A compelling biography of John Foster Dulles, one of the most complex and underexamined architects of US foreign policy.John Foster Dulles is a towering yet misunderstood figure in American and international history. Best known as secretary of state under Dwight D. Eisenhower and as the namesake for the Dulles airport, he has long been cast as a Cold War hardliner—moralizing, rigid, and ready to meet Soviet threats with nuclear force. Yet this view, while enduring,...

The US in the 1950s and 1960s wanted to prevent a new communist regime in the Western hemisphere at any cost. Under President Eisenhower the US pursued a policy of support for dictators, the economic shoring up of regimes that impoverished their own people and sanctioned direct interventions such as the overthrow of the Guatemalan government in 1954. When John F. Kennedy came to power, he promised a reset of relations and set about pouring aid into Latin America. Yet in 1961 Kennedy also a...

As American interests assumed global proportions after 1945, policy makers were faced with the challenge of prioritizing various regions and determining the extent to which the United States was prepared to defend and support them. Superpowers and developing nations soon became inextricably linked and decolonizing states such as Vietnam, India, and Egypt assumed a central role in the ideological struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union. As the twentieth century came to an en...

**“ExxonMobil has met its match in Coll, an elegant writer and dogged reporter . . . extraordinary . . . monumental.” —The Washington Post“Fascinating . . . Private Empire is a book meticulously prepared as if for trial . . . a compelling and elucidatory work.” —BloombergFrom the Pulitzer Prize-winning and bestselling author of Ghost Wars and The Achilles Trap, an extraordinary exposé of Big Oil. Includes a profile of current Sec...

One of Amazon's Top Twenty Books of 2015 • Selected as both a Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction of 2015 • Longlisted for The Guardian 2015 First Novel Award"The illiterate lover and eventual wife of a coauthor of The Communist Manifesto is the star of this enthralling work of historical fiction." —O: The Oprah Magazine"Lizzie has been brought to life with exuberant force."...

A compelling case for why it's time for socialismIs socialism desirable? Is it even possible? In this concise book, one of the world's leading political philosophers presents with clarity and wit a compelling moral case for socialism and argues that the obstacles in its way are exaggerated.There are times, G. A. Cohen notes, when we all behave like socialists. On a camping trip, for example, campers wouldn't dream of charging each other to use a soccer ball...

From the Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, a revelatory portrait of religion in China today—its history, the spiritual traditions of its Eastern and Western faiths, and the ways in which it is influencing China’s future.The Souls of China tells the story of one of the world’s great spiritual revivals. Following a century of violent anti-religious campaigns, China is now filled with new temples, churches, and mosques—as well as cults, sects, and politicians trying to harne...

The last president of the Soviet Union discusses Communism, the Cold War, and bringing democracy to Russia in this sweeping political memoir.Drawing on his own experience and rich archival material, Mikhail Gorbachev shares his illuminating perspective on Russia's past, present, and future place in the world. Beginning with the October Revolution of 1917, he notes how much Vladimir Lenin and the Bolshevik Party did to modernize Russia. While he argues that the Sovi...

The blame game, with its finger-pointing and mutual buck-passing, is a familiar feature of politics and organizational life, and blame avoidance pervades government and public organizations at every level. Political and bureaucratic blame games and blame avoidance are more often condemned than analyzed. In The Blame Game, Christopher Hood takes a different approach by showing how blame avoidance shapes the workings of government and public services. Arguing that the blaming phenom...

*Includes pictures of Marx and important people in his life.*Explains the origins of Marx's philosophical thinking and his most famous works"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it. Karl MarxDuring the 19th century, Europe witnessed one of historys most powerful leaders, Napoleon Bonaparte, establish an empire that resulted in the redrawing of the European map after his defeat. But while Europes imperialistic nations continued to...

“What is globalization? Here is one of the best answers. It is the ‘constant revolutionizing of production’ and the ‘endless disturbance of all social conditions.’ It is ‘everlasting uncertainty.’ Everything ‘fixed and frozen’ is ‘swept away,’ and ‘all that is solid melts into air.’ Yes, you have read this before. It is from The Communist Manifesto, by Messrs. Marx and Engels.”—The New York TimesHere, at last, is an authoritative introduction to history’s most imp...

World acclaimed scientist Vaclav Smil reveals everything there is to know about nature's most sought-after resourceIn this fully revised and updated edition, Vaclav Smil reveals everything there is to know about nature's most sought-after resource'There is no author whose books I look forward to more than Vaclav Smil.' Bill GatesOil is the lifeblood of the modern world. Without it, there would be no planes, no plast...