Excerpt: "The Author has endeavoured to place in fair review the various opinions of the most eminent historians (professional and otherwise), and would impress on his readers, that on a subject embracing so wide a field as that of atmospheric influence, arising from elemental disturbance, together with the boundless variety in the circumstances of human society, as the exciting and predisposing cause of disease, the present volume must be read and considered as a whole; for it is only by ...

"A History of Epidemic Pestilences" by Edward Bascome is a comprehensive exploration of the impact of infectious diseases throughout human history. The book delves into various epidemics, examining their origins, spread, and the societal responses to these health crises. Bascome meticulously analyzes historical records, providing insights into how different cultures and civilizations have dealt with outbreaks. His narrative not only highlights the medical aspects of these pestilences but a...

In "A History of Epidemic Pestilences," Edward Bascome meticulously chronicles the historical trajectory of infectious diseases that have ravaged populations across centuries. Through a blend of rigorous scholarship and engaging prose, Bascome delves into the socio-political contexts that facilitated the spread of these pestilences, offering a literary tapestry woven from historical records, medical insights, and societal responses. His analytical style not only informs but also provokes c...

"Moves beyond a compelling personal story to shed radiant light on history itself . . . an essential chronicle of midcentury American idealism." —Patricia Hampl, author of The Art of the Wasted DayIn 1964, at the age of three, Tim Bascom is thrust into a world of eucalyptus trees and stampeding baboons when his family moves from the Midwest to Ethiopia. The unflinchingly observant narrator of this memoir reveals his missionary parents' struggles in a someti...

In the tradition of Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey, Robert Sapolsky, a foremost science writer and recipient of a MacArthur Genius Grant, tells the mesmerizing story of his twenty-one years in remote Kenya with a troop of savanna baboons."I had never planned to become a savanna baboon when I grew up; instead, I had always assumed I would become a mountain gorilla,” writes Robert Sapolsky in this witty and riveting chronicle of a scientist’s coming-of-age in Africa.

Into the Wild meets Walden—a lyrical memoir for nature lovers and for anyone who has wondered what it would be like to disconnect from our hyper-connected culture and seek more meaningful connectionsAfter losing vision in one eye and becoming estranged from his family and friends, a young man spent two years searching for identity in self-imposed solitude in the backwoods of northern Vermont, where he embarked on a project of stripping away facade...

The 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition is a 29-volume reference work. It was developed during the process of transitioning from being a British to an American publication. Many of its articles were written by the best-known scholars of that time. This edition of the encyclopedia is now in the public domain, and has been used extensively by Wikipedia.

"I write hungry sentences," Natalie Diaz once explained in an interview, "because they want more and more lyricism and imagery to satisfy them." This debut collection is a fast-paced tour of Mojave life and family narrative: A sister fights for or against a brother on meth, and everyone from Antigone, Houdini, Huitzilopochtli, and Jesus is invoked and invited to hash it out. These darkly humorous poems illuminate far corners of the heart, revealing teeth, tails, and more than a fe...

“The vulgar notion that the Templars were as wicked as they were fearless and brave, has not yet been entirely exploded; but it is hoped that the copious account of the proceedings against the order in this country, given in the ninth and tenth chapters of the ensuing volume, will tend to dispel many unfounded prejudices still entertained against the fraternity, and excite emotions of admiration for their constancy and courage, and of pity for their unmerited and cruel fate.”

A collection of horror–inspired flash fiction, featuring over 40 new stories from literary, horror, and emerging writers—edited by Lincoln Michel and Nadxieli Nieto, the twisted minds behind Tiny Crimes: Very Short Tales of Mystery and MurderIn this playful, inventive collection, leading literary and horror writers spin chilling tales in only a few pages. Each slim, fast–moving story brings to life the kind of monsters readers love to fear, from brokenhear...

Does a renewed world still have a place for those who only know how to destroy? While defending a tea-growing commune in the wilds of the Pacific Northwest, one person seeks an answer.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Winner of the 2016 Thurber PrizeHarrison Scott Key was born in Memphis, but he grew up in Mississippi, among pious Bible-reading women and men who either shot things or got women pregnant. At the center of his world was his larger-than-life father—a hunter, a fighter, a football coach, "a man better suited to living in a remote frontier wilderness of the nineteenth century than contemporary America, with all its progressive ideas and paved roads and lack of armed d...