Other books that might interest you

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  Meekness - The Strength of...

  Esther Jameson

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  True meekness is often misunderstood. Many associate it with weakness, passivity, or a lack of confidence, yet in reality, it is a profound strength. Meekness is the ability to remain calm, composed, and in control, even in the face of adversity. It is not about surrendering one’s power but knowing how to wield it with wisdom, patience, and restraint. A meek person does not seek to dominate others, nor do they allow themselves to be trampled. Instead, they choose to lead with a quiet confidence that speaks louder than forceful commands or displays of authority. 
  One of the greatest strengths of meekness is the discipline it requires. It is easy to react with anger, impulsiveness, or pride when faced with opposition. However, meekness demands self-control, the ability to hold back when emotions rise, and the wisdom to respond with grace rather than aggression. This restraint does not stem from fear or insecurity but from a deep sense of inner stability. It is a mark of someone who is secure in their identity and does not feel the need to prove their strength through domination. 
  Meekness is also a key element in gaining influence and respect. While force may command obedience for a time, true authority is built on trust. People are drawn to leaders who listen, show understanding, and demonstrate humility. A meek leader does not impose their will but instead guides, inspires, and empowers others. They do not seek recognition for their own sake but prioritize the well-being of those they lead. This kind of leadership fosters loyalty, cooperation, and a sense of shared purpose, making meekness one of the most effective qualities in leadership.

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  Moctezuma II and Tupac Amaru II:...

  Editors Charles River

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  From the moment Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortés first found and confronted them, the Aztecs have fascinated the world, and they continue to hold a unique place both culturally and in pop culture. Nearly 500 years after the Spanish conquered their mighty empire, the Aztecs are often remembered today for their major capital, Tenochtitlan, as well as being fierce conquerors of the Valley of Mexico who often engaged in human sacrifice rituals.  
  	Ironically, and unlike the Mayans, the Aztecs are not widely viewed or remembered with nuance, in part because their own leader burned extant Aztec writings and rewrote a mythologized history explaining his empire’s dominance less than a century before the Spanish arrived. Naturally, Cortes and other Spaniards depicted the Aztecs as savages greatly in need of conversion to Catholicism. While the Mayans are remembered for their astronomy, numeral system, and calendar, the Aztecs have primarily been remembered in a far narrower way, despite continuing to be a source of pride to Mexicans through the centuries. 
  	As a result, even though the Aztecs continue to interest people across the world centuries after their demise, it has fallen on archaeologists and historians to try to determine the actual history, culture, and lives of the Aztecs from the beginning to the end, relying on excavations, primary accounts, and more. 
  	The Incas had consolidated their empire only a century before Pizarro and his Spanish conquistadores took control of Inca lands in the 1530s. The Incan heartland was the Andes Mountains from Ecuador down through Peru into parts of northern Chile, including what is now Bolivia, some of Argentina, and in the north, bits of what is now Colombia. It covered about 770,000 square miles, far larger than Spain, and held an estimated 14 million people, more than in Spain, comprised of many different indigenous groups.

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  Can Scientists Succeed Where...

  Peter Agre, MB BChir Seema Yasmin

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  How can science prevail when policies fall short? 
   
   
   
  Sometimes in secret, sometimes as official ambassadors for their governments, scientists trade their white coats for blazers, stepping out of the lab and directly into sensitive, often life-threatening global crises. Think of the Paris Climate Agreement or the Iran Nuclear Deal, the Manhattan Project, and the Antarctic Treaty of 1959. Scientists have played a pivotal role in many of the greatest episodes in political history. 
   
   
   
  But what prompts their involvement in international affairs, and what are some of the impacts of their efforts? Can Scientists Succeed Where Politicians Fail? recounts Nobel laureate Dr. Peter Agre's career as a physician-scientist who went from studying malaria and other diseases to meeting with Fidel Castro in Cuba, discoursing with North Korean officials, and traveling into the Islamic Republic of Iran. 
   
   
   
  The book explores Agre's story alongside those of volcanologists in North Korea, epidemiologists in Latin America, and other scientists who have and are working alongside politicians, from African tribal chiefs to communist leaders, to tackle natural disasters and infectious threats in new ways.

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  Skewed: How Bias Distorts Our...

  Caryn Franklin MBE, Professor...

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  An Original Audiobook Production by W. F. Howes, written and presented by Caryn Franklin and Professor Keon West, with special guests. 
   
  •	How do news outlets choose which crimes to report on – and does it matter? 
  •	What do Disney films teach us about who is good and who is dangerous? 
  •	Can adverts really change how we think and behave?  
   
  Underpinning these questions looms the spectre of bias; the hidden force that frames our thinking and skews the facts. This provocative audio original will have you rethinking everything from pornography and pop music to children’s books and fashion. 
  Tackling the complex subject of bias head on, Skewed investigates the hidden messages we absorb from birth. Looking closely at what the research can tell us, Caryn Franklin and Professor Keon West explain how our inner worlds are shaped by false information, media trends, and the brain’s preference for patterns and stereotypes. Exploring biases around gender, sexuality, race, age and appearance, Caryn and Keon explain how bias impacts all of our lives. 
  Through conversations with a diverse range of voices - from cognitive psychologists to activists and entertainers – Caryn and Keon offer a vision for an alternative future; a world in which we recognise and manage bias, and one in which diversity and difference can truly flourish. 
  Guest interviews include campaigner and life coach Michelle Elman, author academic and drag artist Cheddar Gorgeous, creative director and campaigner Trevor Robinson, forensic psychologist Dr Dominic Willmott and many more. 
   
  About the authors 
  Caryn Franklin and Professor Keon West are two friends, connecting across a number of divides to share their different perspectives and explore the topic of bias in an open and insightful way. 
  Caryn Franklin MBE, MSc (Psyche) MBPsS is a former fashion editor and prime-time BBC TV Clothes Show presenter. Former co-editor of i-D Magazine, Caryn is a multi-platform broadcaster, fashion and identity commentator and activist. Across four decades of practice Caryn has explored the politics of image and self-esteem through commercial, educational and activist positions.  
  Caryn sat on steering groups for two successive Government Ministers of Equality: Lynne Featherstone and Jo Swinson. Consulting with the Advertising Standards Authority, Caryn has helped overturn the objectification of women in advertising. 
  Professor Keon West is an Associate Professor of Social Psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London and an expert on identity, prejudice, and representation. He has published over 60 empirical papers which have been cited over 1700 times in the wider scientific literature.   
   
  Keon has received numerous international awards for his research, teaching, media engagement, and social activism. He has also appeared several times in print, on radio and on television (including BBC Radio 4, BBC World Service, Channel 4, and the Discovery Channel) discussing his research and area of expertise.  Keon grew up in Jamaica and came to the UK as a Rhodes Scholar in 2006 to do a doctorate in Social Psychology at Oxford University. 
   
  Guest Contributors include: 
   
  Natasha Devon: Author, radio presenter and mental health campaigner 
  Dr Dominic Willmott: Senior Lecturer in Forensic Psychology researching bias within the Criminal Justice System 
  Michelle Elman: Author, life coach, body image campaigner 
  Professor Carolyn Mair: Behavioural Psychologist specialising in the psychology of fashion 
  Trevor Robinson OBE: Creative director and founder of Quiet Storm 
  Professor Jennifer Bosson: Social Psychologist  
  Dr Michael Atkinson: Drag Historian and TV’s Cheddar Gorgeous (Ch 4’s Drag SOS) 
  Georgina Lee:  Host of the podcast Age on Trial and co-Founder of This Age Thing 
  Trevor Robinson OBE: Creative director and founder of Quiet Storm 
  Adam All: Drag King and entertainer 
  Cindy Gallop: Founder of ra

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  Rethinking the Police - An...

  Daniel Reinhardt

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  A former officer grapples with the reality of our broken police culture 
   
   
   
  Our society has long been stuck in cultural and ideological battles about police brutality and the police force's broken relationship with our communities. Rethinking the Police promises to start a more hopeful conversation. 
   
   
   
  Daniel Reinhardt spent twenty-four years as a police officer near Cleveland, Ohio. He was long unaware of the ways the culture of the police department was shaping him, but gradually, through his own experiences as a police officer and through the mentorship of Black Christians in his life, his eyes were opened to a difficult truth: police brutality against racial minorities was endemic to the culture of the system itself. 
   
   
   
  In Rethinking the Police, Reinhardt lays out a history of policing in the United States, showing how it developed a culture of dehumanization, systemic racism, and brutality. But Reinhardt doesn't stop there: he offers a new model of policing based not in dominance and control but in a culture of servant leadership, with concrete suggestions for procedural justice and community policing.

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  The American Dream - A History...

  Harry Montgomery

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  The roots of the American Dream reach back to the earliest colonial settlements, when European settlers arrived with hopes of building a better life far from the constraints of their homelands. For many, the New World offered something previously unimaginable—land ownership, religious freedom, and the possibility of rising above the station into which they were born. These opportunities, though limited to a select group at the time, laid the foundation for the evolving idea that anyone could succeed through hard work and determination. In this fertile but dangerous land, ambition was a necessity, and the early colonists began to shape a cultural identity around individualism and perseverance. 
  As the colonies grew and developed, tensions with Britain intensified, giving rise to revolutionary ideas that would further fuel the American Dream. The rejection of monarchy and the assertion of natural rights became central to the vision of a new nation. The Revolution itself was not just a fight for independence but also a declaration that ordinary people had the right to govern themselves. The rhetoric of the time emphasized liberty, equality, and the pursuit of happiness—concepts that would become permanently embedded in the national consciousness. The struggle to gain freedom was brutal and uneven, but the ideals expressed during this time continued to inspire generations to believe in the possibility of social mobility and personal fulfillment. 
  One of the most significant documents in American history, the Declaration of Independence, formalized the promise of the American Dream. Its bold claim that "all men are created equal" introduced a national aspiration that transcended the immediate political conflict. Although in practice this equality was far from realized, the statement set a powerful ideal against which future Americans would measure their progress.

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