The World of George Orwell

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Philip Martin

Through these varied essays on politics, ethics, music, race, and culture Philip Martin admits "a minor obsession" with what he calls "the American Frolic" - the essential lack of seriousness with which many of us approach the questions inherent in living in a free society. He observes that Americans have been conditioned to react, not to consider; that while we are very good at ripostes and snappy comebacks, at cracking wise and looking smart, we often fail to authentically engage the issues with which we pretend to be most concerned. We inadvertently talk past one another, he says, resorting to cant and partisan boilerplate. In the essays presented in The Shortstop's Son, Philip Martin rigorously resists easy labels and rote ideological truths. He pursues more subtle meanings with a common-sense lucidity and a fundamental compassion for humanity. Whether writing about the mythos built upon Bonnie and Clyde's bullet-ridden Ford or the ignoble death and burial of blues legend Blind Lemon Jefferson, Martin strikes the chord that both moves and informs.

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Barbara Walters

Young people starting out in television sometimes say to me: "I want to be you." My stock reply is always: "Then you have to take the whole package."And now, at last, the most important woman in the history of television journalism gives us that "whole package," in her inspiring and riveting memoir. After more than forty years of interviewing heads of state, world leaders, movie stars, criminals, murderers, inspirational figures, and celebrities of all kinds, Barbara Walters has turned her gift for examination onto herself to reveal the forces that shaped her extraordinary life.Barbara Walters's perception of the world was formed at a very early age. Her father, Lou Walters, was the owner and creative mind behind the legendary Latin Quarter nightclub, and it was his risk-taking lifestyle that made Barbara aware of the ups and downs that can occur when someone is willing to take great risks.The financial responsibility for her family, the fear, the love all played a large part in the choices she made as she grew up: the friendships she developed, the relationships she had, the marriages she tried to make work. Ultimately, thanks to her drive, combined with a decent amount of luck, she began a career in television. And what a career it has been! Against great odds, Barbara has made it to the top of a male-dominated industry.She has spent a lifetime auditioning, and this book, in some ways, is her final audition, as she fully opens up both her private and public lives. In doing so, she has given us a story that is heartbreaking and honest, surprising and fun, sometimes startling, and always fascinating.From the Trade Paperback edition.

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edited under the auspices of the British Council

This collection of critical essays covers 286 writers who have made significant contributions to British, Irish, and Commonwealth literature from the 14th century to the present day.

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Heidi Moore

A biography of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, a former slave who became a journalist dedicated to equal rights, and who fought especially for women's right to vote and an end to lynching.