New Releases by Paul Kennedy

Paul Kennedy is the author of Vietnamese Food and Food Culture (2025), Still Standing (2023), Funkytown (2021), Lost Dreams of Red and Blue (2020), Point Breeze Stories (2019).

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Vietnamese Food and Food Culture

release date: Mar 04, 2025
Vietnamese Food and Food Culture
Experience the vibrant street markets and bustling food stalls of Vietnam first-hand! In 2018 veteran restaurateur, author, foodie and all-around travel junkie Paul Kennedy embarked on a life-changing journey to Vietnam. His main goal was to explore the nation''s rich cuisine and food culture, which had always fascinated him from afar, but which he could never quite understand fully. This book is the result of five years spent traveling the length and breadth of the country, experiencing Vietnamese food up-close as no other food writer has before. In 24 essays, 60 recipes and 100 photographs, Kennedy shares his experiences with you through: Engaging stories about tantalizing local foods and drinks--such as the unparalleled Nam Dinh City bahn mi and fresh bia hoi beer-- and palate-challenging local delicacies--like bitter melon and the foul-smelling durian Intriguing myths, rituals and beliefs--such as the legendary sword-snatching golden turtle of Hoan Kiem Lake and the outlawed "Coconut Religion" Information on Vietnamese herbs, condiments and ingredients--from fish sauce to rice paper wrappers to fresh basil, green onions and sawtooth coriander Recipes for classic street food dishes like Rice Paper Pizza, Banh Mi Sandwiches and Steamed Coconut Rice Cakes with Toasted Shrimp Flakes Iconic restaurant and homestyle dishes like Spicy Lemongrass Chicken, Crispy Pan-Fried Trout and Baby Basket Clam Rice Unusual drinks and desserts like Egg Coffee, Mango Margaritas, Coconut Cream Martinis, Tofu Pudding and Vietnamese Layer Cake Plus many other unique flavors, recipes, food discoveries and dozens of cultural observations from the author while living in Vietnam

Still Standing

release date: May 02, 2023
Still Standing
There are few more moving experiences than for the silenced to be heard. Chrissie Foster is the mother who brought the rich and powerful Catholic Church to its knees over its global abuse of children, including two of her daughters, Emma and Katie. Like the Boston Globe''s Spotlight team, she built an undeniable case in her first book, Hell on the Way to Heaven, which helped inspire Australian governments to hold world-leading inquiries. This is what happened next. Grieving the death of Emma and the catastrophic accident that left Katie largely using a wheelchair and unable to care for herself, and bullied by the Catholic Church, Chrissie Foster somehow found the strength to win and bring about changes in child safety that she hopes will last forever. From the cities and towns of Australia all the way to Rome, her tenacity and bravery to see justice delivered are unequalled. In this confronting account she explains the incredible battle she fought together with her husband, Anthony, and how she found the strength to continue even after his tragic and untimely death. Her ongoing activism inspires others to challenge once-powerful male-dominated institutions. In the face of horrifying adversity, Chrissie Foster has come through it to a place of peace.

Funkytown

release date: Sep 28, 2021
Funkytown
It is 1993: a serial killer is loose on the streets of Frankston, Victoria. The community is paralysed by fear, and a state''s police force and national media come to find a killer. Meanwhile, seventeen-year-old Paul Kennedy is searching for something else entirely. He is focused on finishing school, getting drafted into the AFL and falling in love. So much can change in a year. The rites of passage for many Australian teenage boys - blackout drinking, simmering violence and emotional suppression - take their toll, and the year that starts with so much promise ends with Kennedy expelled, arrested and undrafted. But one teacher sees Kennedy self-destructing, and becomes determined to set him on another path

Lost Dreams of Red and Blue

release date: Dec 17, 2020
Lost Dreams of Red and Blue
Paul''s poetry reveals the deepest and humblest of human emotions. Frustration, hope, sadness, depression, longing and rapture all breathe and speak throughout the book. Connect with surreal imagery, presented in both free verse and conventional rhyming poetry. This book is a catharsis of thoughts that needed to be spoken.

Point Breeze Stories

release date: Nov 05, 2019
Point Breeze Stories
This collection of fourteen fictional short stories and two memoirs spans the time period from America''s frontier days to the 21st century. All are set, at least in part, in the small neighborhood of Point Breeze, in the East End of Pittsburgh.Baptism of Desire follows an Irish settler family in the 1700s caught in the struggle between the British, French, and native people for western Pennsylvania. They ultimately settle in what is now Point Breeze. Subsequent stories unfold during the disastrous 1877 railroad strike, the violent Prohibition era, and the Vietnam War. But most of the stories occur in the 1950s and 1960s Baby Boom, when the author grew up in the neighborhood.Many colorful characters populate these pages, but the real star is the neighborhood itself. Anyone who has ever lived or "loafed" in Point Breeze in the latter half of the twentieth century can relate well to these stories, but they are for all readers. The rich history of the past morphs into the raucous kid-crowded mid-twentieth century and beyond. Tears of grief, joy, and nostalgia drip from the pages.The collection concludes with two tender, poignant, and funny "coming of age" memoirs. It is the author''s hymn to his home, his history, his people.An Introduction entitled "Memories Are a Breeze" describes the neighborhood''s history and literary legacy, as well as the author''s memories as he walks the neighborhood.

Auge y caída de las grandes potencias

release date: Oct 05, 2017
Auge y caída de las grandes potencias
El análisis de un eminente historiador, que se sumerge en los últimos quinientos años de ascenso y caída de las grandes potencias. El eminente historiador Paul Kennedy analiza y describe el auge y la caída de las grandes potencias políticas, económicas y militares a lo largo de los últimos cinco siglos. La nación proyecta su poder militar según sus recursos económicos, pero el alto coste de mantener la supremacía militar la precipita a la decadencia. Las grandes potencias en crisis reaccionan gastando más en defensa y se debilitan desviando recursos productivos. A lo largo de la historia ha existido una significativa correlación entre las capacidades productivas y la fuerza militar, y el análisis de Kennedy permitirá al lector contar con las herramientas necesarias para comprender mejor la actual encrucijada mundial. La crítica ha dicho... «Excepcional. Parece haber leído todos los libros relevantes en todos los idiomas posibles. Y ha generado un argumento tan engañosamente simple que ningún político, por muy ocupadoque esté, debe ignorarlo o malinterpretarlo.» The Observer

Local Lives and Global Transformations

release date: Sep 16, 2017
Local Lives and Global Transformations
Globalization is widely accepted as being a defining process of our modern society. But to what extent do individuals think, feel or act in a way that takes account of the whole world? Do globalization processes really affect us in our everyday lives? And, if so, where are the boundaries between local and global society? This book investigates how local and global studies overlap and interact by examining how real, local lives function under global conditions. It begins by unravelling the most important concepts and debates in the field, opening them up to scrutiny and testing their assumptions through recent case studies and empirical material. The book goes on to examine the power of local forces in forming global processes and explores our attachment to local vs global identities, whilst asking if we can build on our local attachments to move towards a world society. From concerns about the international economy and growing global inequalities to worldwide fears of organized crime and terrorism, this insightful book suggests a new way of looking at the interaction of local and global transformations. Local Lives and Global Transformations gives student readers the knowledge and the encouragement to push the boundaries of their understanding of globalization. It is inspiring reading for all those studying and interested in globalization throughout the social sciences.

To Make Another World

release date: Jul 05, 2017
To Make Another World
A diverse collection of essays on twentieth century popular protest movements, considering their dynamics and dilemmas.

The Rise And Fall of British Naval Mastery

release date: Jan 26, 2017
The Rise And Fall of British Naval Mastery
Paul Kennedy''s classic naval history, now updated with a new introduction by the author This acclaimed book traces Britain''s rise and fall as a sea power from the Tudors to the present day. Challenging the traditional view that the British are natural ''sons of the waves'', he suggests instead that the country''s fortunes as a significant maritime force have always been bound up with its economic growth. In doing so, he contributes significantly to the centuries-long debate between ''continental'' and ''maritime'' schools of strategy over Britain''s policy in times of war. Setting British naval history within a framework of national, international, economic, political and strategic considerations, he offers a fresh approach to one of the central questions in British history. A new introduction extends his analysis into the twenty-first century and reflects on current American and Chinese ambitions for naval mastery. ''Excellent and stimulating'' Correlli Barnett ''The first scholar to have set the sweep of British Naval history against the background of economic history'' Michael Howard, Sunday Times ''By far the best study that has ever been done on the subject ... a sparkling and apt quotation on practically every page'' Daniel A. Baugh, International History Review ''The best single-volume study of Britain and her naval past now available to us'' Jon Sumida, Journal of Modern History

Vampire Capitalism

release date: Dec 25, 2016
Vampire Capitalism
This book argues that in recent decades an unrestrained vampire-capitalism has emerged, disengaged from the needs of citizens and workers, leading to a deepening of social class, generational, gender, educational and ethnic divisions. The author explores how our cultural obsession with self-realization undermines our capacity for collective action and ability to confront threats such as climate change and the impact of the rapid advance of technology on labour. Drawing on sociology and political economy as well as worldwide case studies, the chapters interrogate how we arrived at these dilemmas and how we might escape them through establishing alternative social economies. Vampire Capitalism will be of interest to students and scholars across a range of disciplines, including sociology, social theory, globalisation studies, development studies, political economy, geography, politics and social policy.

Ascesa e declino delle grandi potenze

release date: Nov 09, 2016
Ascesa e declino delle grandi potenze
Esiste un momento in cui le spese per la difesa militare di una grande potenza superano in ogni caso le risorse della sua economia? Se sì, allora si può dire che una legge storica è stata fissata: quella che regola, per ogni grande potenza, il meccanismo dell’ascesa e della decadenza. È questo l’argomento di Ascesa e declino delle grandi potenze, una delle opere fondamentali del pensiero politico del nostro tempo, insignita del prestigioso Wolfson History Awards. Dal 1500 a oggi (tale è l’arco di tempo preso in esame da Paul Kennedy), la regola è sempre stata rispettata. Gli stessi mutamenti economico-tecnologici, dall’epoca pre-industriale a quella post-industriale, trovano spiegazione nel bilanciamento tra i due fattori in gioco. La sfida passa, dunque, alle nazioni che dominano la scena attuale: Europa Occidentale, Giappone e, soprattutto, Stati Uniti. Verso il loro futuro, e gli equilibri che ne determineranno le sorti, convergono le linee di questo studio, offrendo una suggestiva chiave di lettura per gli eventi a venire.

Fifteen Young Men

release date: Aug 29, 2016
Fifteen Young Men
The sinking of the Process in catastrophically rough seas off Victoria''s Mornington Peninsular in 1892, with the loss of all on board - including three popular brothers, Hugh, Willie and Jim Caldwell, sons of the Presbyterian minister - horrified Australia. ''Such an accident has no parallel in our land''s history'', reported the Argus. Yet somehow, for more than a century, this heartbreaking event slipped from Australia''s consciousness.

A Murder of Crows

release date: Feb 15, 2016
A Murder of Crows
Rejected by the father she never knew and abandoned by the mother she doesn''t remember, life has been tough for twenty year old Gavenia. She grew up in Care with her younger brother, Alec, then watched helplessly as he followed a path to destruction. Now she''s met Steffan, a handsome but enigmatic stranger, who takes her on a dark journey of the soul and forces her to confront her demons.Can Alec save her from a fate worse than death? Fantasy and reality blur as the Physical World collides with the Spiritual Realms.

HELL ON THE WAY TO HEAVEN.

release date: Jan 01, 2016

The Spanish Socialist Party and the modernisation of Spain

release date: Nov 01, 2015
The Spanish Socialist Party and the modernisation of Spain
This book considers the most electorally successful political party in Spain, the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), which was in government for two of the three decades since it won office under Felipe González in 1982. Providing rich historical background, the book’s main focus is on the period since General Franco’s death in 1975. It charts Spain’s modernisation under the PSOE, with a particular focus on the role played by European integration in this process. Covering events including the 2011 general election, the book is one of the most up-to-date works available in English and will be of great interest to academics and undergraduate and postgraduate students in the field of Spanish and European studies.

Facts and Fabrications (A Mongrel Mixture of Stories)

release date: Apr 08, 2015
Facts and Fabrications (A Mongrel Mixture of Stories)
Ancient giants in a desolate land; a mysterious death in Academe; an ambush in a spooky glade; and surprising moral conundrums: facts and fabrications weave together unforgettably in this charming “mongrel mixture” of tales.

American Evangelicalism

release date: Dec 10, 2014
American Evangelicalism
“An excellent study of evangelicalism” from the award-winning sociologist and author of Souls in Transition and Soul Searching (Library Journal). Evangelicalism is one of the strongest religious traditions in America today; twenty million Americans identify themselves with the evangelical movement. Given the modern pluralistic world we live in, why is evangelicalism so popular? Based on a national telephone survey and more than three hundred personal interviews with evangelicals and other churchgoing Protestants, this study provides a detailed analysis of the commitments, beliefs, concerns, and practices of this thriving group. Examining how evangelicals interact with and attempt to influence secular society, this book argues that traditional, orthodox evangelicalism endures not despite, but precisely because of, the challenges and structures of our modern pluralistic environment. This work also looks beyond evangelicalism to explore more broadly the problems of traditional religious belief and practice in the modern world. With its impressive empirical evidence, innovative theory, and substantive conclusions, American Evangelicalism will provoke lively debate over the state of religious practice in contemporary America. “Based on a three-year study of American evangelicals, Smith takes the pulse of contemporary evangelicalism and offers substantial evidence of a strong heartbeat . . . Evangelicalism is thriving, says Smith, not by being countercultural or by retreating into isolation but by engaging culture at the same time that it constructs, maintains and markets its subcultural identity. Although Smith depends heavily on sociological theory, he makes his case in an accessible and persuasive style that will appeal to a broad audience.” —Publishers Weekly

High Stakes

release date: Sep 30, 2014
High Stakes
''This history of the Waterhouse dynasty is a cut above the field of racing books that burst from the barriers this time of year'' - Sydney Morning Herald Drama, glamour, scandal, success - and very high stakes. The story of Australia''s best known horse racing family has it all. When it comes to racing, the name most Australians associate with the racetrack is Waterhouse. This is their compelling story. High Stakes takes us from Bill Waterhouse''s introduction to the world as a sixteen-year-old, working as a bookmaker for his father in the late thirties - going on to make money both on and off the track - to the headlines caused by his involvement in the notorious Fine Cotton affair in the eighties. It examines his son Robbie''s rise as a respected bookie and a knowledgeable judge of horses, to his spectacular fall, as a result of that same Fine Cotton affair, which led to a life ban from involvement in the racing industry. While the ban was lifted in 2001, he keeps a low profile these days. As Kennedy reveals, the same cannot be said of Robbie''s wife, Gai, daughter of the legendary horse trainer TJ Smith. In a male-dominated world, she has gone on to rival her father as one of Australia''s best trainers, training horses for a star-studded clientele that has ranged from John Singleton to the Queen of England. Yet as High Stakes shows, the scandal aside, the marriage between Gai and Robbie was always going to be problematic. As the Sydney Morning Herald put it: ''It''s not that the Smiths and the Waterhouses were necessarily the Capulets and the Montagues but the country''s leading trainer and the world''s biggest bookmaker were hardly natural kinsfolk either.'' Despite an already colourful history, when their son, Tom, stepped into the family business and became one of the best-known and most controversial bookies the country had ever seen, Kennedy describes how the dramas for the Waterhouse dynasty were only just beginning... This is the book for anyone who wants to know the inside story of contemporary Australian horse racing, a world where premiers and millionaires rub shoulders with gangsters and girls with fancy hats. It''s a world of passion, action - and very high stakes.

The Lid Is Lifted

release date: Jul 10, 2014
The Lid Is Lifted
I was living and working in Kuwait when Iraq invaded on the 2nd August 1990. The Lid is Lifted is a riveting account of what happens when a country is crushed, the government flees, and law and order breaks down. The sacking of Kuwait City took five days of strenuous looting, and I have used a terse narrative style to describe the unnerving experience of being a civilian trapped in the midst of urban mayhem. If you have ever wondered what it is like to be held at gunpoint while your friends are raped, you can find out by reading The Lid is Lifted. But this personal memoir is more than a record of looting and human abuse. As a consultant working locally, I had dozens of reliable contacts at senior level and, throughout the occupation, I was able to keep myself well-informed of what was happening in the country and why. The Lid is Lifted contains dozens of startling, perplexing and extremely controversial facts about the politics of the invasion.The story is peopled with interesting characters, and I have depicted the differing reactions of the diverse group of people who were thrown together by the invasion. Can you imagine trying to survive in a country where you cannot speak the language and a victorious army is on the rampage? It wasn''t easy and banding together was vital for survival.Fear was our dominant emotion ... fear of death ... fear of being taken as a hostage and staked out on the runways to prevent a counter-attack ... and (for the women) fear of rape. We each had our own way of dealing with this constant fear, with varying degrees of success. I managed to overcome my fear by turning it into righteous anger and then focusing that anger on my survival.

Runaway Girl

release date: Jun 20, 2014
Runaway Girl
Tasha, a rebellious teenager, runs away from a threatening family situation. Arriving in London she meets Ann Swinton, a well-off woman who, with her husband, Steven, helps runaway and homeless children. Eighteen months later Ann is brutally murdered at her home while her husband is away on a fishing trip. Police suspicion falls on Steven and a few days later he is found dead in his car, having supposedly committed suicide. But Tasha''s life has become entangled with other young runaways, an Italian hotel waiter, several Ukrainian prostitutes and their pimp, Giorgio, who Tasha meets soon after her arrival. All struggle to forge a living at the margins of London''s multi-national society. When Tasha seeks refuge with Giorgio she accidentally uncovers the operations of a vicious gang who are kidnapping runaways like herself. When they discover that Tasha has reported their activities to Ann Swinton their lives are placed in imminent danger. Indeed, Tasha only narrowly avoids death after escaping from her locked room. When DI Tariq Hassan and his new colleague DS Sue Bridges are assigned the formidable task of tracking this gang down they desperately need Tasha''s help. But is she still alive and where is she hiding?

No Way Back

release date: Mar 17, 2014
No Way Back
Following the kidnapping of his teenage son, Mathew Bennion finds himself sucked into the political intrigue sparked by the conflict between two opposed and shadowy groups. But he is also exposed to the charms of a beautiful but mysterious young French woman. In the complex sequence of events that unfold around Mathew, little and no one are what they seem. How will he escape becoming a victim himself?This intelligent and beguiling thriller, set over various locations, is built on an incisive understanding of the contemporary economic crisis and its consequences.

Ingenieros de la victoria

release date: Mar 13, 2014
Ingenieros de la victoria
Una relato fascinante sobre la estrategia secreta que llevó a los Aliados a la victoria En enero de 1943, Franklin D. Roosevelt y Churchill se reunieron en Casablanca y establecieron los objetivos bélicos de los Aliados: controlar las rutas marítimas del Atlántico y las aéreas sobre Europa occidental y central, reforzar los bombardeos sobre Alemania, detener el avance del Frente del Este y terminar con el imperialismo japonés. Sorprendentemente, poco más de un año después, estos ambiciosos proyectos se habían consumado. A menudo la historia de la Segunda Guerra Mundial se ha narrado como una gran novela, como si hubiera sido librada por superhombres o determinada por el destino. Paul Kennedy revela cómo este plan estratégico fue ejecutado por soldados rasos, científicos, ingenieros y hombres de negocios que tuvieron la enorme responsabilidad de comprender y ejecutar los planes de éxito de sus altos mandos. Nos muestra quiénes fueron los verdaderos héroes de la guerra, y les otorga por primera vez el lugar que merecen en la historia. La crítica ha dicho... «Lectura imprescindible para los aficionados a la historia militar.» El Diario «Una importante contribución a nuestra comprensión de la Segunda Guerra Mundial.» Michael Beschloss, New York Times Book Review

Pacific Victory

release date: Mar 01, 2014
Pacific Victory
A look at the events leading up to Japan’s surrender in World War II, from the New York Times–bestselling author of Engineers of Victory. By the spring of 1943, Japan had a tight grip on the countries and territories of East Asia and the Western Pacific. But the Allies had won decisive victories at Midway and Guadalcanal, and they were coming for the rest of Japan’s conquests. Now the empire of Japan would be on the defensive. Featuring a new introduction by the author, this book picks up where Pacific Onslaught left off, providing a detailed, step-by-step account of the Allies’ unstoppable rally across territories annexed by the Japanese in a brutal two-pronged attack across New Guinea and the Philippines, and the islands of the central Pacific. Here you’ll find detailed contemporary accounts and strategy, from the epic battles of the Gilberts and Marshalls to the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and Japan’s final surrender on the decks of the USS Missouri.

Pacific Onslaught

release date: Mar 01, 2014
Pacific Onslaught
A look at the early years of the Pacific conflict in World War II, by the New York Times–bestselling author of The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers. Japan had mighty ambitions: to control the Western Pacific. The attack on Pearl Harbor devastated their primary obstacle—the American Pacific fleet—and they swept across the region. What ensued was a bitter struggle in which many thousands of soldiers lost their lives on both sides. This is the first book in Paul Kennedy’s chronicle of the Pacific conflict in World War II, concluded in Pacific Victory. Featuring a new introduction by the author, this book provides a close, step-by-step narrative of the Japanese expansion into the Western Pacific during some of the most brutal years of World War II. Offering contemporary analysis of war strategy, it includes a riveting look at Japan’s tightening grip on Hong Kong, New Guinea, the Philippines, and other key strategic locations—and the Allies’ inexorable struggle against it.

Engenheiros da vitória

release date: Jan 29, 2014
Engenheiros da vitória
Um dos maiores especialistas em relações internacionais da atualidade mostra os mecanismos internos da grande virada que levou à vitória dos Aliados. Em janeiro de 1943, Franklin Delano Roosevelt e Winston Churchill se reuniram em Casablanca, no Marrocos, e estabeleceram os objetivos dos Aliados para virar a maré da guerra: a derrota da Blietzkrieg nazista; o controle das rotas marítimas no Atlântico e do espaço aéreo na Europa ocidental e central; o transplante do teatro de batalha para a Europa continental; o fim do imperialismo japonês no Pacífico. Cerca de um ano depois do encontro, a maioria dessas metas havia sido cumprida. O distanciamento histórico torna difícil entender a dimensão dessa conquista, mas o fato é que, no momento da reunião, o Eixo ainda parecia invencível. Apoiado em impressionante repertório de fontes, Paul Kennedy se propõe a esclarecer exatamente como se pavimentou o caminho para a vitória. Ao contrário das histórias clássicas da Segunda Guerra, que privilegiam os líderes políticos e militares, em Engenheiros da vitória Kennedy procura iluminar o esforço daqueles que chama de "solucionadores de problemas": cientistas, engenheiros, soldados, homens de negócios que foram responsáveis por tornar possível a grande estratégia estabelecida em Casablanca. Com grande habilidade narrativa, Kennedy conduz o leitor para os bastidores dessas decisões e descobertas, e nos revela o verdadeiro "motor" do esforço de guerra.

Storm Cloud

release date: Aug 01, 2013
Storm Cloud
Melbourne Storm was created in 1998 and situated in the heartland of a rival football code, it won three NRL premierships from five Grand Finals in its first twelve seasons and produced the best players in the game. It was the envy of clubs everywhere. But in 2010 Storm''s famed winning culture was exposed as a fraud. The club had cheated. The club had consistently rorted the NRL''s salary cap. Justice seemed hard and fast. They were fined and stripped of their trophies. A few in club management were fired, some club directors left and player managers were given suspensions. That was it. No-one was charged. Storm played out that season with admirable resolve, despite playing for no reward. In the following two seasons Melbourne Storm fought back and in 2012 won the Grand Final. The rise, fall and rise of Melbourne Storm happened in a heartbeat, yet what actually took place? Stormcloud answers the question as it reveals the hidden story, with much untold to be revealed.

Global Sociology, Third Edition

release date: Mar 01, 2013
Global Sociology, Third Edition
The third edition explores global issues at the heart of sociological discussion, with an updated focus on globalism, social media, migration, and more The first, pioneering editions of Global Sociology put global issues at the heart of sociological discussion. Much has changed in the world since then; recessions, revolutions, social media, and new migration networks have developed as causes and symptoms of an increasingly global society. This new edition is fully updated to explore just how these global issues can help us to understand sociology in our world today. Making clear connections between everyday experiences and global processes at each step, the third edition carefully guides readers through essential and cutting-edge topics in the discipline, from family and feminism to environment and economy. Features such as biography boxes on key thinkers in the field, a thorough glossary, and review questions introduce and reinforce the book’s core ideas. With clear writing and infectious enthusiasm for its topic, Global Sociology remains the authority on global issues in sociology for students at a variety of skill levels.

Engineers of Victory

release date: Jan 29, 2013
Engineers of Victory
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Paul Kennedy, award-winning author of The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers and one of today’s most renowned historians, now provides a new and unique look at how World War II was won. Engineers of Victory is a fascinating nuts-and-bolts account of the strategic factors that led to Allied victory. Kennedy reveals how the leaders’ grand strategy was carried out by the ordinary soldiers, scientists, engineers, and businessmen responsible for realizing their commanders’ visions of success. In January 1943, FDR and Churchill convened in Casablanca and established the Allied objectives for the war: to defeat the Nazi blitzkrieg; to control the Atlantic sea lanes and the air over western and central Europe; to take the fight to the European mainland; and to end Japan’s imperialism. Astonishingly, a little over a year later, these ambitious goals had nearly all been accomplished. With riveting, tactical detail, Engineers of Victory reveals how. Kennedy recounts the inside stories of the invention of the cavity magnetron, a miniature radar “as small as a soup plate,” and the Hedgehog, a multi-headed grenade launcher that allowed the Allies to overcome the threat to their convoys crossing the Atlantic; the critical decision by engineers to install a super-charged Rolls-Royce engine in the P-51 Mustang, creating a fighter plane more powerful than the Luftwaffe’s; and the innovative use of pontoon bridges (made from rafts strung together) to help Russian troops cross rivers and elude the Nazi blitzkrieg. He takes readers behind the scenes, unveiling exactly how thousands of individual Allied planes and fighting ships were choreographed to collectively pull off the invasion of Normandy, and illuminating how crew chiefs perfected the high-flying and inaccessible B-29 Superfortress that would drop the atomic bombs on Japan. The story of World War II is often told as a grand narrative, as if it were fought by supermen or decided by fate. Here Kennedy uncovers the real heroes of the war, highlighting for the first time the creative strategies, tactics, and organizational decisions that made the lofty Allied objectives into a successful reality. In an even more significant way, Engineers of Victory has another claim to our attention, for it restores “the middle level of war” to its rightful place in history. Praise for Engineers of Victory “Superbly written and carefully documented . . . indispensable reading for anyone who seeks to understand how and why the Allies won.”—The Christian Science Monitor “An important contribution to our understanding of World War II . . . Like an engineer who pries open a pocket watch to reveal its inner mechanics, [Paul] Kennedy tells how little-known men and women at lower levels helped win the war.”—Michael Beschloss, The New York Times Book Review “Histories of World War II tend to concentrate on the leaders and generals at the top who make the big strategic decisions and on the lowly grunts at the bottom. . . . [Engineers of Victory] seeks to fill this gap in the historiography of World War II and does so triumphantly. . . . This book is a fine tribute.”—The Wall Street Journal “[Kennedy] colorfully and convincingly illustrates the ingenuity and persistence of a few men who made all the difference.”—The Washington Post “This superb book is Kennedy’s best.”—Foreign Affairs

Accounts of No Consequence

release date: Jan 01, 2012
Accounts of No Consequence
Paul Kennedy Mueller is the author of The Pandemonium Bar & Grill (and Other Stories), Pretty Bad Stories (An Unfortunate Collection of Troublesome Tales), Mostly True Tales (and Otherwise Preposterous Accounts), The Satisfaction of Revenge and Other Poems, and other works of fiction, journalism, and poetry. An Army brat and Vietnam veteran, he now works as a senior public information officer for the University of California at San Diego.

The Satisfaction of Revenge

release date: Sep 01, 2011
The Satisfaction of Revenge
The poems in this collection travel from Thessaloniki to the orchards of the moon, and discover landscapes that surprise, enchant, challenge and amuse the literate reader.
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