Best Selling Books by Jonathan Miller

A "persuasive and essential" (Matthew Desmond) work that will forever change how we look at life after prison in America through Miller''s "stunning, and deeply painful reckoning with our nation''s carceral system" (Heather Ann Thompson). Each year, more than half a million Americans are released from prison and join a population of twenty million people who live with a felony record. Reuben Miller, a chaplain at the Cook County Jail in Chicago and now a sociologist studying mass incarceration, spent years alongside prisoners, ex-prisoners, their friends, and their families to understand the lifelong burden that even a single arrest can entail. What his work revealed is a simple, if overlooked truth: life after incarceration is its own form of prison. The idea that one can serve their debt and return to life as a full-fledge member of society is one of America''s most nefarious myths. Recently released individuals are faced with jobs that are off-limits, apartments that cannot be occupied and votes that cannot be cast. As The Color of Law exposed about our understanding of housing segregation, Halfway Home shows that the American justice system was not created to rehabilitate. Parole is structured to keep classes of Americans impoverished, unstable, and disenfranchised long after they''ve paid their debt to society. Informed by Miller''s experience as the son and brother of incarcerated men, captures the stories of the men, women, and communities fighting against a system that is designed for them to fail. It is a poignant and eye-opening call to arms that reveals how laws, rules, and regulations extract a tangible cost not only from those working to rebuild their lives, but also our democracy. As Miller searchingly explores, America must acknowledge and value the lives of its formerly imprisoned citizens. PEN America 2022 John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Nonfiction Finalist Winner of the 2022 PROSE Award for Excellence in Social Sciences 2022 PROSE Awards Finalist 2022 PROSE Awards Category Winner for Cultural Anthropology and Sociology An NPR Selected 2021 Books We Love As heard on NPR’s Fresh Air

How can we tell the difference between a reflection and the real thing? How does a reflection betray its identity? Why is it that when we look at a mirror we can see either our reflection or the mirror but not both at the same time? How and when do we learn to recognise our own reflection? What does a reflective surface look like and how can we distinguish it from a non-reflective surface? Why is it that certain paintings may be turned upside down and still be visually acceptable? How are the various qualities of reflection represented in art - from the diffuse sheen of burnished copper to the realism of silvered glass? In this innovative book, published to accompany the exhibition Mirror Image at the National Gallery, London, Jonathan Miller discusses these puzzling questions and investigates the pictorial representation of reflection - ''sheen, shine, glimmer and gleam'' - through a wonderfully varied selection of paintings and photographs, covering nine centuries, drawn from the National Gallery and other international collections.

In this remarkable book Jonathan Miller considers the functioning of the body as a subject of private experience. he explores our attitudes towards the body, our astonishing ignorance about certain parts of it and inability to read its signals. Taking as his starting point the experience of pain, Dr Miller explores the elaborate social process of ''falling ill'', considers the physical foundations of ''dis-ease'' and looks at the types of individuals man has historically attributed with the power of healing.His explanations are so lucid, so wide-ranging and so whole-heartedly entertaining it is often hard to believe one is reading about the facts of one''s own body and what can go wrong with it. His use of metaphor and suggestive models, particularly when tracing the historical development of certain leading ideas in human physiology, is highly stimulating. Above all, there is a keen originality and sheer enthusiasm of Dr Miller''s approach to his subject which makes THE BODY IN QUESTION such an outstanding book.

The year is 1923. Andrew Irvine is 21 years old and studies engineering at Oxford, when his life takes a drastic turn: He is invited to join the second British Mount Everest expedition. An opportunity that cannot be passed up. Andrew meets the expedition team and quickly becomes friends with George Mallory, an experienced mountaineer. The group begins their journey from London to the highest mountain on earth. Andrew and George sit together in the tent of Camp IV. Previously two attempts had been made: both unsuccessful. Now the two are about to set off for the final attempt. Will they be able to reach the top of the world?

An electrifying new biography about the four Essex lads who became award-winning stadium superstars and champions of synth pop! Jonathan Miller''s groundbreaking book features in-depth interviews with founder member Vince Clarke and producers Gareth Jones and Mark Bell, and contains never-before seen interviews with the band members themselves. With additional input from Gary Human, Howard Jones and Thomas Dolby this is a unique portrait of a band that almost lost control when their lives went off the rails and lead singer Dave Gahan''s heroin addiction nearly killed him. In the end Depeche Mode not only survived, they triumphed, racking up a staggering 40 million-plus album sales on the way. This is their amazing story, told in full for the first time. Born out of the post-punk backlash in the early 80''s, Depeche Mode took their name from a phrase in a French style magazine and became the definitive international synth-pop group. Vince Clarke, Andy Fletcher and Martin Gore had started out as an Essex guitar band but it was their bright and upbeat synthesizer-driven brand of pop fronted by Dave Gahan that was to find global acceptance and enjoy unlikely success in the US. Despite a handful of early plaudits in the music press, the group won only intermittent critical acceptance over the years, its often light musical approach contrasting with lyrics that sometimes plunge into darker topics like S&M, religious fetishism and the scourge of capitalism. But whatever the music press said, the fans finally bought into Depeche Mode in a big way. Their Violator tour at the start of the 90s sold millions of records and turned them into major US concert stars. In true rock style, Depeche Mode''s members have suffered their share of internal strife over a long career. Dave Gahan reinvented himself as a lead singer with both a harder musical edge and a near-fatal drug habit, while internal acrimony often marred the later stages of their career. Jonathan Miller has made an exemplary job of telling the Depeche Mode saga in its entirety and goes a long way towards explaining how the group have managed to thrive when almost all their post-punk contemporaries fell by the wayside long ago.

Kentucky State Treasurer Jonathan Miller shows the ten nonpartisan values--ranging from Opportunity to Security--that all Americans share, and uses Old Testament stories to highlight them, in The Compassionate Community: Ten Values to Unite America. As an elected official in a "red" and largely Christian state, he has come to understand that although faith is often the source of divisiveness, the language of faith can bring Americans together. Inspiring stories from the Hebrew Bible illustrate Miller''s plan to form a compassionate community. He shows that these lessons have the power to strengthen our country for future generations.

My book is about my interpretation of good over evil, how God takes a simple young man to a man with true values, who became a warrior of God and charity and humbleness to the end, and how God shows how wisdom is the only way to live, the ugliness of violence and crimes to the man that finds unconditional love in a woman that needs her knight and shining armor.

Published in the month of his 80th birthday, this selection gives an idea of the depth and variety of Jonathan Miller''s talents and preoccupations. Actor, doctor, TV presenter, film director, opera director, sculptor - Miller''s careers cover a vast range. He is also a gifted and insightful writer, but his writings have been scattered across a series of books and articles over the last sixty years. Each extract has an introduction by Miller, setting it in the context of his interests in the arts and sciences. The essays range from Beyond the Fringe to The Afterlife of Art; the Kennedy Assassination to Lennie Bruce; The Body in Question to Camouflage; Schooldays to Mesmerism.

"Jonathan Miller has written an engaging collection of stories ... it is a reminder of the power fiction has to help us better understand ourselves by reading about other people''s lives." - Tom Eblen, Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader columnist "Miller''s writing is sharp and accomplished, and he has a good grasp on the emotional nuances that make for realistic characters." - Carrie Ann Lahain, Las Vegas writer, editor and book reviewer On Your Own, Jonathan Miller''s story collection, follows the kind of people you know, but reveals the thoughts and feelings they might never tell you. These characters - young brothers, struggling husbands and wives, aging bachelors, restless office workers - maneuver through the worlds of childhood, sports, marriage, alcohol, sex, the workplace, and longing for connection, under Miller''s honest gaze. His clean, straightforward writing does not rely on extravagant plots (though significant surprises occur); he finds a quiet richness in events that can and do happen to all of us every day. Like the sun providing a rare glimpse down the clear water of a well, the clarity of prose in On Your Own allows us to witness people as their deeper realizations become known.

In the heart of the cursed woodland surrounding a small village, lies a legend whispered among the townsfolk - the tale of a sinister entity that preys on the souls that dare to venture into the forest. Sarah, fueled by curiosity and bravery, embarks on a quest to uncover the truth behind the legend, accompanied by her closest companions. As they delve deeper into the mystery, the boundaries between reality and terror blur, and the group is plagued by nightmares and hallucinations. Each member faces their deepest fears, testing the bonds of friendship that once united them. Determined to find a way to banish the malevolent force, Sarah and her friends unearth texts promising salvation. With urgency in the air and determination burning within them to bring the entity''s reign to an end, they embark on a perilous journey, unaware of the darkness awaiting them. As they plunge deeper into the forest, paranoia festers, alliances falter, and trust dwindles as they confront their inner demons. Their quest turns into a battle of survival as they realize they had become the hunted. The Forest is a chilling tale of courage, loyalty, and the enduring power of hope against unimaginable horrors.

Alastor Wright is a passenger aboard the "Britannica", a grand ship crossing the Atlantic ocean. He gets to enjoy lavish meals and exceptional entertainment upon the gleaming colossus. But to Alastor''s confusion, he cannot remember paying for any of it. Still, all seems well, until, one fateful morning, when he overhears a brief conversation between two crew members. Alastor is stunned by the relvelation. The creeping, silent suspicions, he recently developed, are suddenly confirmed. Questions that had once slipped by unnoticed now become impossible to ignore: Why is he even on the ship? Where are they really going? And what happened before? Alastor is troubled by the fact that he has no answers. And he is determined now: He will find out. For the sun had not vanished behind the horizon yet. There was still time, before the terrible cold night would arrive...

Progress in genetics today would not be possible without Darwin''s revolution, but the mysterious man who laid the rational basis for undermining belief in God''s creation was remarkable timid. He spent most of his life in seclusion; a semi-invalid, riddled with doubts, fearing the controversy his theories might unleash. In this brilliantly lucid book - a classic originally published in 1982 - Jonathan Miller unravels Darwin''s life and his contribution to biology, and traces the path from his scientific predecessors to the later modifications that his own evolutionary theories required. Introducing Darwin brings alive the difficult progress from pre-Darwinian thinking to modern genetics and the devastatingly important impact of one man on our fundamental understanding of biology, life and ourselves.

Does an opera producer do anything besides tell the singers where to stand? Can a single note be played more or less beautifully on the piano? In these essays, five of our most accomplished artists and critics explore questions of technique and interpretation in the performing arts. Tom Stoppard considers ways of controlling how an audience gets information while watching a play, and Charles Rosen reflects on the very physical relationship between the musician and the instrument. Jonathan Miller describes ways of restoring dramatic motivation to some of our best-loved operas. Garry Wills argues that the collaborative and commercial pressures of filmmaking have produced some of our greatest cinematic achievements, and Geoffrey O''Brien looks at how hip audiences in the Nineties have rediscovered Sixties pop music icon Burt Bacharach. Witty, trenchant, often surprising, and always insightful, this collection is essential reading for all devotees of theatrical, musical, and film performance.

A director''s brilliant inquiry into the problems--and solutions--of staging, filming, and acting classics for modern audiences. 90 black-and-white and color illustrations.

The Beginner Books -- "Their cartoon format and irreverent wit make difficult ideas accessible and entertaining." -- Newsday aking us through the upheavals in biological thought which made The Origins of Species possible, Jonathan Miller introduces us to that odd revolutionary, Charles Darwin -- a remarkably timid man who spent most of his life in seclusion; a semi-invalid riddled with doubts, fearing the controversy his theories might unleash; yet also the man who finally undermined belief in God''s creation. Along the way we meet a fascinating cast of characters: Darwin''s scientific predecessors, his contemporaries (including Alfred Russell Wallace, whose anticipation of natural selection forced Darwin to publish), his opponents, and his successors whose work in modern genetics provided necessary modifications to Darwin''s own work. Splendidly illustrated, this clever, witty, highly informative book is the perfect introduction to Darwin''s life and thought.

The first biography of Rodrigo Duterte, the murderous, unpredictable president of the Philippines, a fascinating, fearsome man and the embodiment of populism in our time. Rodrigo Duterte was elected President of the Philippines in 2016. In his first 18 months in office, 12,000 people were murdered on the streets, gunned down by police officers and vigilante citizens--all with his encouragement. Duterte is a serial womaniser and a self-confessed killer, who has called both Barack Obama and Pope Francis "sons of whores." He is on record as saying he does not "give a shit" about human rights. Yet he is beloved of the 16.6 million Filipinos who voted for him, seen as vulgar but honest, a breath of fresh air, and an iconoclastic, anti-imperialist rebel. Through interviews with Duterte himself, his sister, daughter and son, two former presidents, old friends, death squad hitmen, and relatives of his victims, Channel 4 News'' Asia Correspondent Jonathan Miller shows that far from the media cartoon of The Godfather, John Wayne, Hugo Chavez, and Donald Trump rolled into one, Duterte is a sinister, dangerous man, who should not be taken lightly.

In this guide, Jonathan Miller unravels Darwin''s life and contribution to biology, and traces the path from his scientific predecessors to the later modifications that his own evolutionary theories required.

Rodrigo Duterte was elected President of the Philippines in 2016. In his first 18 months in office, 12,000 people were murdered on the streets, gunned down by police officers and vigilante citizens - all with his encouragement. Duterte is a serial womaniser and a self-confessed killer, who has called both Barack Obama and Pope Francis ''sons of whores''. He is on record as saying he does not ''give a shit'' about human rights. Yet he is beloved of the 16.6 million Filipinos who voted for him, seen as vulgar but honest, a breath of fresh air, and an iconoclastic, anti-imperialist rebel. In this revelatory biography, Channel 4 News'' Asia Correspondent Jonathan Miller charts Duterte''s rise, and shows how this fascinating, fearsome man can be seen as the embodiment of populism in our time.

Grant Beagan isn''t looking for trouble. He''s just an ordinary teenager who likes astronomy, video games, and keeping his mom happy--or at least, happy enough. But everything changes for Grant when, by a twist of fate, he stumbles into a magical world very different from his own, a world filled with breathtaking wonders and amazing abilities, known as the World of the Lit. It is a world hidden in plain view, right in front of the rest of us (aka "the Unlit"), but most of us only catch fleeting glimpses of the magic it contains. Overnight, Grant finds himself standing face to face with bizarre creatures, becoming a member of a complex magical society, and best of all, having his own dormant channeling abilities "lit" by a very special recruiter, called a Flame. As Grant begins to experience his new life as a member of the Lit--becoming a student of magic, exploring mind-bending new locations, and meeting extraordinary new mages of different nationalities (and species!)--he can''t imagine ever going back to his old life in the Unlit world. That is, until he learns of a dangerous conflict arising in his midst. Before long, Grant finds himself embroiled in a battle between the Finder, a powerful type of mage that hasn''t been seen in five hundred years, and the Controller, a dangerous being with the power to exert control over the minds of others. To emerge unscathed, Grant will need to hone his channeling skills, build upon the powers he''s gained, face his deepest fears, solve a series of unusual mysteries, and apply the wisdom of the Mage Code, a set of seven principles left behind by the previous Finder centuries ago. Featuring memorable characters, fun and imaginative locations, uplifting themes, and a rich set of magical abilities, the first book in the Grant Beagan series unveils the extraordinary world of the Lit, a society of mages that is concealed from--yet intricately intertwined within--the everyday lives we lead.