Products

Since World War II, abortion policies have remained remarkably varied across European nations, with struggles over abortion rights at the forefront of national politics. This volume analyses European abortion governance and explores how social movements, political groups, and individuals use protests and resistance to influence abortion policy. Drawing on case studies from Italy, Spain, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the European Union, it analyses the strategies and discourses of groups seeking to liberalise or restrict reproductive rights. It also illuminates the ways that reproductive rights politics intersect with demographic anxieties, as well as the rising nationalisms and xenophobia related to austerity policies, mass migration and the recent terrorist attacks in Europe. 

Since World War II, abortion policies have remained remarkably varied across European nations, with struggles over abortion rights at the forefront of national politics. This volume analyses European abortion governance and explores how social movements, political groups, and individuals use protests and resistance to influence abortion policy. Drawing on case studies from Italy, Spain, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the European Union, it analyses the strategies and discourses of groups seeking to liberalise or restrict reproductive rights. It also illuminates the ways that reproductive rights politics intersect with demographic anxieties, as well as the rising nationalisms and xenophobia related to austerity policies, mass migration and the recent terrorist attacks in Europe. 

A Framework for Geodesign: Changing Geography by Design presents the key concepts, history, and methodology of geodesign. As an idea, geodesign has the potential to enable more effective and symbiotic collaboration among the several design professions, geographically-oriented sciences, information technologists, and people impacted by change (“the people of the place”) when all of these groups aim to influence major environmental and social change for the better. According to author Carl Steinitz, this collaboration is essential.

Steinitz’s framework, described here in detail, can contribute to that goal. It is clear that for serious societal and environmental issues, designing for change cannot be a solitary activity. It inevitably is a team endeavor with many participants from the design professions and geographic sciences, linked by technology from several locations for rapid communication and feedback, and reliant on transparent communication with the people affected by change. These demands create opportunities for geodesign and the need for organizing that collaboration.

Part I of the book is about the necessary but sometimes difficult collaboration between designers and scientists, and also focuses on key aspects of study areas, scale, and size which influence how geodesign is organized and carried out. Part II presents Steinitz’s framework and addresses six key questions, and their related types of models, which must be integrated in geodesign. Part III features nine case studies that illustrate different ways of designing for change, while Part IV explores the future of geodesign in research, education, and practice.

A Framework for Geodesign ooks mostly to the future, with a primary intention of helping the collaborating participants to achieve, in the words of the author, “practical benefits from geodesign.”

The Strategic Entrepreneurial Journey: A Parable for Making the Right Decisions on Finances and Taxes for Every Stage of the Life Cycle.

The entrepreneurial path is full of excitement—and risk. The stakes are high, and while it may seem like the sky is the limit, there are no guarantees. Businesses are prone to steep financial and tax challenges. Failure to address these issues could lead to drained accounts, mountains of debt, and doors closing.

Mitigating these risks and maximizing services that lead to smart business decisions have the potential to do more than help an entrepreneur sleep at night; they can lay out a solid direction for both the company and the entrepreneur. Planning is key for every entrepreneur, regardless of where they are on their journey. Making the most of the accounting, tax, and financial tools available can bring benefits for startups, growing companies, and those preparing for an exit. Reviewing models and working with experts can enable entrepreneurs to avoid unwanted financial surprises in both their business and personal lives.

In A Framework for Growth, author Robert Cordasco offers real-life, relatable scenarios to help entrepreneurs understand the smart approach to take when moving through their own business life cycles. By utilizing the right framework and anticipating future needs, a pathway can be laid that leads to success at every level.

Learning in the flow of work via immersive learning is the best way for talent development professionals to meet employees where they are and equip them with the knowledge to thrive in their roles. This guide illuminates what it takes to identify, define, market, design, deploy, and sustain a robust immersive learning (XR) initiative. In this issue of TD at Work, Phoenix R. Cavalier describes how to:

• Establish a framework to get started with XR.
• Consider the partners to include.
• Think critically about the benefits of XR.
• Describe clear differences between simple and complex XR designs.
• Craft a concise impact statement.

The Tools & Resources in this issue are a Tracking Tools for Immersive Learning Use Case Checklist and an Immersive Learning Project Framework.

Timely and important revised edition of a significant, influential classic text which is still peerless in the field.

This new edition builds on Jane Willis’s classic textbook to reflect the changing needs and priorities of language teachers in today’s classrooms. The book has been revised and expanded to reflect the widespread use of technology and the internet in language classrooms, as well as recent debates and developments in research on language learning.

The book maintains the practical focus that has made the first edition of the book the leading resource on implementing Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) for over 30 years. Readers will find practical examples of task-based sequences and form focus activities for all levels, including beginners, that can be used in their own classrooms. It gives an integrated picture of TBLT that addresses the reasons for using this increasingly popular pedagogy, as well as addressing and suggesting solutions for potential difficulties.

Timely and important revised edition of a significant, influential classic text which is still peerless in the field.

This new edition builds on Jane Willis’s classic textbook to reflect the changing needs and priorities of language teachers in today’s classrooms. The book has been revised and expanded to reflect the widespread use of technology and the internet in language classrooms, as well as recent debates and developments in research on language learning.

The book maintains the practical focus that has made the first edition of the book the leading resource on implementing Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) for over 30 years. Readers will find practical examples of task-based sequences and form focus activities for all levels, including beginners, that can be used in their own classrooms. It gives an integrated picture of TBLT that addresses the reasons for using this increasingly popular pedagogy, as well as addressing and suggesting solutions for potential difficulties.

While the Civil Rights Movement is remembered for efforts to end segregation and secure the rights of African Americans, the larger economic vision that animated much of the movement is often overlooked today. That vision sought economic justice for every person in the United States, regardless of race. It favored production for social use instead of profit; social ownership; and democratic control over major economic decisions. The document that best captured this vision was the Freedom Budget for All Americans: Budgeting Our Resources, 1966-1975, To Achieve Freedom from Want published by the A. Philip Randolph Institute and endorsed by a virtual ‘who’s who’ of U.S. left liberalism and radicalism.

Now, two of today’s leading socialist thinkers return to the Freedom Budget and its program for economic justice. Paul Le Blanc and Michael D. Yates explain the origins of the Freedom Budget, how it sought to achieve “freedom from want” for all people, and how it might be reimagined for our current moment. Combining historical perspective with clear-sighted economic proposals, the authors make a concrete case for reviving the spirit of the Civil Rights Movement and building the society of economic security and democratic control envisioned by the movement’s leaders—a struggle that continues to this day.

While the Civil Rights Movement is remembered for efforts to end segregation and secure the rights of African Americans, the larger economic vision that animated much of the movement is often overlooked today. That vision sought economic justice for every person in the United States, regardless of race. It favored production for social use instead of profit; social ownership; and democratic control over major economic decisions. The document that best captured this vision was the Freedom Budget for All Americans: Budgeting Our Resources, 1966-1975, To Achieve Freedom from Want published by the A. Philip Randolph Institute and endorsed by a virtual ‘who’s who’ of U.S. left liberalism and radicalism.

Now, two of today’s leading socialist thinkers return to the Freedom Budget and its program for economic justice. Paul Le Blanc and Michael D. Yates explain the origins of the Freedom Budget, how it sought to achieve “freedom from want” for all people, and how it might be reimagined for our current moment. Combining historical perspective with clear-sighted economic proposals, the authors make a concrete case for reviving the spirit of the Civil Rights Movement and building the society of economic security and democratic control envisioned by the movement’s leaders—a struggle that continues to this day.

While the Civil Rights Movement is remembered for efforts to end segregation and secure the rights of African Americans, the larger economic vision that animated much of the movement is often overlooked today. That vision sought economic justice for every person in the United States, regardless of race. It favored production for social use instead of profit; social ownership; and democratic control over major economic decisions. The document that best captured this vision was the Freedom Budget for All Americans: Budgeting Our Resources, 1966-1975, To Achieve Freedom from Want published by the A. Philip Randolph Institute and endorsed by a virtual ‘who’s who’ of U.S. left liberalism and radicalism.

Now, two of today’s leading socialist thinkers return to the Freedom Budget and its program for economic justice. Paul Le Blanc and Michael D. Yates explain the origins of the Freedom Budget, how it sought to achieve “freedom from want” for all people, and how it might be reimagined for our current moment. Combining historical perspective with clear-sighted economic proposals, the authors make a concrete case for reviving the spirit of the Civil Rights Movement and building the society of economic security and democratic control envisioned by the movement’s leaders—a struggle that continues to this day.

A Frenchwoman's advice for how women—and men—of a certain age can enjoy love, sex, and desire in their sixties and seventies and beyond.

With wit and a soupçon of irreverence, Marie de Hennezel shows that there is no age limit for erotic joy. Through interviews with countless older French women and men, de Hennezel uncovers a plethora of tips for enjoying a rich and satisfying sex life after age sixty. She suggests that perhaps the most important point is to have a positive self-image—to love yourself—and instead of worrying about wrinkles and other outward signs of aging, to cultivate an inner youthfulness, which, combined with a certain maturity, she says, can be sexier than youth all by itself. It is better to skip the plastic surgery and intense workouts at the gym and focus on sensuality, pleasure, and emotional intimacy instead.

Other tips for how to keep that certain je ne sais quoi include forgetting about sexual performance, shifting from thinking about the body you have (how it looks in the mirror) to focusing on the body you are (how it feels), and being able to surrender during love and sex. Bringing a sense of humor and a bit of playfulness to the boudoir doesn't hurt either.

A Frenchwoman's advice for how women—and men—of a certain age can enjoy love, sex, and desire in their sixties and seventies and beyond.

With wit and a soupçon of irreverence, Marie de Hennezel shows that there is no age limit for erotic joy. Through interviews with countless older French women and men, de Hennezel uncovers a plethora of tips for enjoying a rich and satisfying sex life after age sixty. She suggests that perhaps the most important point is to have a positive self-image—to love yourself—and instead of worrying about wrinkles and other outward signs of aging, to cultivate an inner youthfulness, which, combined with a certain maturity, she says, can be sexier than youth all by itself. It is better to skip the plastic surgery and intense workouts at the gym and focus on sensuality, pleasure, and emotional intimacy instead.

Other tips for how to keep that certain je ne sais quoi include forgetting about sexual performance, shifting from thinking about the body you have (how it looks in the mirror) to focusing on the body you are (how it feels), and being able to surrender during love and sex. Bringing a sense of humor and a bit of playfulness to the boudoir doesn't hurt either.

Eugénie Luce was a French schoolteacher who fled her husband and abandoned her family, migrating to Algeria in the early 1830s. By the mid-1840s she had become a major figure in debates around educational policies, insisting that women were a critical dimension of the French effort to effect a fusion of the races. To aid this fusion, she founded the first French school for Muslim girls in Algiers in 1845, which thrived until authorities cut off her funding in 1861. At this point, she switched from teaching spelling, grammar, and sewing, to embroidery—an endeavor that attracted the attention of prominent British feminists and gave her school a celebrated reputation for generations.

The portrait of this remarkable woman reveals the role of women and girls in the imperial projects of the time and sheds light on why they have disappeared from the historical record since then.

A nation under terrorist siege. A hero pushed to the brink. Justice hangs in the balance

In a gripping tale that mirrors recent contemporary struggles, a nation grapples with the resurgence of Islamist terror and the insidious influence of the Grid. As criminal waves strain law enforcement and austerity measures constrict resources, the Phoenix Series delivers a poignant exploration of resilience amidst multifaceted challenges.

As austerity measures tighten their grip on government resources, the very fabric of society begins to fray, exposing the vulnerabilities of a system pushed to its limits.

Ted Tayler's eleventh installment in The Phoenix series, A Frequent Peal Of Bells, masterfully captures the essence of our times, weaving a tapestry of contemporary political and economic tensions that will resonate with readers.

Perfect for fans of noir crime and terrorism thrillers, in the mould of Jack Reacher, Rex Dalton, and Jack Noble, the Phoenix Series continues to deliver justice in a world desperate for a hero.
_____________________________________________________________________________

Praise for The Phoenix Series:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Love the Phoenix series
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Good Fast Paced Read
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ A Delightful Run on Secret Justice!
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Good Book, excellent characters.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Thriller extraordinaire
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Slam bang action

In this companion to best-selling titles A Family Is a Family Is a Family and A Kid Is a Kid Is a Kid, a child explores how to make a friend.

When a child arrives at summer camp, they see a lot of other kids. Will any of them want to be their friend?

One by one, the kids share their thoughts on friendship. One child makes friends by asking questions, while another says you can be friends even if you don’t speak the same language! Listening to each other’s stories, liking the same things and showing kindness are among the many ways of being a friend. And in the end — whoever you are — the best way to make a friend is to be one!

Author Sara O’Leary and illustrator Qin Leng have created a delightful, heartfelt, inclusive book about making and being a friend — the final title in the Who We Are trilogy.

Key Text Features

dialogue

illustrations

speech bubbles

vignettes

Correlates to the Common Core States Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2

Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

Celebrate the natural world and with practical activities and ideas to help the wildlife and the environment on your doorstep and worldwide.

"This is my pledge, my promise, my vow,

Lasting forever, starting now:

I'll be a friend to nature."

Starting with a pledge in poetic form, this book is a call to arms for the next generation of peaceful eco warriors. Broken down into sections of activities, each lyrically relates back to the metaphor of being a friend to nature.

The activities themselves are short, easy, and fun, with a few more extensive projects mixed in. These are interspersed with nature quotes, poetry, and other thought-provoking musings, as well as pieces of simple non-fiction information, such as the life cycle of a frog, a butterfly, a cross section of a flowering plant, and why you should always wish on a dandelion clock.

The final section explores what nature can give back to us in turn; that if we look after the natural world, we will always have a friend in nature - a space to be calm, to pause and think, to recharge, to bring us joy, amusement, and health.

In a time of plague, fundamental questions become immediate and personal. The pandemic, droughts, floods, fire, political violence: the world has been grimly reminded of the proximity and inevitability of death. Jack Miles and Mark C. Taylor—acclaimed public intellectuals and scholars of religion, one a Christian and the other an atheist, close friends for fifty years—have spent their lives grappling with questions of ultimate concern. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, locked down at home and facing an uncertain future, Miles and Taylor embarked on an extended conversation about living and dying in an imperiled world.

A Friendship in Twilight is their plague journal. In raw and searching letters, written daily from the first lockdowns through the Capitol riot, Miles and Taylor reflect on life during overlapping crises. Amid the menace of the pandemic and the unceasing political turmoil, they debate the lessons that a catastrophic present can teach about the future and how to read, think, live, and face up to death. Confronting the vulnerability of their aging bodies and the frailty of American democracy, the two friends discuss why and how philosophical reflection matters for a wounded world. Their conversations are imbued with an ever-present sense of urgency about the worth of a life, the fragility of existence, and the uncertainty of endings. Seamlessly moving from heartfelt emotion to philosophical speculation, current events to great art and literature, this book is a powerful and moving testament to the precarity of life and to enduring friendship.

In a time of plague, fundamental questions become immediate and personal. The pandemic, droughts, floods, fire, political violence: the world has been grimly reminded of the proximity and inevitability of death. Jack Miles and Mark C. Taylor—acclaimed public intellectuals and scholars of religion, one a Christian and the other an atheist, close friends for fifty years—have spent their lives grappling with questions of ultimate concern. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, locked down at home and facing an uncertain future, Miles and Taylor embarked on an extended conversation about living and dying in an imperiled world.

A Friendship in Twilight is their plague journal. In raw and searching letters, written daily from the first lockdowns through the Capitol riot, Miles and Taylor reflect on life during overlapping crises. Amid the menace of the pandemic and the unceasing political turmoil, they debate the lessons that a catastrophic present can teach about the future and how to read, think, live, and face up to death. Confronting the vulnerability of their aging bodies and the frailty of American democracy, the two friends discuss why and how philosophical reflection matters for a wounded world. Their conversations are imbued with an ever-present sense of urgency about the worth of a life, the fragility of existence, and the uncertainty of endings. Seamlessly moving from heartfelt emotion to philosophical speculation, current events to great art and literature, this book is a powerful and moving testament to the precarity of life and to enduring friendship.

Traditionally, funders expect evaluation to show that resources are being used wisely. But evaluation can be a much more powerful tool—for both funders and nonprofits. Forward-looking grantmakers and grantees are leveraging their evaluations, ensuring that the time and money spent ultimately improves effectiveness for everyone. This book shows how they're doing it.

A Funder's Guide to Evaluation: Leveraging Evaluation to Improve Nonprofit Effectiveness will help funders use evaluation to build the capacity of grantees. Inside, you'll learn

• How the "evaluative learning" approach furthers ongoing improvement via collaborative, stakeholder influenced evaluations
• How to bridge the differences in what funders and nonprofits need from evaluation
• How evaluation builds four critical capacities—leadership, adaptive capacity, management, and technical capacity 
• Seven steps a funder can take to build the evaluative learning capacity in nonprofits
• Thirteen specific evaluative learning strategies that funders can support 
  

Worksheets and assessment tools will help funders 1) assess their readiness to implement evaluative learning; 2) develop a logic model; 3) uncover grantees' current evaluation efforts and preparedness for evaluative learning; and 4) use resources wisely when selecting an evaluative learning support strategy. When the funding community supports evaluative learning, nonprofits and funders together can figure out how to strengthen programs, better allocate resources, and share successful models.

This paperback edition has been fully updated to include Shane’s final months and the response to his passing.

Punk protagonist, legendary drinker, Irish musical icon. This is the complete and extraordinary journey of the Pogues’ notorious frontman from outcast to national treasure.

A Furious Devotion vividly recounts the experiences that shaped the greatest songwriter of his generation, including the formative trips to his mother’s homestead in Tipperary and the explosion of punk which changed his life.

As well as exclusive interviews with Shane himself, author Richard Balls secured contributions from his wife and family, and people who have never spoken publicly about Shane before: close associates, former girlfriends and the English teacher who first spotted his literary gift. Nick Cave, Aidan Gillen, Cillian Murphy, Christy Moore and Sinead O’Connor are on the rollcall of those paying tribute to the gifted songwriter and poet.

This frank and extensive biography includes many previously unseen personal photographs.

Punk protagonist, legendary drinker, Irish musical icon. The complete and extraordinary journey of the Pogues’ notorious frontman from outcast to national treasure has never been told – until now. This revised and updated paperback edition includes Shane's final months and the response to his passing.

A Furious Devotion vividly recounts the experiences that shaped the greatest songwriter of his generation including the formative trips to his mother’s homestead in Tipperary and the explosion of punk which changed his life.

As well as exclusive interviews with Shane himself, author Richard Balls has secured contributions from his wife and family, and people who have never spoken publicly about Shane before: close associates, former girlfriends and the English teacher who first spotted his literary gift. Nick Cave, Aidan Gillen, Cillian Murphy, Christy Moore, Sinead O’Connor and Dermot O’Leary are on the rollcall of those paying tribute to the gifted songwriter and poet.

This frank and extensive biography also includes many previously unseen personal photographs.

Shakespeare’s two Venetian plays are dominated by the discourse of embarrassment. The Merchant of Venice is a comedy of embarrassment, and Othello is a tragedy of embarrassment. This nomenclature is admittedly anachronistic, because the term “embarrassment” didn’t enter the language until the late seventeenth century.

To embarrass is to make someone feel awkward or uncomfortable, humiliated or ashamed. Such feelings may respond to specific acts of criticism, blame, or accusation. “To embarrass” is literally to “embar”: to put up a barrier or deny access. The bar of embarrassment may be raised by unpleasant experiences. It may also be raised when people are denied access to things, persons, and states of being they desire or to which they feel entitled.

The Venetian plays represent embarrassment not merely as a condition but as a weapon and as the wound the weapon inflicts. Characters in The Merchant of Venice and Othello devote their energies to embarrassing one another. But even when the weapon is sheathed, it makes its presence felt, as when Desdemona means to praise Othello and express her love for him: “I saw Othello’s visage in his mind” (1.3.253). This suggests, among other things, that she didn’t see it in his face.

Shakespeare’s two Venetian plays are dominated by the discourse of embarrassment. The Merchant of Venice is a comedy of embarrassment, and Othello is a tragedy of embarrassment. This nomenclature is admittedly anachronistic, because the term “embarrassment” didn’t enter the language until the late seventeenth century.

To embarrass is to make someone feel awkward or uncomfortable, humiliated or ashamed. Such feelings may respond to specific acts of criticism, blame, or accusation. “To embarrass” is literally to “embar”: to put up a barrier or deny access. The bar of embarrassment may be raised by unpleasant experiences. It may also be raised when people are denied access to things, persons, and states of being they desire or to which they feel entitled.

The Venetian plays represent embarrassment not merely as a condition but as a weapon and as the wound the weapon inflicts. Characters in The Merchant of Venice and Othello devote their energies to embarrassing one another. But even when the weapon is sheathed, it makes its presence felt, as when Desdemona means to praise Othello and express her love for him: “I saw Othello’s visage in his mind” (1.3.253). This suggests, among other things, that she didn’t see it in his face.

Galileo’s O, Volume III, is perhaps without peer in the history of the book. In this work, historians in various fields revise the results they presented in the first two volumes, which focused on the New York copy of Sidereus Nuncius, written in 1610. The analysis of this book was conceived as a uniquely multidisciplinary and cooperative undertaking, and many of its findings remain valid. Yet the subject of analysis proved to be the work of an international group of forgers. Volume III describes the chronology and methods by which the discovery of forgery was made – a veritable watershed moment in the continuing struggle between the ever-more refined methods of forgers and new methods used to apprehend them. Ultimately, the work also provides insight into the psychology of specialists who “research themselves” in order to prevent similar errors in the future.

Be the first to own the DELUXE LIMITED EDITION! This premium collectible is a MUST-HAVE for any book collector. Available ONLY during this limited print run in the U.S. and Canada—don’t miss your chance to own this exclusive edition!

A Life-Changing Encounter with Magic, Romance, and Danger

Ethan is drowning in corporate burnout and heartache. Seeking escape, he retreats to the peaceful isolation of Parkfield, a quiet town in central California, hoping to heal. But his sabbatical takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious creature crashes into his front yard—Star, a being of pure magic, stranded in a world devoid of it.

With no memory of who—or what—she is, Star longs to become human. She forms a human body to live in and, with Ethan’s help, starts navigating this modern world. But the closer they get, the more their chemistry intensifies, leading to a heated pancake-making lesson and a flirtatious game of pool. As passion simmers, their fragile connection is put to the test when an ancient sea monster attacks their cabin, narrowly sparing their lives.

Suddenly, they find themselves trapped in a cosmic horror’s twisted game, with Star as the prey. As they flee, hunted by both mythical creatures and a shadowy secret society, Ethan and Star race toward San Francisco for answers. But time is running out. If they don’t survive, Star’s magic will be consumed by a brutal hunter, gaining unimaginable power.

Ethan faces an agonizing choice: run and protect the woman he loves, or fight against impossible odds to save her and stop an ancient evil from rising.

This paranormal romance blends magic, suspense, and high-stakes adventure in a heart-pounding journey of survival, love, and sacrifice. If you love fantasy with a dose of cosmic horror, intense chemistry, and supernatural creatures, this book is for you.

A Life-Changing Encounter with Magic, Romance, and Danger

Ethan is drowning in corporate burnout and heartache. Seeking escape, he retreats to the peaceful isolation of Parkfield, a quiet town in central California, hoping to heal. But his sabbatical takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious creature crashes into his front yard—Star, a being of pure magic, stranded in a world devoid of it.

With no memory of who—or what—she is, Star longs to become human. She forms a human body to live in and, with Ethan’s help, starts navigating this modern world. But the closer they get, the more their chemistry intensifies, leading to a heated pancake-making lesson and a flirtatious game of pool. As passion simmers, their fragile connection is put to the test when an ancient sea monster attacks their cabin, narrowly sparing their lives.

Suddenly, they find themselves trapped in a cosmic horror’s twisted game, with Star as the prey. As they flee, hunted by both mythical creatures and a shadowy secret society, Ethan and Star race toward San Francisco for answers. But time is running out. If they don’t survive, Star’s magic will be consumed by a brutal hunter, gaining unimaginable power.

Ethan faces an agonizing choice: run and protect the woman he loves, or fight against impossible odds to save her and stop an ancient evil from rising.

This paranormal romance blends magic, suspense, and high-stakes adventure in a heart-pounding journey of survival, love, and sacrifice. If you love fantasy with a dose of cosmic horror, intense chemistry, and supernatural creatures, this book is for you.

It’a well-known fact: Life isn’t easy.

Most men have overcome obstacles in their work and family life over the years. And then they reach their “golden years.” But what’s golden about them? Their health may be failing. They may have lost loved ones. Sex isn’t the same. Money’s tight. What’s left? Death?

What does a man need to do to make these years truly golden? It’s the fourth quarter. Can they still be a winner and enjoy life?

In their later years, many men start thinking about heaven, even if God hasn’t figured much in their lives up to that point. It’s the perfect time for a spiritual awakening. In A Game Plan for the Fourth Quarter, Loren VanGalder explores the internal and external struggles of men in their later years and shares stories about old men of the Bible. He delves into what God has in store for elderly men right now.

There’s hope! There’s a future! Make the most of it!

In pursuit of both knowledge and delight, the craft of botanical illustration has always required not only meticulous draftsmanship but also a rigorous scientific understanding. This new edition of a TASCHEN classic celebrates the botanical tradition and talents with a selection of outstanding works from the National Library of Vienna, including many new images.

From Byzantine manuscripts right through to 19th-century masterpieces, through peonies, callas, and chrysanthemums, these exquisite reproductions dazzle in their accuracy and their aesthetics. Whether in gently furled leaves, precisely textured fruits, or the sheer beauty and variety of colors, we celebrate an art form as tender as it is precise, and ever more resonant amid our growing awareness of our ecological surroundings and the preciousness of natural flora.

In pursuit of both knowledge and delight, the craft of botanical illustration has always required not only meticulous draftsmanship but also a rigorous scientific understanding. This new edition of a TASCHEN classic celebrates the botanical tradition and talents with a selection of outstanding works from the National Library of Vienna, including many new images. From Byzantine manuscripts right through to 19th-century masterpieces, through peonies, callas, and chrysanthemums, these exquisite reproductions dazzle in their accuracy and their aesthetics. Whether in gently furled leaves, precisely textured fruits, or the sheer beauty and variety of colors, we celebrate an art form as tender as it is precise, and ever more resonant amid our growing awareness of our ecological surroundings and the preciousness of natural flora.

In pursuit of both knowledge and delight, the craft of botanical illustration has always required not only meticulous draftsmanship but also a rigorous scientific understanding. This new edition of a TASCHEN classic celebrates the botanical tradition and talents with a selection of outstanding works from the National Library of Vienna, including many new images.

From Byzantine manuscripts right through to 19th-century masterpieces, through peonies, callas, and chrysanthemums, these exquisite reproductions dazzle in their accuracy and their aesthetics. Whether in gently furled leaves, precisely textured fruits, or the sheer beauty and variety of colors, we celebrate an art form as tender as it is precise, and ever more resonant amid our growing awareness of our ecological surroundings and the preciousness of natural flora.

In pursuit of both knowledge and delight, the craft of botanical illustration has always required not only meticulous draftsmanship but also a rigorous scientific understanding. This new edition of a TASCHEN classic celebrates the botanical tradition and talents with a selection of outstanding works from the National Library of Vienna, including many new images.

From Byzantine manuscripts right through to 19th-century masterpieces, through peonies, callas, and chrysanthemums, these exquisite reproductions dazzle in their accuracy and their aesthetics. Whether in gently furled leaves, precisely textured fruits, or the sheer beauty and variety of colors, we celebrate an art form as tender as it is precise, and ever more resonant amid our growing awareness of our ecological surroundings and the preciousness of natural flora.

A later-in-life romance of love lost, love found and the courage to begin again.

Amidst the sun-soaked vines of Provence, Elyse Belliveau's heart is torn between a new love and old promises.

One year ago, Elyse Belliveau’s world shattered when she tragically lost the man of her dreams. A pillar of strength at her family’s centuries-old winery in sun-soaked Provence, she vowed never to love again.

But fate has other plans. When an old friend confesses his undying devotion, and a mysterious stranger tempts her with a second chance at happiness, Elyse is caught off guard. Yet a mystery surrounds this stranger. Is he truly as wonderful as he seems?

As emotions she thought long buried resurface, Elyse finds herself at a crossroads. At fifty-eight, is she being foolish to risk her heart again, or is love worth the leap.

After all, is it ever too late for love?

A Garden of Promises is the second book in the captivating Chateau de Belliveau series. A heartwarming tale of love, loss and new beginnings set in the beautiful south of France.

Praise for the Chateau de Belliveau series:

★★★★★ A Garden of Promises is a delightful read and it’s nice to see a romance that is not about the heady ups and downs of young love.

★★★★★ I could not put this book down

★★★★★ I really did escape to Provence reading this book

★★★★★ A simple escapist romance

★★★★★ Loved this fun, fresh take on the traditional romantic heroine

★★★★★ Whether you are looking for a beach read, or a book to help you beat the January blues from some cold location, this book will be an excellent choice.

In this book, Patton E. Burchett offers a path-breaking genealogical study of devotional (bhakti) Hinduism that traces its understudied historical relationships with tantra, yoga, and Sufism. Beginning in India’s early medieval “Tantric Age” and reaching to the present day, Burchett focuses his analysis on the crucial shifts of the early modern period, when the rise of bhakti communities in North India transformed the religious landscape in ways that would profoundly affect the shape of modern-day Hinduism.

A Genealogy of Devotion illuminates the complex historical factors at play in the growth of bhakti in Sultanate and Mughal India through its pivotal interactions with Indic and Persianate traditions of asceticism, monasticism, politics, and literature. Shedding new light on the importance of Persian culture and popular Sufism in the history of devotional Hinduism, Burchett’s work explores the cultural encounters that reshaped early modern North Indian communities. Focusing on the Rāmānandī bhakti community and the tantric Nāth yogīs, Burchett describes the emergence of a new and Sufi-inflected devotional sensibility—an ethical, emotional, and aesthetic disposition—that was often critical of tantric and yogic religiosity. Early modern North Indian devotional critiques of tantric religiosity, he shows, prefigured colonial-era Orientalist depictions of bhakti as “religion” and tantra as “magic.” Providing a broad historical view of bhakti, tantra, and yoga while simultaneously challenging dominant scholarly conceptions of them, A Genealogy of Devotion offers a bold new narrative of the history of religion in India.

In early modern Korea, the Chosŏn state conducted an extermination campaign against the Kaesŏng Wang, descendants of the preceding Koryŏ dynasty. It was so thorough that most of today's descendants are related to a single survivor. Before long, however, the Chosŏn dynasty sought to bolster its legitimacy as the successor of Koryŏ by rehabilitating the surviving Wangs—granting them patronage for performing ancestral rites and even allowing them to attain prestigious offices. As a result, Koryŏ descendants came to constitute elite lineages throughout Korea. As members of the revived aristocratic descent group, they were committed to Confucian norms of loyalty to their ruler. The Chosŏn, in turn, increasingly honored Koryŏ legacies. As the state began to tolerate critical historical narratives, the early plight of the Wangs inspired popular accounts that engendered sympathy. Modern forces of imperialism, colonialism, nationalism, urbanization, industrialization, and immigration transformed the Kaesŏng Wang from the progeny of fallen royals to individuals from all walks of life. Eugene Y. Park draws on primary and secondary sources, interviews, and site visits to tell their extraordinary story. In so doing, he traces Korea's changing politics, society, and culture for more than half a millennium.

What is culture? The history of our discipline – whether we call it ethnology or social anthropology – shows that there is not a constant answer to this question or even a constant object of study. How can we search for a unifying answer to what makes us human even as we observe how immensely varied we are? And how can we explain that such difference is the very core of what makes us similarly human?

This book explores the idea of ethnography as a method for understanding cultural flow in particular contexts and suggests that anthropology can do its most important work by tracing the history of social formations. Nothing about culture is static, yet something best-called culture sustains itself over time. At the heart of anthropology is the attempt to understand the concept of culture, even as we continue to challenge its definition in our field.

 This short volume presents the Jensen Memorial Lectures delivered at the Frobenius Institute for Research in Cultural Anthropology at Goethe University, Frankfurt, in 2019. The lectures reflect on the current moment in – and the capacity of – contemporary anthropology to consider the discipline’s basic premises, through the lens of its classical thinkers. Through a set of four lectures and an introduction, this book takes up anthropology’s most basic question – the meaning of culture – and asks how it is that our unique method is able to elicit both fine-grained particularities about specific social orders and speak to the definition of that which makes us human.

As this book's title suggests, its main argument is that Thomas De Quincey's literary output, which is both a symptom and an effect of his addictions to opium and writing, plays an important and mostly unacknowledged role in the development of modern and modernist forms of subjectivity. At the same time, the book shows that intoxication, whether in the strict medical sense or in its less technical meaning ("strong excitement," "trance," "ecstasy"), is central to the ways in which modernity, and literary modernity in particular, functions and defines itself. In both its theoretical and practical implications, intoxication symbolizes and often comes to constitute the condition of the alienated artist in the age of the market. The book also offers new readings of the Confessions and some of De Quincey's posthumous writings, as well as an extended analysis of his relatively neglected diary. The discussion of De Quincey's work also elicits new insights into his relationship with William and Dorothy Wordsworth, as well as his imaginary investment in Coleridge.

Broad overall view, translated from Chinese

This volume analyses the history of Chinese art during the time of the Ming Dynasty during which the various traditions of painting academies were developed further leading to new painting styles and schools. The volume also highlights the developments in music, crafts, porcelain, and architecture. A General History of Chinese Art comprises six volumes with a total of nine parts spanning from the Prehistoric Era until the 3^rd year of Xuantong during the Qing Dynasty (1911). The work provides a comprehensive compilation of in-depth studies of the development of art throughout the subsequent reign of Chinese dynasties and explores the emergence of a wide range of artistic categories such as but not limited to music, dance, acrobatics, singing, story telling, painting, calligraphy, sculpture, architecture, and crafts. Unlike previous reference books, A General History of Chinese Art offers a broader overview of the notion of Chinese art by asserting a more diverse and less material understanding of arts, as has often been the case in Western scholarship.

Broad overall view, translated from Chinese

This volume explores the prehistoric beginnings of Chinese art and its development during the Xia, Shang, and Zhou Dynasties. It analyses the conditions of the emergence of Chinese art and its transformation of form, content and function throughout the Three Dynasties, a historical period marked by important changes in the social and cultural Chinese landscape.

A General History of Chinese Art comprises six volumes with a total of nine parts spanning from the Prehistoric Era until the 3^rd year of Xuantong during the Qing Dynasty (1911). The work provides a comprehensive compilation of in-depth studies of the development of art throughout the subsequent reign of Chinese dynasties and explores the emergence of a wide range of artistic categories such as but not limited to music, dance, acrobatics, singing, story telling, painting, calligraphy, sculpture, architecture, and crafts. Unlike previous reference books, A General History of Chinese Art offers a broader overview of the notion of Chinese art by asserting a more diverse and less material understanding of arts, as has often been the case in Western scholarship.

This volume investigates the artistic development during the Qing Dynasty, the last of imperial Chinese dynasties, and shows the importance of opera and playwriting during this time period. Further analysis is dedicated to the development of scroll painting and the revival of calligraphy and seal carving. A General History of Chinese Art comprises six volumes with a total of nine parts spanning from the Prehistoric Era until the 3^rd year of Xuantong during the Qing Dynasty (1911). The work provides a comprehensive compilation of in-depth studies of the development of art throughout the subsequent reign of Chinese dynasties and explores the emergence of a wide range of artistic categories such as but not limited to music, dance, acrobatics, singing, story telling, painting, calligraphy, sculpture, architecture, and crafts. Unlike previous reference books, A General History of Chinese Art offers a broader overview of the notion of Chinese art by asserting a more diverse and less material understanding of arts, as has often been the case in Western scholarship.

Broad overall view, translated from Chinese

This volume covers Chinese art during the reign of the Sui and Tang Dynasties during which the various disciplines of plastic and performing arts all entered a stage of unprecedented prosperity and development. It also traces new explorations in calligraphy, painting, and mural art and highlights architectural achievements during the historic period.

A General History of Chinese Art comprises six volumes with a total of nine parts spanning from the Prehistoric Era until the 3^rd year of Xuantong during the Qing Dynasty (1911). The work provides a comprehensive compilation of in-depth studies of the development of art throughout the subsequent reign of Chinese dynasties and explores the emergence of a wide range of artistic categories such as but not limited to music, dance, acrobatics, singing, story telling, painting, calligraphy, sculpture, architecture, and crafts. Unlike previous reference books, A General History of Chinese Art offers a broader overview of the notion of Chinese art by asserting a more diverse and less material understanding of arts, as has often been the case in Western scholarship.

Broad overall view, translated from Chinese

This volume studies the evolution of Chinese art during the Qin and Han Dynasties, The Three Kingdoms, Eastern and Western Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties. It traces the initial artistic vocabularies of Chinese calligraphy as well as the rapid development of the performing and the decorative arts.
A General History of Chinese Art comprises six volumes with a total of nine parts spanning from the Prehistoric Era until the 3^rd year of Xuantong during the Qing Dynasty (1911). The work provides a comprehensive compilation of in-depth studies of the development of art throughout the subsequent reign of Chinese dynasties and explores the emergence of a wide range of artistic categories such as but not limited to music, dance, acrobatics, singing, story telling, painting, calligraphy, sculpture, architecture, and crafts. Unlike previous reference books, A General History of Chinese Art offers a broader overview of the notion of Chinese art by asserting a more diverse and less material understanding of arts, as has often been the case in Western scholarship.

Broad overall view, translated from Chinese

By articulating a general theory of crime and related behavior, the authors present a new and comprehensive statement of what the criminological enterprise should be about. They argue that prevalent academic criminology—whether sociological, psychological, biological, or economic—has been unable to provide believable explanations of criminal behavior.

The long-discarded classical tradition in criminology was based on choice and free will, and saw crime as the natural consequence of unrestrained human tendencies to seek pleasure and to avoid pain. It concerned itself with the nature of crime and paid little attention to the criminal. The scientific, or disciplinary, tradition is based on causation and determinism, and has dominated twentieth-century criminology. It concerns itself with the nature of the criminal and pays little attention to the crime itself. Though the two traditions are considered incompatible, this book brings classical and modern criminology together by requiring that their conceptions be consistent with each other and with the results of research.

The authors explore the essential nature of crime, finding that scientific and popular conceptions of crime are misleading, and they assess the truth of disciplinary claims about crime, concluding that such claims are contrary to the nature of crime and, interestingly enough, to the data produced by the disciplines themselves. They then put forward their own theory of crime, which asserts that the essential element of criminality is the absence of self-control. Persons with high self-control consider the long-term consequences of their behavior; those with low self-control do not. Such control is learned, usually early in life, and once learned, is highly resistant to change.

In the remainder of the book, the authors apply their theory to the persistent problems of criminology. Why are men, adolescents, and minorities more likely than their counterparts to commit criminal acts? What is the role of the school in the causation of delinquincy? To what extent could crime be reduced by providing meaningful work? Why do some societies have much lower crime rates than others? Does white-collar crime require its own theory? Is there such a thing as organized crime? In all cases, the theory forces fundamental reconsideration of the conventional wisdom of academians and crimina justic practitioners. The authors conclude by exploring the implications of the theory for the future study and control of crime.

By articulating a general theory of crime and related behavior, the authors present a new and comprehensive statement of what the criminological enterprise should be about. They argue that prevalent academic criminology—whether sociological, psychological, biological, or economic—has been unable to provide believable explanations of criminal behavior.

The long-discarded classical tradition in criminology was based on choice and free will, and saw crime as the natural consequence of unrestrained human tendencies to seek pleasure and to avoid pain. It concerned itself with the nature of crime and paid little attention to the criminal. The scientific, or disciplinary, tradition is based on causation and determinism, and has dominated twentieth-century criminology. It concerns itself with the nature of the criminal and pays little attention to the crime itself. Though the two traditions are considered incompatible, this book brings classical and modern criminology together by requiring that their conceptions be consistent with each other and with the results of research.

The authors explore the essential nature of crime, finding that scientific and popular conceptions of crime are misleading, and they assess the truth of disciplinary claims about crime, concluding that such claims are contrary to the nature of crime and, interestingly enough, to the data produced by the disciplines themselves. They then put forward their own theory of crime, which asserts that the essential element of criminality is the absence of self-control. Persons with high self-control consider the long-term consequences of their behavior; those with low self-control do not. Such control is learned, usually early in life, and once learned, is highly resistant to change.

In the remainder of the book, the authors apply their theory to the persistent problems of criminology. Why are men, adolescents, and minorities more likely than their counterparts to commit criminal acts? What is the role of the school in the causation of delinquincy? To what extent could crime be reduced by providing meaningful work? Why do some societies have much lower crime rates than others? Does white-collar crime require its own theory? Is there such a thing as organized crime? In all cases, the theory forces fundamental reconsideration of the conventional wisdom of academians and crimina justic practitioners. The authors conclude by exploring the implications of the theory for the future study and control of crime.

This innovative book addresses the historical development of social and fiscal policies from the late 1970s to the present day by asking what has changed, how these changes have affected the lifecourse and what the potential lifetime impacts of policy change are.

This book provides an overview of the development of policy change over the period and uses an innovative and unique lifetime approach "from the cradle to the grave" to put it into perspective.

The authors begin by reviewing the political changes and policy story since the 1970s and demonstrate the economic and social changes that have occurred alongside. The book then takes an innovative approach in looking at specific programmes about crucial aspects of the lifecycle - from maternity and childhood, through to adult events and risks before finally looking at retirement, survivorship and death. Finally, profiles of three hypothetical "families" - the Meades, who are median earners, the Moores, high earners and the Lowes who are low paid - are developed for 1979, 1997 and 2008 to provide a comprehensive discussion of policy change and make innovative insights for the future. 

This is the first book to join up the history of policy direction with an analysis of outcomes over the whole period. It will therefore be ideal for students of social policy and attract a wide readership interested in pensions, children's support and related issues.