Where Good Ideas Come from The Natural History of Innovation By Steven Johnson

From 800 CEO Read

Book Description

Johnson addresses an urgent and universal question: What sparks the flash of brilliance? How does groundbreaking innovation happen? He provides the complete, exciting, and encouraging story of how the ideas are born that push careers, lives, society, and culture forward.

From the Publisher:
One of our most innovative, popular thinkers takes on-in exhilarating style-one of our key questions: Where do good ideas come from?

With "Where Good Ideas Come From," Steven Johnson pairs the insight of his bestselling "Everything Bad Is Good for You" and the dazzling erudition of "The Ghost Map" and "The Invention of Air" to address an urgent and universal question: What sparks the flash of brilliance? How does groundbreaking innovation happen? Answering in his infectious, culturally omnivorous style, using his fluency in fields from neurobiology to popular culture, Johnson provides the complete, exciting, and encouraging story of how we generate the ideas that push our careers, our lives, our society, and our culture forward.

Beginning with Charles Darwin's first encounter with the teeming ecosystem of the coral reef and drawing connections to the intellectual hyperproductivity of modern megacities and to the instant success of YouTube, Johnson shows us that the question we need to ask is, What kind of environment fosters the development of good ideas? His answers are never less than revelatory, convincing, and inspiring as Johnson identifies the seven key principles to the genesis of such ideas, and traces them across time and disciplines.

Most exhilarating is Johnson's conclusion that with today's tools and environment, radical innovation is extraordinarily accessible to those who know how to cultivate it. "Where Good Ideas Come From" is essential reading for anyone who wants to know how to come up with tomorrow's great ideas.

Sun Tzu's The Art of War Translated by Lionel Giles with a new foreword by John Minford

Author:	Sunzi, 6th cent. B.C
Publisher:	Tokyo ; Rutland, Vt. : Turtle Pub., 2008.
ISBN:	9780804839440 (hbk.)
Format:	Book
Physical Description:	lxvii, 188 p. ; 20 cm.
Subjects:	Military art and science China Early works to 1800

The oldest known military treatise, Sun Tzu's the Art of War is still one of the world's most influential writings on strategic thought. Applicable everywhere from the boardroom to the bedroom, from the playing field to the battlefield, its wisdom has never been more highly regarded or used. Now available in its complete form-including an insightful English translation, the entire Chinese language text, and the original translator's often-omitted extensive use and discussion of Chinese characters-this essential examination of the art of strategic thinking features extensive commentary and an insightful historical introduction. 

From Publishers Weekly

Sun-tzu's The Art of War has led military strategists, economists, politicians and other leaders for more than 2,000 years, and has been translated numerous times. Scholar Minford takes a crack at it here, offering a new translation, introduction and commentary. This fundamental volume could be one of the best in recent years, as it features notes on pronunciation, suggestions for further reading, a chronology of Chinese dynasties and historical events, and more. After these briefings, Minford separates the book in two: first, a straightforward translation of Sun-tzu's book, and second, the translation coupled with commentary. "The Art of War is both inspirational and worrying. It is beautiful and chilling....It lends itself to infinite applications," Minford writes. Indeed, this new translation is accessible to anyone seeking guidance, whether they're learning to drive defensively, ironing out relationship kinks or conducting war.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

For more than two thousand years, Sun-tzu's The Art of War has provided leaders with essential advice on battlefield tactics, managing troops and terrain, and employing cunning and deception. An elemental part of Chinese culture, it has also become a touchstone for the Western struggle for survival and success, whether in battle, in business or relationships.

Book Info

For more than 2000 years, The Art of War has stood as a cornerstone of Chinese culture-a lucid epigrammatic text that reveals as much about human psychology, politics, and economics as it does about battlefield strategy.

About the Author

Little is known about Sun Tzu (544-496 B.C.) and his life during the Warring States period after the decline of the Zhou dysnasty, but his classic, The Art of War, has been one of the central works of Chinese literature for 2500 years. John Minford (editor/translator) studied Chinese at Oxford and at the Australian National University and has taught in China, Hong Kong, and New Zealand. He edited (with Geremie Barme) Seeds of Fire: Chinese Voices of Conscience and (with Joseph S. M. Lau) Chinese Classical Literature: An Anthology of Translations. He has translated numerous works from the Chinese, including the last two volumes of the Penguin Classics edition of Cao Xueqin's eighteenth-century novel The Story of the Stone and the martial-arts fiction of the contemporary Hong Kong novelist Louis Cha.

1421: The Year China Discovered the World by Gavin Menzies

• Paperback: 672 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial; 1st Thus. edition (June 3, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061564893
• ISBN-13: 978-0061564895

From Publishers Weekly

A former submarine commander in Britain's Royal Navy, Menzies must enjoy doing battle. The amateur historian's lightly footnoted, heavily speculative re-creation of little-known voyages made by Chinese ships in the early 1400s goes far beyond what most experts in and outside of China are willing to assert and will surely set tongues wagging. According to Menzies's brazen but dull account of the Middle Kingdom's exploits at sea, Magellan, Dias, da Gama, Cabral and Cook only "discovered" lands the Chinese had already visited, and they sailed with maps drawn from Chinese charts. Menzies alleges that the Chinese not only discovered America, but also established colonies here long before Columbus set out to sea. Because China burned the records of its historic expeditions led by Zheng He, the famed eunuch admiral and the focus of this account, Menzies is forced to defend his argument by compiling a tedious package of circumstantial evidence that ranges from reasonable to ridiculous. While the book does contain some compelling claims-for example, that the Chinese were able to calculate longitude long before Western explorers-drawn from Menzies's experiences at sea, his overall credibility is undermined by dubious research methods. In just one instance, when confounded by the derivation of cryptic words on a Venetian map, Menzies first consults an expert at crossword puzzles rather than an etymologist. Such an approach to scholarship, along with a promise of more proof to come in the paperback edition, casts a shadow of doubt over Menzies's discoveries. 32 pages of color illus., 27 maps and diagrams. Book-of-the-Month Club alternate.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

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

Review

“Menzies’ enthusiasm is infectious and his energy boundless. He has raised important questions and marshaled some fascinating information.” (Toronto Globe and Mail )

“No matter what you think of Menzies’s theories, his enthusiasm is infectious.” (Christian Science Monitor )

“What you’ve done, brilliantly, is to raise many questions that people are debating.” (Diane Rehm, The Diane Rehm Show )

“Captivating . . . a historical detective story . . . that adds to our knowledge of the world, past and present.” (Daily News )

“<1421> is likely to be the most fascinating read of 2003.” (UPI )

“[Menzies] makes history sound like pure fun...a seductive read.” (New York Times Magazine )

Product Description

On March 8, 1421, the largest fleet the world had ever seen set sail from China to "proceed all the way to the ends of the earth to collect tribute from the barbarians beyond the seas." When the fleet returned home in October 1423, the emperor had fallen, leaving China in political and economic chaos. The great ships were left to rot at their moorings and the records of their journeys were destroyed. Lost in the long, self-imposed isolation that followed was the knowledge that Chinese ships had reached America seventy years before Columbus and had circumnavigated the globe a century before Magellan. And they colonized America before the Europeans, transplanting the principal economic crops that have since fed and clothed the world.

About the Author

The author of 1421: The Year China Discovered America, Gavin Menzies was born in England and lived in China for two years before the Second World War. He joined the Royal Navy in 1953 and served in submarines from 1959 to 1970. Since leaving the Royal Navy, he has returned to China and Asia many times, and in the course of his research, he has visited 120 countries, more than 900 museums and libraries, and every major seaport of the late Middle Ages. Menzies is married with two daughters and lives in North London.

The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins

• Perfect Paperback: 470 pages (September 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0593061748
• ISBN-13: 978-0593061749
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds

The book is divided into 13 chapters spanning over 400 pages, and includes an appendix called "The History-Deniers" in the end material.

1. Only a Theory? (Nature of scientific theory and fallibility)
2. Dogs, Cows and Cabbages (Artificial Selection)
3. The Primrose Path to Macro-Evolution
4. Silence and Slow Time (Discusses the Age of the Earth and the Geological Time Scale)
5. Before Our Very Eyes (Examples of Evolution Observed)
6. Missing link? What do you mean, 'Missing'? (the fossil record)
7. Missing persons? Missing no longer (Human Evolution)
8. You did it yourself in nine months (a statement attributed to J. B. S. Haldane; discusses developmental biology)
9. The ark of the continents (biogeography and plate tectonics)
10. The tree of cousinship (the tree of life, homology and analogy)
11. History written all over us (vestigiality and unintelligent design)
12. Arms races and 'evolutionary theodicy' (coevolution and evolutionary arms races)
13. There is grandeur in this view of life (based on the final passage of On the Origin of Species)

From Publishers Weekly

SignatureReviewed by Jonah LehrerRichard Dawkins begins The Greatest Show on Earth with a short history of his writing career. He explains that all of his previous books have naïvely assumed the fact of evolution, which meant that he never got around to laying out the evidence that it [evolution] is true. This shouldn't be too surprising: science is an edifice of tested assumptions, and just as physicists must assume the truth of gravity before moving on to quantum mechanics, so do biologists depend on the reality of evolution. It's the theory that makes every other theory possible.Yet Dawkins also came to realize that a disturbingly large percentage of the American and British public didn't share his enthusiasm for evolution. In fact, they actively abhorred the idea, since it seemed to contradict the Bible and diminish the role of God. So Dawkins decided to write a book for these history-deniers, in which he would dispassionately demonstrate the truth of evolution beyond sane, informed, intelligent doubt.After only a few pages of The Greatest Show on Earth, however, it becomes clear that Dawkins doesn't do dispassionate, and that he's not particularly interested in convincing believers to believe in evolution. He repeatedly compares creationists and Holocaust deniers, which is a peculiar way of reaching out to the other side. Elsewhere, Dawkins calls those who don't subscribe to evolution ignorant, fatuously ignorant and ridiculous. All of which raises the point: who, exactly, is supposed to read this book? Is Dawkins preaching to the choir or trying to convert the uninformed? While The Greatest Show on Earth might fail as a work of persuasive rhetoric—Dawkins is too angry and acerbic to convince his opponents—it succeeds as an encyclopedic summary of evolutionary biology. If Charles Darwin walked into a 21st-century bookstore and wanted to know how his theory had fared, this is the book he should pick up.Dawkins remains a superb translator of complex scientific concepts. It doesn't matter if he's spinning metaphors for the fossil record (like a spy camera in a murder trial) or deftly explaining the method by which scientists measure the genetic difference between distinct species: he has a way of making the drollest details feel like a revelation. Even if one already believes in the survival of the fittest, there is something thrilling about learning that the hoof of a horse is homologous to the fingernail of the human middle finger, or that some dinosaurs had a second brain of ganglion cells in their pelvis, which helped compensate for the tiny brain in their head. As Darwin famously noted, There is grandeur in this view of life. What Dawkins demonstrates is that this view of life isn't just grand: it's also undeniably true. Color illus. (Sept. 29)Jonah Lehrer is the author of How We Decide and Proust Was a Neuroscientist.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Bookmarks Magazine

"Like a detective reconstructing a crime" (San Francisco Chronicle), Dawkins amasses a mountain of evidence in this richly illustrated, enormously readable explanation of the theory of evolution. Though Dawkins may have softened his attitude toward those who can reconcile their religious beliefs with evolution, he still harbors great hostility toward its detractors, equating them to Holocaust deniers—a label that riled the New York Times Book Review. Objecting to Dawkins's abrasive dogmatism, many critics felt that the biologist is at his best when he forgets his opponents and focuses on the science. He is indeed a master of explaining complex scientific ideas to nonscientific readers, and though The Greatest Show on Earth may not be his best book, it is a well-written, captivating review of the science behind the theory.

Review

“Brilliant, detailed, anecdotal and immensely readable . . . Poignant, revealing. Dawkins is canny, funny, and beguiling . . . [He lays] out evidence with such fascinating detail that the book is both scientifically exciting and completely convincing. It's badly needed in this era when the science of evolution is being threatened in our schools.”—San Francisco Chronicle


“Unambiguous, beautifully argued, with prose like quicksilver. Entertaining. Dawkins emerges like a prize-fighter, knocking out of the ring all objections.”
—Nature 

"This is a magnificent book of wonderstanding: Richard Dawkins combines an artist's wonder at the virtuosity of nature with a scientist's understanding of how it comes to be.'' -- Matt Ridley, author of Nature via Nurture

"'There is grandeur in this view of life,' said Darwin, speaking of evolution. There is no one better qualified to convey this grandeur than his worthy successor, Richard Dawkins, who writes with passion, clarity, and wit. This may be his best book yet." -- V. S. Ramachandran

"To call this book a defense of evolution utterly misses the point: The Greatest Show on Earth is a celebration of one of the best ideas humans have ever produced. It is hard not to marvel at Richard Dawkins's luminous telling of the story of evolution and the way that it has shaped our world. In reading Dawkins, one is left awed at the beauty of the theory and humbled by the power of science to understand some of the greatest mysteries of life." -- Neil Shubin, author of Your Inner Fish

"Up until now, Richard Dawkins has said everything interesting that there is to say about evolution -- with one exception. In The Greatest Show on Earth, he fills this gap, brilliantly describing the multifarious and massive evidence for evolution -- evidence that gives the lie to the notion that evolution is 'only a theory.' This important and timely book is a must-read for Darwin Year." -- Jerry Coyne, author of Why Evolution Is True

"This is the book Richard Dawkins needed to write and many need to read -- a comprehensive account of evolution that faces the difficulties and questions his critics have raised. In it he draws on his great ability to write about science in a way that is clear, absorbing, and vivid." -- Lord Harries of Pentregarth (formerly Bishop Richard Harries)

"With characteristic flair and passion, Dawkins has put on a stunning exhibition of the evidence for evolution. In his own words, 'Evolution is a fact...and no unbiased reader will close the book doubting it.'" -- Dr. Alice Roberts, biological anthropologist, author, and broadcaster

"'...he is an awesome thinker, a superb writer whose explanatory skills I envy, who dismisses his opponents with the thoroughness of a top silk'....A beautifully crafted and intelligible rebuttal of creationism and intelligent design." -- The Times

"Dawkins gathers up the weight of evidence into a huge lump and hurls it at us from the highest heights his rhetoric can scale...his grandness of vision still dazzles." -- The Sunday Telegraph

Product Description

In 2008, a Gallup poll showed that 44 percent of Americans believed God had created man in his present form within the last 10,000 years. In a Pew Forum poll in the same year, 42 percent believed that all life on earth has existed in its present form since the beginning of time.
In 1859 Charles Darwin's masterpiece, On the Origin of Species, shook society to its core. Darwin was only too aware of the storm his theory of evolution would provoke. But he surely would have raised an incredulous eyebrow at the controversy still raging a century and a half later. Evolution is accepted as scientific fact by all reputable scientists and indeed theologians, yet millions of people continue to question its veracity. Now the author of the iconic work The God Delusion takes them to task.

The Greatest Show on Earth is a stunning counterattack on advocates of "Intelligent Design," explaining the evidence for evolution while exposing the absurdities of the creationist "argument." Dawkins sifts through rich layers of scientific evidence: from living examples of natural selection to clues in the fossil record; from natural clocks that mark the vast epochs wherein evolution ran its course to the intricacies of developing embryos; from plate tectonics to molecular genetics. Combining these elements and many more, he makes the airtight case that "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection."

The Greatest Show on Earth comes at a critical time: systematic opposition to the fact of evolution is menacing as never before. In American schools, and in schools around the world, insidious attempts are made to undermine the status of science in the classroom. Dawkins wields a devastating argument against this ignorance, but his unjaded passion for the natural world turns what might have been a negative argument into a positive offering to the reader: nothing less than a master's vision of life, in all its splendor.

About the Author

Richard Dawkins is a world-renowned evolutionary biologist and author.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Society and, until recently, held the Charles Simonyi Chair of Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University. His first book, The Selfish Gene, was an instant international bestseller, and has become an established classic work of modern evolutionary biology. He is also the author of The Blind Watchmaker, River Out of Eden, Climbing Mount Improbable, Unweaving the Rainbow, A Devil's Chaplain, The Ancestor's Tale, and most recently,The God Delusion.

DAVID MCKEAN has illustrated many award winning comics and books, including The Big Fat Duck Cookbook (Heston Blumenthal), What's Welsh For Zen (John Cale), Varjak Paw (SF Said), The Savage and Slog’s Dad (David Almond), Arkham Asylum (Grant Morrison), The Homecoming (Ray Bradbury), Wizard and Glass (Stephen King), The Graveyard Book, Wolves in the Walls, Coraline, Mr. Punch, Signal to Noise and Crazy Hair (all by Neil Gaiman).

He has written and illustrated the graphic novel Cages and short story collection Pictures That Tick, and is working on a new novel (Caligaro) and second volume of short stories.
He has designed and illustrated well over a hundred cd covers for artists as diverse as Michael Nyman, Rolling Stones, John Cale, Alice Cooper, Bill Laswell, Bill Buford, Counting Crows, Iain Ballamy, Tori Amos and Frontine Assembly.

He has designed a Broadway Musical (Lestat), creatures for the Harry Potter films, advertising campaigns for Kodak, Nike, Smirnoff, BMWMini and the British Government, and exhibited in Europe, America and Japan.

From AudioFile

All except the woefully informed accept that evolution is a fact, maintains author Richard Dawkins. In scientific language peppered with trivial asides and occasional British slang, he mounts a credible attack on the creationists. Dawkins generates a modern argument for evolution by citing genetic experiments and evidence from the fossil record. He also includes side discussions of supporting subjects such as natural clocks, embryology, and molecular structure. The author and Lalla Ward narrate in relay, taking turns with phrases and paragraphs. The distracting effect of dueling voices strains the continuity in this demanding nonfiction audio. In their praise, the pair's perfect enunciation and appropriate pace allow listeners to readily absorb the abundant facts and figures. J.A.H. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

The Literary Almanac: The Best of the Printed Word : 1900 to the Present by High Tide Press

The Literary Almanac: The Best of the Printed Word : 1900 to the Present - Paperback (Nov. 1997) by High Tide Press

Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle by Dan Senor and Saul Singer (Hardcover - Nov 4, 2009)

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Twelve; First Edition (stated) edition (November 4, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 044654146X
• ISBN-13: 978-0446541466

From Publishers Weekly

Hampered by an Arab nation boycott that makes regional trade impossible and endowed with precious little by way of natural resources, Israel has beaten the odds to become a major player in the global business world, especially in the technology sector. With the highest number of startups per capita of any nation in the world and massive venture capital investment, Israel is one of the world's entrepreneurship hubs. Senor, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and Singer (Confronting Jihad) track Israel's economic prowess using a number of factors, including the social networks and leadership training provided by Israel's mandatory military and reserve service, a culture of critique fostered by centuries of Jewish tradition and an open immigration policy for Jews that continually restocks Israel's population with motivated people from around the world—all of which foster a business climate in which risk is embraced and good ideas are given a chance to grow. The authors ground their analysis in case studies and interviews with some of Israel's most brilliant innovators to make this a rich and insightful read not just for business leaders and policy makers but for anyone curious about contemporary Israeli culture. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"There is a great deal for America to learn from the very impressive Israeli entrepreneurial model... START-UP NATION is a playbook for every CEO who wants to develop the next generation of corporate leaders."


(Tom Brokaw, special correspondent for NBC News, and bestselling author of The Greatest Generation )


"In the midst of the chaos of the Middle East, there's a remarkable story of innovation. START-UP NATION is... a timely book and a much-needed celebration of the entrepreneurial spirit."
(Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay )


"Senor and Singer's experience[s]...come to life in their illuminating, timely, and often surprising analysis."


(George Stephanopoulos, anchor of ABC?s "This Week" )


"No one else, in my judgment, has written regularly about Israel in recent years with more clarity than Singer." (William Kristol, Editor of The Weekly Standard )


"An edifying, cogent report."


(Kirkus )


"A rich and insightful read."


(Publishers Weekly )


"Saul Singer's Confronting Jihad should be mandatory reading for anyone, layman or expert, interested in the real Middle East." (Michael Oren, historian and bestselling author of "Six Days of War" )

Product Description

START-UP NATION addresses the trillion dollar question: How is it that Israel-- a country of 7.1 million, only 60 years old, surrounded by enemies, in a constant state of war since its founding, with no natural resources-- produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada and the UK?


With the savvy of foreign policy insiders, Senor and Singer examine the lessons of the country's adversity-driven culture, which flattens hierarchy and elevates informality-- all backed up by government policies focused on innovation. In a world where economies as diverse as Ireland, Singapore and Dubai have tried to re-create the "Israel effect", there are entrepreneurial lessons well worth noting. As America reboots its own economy and can-do spirit, there's never been a better time to look at this remarkable and resilient nation for some impressive, surprising clues.

About the Author

Dan Senor, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Middle East Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, has been on the front lines of policy, politics, and business in the Middle East. As a senior foreign policy advisor to the U.S. Government , he was one of the longest-serving civilian officials in Iraq. He has also served in Qatar and studied in Israel. Senor's pieces are frequently published by The Wall Street Journal. 


Saul Singer is the editorial editor of The Jerusalem Post, for which he writes a weekly column, and the author of Confronting Jihad:Israel's Struggle and the World after 9/11. For ten years, he served as a foreign policy advisor on Capitol Hill. http://www.startupnationbook.com/

The Secret of Success is Not a Secret: Stories of Famous People Who Persevered by Darcy Andries

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Sellers Publishing Inc.; 1st edition (March 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569069972
• ISBN-13: 978-1569069974

Product Description

This inspiring collection features the stories of more than 300 people who faced failure or setbacks in their fields before going on to phenomenal success. The persevering individuals profiled include those from a wide range of disciplines, backgrounds, and time periods. From Katharine Hepburn to J.K. Rowling, from Elvis Presley to Michael Jordan, readers will find all the motivation they need to create their own secret to success.

About the Author

Darcy Andries spent several years teaching English and special education before turning her full attention to research and writing. As a way to motivate her students, Andries began collecting and sharing the stories of well-known individuals who failed at first but who ultimately triumphed.

Going to the Sources: A Guide to Historical Research and Writing by Anthony Brundage

Paperback: 107 pages
Publisher: Harlan Davidson; 3 edition (January 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0882959697
ISBN-13: 978-0882959696

The Seventy Great Battles in History by Jeremy Black

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Thames & Hudson; illustrated edition edition (October 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0500251258
• ISBN-13: 978-0500251256

• Product Description

Twenty-five military historians from around the world describe the decisive conflicts that shaped history from the fifth century BC to the present.

Cannae and Agincourt, Waterloo and Gettysburg, Stalingrad and Midway, the Tet Offensive….The latest book in the popular Seventies series assesses the great battles and conflicts in history from the past twenty-five centuries, and discusses the effects they have had on the development of states and civilizations.

Organized chronologically into seven parts, the book encompasses the ancient and medieval worlds as well as the wars of the past hundred years, including the conflict in Iraq. The contributors analyze not just the greatest land battles of all time, but sieges such as Constantinople (1453) and Tenochtitlán (1521); naval battles such as Actium (31 BC), Trafalgar (1805), and Tsushima (1905); and the crucial conflicts in the air during the Battle of Britain (1940) and the American attack on Japan (1945).

The coverage is truly worldwide in scope, from the battle in Teutoburg Forest in AD 9, where the Germans defeated the Romans, to Hakata Bay in 1281, where the Japanese defeated the Mongols, and the first battle of Panipat in 1526, where the Mughals conquered Hindustan. The reader is presented with a masterly overview of advances in military technology, and of the changing tactics and strategy of battlefield commanders from Hannibal to Napoleon, Montgomery, and Eisenhower.

Richly illustrated in color with hundreds of photographs, contemporary paintings, and specially commissioned battle plans and maps, this will be essential reading for anyone interested in military history. 350 illustrations, 230 in color.

About the Author

Jeremy Black is Professor of History at the University of Exeter and the author or editor of more than forty books, including World War Two: A Military History and The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: Renaissance to Revolution, 1492-1792.

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins (Paperback - Dec 27, 2005)

• 
  
• 
  
• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Ebury Press; New Ed edition (2006)
• ISBN-10: 0091909104
• ISBN-13: 978-0

  Amazon.com Review

  John Perkins started and stopped writing Confessions of an Economic Hit Man four times over 20 years. He says he was threatened and bribed in an effort to kill the project, but after 9/11 he finally decided to go through with this expose of his former professional life. Perkins, a former chief economist at Boston strategic-consulting firm Chas. T. Main, says he was an "economic hit man" for 10 years, helping U.S. intelligence agencies and multinationals cajole and blackmail foreign leaders into serving U.S. foreign policy and awarding lucrative contracts to American business. "Economic hit men (EHMs) are highly paid professionals who cheat countries around the globe out of trillions of dollars," Perkins writes. Confessions of an Economic Hit Man is an extraordinary and gripping tale of intrigue and dark machinations. Think John Le Carré, except it's a true story.Perkins writes that his economic projections cooked the books Enron-style to convince foreign governments to accept billions of dollars of loans from the World Bank and other institutions to build dams, airports, electric grids, and other infrastructure he knew they couldn't afford. The loans were given on condition that construction and engineering contracts went to U.S. companies. Often, the money would simply be transferred from one bank account in Washington, D.C., to another one in New York or San Francisco. The deals were smoothed over with bribes for foreign officials, but it was the taxpayers in the foreign countries who had to pay back the loans. When their governments couldn't do so, as was often the case, the U.S. or its henchmen at the World Bank or International Monetary Fund would step in and essentially place the country in trusteeship, dictating everything from its spending budget to security agreements and even its United Nations votes. It was, Perkins writes, a clever way for the U.S. to expand its "empire" at the expense of Third World citizens. While at times he seems a little overly focused on conspiracies, perhaps that's not surprising considering the life he's led. --Alex Roslin
  

  From Publishers Weekly

  Perkins spent the 1970s working as an economic planner for an international consulting firm, a job that took him to exotic locales like Indonesia and Panama, helping wealthy corporations exploit developing nations as, he claims, a not entirely unwitting front for the National Security Agency. He says he was trained early in his career by a glamorous older woman as one of many "economic hit men" advancing the cause of corporate hegemony. He also says he has wanted to tell his story for the last two decades, but his shadowy masters have either bought him off or threatened him until now. The story as presented is implausible to say the least, offering so few details that Perkins often seems paranoid, and the simplistic political analysis doesn’t enhance his credibility. Despite the claim that his work left him wracked with guilt, the artless prose is emotionally flat and generally comes across as a personal crisis of conscience blown up to monstrous proportions, casting Perkins as a victim not only of his own neuroses over class and money but of dark forces beyond his control. His claim to have assisted the House of Saud in strengthening its ties to American power brokers may be timely enough to attract some attention, but the yarn he spins is ultimately unconvincing, except perhaps to conspiracy buffs.
  Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
  

  Review

  "John Perkins has written a book that shakes one's confidence in the ethics of the prevailing economic system." -- Jim Garrison, author, America As Empire, President of the State of the World Forum
  
  "Must reading for those who know another world is possible!" -- Hazel Henderson, author of Beyond Globalization and Building a Win-Win World
  
  "Perkins narrates his moral awakening to break free from the corrupt system of global domination he himself helped to create." -- Michael Brownstein 
  
  "This book is Perkins' story, that through necessity and courage offers us a way back, beyond salvation, to human justice." -- Gary Margolis Ph.D., Director, Center for Counseling and Human Relations, Associate Professor of English, Middlebury College, author, Fire in the Orchard and Falling Awake
  
  "… true, powerful, revealing, and bone chilling personal story that names names and connects the dots . . . " -- David Korten, author of the bestselling When Corporations Rule the World
  
  An adventure thriller that connects the dots between corporate globalization, American Empire, and the dynasty of the House of Bush. -- Dragonfly Review, November 2004
  
  It is rare to find a book that takes your breath away. This may be one such. The author tried five times to start writing this book but was threatened or bribed to desist. He remains optimistic. You may find reading this book, either entertaining, or provoking rage, apoplexy or intense depression. Judge for yourself. Business Economist Business Economist 20050711
  

  Product Description

  Confessions of an Economic Hit Man reveals a game that, according to John Perkins, is "as old as Empire" but has taken on new and terrifying dimensions in an era of globalization. And Perkins should know. For many years he worked for an international consulting firm where his main job was to convince LDCs (less developed countries) around the world to accept multibillion-dollar loans for infrastructure projects and to see to it that most of this money ended up at Halliburton, Bechtel, Brown and Root, and other United States engineering and construction companies. This book, which many people warned Perkins not to write, is a blistering attack on a little-known phenomenon that has had dire consequences on both the victimized countries and the U.S.
  

  About the Author

  John Perkins is founder and president of the Dream Change Coalition, which works closely with Amazonian and other indigenous people to help preserve their environments and cultures. He was previously founder and CEO of Independent Power Systems, an alternative energy provider. From 1971 to 1981 he worked for the international consulting firm of Chas. T. Main, where he became Chief Economist and Director of Economics and Regional Planning. He is the author of five books, including Spirit of the Shuar: Wisdom from the Last Unconquered People of the Amazon.091909109

The Book of Virtues for Young People by William J Bennett

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing (May 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689816138
• ISBN-13: 978-0689816130

From Publishers Weekly

Having scored a resounding success with The Book of Virtues (more than 2.2 million copies sold), erstwhile politico William J. Bennett now turns his attention to what his publisher deems the "growing demand for character education" with The Book of Virtues for Young People: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories; included under such headings as Self-Discipline, Responsibility and Loyalty are works by the likes of James Baldwin, Emily Dickinson, Victor Hugo and Thomas Bulfinch (S&S/Silver Burdett, $14.95, ages 7-12 ISBN 0-382-24923-2 July).
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 Up?Bennett has compiled fables, stories, and poems that have served as inspiration since time immemorial. Courage, friendship, loyalty, honesty, self-discipline, compassion, responsibility, friendship, work, and faith are represented, with an introduction and commentary for each. Classics such as O. Henry's "The Gift of the Magi" and "Echo and Narcissus" are indicative of compassion. A sweet, illuminating letter from "F. Scott Fitzgerald to His Daughter" lays out her responsibilities. An account by Helen Keller of meeting her teacher, Anne Sullivan, provides a beautiful portrait of friendship. And poignant examples of courage are presented back to back in "Excerpt from the Diary of Anne Frank" and the poem "If?" by Rudyard Kipling. This old-fashioned volume may not be picked up by today's world-weary readers, but those who do dip into it will find that every generation had its share of problems addressed by eloquent and, yes, virtuous writers.?Julie Halverstadt, Douglas Public Library District, Castle Rock, CO
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 4^-6, younger for reading aloud. Following his best-selling book for adults The Book of Virtues (1993) with a similar volume for young people, the former U.S. secretary of education offers a collection of readings, grouped by theme, on the virtues of self-discipline, compassion, responsibility, friendship, work, courage, perseverance, honesty, loyalty, and faith. Each section begins with a photograph and a short essay on the particular theme, addressed to young people. Drawn from a variety of sources and executed in different styles, black-and-white drawings, engravings, and photos accompany some of the pieces. Typical selections include myths, folktales, historical tales, fables, poems, hymns, Bible stories, and excerpts from diaries and letters. Parents looking for short readings to entertain and possibly inspire their children will find much to their liking here. Carolyn Phelan --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

Stories from the best-selling Book of Virtues target a younger audience and include material from O. Henry, Tolstoy, and Guy de Maupassant, along with tales from Aesop, poetry from Emily Dickinson, and many other selections."

Our Country's Founders by William J Bennett

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: Broadman & Holman Pub (September 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805416005
• ISBN-13: 978-0805416008

Review

School Library JournalThis volume will provide material for reports and primary sources on the principles and ideas that are our national heritage. -- Review --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description

Encouraged by the thousands of young Americans who enjoyed The Book of Virtues for Young People, William J. Bennett returns with an inspiring collection of wisdom from the men and women who founded our great nation. On that hot July day in 1776 when our forefathers pledged "our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor" to establishing a free country, they started a revolution based on fundamental values such as patriotism, love, civility, education, industry, justice, and piety. The advice offered by the Founders on these values still rings true for young people today.
In speeches, letters, poems, and articles, the words and deeds of the brave men and women of the Revolution reveal the basic principles of how to be a good American. Witness the courage of George Washington crossing the Delaware. Enjoy the expression of true love between John and Abigail Adams. Feel the great bond of friendship between Madison and Jefferson. And take to heart the lessons on education and frugality of Benjamin Franklin.
Drawn from the best-selling adult book Our Sacred Honor, this adapted version includes new selections, plus important documents such as the Constitution and Declaration of Independence; a time line; and biographical notes on our revolutionary forefathers. Our Country's Founders provides all the background needed to appreciate these timeless lessons and advice from America's founders. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

William J. Bennett served as Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy under President George H. W. Bush and as Secretary of Education and Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities under President Reagan. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Williams College, a doctorate in political philosophy from the University of Texas, and a law degree from Harvard. He is the author of such bestselling books as The Educated Child, The Death of Outrage, The Book of Virtues, and the two-volume seriesAmerica: The Last Best Hope. Dr. Bennett is the host of the nationally syndicated radio show Bill Bennett's Morning in America. He is also the Washington Fellow of the Claremont Institute and a regular contributor to CNN. He, his wife, Elayne, and their two sons, John and Joseph, live in Maryland.