Other books that might interest you

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  Priest In Geylang: The Untold...

  Fr. Guillaume Arotçarena

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  Cosmopolitan Singapore—emblematic of globalised capitalism—usually calls to mind a number of clichés: orderly, clean and green, a shopping and business paradise, and a model of sound economic management. Tourists, journalists and passing businessmen cast an absent-minded glance at the local society, noting that the food is excellent, e-communication works well and armoured tanks are absent on street corners.  
  But after 17 years living here, the author shows a different side of Singapore: looking at her from the grassroots. Beyond his personal atypical story, he draws with light strokes of the brush, a picture of a warm and generous people, much less passive than one is often given to think. He also describes the difficulties faced by civil society, and tracks the rapid social evolution in the city-state as it is confronted with major challenges: a nose-diving demography, cramped territory with an infrastructure which cannot be extended indefinitely, and massive immigration which is increasingly resented by the local population.  
  Most of all, Fr. Arotcarena places on record the work and significance of the Geylang Catholic Centre, which makes this priest in Geylang himself a legend. 
   
  "In essence, Priest in Geylang is more than a much needed missing piece in the history of Singapore. It is a reflection of how political hypersensitivity and unchecked power can lead to the destruction of something good in civil society. This is a part of history that we might never regain, unless we are able to re-embrace the spirit and dedication of Fr Guillaume Arotçarena and his Geylang Catholic Centre volunteers. This insight is something we might have heard murmured in rumour corridors, but never given the clarity of print from the perspective of an insider... you will find no lack of humour, spirit, and a certain contemplative fortitude." 
  -The Online Citizen

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  A Selection from Rumi

  Nathan Haskell Dole, Belle...

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  A Selection from RumiEdited by Nathan  Haskell Dole and Belle Walker.Translations by E. H. Whinfield and Reynold H. Nicholson.Narrated by Denis Daly.Jelalu-'d-Din, today know simply as Rumi, was the greatest mystical poet of the golden age of classical Persian literature.  In later years, he renounced the world and founded a famous order of Dervishes called the Maulavis.  He was born at Balkh in 1207, and died in Konya in 1273.Rumi summed up his philosophy as follows: "Shun the company of the base and foolish, and consort with the noble-hearted and the pious. Verily the best man is he who doeth good to men, and the best speech is that which is short and guideth men aright. Praise be to God who is the Only God." Rumi's largest work, the Masnavi is a six-book miscellany of anecdotes and stories derived from Islamic scripture and popular stories, and dates from the final years of the poet's life.  It is considered one of the most significant expositions of Sufism.This recording contains 12 sections from the Masnavi and 17 assorted poems.Production copyright 2024 Voices of Today

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  Children Aren’t the Only Ones...

  Josh Malerman

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  Lydia Rabinowitz hates the holidays. Not just some holidays—all holidays. The people in her life want to know where this deep hatred of all things festive came from, but Lydia doesn't have answers. Just the image of a closet's sliding doors and the words "WHERE IS SHE?" 
   
  As Lydia desperately tries to avoid any reminder of the holidays, this image and phrase continue to haunt her. Alone on a desert road, she will be forced to confront her real reason for hating the holidays in the murky depths of her childhood memories.

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  A Rare Recording of Gloria...

  Gloria Steinem

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  Gloria Marie Steinem (born March 25, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio) is an American journalist, social-political activist, and former CIA operative. Steinem emerged as a nationally recognized leader of second-wave feminism in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s—bolstered by a 1969 article Steinem wrote, "After Black Power, Women's Liberation." In 1972, Steinem co-founded Ms. Magazine, aided by her CIA connections, according to the Redstockings feminist organization. The following recording is from 1967.

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  The Good Captain - A Personal...

  R.D. Hooker

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  The veteran soldier, Pentagon advisor and White House staffer recounts his long and distinguished military career in this acclaimed memoir. 
   
  A combat soldier and leader in five wars, R. D. Hooker also served as a White House staff member in four different administrations. He retired in 2010 as the most decorated colonel in the US Army. Beginning with his enlistment at 18 in 1975, this memoir chronicles his experiences in the post-Vietnam Army as a young paratrooper, West Point cadet, and combatant in the many military conflicts which followed.  
   
  Hooker served in Grenada, Somalia. Rwanda, Bosnia, and Kosovo. He played a key role in the response to 9/11 and returned to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. He commanded a paratroop company, battalion and brigade and served in the continental US, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Southwest Asia. When not deployed, he taught at West Point and served in several high-level Pentagon assignments and in the White House in the administrations of George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Donald Trump. 
   
  In The Good Captain, Hooker recounts his storied career with insights and lessons learned through five different conflicts. He also describes each of these campaigns from a strategic and policy perspective informed by his White House and Pentagon experiences as well as years of academic training.

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  Cleopatra - Last Pharaoh of Egypt

  Omar Khalil

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  Cleopatra VII was born into the powerful Ptolemaic dynasty, a Greek ruling family that had governed Egypt since the time of Alexander the Great. As the daughter of Ptolemy XII, she was raised in a world of immense political intrigue and royal rivalries. Unlike many of her predecessors, Cleopatra was highly educated, mastering several languages, including Egyptian—an unusual skill among the Greek rulers of Egypt. Her intelligence, charm, and deep understanding of politics set her apart as a leader destined for greatness. 
  From a young age, Cleopatra was immersed in the complexities of governance. She studied philosophy, mathematics, and diplomacy, acquiring knowledge that would later aid her in navigating the dangerous world of ancient power struggles. While her early years were marked by luxury, they were also shadowed by uncertainty. Egypt, under her father’s rule, was heavily dependent on Rome, and political instability threatened the Ptolemaic dynasty. Cleopatra observed these tensions closely, preparing herself for the inevitable challenge of ruling a divided kingdom. 
  When Ptolemy XII died in 51 BCE, Cleopatra, at just eighteen years old, ascended to the throne alongside her younger brother, Ptolemy XIII. According to Egyptian tradition, royal siblings often married to secure dynastic rule, and Cleopatra was expected to govern jointly with her brother-husband. However, she had little interest in sharing power. She quickly demonstrated her political ambition, seeking to rule Egypt independently. Her intelligence and strategic mindset made her a formidable leader, but her brother’s advisors viewed her as a threat.

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