Delve into the curious history of print and publishing—from the Gutenberg Bible and Shakespeare's folios to rare book forgers, literary scandals, and more.The printing press is one history's greatest achievements. It allowed us to record and spread some of humanity's most brilliant ideas. But let's not forget that humankind is also full of idiots. In Printer's Error, historian J.P. Romney and rare book specialist Rebecca Romney take readers on a rollicking ...

J.P. Romney's The Monster on the Road Is Me is a darkly comic debut novel about the unexpected strength we find when we are tested beyond our limits.It starts with the crows. When you see them, you know he's found you.Koda Okita is a high school student in modern-day Japan who isn't very popular. He suffers from narcolepsy and has to wear a watermelon-sized helmet to protect his head in case he falls. But Koda couldn't care less about his low social ...

Since the Gutenberg Bible first went on sale in 1455, printing has been viewed as one of the highest achievements of human innovation. But the march of progress hasn't been smooth; downright bizarre is more like it. Printer's Error chronicles some of the strangest and most humorous episodes in the history of Western printing.Take, for example, the Gutenberg Bible. While the book is regarded as the first printed work in the Western world, Gutenberg's name doesn't appear any...

"A delightful exposition of commonly-encountered statistical fallacies and paradoxes and why they matter." —Samuel H. Preston, coauthor of Demography: Measuring and Modeling Population ProcessesAn essential guide to the ways data can improve decision making.Statistics are everywhere: in news reports, at the doctor's office, and in every sort of forecast, from the stock market to the weather. Allen B. Downey knows well that people have an innate abil...

From the international bestselling author and notable journalist Aldo Cazzullo comes a brilliantly researched and extremely accessible journey through the history and legacy of the Roman Empire.“The only way to narrate over a thousand years of history is to understand what it has left us. To tell the reasons, the things and the stories, thanks to which Roman civilization is alive”.From its mythical foundations and epic construction to its enduring ...

National Book Award Finalist: The "impressive" conclusion to the "magisterial trilogy on the mythology of violence in American history" ( Film Quarterly)."The myth of the Western frontier—which assumes that whites' conquest of Native Americans and the taming of the wilderness were preordained means to a progressive, civilized society—is embedded in our national psyche. U.S. troops called Vietnam 'Indian country.' President John Kennedy invoked 'New Frontier...

"[This] work is a call not just for leaders to better communicate with their teams but for the everyday person to humanize those they disagree with." —Cy Wakeman, New York Times–bestselling author of The Reality-Based Rules of the WorkplaceStart building bridges instead of barriers! This essential guide offers a simple five-part framework that will help you have honest and enlightening conversations despite deep and fundamental disagreements....

A provocative exploration of how humans are wired to seek short-term success at the expense of long-term survival—an evolutionary “glitch” that explains everything from toxic workplaces to climate change“Essential reading . . . a lively, ultimately hopeful examination of how incentivizing the wrong values and actions has led to some of our most intractable problems.”—Eric Ries, New York Times bestselling author of The Lean Startup...

“Nothing I’ve read has cut to the heart of the ’00s like Y2K.” — BustlePerfect for fans of Jia Tolentino and Chuck Klosterman, Y2K is a delightfully nostalgic and bitingly told exploration of pop culture history about how the early 2000s forever changed us and the world we live in.THE EARLY 2000s conjures images of inflatable furniture, flip phones, and low-rise jeans. It was a new millennium and ...

“Fascinating.” — The Wall Street Journal“An enlightening portrait of the medieval mindset.” — Publishers WeeklyThe authors of The Bright Ages return with a “real-life Game of Thrones”(New York Times Book Review)—the story of the Carolingian Civil War, a bloody, protracted battle pitting brother against brother, father against son, that would end an empire, upend a continent, and redefine ...

Follow the guidance of motivational expert Dr. Roger Flax, author of No Stopping You!, and learn to be your best self.What if you were told that many of the common principles you’ve held onto since childhood are actually holding you back in your career and life? From simple adages we learned in grade school—“don’t talk to strangers,” “save it for a rainy day”—to well-intentioned ideas you learned later—“treat all people the same,” “do one thing at a time”—...

A brief and humorous 500-year history of the Simplified Spelling Movement from advocates like Ben Franklin, C. S. Lewis, and Mark Twain to texts and Twitter.Why does the G in George sound different from the G in gorge? Why does C begin both case and cease? And why is it funny when a philologist faints, but not polight to laf about it? Anyone who has ever had the misfortune to write in English has, at on...