A fun, lively, and learned excursion into the alphabet—and cultural history.Letters are tangible language. Joining together in endless combinations to actually show speech, letters convey our messages and tell our stories. While we encounter these tiny shapes hundreds of times a day, we take for granted the long, fascinating history behind one of the most fundamental of human inventions: the alphabet.The heart of the book is the 26 fact-filled “biographies” of letters A thr...

Letters are tangible language. Joining together in endless combinations to actually show speech, letters convey our messages and tell our stories. While we encounter these tiny shapes hundreds of times a day, we take for granted the long, fascinating history behind one of the most fundamental of human inventions--the alphabet.The heart of the book is the 26 fact-filled “biographies” of letters A through Z, each one identifying the letter’s particular significance for modern readers...

Ready to Think Like a Champion?In the world of elite sports, victory is often attributed to physical and athletic prowess alone. But what if the key to unlocking your full potential lies not in your physical abilities, but in your mindset?In Extreme Balance, three renowned experts on performance, motivation, and competition dive into the unexplored territory of the mind, paradoxically revealing the one mindset that can truly elevate your game: the ...

"The connection between geography and progress is fundamental," writes Robert Sack in the introduction to the present volume. Touching on both moral and material progress, six of the world's leading geographers and environmental historians explore differing aspects of this connection. Thomas Vale discusses whether progress is discernible in the natural realm; Kenneth Olwig examines fundamental changes that occurred to the notion of progress with the rise of modernity, while David Lowenthal...

Think Like a ChampionIn the world of elite sports, victory is often attributed to physical and athletic prowess alone. But what if the key to unlocking your full potential lies not in your physical abilities, but in your mindset?In Extreme Balance, three renowned experts on performance, motivation, and competition dive into the unexplored territory of the mind, paradoxically revealing the one mindset that can truly elevate your game: the ability to...

A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice SelectionOne of President Bill Clinton’s “Best Things I’ve Read This Year”From the acclaimed historian and New Yorker writer comes this urgent manifesto on the dilemma of nationalism and the erosion of liberalism in the twenty-first century.At a time of much despair over the future of liberal democracy, Jill Lepore makes a stirring case for the nation in This America

**"A world-class intellectual. . . . [Colin Woodard’s] research can help Americans rediscover their common identity in spite of all the attempts to divide them." —Garry Kasparov"A powerful paradigm for understanding the defining hot button issues of contemporary America and the action we can take to bridge our cultural divisions and save the republic." —The Next Big Idea Club“A lucid exercise in political geography with tremendous—and disturbing—explanatory power.” —Kir...

**The gripping story of Taiwan’s rich past and precarious present from the country’s top foreign correspondent, now with an updated afterword.‘Compelling and important’** – Rana Mitter, The Observer‘Few books qualify as essential reading, but Ghost Nation is one of them’ – Clive Hamilton, bestselling co-author of Hidden Hand‘A thoughtful, illuminating exploration of Taiwan’s past and present as well as its possible f...

An epic, revelatory account of the Battle of Gettysburg, where George Meade, Lincoln's unexpected choice to lead the Union army, defeated Robert E. Lee and changed the course of the Civil War, from the award-winning author of James Monroe: A LifeBy mid-1863, the Civil War, with Northern victories in the West and Southern triumphs in the East, seemed unwinnable for Abraham Lincoln. Robert E. Lee’s bold thrust into Pennsylvania, if successful, could mean Sou...

**A NEW YORKER BOOK OF THE YEARAn extraordinary work of revisionist history that centers Africa in the life of one of our greatest philosophers: "Excellent, short, and highly readable.... Traces a grittier story of a life lived almost entirely in a small area of what is now eastern Algeria, where Augustine’s local origins and experience profoundly shaped both his life and his thought. Conybeare’s argument is that because of his contributions to the genres of philosophy, au...

The timeless philosophical text about creating a joyful life by overcoming limited beliefs and egotism, from the Nobel Prize–winning author.Despite living in nations where basic needs are met—even surpassed—and where an abundance of modern conveniences have reduced dangerous physical labor, people suffer from an affliction of despair. Beliefs and habits taught in childhood about what to value and how to behave have hindered generations from embracing the joys that ...

A science-based, practical blueprint for cultivating a life—at work and at home—full of belonging, joy, and vitality, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Culture CodeWhat is a meaningful life, and how do we make one? How do certain communities foster closeness, fulfillment, happiness, and energy?In Flourish, bestselling author and leading culture expert Daniel Coyle trains his eye on the groups and people who demonst...