Modern Revolution

The Mao Zedong Reader: How to Understand Chinese Ideology to Improve Foreign Policy and Relations with China Edited by Eric Engle For the first time, a comprehensive collection of Mao Zedong's most important writings is available in a single volume. The Mao Zedong Reader is the definitive guide to understanding the ideology that shaped modern China and continues to influence its foreign policy today. With a wide-ranging selection of Mao's writings, from his early revolutionary days to his later years as China's leader, this book provides a nuanced and balanced view of his thought. Dr. Eric ...

Experience Victor Hugo's epic tale in a refreshed edition designed for today's readers. This adaptation of Les Misérables presents clean, modern formatting, contemporary typography, and gently clarified language that keeps Hugo's voice and power intact. Archaic phrasing is smoothed, long sentences are made more approachable, and footnote clutter is minimized—so you can follow the story with ease while still savoring the grandeur, moral intensity, and lyrical beauty of the original masterpiece. Set against the turmoil of 19th-century France, Les Misérables explores justice, grace, love, ...

From an award-winning scholar, this definitive history reveals the tensions and transformations of the Russian Revolution. “McMeekin writes muscular history. His Russian Revolution grips the reader.” —Niall Ferguson In The Russian Revolution, acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin traces the...

Since the landmark Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision in 2015, sexual identity has dominated both public discourse and cultural trends — yet no historical phenomenon is its own cause. From Augustine to Marx, various views and perspectives have contributed to the modern understanding of the self.

The American Revolution signalled a great change in the course of world history and progress. From this colonial revolt sprouted ideals of liberty and democracy, and all the aspirations and ambitions of a new people. In this work, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Gordon S. Wood discusses the character and consequences of the revolution, grounding the events and ideas that shaped the American consciousness.

An extraordinary account of how the Christian Revolution forged the Western imagination, from the author of Rubicon. “A galloping tour of Christianity’s influence across the last 2,000 years.” —New York Times Crucifixion, the Romans believed, was the worst fate imaginable, a punishment...

It is an era that redefined history. As the 1790s began, a fragile America teetered on the brink of oblivion, Russia towered as a vast imperial power, and France plunged into revolution. But in contrast to the way conventional histories tell it, none of these remarkable events occurred in...

A moving and harrowing portrait of the lives of Iranians across five decades, tracing the promise of the 1979 Iranian revolution, its betrayal by forces of autocracy, and a people’s undying spirit of resistance "One of the most perceptive books on modern Iran in years." —The New York Times...

THIS EDITION of "A Tale of Two Cities" preserves Charles Dickens's powerful and dramatic original story while thoughtfully adapting the text for today's readers. Carefully crafted annotations clarify old-fashioned language, historical references, and challenging vocabulary, making the novel accessible and enjoyable for contemporary audiences. Perfect for leisure reading, book clubs, classroom study, or family discussions, this adaptation ensures that readers of all ages can fully appreciate Dickens's timeless masterpiece. Set against the turbulent backdrop of the French Revolution, "A Tale ...

A monumental new history of the twentieth-century Arab world, told through Arab voices. Western commentators have long described the Arab world as uniquely disordered, defined by fanaticism, ignorance, and the cruelties of war and autocracy. The Modern Arab World provides a much-needed...

Epigenetics can potentially revolutionize our understanding of the structure and behavior of biological life on Earth. It explains why mapping an organism's genetic code is not enough to determine how it develops or acts and shows how nurture combines with nature to engineer biological diversity. Surveying the 20-year history of the field while also highlighting its latest findings and innovations, this volume provides a readily understandable introduction to the foundations of epigenetics.

In 1962, the young Eugene Rose - the future Hieromonk Seraphim - undertook to write a monumental chronicle of the abandonment of truth in the modern age. Of the hundreds of pages of materials he compiled for this work, only the present essay, on nihilism, has come down to us in completed form. Here Eugene reveals the core of all modern thought and life - the belief that all truth is relative - and shows how this belief has been translated into action in our era. Today, more than half a century after he wrote it, this essay is more timely than ever.

Acclaimed journalist Julia Ioffe tells the story of modern Russia through the history of its women, from revolution to utopia to autocracy. In 1990, seven-year-old Julia Ioffe and her family fled the Soviet Union. Nearly twenty years later, Ioffe returned to Moscow—only to discover just how...

How did a country divided by mountains, jungles, regional rivalries, conquest, revolution, and political upheaval become Ecuador? Long before Ecuador appeared on a map, ancient civilizations flourished along its Pacific coast and across the Andes. Then came the Inca Empire. The Spanish conquistadors. Three centuries of colonial rule. Independence. Revolution. Territorial conflict. Oil. Political upheaval. Dollarization. And the struggle to define a modern nation. History of Ecuador tells this extraordinary story as a single, compelling narrative—from the ancient societies that inhabited ...

The Geometry of God: Understanding the Revolutionary Philosophy of Baruch Spinoza is a compelling exploration of one of history’s most daring and misunderstood thinkers. Baruch Spinoza, the exiled philosopher of Amsterdam, redefined the very nature of God, freedom, and human existence. His vision of a universe governed by reason, necessity, and divine unity would influence the Enlightenment, shape modern science, and continue to inspire seekers of truth centuries later. In clear and engaging language, The Geometry of God guides readers through Spinoza’s life, ideas, and enduring legacy....

Look out for Johnson’s new book, Wonderland, on sale November 15, 2016. From the New York Times–bestselling author of Where Good Ideas Come From and Everything Bad Is Good for You, a new look at the power and legacy of great ideas. In this illustrated history, Steven Johnson explores the...

Between the end of the Thirty Years' War and the Battle of Waterloo, Europe underwent an extraordinary transformation that saw five of the modern world's great revolutions - scientific, industrial, American, French, and romantic. In this much-admired addition to the monumental Penguin History of Europe series, Tim Blanning brilliantly investigates the forces that transformed Europe from a medieval society into a vigorous powerhouse of the modern world.

Reason and Revolution: Understanding the Transformative Ideas of Bertrand Russell Bertrand Russell was one of the most brilliant and courageous thinkers of the twentieth century—a philosopher, mathematician, and activist who devoted his life to truth, freedom, and reason. Reason and Revolution: Understanding the Transformative Ideas of Bertrand Russell explores the extraordinary scope of his thought, from his pioneering work in logic and mathematics to his passionate defense of peace, education, and intellectual freedom. This in-depth exploration traces how Russell reshaped philosophy ...

The surprising story of how the plain black suit became a symbol of masculinity, democracy, and modernity. How did black suits become so ubiquitous? Why has men's business clothing been so plain for the last 250 years? How did a style adopted by the Founding Fathers to differentiate themselves...

The Iranian Revolution of 1979 was a defining moment of the modern era. Its success unleashed a wave of Islamist fervor across the Middle East and signaled a sharp decline in the appeal of Western ideologies in the Islamic world. Michael Axworthy takes listeners through the major periods in Iranian history over the last 30 years: the overthrow of the old regime and the creation of the new one; the Iran-Iraq war; the reconstruction era following the war; the reformist wave led by Mohammed Khatami; and the present day, in which reactionaries have re-established control.