The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) is best known for its athletic and youth programs, a heritage that draws on its origins in 1844 to provide wholesome recreation to urban youth away from the moral decay of industrialized urban living. Before long, that uplift mission found a place in the American Civil War, and soon the Y had spread all over the world by the early twentieth century, and in every major war thereafter as well. The YMCA at War: Collaboration and Conflict during the...

The essential resource on military and political strategy and the making of the modern worldThe New Makers of Modern Strategy is the next generation of the definitive work on strategy and the key figures who have shaped the theory and practice of war and statecraft throughout the centuries. Featuring entirely new entries by a who’s who of world-class scholars, this new edition provides global, comparative perspectives on strategic thought from antiquity to...

From New York Times bestselling, award-winning creator John Hendrix comes The Mythmakers, a graphic novel biography of two literary lions—C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien—following the remarkable story of their friendship and creative fellowship, and how each came to write their masterworks"Masterful. . . Effortlessly blending fantasy and reality." (BCCB, starred review)Through narrative and comic panels, Hendrix chr...

“[A] magical, profound, and elegant look at the continued need for high quality in our throw away society.” —Douglas Brinkley, HistorianThis intensely human story, which moves from an ageless workshop in Brooklyn to the rehearsal rooms of Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, and across the globe to Cremona, the birthplace of Stradivari, opens up for the reader the insular and fascinating realm of music, musicians, and the craftsmanship that is essential to tha...

Paul Castle always knew there was something more to music than he had been taught. Long before his work could begin, he heard songs carried by the wind. His melodies were not his alone. They belonged to an ancient spirit seeking modern interpretation and a contemporary voice. He had no choice but to follow where it led him. From the commercial studios of New York City to the Hollywood Hills and far beyond, Paul honed his craft and found a path that was richer than any he had ever imagined....

What happens when a deity needs a human body?They go to the source, of course.Eshu the Trickster needs a mortal form for his mischievous plans, but the only other Orisha who can help him swore off the practice ages ago.It will take careful scheming to convince the Original Architect to come out of retirement. Any misstep and Eshu will be thrown from the Sky Realm.What’s worse, Eshu hasn’t visited the he...

Life is harsh in close-knit community of Dirrabeg, a community on the Dingle Peninsula facing extinction in the mid-1950's. Many of the young have left for England or America, where there are opportunities and chances for secure lives. Those remaining behind love their land and their independence but fear for the future as the bogs get thin, the yields are poor, and the children have little hope of success.'We never died a winter yet.'A wickedly funny and insightfu...

In "Myths and Myth-Makers," John Fiske delves into the intricate relationship between myth and the human experience, exploring how myths not only shape cultural identity but also reflect societal values and aspirations. Fiske's keen analysis is underscored by a rich literary style that marries vibrant storytelling with rigorous intellectual inquiry. He situates his exploration within the broader context of 19th-century American thought, where burgeoning interest in anthropology and literat...

This audiobook is narrated by an AI Voice. Paul Castle always knew there was something more to music than he had been taught. Long before his work could begin, he heard songs carried by the wind. His melodies were not his alone. They belonged to an ancient spirit seeking modern interpretation and a contemporary voice. He had no choice but to follow where it led him. From the commercial studios of New York City to the Hollywood Hills and far beyond, Paul honed his craft and found a path tha...

This work examines the place of the Arabs in the evolution of medicine and in science during the Middle Ages.“In order to understand the place of the Arabs in medicine and in science, a few words as to the rise of this people to political power, and then to the cultivation of literature and of science, are necessary. We hear of the Arabs as hireling soldiers fighting for others during the centuries just after Christ, and especially in connection with the story of the famous Queen Z...

The man behind every gun manufactured today.John Browning was the most influential gun designer who ever lived. After building his first firearm aged thirteen, he went on to create a series of radical blueprints for pistols, rifles and machine guns that changed the way wars were fought and streets were policed.But who was the man behind the weapons? How did he manage to revolutionise the way guns worked? And what drove him to keep innovating right through...

In the 1970’s, when energy was cheap and gas lines still a figment of our imagination, three engineers in the New Mexico desert discovered a secret hiding within the molecules of compounds hosting oxygen and hydrogen. As they coaxed the energy trapped inside out, they tripped over the laws of physics, which forbade perpetual motion from being a reality. What they invented would cost one of them his life, another one to go into a lifetime of clandestine hiding and finally the third ...