A compelling history of silence as a shaper of the human mind—in prisons, in places of contemplation, and in our own lives—from the author of Brilliant.Through her evocative intertwined histories of the penitentiary and the monastery, Jane Brox illuminates the many ways silence is far more complex than any absolute; how it has influenced ideas of the self, soul, and society. Brox traces its place as a transformative power in the monastic world from Medieval...

This "superb history" of artificial light traces the evolution of society—"invariably fascinating and often original . . . [it] amply lives up to its title" ( Publishers Weekly, starred review).In Brilliant, Jane Brox explores humankind's ever-changing relationship to artificial light, from the stone lamps of the Pleistocene to the LEDs embedded in fabrics of the future. More than a survey of technological development, this sweeping history reveal...

Another "dazzling epic" from the author of Brilliant, exploring an overlooked yet elemental force in our lives-silence-from contemporary Cistercian monks to an extraordinary 19th-century prison. *Lev Grossman, Time The author of the "dazzling epic" (Time) Brilliant delivers an indelible view of the ways silence affects those who seek it and those who have it imposed upon them. Through her original, intertwined histories of the penitentiary and the monastery, Jane Brox illuminates the many ...

“Of soil and soul…Ms. Brox has restored a lost world.”—Wall Street JournalA journey through both family history and the fascinating and quintessentially American history of New England’s Merrimack Valley, its farmers, and the immigrant workers caught up in the industrial textile age.After years of living away, Jane Brox made the decision to return to the family farm of her birth, where her aging father still tended the crops. Brox ...

A stirring memoir of a young, single woman's laborious struggle to save her family’s New England apple farm from going under during the Great Depression.The Orchard is an exquisitely beautiful and poignant memoir of a young woman’s single-handed struggle to save her New England farm in the depths of the Great Depression. Discovered by the author’s daughter after the author’s death, it tells the story of Adele “Kitty” Robertson, young and e...

Brilliant, reminiscent of Lewis Hyde's The Gift in its reach and of Timothy Egan's The Worst Hard Time in its haunting evocation of human lives, offers a sweeping view of a surprisingly revealing aspect of human history—from the stone lamps of the Pleistocene to the LEDs embedded in fabrics of the future.Brox plumbs the class implications of light—who had it, who didn't—through the many centuries when crude lamps and tallow candles constricted waking hour...

A stirring memoir of a young, single woman's laborious struggle to save her family's New England apple farm from going under during the Great Depression.The Orchard is a poignant memoir of a young woman's single-handed struggle to save her New England farm in the depths of the Great Depression. Discovered by the author's daughter after the author's death, it tells the story of Adele "Kitty" Robertson, young and energetic, but unprepared by her Radcliffe ed...

Pompeii, Machu Picchu, the Valley of the Kings, the Parthenon—the names of these legendary archaeological sites conjure up romance and mystery. The news is full of archaeology: treasures found and treasures lost. Archaeological research tantalizes us with possibilities (are modern humans really part Neanderthal?). Where are the archaeologists behind these stories? What kind of work do they actually do, and why does it matter?Marilyn Johnson's Lives in Ruins is an absorbing...

The award-winning journalist Lisa Margonelli, national bestselling author of Oil on the Brain: Petroleum's Long, Strange Trip to Your Tank, investigates the environmental and economic impact termites inflict on human societies in this fascinating examination of one of nature's most misunderstood insects. Are we more like termites than we ever imagined? In Underbug, the award-winning journalist Lisa Margonelli introduces us to the enigmatic creatures that collectively outweigh human beings ...

"Jeff and Staney emphasize that small acts of creativity can have huge consequences and that ordinary people can do extraordinary things if they can see the opportunities in front of them."-Mitch Jacobson, Executive Director, Austin Technology Incubator, UT Blackstone LaunchPad, University of Texas at AustinNearly all of today's major innovation workshops and programs call on organizations to drive innovation. What they miss is that innovation comes from the personal creativ...

The incredible, untold story of the WWII vets who overthrew their corrupt hometown government—the only successful armed rebellion on US soil since the War of Independence.Corrupt politician Paul Cantrell was in complete control of McMinn County, Tennessee, his whims enforced by the violent Sheriff Pat Mansfield and his deputies. On Election Day, Cantrell and the sheriff seized the ballot boxes and brought them to the jail "to be counted" in secret. Soldiers came ho...

A medieval historian examines what we really know about the man who was "Merlin the Magician" and his impact on Britain.The historical Merlin was no rough magician: he was a learned figure from the cutting edge of medieval science and adept in astrology, cosmology, prophecy, and natural magic, as well as being a seer and a proto-alchemist. His powers were convincingly real—and useful, for they helped to add credibility to the "long-lost" history of Britain which fi...