Aaker, Jennifer
| The dragonfly effect
| Jossey-Bass, 2010 | ISBN: 9780470614
|
The social media, which have become available via the internet, offer a powerful tool to get large number of people involved in a project, in particular if you are trying to promote a good cause. It can be a daunting task, however. In The dragonfly effect: quick, effective, and powerful ways to use social media to drive social change, Jennifer Aaker and Andy Smith offer plenty of advice on how to make social media work for your cause.
Continued..
|
|
|
Abley, Mark
| spoken here
| Arrow, 2003 | ISBN: 009946022X
|
With the ever increasing dominance of English, many of the world's languages are in great danger of being overwhelmed. InSpoken Here: Travels Among Threatened Languages Mark Abley talks to some of the speakers of such languages, and sees what they are doing about it.
Continued..
|
|
|
| The prodigal tongue
| Heinemann, 2008 | ISBN: 0434013900
|
English is becoming more and more global, but does this mean that it will drift away from what its current speakers would recognise? Will the way language is used on the Internet have more of an effect? In The Prodigal Tongue: Dispatches From The Future of English Mark Abley looks at such issues.
Continued..
|
|
|
Ackroyd, Peter
| Chaucer
| Chatto and Windus, 2004 | ISBN: 0701169850
|
Geoffrey Chaucer is known as the author of the Canterbury Tales, but there was much more to him than that, not just the poetry he wrote, but also the important work he did in the service of the King. In Chaucer (part of the Brief Lives series) Peter Ackroyd tells of his life.
Continued..
|
|
|
Adams, Douglas
| The Salmon of Doubt
| Macmillan, 2002 | ISBN: 0333766571
|
Before his untimely death in 2001, Douglas Adams had started writing a new Dirk Gently novel. The Salmon of Doubt contains the first few chapters of this novel.
Continued..
|
|
|
Adams, Scott
| God's Debris
| Andrews McMeel, 2001 | ISBN: 0740721909
|
Scott Adams is known worldwide for his Dilbert cartoons. In 'God's Debris' his is taking a different tack - the book is philosophical rather than humorous. A delivery man delivers a package to an old man, and in the process gets into a conversation - a conversation which reveals the secrets of life, the universe and everything (to quote a different Adams), and in particular the nature of God. I found the book was interesting and easy to read and so an excellent way of whiling away the odd hour or two. What I couldn't quite see was why it should be considered as a deep, life-changing book as the reviews on the back cover suggested
Continued..
|
|
|
Aitchison, Jean
| Linguistics: An Introduction
| Hodder and Stoughton, 1973 | ISBN: 0340757922
|
When I started reading this book I realised that there is a lot more to linguistics than I had thought. Apparently I had a very 'Victorian' view, expecting the book to be principally about the comparison of words in different languages and the history of how these words developed, although I realised that the work of Chomsky in the last half century would also play a major part. But in Linguistics: An Introduction, Jean Aitchison shows that there is a lot more to it than that, with chapters on sound patterns, the positioning of words in sentences and the relationship between syntax and semantics as well as the psychology and sociology of language. It would suit anyone looking for a broad overview of this subject.
Continued..
|
|
|
| Language change: progress or decay
| Cambridge University Press, 2008 | ISBN: 9780521795357
|
You will often hear complaints that new forms of language usage represent degeneration, reducing our ability to express ourselves accurately. But how much is language change to be feared? In Language change: progress or decay? Jean Aitchison shows that language change has always been happening, and is not the bugbear that many seem to think.
Continued..
|
|
|
Anzovin, Raf
| 3D Toons
| Ilex, 2005 | ISBN: 1904705405
|
The state of 3D animation has advanced so much recently that it is used in part or in total for many of the films made nowadays. Not only that, but computer hardware is advancing so fast that such animation begins to look possible to the amateur filmmaker. 3D Toons, by Steve and Raf Anzovin is aimed at that market. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to know exactly waht it is trying to do. It isn't a 'how-to' book which would teach people the basics of 3D animation. It doesn't look at the well known filmmakers such as Pixar. Rather it's a showcase for the works of some lesser known animators.
Continued..
|
|
|
Anzovin, Steve
| 3D Toons
| Ilex, 2005 | ISBN: 1904705405
| |
The state of 3D animation has advanced so much recently that it is used in part or in total for many of the films made nowadays. Not only that, but computer hardware is advancing so fast that such animation begins to look possible to the amateur filmmaker. 3D Toons, by Steve and Raf Anzovin is aimed at that market. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to know exactly waht it is trying to do. It isn't a 'how-to' book which would teach people the basics of 3D animation. It doesn't look at the well known filmmakers such as Pixar. Rather it's a showcase for the works of some lesser known animators.
Continued..
|
|
|
Asimov, Isaac
| Robot Dreams
| Ace books | ISBN: 0441731546
|
Collection of Asimov's short stories, including "The Billiard Ball".
|
|
|
Axelrod, Alan
| Elizabeth I CEO
| Prentice Hall, 2000 | ISBN: 0735201897
|
When Queen Elizabeth 1st came to the throne of England, the country was in a sorry state, but her reign is now remembered as one of the golden ages of English history. In Elizabeth I CEO Alan Axelrod looks at her success in terms of running a business, and examines what lessons her reign might have for leaders of today. But the book isn't just for CEO's. It's an entertaining read, and will benefit anyone with even the smallest leadership role, as well as those who just want to look at history in a different light.
Continued..
|
|
|
Ayres, Ian
| Super Crunchers
| John Murray, 2007 | ISBN: 9780719564635
|
We all know that computers are becoming ubiquitous in our society. But you may not realise that they are doing more than just assisting current decision processes. In Super Crunchers Ian Ayres shows how much they are bringing about a huge change in the way decisions are made. The book starts with an example of how the future value of wine may be predicted using a simple formula based on the nature of the growing season - and how this is often beating the expert opinion. Now that so much data is available, the number crunching approach is taking hold in many important areas of our life, such as medicine and government as well as most large businesses.
Continued..
|
|
|
Baddiel, Ivor
| Never in a million years
| Orion Books, 2011 | ISBN: 1409140229
|
Many people have speculated about what the future will be like. The trouble is that the future eventually gets here. In Never in a million years: a history of hopeless predictions from the beginning to the end of the world Ivor Baddiel and Jonny Zucker look at some predictions which haven't been bourne out by reality.
Continued..
|
|
|
Baggini, Julian
| The Duck that Won the Lottery
| Granta, 2008 | ISBN: 9781847080431
|
As you go through life you'll find lots of people trying to persuade you of their point of view. So how do you decide whether to accept what they say? In The Duck That Won the Lottery: and 99 Other Bad Arguments Julian Baggini tells you ways of identifying dubious arguments.
Continued..
|
|
|
Balkin, J M
| Cultural software : a theory of ideology
| Yale University Press, 1998 | ISBN: 0300072880
|
We are all constrained by the norms of the societies in which we live, even when we want to frame an abstract discussion of those norms. So is it possible to escape from this recursion? In Cultural Software J M Balkin thinks that it is, but we should steer clear of attempts to systematize the process, which only results in another ideology. Instead we must rely on what looks like ad hoc thinking - metabricolage is the term Balkin uses. I felt that the book makes an excellent bridge between the scientific ideas of memes and the like and the more literary discussion of ideologies and social norms.
Continued..
|
|
|
Battelle, John
| The Search
| Nicholas Brealey, 2005 | ISBN: 1857883616
|
In The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture John Battelle looks at the development of internet search engines. Starting in the early days with Yahoo starting as a list of sites, and Alta Vista as a program to demonstrate DEC hardware, he explains how search was considered unimportant - what businesses were aiming at was the status of a portal. Then the internet bubble burst, but somehow Google managed to buck the trend and make a rapidly growing business out of pure search.
Continued..
|
|
|
Bear, Greg
| Blood Music
| Gollancz, 1985 | ISBN: 9780575081093
|
The idea of DNA computation is now widely known, indeed a limited form of such computation has already been carried out. Well brilliant gene scientist Vergil I Ulam has secretly been working on modifying the DNA within cells to give them a form of intelligence. When his clandestine research is discovered he faces losing all his work, so he injects the cells into himself. As you can imagine this is not a good idea! That is how Blood Music begins, and in the book Greg Bear develops this scenario of what happens when intelligent microorganisms are let loose upon the world.
Continued..
|
|
|
| Darwin's Children
| HarperCollins, 2003 | ISBN: 0002257327
|
Stella Nova is one of a new kind of human. The SHEVA virus has altered the progress of pregnancy, resulting in children who are significantly different from what has been seen before. But many of the old-style humans aren't happy with this. Darwin's Children by Greg Bear tells of the ensuing struggles of the new children and their families in a hostile environment.
Continued..
|
|
|
Blackburn, Simon
| Truth: A Guide for the Perplexed
| Penguin, 2005 | ISBN: 0141014253
|
Philosophers have always been wary of the idea of 'absolute truth', but can one express a reasonable scepticism and yet avoid the 'anything goes' of postmodernism? In 'Truth: A Guide for the Perplexed', Simon Blackburn guides the reader through such issues. The book is based on a series of eight Gifford lectures that Blackburn gave in Glasgow in 2004. As such it is more of a discussion of the issues, rather than trying to give any definite answers, although at the end Blackburn does express a hope that those arguing about such issues will find much more common ground.
Continued..
|
|
|
Borges, Jorge
| The total library
| Penguin, 2001 | ISBN: 0141183020
|
You probably know Jorge Luis Borges best for his short stories such as 'The Library of Babel', but he also wrote plenty of non-fiction. The Total Library: Non-Fiction 1922-1986 is a collection of his essays.
Continued..
|
|
|
Boyd, John
| The Time Paradox
| Rider, 2008 | ISBN: 9781846041549
|
There are plenty of hours in the day, but time is one thing we never seem to have enough of. In The Time Paradox: The New Psychology of Time That Will Change Your Life Philip Zimbardo and John Boyd argue that the way we think of time plays an important part in how we live our lives.
Continued..
|
|
|
Brockman, John
| How is the Internet changing the way you think
| Atlantic Books, 2012 | ISBN: 0857892452
|
The internet has had a vast impact on our lives but has it changed the way our minds work. How is the Internet changing the way you think?: the net's impact on our minds and future edited by John Brockman gives the responses of 154 of the Edge thinkers.
Continued..
|
|
|
Cameron, Julia
| Letters To A Young Artist
| Rider, 2005 | ISBN: 1844135594
|
In Letters to a Young Artist: Building a Life in Art Julia Cameron gives advice to aspiring artists on how to deal with some of the problems they may face.
Continued..
|
|
|
Carriere, Jean-Claude
| This is not the end of the book
| Harvill Secker, 2011 | ISBN: 9781846554513
|
In This is not the end of the book Jean-Philippe de Tonnac moderates a discussion between Umberto Eco and Jean-Claude Carriere about the history and future of books.
Continued..
|
|
|
Cathcart, Thomas
| Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates
| Penguin, 2009 | ISBN: 9780670020836
|
You might not see the of philosophy of death as a particularly amusing subject, but Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein think otherwise. In Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates: Using Philosophy (and Jokes!) to Explore Life, Death, the Afterlife, and Everything in Between they look at what philosophers have said about various aspects of death, but instead of dry passages of text the book seems to consist mostly of jokes.
Continued..
|
|
|
Cederquist, Jan
| Meaningful coincidence
| Marshall Cavendish, 2009 | ISBN: 9780462099705
|
Have you ever have an experience that seems to be more than just coincidence? Maybe you've been thinking about a person, who then turns up in an unexpected place. In Meaningful coincidence: remarkable true stories of synchronicity and the search for answers Jan Cederquist tells of why he thinks there's soemthing behind such happenings.
Continued..
|
|
|
Chatfield, Tom
| Fun Inc
| Virgin Books, 2010 | ISBN: 9780753519851
|
You know about video games - teenage boys hiding themselves away to play at shooting things. Well if that's what you think then maybe you should read Fun Inc.: Why Play is the 21st Century's Most Serious Business Tom Chatfield to find out the real nature of video games.
Continued..
|
|
|
Chatwin, Bruce
| Anatomy of Restlessness
| Jonathan Cape, 1996 | ISBN: 0224042920
|
Anatomy of Restlessness is a collection of articles and short stories written by Bruce Chatwin, who died in 1989. During his life Chatwin pursued several careers including those of art critic and travel writer. This meant that he got a look into the collecting habits of the rich and famous, but he was also fascinated by the life of the nomad, with a minimum of possessions. This gave him a unique insight into the contrasts between the two, and in his article The Morality of Things he explores where our acquisitive tendencies originated.
Continued..
|
|
|
| Utz
| Vintage, 1988 | ISBN: 0099770016
|
Bruce Chatwin had a long fascination with our urge to surround ourselves with possessions. Utz is his story of a man who did so more than most of us. Kaspar Joachim Utz came from the minor nobiltiy in Czechoslovakia. With the coming of communism, he ends up in a small flat in Prague, but is allowed to keep in it the collection of Meissen porcelain which he has accumulated. He has money in foreign banks and so has the possibility of building a new life (and porcelain collection) for himself in the west, but somehow he just can't bring himself to do it.
Continued..
|
|
|
Chaucer, Geoffrey
| The Canterbury Tales
| Penguin, 1951 | ISBN: 0140424385
|
It has been said that the critical point in our becoming human is when we started to tell stories. Certainly, reading Chaucer's Canterbury Tales shows that the nature of our storytelling has not changed much in the last 600 years. A group of pilgrims on the way to Canterbury amuse themselves by telling each other stories, and even in a work of this age we see the usual themes coming up. Some tales are of far away places, there's one about alchemy - even then Chaucer realised it was essentially trickery - but mostly they are tales of love, or more particularly lust.
Continued..
|
|
|
Chaudhuri, Nirad
| A Passage to England
| Orient Paperbacks, 1971 | ISBN: 8122201121
| |
Nirad Chaudhuri left India for the first time in 1955, at the age of 57, for a visit to Europe, and in particular to England. In A Passage to England he tells of his impressions of the country.
Continued..
|
|
|
Cioran, E.M.
| A Short History of Decay
| Penguin, 2010 | ISBN: 9780141192727
|
A Short History of Decay is a collection of nihilistic essays, written in the middle of the 20th Century by E.M. Cioran
Continued..
|
|
|
Clarke, Arthur C
| 2001, a space odyssey
| Orbit | ISBN: 1857236645
|
Classic scifi novel
|
|
|
Claxton, Guy
| Hare Brain Tortoise Mind
| Fourth Estate, 1998 | ISBN: 1857027094
|
When we are trying to solve a problem, we may feel that we need to put all of our efforts into the solution, and to stick at it until it is cracked. But in Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less Guy Claxton claims that often we need to step back and let our unconscious come up with the answer.
Continued..
|
|
|
Coelho, Paulo
| The Alchemist
| Harper, 1988 | ISBN: 9780722532935
|
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho has been read by over 30 million people, many of whom have claimed that it has been a life changing experience.
Continued..
|
|
|
Cran, William
| The Story of English
| Faber & Faber, 1986 | ISBN: 0571210775
|
English is spoken by a significant proportion of the world's population. How did one language become so dominant and how does the English spoken in one place differ from that spoken in another? If you're interested in such questions then you might like to take a look at The Story of English by Robert McCrum ,Robert MacNeil and William Cran.
Continued..
|
|
|
Crystal, David
| The language revolution
| Polity, 2004 | ISBN: 0745633129
|
The twenty-first century is likely to bring many changes in the diversity of languages. Three of these are the divergence of different versions of English, the possible death of a significant number of languages, and the origin of new forms of language mediated by the internet. David Crystal has written books on each of these subjects, but in The Language Revolution he gives a consise overview of each of them, together with a look at what can be done to minimise the damage to culture that these are likely to cause. In particular he lists steps that can be taken to prevent language death.
Continued..
|
|
|
Dennett, Daniel C
| Breaking the Spell
| Allen Lane, 2006 | ISBN: 0713997893
|
C.S. Lewis said 'You cannot go on explaining away for ever', i.e. there has to be something at the root of what we believe. In Breaking the Spell Daniel Dennett seems to have turned this argument back on itself, saying in effect, OK if that's the case then it won't harm for us to go on trying to explain things such as religion. I can't help thinking that he's trying to pull a fast one myself (if you can use the word 'fast' in relation to Dennett's long books). But if you're interested in the status of religion then it's definitely worth taking a look at this book.
Continued..
|
|
|
Dexter, Gary
| Title deeds
| Old Street, 2010 | ISBN: 1906964246
|
How do you choose the title of a book? Often it's hard to think that books could have had any other title than the one they do, but choosing a good title is often a challenge for authors and publishers. In Title deeds: the hidden stories behind 50 books Gary Dexter shows that there is often a deeper story behind the choice.
Continued..
|
|
|
Dickson, Lovat
| Wilderness Man
| Pocket, 1973 | ISBN: 0671022741
|
In 1930's Britain, Grey Owl and his stories of life in the Canadian wilderness drew huge audiences. But all was not as it seemed. Rather than being of Indian descent, as he claimed, Grey Owl was actually brought up by two aunts in Southern England. In Wilderness Man: The amazing true story of Grey Owl, Lovat Dickson tells what really happened.
Continued..
|
|
|
Drake, David
| Sartre
| Haus, 2005 | ISBN: 1904341853
|
I hawe always been puzzled about how people claiming to support freedom can give their support to violent and dictatorial leaders, in particular how some of the intellectuals of the mid-twentieth century supported Stalin. Jean-Paul Sartre was prominent amoung literary intellectuals of this time, and in Sartre (Life & Times) David Drake gives an account of his life which helps to explain this contradiction.
Continued..
|
|
|
Eco, Umberto
| Serendipities
| Weidenfield & Nicholson, 1999 | ISBN: 0297643258
|
Serendipities: Language and Lunacy is a collection of essays by Umberto Eco, on topics related to the history of languages, mostly relating to those situations where things didn't quite work out.
Continued..
|
|
|
| This is not the end of the book
| Harvill Secker, 2011 | ISBN: 9781846554513
| |
In This is not the end of the book Jean-Philippe de Tonnac moderates a discussion between Umberto Eco and Jean-Claude Carriere about the history and future of books.
Continued..
|
|
|
Egan, Greg
| Schild's Ladder
| Gollancz | ISBN: 0575073918
|
Egan invents a multitude of new ideas, each one of which would be material for a book on its own.
|
|
|
Friedman, Thomas
| The World is Flat
| Penguin, 2005 | ISBN: 0141022728
|
With the adoption of new technology by countries such as China and India, the competitors for your job won't just be down the road - they may well live half way round the world. In The World is Flat: The Globalized World in the Twenty-first Century Thomas Friedman looks at how this change has taken place, and what you should do about it.
Continued..
|
|
|
Gaba, Anil
| dance with chance
| Oneworld, 2009 | ISBN: 9781851686537
|
Many things which happen in our lives are down to chance, but according to Spyros Makridakis ,Robin Hogarth and Anil Gaba we'd rather believe that they such things are under our control. In Dance with Chance: Making Luck Work for You they put forward their arguments and look at what we can do about it.
Continued..
|
|
|
Gasser, Urs
| Born digital
| BasicBooks, 2008 | ISBN: 9780465018567
|
Many of us see the digital revolution as a great transformation of the world we were born into, but to those below a certain age the digital world is the norm. In Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives John Palfrey and Urs Gasser look at how this generation looks at the world, some of the pitfalls which they may not be aware of, and how those of us who may be more cautious about digital life can relate to the digitald›ives.
Continued..
|
|
|
Gissen, David
| Big & Green
| Princeton Architectural Press, 2002 | ISBN: 1568983611
|
Environmentalism is often perceived as promoting a 'back to nature' viewpoint. However, with current population levels there's no way that there can be any realistic return to the agrarian societies of a few centuries ago. On the contrary, true environmentalism has to accomodate peoples needs while having the minimum disrruption to the enviroment, and that implies buildings which get the maximum benefit from a small land area - that is high rise buildings. Hence the exhibition 'Big & Green: Towards Sustainable Architecture in the 21st century' was conceived, to show how large buildings can go together with environmental benefits. This book shows the buildings which were exhibited, together with essays explaining the new ways of thinking.
Continued..
|
|
|
Godfather Publications, _
| How to create a flawless universe
| Ebury Press, 2003 | ISBN: 0091891078
|
Some sciences are problematical in that you can't do experiments. Cosmology, evolution and so on - you can't just rerun the tape and see what happens. Or so everyone thought. But if you read 'How to create a flawless universe (in just eight days)' then you can indeed try these things out for yourself. This easy to follow book is full of useful notes from other universe creators, and has plenty of advice on how to avoid problems. From the big bang to the eighties, its all in here. Most important is the eighth day (p67 - 70) on how to keep everyone happy, achieve eternal youth and many other things - well maybe.
Continued..
|
|
|
Gogol, Nikolai
| Plays and Petersburg tales
| Oxford University Press, 1998 | ISBN: 9780192835529
|
Plays and Petersburg tales is a collection of six stories and two plays by Nikolai Gogol, mostly set in the city of St. Petersburg.
Continued..
|
|
|
Gomez, Jeff
| Print is Dead
| Macmillan, 2008 | ISBN: 9780230527164
|
As more and more material is available on the internet, one wonder's whether previous methods of distribution still have a future. In Print is Dead:Books in Our Digital Age Jeff Gomez argues that printed books are on the way out.
Continued..
|
|
|
Grann, David
| The Lost City of Z
| Simon & Schuster, 2009 | ISBN: 9781847374363
|
El Dorado - the stuff of legend. But could there really be anything there? In The Lost City of Z: A Legendary British Explorer's Deadly Quest to Uncover the Secrets of the Amazon David Grann tells the story of Colonel Percy Fawcett, who was determined to find out.
Continued..
|
|
|
Gratton, Lynda
| Hot Spots
| Prentice Hall, 2007 | ISBN: 9780273711469
|
We all know that sometimes we approach a task with enthusiasm, finding ways to overcome problems, while at other times we lack energy and the problems we face seem too much trouble to deal with. The question, if you run a business, is how to encourange the first mindset in your employees, rather than the second. In Hot Spots: Why Some Companies Buzz with Energy and Innovation - and Others Don't, Lynda Gratton explains how such a mindset can be brought about.
Continued..
|
|
|
Grayling, A.C.
| The reason of things
| Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2002 | ISBN: 0297829351
|
The Reason of Things: Living with Philosophy is a collection of 60 short essays by A.C. Grayling, most of which were initially written for his column in the Guardian
Continued..
|
|
|
Griffiths, Sian
| Predictions
| Oxford University Press, 1999 | ISBN: 0192862103
|
Knowing someone's view of possible futures gives a deep insight into the way they think, and so a book containing essays on the future by well known thinkers would be very important indeed. Predictions: 30 great minds on the future is not such a book. Certainly they have contributions from eminent thinkers, but these are often only a page in length, which is only enough to repeat what we already know. Most of the space for each person is given to a biographical introduction written by a journalist who interviewed them.
Continued..
|
|
|
Haberman, David
| Ten Theories of Human Nature
| Oxford University Press, 2004 | ISBN: 9780195169744
|
Throughout history we have tried to understand what makes people tick, as well as trying to find rules for the best ways to live our lives. In Ten Theories of Human Nature, Leslie Stevenson and David Haberman look at some of the ideas which have stood the test of time.
Continued..
|
|
|
Handy, Charles
| The New Alchemists
| Hutchinson, 1999 | ISBN: 0091802156
| |
There have been plenty of books for entrepreneurs, giving advice on how to run their business. The New Alchemists by Charles and Elizabeth Handy is somewhat different, in that it is a series of short articles on existing entrepreneurs, and so aims to give an example for aspiring entrepreneurs to follow.
Continued..
|
|
|
Harford, Tim
| The undercover economist
| Abacus, 2007 | ISBN: 9780349119854
|
It's sometimes hard to understand why things cost what they do - paying pounds for a coffee which costs pence to make - and why their is such a gap in wealth between different countries. In The Undercover Economist: Exposing Why the Rich Are Rich, the Poor Are Poor--and Why You Can Never Buy a Decent Used Car! Tim Harford gives explanations for such puzzles.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hart-Davis, Duff
| Audubon's Elephant
| Orion Books, 2003 | ISBN: 0753817888
|
Editions of Audubon's Birds of America fetch high prices at auction nowadays, but when they were originally produced it took a considerable amount of effort to find buyers. In Audubon's Elephant: The story of John James Audubon's epic struggle to publish 'The Birds of America' Duff Hart-Davis tells of what Audubon went through.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hart-Davis, Rupert
| The Power of Chance
| Sinclair-Stevenson, 1991 | ISBN: 1856190773
| |
Those of you who watch science programs in the UK will be aware of the rather quirky presenter Adam Hart-Davis. You may not know that he comes from a pretty distinguished family. 'The Power of Chance' is the autobiography of his father Rupert Hart-Davis. It starts when Rupert is 19, following the death of his mother. After a brief spell as an actor, and marriage to the well known actress Peggy Ashcroft the book gets on to his main career in the publishing business. As such he met many well-known people and the book will be of interest to those readers wanting a glimpse into the start of the careers of actors and authors who are now famous.
Continued..
|
|
|
Heilbroner, Robert
| The worldly philosophers
| Penguin, 2000 | ISBN: 0140290060
|
The worldly philosophers: The lives, times, and ideas of the great economic thinkers by Robert Heilbroner explores the progess of economics by describing the work of the principal contributors to the subject since its beginnings a few centuries ago.
Continued..
|
|
|
Herbert, Frank
| Dune
| Gollancz | ISBN: 0575068566
|
Dune by Frank Herbert, is a classic scifi novel which has spawned a considerable number of sequels and quite a few imitators. The story is centred around Paul Atreides, son of Leto, Duke of the planet Caladan. The Atreides have a long emnity with the evil Harkonnen family, and at the start of the story the galactic emperor has decreed that the two families should exchange homeworlds, so that the Atreides get Arrakis, source of the spice vital to the workings of the empire, and so of immense wealth. A just reward for moral behaviour? - no, Leto sees clearly that it is a trap, which may mean the end of the Atreides family.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hesse, Hermann
| The Glass Bead Game
| Vintage, 1943 | ISBN: 009928362X
|
The Glass Bead Game by Hermann Hesse is the story of a society where the various kinds of academic study - in particular mathematics, music and history - have been absorbed into the playing of a particularly complicated game.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hiro, Dilip
| The Rough Guide History of India
| Penguin, 2002 | ISBN: 1858288428
|
India has a substantial part of the world's population, and as such it's history deserves greater prominence in the west. The Rough Guide History of India by Dilip Hiro is a compact book, dealing with the history of India from ancient times up to the present.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hogarth, Robin
| dance with chance
| Oneworld, 2009 | ISBN: 9781851686537
| |
Many things which happen in our lives are down to chance, but according to Spyros Makridakis ,Robin Hogarth and Anil Gaba we'd rather believe that they such things are under our control. In Dance with Chance: Making Luck Work for You they put forward their arguments and look at what we can do about it.
Continued..
|
|
|
Housley, Norman
| Contesting the Crusades
| Blackwell, 2006 | ISBN: 1405111895
|
To understand the motivations of those who see religious considerations as a justification for conflict it is useful to have a clear view of the Crusades, when such considerations were a significant part of European life. Contesting the Crusades by Norman Housley offers such a view. He considers what might be classified as a crusade, looking at the importance of Jerusalem to medieval Europeans, and at how wars on other fronts were put into the form of crusades. There's a lot of information in this short book, and I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in the relationship between war and religion or in the history of medieval Europe.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hunt, Peter
| Children's Literature:The development of criticism
| Routledge, 1990 | ISBN: 0415029945
|
Writing about children's literature can be a problem. Do you try to look at a book from the point of view of a child? Or do you ask what the book does to educate children (a rather old fashioned view perhaps). Maybe you view the book as a preparation for more advanced works. In Children's Literature:The development of criticism, Peter Hunt brings together a collection of essays which look at these, and many other questions. The book starts with early examples of such essays (starting with one from 1749), and so the reader sees how children's literature, and the criticism of it, has developed over time.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hutchisson, James M
| Poe
| University press of Mississippi, 2005 | ISBN: 1578067219
|
Edgar Allan Poe is recognised as the creator of many early examples of themes in modern fiction. My impression of James M Hutchisson's new biography Poe is that it is skillfully written and has something of interest for all readers. I have to admit that I hadn't read much of Poe's work before reading this biography, but I felt that this was not a problem as Hutchisson provides a sufficient description of Poe's stories within the text. More knowledgable readers will benefit from the new critical insights into Poe's work and how it relates to his life.
Continued..
|
|
|
Hyde, Lewis
| Trickster Makes this World
| Canongate, 1998 | ISBN: 9781847672254
|
The stories told in many of the cultures round the world involve a 'Trickster' figure. In Trickster Makes This World: How Disruptive Imagination Creates Culture Lewis Hyde argues that such figures play a central part in the workings of their culture.
Continued..
|
|
|
Ibn Munqidh, Usama
| The Book of Contemplation
| Penguin, 2008 | ISBN: 9780140455137
|
In The Book of Contemplation: Islam and the Crusades the twelfth century Arab aristocrat Usama Ibn Munqidh tells of his life and his observations on life.
Continued..
|
|
|
Idle, Eric
| The road to Mars
| Boxtree | ISBN: 075222414x
|
Sorting things out in the years after the Second World War led to a great increase in travel, and this can be seen as an influence on much of the science fiction of the 1950's, as well as forming the basis of the 'Road to ..' series of films starring Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour. The Road to Mars by Eric Idle is a science fiction story inspired by these films. It's the story of two comedians plying their trade around the solar system. Somehow havoc seems to follow them wherever they go. They meet an interesting woman - but is there more to her than there seems?
Continued..
|
|
|
Jacobs, A.J.
| The Year of Living Biblically
| Heinemann, 2007 | ISBN: 9780434017119
|
We sometimes hear of people who claim follow the rules of the Bible to the letter. But how practicable is this? In The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible A.J. Jacobs decides to give it a try.
Continued..
|
|
|
Johnson, Clay
| The information diet
| O'Reilly, 2012 | ISBN: 1449304680
|
We're surrounded by sources of information, but somehow we don't seem to find out what matters. In The Information Diet: A Case for Conscious Consumption Clay Johnson claims that we're getting junk information, and just as in the case of food, we need to be careful to consume the information we need.
Continued..
|
|
|
Jolley, Nicholas
| Leibniz
| Routledge, 2005 | ISBN: 0415283388
|
Leibniz is one of the best known philosophers, but his work has had less attention than might be expected. In Leibniz Nicholas Jolley gives an introduction to the main points of Leibniz philosophy.
Continued..
|
|
|
Kaplan, Robert D
| Mediterranean winter
| Arrow, 2004 | ISBN: 0099484404
|
In Mediterranean winter: A Journey Through History , Robert D Kaplan tells of his experiences during travels round the Mediterranean in the 1970's.
Continued..
|
|
|
Keen, Andrew
| The cult of the amateur
| Nicholas Brealey, 2008 | ISBN: 9781857885200
|
In the past, publishing our work usually meant going via a large organisation. The coming of the internet has changed that, now any of us can display our work to the world at minimal expense. Andrew Keen thinks this is a move in the wrong direction. In The Cult of the Amateur: How blogs, MySpace, YouTube and the rest of today's user-generated media are killing our culture and economy he argues that the internet is damaging our society.
Continued..
|
|
|
Kirby, Alan
| Digimodernism
| Continuum, 2009 | ISBN: 1441175288
|
I've always been wary of anything to do with Postmodernism, but when I saw Alan Kirby's book Digimodernism: how new technologies dismantle the postmodern and reconfigure our culture I thought it might be worth reading.
Continued..
|
|
|
Klein, Daniel
| Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates
| Penguin, 2009 | ISBN: 9780670020836
| |
You might not see the of philosophy of death as a particularly amusing subject, but Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein think otherwise. In Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates: Using Philosophy (and Jokes!) to Explore Life, Death, the Afterlife, and Everything in Between they look at what philosophers have said about various aspects of death, but instead of dry passages of text the book seems to consist mostly of jokes.
Continued..
|
|
|
Lacy, Sarah
| The Stories of Facebook, Youtube and Myspace
| Crimson, 2008 | ISBN: 9781854584533
|
Following the dot com crash you might think that people would be reluctant to invest their time and money into new internet ventures. But in The Stories of Facebook, Youtube and Myspace: The People, the Hype and the Deals Behind the Giants of Web 2.0 Sarah Lacy tells a different story, of how a new generation of successful internet enterpreneur has arisen.
Continued..
|
|
|
Le Guin, Ursula
| The dispossessed
| Gollancz, 1974 | ISBN: 1857988825
|
Annares is the moon of Urras. It's habitable, but a struggle to live there, and is the home of a people devoted to freedom from state control. However, Shevek, a physicist on Annares, finds his freedom to create and discuss a new theory of time and space isn't what it should be. Thus he goes to Urras, where the scientists show a greater appreciation of his ideas, and in doing so hopes to start to heal a long-standing hatred between the two worlds. But will his actions really make any difference? The Dispossesed by Usrula le Guin is an impressive study of different kinds of freedom, but I did have some reservations concerning its plot - or lack of it.
Continued..
|
|
|
Leader, Darian
| Stealing the Mona Lisa
| Faber & Faber, 2002 | ISBN: 0571212638
|
In August 1911, house painter Vincenzo Perrugia stole the Mona Lisa from the Louvre. It was some hours before anyone noticed the theft, but after they did they did huge crowds wanted to see the empty space - more than had wanted to see the picture when it was there. In Stealing the Mona Lisa: What Art Stops Us from Seeing Darian Leader examines what this tells us about the the place of art in our lives.
Continued..
|
|
|
Lewis, Michael
| The New New Thing
| Coronet, 1999 | ISBN: 0340766999
|
In 1979 Jim Clark was a 38 year old professor of computer science at Stanford University and was wondering where his life was leading to. In The New New thing describes how he then went on to found not one but three multibillion dollar companies in succession. A university project led to Silicon Graphics. Clark only had a small stake in this, so in the early '90s he founded Netscape, and this was followed by Healtheon. By the end of the book we see him thinking about another business. Clark is at the centre of high-tech innovation in Silicon Valley, just as Silicon Valley is such a centre for the rest of the world, so he's an important figure. It's also a fun book to read, so if you're interested in technology in today's world then you might like to give it a try.
Continued..
|
|
|
Lyons, Jonathan
| The House of Wisdom
| Bloomsbury, 2009 | ISBN: 1408801213
|
In The House of Wisdom: How the Arabs Transformed Western Civilization Jonathan Lyons explains how much medieval Christendom gained from Arabic learning.
Continued..
|
|
|
Maclean, Charles
| Island on the Edge of the World
| Cannongate, 1972 | ISBN: 9781841957555
|
Island on the Edge of the World: The Story of St Kilda by Charles Maclean tells of a remote group of islands of the coast of Scotland, and of the people who lived there.
Continued..
|
|
|
MacNeil, Robert
| The Story of English
| Faber & Faber, 1986 | ISBN: 0571210775
| |
English is spoken by a significant proportion of the world's population. How did one language become so dominant and how does the English spoken in one place differ from that spoken in another? If you're interested in such questions then you might like to take a look at The Story of English by Robert McCrum ,Robert MacNeil and William Cran.
Continued..
|
|
|
Makridakis, Spyros
| dance with chance
| Oneworld, 2009 | ISBN: 9781851686537
| |
Many things which happen in our lives are down to chance, but according to Spyros Makridakis ,Robin Hogarth and Anil Gaba we'd rather believe that they such things are under our control. In Dance with Chance: Making Luck Work for You they put forward their arguments and look at what we can do about it.
Continued..
|
|
|
Mann, Thomas
| Death in Venice
| Vintage, 1912 | ISBN: 9780099428657
|
Death in Venice and Other Stories is a coolection of short stories by Thomas Mann - the title story has been made into a well known film.
Continued..
|
|
|
Martin, James
| The Meaning of the 21st Century
| Transworld Publishers, 2006 | ISBN: 1903919843
|
What does the 21st century have in store for us. Well in The Meaning of the 21st Century James Martin argues that it may be good or bad - it depends on our actions over the next few years - but what we certainly won't get is more of the same.
Continued..
|
|
|
Matathia, Ira
| Next Now
| Palgrave, 2006 | ISBN: 1403975647
|
The pace of change in all aspects of our lives is constantly accelerating. If you would like to stay ahead of the game, then Next Now: Trends for the Future by Marian Salzman and Ira Matathia gives a wide ranging look at where the world is going in the next few years.
Continued..
|
|
|
McCall Smith, Alexander
| Portuguese irregular verbs
| Polygon, 2003 | ISBN: 0954407563
|
Portuguese irregular verbs is Alexander McCall Smith's story of Professor Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, a German professor of philology, and of the mishaps he and his colleagues encounter in their lives.
Continued..
|
|
|
McCrum, Robert
| The Story of English
| Faber & Faber, 1986 | ISBN: 0571210775
| |
English is spoken by a significant proportion of the world's population. How did one language become so dominant and how does the English spoken in one place differ from that spoken in another? If you're interested in such questions then you might like to take a look at The Story of English by Robert McCrum ,Robert MacNeil and William Cran.
Continued..
|
|
|
McGonigal, Jane
| Reality is broken
| Jonathan Cape, 2011 | ISBN: 9780224089258
|
You may think of playing games - in particular computer games - as a bit of entertainment at best, and at worst an addictive time waster. Jane McGonigal doesn't agree. In Reality is broken: why games make us better and how they can change the world she argues that games can help with real world problems and improve our day-to-day living
Continued..
|
|
|
McGreevy, Thomas
| The Basis of Measurement Vol 1
| Picton | ISBN: 0948251824
| |
The history of measurement doesn't sound like a particularly gripping subject. So how well does this author succeed in making it interesting for the reader. I would say that he does reasonably well. A book like this is never going to be a bestseller, but if you're interested in where our system of measurements came from then you might like to read it. In particular if you were brought up on imperial measures you will find some questions answered. What does avoirdupois mean, and why on earth are their 5½ yards in a 'rod, pole or perch'? These, and many similar questions are discussed in this book.
Continued..
|
|
McNeely, Ian
| Reinventing knowledge
| Pari Publishing, 2008 | ISBN: 0393065065
|
Reinventing knowledge: from Alexandria to the Internet by Ian McNeely and Lisa Wolverton looks at the various methods societies have used to preserve knowledge, from the ancient Greeks to the present.
Continued..
|
|
|
McWhorter, John
| The Power of Babel
| Heinemann, 2001 | ISBN: 0434007897
|
There are about 6000 languages spoken on earth today. Where did this diversity come from? Will it survive in a world in which English is becoming ever more dominant? In The Power of Babel John McWhorter takes a wide ranging look at such questions.
Continued..
|
|
|
Mehta, Ved
| Up at Oxford
| John Murray, 1992 | ISBN: 0719552877
| |
'Up at Oxford' is Ved Mehta's account of his time as an undergraduate at the university. When he was growing up in India, it was his great ambition to study there. Thus when he actually arrived as a new student he was rather overawed by the reputation of the place, and was constantly struggling to live up to what he feels was expected of him. On the other hand he had already completed a degree and what is more had had a book published. Hence this work gives a fascinating account of his life in an elite society, while being beset by doubts about whether it is where he 'really' belongs.
Continued..
|
|
|
Melville, Herman
| Moby Dick
| Vintage, 1851 | ISBN: 9870099511182
|
I would guess that most readers of this review will know the story of Herman Melville's Moby Dick - how Ishmael signs on with the whaling ship Pequod, to find that it's captain, Ahab, only has one whale on his mind. What you may not know is how long the book actually is - nearly 650 pages. Melville is an expert story teller, but sometimes I got the feeling that he was padding out the book just for the sake of it, in particular the long sections giving various facts about whales.
Continued..
|
|
|
Motavalli, Jim
| Forward Drive
| Earthscan, 2001 | ISBN: 1853837857
|
Despite their clear disadvantages, the private motor car and internal combustion engine are so dominant in our society that it's tempting to assume a conspiracy on the part of motor and oil companies to block the alternatives. In 'Forward Drive' Jim Motavalli shows that on the contrary, such businesses are doing lots of research into electric cars, fuel cells and the like. If you want to find out more about what is happening behind the scenes in the move away from fossil fuels, or if you want to see what form transport in the future might take then you should take a look at t
Continued..
|
|
|
