Products

As long as we have been human, we have been mythmakers. In A Short History of Myth, Karen Armstrong holds up the mirror of mythology to show us the history of ourselves, and embarks on a journey that begins at a Neanderthal graveside and ends buried in the heart of the modern novel.

Surprising, powerful and profound, A Short History of Myth examines the world's most ancient art form - the making and telling of stories - and why we still need it.

The Myths series brings together some of the world's finest writers, each of whom has retold a myth in a contemporary and memorable way. Authors in the series include Karen Armstrong, Margaret Atwood, A.S. Byatt, David Grossman, Natsuo Kirino, Alexander McCall Smith, Philip Pullman, Ali Smith and Jeanette Winterson.

When first published in 1947, A Short History of Opera immediately achieved international status as a classic in the field. Now, more than five decades later, this thoroughly revised and expanded fourth edition informs and entertains opera lovers just as its predecessors have.

The fourth edition incorporates new scholarship that traces the most important developments in the evolution of musical drama. After surveying anticipations of the operatic form in the lyric theater of the Greeks, medieval dramatic music, and other forerunners, the book reveals the genre's beginnings in the seventeenth century and follows its progress to the present day.

A Short History of Opera examines not only the standard performance repertoire, but also works considered important for the genre's development. Its expanded scope investigates opera from Eastern European countries and Finland. The section on twentieth-century opera has been reorganized around national operatic traditions including a chapter devoted solely to opera in the United States, which incorporates material on the American musical and ties between classical opera and popular musical theater. A separate section on Chinese opera is also included.

With an extensive multilanguage bibliography, more than one hundred musical examples, and stage illustrations, this authoritative one-volume survey will be invaluable to students and serious opera buffs. New fans will also find it highly accessible and informative. Extremely thorough in its coverage, A Short History of Opera is now more than ever the book to turn to for anyone who wants to know about the history of this art form.

Paper has become the most common writing material worldwide in the course of a two millennia history. This study provides a magisterial synthesis of recent scholarship and original insights into the origins of papermaking and its subsequent history in imperial China, including a wide range of archaeological evidence and literary sources. The volume introduces the materials and technologies of paper production and presents the cultural history of paper in traditional China.

A comprehensive survey of literary sources on the production and use of paper is undertaken starting with the ongoing debate about the origin and genesis of paper, which was fuelled by recent archaeological discoveries of paper or proto-paper from the last two centuries BCE. In addition to its having become a popular writing material produced in many different qualities for both handwriting and printing, it also served as a material for wrapping or decorating, money and numerous uses in everyday life, such as umbrellas, windows, clothing, wallpapers, curtains and kites. Precious paper contributed to the aesthetics of calligraphy and painting, catering to the taste of the educated elite and artists.

"A splendid introduction to geology and paleontology for the lay reader. To compress Earth's history into a single, lucidly written volume is a major achievement." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Few people have both the knowledge and the writing ability to capture such a long and varied history in a compelling manner. In A Short History of Planet Earth, J.D. Macdougal demonstrates that he is one of the few." —Earth

This exhilarating survey of the four and half billion years of Earth's history charts both the geological and biological history of the planet. It moves from the origin of the earth's iron core to the formation of today's seven continents, and from the primordial building blocks of life to the evolution of the human form.

"A splendid introduction to geology and paleontology for the lay reader. To compress Earth's history into a single, lucidly written volume is a major achievement." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Few people have both the knowledge and the writing ability to capture such a long and varied history in a compelling manner. In A Short History of Planet Earth, J.D. Macdougal demonstrates that he is one of the few." —Earth

This exhilarating survey of the four and half billion years of Earth's history charts both the geological and biological history of the planet. It moves from the origin of the earth's iron core to the formation of today's seven continents, and from the primordial building blocks of life to the evolution of the human form.

Now more relevant than ever, Ronald Wright’s #1 national bestseller, A Short History of Progress. The fifteenth anniversary edition includes a new introduction warning of the accelerating patterns of progress and disaster.

Each time history repeats itself, so it’s said, the price goes up. The twentieth century was a time of runaway growth in human population, consumption, and technology, placing a colossal load on all natural systems, especially earth, air, and water — the very elements of life. The most urgent questions of the twenty-first century are: Where will this growth lead? Can it be consolidated or sustained? And what kind of world is our present bequeathing to our future?

In his #1 national bestseller A Short History of Progress Ronald Wright argues that our modern predicament is as old as civilization, a 10,000-year experiment we have participated in but seldom controlled. Only by understanding the patterns of triumph and disaster that humanity has repeated around the world since the Stone Age can we recognize the experiment’s inherent dangers, and, with luck and wisdom, shape its outcome. In his new introduction to the fifteenth anniversary edition, Wright looks at the past fifteen years of human innovation — and asks whether we can still get the future right.

Intellectually engaging and deliciously readable, a stereotype-defying history of how one of the most recognisable symbols of Italian cuisine and national identity is the product of centuries of encounters, dialogue, and exchange.

Is it possible to identify a starting point in history from which everything else unfolds—a single moment that can explain the present and reveal the essence of our identities? According to Massimo Montanari, this is just a myth: by themselves, origins explain very little and historical phenomena can only be understood dynamically—by looking at how events and identities develop and change as a result of encounters and combinations that are often unexpected.

As Montanari shows in this lively, brilliant, and surprising essay, all you need to debunk the “origins myth” is a plate of spaghetti. By tracing the history of the one of Italy’s “national dishes”—from Asia to America, from Africa to Europe; from the beginning of agriculture to the Middle Ages and up to the 20th century—he shows that in order to understand who we are (our identity) we almost always need to look beyond ourselves to other cultures, peoples, and traditions.

This book explores the history of literature as a history of changing media and modes of communication, from manuscript to print, from the codex to the computer, and from paper to digital platforms. It argues that literature has evolved, and continues to evolve, in sync with material forms and formats that engage our senses in multiple ways. Because literary experiences are embedded in, and enabled by, media, the book focuses on literature as a changing combination of material and immaterial features.

The principal agents of this history are no longer genres, authors, and texts but configurations of media and technologies. In telling the story of these combinations from prehistory to the present, Ingo Berensmeyer distinguishes between three successive dominants of media usage that have shaped literary history: performance, representation, and connection. Using English literature as a test case for a long view of media history, this book combines an unusual bird’s eye view across periods with illuminating readings of key texts. It will prove an invaluable resource for teaching and for independent study in English or comparative literature and media studies.

This book explores the history of literature as a history of changing media and modes of communication, from manuscript to print, from the codex to the computer, and from paper to digital platforms. It argues that literature has evolved, and continues to evolve, in sync with material forms and formats that engage our senses in multiple ways. Because literary experiences are embedded in, and enabled by, media, the book focuses on literature as a changing combination of material and immaterial features.

The principal agents of this history are no longer genres, authors, and texts but configurations of media and technologies. In telling the story of these combinations from prehistory to the present, Ingo Berensmeyer distinguishes between three successive dominants of media usage that have shaped literary history: performance, representation, and connection. Using English literature as a test case for a long view of media history, this book combines an unusual bird’s eye view across periods with illuminating readings of key texts. It will prove an invaluable resource for teaching and for independent study in English or comparative literature and media studies.

The summer of 1917 should have been a summer like any other. Stephen Robbins should have been doing the same thing he'd been doing for years past. As a young boy he'd fled his life in a secluded mountain cove and risen through the ranks to become the manager of the South's finest resort, the elegant Mountain Park Hotel. By all rights, he should have spent this summer as host to some of the wealthiest gentry on the East Coast. Hans Ruser, German Commodore of the world's largest and most luxurious cruise liner, Vaderland, should have been sailing yet again with his elite passengers to the far corners of the world. And Anna Ulmann, captivating and beautiful, should have been at home in her New York mansion planning yet another lavish dinner party for her famous husband and his rich and powerful friends. She should have idled away her spare time by taking perfectly staged photographic portraits of the very same people.

But war will change everything that should have been in that summer of 1917— the U.S. enters WWI and the Mountain Park Hotel is pressed into service as an internment camp for over 2,000 German nationals, including Ruser and his men. This sudden collision of lives and cultures in the small town of Hot Springs, North Carolina is both frightening and exhilarating. And the unlikely alliance that forms between Hans Ruser and Stephen Robbins will force each to decide just how far they are willing to go to keep peace in the beautiful and isolated mountains. Feisty Anna Ulmann, seeking to assert her independence in a male-dominated world, mysteriously flees south to devote her life to documentary photography. When she steps off the train at the Hot Springs depot one sultry summer day, she could not have imagined the passionate journey that will result when she matches wits with Stephen Robbins. Haunted by demons both past and present, they will face heartbreaking tragedy. Yet together they will discover the true meaning of imprisonment and escape.

The summer of 1917 should have been a summer like any other. 

Stephen Robbins should have been doing the same thing he'd been doing for years past. As a young boy he'd fled his life in a secluded mountain cove and risen through the ranks to become the manager of the South's finest resort, the elegant Mountain Park Hotel. By all rights, he should have spent this summer as host to some of the wealthiest gentry on the East Coast. Hans Ruser, German Commodore of the world's largest and most luxurious cruise liner, Vaderland, should have been sailing yet again with his elite passengers to the far corners of the world. And Anna Ulmann, captivating and beautiful, should have been at home in her New York mansion planning yet another lavish dinner party for her famous husband and his rich and powerful friends. She should have idled away her spare time by taking perfectly staged photographic portraits of the very same people.

But war will change everything that should have been in that summer of 1917— the U.S. enters WWI and the Mountain Park Hotel is pressed into service as an internment camp for over 2,000 German nationals, including Ruser and his men. This sudden collision of lives and cultures in the small town of Hot Springs, North Carolina is both frightening and exhilarating. And the unlikely alliance that forms between Hans Ruser and Stephen Robbins will force each to decide just how far they are willing to go to keep peace in the beautiful and isolated mountains. Feisty Anna Ulmann, seeking to assert her independence in a male-dominated world, mysteriously flees south to devote her life to documentary photography. When she steps off the train at the Hot Springs depot one sultry summer day, she could not have imagined the passionate journey that will result when she matches wits with Stephen Robbins. Haunted by demons both past and present, they will face heartbreaking tragedy. Yet together they will discover the true meaning of imprisonment and escape.

Author Oisín McGann explains Climate Change science, and encourages young people to be part of positive change by getting involved in the global movement to fight humanity’s biggest challenge. This book does not sugarcoat the current climate change crisis, but nor is it all doom and gloom. It gives young people a route to positive change, without putting too heavy a burden on their shoulders.

Relentless negative news stories about Climate Change are a source of anxiety for many young people, while others simply disengage from what seems like a hopeless situation. This book presents an optimistic, hopeful vision of a world engaged in a huge collective effort to build a better, more sustainable future for everyone. Published in collaboration with Friends of the Earth Ireland. Vegan inks, sustainably produced with all recycled materials and fully recyclable: this book is part of the solution.

Praise for Teresa Solana:

"Solana's excellent novel, set in the streets and parlors of Barcelona, offers both probing social commentary and an excellent crime story."—Booklist

"Solana's sparkling novel pokes sharp fun at Catalan politics, society and pretensions. The brothers bumble and stumble to the truth and hopefully to further adventures."—Publishers Weekly

Marina Dolç, media figure and writer of bestsellers, is murdered in at the Ritz in Barcelona on the night she wins an important literary prize. The killer has battered her to death with the trophy she has just won. The detective twins Borja and Eduard are plunged into the murky waters of the bookish Barcelona scene and need all their wit and skills of improvisation to solve this case of truncated literary lives.

As in A Not So Perfect Crime, Teresa Solana combines humor and roman noir in a critical portrait of contemporary society, in this case with writers as the protagonists. The murder trail leads to the most unlikely places in hilarious scenes worthy of Tom Sharpe, whether in the sausage-making town of Vic, the packed cells of the notorious Modelo prison, or a literary party where guests get high on loaded canapés.

Teresa Solana lives in Barcelona. Born in 1962, she studied philosophy and worked as a literary translator and essayist. She has written several novels kept quietly in her drawer. A Not So Perfect Crime, her first published title, won the 2007 Brigada 21 Prize for the best Catalan mystery novel.

The botched robbery didn’t do it. Neither did the three gunshots. It wasn’t until he flatlined twice and was administered last rites that David Borkowski finally realized he was about to die, a thug at age fifteen. A Shot Story: From Juvie to Ph.D. is a riveting account of how a bullet to his lungs saved his life and helped a juvenile delinquent turn his life around to become an esteemed English professor.

Growing up in a working-class section of Staten Island, David and his friends thought they had all the answers: They knew where to hang out without being hassled, where to get high, and what to do if the cops showed up. But when David and his friend called in a pizza order so they could rob the delivery man, things didn’t turn out as they’d planned. Staring down the barrel of a gun, David and his friend panicked and took off as the cop fired. Convinced they were shooting harmless “salt” bullets, David darted through front lawns as the cops gave chase. It wasn’t until much later, when David was bleeding to death, that the cops realized they had hit one of their own—the son of a fellow cop.

Borderline illiterate at the time of the shooting, David took his future into his own hands and found salvation in books. But his attempts to improve his life were stymied by lack of familial support. Bound on all sides by adults who had no faith in his ability to learn or to succeed, David persevered and earned his Ph.D., even as his mother reminded him that it wasn’t too late to take the New York City Sanitation Department test.

Funny and poignant, but always honest and reflective, A Shot Story tracks David Borkowski’s life before and after the “accident” and tells how his having been a rather unremarkable student early on may have been a blessing in disguise. A wonderful addition to the working-class narrative genre, A Shot Story presents a gripping account of the silences of working-class culture as well as the male subculture of Staten Island. Through his heartfelt memoir, Borkowski explores the universal lesson of turning a wrong into a rite of passage.

The botched robbery didn’t do it. Neither did the three gunshots. It wasn’t until he flatlined twice and was administered last rites that David Borkowski finally realized he was about to die, a thug at age fifteen. A Shot Story: From Juvie to Ph.D. is a riveting account of how a bullet to his lungs saved his life and helped a juvenile delinquent turn his life around to become an esteemed English professor.

Growing up in a working-class section of Staten Island, David and his friends thought they had all the answers: They knew where to hang out without being hassled, where to get high, and what to do if the cops showed up. But when David and his friend called in a pizza order so they could rob the delivery man, things didn’t turn out as they’d planned. Staring down the barrel of a gun, David and his friend panicked and took off as the cop fired. Convinced they were shooting harmless “salt” bullets, David darted through front lawns as the cops gave chase. It wasn’t until much later, when David was bleeding to death, that the cops realized they had hit one of their own—the son of a fellow cop.

Borderline illiterate at the time of the shooting, David took his future into his own hands and found salvation in books. But his attempts to improve his life were stymied by lack of familial support. Bound on all sides by adults who had no faith in his ability to learn or to succeed, David persevered and earned his Ph.D., even as his mother reminded him that it wasn’t too late to take the New York City Sanitation Department test.

Funny and poignant, but always honest and reflective, A Shot Story tracks David Borkowski’s life before and after the “accident” and tells how his having been a rather unremarkable student early on may have been a blessing in disguise. A wonderful addition to the working-class narrative genre, A Shot Story presents a gripping account of the silences of working-class culture as well as the male subculture of Staten Island. Through his heartfelt memoir, Borkowski explores the universal lesson of turning a wrong into a rite of passage.

In contrast to the divide between conception and execution advocated by Anglo-American artists in the second half of the 1960s, this book reappraises conceptual art by examining it from the perspective of craft. The emphasis on craft shifts the focus from the Western art system to its margins, where creators were relegated to the status of mere artisans in the colonial context, on the pretext that attaining that of artists was beyond their reach. From this peripheral point of view, the book shows that work carried out with artisanal means can lead to conceptual practice.
Moreover, this shift in perspective provides a new understanding of several positions within conceptualism, which ultimately appears as an ongoing reflection on the role of the hands, making, and craft.

A Sicilian Romance (1790) is a novel by Ann Radcliffe. Published anonymously, Radcliffe’s second novel is a tragic story of love and murder set in the sublime landscape of the Sicilian coast. Considered an essential work of Gothic fiction, A Sicilian Romance is an early example of her prowess as a leading novelist of suspense and the supernatural. “As I walked over the loose fragments of stone, […] I recurred, by a natural association of ideas, to the times when these walls stood proudly in their original splendour, when the halls were the scenes of hospitality and festive magnificence, and when they resounded with the voices of those whom death had long since swept from the earth.” A young tourist wanders through the ruins of an ancient castle. A local friar approaches and, noticing the foreigner’s curiosity, reveals to him the story of the Mazzini family, whose misfortune it was to possess wealth and power at the expense of morality. Possessive and cruel, the Marquis Mazzini seeks to control his daughters’ lives by forcing them to marry the men of his choosing. When Julia falls in love with an Italian count, he commands her to take the hand of the Duke de Luovo. Although she assents, Julia secretly plans to flee the castle with her lover, setting in motion a tale of terror and betrayal. This edition of Ann Radcliffe’s A Sicilian Romance is a classic of English literature reimagined for modern readers.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

A Sicilian Romance (1790) is a novel by Ann Radcliffe. Published anonymously, Radcliffe’s second novel is a tragic story of love and murder set in the sublime landscape of the Sicilian coast. Considered an essential work of Gothic fiction, A Sicilian Romance is an early example of her prowess as a leading novelist of suspense and the supernatural. “As I walked over the loose fragments of stone, […] I recurred, by a natural association of ideas, to the times when these walls stood proudly in their original splendour, when the halls were the scenes of hospitality and festive magnificence, and when they resounded with the voices of those whom death had long since swept from the earth.” A young tourist wanders through the ruins of an ancient castle. A local friar approaches and, noticing the foreigner’s curiosity, reveals to him the story of the Mazzini family, whose misfortune it was to possess wealth and power at the expense of morality. Possessive and cruel, the Marquis Mazzini seeks to control his daughters’ lives by forcing them to marry the men of his choosing. When Julia falls in love with an Italian count, he commands her to take the hand of the Duke de Luovo. Although she assents, Julia secretly plans to flee the castle with her lover, setting in motion a tale of terror and betrayal. This edition of Ann Radcliffe’s A Sicilian Romance is a classic of English literature reimagined for modern readers.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

A Sicilian Romance (1790) is a novel by Ann Radcliffe. Published anonymously, Radcliffe’s second novel is a tragic story of love and murder set in the sublime landscape of the Sicilian coast. Considered an essential work of Gothic fiction, A Sicilian Romance is an early example of her prowess as a leading novelist of suspense and the supernatural. “As I walked over the loose fragments of stone, […] I recurred, by a natural association of ideas, to the times when these walls stood proudly in their original splendour, when the halls were the scenes of hospitality and festive magnificence, and when they resounded with the voices of those whom death had long since swept from the earth.” A young tourist wanders through the ruins of an ancient castle. A local friar approaches and, noticing the foreigner’s curiosity, reveals to him the story of the Mazzini family, whose misfortune it was to possess wealth and power at the expense of morality. Possessive and cruel, the Marquis Mazzini seeks to control his daughters’ lives by forcing them to marry the men of his choosing. When Julia falls in love with an Italian count, he commands her to take the hand of the Duke de Luovo. Although she assents, Julia secretly plans to flee the castle with her lover, setting in motion a tale of terror and betrayal. This edition of Ann Radcliffe’s A Sicilian Romance is a classic of English literature reimagined for modern readers.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

Nicola’s adorable little dog, June Bug, keeps getting into trouble. She steals the neighbor’s turkey, yanks down the Christmas tree and destroys Mum’s almost-finished giant crossword. Everyone is mad, and it looks as though June Bug’s days are numbered.

Will doing a good deed make up for June Bug’s bad behavior?

Nicola certainly hopes so. And when she and June Bug come across a new nursing home in the neighborhood, it feels like a Sign. They volunteer to become regular visitors at Shady Oaks, certain that June Bug’s cute tricks will cheer up the elderly residents.

In fact, they could all use some cheering up. It’s the holiday, and yet everyone seems to be cranky and off balance. Nobody has put up any lights, Nicola’s grade five teacher is inexplicably crabby, and Nicola’s big brother Jared stays holed up in front of the computer playing Inferno 2, eagerly sending winged creatures into a fiery abyss. Even Nicola is not herself, and when a new girl, Lindsay, tries to be her friend, Nicola finds herself being uncharacteristically mean, because Lindsay seems to be one of those hair-and-jewelry girls who wants her own subscription to Bride magazine for Christmas.

But Nicola’s mother won’t let her visit Shady Oaks by herself, so when Lindsay offers to go with her, Nicola agrees. And the girls discover that something unusual is going on at the home, where it seems that a few of the more remarkable patients are being kept against their will. Freeing them will bring out the very best in Nicola, and especially in June Bug.

This book has been prepared to assist and remind Muslims how to perform salah, prayer in Islam. It is ideal for new Muslims as it includes pictures, step-by-step instructions, and the words Muslims must recite during the prayer in transliteration and English.

Félicité is a French maid who is devoted to helping her mistress and her two children navigate their new life following her husband’s untimely death. Despite her lack of formal skills, Félicité is an endearing figure who brings warmth and stability into their lives.

In nineteenth century France, Félicité works as a loyal housemaid to her mistress, Madame Aubain. She tends to her two children and is a constant source of support for the family. Félicité is a hard worker whose reputation precedes her. She’s known for her kindness, compassion and morals. Despite her tragic upbringing, Félicité manages to find joy in every part of her life. A Simple Soul is a testament to her faith, resilience and enduring spirit.

A Simple Soul is a character-driven novella that highlights the ups and downs of a meek existence. Félicité is a pure soul who makes the most of what she has and shares what she can. This story is a celebration of unsung heroes who work in the shadows but are never given their due.

With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of A Simple Soul is both modern and readable.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

Félicité is a French maid who is devoted to helping her mistress and her two children navigate their new life following her husband’s untimely death. Despite her lack of formal skills, Félicité is an endearing figure who brings warmth and stability into their lives.

In nineteenth century France, Félicité works as a loyal housemaid to her mistress, Madame Aubain. She tends to her two children and is a constant source of support for the family. Félicité is a hard worker whose reputation precedes her. She’s known for her kindness, compassion and morals. Despite her tragic upbringing, Félicité manages to find joy in every part of her life. A Simple Soul is a testament to her faith, resilience and enduring spirit.

A Simple Soul is a character-driven novella that highlights the ups and downs of a meek existence. Félicité is a pure soul who makes the most of what she has and shares what she can. This story is a celebration of unsung heroes who work in the shadows but are never given their due.

With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of A Simple Soul is both modern and readable.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

Félicité is a French maid who is devoted to helping her mistress and her two children navigate their new life following her husband’s untimely death. Despite her lack of formal skills, Félicité is an endearing figure who brings warmth and stability into their lives.

In nineteenth century France, Félicité works as a loyal housemaid to her mistress, Madame Aubain. She tends to her two children and is a constant source of support for the family. Félicité is a hard worker whose reputation precedes her. She’s known for her kindness, compassion and morals. Despite her tragic upbringing, Félicité manages to find joy in every part of her life. A Simple Soul is a testament to her faith, resilience and enduring spirit.

A Simple Soul is a character-driven novella that highlights the ups and downs of a meek existence. Félicité is a pure soul who makes the most of what she has and shares what she can. This story is a celebration of unsung heroes who work in the shadows but are never given their due.

With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of A Simple Soul is both modern and readable.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

This book explores ideas around minimalism, simplicity and how to live comfortably with less.

We live in a complicated, frenzied, and noisy world, filled with too much information, too many products, ideas, and opinions. As a result, many of us long for simplicity: a pared down, more peaceful, and less cluttered life. 

This book is a guide to the simpler lives we crave and deserve. In it, we learn about Zen Buddhism, modernist architecture, monasteries, psychoanalysis, and why three good friends and a few treasured belongings are enough. 

Taking a psychological approach, the book also guides us toward inner simplicity. For too long we've been drowning in excess, clutter, and confusion. A Simpler Life helps us tune out the static and focus on what really matters.

• DECLUTTER YOUR LIFE practical ways to get rid of physical and psychological clutter.
• HOW TO BE DIRECT advice on adopting a simpler, more straight-forward mindset.
• THE APPEAL OF MINIMALISM looks at why more of us are drawn to a pared down existence.
• HOW TO SIMPLIFY everything from relationships, social life, lifestyle, and work.

#1 New Release in Parenting & Family Reference, Teenagers, and Time Management

In A Simpler Motherhood, Emily’s on a mission to remove stress from the lives of moms and busy families seeking less stuff and more joy in their daily life.

Filled with  tips for moms for easy yet powerful lifestyle changes. Emily’s approach makes minimalism for moms stress-free and achievable, and helps to simplify parenting.  Learn to declutter your mind and home on this fun journey to living and parenting with more purpose and joy, and less stress!

Intentional living made simple and stress-free. A Simpler Motherhood reveals tangible ways for mothers everywhere to simplify parenting. Slow down the pace in your home, your schedule, and your heart and head. Discover simple tips for moms, actionable suggestions, and tailored solutions to declutter each aspect of motherhood.

Accessible minimalism for moms. When people think of motherhood, they think of a perfectly tidy home, a curated wardrobe, and gourmet meals cooked from scratch, but that isn’t realistic. A Simpler Motherhood makes minimalism for moms attainable, affordable, and stress-free for even the busiest or messiest of moms. 

Inside:

• Discover how to simplify parenting in a more stress-free way, without guilt or “systems”
• Create a stronger marriage through communication, intentional planning, and a commitment to less
• Re-establish a connection with your faith and learn to relinquish control over everything

If you liked Declutter Like a Mother, The Family Firm, Mindfulness Journal for Parents, or Simplicity Parenting, then you’ll love A Simpler Motherhood.

How could the Right transform itself from a politics of the nobility to a fatally attractive option for people from all parts of society? How could the Nazis gain a good third of the votes in free elections and remain popular far into their rule? A number of studies from the 1960s have dealt with the issue, in particular the works by George Mosse and Fritz Stern. Their central arguments are still challenging, but a large number of more specific studies allow today for a much more complex argument, which also takes account of changes in our understanding of German history in general. This book shows that between 1800 and 1945 the fundamentalist desire for a single communal faith played a crucial role in the radicalization of Germany's political Right. A nationalist faith could gain wider appeal, because people were searching for a sense of identity and belonging, a mental map for the modern world and metaphysical security.

When Lovie moves from Jamaica to Newfoundland, his classmates make fun of his single dreadlock. But with Grandma's help, Lovie learns to care for his hair — and himself.

Lovie never thought he looked different until he and his dads moved to Spruce Cove. Back in Jamaica, Grandma would tend Lovie’s curls with her special hair-taming grease, but no one in Spruce Cove can manage his hair. Over the summer, it dreads in just one spot, and Lovie is quite happy about his single dreadlock…until the kids at school make fun of him.

When Grandma arrives for Chanukah, she sees that Lovie is upset. She explains that dreading is what their hair type does in its natural state, and she encourages him to love the way his hair grows. So Lovie goes from wanting to hide away his dreadlock, to asking his grandma if she will make his whole head full of dreads! Grandma takes out her hair grease and gets to work, and the next day Lovie proudly walks into class with his dreadlocks, and newfound confidence.

Xaiver Campbell’s heartfelt story about finding the courage to be yourself and expressing your difference is beautifully complemented by the vibrant art of celebrated illustrator Eugenie Fernandes.

Key Text Features

dialogue

illustrations

Correlates to the Common Core State 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.

From the best-selling author of The Elegance of the Hedgehog comes a story about a woman's journey to discover the father she never knew and a love she never thought possible.

Rose is called to Kyoto for the reading of her estranged father’s will. Once there, she encounters acquaintances of her father—including a potter and poet, an old lady friend, his housekeeper and chauffeur, and Paul, her guide through Kyoto.

As the reading of the will gets closer, through her encounters and peregrinations in Kyoto, Rose reaches a poignant understanding of her father’s love and an acceptance of loss.

From the best-selling author of The Elegance of the Hedgehog comes a story about a woman's journey to discover the father she never knew and a love she never thought possible.  

Rose has just turned forty when she gets a call from a lawyer asking her to come to Kyoto for the reading of her estranged father’s will. And so for the first time in her life she finds herself in Japan, where Paul, her father’s assistant, is waiting to greet her.  

As Paul guides Rose along a mysterious itinerary designed by her deceased father, her bitterness and anger are soothed by the stones and the trees in the Zen gardens they move through. During their walks, Rose encounters acquaintances of her father—including a potter and poet, an old lady friend, his housekeeper and chauffeur—whose interactions help her to slowly begin to accept a part of herself that she has never before acknowledged.  

As the reading of the will gets closer, Rose’s father finally, posthumously, opens his heart to his daughter, offering her a poignant understanding of his love and a way to accept all she has lost.

Set in 19th century Massachusetts, Emanuel Bayard feels unsure about his studies at the local seminary. Though he is very devout to God, Emanuel feels he is called to do more for his community. However, some of the rules and leaders of the church are more conservative in their practices, disagreeing with Emanuel’s liberal and judgment-free approach. Among these people is the daughter of Emanuel’s theology professor, Helen. Yet, unlike others in the church, Helen accepts this difference, possibly persuaded by the attraction between she and Emanuel. After leaving the orthodox church, Emanuel begins to perform humanitarian acts inspired by the teachings and behavior of Jesus Christ. When these pursuits lead to the meeting of a local prostitute, Emanuel finds himself especially dedicated to her struggle. Magdalena, or Lena for short, is a beautiful woman and talented singer, forced to prostitution to make ends meet. She and Emanuel begin a friendship as he tries to help her find a better profession. Though Emanuel’s only intention is to better the community, improving one life at a time, not all are happy with Emanuel’s work, leading to conflict, surprising action, and an event that unsettles the whole town. First published one-hundred and twenty-five years ago in 1895, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps’ A Singular Life is a best-selling novel, offering a new perspective on the meaning of Christianity. With the use of religious philosophy, metaphor, and impactful prose, A Singular Life is a powerful narrative that promotes compassion and acceptance. While these elements encourage critical thought and provide insight, A Singular Life also entertains with its compelling drama, tender romance, and memorable characters. Invoking a whirlwind of emotion, A Singular Life challenges beliefs, offers immense comfort, and depicts characters that demand affection. This edition of A Singular Life by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps features an eye-catching new cover design and is presented in a font that is both modern and readable. With these accommodations, this edition is accessible and appealing to contemporary audiences, restoring A Singular Life to modern standards while preserving the original intelligence and impact of Elizabeth Stuart Phelps’ work.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

Set in 19th century Massachusetts, Emanuel Bayard feels unsure about his studies at the local seminary. Though he is very devout to God, Emanuel feels he is called to do more for his community. However, some of the rules and leaders of the church are more conservative in their practices, disagreeing with Emanuel’s liberal and judgment-free approach. Among these people is the daughter of Emanuel’s theology professor, Helen. Yet, unlike others in the church, Helen accepts this difference, possibly persuaded by the attraction between she and Emanuel. After leaving the orthodox church, Emanuel begins to perform humanitarian acts inspired by the teachings and behavior of Jesus Christ. When these pursuits lead to the meeting of a local prostitute, Emanuel finds himself especially dedicated to her struggle. Magdalena, or Lena for short, is a beautiful woman and talented singer, forced to prostitution to make ends meet. She and Emanuel begin a friendship as he tries to help her find a better profession. Though Emanuel’s only intention is to better the community, improving one life at a time, not all are happy with Emanuel’s work, leading to conflict, surprising action, and an event that unsettles the whole town. First published one-hundred and twenty-five years ago in 1895, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps’ A Singular Life is a best-selling novel, offering a new perspective on the meaning of Christianity. With the use of religious philosophy, metaphor, and impactful prose, A Singular Life is a powerful narrative that promotes compassion and acceptance. While these elements encourage critical thought and provide insight, A Singular Life also entertains with its compelling drama, tender romance, and memorable characters. Invoking a whirlwind of emotion, A Singular Life challenges beliefs, offers immense comfort, and depicts characters that demand affection. This edition of A Singular Life by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps features an eye-catching new cover design and is presented in a font that is both modern and readable. With these accommodations, this edition is accessible and appealing to contemporary audiences, restoring A Singular Life to modern standards while preserving the original intelligence and impact of Elizabeth Stuart Phelps’ work.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

Set in 19th century Massachusetts, Emanuel Bayard feels unsure about his studies at the local seminary. Though he is very devout to God, Emanuel feels he is called to do more for his community. However, some of the rules and leaders of the church are more conservative in their practices, disagreeing with Emanuel’s liberal and judgment-free approach. Among these people is the daughter of Emanuel’s theology professor, Helen. Yet, unlike others in the church, Helen accepts this difference, possibly persuaded by the attraction between she and Emanuel. After leaving the orthodox church, Emanuel begins to perform humanitarian acts inspired by the teachings and behavior of Jesus Christ. When these pursuits lead to the meeting of a local prostitute, Emanuel finds himself especially dedicated to her struggle. Magdalena, or Lena for short, is a beautiful woman and talented singer, forced to prostitution to make ends meet. She and Emanuel begin a friendship as he tries to help her find a better profession. Though Emanuel’s only intention is to better the community, improving one life at a time, not all are happy with Emanuel’s work, leading to conflict, surprising action, and an event that unsettles the whole town. First published one-hundred and twenty-five years ago in 1895, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps’ A Singular Life is a best-selling novel, offering a new perspective on the meaning of Christianity. With the use of religious philosophy, metaphor, and impactful prose, A Singular Life is a powerful narrative that promotes compassion and acceptance. While these elements encourage critical thought and provide insight, A Singular Life also entertains with its compelling drama, tender romance, and memorable characters. Invoking a whirlwind of emotion, A Singular Life challenges beliefs, offers immense comfort, and depicts characters that demand affection. This edition of A Singular Life by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps features an eye-catching new cover design and is presented in a font that is both modern and readable. With these accommodations, this edition is accessible and appealing to contemporary audiences, restoring A Singular Life to modern standards while preserving the original intelligence and impact of Elizabeth Stuart Phelps’ work.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

The price of vengeance is never what you expect...

In the quiet of Cornwall, a monster lurks. Jem Fielding, a ruthless pimp and drug lord, has terrorized the lives of women for years. When he abducts mute teenager Carly Taylor and leaves her to die, he sets in motion a chain of events that will threaten everything he’s built.

Carly survives, but the trauma transforms her into a woman consumed by vengeance. With her mind unraveling, she becomes determined to destroy Fielding—no matter the cost.

But Carly isn’t alone. Josie, Fielding’s abused wife, hides a dangerous secret—her love for another woman. Kerenza, trapped in a web of blackmail, knows the price of defying Fielding too well.

As their paths collide, the women realize their only chance to survive lies in their unity. Together, they must face their darkest fears and the treacherous road to revenge. But victory will demand a sacrifice none of them may be prepared to make.

In A Sisterhood of Silence, Julie Evans weaves a harrowing tale of resilience, vengeance, and the unbreakable bonds of sisterhood in the face of unspeakable evil. 

___________________________________________________________________

Praise for the Cornish Crime Series:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Captured our imaginations and curiosity.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ My new favorite author.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ I would give the book more than 5 stars if I could.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Fast-paced, a real page-turner. The story is so good.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ A great story that keeps picking up the pace and has you racing to find out the end.

A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF 2022
FINALIST FOR THE 2021 STREGA PRIZE

From the internationally acclaimed author of A Girl Returned, a spellbinding story about family, memory, love, and the relationships that define us.

It’s the darkest time of night. Adriana, a baby in her arms, hammers on her sister's door. Who is she running from? What uncomfortable truth is she carrying with her? Like a whirlwind, Adriana upends her sister’s life bringing chaos and cataclysmic revelations.

Years later, the narrator gets an unexpected, urgent summons back to Pescara, her hometown. She embarks on a long journey through the night, and through the folds and twists of her memory, from her and her sister’s youth, their loves and losses, secrets and regrets. Back in Borgo Sud, the town’s fishermen’s quarter, in that impenetrable yet welcoming microcosm, she will discover what really happened, and attempt to make peace with the past.

Donatella Di Pietrantonio, expert chronicler of the bonds between mothers and daughters, revisits the places and characters of A Girl Returned with a moving novel focused on the ambivalent, ambiguous, wavering but steadfast relationship between sisters.

This book is the result of a strong collaboration between the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations and Fordham University’s Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs. It is a record of a series of distinguished lectures that explored the current challenges to policymakers and humanitarian actors as they focus their efforts on larger and more complex emergencies. The contributors to this book both identify innovative measures in addressing established problems and address hitherto under-researched emerging issues. A Skein of Thought is the product of this fruitful partnership. Ireland has, through its longstanding peacekeeping, its embrace of multi-lateralism, and its investment in development and humanitarian solutions, been a global leader in confronting and mitigating global disasters. In a similar way, the Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs has been a global leader in humanitarian training, publications, and research. A Skein of Thought: The Ireland at Fordham Humanitarian Lecture Series, then, represents this link between theory and practice.

The Refuge Press
The Refuge Press is an independent humanitarian imprint that was founded in 2019. Following on from a successful International Humanitarian Affairs Series through Fordham University Press, The Refuge Press, with Brendan Cahill as its Publisher, publishes four books per year. The Refuge Press books challenge humanitarian thinking and offer personal and professional reflections on global crises.

This book is the result of a strong collaboration between the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations and Fordham University’s Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs. It is a record of a series of distinguished lectures that explored the current challenges to policymakers and humanitarian actors as they focus their efforts on larger and more complex emergencies. The contributors to this book both identify innovative measures in addressing established problems and address hitherto under-researched emerging issues. A Skein of Thought is the product of this fruitful partnership. Ireland has, through its longstanding peacekeeping, its embrace of multi-lateralism, and its investment in development and humanitarian solutions, been a global leader in confronting and mitigating global disasters. In a similar way, the Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs has been a global leader in humanitarian training, publications, and research. A Skein of Thought: The Ireland at Fordham Humanitarian Lecture Series, then, represents this link between theory and practice.

The Refuge Press
The Refuge Press is an independent humanitarian imprint that was founded in 2019. Following on from a successful International Humanitarian Affairs Series through Fordham University Press, The Refuge Press, with Brendan Cahill as its Publisher, publishes four books per year. The Refuge Press books challenge humanitarian thinking and offer personal and professional reflections on global crises.

There are many ways to show our devotion to an author besides reading his or her works. Graves make for popular pilgrimage sites, but far more popular are writers' house museums. What is it we hope to accomplish by trekking to the home of a dead author? We may go in search of the point of inspiration, eager to stand on the very spot where our favorite literary characters first came to life—and find ourselves instead in the house where the author himself was conceived, or where she drew her last breath. Perhaps it is a place through which our writer passed only briefly, or maybe it really was a longtime home—now thoroughly remade as a decorator's show-house.

In A Skeptic's Guide to Writers' Houses Anne Trubek takes a vexed, often funny, and always thoughtful tour of a goodly number of house museums across the nation. In Key West she visits the shamelessly ersatz shrine to a hard-living Ernest Hemingway, while meditating on his lost Cuban farm and the sterile Idaho house in which he committed suicide. In Hannibal, Missouri, she walks the fuzzy line between fact and fiction, as she visits the home of the young Samuel Clemens—and the purported haunts of Tom Sawyer, Becky Thatcher, and Injun' Joe. She hits literary pay-dirt in Concord, Massachusetts, the nineteenth-century mecca that gave home to Hawthorne, Emerson, and Thoreau—and yet could not accommodate a surprisingly complex Louisa May Alcott. She takes us along the trail of residences that Edgar Allan Poe left behind in the wake of his many failures and to the burned-out shell of a California house with which Jack London staked his claim on posterity. In Dayton, Ohio, a charismatic guide brings Paul Laurence Dunbar to compelling life for those few visitors willing to listen; in Cleveland, Trubek finds a moving remembrance of Charles Chesnutt in a house that no longer stands.

Why is it that we visit writers' houses? Although admittedly skeptical about the stories these buildings tell us about their former inhabitants, Anne Trubek carries us along as she falls at least a little bit in love with each stop on her itinerary and finds in each some truth about literature, history, and contemporary America.

There are many ways to show our devotion to an author besides reading his or her works. Graves make for popular pilgrimage sites, but far more popular are writers' house museums. What is it we hope to accomplish by trekking to the home of a dead author? We may go in search of the point of inspiration, eager to stand on the very spot where our favorite literary characters first came to life—and find ourselves instead in the house where the author himself was conceived, or where she drew her last breath. Perhaps it is a place through which our writer passed only briefly, or maybe it really was a longtime home—now thoroughly remade as a decorator's show-house.

In A Skeptic's Guide to Writers' Houses Anne Trubek takes a vexed, often funny, and always thoughtful tour of a goodly number of house museums across the nation. In Key West she visits the shamelessly ersatz shrine to a hard-living Ernest Hemingway, while meditating on his lost Cuban farm and the sterile Idaho house in which he committed suicide. In Hannibal, Missouri, she walks the fuzzy line between fact and fiction, as she visits the home of the young Samuel Clemens—and the purported haunts of Tom Sawyer, Becky Thatcher, and Injun' Joe. She hits literary pay-dirt in Concord, Massachusetts, the nineteenth-century mecca that gave home to Hawthorne, Emerson, and Thoreau—and yet could not accommodate a surprisingly complex Louisa May Alcott. She takes us along the trail of residences that Edgar Allan Poe left behind in the wake of his many failures and to the burned-out shell of a California house with which Jack London staked his claim on posterity. In Dayton, Ohio, a charismatic guide brings Paul Laurence Dunbar to compelling life for those few visitors willing to listen; in Cleveland, Trubek finds a moving remembrance of Charles Chesnutt in a house that no longer stands.

Why is it that we visit writers' houses? Although admittedly skeptical about the stories these buildings tell us about their former inhabitants, Anne Trubek carries us along as she falls at least a little bit in love with each stop on her itinerary and finds in each some truth about literature, history, and contemporary America.

Kopar is a very moribund, close to extinct, language spoken in three villages at the mouth of the Sepik River in Papua New Guinea. This is the only description of the language available. It also discusses areas where rapid language shift is affecting the structure of Kopar.

Although the period of fieldwork was necessarily short, this book provides as comprehensive a description as possible of the grammatical structure of this complex and fascinating language. It is quite thorough and detailed and goes well beyond what is normally considered a sketch grammar. It covers all the phenomena essential to description and comparison and gives clear, typologically sound definitions and explanations. The grammar is written with the research interests of language typologists and comparative grammarians foremost in mind.

Typologically, Kopar can be described as a split ergative, polysynthetic language. The language lacks nominal case marking so ergativity or lack thereof is signaled by verbal agreement affixes. Tenses and moods which describe as yet unrealized events, like future and imperative, pattern accusatively for agreement affixes, while those express realized events, like past and present, pattern ergatively. In addition, the ergative case schema is overlaid by a direct-inverse inflectional schema determined by a person hierarchy, a feature Kopar shares with other languages in its Lower Sepik family. As a polysynthetic language, incorporation of sentential elements like temporals, locationals, adverbials and verbals is extensive, though noun incorporation is not.

Sadly, this work is all the documentation we will likely ever have of Kopar, a language of potentially very high theoretical interest, given its rare typological profile. It will certainly be of interest to language typologists and comparative grammarians, and anyone who wants to explore the range of language variation

Kopar is a very moribund, close to extinct, language spoken in three villages at the mouth of the Sepik River in Papua New Guinea. This is the only description of the language available. It also discusses areas where rapid language shift is affecting the structure of Kopar.

Although the period of fieldwork was necessarily short, this book provides as comprehensive a description as possible of the grammatical structure of this complex and fascinating language. It is quite thorough and detailed and goes well beyond what is normally considered a sketch grammar. It covers all the phenomena essential to description and comparison and gives clear, typologically sound definitions and explanations. The grammar is written with the research interests of language typologists and comparative grammarians foremost in mind.

Typologically, Kopar can be described as a split ergative, polysynthetic language. The language lacks nominal case marking so ergativity or lack thereof is signaled by verbal agreement affixes. Tenses and moods which describe as yet unrealized events, like future and imperative, pattern accusatively for agreement affixes, while those express realized events, like past and present, pattern ergatively. In addition, the ergative case schema is overlaid by a direct-inverse inflectional schema determined by a person hierarchy, a feature Kopar shares with other languages in its Lower Sepik family. As a polysynthetic language, incorporation of sentential elements like temporals, locationals, adverbials and verbals is extensive, though noun incorporation is not.

Sadly, this work is all the documentation we will likely ever have of Kopar, a language of potentially very high theoretical interest, given its rare typological profile. It will certainly be of interest to language typologists and comparative grammarians, and anyone who wants to explore the range of language variation

It's Afghan schoolgirl Aria's first day back at school since her accident. She's excited, but she's also worried about sitting on the hard floor all day with her new prosthetic "helper-leg."

Just as Aria feared, sitting on the floor is so uncomfortable that she can't think about learning at all. She knows that before the war changed many things in Afghanistan, schools like hers had benches for students to sit at. If she had a bench, her leg would not hurt so much. The answer is obvious: she will gather materials, talk to Kaka Najar, the carpenter in the old city, and learn to build a bench for herself.

In A Sky-Blue Bench, Bahram Rahman, author of The Library Bus, returns again to the setting of his homeland, Afghanistan, to reveal the resilience and resolve of young children—especially young girls—who face barriers to education. Illustrator Peggy Collins imbues Aria with an infectious spunkiness and grit that make her relatable even to readers with a very different school experience. An author's note gently introduces an age-appropriate discussion of landmines and their impact on the lives of children in many nations, especially Afghanistan, which has the highest concentration of landmines of any country in the world.

Don't miss The Library Bus, also by Bahram Rahman

• Winner of the Middle East Book Award
• Finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award
• Finalist for the Florida Literary Association Children's Book Award
• Finalist for the OLA Forest of Reading Blue Spruce Award
• Winner of the Northern Lights Book Award: Multicultural Category

In June 1887, a man known as General Husayn, a manumitted slave turned dignitary in the Ottoman province of Tunis, passed away in Florence after a life crossing empires. As a youth, Husayn was brought from Circassia to Turkey, where he was sold as a slave. In Tunis, he ascended to the rank of general before French conquest forced his exile to the northern shores of the Mediterranean. His death was followed by wrangling over his estate that spanned a surprising array of actors: Ottoman Sultan Abdülhamid II and his viziers; the Tunisian, French, and Italian governments; and representatives of Muslim and Jewish diasporic communities.

A Slave Between Empires investigates Husayn’s transimperial life and the posthumous battle over his fortune to recover the transnational dimensions of North African history. M’hamed Oualdi places Husayn within the international context of the struggle between Ottoman and French forces for control of the Mediterranean amid social and intellectual ferment that crossed empires. Oualdi considers this part of the world not as a colonial borderland but as a central space where overlapping imperial ambitions transformed dynamic societies. He explores how the transition between Ottoman rule and European colonial domination was felt in the daily lives of North African Muslims, Christians, and Jews and how North Africans conceived of and acted upon this shift. Drawing on a wide range of Arabic, French, Italian, and English sources, A Slave Between Empires is a groundbreaking transimperial microhistory that demands a major analytical shift in the conceptualization of North African history.