Forget everything you think you know about the making of the most powerful man on the planet. President Barack Obama's triumph was not inevitable: it was the end product of a brilliant, calculated, convention-defying political campaign. In a race that will be talked about for years to come, he faced down his rivals with ruthless focus and efficiency.Race of a Lifetime is the gripping inside story of those thrilling months: from the meteoric rise of Obama and the collapsing...

"Sacrifices must be made, not just for the party, but for history"MORE THAN 100 MILLION ANXIOUS AMERICANS WANT TO KNOW: HOW CAN DONALD TRUMP BE BEATEN IN 2020 AND EVICTED FROM THE WHITE HOUSE?Mark Halperin interviewed the nation’s most experienced political strategists to discover what they think the Democratic nominee needs to do to win the 270 electoral votes required for victory. Drawing on first-hand experience, tactical savvy, and war stories from presidential campaign...

‘What am I supposed to do when he starts spewing his bullshit?’ Barack Obama preparing for his first debate with Mitt RomneyIn their runaway bestseller Game Change / Race of a Lifetime, Mark Halperin and John Heilemann captured the full drama of Barack Obama’s improbable, dazzling victory over the Clintons, John McCain and Sarah Palin. With the same masterly reporting, unparalleled access, and narrative skill, Double Down picks up the story in the Oval Of...

A forgotten century marks the years between the Ming dynasty's (1368–1644) turbulent founding and its sixteenth-century age of exploration and economic transformation. In this period of social stability, retired scholar-official Lu Rong chronicled his observations of Chinese society in Miscellaneous Records from the Bean Garden (Shuyuan zaji). Openly expressing his admirations and frustrations, Lu provides a window into the quotidian that sets Bean Garden apart from other...

FROM INSIDE OBAMA’S SITUATION ROOM . . . THE CRITICAL MOMENTS IN THE COVERT WAR AGAINST IRAN, THE STRUGGLES TO DEAL WITH A RECALCITRANT PAKISTAN AND ITS FAST-GROWING NUCLEAR ARSENAL, THE TENSIONS WITH THE AMERICAN MILITARY OVER AFGHANISTAN AND WITH ALLIES SWEPT UP IN THE CHAOS OF THE ARAB SPRINGThree and a half years ago, David Sanger’s book The Inheritance: The World Obama Confronts and the Challenges to American Power described how a new American preside...

**'A learned, wise, wonderfully written single volume history of a civilisation that I knew I should know more about' Tom Holland'Masterful and engrossing...well-paced, eminently readable and well-timed. A must-read for those who want – and need – to know about the China of yesterday, today and tomorrow' Peter Frankopan**China’s story is extraordinarily rich and dramatic. Now Michael Wood, one of the UK's pre-eminent historians, brings it all together in a major new...

Chinese Civilization sets the standard for supplementary texts in Chinese history courses. With newly expanded material, personal documents, social records, laws, and documents that historians mistakenly ignore, the sixth edition is even more useful than its classic predecessor. A complete and thorough introduction to Chinese history and culture.

THIS BOOK WILL HELP YOU• to appreciate the variety, subtlety and wisdom of a unique philosophical tradition• to understand the major schools of thought that have shaped Chinese civilization• to draw on a rich cultural resource for different perspectives on questions of our time• to recognize traditional concepts that continue to inform Chinese thinking today China, an emerging superpower, is heir to an ancient civilization that owes little to outside influences....

Here is an introduction to the magical and mystical realm of Taoism through biographical and historical sketches of Taoist adepts over two thousand years. This panoramic view of the many faces of Taoism and its intimate connection with Chinese culture and society includes intriguing accounts of the Taoist secret societies that carried out mystical exercises and powerful consciousness-altering techniques, including sensory deprivation, incantation, visualization, and concentration.T...

A new, definitive translation of thequintessential Korean classic: the Robin Hood story of a magical boy who joins a group of robber bandits and becomes a king*Selected as a Best Book of the Year by NPR and The Washington Post*The Story of Hong Gildong is arguably the single most important work of classic Korean fiction. A fantastic story of adventure, it has been adapted into countless movies, television shows, novels, and comics...

The most hated woman in Chinese history!Travel back in time over one thousand years and meet the first and only female emperor of China. Born Wu Zhao and given the reign title "Zetian" just weeks before her death in 705 CE, Empress Wu was the unwanted daughter of Chancellor Wu Shihuo -- too bright, too educated, and too politically focused to make a good wife according to contemporary interpretations of the Analects of Confucius.Married off at age 14 as a low-ranking concub...