Entire industries are being transformed, consumers have more power than ever before, and people are finding new ways to earn a living-even in today’s slow economic recovery. All of these improvements stem from the rise of the so-called sharing economy.Even in the face of these benefits, innovation is in danger of being suppressed because of overzealous government regulation that protects existing businesses-all behind the façade of consumer safety.This book chronicles Uber’...

Tens of millions of Americans are between the ages of 18 and 30. These Americans, known as millennials, are, or soon will be, entering the workforce. For them, achieving success will be more difficult than it was for young people in the past.This is not because they are less intelligent, they have worked less hard, or they are any less deserving of the American dream. It is because Washington made decisions that render their lives more difficult than those of their parents or grand...

Many marriages in the United States end in divorce. Since most of those who get divorced will marry again, many children of divorce will need to adjust to stepfamilies. This book helps teens cope with the many changes that take place when their parents divorce and remarry, often including moves to new homes and dividing time between biological parents. Teens are encouraged to take the time to build good relationships with stepparents, stepsiblings, and in some cases, new half siblings, as ...

Few life events are more traumatic or confusing to a teen than divorce within the family. The feelings of betrayal, neglect, hurt, fear, anger, resentment, loss of control and security, and divided loyalties can tear children apart and negatively affect their school work, social life, and family relationships. Acting out, depression, alcohol and drug abuse, and antisocial behavior can result if the divorce is not handled well by parents and other responsible adults. This book offers the ca...

Technology continues to unlock new ways for Americans to live and work. To illustrate these changes, this broadside explores the promise of online platforms such as Uber and Airbnb. Unfortunately, instead of embracing innovation, many cities insist on applying antiquated regulations or completely banning these new services to protect special interests—at the expense of workers and consumers.These fights go far beyond the sharing economy. To promote the benefits of new technology, i...

The New York Times bestselling author of Dealing with China takes the reader behind closed doors to witness the creation and evolution and future of China's state-controlled capitalism.Hank Paulson has dealt with China unlike any other foreigner. As head of Goldman Sachs, Paulson had a pivotal role in opening up China to private enterprise. Then, as Treasury secretary, he created the Strategic Economic Dialogue with what is now the world's second-...

Life for early humans wasn't easy. They may have been able to walk on two feet and create tools 4 million years ago, but they couldn't remember or communicate. Fortunately, people got smarter, and things got better. They remembered on-the-spot solutions and shared the valuable information of their experiences. Clubs became swords, caves became huts, and fires became ovens. Collectively these new tools became technology. As the 21st century unfolds, the pace of innovation is accelerating ex...

A veteran political analyst and a renowned New Yorker illustrator celebrate Barack Obama's achievements in a compendium that takes his critics head-on.Barack Obama's election in 2008 was a watershed moment in American history that inspired supporters on the Left—and fired up enemies on the Right. Elected in the midst of multiple crises—a Wall Street meltdown that imperiled the global economy and American troops entangled in two foreign wars—Obama's presiden...

US President Barack Obama has called economic inequality the “defining issue of our time.” It has inspired the “Occupy” movements, made a French economist into a global celebrity, and given us a new expression – the “one percent.” But is our preoccupation with inequality really justified? Or wise?In his new book, William Watson argues that focusing on inequality is both an error and a trap. It is an error because much inequality is “good,” the reward for thrift, industry, and inven...

A mother's account of the loss of her nine year old daughter during the attempted assasination of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, and her inspiring legacy.Christina-Taylor Green was beautiful, precocious and popular, a member of her elementary school's student council and the only girl on her Little League team. Born on 9/11/2001, it was perhaps no surprise that she harbored aspirations of becoming a politician—thus her presence at the political rally that fatefu...

A young college grad buys a house in Detroit for $500 and attempts to restore it—and his new neighborhood—to its original glory in this “deeply felt, sharply observed personal quest to create meaning and community out of the fallen…A standout” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).Drew Philp, an idealistic college student from a working-class Michigan family, decides to live where he can make a difference. He sets his sights on Detroit, the failed metropolis of...

The legendary economist explains how a nation can remain both compassionate and fiscally sound, with "common sense raised to the level of genius" ( The New Yorker).This compact, eloquent book offers a blueprint for a workable national agenda that allows for human weakness without compromising a humane culture. Arguing that it is in the best interest of the United States to avoid excessive wealth and income inequality, and to safeguard the well-being of its...