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  The Most Influential Works by...

  Thomas Brown

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  This carefully crafted book contains the most influential works of Sir Thomas Browne, including a spiritual testament and an early psychological self-portrait, "Religio Medici" and a work about the discovery of a Roman urn burial in Norfolk, Hydriotaphia.
  Sir Thomas Browne (1605-1682) was an English polymath and author of varied works which reveal his wide learning in diverse fields including science and medicine, religion and the esoteric. Browne's writings display a deep curiosity towards the natural world, influenced by the scientific revolution of Baconian enquiry.

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  The Congress of Vienna -...

  Nova Ashford

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  The Congress of Vienna, held between 1814 and 1815, came at a pivotal moment in European history. The continent had just endured the upheaval caused by the Napoleonic Wars, which had left Europe in chaos and instability. Napoleon Bonaparte's rise to power and subsequent expansionist ambitions had dramatically altered the political landscape, reshaping borders and redrawing alliances. By 1814, with Napoleon's defeat and exile, Europe was left to deal with the aftermath of a decade of war and turmoil. The challenge for the leaders of the major powers was to rebuild a stable Europe while ensuring that the events which had led to war would not be repeated. 
  The immediate concern was to restore order and prevent any single nation from becoming too powerful. Napoleon’s domination of Europe, followed by his eventual fall, had created an imbalance of power that threatened the security of the continent. The leaders of the great powers—Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia—realized that to avoid future conflict, they needed to create a system that would maintain peace and stability through diplomacy and careful balancing of power. This would be achieved not by restoring the status quo exactly as it had been before the Napoleonic Wars, but by reshaping Europe in a way that would prevent any one nation from becoming overwhelmingly dominant. 
  The Congress of Vienna aimed to establish a new framework based on the principles of legitimacy and a balance of power. Legitimacy referred to the restoration of rightful monarchs who had been overthrown by Napoleon, while the balance of power involved redistributing territory and influence in a way that would prevent any single country from threatening the security of the others. It was a delicate process, as the major powers had competing interests and varying visions of what a stable Europe would look like. Nonetheless, the common goal was to create a system that could provide long-term peace.

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  The Phoenix Years - Art...

  Madeleine O'Dea

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  The riveting story of China's rise from economic ruin to global giant in the four decades is illuminated by another, equally fascinating, narrative beneath its surface—the story of the country's emerging artistic avant-garde and the Chinese people's ongoing struggle for freedom of expression. 
   
    
   
  By following the stories of nine contemporary Chinese artists, The Phoenix Years shows how China's rise unleashed creativity, thwarted hopes, and sparked tensions between the individual and the state that continue to this day. It relates the heady years of hope and creativity in the 1980s, which ended in the disaster of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Following that tragedy comes China's meteoric economic rise, and the opportunities that emerged alongside the difficult compromises artists and others have to make to be citizens in modern China. 
   
    
   
  Foreign correspondent Madeleine O'Dea has been an eyewitness for over thirty years to the rise of China, the explosion of its contemporary art and cultural scene, and the long, ongoing struggle for free expression. The stories of these artists and their art mirror the history of their country. The Phoenix Years is vital listening for anyone interested in China today.

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  The Way of Fire and Ice - The...

  Ryan Smith

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  A Radical New Take On Norse Paganism 
   
   
   
  The Way of Fire and Ice reimagines Norse Paganism with mystical practices and rituals for today's world as well as tips for building community and resisting fascism. This approach to working with Norse deities and beliefs is a living, adaptable tradition, representing a strong alternative to the reconstructionist perspectives of Asatru and Heathenry. 
   
   
   
  In this book, the old ways come alive in a radically inclusive form. You will explore the secrets of the World Tree and the mysteries of the gods, work with the many spirits around us, and feel the deep rhythms that drive all life while creating new songs of power. You will also discover how to make these practices part of your every waking moment, developing your own personal spirituality and building healthy, sustainable communities along the way.

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  The Philosophy Foundation -...

  Peter Worley, Andrew Day

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  The name 'Thoughtings' was inspired by a 5-year old who, when asked to explain what thinking is without using the word 'think' said 'It's when you're thoughting'. Children love pondering big philosophical questions like 'Does the universe end?', 'Where is my mind?' and 'Can something be true and false at the same time?'. These verses capture that impulse in the growing mind and feed it further. These are not poems or, at least, not in the traditional sense of the word... They are a kind of poem specifically designed around a particular puzzle or problem that might be thought more philosophy than poetry. Here's to the joy of puzzlement!

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  Pillar of Salt - An...

  Salvador Novo

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  The renowned writer describes coming of age during the violent Mexican Revolution and living as an openly homosexual man in a brutally machista society.   Salvador Novo (1904–1974) was a provocative and prolific cultural presence in Mexico City through much of the twentieth century. With his friend and fellow poet Xavier Villaurrutia, he cofounded Ulises and Contemporáneos, landmark avant-garde journals of the late 1920s and 1930s. At once “outsider” and “insider,” Novo held high posts at the Ministries of Culture and Public Education and wrote volumes about Mexican history, politics, literature, and culture. The author of numerous collections of poems, including XX poemas, Nuevo amor, Espejo, Dueño mío, and Poesía1915–1955, Novo is also considered one of the finest, most original prose stylists of his generation.  Pillar of Salt is Novo’s incomparable memoir of growing up during and after the Mexican Revolution; shuttling north to escape the Zapatistas, only to see his uncle murdered at home by the troops of Pancho Villa; and his initiations into literature and love with colorful, poignant, complicated men of usually mutually exclusive social classes. Pillar of Salt portrays the codes, intrigues, and dynamics of what, decades later, would be called “a gay ghetto.” But in Novo’s Mexico City, there was no name for this parallel universe, as full of fear as it was canny and vibrant. Novo’s memoir plumbs the intricate subtleties of this world with startling frankness, sensitivity, and potential for hilarity. Also included in this volume are nineteen erotic sonnets, one of which was long thought to have been lost.

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