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The Fate of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence
Fifty years ago, as Europe's colonial powers withdrew, Africa moved with enormous hope and fervor toward democracy and economic independence. Dozens of new states were launched amid much jubilation and the world's applause. African leaders, popularly elected, stepped forward to tackle the problems of development and nation-building. In the Cold War era, the new states excited the attention of the superpowers. Africa was considered too valuable a prize to lose. Today, Africa is a continent rife with disease, death, and devastation. Most African countries are effectively bankrupt, prone to civil strife, subject to dictatorial rule, and dependent on Western assistance for survival. The sum of Africa's misfortunes — its wars, its despotisms, its corruption, its droughts — is truly daunting. What went wrong? What happened to this vast continent, so rich in resources, culture and history, to bring it so close to destitution and despair in the space of two generations? Focusing on the key personalities, events and themes of the independence era, Martin Meredith's riveting narrative history seeks to explore and explain the myriad problems that Africa has faced in the past half-century, and faces still. From the giddy enthusiasm of the 1960s to the "coming of tyrants" and rapid decline, The Fate of Africa is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand how it came to this — and what, if anything, is to be done. .
Price: $8.76
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America In Space: NASA's First Fifty Years (Nasa)
NASA launches a yearlong celebration of its 50th anniversary in the fall of 2007, and Abrams is privileged to publish this visual history of its many achievements in manned and unmanned space travel. Written and edited by a team of experienced NASA staffers, and illustrated with many unpublished and rare photographs from the voluminous NASA archives scattered across the country, America in Space offers an unparalleled vision of half a century of exploration and discovery. The story of America’s space age is told with more than 400 carefully selected images. The story begins in the 1950s with intrepid test pilots venturing ever faster and higher, and opens out into the now-legendary Mercury and Apollo missions of the 1960s that made astronauts into national heroes. The space shuttle era shows us what everyday space travel might look like, while grand vistas of the universe expand our sense of wonder. The large format of the book captures both the human drama and the vast scale of NASA’s projects. America in Space is a photographic record of the greatest adventure of our time..
Price: $20.00
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Fifty Famous Stories Retold (Yesterday's Classics)
No book is better for introducing children ages 6 to 9 to legendary historical figures than this collection of stories admirably retold by James Baldwin at the beginning of the last century. Selecting the best of our literary heritage, Baldwin cast it into a form that delights children of all ages. Beginning with stories of heroes from British history, including King Alfred and the Cakes, King Canute on the Seashore, and Bruce and the Spider, the book moves on to tales of other lands. From Ancient Greece come stories of The Brave Three Hundred, Alexander and Bucepahlus, and Diogenes the Wise Man. Introducing the history of Rome are the Story of Cincinnatus, Horatius at the Bridge, and Julius Caesar. The stories of William Tell, Arnold Winkelried, and Robin Hood impart a bit of the flavor of the Middle Ages. Rounding out the collection are a number of timeless tales that show heroes in action: Damon and Pythias, The Sword of Damocles, Picciola, and The King and His Hawk. Children naturally take a deep interest in such stories. The reading of them will not only give pleasure but will help to lay the foundation for broader literary studies since nearly all are the subjects of frequent allusions in poetry and prose. Young children will enjoy having these stories read to them, while older children will delight in reading them to themselves..
Price: $9.43
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Fifty Years in Wall Street (Wiley Investment Classics)
The definitive look at Wall Street in the 19th Century Perhaps the 19th century's best book on Wall Street, Fifty Years in Wall Street provides a fascinating look at the financial markets during a period of rapid economic expansion. Henry Clews was a giant figure in finance at that time, and his firsthand account brings this colorful era to life like never before. He reveals shocking stories of political and economic manipulation and how he helped bring down the mighty Boss Tweed. He writes eloquently about the madness of the markets and how the era's greatest speculators amassed their fortunes. This book provides an expansive view of Wall Street in an era of little regulation, rampant political corruption, and rapid financial change. Henry Clews was born in England in 1836 and emigrated to the United States in 1850. In 1859, he cofounded what became the second largest marketer of federal bonds during the Civil War. Later, he organized the "Committee of 70," which deposed the corrupt Tweed Ring in New York City, and served as an economic consultant to President Ulysses Grant..
Price: $10.45
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The Next Fifty Years: A Guide for Women at Mid-Life And Beyond
Blair shares more than 150 short essays covering a wide range of topics relating specifically to women and aging. Encouraging women to re-envision their lives for the road ahead, Blair explores our own attitudes and cultural myths about aging, and helps us work through our own self-limiting beliefs. She even includes a special section examining love and relationships, along with tips on managing finances and sharing our decisions with family and friends. The interactive format features space to write your responses to each essay, and the book also includes a study guide for groups..
Price: $9.00
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Global Catastrophes and Trends: The Next Fifty Years
Fundamental change occurs most often in one of two ways: as a "fatal discontinuity," a sudden catastrophic event that is potentially world changing, or as a persistent, gradual trend. Global catastrophes include volcanic eruptions, viral pandemics, wars, and large-scale terrorist attacks; trends are demographic, environmental, economic, and political shifts that unfold over time. In this provocative book, scientist Vaclav Smil takes a wide-ranging, interdisciplinary look at the catastrophes and trends the next fifty years may bring. This is not a book of forecasts or scenarios but one that reminds us to pay attention to, and plan for, the consequences of apparently unpredictable events and the ultimate direction of long-term trends. Smil first looks at rare but cataclysmic events, both natural and human-produced, then at trends of global importance: the transition from fossil fuels to other energy sources; demographic and political shifts in Europe, Japan, Russia, China, the United States, and Islamic nations; the battle for global primacy; and growing economic and social inequality. He also considers environmental change—in some ways an amalgam of sudden discontinuities and gradual change—and assesses the often misunderstood complexities of global warming. Global Catastrophes and Trends does not come down on the side of either doom-and-gloom scenarios or techno-euphoria. Instead, relying on long-term historical perspectives and a distaste for the rigid compartmentalization of knowledge, Smil argues that understanding change will help us reverse negative trends and minimize the risk of catastrophe..
Price: $16.85
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The Playboy Book: Fifty Years
Fine gentlemen's entertainment since 1953 Relive Playboy's fifty-year history with this sweeping retrospective of the groundbreaking magazine that grew from Hugh Hefner's pet project into an icon as recognizable as Disney and Coca-Cola. Visit Hef's Playboy Mansion, canoodle with his delectable Bunnies, tour the DC-9 Big Bunny jet, experience the sizzling atmosphere of the Playboy Clubs, read the best Playboy interviews, original fiction, and humor, cackle at the irreverent cartoons and social satire pieces, and?of course?admire each Playmate of the Month since the first issue (all six hundred of them!) All of the magazine's most glorious moments are highlighted in this extravaganza of Playboy nostalgia. With an introduction by Hugh Hefner.
Price: $22.95
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In the Hamptons: My Fifty Years with Farmers, Fishermen, Artists, Billionaires, and Celebrities
Long before the Hamptons became famous for its posh parties, paparazzi, and glitterati, it was a sleepy backwater of fishing villages and potato farms, literary luminaries and local eccentrics As the editor and publisher of the area’s popular free newspaper, Dan’s Papers, Dan Rattiner, has been covering the daily triumphs, community intrigues, and larger-than-life personalities for nearly fifty years. A colorful insider’s account of life, love, scandal, and celebrity, In the Hamptons is an intimate portrait of a place and the people who formed and transformed it, from former residents like Andy Warhol and Willem de Kooning, colorful locals like bar owner Bobby Van and shark fisherman Frank Mundus (who the character Quinn from Jaws was based on), and literary figures like John Steinbeck and Truman Capote, to present-day stars like Bianca Jagger and Billy Joel. An insider who lived there—as well as a Jewish outsider amid the WASP contingent—Rattiner both revels in and is rattled by all he witnesses and records in one of the world’s most famous places. With dry wit and genuine affection, he shares a story of the Hamptons that few know, one defined by the artists, painters, fishermen, farmers, dreamers, hangers-on, celebrities, and billionaires who live and play there..
Price: $12.47
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Pete Dye Golf Courses: Fifty Years of Visionary Design
Fiendishly difficult and spectacularly beautiful, Pete Dye’s golf courses are among the most exciting in the world. In this volume, 130 were selected to honor his 85th birthday—among them such famous marvels as Teeth of the Dog, PGA West, TPC Sawgrass, and Black Wolf Run, but also less well-known courses that will come as a revelation to golfers everywhere. Magnificent course photographs, many made especially for this volume by Ken E. May, Dye’s photographer of choice, enhance a witty and irreverent text by golf writer Joel Zuckerman. Tributes by Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Greg Norman introduce Dye’s work and highlight his achievements and his place in the pantheon of great golf course architects. Anecdotes by golf pros, clients, and associates—often hilarious—help make this a must-read book about one of the most colorful characters in the history of the game. .
Price: $31.50
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David Plowden: Vanishing Point: Fifty Years of Photography
"No one has photographed America as has David Plowden.... He is one of the great artists of our time."—David McCulloughThis beautiful volume is both a tribute to and a celebration of the photographer who, more than anyone else, has given us a visual record of our mark on the land over the last half-century. David Plowden's beautiful black-and-white images reveal his great respect for man's ingenuity and honest work, documenting a disappearing landscape of industry, small towns, wonderful devices, and noble structures. David McCullough writes, "Plowden has produced some of the most powerful photographs we have of man-made America. He is propelled, driven, by a sense of time running out and the feeling that he must not just make a record, but confer a kind of immortality on certain aspects of American civilization before they vanish." As Walker Evans gave us the first half of the twentieth century, David Plowden has given us the second. David Plowden: Vanishing Point represents the best of this magnificent body of work. 280 duotone photographs..
Price: $56.00
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