In the years following its near-bankruptcy in 1976 until the end of the 1980s, New York City came to epitomize the debt-driven, deal-oriented, economic boom of the Reagan era. Exploring the interplay between social structural change and political power during this period, John Mollenkopf asks why a city with a large minority population and a long tradition of liberalism elected a conservative mayor who promoted real-estate development and belittled minority activists. Through a careful analysis of voting patterns, political strategies of various interest groups, and policy trends, he explains how Mayor Edward Koch created a powerful political coalition and why it ultimately failed.
Phoenix from the Ashes is a comprehensive look at the state of the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council--one of a series of recurrent periods of moral and intellectual crisis to which it has succumbed in its history. A chapter on the Council describes in detail how Pope Paul VI diverted it by placing it under the exclusive control of European liberals. An equally close study is devoted to the liturgical "reform" entrusted by the same pope to a group of radicals whose work undermined the spiritual and devotional legacy of the faithful. The loss of orthodox teaching and the disorientation following upon these changes produced a grave crisis in both clergy and laity, but the movement of return to tradition visible today promises a revival of the full Catholic life of the Church. Catholic readers now have a complete and eminently accessible account of the last 50 years of momentous changes in the Church, right up to the pontificates of Benedict XVI and Francis I. "This wide-ranging account of the self-destruction of the Roman Catholic Church and its identification of her only realistic route back to the land of the living simultaneously strikes a blow at history's two most prevalent temptations: rejection or twisting of evidence in the service of an ideological thesis, and honest dedication to intense research on subjects whose ultimate existential value the 'unbiased' historian somehow fears to reveal to his readers. Henry Sire courageously shuts no doors and stifles no evidence, employing a passionate and lively prose that leaves no doubt regarding his sense of the crucial moral and cultural importance of his topic."--JOHN RAO, author of Black Legends and the Light of the World and Removing the Blindfold "For Catholics feeling lost at sea as a result of the turbulent crisis tossing and flooding the Barque of Peter, Henry Sire's work identifies clear landmarks to steady our gaze. He situates the present disarray within the larger historical context of the Arian heresy and Protestant revolution, and points to the buoys of tradition--liturgical, doctrinal, and philosophical--as sure guides to our way out. Sire distills entire epochs of history, from the first centuries of the Church through the current pontificate, into a highly readable and thought-provoking story. In the course of his tale he exposes the radical progressivism of the Second Vatican Council and its after-effects as well as the tepid conservatism of the Reform of the Reform and the Hermeneutic of Continuity."--BRIAN M. MCCALL, author of To Build the City of God "Historian H.J.A. Sire has compiled a balanced assessment of the revolution in the Roman Catholic Church. His mastery of the material is complete. The book flows along easily and readers will finish it confident that they have a comprehensive understanding of the last 60 years in the Church."--ROGER MCCAFFREY, President, Roman Catholic Books "Thanks to Henry Sire's penetrating book, we have some profound answers to nagging questions. How did the West end up so quickly in a post-Christian age, when only decades ago one could still speak of a Christian culture? How did we go from the seemingly healthy Roman Catholic Church of the 1950s to the mass apostasy and grave scandals of recent years? As Sire shows, the antecedents go back quite far, in fact many centuries, but the possibility of healing and regeneration is not as remote as we think."--STEPHEN KLIMCZUK-MASSION, Senior Adviser, Hildebrand Project H.J.A. SIRE was born in 1949 in Barcelona of a family of French ancestry and was educated in England, at Stonyhurst College and at Exeter College, Oxford, where he took a degree in Modern History. He has written several books on subjects of Catholic history and biography and currently lives in Rome, where he works professionally as a historian.
An illustrated Slice of Life novel. Three lives entwine because of a subtle coincidence. A girl on the edge of society, an extremely rich weird kid and one of the most popular pop stars of the planet.Fade lives a life left on her own, struggling constantly to survive in a society that swallows everyone who doesn’t keep up with its pace; her only company is a kitchen knife and a scar embedded in her leg that reminds her every day of who she is and why she is there. While she’s stealing in a supermarket, she meets Jag, a boy with a disturbing appearance who convinces her to join him in his weird plan: to become the main sponsor of one of the most successful bands of the moment, of which he’s a huge fan, and – apparently – he doesn’t lack the money to do so. She allows herself to be convinced to meet Nef, a typical playboy, who eventually will learn that the world isn’t all at his feet like he thought...
The Iraq War is a visual record of the American-led Operation Iraqi Freedom of 2003, which resulted in the dramatic overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein. In a striking sequence of photographs Anthony Tucker-Jones shows how this was achieved by the American and British armed forces in a lightning campaign of just two weeks. But the photographs also show the disastrous aftermath when the swift victory was undermined by the outbreak of the Iraqi insurgency - in the Shia south, in Baghdad and the Sunni Triangle, and in Fallujah where two ferocious battles were fought. The author, who is an expert on the Iraqi armed forces and has written extensively on the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War, gives a fascinating insight into the Iraqi army and air force and into the multitude of weapons systems Saddam purchased from around the world. He also looks at the failures on the American and British side - the flaws in the tactics that were used, the poor performance of some of the armoured fighting vehicles and at the reformed Iraqi armed forces who have now taken responsibility for security in the country. The Iraq War is a vivid photographic introduction to a conflict that has only just passed into history.
Caina Amalas is a Ghost nightfighter, one of the elite agents of the Emperor of Nighmar, and she has defeated both corrupt lords and mighty sorcerers. As the Padishah of Istarinmul prepares to make peace with the Emperor, the Ghosts must keep the Padishah’s ambassador safe from assassins. But when an escaped slave begs for Caina’s help, she finds dark plots stirring in the shadows. Plots that threaten to devour the Empire and unleash terrible horrors.
Experience the power of Hatha Yoga as a tool for spiritual transformation. Providing symbolic and mythological context for each asana, the Hidden Language method encourages you to take Hatha beyond the physical. Explore twenty-two asanas through symbol and metaphor. Spiritualize your Hatha practice.
In a world still reeling from the effects of war, an undead enemy arises. Survivors have to decide whether keeping old grudges and prejudices will still benefit them or if forming new alliances is the better way to carry on. Amid the chaos, young drifter, Raena, finds herself leading a large group of survivors and struggles to keep not only her people but also hope alive. But the undead aren't the only enemy. Raena also has to find a way to discover who these unseen antagonists are and discover a way to outwit them while the fate of the world hangs in the balance.
Everett C. Hughes had a great impact on the field of sociology as a whole and on an entire generation of sociologists. Some of Hughes' former students and colleagues honor him in this book. The essays address the main themes in his work over the years, and illustrate as well Hughes' impact on the contributors, many of whom are themselves senior figures in the field. The book as a whole provides a distinguished and representative sampling of a major stream of contemporary sociological thought. Each of the five main divisions in the book covers one aspect of Hughes' work. The first deals with the study of occupations and professions-a field in which Hughes was a leader. The second section deals with race relations and other situations in which peoples of differing cultures meet. Beginning with his own work in French Canada many years ago, Hughes interests spread, and the breadth of this interest is seen in chapters on India, Peru, and race relations in the United States. Problems of organizations-how they are put together and how they work-are contained in a third section. A fourth section reflects Hughes' interest in the impact of institutional experience on the people who participate in social institutions, and includes chapters on occupational socialization, status passage, and the use of drugs. A final section develops still another of Hughes' interests-social science method. Presenting some of the most important topics of contemporary theory and research, this book remains profitable reading for every member of the discipline
The second book in the Jasmine Sharp series, from author Christopher Brookmyre. Is the devil merely the name we give the worst in ourselves? When private investigator Jasmine Sharp is hired to find Tessa Garrion, a young woman who has vanished without trace, it becomes increasingly clear that there are those who want her to stay that way. What begins as a simple search awakens a malevolence that has lain dormant for three decades, putting Jasmine in the crosshairs of those who would stop at nothing to keep their secrets buried. Uncovering a hidden history of sex, drugs, ritualism and murder, Jasmine realises she may need a little help from dark places herself if she's going to get to the truth. But then needs must...
A propulsive, kaleidoscopic novel about a fractured family and the persistence of hope It all begins with a crash. One night, seventeen-year-old Wolf steals his mother’s car and drives six hundred kilometers in search of his sister, who left home ten years ago. Unlicensed and on edge, he veers onto the wrong side of the road and causes an accident. He is arrested and incarcerated, forcing his mother and sister to reconnect and pick up the pieces in order to fight for his release. What follows is a lyrical, precise, and unflinching account of the events that lead to this moment, told through the alternating perspectives of Wolf’s mother, sister, and grandfather, as well as the doctor who was present at Wolf’s birth. With each chapter, new versions of the story and views of reality unfold, and they fit together like puzzle pieces: in an uncertain order at first, and then slowly falling neatly into place as the pages turn. As details about the characters’ lives and the disconnections in their relationships are revealed, the story becomes even more propulsive, even more compelling. In this raw and poignant novel, Nathacha Appanah considers how trauma shapes generations and the wounds it leaves behind. The Sky above the Roof is both a portrait of a fractured family and a poetic exploration of the ways we break apart and rebuild.
