biggest companies -- and no matter how fast the authorities were, Mitnick was faster, sprinting through phone switches, computer systems, and cellular networks. As the FBIs net finally began to tighten, Mitnick went on the run, engaging in an increasingly sophisticated game of hide-and-seek that escalated through false identities, a host of cities, and plenty of close shaves, to an ultimate showdown with the Feds, who would stop at nothing to bring him down. Ghost in the Wires is a thrilling true story of intrigue, suspense, and unbelievable escapes -- and a portrait of a visionary who forced the authorities to rethink the way they pursued him, and forced companies to rethink the way they protect their most sensitive information. Mitnick manages to make breaking computer code sound as action-packed as robbing a bank. -- NPR Review Praise for Ghost in the WiresNATIONAL BESTSELLERGhost in the Wires reads like a contemporary uber-geeky thriller.... For those interested in computer history, Ghost in the Wires is a nostalgia trip to the quaint old days before hacking (and hackers) turned so malicious and financially motivated. J.D. Biersdorfer, New York Times Book ReviewMr. Mitnick portrays himself as worth rooting for, a savvy master rodent in a cat-and-mouse game, grinning past his whiskers as he stole the cheese from under the nose of the helpless fat cats. Steven Levy, Wall Street JournalA gripping story.... Fascinating and filled with insights. Jesse Singal, Boston GlobeIntriguing, insightful and extremely educational into the mind of one who truly mastered the art of social engineering with the use of a computer and modern day technologies. I strongly believe that one can learn a great deal about protecting themselves once they understand how another one perpetrates the crime. Frank W. Abagnale, author of Catch Me if You CanYears ago, I helped put Kevin Mitnick in jail. I now see this made about as much sense as arresting Dean Martin for public drunkenness. Neither of them could stop themselves. Neither was doing any real harm. And, in both cases, watching them struggle with their obsessions was hugely entertaining. Kevins book is certainly that. Terse and snappy, it reads like Raymond Chandler and provides detailed insight into a time in computer history that already seems quaint. Kevin Mitnick was and is a true Internet pioneer. John Perry Barlow, cofounder of the Electronic Frontier FoundationReads like those of Frank Abagnale Jr. and Steven Jay Russell. But Mitnicks has a high-tech twist. Booklist (starred review)Its the piquant human element that really animates this rollicking memoir of high-tech skullduggery....Mitnicks hacking narratives are lucid to neophytes and catnip to people who love code, but the books heart is his social engineering - his preternatural ability to schmooze and manipulate.....[a] nonstop caper. Publishers Weekly About the Author Kevin Mitnick has been the subject of countless profiles published and broadcast throughout the world. Mitnicks leading penetration-testing team is highly respected and sought after for its security services by the worlds top corporations and governments. The company he founded, Mitnick Security Consulting LLC, has clients that include dozens from the Fortune 500 and many nations across the globe. Mitnick is the bestselling author of The Art of Invisibility, Ghost in the Wires, The Art of Intrusion, and The Art of Deception. He lives in Las Vegas and travels the world as the top keynote speaker on cybersecurity...

-Titulo Original : Michael Jordan The Life-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The definitive biography of a legendary athlete. The Shrug. The Shot. The Flu Game. Michael Jordan is responsible for sublime moments so ingrained in sports history that they have their own names. When most people think of him, they think of his beautiful shots with the game on the line, his body totally in sync with the ball -- hitting nothing but net. But for all his greatness, this scion of a complex family from North Carolinas Coastal Plain has a darker side: hes a ruthless competitor and a lover of high stakes. Theres never been a biography that encompassed the dual nature of his character and looked so deeply at Jordan on and off the court -- until now. Basketball journalist Roland Lazenby spent almost thirty years covering Michael Jordans career in college and the pros. He witnessed Jordans growth from a skinny rookie to the instantly recognizable global ambassador for basketball whose business savvy and success have millions of kids still wanting to be just like Mike. Yet Lazenby also witnessed the Michael Jordan whose drive and appetite are more fearsome and more insatiable than any of his fans could begin to know. Michael Jordan: The Life explores both sides of his personality to reveal the fullest, most compelling story of the man who is Michael Jordan. Lazenby draws on his personal relationships with Jordans coaches; countless interviews with Jordans friends, teammates, and family members; and interviews with Jordan himself to provide the first truly definitive study of Michael Jordan: the player, the icon, and the man. Review One of Chicago Public Librarys Best Books of 2014A Goodreads Choice Award Finalist: History and BiographyIn his thoughtful, extraordinarily well-­researched biography Michael Jordan: The Life, Roland Lazenby... gives us the life and much more.... The exhaustive narrative of Jordans basketball career is written with appropriate awe. But what makes this portrayal especially worthwhile is everything else. Mike Greenberg, New York Times Book ReviewAn utterly definitive biography.... The most comprehensive attempt yet made to explain the factors that have gone into producing the most famous basketball player and marketing phenom in the history of world sports....I dont know how it would be possible to write a more complete biography of him. The Chicago TribuneWhen a world-class biographer writes about a world-class athlete, you have a biography for the ages. This is the ultimate study of Michael Jordan, and I know you will be as captivated as I was. Pat Williams, Orlando Magic senior vice president, author of Coach Woodens Greatest SecretRevelatory.... A fascinating examination into the lonely, prideful man behind the glimmering icon. Publishers WeeklyRoland Lazenbys new biography of Michael Jordan is as breathtaking as a dunk by His Airness. ... A richly detailed, thoroughly researched book.... Lazenby expertly sifts through the myths to produce a definitive portrait of Michael Jordan. Bob DAngelo, Tampa TribuneRight from its early pages its clear that Roland Lazenbys biography of Michael Jordan is in full-press mode to be the best volume ever written on perhaps basketballs greatest player.... Lazenbys a born researcher and some serious legwork went into gathering all of the quotes and facts here, which add up to a kind of Jordan-centric encyclopedia. Colin Fleming, The Boston GlobeLazenbys thoroughly enjoyable biography is an impressive portrait of a man consumed by his competitive ambitions. It is also by far the most complete book on Michael Jordan to date.... Essential reading for all sports fans and particularly for those interested in American cultural history and popular culture. Library Journal (starred review)A lot has been written about arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan, but Roland Lazenbys Michael Jordan: The Life is easily the definitive version. The journalist has covered Jor...

-Titulo Original : A Supposedly Fun Thing Ill Never Do Again Essays And Arguments-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: These widely acclaimed essays from the author of Infinite Jest -- on television, tennis, cruise ships, and more -- established David Foster Wallace as one of the preeminent essayists of his generation. In this exuberantly praised book -- a collection of seven pieces on subjects ranging from television to tennis, from the Illinois State Fair to the films of David Lynch, from postmodern literary theory to the supposed fun of traveling aboard a Caribbean luxury cruiseliner -- David Foster Wallace brings to nonfiction the same curiosity, hilarity, and exhilarating verbal facility that has delighted readers of his fiction, including the bestselling Infinite Jest. About the Author David Foster Wallace was born in Ithaca, New York, in 1962 and raised in Illinois, where he was a regionally ranked junior tennis player. He received bachelor of arts degrees in philosophy and English from Amherst College and wrote what would become his first novel, The Broom of the System, as his senior English thesis. He received a masters of fine arts from University of Arizona in 1987 and briefly pursued graduate work in philosophy at Harvard University. His second novel, Infinite Jest, was published in 1996. Wallace taught creative writing at Emerson College, Illinois State University, and Pomona College, and published the story collections Girl with Curious Hair, Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, Oblivion, the essay collections A Supposedly Fun Thing Ill Never Do Again, and Consider the Lobster. He was awarded the MacArthur Fellowship, a Lannan Literary Award, and a Whiting Writers Award, and was appointed to the Usage Panel for The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. He died in 2008. His last novel, The Pale King, was published in 2011...

-Titulo Original : An Unfinished Life John F. Kennedy, 1917 - 1963-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: Drawing on previously unavailable material and never-before-opened archives, An Unfinished Life is packed with revelations large and small -- about JFKs health, his love affairs, RFKs appointment as Attorney General, what Joseph Kennedy did to help his son win the White House, and the path JFK would have taken in the Vietnam entanglement had he survived. Robert Dallek succeeds as no other biographer has done in striking a critical balance -- never shying away from JFKs weaknesses, brilliantly exploring his strengths -- as he offers up a vivid portrait of a bold, brave, complex, heroic, human Kennedy. Review Comprehensive, judicious, evenhanded, original. An Unfinished Life has the sober judgment and nuanced accuracy that make it ring true in all the controversial and tricky parts. Jack Newfield, Los Angeles TimesAn intimate portrait indeed . . . unexpected and important. . . . This is nothing if not a profile in courage. Ted Widmer, New York Times Book ReviewIts hard to believe that someone could find anything new to say about John F. Kennedy, but Dallek succeeds in this riveting and well-documented biography. The New YorkerOne of the most engrossing biographies I have ever read. . . . An Unfinished Life is nothing less than a masterpiece. David Herbert Donald, author of LincolnNeither debunking nor further mythologizing, Dallek fashions a balanced but fast-paced tale of sex and power that scribes from Shakespeare to Jacqueline Susann would have killed for. Steve Dougherty, People About the Author Robert Dallek is one of the most highly regarded historians in America today and the author of more than a dozen books, including Nixon and Kissinger and his two-volume biography of Lyndon Johnson, Lone Star Rising and Flawed Giant. Currently a faculty member at Stanford Universitys prestigious Washington program, he has also taught at Boston University, Columbia University, UCLA and Oxford...

-Titulo Original : American Caesar Douglas Macarthur 1880 - 1964-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The bestselling classic that indelibly captures the life and times of one of the most brilliant and controversial military figures of the twentieth century.Electric...Tense with the feeling that this is the authentic MacArthur...Splendid reading. -- New York Times Inspiring, outrageous... A thundering paradox of a man. Douglas MacArthur, one of only five men in history to have achieved the rank of General of the United States Army. He served in World Wars I, II, and the Korean War, and is famous for stating that in war, there is no substitute for victory. American Caesar examines the exemplary army career, the stunning successes (and lapses) on the battlefield, and the turbulent private life of the soldier-hero whose mystery and appeal created a uniquely American legend. About the Author William Manchester was a hugely successful popular historian and biographer whose books include The Last Lion, Volumes 1 and 2, Goodbye Darkness, A World Lit Only by Fire, The Glory and the Dream, The Arms of Krupp, American Caesar, The Death of the President, and assorted works of journalism...

-Titulo Original : West By West-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The honest and powerful autobiography from basketball legend Jerry West is a must-read for fans of the game. He is one of basketballs towering figures: Mr. Clutch, who mesmerized his opponents and fans. The coach who began the Lakers resurgence in the 1970s. The general manager who helped bring Showtime to Los Angeles, creating a championship-winning force that continues to this day. Now, for the first time, the legendary Jerry West tells his story -- from his tough childhood in West Virginia, to his unbelievable college success at West Virginia University, his 40-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers, and his relationships with NBA legends like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Shaquille ONeal, and Kobe Bryant. Unsparing in its self-assessment and honesty, West by West is far more than a sports memoir: it is a profound confession and a magnificent inspiration. Review Anyone who follows basketball knows that Jerry West was a supreme athlete and a brilliant general manager. What I did not know until reading this powerful book was just how complex he is. West by West is a rounded, honest and moving exploration not just of Wests life under the arena spotlights, but his passages through his darkest hours. With remarkable clarity and courage, West explores his flaws and ghosts, his glory on the court and his struggles off. Paralyzed and haunted by his childhood, this was a superstar who, at the top of his game, could not escape the feeling that he belonged at the bottom. Few would have the courage to look so deeply into the mirror, but in this exceptional book, West has done so. Gay Talese, author of A Writers LifeHis silhouette image has long been the NBAs logo-a fitting symbol for a revered, enigmatic, and deeply private sports icon. But in this book, with unflinching candor and in remarkable detail, Jerry West emerges proudly and boldly from the shadows of his own life. James S. Hirsch, author of Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend...Fascinating-its like West taking Tony Sopranos chair in Dr. Melfis office, and explaining every detail of the most famous career in NBA player-exec history (but with a moral barometer)...If you are Warriors fan, a general NBA fan, or any kind of sports fan, Id tell you to read this book when it comes out to fully appreciate the totality of the legend and reality and to know that the reality at times exceeds the legend. Tim Kawakami, The San Jose Mercury NewsHardcore fans will relish Wests reflections on the game that has obsessed him, stories about teammates and opposing players and his selections for an all-time Dream Game...In a genre notorious for merely waving pompoms, West offers an unusually candid account of his personal and professional life. Kirkus Reviews About the Author Jerry West is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time. After retiring from the Los Angeles Lakers in 1974, West went on to lead the team -- first as a coach, and then as the general manager. He lives in California and West Virginia. Jonathan Coleman is the bestselling author of Exit the Rainmaker, At Mothers Request, and Long Way to Go. He is a former producer and correspondent with CBS News. He lives in Charlottesville, Virginia...

-Titulo Original : One Long River Of Song Notes On Wonder-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: From a born storyteller (Seattle Times), this playful and moving bestselling book of essays invites us into the miraculous and transcendent moments of everyday life.When Brian Doyle passed away at the age of sixty after a bout with brain cancer, he left behind a cult-like following of devoted readers who regard his writing as one of the best-kept secrets of the twenty-first century. Doyle writes with a delightful sense of wonder about the sanctity of everyday things, and about love and connection in all their forms: spiritual love, brotherly love, romantic love, and even the love of a nine-foot sturgeon.At a moment when the world can sometimes feel darker than ever, Doyles writing, which constantly evokes the humor and even bliss that life affords, is a balm. His essays manage to find, again and again, exquisite beauty in the quotidian, whether its the awe of a child the first time she hears a river, or a husbands whiskers that a grieving widow misses seeing in her sink every morning. Through Doyles eyes, nothing is dull.David James Duncan sums up Doyles sensibilities best in his introduction to the collection: Brian Doyle lived the pleasure of bearing daily witness to quiet glories hidden in people, places and creatures of little or no size, renown, or commercial value, and he brought inimitably playful or soaring or aching or heartfelt language to his tellings. A lifes work, One Long River of Song invites readers to experience joy and wonder in ordinary moments that become, under Doyles rapturous and exuberant gaze, extraordinary. Review Astonishing... gorgeous... Doyle was a writer made of love and song and amusement. Every living thing intrigued him and was worthy of his powerful capacity for study and his equally powerful capacity for celebration. Margaret Renkl, New York TimesBrian Doyle took on the everyday and he suffused it, every last drop of it, with a redefining soulfulness... This posthumous collection will leave you marveling and wiping away the occasional tear. Certainly you will spill ink on its pages---starring and underlining, sprinkling exclamations up and down the margins... Over and over, Doyles musings are canticles of joy, punctuated with occasional double-shots of heartbreak and humility. Its the textured layering, the leap from shadow to light, that keeps the reader alert, and ever absorbing. Always, emphatically, there comes wisdom; its a signature move, one you can count on. Have your pens aimed and ready. Its a gospel of the ordinary, the shoved-aside, the otherwise overlooked. And at the heart of it, that ineffable and necessary unction, a holiness you can all but hold in your palms. Barbara Mahany, Chicago TribuneA final collection of Doyles lyrical, sometimes mystical pieces about life and its gifts. Doyle often used his Catholicism to explore the human and natural worlds, but this is perhaps the most generous, universal religious writing youll ever read. Bethanne Patrick, Washington PostBoth ecstatic and sober...This posthumous collection dances on the edge of mortality, tossing out exaltations and questions, and offering a fresh, playful, slant on spiritual writing...a celebration of life, love, and waking each day. Jane Ciabattari, BBCThe first pleasure of reading Doyle lies in being swept away by the deft melding of his two most distinctive qualities, his sentences and his sensibility. How he loved sentences. And how he loved the world. Form and content never fit more hand in glove...I dont know a writer who more reliably or with such seeming ease plucks genuine epiphanies fresh from the ether. The ubiquity of these is testament to Doyles craft or, perhaps, the quality of his attention...One Long River of Song demonstrates what Doyles writing has always demonstrated, that when you find the courage to pay attention and be open to love, you can trust that doing your chosen work with creativity and diligence will shiver people...

-Titulo Original : The Rival Queens Catherine De Medici, Her Daughter Marguerite De Valois, And The Betrayal That Ignited A Kingdom-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The riveting true story of mother-and-daughter queens Catherine de Medici and Marguerite de Valois, whose wildly divergent personalities and turbulent relationship changed the shape of their tempestuous and dangerous century. Set in magnificent Renaissance France, this is the story of two remarkable women, a mother and daughter driven into opposition by a terrible betrayal that threatened to destroy the realm. Catherine de Medici was a ruthless pragmatist and powerbroker who dominated the throne for thirty years. Her youngest daughter Marguerite, the glamorous Queen Margot, was a passionate free spirit, the only adversary whom her mother could neither intimidate nor control. When Catherine forces the Catholic Marguerite to marry her Protestant cousin Henry of Navarre against her will, and then uses her opulent Parisian wedding as a means of luring his followers to their deaths, she creates not only savage conflict within France but also a potent rival within her own family. Rich in detail and vivid prose, Goldstones narrative unfolds as a thrilling historical epic. Treacherous court politics, poisonings, international espionage, and adultery form the background to a story that includes such celebrated figures as Elizabeth I, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Nostradamus. The Rival Queens is a dangerous tale of love, betrayal, ambition, and the true nature of courage, the echoes of which still resonate. Review A highly dramatic dual biography.... If serious history readers believe that Tudor England is the only place where family and religious conflict at the highest level makes riveting reading matter, those folks need to take a close look across the English Channel and see what was transpiring at the same time in the French court.... The French contemporary to Elizabeth I was Queen Catherine de Medici, widow of King Henri II and mother to three kings after him.... Tudor struggles pale in comparison! Read this along with Antonia Frasers classic Mary Queen of Scots. Brad Hooper, Booklist (Starred Review) This is a story of espionage, assassination, intrigue, and chicanery but also one that poignantly reminds readers of the vulnerabilities faced by women of the age....Readers are sure to be captivated by the lush details of these womens lives. Library JournalGoldstones witty comments make this historical family drama as easy to read as the best fiction, but its all the more tragic for being true.... Goldstone upends conventional thought with this well-researched and well-written book. Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)A thrilling tale packed with historical details and shocking revelations. Nancy Goldstone writes with cinematic clarity and eloquently brings to life two indomitable women whose ambitions changed the course of European history. Ivana Lowell, author of Why Not Say What Happened?Nancy Goldstone leads her reader with a very sure hand through the most dramatic events of Renaissance France. Her narrative is so gripping that The Rival Queens unfolds like a thriller. Anka Muhlstein, author of Monsieur Prousts LibraryThe Rival Queens is a gripping tale of royal feuds and divided kingdoms. Goldstone has lovingly restored the reputation of Marguerite de Valois; revealing her to be a woman of passion and drive whose fierce loyalties burned bright until the day she died. Amanda Foreman, author of A World on Fire and Georgiana[Goldstone] spins a tangled tale of rivalry, ambition, and, especially--for the rare women leaders of the time--sheer self-preservation...Goldstone has a remarkable handle on these often Byzantine royal machinations. History brought to vivid life in the characters of these women of purpose. Kirkus ReviewsPRAISE FOR THE MAID AND THE QUEEN:A dual biography of two fascinating medieval women with the descriptive energy of a novel. USA TodayAttention, Game of Thrones fans: The most enjoyably sensational aspects of medieval politics---double-crosses, ...

-Titulo Original : The Kingdom Of Speech-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: The maestro storyteller and reporter provocatively argues that what we think we know about speech and human evolution is wrong. Tom Wolfe, whose legend began in journalism, takes us on an eye-opening journey that is sure to arouse widespread debate. The Kingdom of Speech is a captivating, paradigm-shifting argument that speech -- not evolution -- is responsible for humanitys complex societies and achievements. From Alfred Russel Wallace, the Englishman who beat Darwin to the theory of natural selection but later renounced it, and through the controversial work of modern-day anthropologist Daniel Everett, who defies the current wisdom that language is hard-wired in humans, Wolfe examines the solemn, long-faced, laugh-out-loud zig-zags of Darwinism, old and Neo, and finds it irrelevant here in the Kingdom of Speech. Review Praise for The Kingdom of Speech:The authors own prose is, as ever, a marvelous mix of gleeful energy and whip-around-the-neck control, and his book is a gas to read. Charles C. Mann, Wall Street Journal....a hundred years from now, the one whose work will still be read - whose work will remain imperishable in the face of any new discoveries - is Wolfe. In the long game, the kingdom belongs to him. Caitlin Flanagan, New York Times Book ReviewTom Wolfe aims his unparalleled wit at evolution, arguing that complex language is the singular superpower that allows humans to rule the planet. Harpers BazaarThis being Tom Wolfe, the ponderous debate over language and evolution takes on a kind of pop-art pizzazz....A curiously entertaining little book. James Sullivan, Boston GlobeMr. Wolfe, now 85, shows no sign of mellowing. His new book, The Kingdom of Speech, is his boldest bit of dueling yet. Its a whooping, joy-filled and hyperbolic raid on, of all things, the theory of evolution....a provocation rather than a dissertation. The sound it makes is that of a lively mind having a very good time, and enjoying the scent of its own cold-brewed napalm in the morning. Dwight Garner, New York Times(Wolfes) trademark rich reporting is unmistakable throughout.... he brings to this academic debate the same irreverence and entertaining quality that lit up Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test.... Youll find here the same manic prose, the hip rhythms and cleverly crafted arguments of the genius Tom Wolfe. Which you must read. Don Oldenburg, USA TodayIn this mettlesome, slyly funny takedown, Wolfe spotlights two key scientific rivalries, each pitting a scrappy outsider against the academy....Wolfes pithy and stirring play-by-play coverage of compelling lives and demanding science transforms our perception of speech....As always, white-suited Wolfe will be all over the media...stirring things up and sending readers to the shelves. Donna Seaman, BooklistA fresh look at an old controversy, as a master provocateur suggests that human language renders the theory of evolution more like a fable than scientific fact....Wolfe throws a Molotov cocktail at conventional wisdom in a book that wont settle any argument but is sure to start some. Kirkus ReviewsIn lively, irreverent, and witty prose, Wolfe argues that speech, not evolution, sets humans apart from animals and is responsible for all of humankinds complex achievements....Wolfes vibrant study manages to be clever, funny, serious, satirical, and instructive. Publishers WeeklyWith his usual sharp wit and style, Wolfes return to his roots is a thrilling journey into the who, what, where, when, why, and how of speech that will undoubtedly provoke stimulating conversations. Library JournalWolfe, still a master at using language, is another claimant for the throne. The Kingdom of Speech is best read, then, with Wolfe not just as a narrator-historian but as a character. One who, after critiquing theorists who rule from insulated rooms, depicts himself in that exact setting for his books final vision. Nate Hopper, TimeStimula...

-Titulo Original : A Drinking Life-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: This bestselling memoir from a seasoned New York City reporter is a vivid report of a journey to the edge of self-destruction (New York Times). As a child during the Depression and World War II, Pete Hamill learned early that drinking was an essential part of being a man, inseparable from the rituals of celebration, mourning, friendship, romance, and religion. Only later did he discover its ability to destroy any writers most valuable tools: clarity, consciousness, memory. In A Drinking Life, Hamill explains how alcohol slowly became a part of his life, and how he ultimately left it behind. Along the way, he summons the mood of an America that is gone forever, with the bittersweet fondness of a lifelong New Yorker.Magnificent. A Drinking Life is about growing up and growing old, working and trying to work, within the culture of drink. --Boston Globe From the Back Cover Rugged prose and a rare attention to telling detail have long distinguished Pete Hamills unique brand of journalism and his universally well received fiction. Twenty years after his last drink, he examines the years he spent as a full-time member of the drinking culture. The result is A Drinking Life, a stirring and exhilarating memoir float is his most personal writing to date. The eldest son of Irish immigrants, Hamill learned from his Brooklyn upbringing during the Depression and World War II that drinking was an essential part of being a man; he only had to accompany his father up the street to the warm, amber-colored world of Gallaghers bar to see that drinking was what men did. It played a crucial role in mourning the death of relatives or the loss of a job, in celebrations of all kinds, even in religion. In the navy and the world of newspapers, he learned that bonds of friendship, romance, and professional camaraderie were sealed with drink. It was later that he discovered that drink had the power to destroy those very bonds and corrode any writers most valuable tools: clarity, consciousness, memory. It was almost too late when he left drinking behind forever. Neither sentimental nor self-righteous, this is a seasoned writers vivid portrait of the first four decades of his life and the slow, steady way that alcohol became an essential part of that life. Along the way, he summons the mood of a time and a place gone forever, with the bittersweet fondness of a lifetime New Yorker. It is his best work yet. About the Author Pete Hamill (1935-2020) was a novelist, journalist, editor, and screenwriter. He was the author of twenty-two books, including the bestselling novels Tabloid City, North River, Forever, and Snow in August, and the bestselling memoir A Drinking Life....

-Titulo Original : The Recovering Intoxication And Its Aftermath-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: From the New York Times bestselling author of The Empathy Exams comes this transformative work showing that sometimes the recovery is more gripping than the addiction. With its deeply personal and seamless blend of memoir, cultural history, literary criticism, and reportage, The Recovering turns our understanding of the traditional addiction narrative on its head, demonstrating that the story of recovery can be every bit as electrifying as the train wreck itself. Leslie Jamison deftly excavates the stories we tell about addiction -- both her own and others -- and examines what we want these stories to do and what happens when they fail us. All the while, she offers a fascinating look at the larger history of the recovery movement, and at the complicated bearing that race and class have on our understanding of who is criminal and who is ill. At the heart of the book is Jamisons ongoing conversation with literary and artistic geniuses whose lives and works were shaped by alcoholism and substance dependence, including John Berryman, Jean Rhys, Billie Holiday, Raymond Carver, Denis Johnson, and David Foster Wallace, as well as brilliant lesser-known figures such as George Cain, lost to obscurity but newly illuminated here. Through its unvarnished relation of Jamisons own ordeals, The Recovering also becomes a book about a different kind of dependency: the way our desires can make us all, as she puts it, broken spigots of need. Its about the particular loneliness of the human experience-the craving for love that both devours us and shapes who we are. For her striking language and piercing observations, Jamison has been compared to such iconic writers as Joan Didion and Susan Sontag, yet her utterly singular voice also offers something new. With enormous empathy and wisdom, Jamison has given us nothing less than the story of addiction and recovery in America writ large, a definitive and revelatory account that will resonate for years to come. Review An astounding triumph...A recovery memoir like no other...Jamison is a writer of prodigious ambition...Here, shes a bare-it-all memoirist, an astute critic, and a diligent archivist all in one. The book knows no bounds, building in depth and vitality with each passing concern...Theres something profound at work here, a truth about how we grow into ourselves that rings achingly wise and burrows painfully deep. David Canfield, Entertainment Weekly (A)A sprawling, compelling, fiercely ambitious book...Its publication represents the most significant new addition to the canon in more than a decade...Jamisons writing throughout is spectacularly evocative and sensuous...She thinks with elegant precision, cutting through the whiskey-soaked myths...Jamison is interested in something else: the possibility that sobriety can form its own kind of legend, no less electric, and more generative in the end. Sophie Gilbert, The AtlanticMasterful...beautifully honest...Essential reading...The most comprehensive study of the relationship between writing and alcohol that I have read, or know about...The prose is clean and clear and a pleasure to read, utterly without pretension. Although the subject is dark, Jamison has managed to write an often very funny page turner...In short, The Recovering is terrific, and if youre interested in the relationship between artists and addiction, you must read it. Clancy Martin, BookforumMagnificent and genuinely moving. This is that rare addiction memoir that gets better after sobriety takes hold. Dwight Garner, New York TimesA remarkable feat...Jamison is a bracingly smart writer; her sentences wind and snake, at turns breathless and tense...Instead of solving the mystery of why she drank, she does something worthier, digging underneath the big emptiness that lives inside every addict to find something profound. Sam Lansky, TimeRiveting...Jamison orchestrates a multi-voiced, universal song of lack, shame, surrende...

-Titulo Original : Theft By Finding Diaries (1977-2002)-Fabricante : Back Bay Books-Descripcion Original: One of the most anticipated books of 2017: Boston Globe, New York Times Book Review, New Yorks Vulture, The Week, Bustle, BookRiotAn NPR Best Book of 2017An AV Club Favorite Book of 2017A Barnes & Noble Best Book of 2017A Goodreads Choice Awards nomineeDavid Sedaris tells all in a book that is, literally, a lifetime in the making.For forty years, David Sedaris has kept a diary in which he records everything that captures his attention-overheard comments, salacious gossip, soap opera plot twists, secrets confided by total strangers. These observations are the source code for his finest work, and through them he has honed his cunning, surprising sentences.Now, Sedaris shares his private writings with the world. Theft by Finding, the first of two volumes, is the story of how a drug-abusing dropout with a weakness for the International House of Pancakes and a chronic inability to hold down a real job became one of the funniest people on the planet.Written with a sharp eye and ear for the bizarre, the beautiful, and the uncomfortable, and with a generosity of spirit that even a misanthropic sense of humor cant fully disguise, Theft By Finding proves that Sedaris is one of our great modern observers. Its a potent reminder that when youre as perceptive and curious as Sedaris, theres no such thing as a boring day. Review PRAISE FOR THEFT BY FINDING: Starve and Struggle. Feast. Bloat. These are the three stages that all artists - with some variation - go through in their careers...So its encouraging to read 25 years of David Sedariss diaries, and not just because he manages to defeat Bloat. Its helpful to see that a voice as original, hilarious and sometimes as infuriating as his was put through the same Struggle and Starve meat grinder that most of us go through...No one escapes Bloat, but many survive it. Maybe not with the grace, whining, hilarity and eye-rolling that Sedaris does. But through all 25 years of Theft by Finding - of soap opera addictions and spider feeding, family kookiness and language lessons - Sedariss developing voice is the lifeline that pulls him through the murk. Patton Oswalt, New York Times Book ReviewIf its hard to be funny, its an astounding feat to stay funny--wildly, wickedly, ingeniously so--for more than twenty years. Yet David Sedaris has somehow pulled it off, in exhilarating essays that zero in on the absurd and the poignant with eviscerating wit and radiant humanity....Fans will no doubt delight in the entries that will turn into Sedariss most beloved essays...Were treated to a portrait of the artist as a young man, albeit one with an old and singular soul. Fiona Maazel, O, The Oprah MagazineA standout... Whether hes in an IHOP in Raleigh or his apartment in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, his eye for the absurd and the vulgar is infallible and his deadpan prose style inimitable...Here, the relatively artless diary entries, short and long, sequenced and non sequitur, add up to something weve never gotten before--a big, juicy narrative arc. It comprises 25 years of an essentially heartwarming success story, any potential ickiness kept in check by Sedariss judicious minimalism. Marion Winik, NewsdayMesmerizing... Delightful... Sedaris describes the world around him... the vast and splendid array of human life that can be observed at IHOP, or the vagaries of fruit picking... Reading Theft by Finding is like watching a favorite play from behind the scenes, in the company of a friend who can identify what is absurd and heartbreaking and human about every person on stage. Annalisa Quinn, NPRSedaris, a master of incisive and comic cultural criticism, is about to get more personal than ever...Theft by Finding reveals intimate details of this literary luminarys life and mind--all told with his singular sense of humor. Harpers BazaarSedaris fans will thrill to this opportunity to poke around in the writers personal diaries, which he has f...