Best Selling Books by Michael

Prepare for or enhance a career investing in the credit markets with this authoritative guide. The leveraged credit market is currently valued at over $4 trillion and is one of the fastest-growing asset classes, fueling demand for well-trained credit analysts. The Credit Investor''s Handbook: Leveraged Loans, High Yield Bonds, and Distressed Debt is the definitive guide for young investment professionals embarking on a career investing in the leveraged credit markets – whether public, private, performing, or distressed. Experienced professionals will also immensely benefit from this guide as they refine their investment skills. Michael Gatto has twenty-five years of investing experience in the debt markets at Silver Point Capital (a $20 billion credit-focused fund) and Goldman Sachs'' Special Situations Group. Furthermore, he is an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School and Fordham University''s Gabelli School of Business. Michael brings these experiences together in this comprehensive manual, teaching the skills to succeed in the dynamic and complex credit markets. Michael brings highly complex case studies to life using decades of his first-hand war stories and combines them with reflections from leading industry professionals, often infused with humor, to make the book accessible, readable, and fun. Michael''s seven-step credit analysis process will prepare you for a career in credit investing at the top buy-side and sell-side firms on Wall Street by teaching you the technical skills needed to invest in the debt markets. Whether you are analyzing a loan origination in the private debt market, a new issue of a broadly syndicated loan (BSL), a high-yield bond (HY), or a secondary trade, the comprehensive knowledge gained from this book will equip you to make well-founded investment recommendations. Additionally, an entire section devoted to distressed debt investing incorporates a practitioner''s perspective on the nuances of bankruptcy and restructurings to develop strategies to profit from opportunities in this opaque market. In clear, straightforward terms accessible to the layperson, Michael explains strategies pursued by distressed companies such as J. Crew and Serta that have led to creditor-on-creditor violence, giving you an insider’s perspective on some of the least understood transactions in the distressed arena. You will: Gain In-Depth Knowledge: Understand the complexities of credit markets, from trading dynamics to historical credit cycles, allowing you to identify debt investment opportunities—and avoid pitfalls. Master the Analytical Framework: Learn Michael''s seven-step process for analyzing credit investments, including qualitative industry and business analysis, financial statement analysis, forecasting, corporate valuation, relative value analysis, and debt structuring. Learn How to Write an Investment Recommendation: Review real-life credit memos to understand how analysts translate this framework into recommendations that drive investment decisions at the top credit funds. Discover Key Concepts and Terminology: leveraged buyout financings (LBOs), trading levels (price, yields, and spreads), shorting, and credit default swaps. Navigate Distressed Debt: Explore the strategies and nuances of distressed debt investing, including bankruptcy, subordination, creditor-on-creditor violence, and high-profile case studies from the past three decades of Chapter 11 restructurings. This book caters to finance majors pursuing investing careers, credit analysts seeking to enhance their skills, and seasoned professionals aiming to expand their expertise. Professors, researchers, lawyers, and advisors servicing the credit industry will also find immense value in this comprehensive guide.

Essential reference tool for scholars and students, explaining and illustrating common literary symbols.

In the depths of the Nevada desert, FBI agent Rachel Walling and former LAPD Detective Harry Bosch must confront The Poet, a terrifying serial killer who leads them down a dark and twisted path. FBI agent Rachel Walling finally gets the call she''s dreaded for years, the one that tells her the Poet has surfaced. She has never forgotten the serial killer who wove lines of poetry in his hideous crimes -- and apparently he has not forgotten her. Former LAPD detective Harry Bosch gets a call, too -- from the widow of an old friend. Her husband''s death seems natural, but his ties to the hunt for the Poet make Bosch dig deep. Arriving at a derelict spot in the California desert where the feds are unearthing bodies, Bosch joins forces with Rachel. Now the two are at odds with the FBI . . . and squarely in the path of the Poet, who will lead them on a wicked ride out of the heat, through the narrows of evil, and into a darkness all his own . . .

In American political fantasy, the Founding Fathers loom large, at once historical and mythical figures. In The Traumatic Colonel, Michael J. Drexler and Ed White examine the Founders as imaginative fictions, characters in the specifically literary sense, whose significance emerged from narrative elements clustered around them. From the revolutionary era through the 1790s, the Founders took shape as a significant cultural system for thinking about politics, race, and sexuality. Yet after 1800, amid the pressures of the Louisiana Purchase and the Haitian Revolution, this system could no longer accommodate the deep anxieties about the United States as a slave nation. Drexler and White assert that the most emblematic of the political tensions of the time is the figure of Aaron Burr, whose rise and fall were detailed in the literature of his time: his electoral tie with Thomas Jefferson in 1800, the accusations of seduction, the notorious duel with Alexander Hamilton, his machinations as the schemer of a breakaway empire, and his spectacular treason trial. The authors venture a psychoanalytically-informed exploration of post-revolutionary America to suggest that the figure of “Burr” was fundamentally a displaced fantasy for addressing the Haitian Revolution. Drexler and White expose how the historical and literary fictions of the nation’s founding served to repress the larger issue of the slave system and uncover the Burr myth as the crux of that repression. Exploring early American novels, such as the works of Charles Brockden Brown and Tabitha Gilman Tenney, as well as the pamphlets, polemics, tracts, and biographies of the early republican period, the authors speculate that this flourishing of political writing illuminates the notorious gap in U.S. literary history between 1800 and 1820.

We are one Universal Family. Our family needs to be restored to a place where we all live together in unity, love, peace, and harmony. Our Universal Family will be restored to health through mutual understanding, knowledge, respect, and communication. The book is written from a spiritual and journalistic perspective regarding a variety of issues that affect Our Universal Family. The goal of this book is to provide information that could open up a much broader discussion worldwide regarding our world family as we all share Mother Earth and our entire Universe.

This book helps readers apply testing and measurement theories. Featuring 22 self-standing modules, instructors can pick and choose the ones that are most appropriate for their course. Each module features an overview of a measurement issue and a step-by-step application of that theory. Best practices provide recommendations for ensuring the appropriate application of the theory. Practical questions help students assess their understanding of the topic while the examples allow them to apply the material using real data. Two cases in each module depict typical dilemmas faced when applying measurement theory followed by Questions to Ponder to encourage critical examination of the issues noted in the cases. Each module contains exercises some of which require no computer access while others involve the use of SPSS to solve the problem. The book’s website houses the accompanying data sets and more. The book also features suggested readings, a glossary of the key terms, and a continuing exercise that incorporates many of the steps in the development of a measure of typical performance. Updated throughout to reflect recent changes in the field, the new edition also features: --A new co-author, Michael Zickar, who updated the advanced topics and added the new module on generalizability theory (Module 22). -Expanded coverage of reliability (Modules 5 & 6) and exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (Modules 18 & 19) to help readers interpret results presented in journal articles. -Expanded Web Resources, Instructors will now find: suggested answers to the book’s questions and exercises; detailed worked solutions to the exercises; and PowerPoint slides. Students and instructors can access the SPSS data sets; additional exercises; the glossary; and website references that are helpful in understanding psychometric concepts. Part 1 provides an introduction to measurement theory and specs for scaling and testing and a review of statistics. Part 2 then progresses through practical issues related to text reliability, validation, meta-analysis and bias. Part 3 reviews practical issues related to text construction such as the development of measures of maximal performance, CTT item analysis, test scoring, developing measures of typical performance, and issues related to response styles and guessing. The book concludes with advanced topics such as multiple regression, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, item response theory (IRT), IRT applications including computer adaptive testing and differential item functioning, and generalizability theory. Ideal as a text for any psychometrics, testing and measurement, or multivariate statistics course taught in psychology, education, marketing and management, professional researchers in need of a quick refresher on applying measurement theory will also find this an invaluable reference.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • WINNER OF THE NAACP IMAGE AWARD • A “gripping, revelatory” (NPR) memoir of hard-won success, struggles with addiction, and a lifelong mission to give back—from the late iconic actor beloved for his roles in The Wire, Boardwalk Empire, and Lovecraft Country “Williams’s cool rasp leaps off every page, his story told in the direct yet impassioned language that defined his greatest characters.”—Vulture ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, NPR, The Root When Michael K. Williams died on September 6, 2021, he left behind a career as one of the most electrifying actors of his generation. From his star turn as Omar Little in The Wire to Chalky White in Boardwalk Empire to Emmy-nominated roles in HBO’s The Night Of and Lovecraft Country, Williams inhabited a slew of indelible roles that he portrayed with a rawness and vulnerability that leapt off the screen. Beyond the nominations and acclaim, Williams played characters who connected, whose humanity couldn’t be denied, whose stories were too often left out of the main narrative. At the time of his death, Williams had nearly finished a memoir that tells the story of his past while looking to the future, a book that merges his life and his life’s work. Mike, as his friends knew him, was so much more than an actor. In Scenes from My Life, he traces his life in whole, from his childhood in East Flatbush and his early years as a dancer to his battles with addiction and the bar fight that left his face with his distinguishing scar. He was a committed Brooklyn resident and activist who dedicated his life to working with social justice organizations and his community, especially in helping at-risk youth find their voice and carve out their future. Williams worked to keep the spotlight on those he fought for and with, whom he believed in with his whole heart. Imbued with poignance and raw honesty, Scenes from My Life is the story of a performer who gave his all to everything he did—in his own voice, in his own words, as only he could.

“Slade is at his peak with Ripper. A schizophrenic whodunit complete with locked rooms and self-triggering death devices. Highly enjoyable.” —Time Out London An American feminist is found hanging, her body slashed to shreds, her face flayed. Two hookers are murdered, their corpses mutilated in a similar pattern. These gruesome deaths are only the beginning of the trail Canadian Mountie Robert DeClercq will follow as he attempts to catch a brutal psychopath. It’s a journey that takes him through the history of Satanism and the occult, searching for a serial killer’s demons. Demons all too similar to the ones that drove Jack the Ripper . . . A revised and expanded version of the original Ripper, which was first published in 1994. “Intense enough to require seatbelts.” —Quill & Quire “Slade knows psychos inside out.” —Toronto Star “Builds up to a climax almost too frantically gripping for words.” —The Northern Echo “A shocking insight into the psyche of the insane.” —Canadian Lawyer/DESC

As a contribution to multicausal analysis of social change, this is a major work. And, as a general introduction to European imperialism, its theoretical sophistication, broad sweep, and the clear presentation and organization of historical detail leave it with few peers.? American Journal of Sociology Although empires have shaped the political development of virtually all the states of the modern world, "imperialism" has not figured largely in the mainstream of scholarly literature. This book seeks to account for the imperial phenomenon and to establish its importance as a subject in the study of the theory of world politics. Michael Doyle believes that empires can best be defined as relationships of effective political control imposed by some political societies--those called metropoles--on other political societies--called peripheries. To build an explanation of the birth, life, and death of empires, he starts with an overview and critique of the leading theories of imperialism. Supplementing theoretical analysis with historical description, he considers episodes from the life cycles of empires from the classical and modern world, concentrating on the nineteenth-century scramble for Africa. He describes in detail the slow entanglement of the peripheral societies on the Nile and the Niger with metropolitan power, the survival of independent Ethiopia, Bismarck''s manipulation of imperial diplomacy for European ends, the race for imperial possession in the 1880s, and the rapid setting of the imperial sun. Combining a sensitivity to historical detail with a judicious search for general patterns, Empires will engage the attention of social scientists in many disciplines.

Looking for a unique invention, an untapped market for an existing product, or a new solution? Stretch and flex your mental muscles with Thinkpak, a creative-thinking tool designed by Michael Michalko, author of the groundbreaking book Thinkertoys. This deck of illustrated idea-stimulating cards distills Michalko’s proven methods, allowing you to view challenges in a new light. Shuffle, mix, and match the cards to spark fresh insights, then use the critical evaluation techniques to test, shape, and refine your original ideas into realistic creations. Filled with thought-provoking questions and examples of the techniques put to use, Thinkpak provides endless creative fuel to fire up the imagination.

Rediscover the magic and wonder of classic fairy tales with "The Tales of Mother Goose," as first collected by Charles Perrault in 1696. This enduring collection of French folklore brings to life beloved stories that have captivated readers for centuries. Immerse yourself in the world of enchanting characters and timeless moral lessons found within these pages. Perrault''s work, a cornerstone of children''s literature, presents a rich tapestry of short stories that have shaped our understanding of fairy tales. A treasure trove of juvenile fiction, this edition offers a glimpse into the origins of some of the world''s most cherished narratives. Perfect for those seeking classic literature and timeless children''s stories, "The Tales of Mother Goose" continues to enchant and inspire. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

An “exceptional” historical detective story that follows one man’s quest to find the German commander who saved his mother—and many other Jews (Booklist). Part detective story, part personal quest, Michael Good’s book is the story of the German commander of a Lithuanian work camp who saved hundreds of Jewish lives in the Vilnius ghetto —including the life of Good’s mother, Pearl. Who was this enigmatic officer Pearl Good had spoken of so often? After five years of research—interviewing survivors, assembling a team that could work to open German files untouched for fifty years, following every lead he could, Good was able to uncover the amazing tale of one man’s remarkable courage. And in April 2005, Karl Plagge joined Oskar Schindler and 380 other Germans as “Righteous among Nations,” honored by the State of Israel for protecting and saving Jewish lives during the Holocaust. This expanded edition features new photographs and a new epilogue on the impact of the discovery of Karl Plagge—especially the story of eighty-three-year-old Alfons von Deschwanden, who, after fifty years of silence, came forward as a veteran of Plagge’s unit. His testimony is now part of this growing witness to truth. “A rewarding tale of redemption in the face of horror.” —Kirkus Reviews

This text successfully addresses what a person should know about religions, and why. The text covers all the essential material and goes beyond traditional approaches to personally connect students with the vitality of the great religions. This edition features updated coverage of world developments.

A national symbol of romance since the 1970s, Redford''s stardom has often eclipsed the life and trials of the man himself. In this biography -- written with Redford''s personal papers, journals, script notes, correspondence, and hundreds of hours of taped interviews -- Michael Feeney Callan strips away the Hollywood façade, exposing the complicated, surprising man beneath. The life of Robert Redford is a series of contradictions: descended from impoverished East Coast barbers on his father''s side and once-wealthy Texans on his mother''s side,the young Redford suffered from aimlessness and semi-poverty, dropping out of college and briefly spending time in jail before launching a career in theatre. Redford has contributed more -- and more widely -- to entertainment than most stars of his calibre. As an actor, he''s appeared on Broadway and film, with an Oscar-nominated performance in 1973''s The Sting. As a director, he''s earned Oscar nominations for Best Picture and Best Director and has received three Golden Globe nominations for Best Director.He won the Academy Award for Best Director in 1980 for Ordinary People.And as a producer of independent films -- including the patronage of his Sundance Institute -- he''s worked on films including All the President''s Men and 2004''s The Motorcycle Diaries. This is a fascinating exploration of one of our most celebrated and least understood public figures, and an essential read for anyone interested in the rocky road to Hollywood.

In the tradition of ''In Patagonia'' and ''Great Plains'', Michael Meyer''s ''In Manchuria'' is a scintillating combination of memoir, contemporary reporting, and historical research, presenting a unique profile of China''s legendary northeast territory. For three years, Meyer rented a home in the rice-farming community of Wasteland, hometown to his wife''s family, and their personal saga mirrors the tremendous change most of rural China is undergoing, in the form of a privately held rice company that has built new roads, introduced organic farming, and constructed high-rise apartments into which farmers can move in exchange for their land rights. Once a commune, Wasteland is now a company town, a phenomenon happening across China that Meyer documents for the first time; indeed, not since Pearl Buck wrote ''The Good Earth'' has anyone brought rural China to life as Meyer has here. Amplifying the story of family and Wasteland, Meyer takes us on a journey across Manchuria''s past, a history that explains much about contemporary China-from the fall of the last emperor to Japanese occupation and Communist victory. Through vivid local characters, Meyer illuminates the remnants of the imperial Willow Palisade, Russian and Japanese colonial cities and railways, and the POW camp into which a young American sergeant parachuted to free survivors of the Bataan Death March. ''In Manchuria'' is a rich and original chronicle of contemporary China and its people.

The Obama administration aims to lay a sound foundation for growth by investing in high-speed rail, clean energy, information technology, drinking water, and other vital infrastructures. The idea is to partner with the private sector to produce these public goods. An Obama government bank will direct these investments, making project decisions based on the merits of each project, not on politics. This approach has been a cornerstone of US foreign policy for several decades. In fact, our government-led reinvestment in America is modeled explicitly on international public banks and partnerships. However, although this foreign commercial policy is well-established with many successes, it has also been deservedly controversial and divisive. This book describes the international experience, drawing lessons on how the Obama Bank can forge partnerships to promote a durable twenty-first-century New Deal.

Over the last few decades there have been attempts at planned educational change. The benefits have not equalled the cost. Fullan distils from these experiences lessons about how to cope with, and influence, educational change.

Challenging standard interpretations of American dominance and French weakness in postwar Western Europe, Michael Creswell argues that France played a key role in shaping the cold war order. In the decade after the war, the U.S. government''s primary objective was to rearm the Federal Republic of Germany within the framework of a European defense force--the European Defense Community. American and French officials differed, however, over the composition of the EDC and the rules governing its organization and use. Although U.S. pressure played a part, more decisive factors--in both internal French politics and international French concerns--ultimately led France to sanction the plan to rearm West Germany. Creswell sketches the successful French challenge to the United States, tracing the genuine, sometimes heated, debate between the two nations that ultimately resulted in security arrangements preferred by the French but acceptable to the Americans. Impressively researched and vigorously argued, A Question of Balance advances significantly our understanding of power politics and the rise of the cold war system in Western Europe.

A state-of-the-art guide to the new field of complexity-the tool leaders use to understand how people and organizations adapt in a world of rapid change.

“Pollan shines a light on our own nature as well as on our implication in the natural world.” —The New York Times “A wry, informed pastoral.” —The New Yorker The book that helped make Michael Pollan, the New York Times bestselling author of How to Change Your Mind, Cooked and The Omnivore’s Dilemma, one of the most trusted food experts in America Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers’ genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship. He masterfully links four fundamental human desires—sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control—with the plants that satisfy them: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. In telling the stories of four familiar species, Pollan illustrates how the plants have evolved to satisfy humankind’s most basic yearnings. And just as we’ve benefited from these plants, we have also done well by them. So who is really domesticating whom?

Fairy tales for our times from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Hours Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR, Slate, and Bustle A poisoned apple and a monkey’s paw with the power to change fate; a girl whose extraordinarily long hair causes catastrophe; a man with one human arm and one swan’s wing; and a house constructed of gumdrops and gingerbread. In A Wild Swan and Other Tales, the people and the talismans of lands far, far away—the mythic figures of our childhoods and the source of so much of our wonder—are transformed by Michael Cunningham into stories of sublime revelation. Here are the moments that our fairy tales forgot or deliberately concealed: the years after a spell is broken, the rapturous instant of a miracle unexpectedly realized, or the fate of a prince only half cured of a curse. Reimagined by one of the most gifted storytellers of his generation, and exquisitely illustrated by Yuko Shimizu, rarely have our bedtime stories been this dark, this perverse, or this true.

An insightful reflection on the mathematical soul What do pure mathematicians do, and why do they do it? Looking beyond the conventional answers—for the sake of truth, beauty, and practical applications—this book offers an eclectic panorama of the lives and values and hopes and fears of mathematicians in the twenty-first century, assembling material from a startlingly diverse assortment of scholarly, journalistic, and pop culture sources. Drawing on his personal experiences and obsessions as well as the thoughts and opinions of mathematicians from Archimedes and Omar Khayyám to such contemporary giants as Alexander Grothendieck and Robert Langlands, Michael Harris reveals the charisma and romance of mathematics as well as its darker side. In this portrait of mathematics as a community united around a set of common intellectual, ethical, and existential challenges, he touches on a wide variety of questions, such as: Are mathematicians to blame for the 2008 financial crisis? How can we talk about the ideas we were born too soon to understand? And how should you react if you are asked to explain number theory at a dinner party? Disarmingly candid, relentlessly intelligent, and richly entertaining, Mathematics without Apologies takes readers on an unapologetic guided tour of the mathematical life, from the philosophy and sociology of mathematics to its reflections in film and popular music, with detours through the mathematical and mystical traditions of Russia, India, medieval Islam, the Bronx, and beyond.

Martin Heidegger is, perhaps, the most controversial philosopher of the twentieth-century. Little has been written on him or about his work and its significance for educational thought. This unique collection by a group of international scholars reexamines Heidegger''s work and its legacy for educational thought. Thematically, the collection focuses on Heidegger''s critique of modernity and contributors investigate the central significance for education of Heidegger''s ontology and his investigation of the question of the meaning of Being by examining his ''art of teaching'' (a translation of his submission to the denazification hearing), his view of science and reason, his philosophy of technology, his poetics, and the implications of his thought for learning. These essays point to the crucial importance of Heidegger''s work for understanding modern, highly-technologized forms of education and for the possibilities of redemption from its worst excesses.

Explains the characteristics of phosphorus, where it is found, how it is used by humans, and its relationship to other elements found in the periodic table.

In this sweepingly ambitious overview of World War II, Michael Burleigh combines meticulous scholarship with a remarkable depth of knowledge and an astonishing scope. By exploring the moral sentiments of entire societies and their leaders, and how such attitudes changed under the impact of total war, Burleigh presents readers with a fresh and powerful perspective on a conflict that continues to shape world politics. Whereas previous histories of the war have tended to focus on grand strategy or major battles, Burleigh brings his painstaking scholarship and profound sensibility to bear on the factors that shaped choices that were life-and-death decisions. These choices were made in real time, without the benefit of a philosopher’s reflection, giving a moral content to the war that shaped it as decisively as any battle. Although the Nazis and the Japanese had radically different moral universes from those of their Allied opponents, as rejected in the atrocities they committed, the Western Allies found themselves aligned with a no less cruel dictatorship after rejecting the option of appeasing aggression. The war was the sum total of myriad choices made by governments, communities, and individuals, leading some to enthusiastically embrace evil and others to consciously reject it, with a range of more ambiguously human responses in between. Spanning both major theaters and ranging across these issues and more, from the “predators” (Mussolini, Hitler, and Hirohito) to appeasement, from the rape of Poland, Barbarossa, and strategic bombing to the complexities of justice and retribution, Moral Combat sheds a revealing light on how entire nations changed under the shock of total war. Emphasizing the role of the past in making sense of the present, Burleigh’s book offers essential insights into the choices we face today—in some circles it is always 1938 and every aggressor is a new Hitler. If we do go to war, we need to know what it will mean for the individuals who command and fight it. Original, perceptive, and astonishing in scholarship and scope, this is an unforgettable and hugely important work of Second World War history.

It is a rare mathematics book that can be called lucid, light-hearted, and profound, and yet these are the words that capture the spirit of The Heart of Mathematics. Using careful explanation, intriguing puzzles, and challenges, the authors invite readers to use open-ended thinking in discovering and constructing mathematical ideas. Throughout the book, the authors stress that mathematics is an analytical way of thinking, one that can be brought to bear on problem solving and effective thinking in any field of study.

A lost fantasy classic by the author of The Neverending Story. The Neverending Story is Michael Ende''s best-known book, but Momo--published six years earlier--is the all-ages fantasy novel that first won him wide acclaim. After the sweet-talking gray men come to town, life becomes terminally efficient. Can Momo, a young orphan girl blessed with the gift of listening, vanquish the ashen-faced time thieves before joy vanishes forever? With gorgeous new drawings by Marcel Dzama and a new translation from the German by Lucas Zwirner, this all-new 40th anniversary edition celebrates the book''s first U.S. publication in over 25 years.

In Paris, a physicist dies after performing a laboratory experiment for a beautiful visitor. In the jungles of Malaysia, a mysterious buyer purchases deadly cavitation technology, built to his specifications. In Vancouver, a small research submarine is leased for use in the waters off New Guinea. And in Tokyo, an intelligence agent tries to understand what it all means. Thus begins Michael Crichton''s exciting and provocative technothriller, State of Fear. Only Michael Crichton''s unique ability to blend science fact and pulse-pounding fiction could bring such disparate elements to a heart-stopping conclusion. This is Michael Crichton''s most wide-ranging thriller. State of Fear takes the reader from the glaciers of Iceland to the volcanoes of Antarctica, from the Arizona desert to the deadly jungles of the Solomon Islands, from the streets of Paris to the beaches of Los Angeles. The novel races forward, taking the reader on a rollercoaster thrill ride, all the while keeping the brain in high gear. Gripping and thought-provoking, State of Fear is Michael Crichton at his very best.

This study is among the first works in English to comprehensively address the Scandinavian First World War experience in the larger international context of the war. It surveys the complex relationship between the belligerent great powers and Northern Europe''s neutral small states in times of crisis and war. The book''s overreaching rationale draws upon three underlying conceptual fields: neutrality and international law, hegemony and great power politics as well as diplomacy and policy-making of small states in the international arena. From a variety of angles, it examines the question of how neutrality was understood and perceived, negotiated and dealt with both among the Scandinavian states and the belligerent major powers, especially Britain, Germany and Russia. For a long time, the experience of neutral countries during the First World War was seen as marginal, and was overshadowed by the experiences of occupation and collaboration brought about by the Second World War. In this book, Jonas demonstrates how this perception has changed, with neutrality becoming an integral part of the multiple narratives of the First World War. It is an important contribution to the international history of the First World War, cultural-historically influenced approaches to diplomatic history and the growing area of neutrality studies.

Since the first edition of Public Policy: Politics, Analysis, and Alternatives, Michael Kraft and Scott Furlong have taken a different tack. They want students to understand how and why policy analysis is used to assess policy alternatives—not only to question the assumptions of policy analysts, but also to recognize how analysis is used in support of political arguments. To encourage critical and creative thinking on issues ranging from the federal deficit to health care reform to climate change, the authors introduce and fully integrate an evaluative approach to policy. The authors begin the fifth edition of Public Policy with a concise review of institutions, policy actors, and major theoretical models. Then, they discuss the nature of policy analysis and its practice and show students how to employ evaluative criteria in six substantive policy areas. The text arms students with the analytic tools they need to understand the motivations of policy actors—both within and outside of government—and to influence a complex, yet comprehensible, policy agenda.

What is socialism? Does it have a future, or has it become an outdated ideology in the 21st century? Michael Newman examines and explains the successes and failures of modern socialism by taking an international perspective — ranging from communism in Cuba to social democracy in Sweden. Discussing its evolution from the industrial towns of the 19th century to its response to the feminist, green, and anti-capitalist movements today, Newman concludes that, with its values of equality, solidarity, and cooperation, socialism remains as relevant as ever but that it needs to learn lessons from the past. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

A translation from the French of Michael Lowy and Robert Sayre’s attempt to unify discussion of the diverse manifestations of of Romanicism.

Winner, Friends of the Dallas Public Library Award from the Texas Institute of Letters, 2003 Antiphon was a fifth-century Athenian intellectual (ca. 480-411 BCE) who created the profession of speechwriting while serving as an influential and highly sought-out adviser to litigants in the Athenian courts. Three of his speeches are preserved, together with three sets of Tetralogies (four hypothetical paired speeches), whose authenticity is sometimes doubted. Fragments also survive of intellectual treatises on subjects including justice, law, and nature (physis), which are often attributed to a separate Antiphon the Sophist. Were these two Antiphons really one and the same individual, endowed with a wide-ranging mind ready to tackle most of the diverse intellectual interests of his day? Through an analysis of all these writings, this book convincingly argues that they were composed by a single individual, Antiphon the Athenian. Michael Gagarin sets close readings of individual works within a wider discussion of the fifth-century Athenian intellectual climate and the philosophical ferment known as the sophistic movement. This enables him to demonstrate the overall coherence of Antiphon''s interests and writings and to show how he was a pivotal figure between the sophists and the Attic orators of the fourth century. In addition, Gagarin''s argument allows us to reassess the work of the sophists as a whole, so that they can now be seen as primarily interested in logos (speech, argument) and as precursors of fourth-century rhetoric, rather than in their usual role as foils for Plato.

The book uses the rise of the Fatimids to survey the Islamic world in the 4th century AH/10th century CE, and reinterpret the role of the dynasty in the history of Islam down to the period of the Crusades.