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Battle for the Bird: Jack Dorsey, Elon Musk and the $44 Billion Fight for Twitter's Soul
by Kurt WagnerOn October 28th, hours after completing a $44 billion takeover of Twitter, Elon Musk Tweeted to his millions of followers 'The bird is freed.'Musk's takeover of Twitter was one of the most audacious and remarkable deals in tech history. The Battle for Twitter takes readers back to the very beginning and how we reached this point. It looks at the origins of the platform, the vision of its co-founder Jack Dorsey, and how it became a battleground for ideas, controversies, and viral moments that shaped the world we live in today.With meticulous research and unprecedented access, author Kurt Wagner paints a vivid portrait of power struggles, bitter rivalries, and ground-breaking decisions that have shaped the evolution of Twitter. From Musk's audacious tweets to Dorsey's enigmatic persona, The Battle for Twitter uncovers the depths of their involvement, revealing the forces that have propelled them to the forefront of global attention. In this gripping corporate saga, delve into the minds of these visionary figures as they engage in a high-stakes battle for dominance, reshaping the very fabric of social media.
Battle for the Bird: Jack Dorsey, Elon Musk, and the $44 Billion Fight for Twitter's Soul
by Kurt WagnerNow known as X, Twitter&’s messy history—including Elon Musk&’s takeover in 2022, its outsized cultural impact, and its significant role in shaping how the world gets its news—is thoroughly and entertainingly revealed in this &“absolute triumph of reporting and storytelling&” (Ashlee Vance, New York Times bestselling author).Bloomberg journalist Kurt Wagner takes you inside Twitter&’s everchanging headquarters, charting its rise from flippant 140-character posts to one of the world&’s most consequential tech companies. From Jack Dorsey&’s triumphant return as CEO in 2015 to the rise and fall of @RealDonaldTrump to the contentious $44 billion sale to Elon Musk, Battle for the Bird exposes the messy reality and relentless challenges that come with building a global social network. This is the &“meticulous and riveting account&” (Emily Chang, host of Bloomberg&’s The Circuit) of the fight over the world&’s most influential social media platform. Now, for the first time—through deeply sourced, exclusive interviews—you will discover how the visionary promises of one iconoclast gave way to the darker, yet-to-be-defined motives of another, upending the virtual status quo and impacting the flow of news and information to the masses.
Battle for the Columbia River: The Rise of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company (Transportation)
by Mychal OstlerA war over riches on the Columbia River. While the Civil War raged, a group of captains, merchants, bankers and gamblers in the Pacific Northwest formed the Oregon Steam Navigation Company. The first capitalistic enterprise in the new state, they aimed to develop the richest and most powerful transportation operation in the region, dominating hundreds of miles of river traffic from the Pacific Coast to Montana. Achieving such status was anything but easy. They battled competitors, lawyers, the river herself, and defectors within their management team. In the unregulated business environment of the nineteenth century, men like John Ainsworth made their own rules, often deploying frontier justice against their enemies. Join author Mychal Ostler as he recounts the battle for power that shaped an industry.
Battle of Britain Broadcaster: Charles Gardner, Radio Pioneer & WWII Pilot
by Robert Gardner&“The unique story of a radio broadcasting pioneer and war correspondent, told with affection by his son.&” —Firetrench With the outbreak of World War II, Charles Gardner became one of the first BBC war correspondents and was posted to France to cover the RAF&’s AASF (Advanced Air Strike Force). He made numerous broadcasts interviewing many fighter pilots after engagements with the Germans and recalling stories of raids, bomb attacks and eventually the Blitzkrieg when they all were evacuated from France. In late 1940 he was commissioned in the RAF as a pilot and flew Catalina flying boats of Coastal Command. After support missions over the Atlantic protecting supply convoys from America, his squadron was deployed to Ceylon which was under threat from the Japanese navy. Gardner was later recruited by Lord Mountbatten, to help report the exploits of the British 14th Army in Burma. He both broadcast and filed countless reports of their astonishing bravery in beating the Japanese in jungle conditions and monsoon weather. After the war, Gardner became the BBC air correspondent from 1946-1953. As such, he became known as &“The Voice of the Air,&” witnessing and recording the greatest days in British aviation history. But perhaps he will best be remembered for his 1940 eye-witness account of an air battle over the English Channel when German dive bombers unsuccessfully attacked a British convoy but were driven off by RAF fighters. That broadcast is still played frequently today.
Battle of Brothers: William and Harry – The Inside Story of a Family in Tumult
by Robert LaceyFrom bestselling author and historical consultant to the award-winning Netflix series The Crown, an unparalleled insider account of tumult, secrecy and schism in the Royal family. The world has watched Prince William and Prince Harry since they were born. Raised by Princess Diana to be the closest of brothers, how have the boy princes grown into very different, now distanced men? <P><P>From royal insider, biographer and historian Robert Lacey, this book reveals the untold details of William and Harry’s closeness and estrangement, asking what happens when two sons are raised for vastly different futures – one burdened with the responsibility of one day becoming king, the other with the knowledge that he will always remain spare. How have William and Harry both agreed and diverged in their views of what a modern royal owes to their country? Were the seeds of damage sowed by Prince Charles and Princess Diana as their marriage unraveled for all the world to see? In the previous generation, how have Prince Charles and Prince Andrew’s own relations strained under the Crown? What role has Queen Elizabeth II played in marshalling her feuding heirs? What parts have Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle played in helping their husbands to choose their differing paths? And what is the real, unvarnished story behind Harry and Meghan’s dramatic departure? In the most intimate vision yet of life behind closed doors, with its highs, lows and discretions all laid out, this is a journey into royal life as never offered before. <P><P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
Battle of Brothers: William and Harry—the Inside Story of a Family in Tumult
by Robert LaceyA New York Times bestseller.From bestselling author and historical consultant to the award-winning Netflix series The Crown, an unparalleled insider account of tumult, secrecy and schism in the Royal family.The world has watched Prince William and Prince Harry since they were born. Raised by Princess Diana to be the closest of brothers, how have the boy princes grown into very different, now distanced men?From royal insider, biographer and historian Robert Lacey, this book reveals the untold details of William and Harry’s closeness and estrangement, asking what happens when two sons are raised for vastly different futures – one burdened with the responsibility of one day becoming king, the other with the knowledge that he will always remain spare. How have William and Harry both agreed and diverged in their views of what a modern royal owes to their country? Were the seeds of damage sowed by Prince Charles and Princess Diana as their marriage unraveled for all the world to see? In the previous generation, how have Prince Charles and Prince Andrew’s own relations strained under the Crown? What role has Queen Elizabeth II played in marshalling her feuding heirs? What parts have Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle played in helping their husbands to choose their differing paths? And what is the real, unvarnished story behind Harry and Meghan’s dramatic departure?In the most intimate vision yet of life behind closed doors, with its highs, lows and discretions all laid out, this is a journey into royal life as never offered before.
Battleground New Jersey: Vanderbilt, Hague and Their Fight for Justice (Rivergate Regionals Collection)
by Nelson JohnsonNew Jersey's legal system was plagued with injustices from the time it was established through the mid-twentieth century. Nelson Johnson chronicles how the system was finally reformed through the dramatic stories of two very different men, Arthur T. Vanderbilt and Frank Hague, two of the most powerful American politicians of their time. Their battles eventually led to legal reform, transforming New Jersey's court system into one of the most highly regarded in the nation.
Battleground Pacific: A Marine Rifleman's Combat Odyssey in K/3/5
by Nick Allen Sterling MaceA powerfully wrought military memoir by a member of World War II’s fabled 1st Marine division.“Engrossing account of the vicious combat encountered by US Marines in the Pacific theater of World War II. . . . Will appeal to fans of The Pacific or Band of Brothers.” —Kirkus ReviewsSterling Mace’s unit was the legendary “K-3-5” (for Company K, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment of the 1st Marine Division), and his story takes readers through some of the most intense action of the Pacific War, from the seldom-seen perspective of a rifleman at the point of attack.Battleground Pacific is filled with indelible moments that begin with his childhood growing up in Queens, New York, and his run-in with the law that eventually led to his enlistment. But this is ultimately a combat tale—as violent and harrowing as any that has come before. From fighting through the fiery hell that was Peleliu to the deadly battleground of Okinawa, Mace traces his path from the fear of combat to understanding that killing another human comes just as easily as staying alive. Battleground Pacific is one of the most important and entertaining memoirs about the Pacific theater in World War II.“Another great tribute to “The Greatest Generation.” Mace’s tale is written in the language of a grunt speaking for all the unsung heroes who lived and died in the Pacific. A good read from this Marine’s perspective.” —Jerry Cutter, former Marine, nephew of Sgt. John Basilone, USMC, and author of the authorized biography of Basilone, I’m Staying with My Boys
Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World
by H. R. McMasterFrom Lt. General H.R. McMaster, U.S. Army, ret., the former National Security Advisor and author of the bestselling classic Dereliction of Duty, comes a bold and provocative re-examination of the most critical foreign policy and national security challenges that face the United States, and an urgent call to compete to preserve America’s standing and security.Across multiple administrations since the end of the Cold War, American foreign policy has been misconceived, inconsistent, and poorly implemented. As a result, America and the free world have fallen behind rivals in power and influence. Meanwhile threats to security, freedom, and prosperity, such as nuclear proliferation and jihadist terrorism have grown. In BATTLEGROUNDS, H.R. McMaster describes efforts to reassess and fundamentally shift policies while he was National Security Advisor. And he provides a clear pathway forward to improve strategic competence and prevail in complex competitions against our adversaries. <P><P>BATTLEGROUNDS is a groundbreaking reassessment of America’s place in the world, drawing from McMaster’s long engagement with these issues, including 34 years of service in the U.S. Army with multiple tours of duty in battlegrounds overseas and his 13 months as National Security Advisor in the Trump White House. It is also a powerful call for Americans and citizens of the free world to transcend the vitriol of partisan political discourse, better educate themselves about the most significant challenges to national and international security and work together to secure peace and prosperity for future generations. <P><P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, Volume 5
by Peter CozzensIndispensable must-reads for all Civil War buffs and historians, bringing together little-known and never before gathered first-hand accounts, articles, maps, and illustrations The first four volumes of Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, published in the late nineteenth century, became the best-selling and most frequently cited works ever published on the Civil War. Volume 5, assembled by the acclaimed military historian Peter Cozzens, carries on the tradition of its namesake, offering a dazzling new collection of fresh material written by military and civilian leaders, North and South, on a broad array of war-related topics. Featured articles include General Grant on the second battle of Bull Run, General Beauregard on the Shiloh campaign, General Sherman on the conference at City Point, Joshua Chamberlain on the Fredericksburg campaign, and many more. Also presented are dozens of maps and more than one hundred illustrations.
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, Volume 6
by Peter CozzensSifting carefully through reports from newspapers, magazines, personal memoirs, and letters, Peter Cozzens' Volume 6 brings readers more of the best first-person accounts of marches, encampments, skirmishes, and full-blown battles, as seen by participants on both sides of the conflict. Alongside the experiences of lower-ranking officers and enlisted men are accounts from key personalities including General John Gibbon, General John C. Lee, and seven prominent generals from both sides offering views on "why the Confederacy failed." This volume includes one hundred and twenty illustrations, including sixteen previously uncollected maps of battlefields, troop movements, and fortifications.
Battles of Conscience: British Pacifists and the Second World War
by Tobias KellyA ground-breaking new study brings us a very different picture of the Second World War, asking fundamental questions about ethical commitmentsAccounts of the Second World War usually involve tales of bravery in battle, or stoicism on the home front, as the British public stood together against Fascism. However, the war looks very different when seen through the eyes of the 60,000 conscientious objectors who refused to take up arms and whose stories, unlike those of the First World War, have been almost entirely forgotten.Tobias Kelly invites us to spend the war five of these individuals: Roy Ridgway, a factory clerk from Liverpool; Tom Burns, a teacher from east London; Stella St John, who trained as a vet and ended up in jail; Ronald Duncan, who set up a collective farm; and Fred Urquhart, a working-class Scottish socialist and writer. We meet many more objectors along the way -- people both determined and torn -- and travel from Finland to Syria, India to rural England, Edinburgh to Trinidad.Although conscientious objectors were often criticised and scorned, figures such as Winston Churchill and the Archbishop of Canterbury supported their right to object, at least in principle, suggesting that liberty of conscience was one of the freedoms the nation was fighting for. And their rich cultural and moral legacy -- of humanitarianism and human rights, from Amnesty International and Oxfam to the US civil rights movement -- can still be felt all around us. The personal and political struggles carefully and vividly collected in this book tell us a great deal about personal and collective freedom, conviction and faith, war and peace, and pose questions just as relevant today: Does conscience make us free? Where does it take us? And what are the costs of going there?'[An] excellent book' - DAILY TELEGRAPH'A moving tribute' - SPECTATOR
Battles of a Gunner Officer: Tunisia, Sicily, Normandy, and the Long Road to Germany
by John Philip JonesWhat was it like to serve as an artillery officer during the Second World War? How did he view the battlefield and experience combat? And how did his work with the guns combine with that of the other arms - the infantry, the tanks? Peter Pettit's diary, covering his entire wartime career in the Royal Artillery, edited and with an extensive introduction by John Philip Jones, offers a rare insight into the day-to-day existence of a gunner at war, and it is a valuable record of the role played by the Royal Artillery during the conflict. Since Peter Pettit served as a field officer in North Africa, Sicily, Normandy and during the Allied advance across France and Belgium into Germany, his account shows the wide range of challenges that confronted the artillery in different conditions at each stage of the war. Although the landscapes and battlefields changed, the practical problems and acute dangers he faced remained much the same, and he recorded them in the same open and forthright way. His authentic record, combined with John Philip Jones's meticulous description of the planning and progress of each campaign, provide a rounded view the nature of the artillery war and the men who fought it.General Sir Richard Barrons, Commander, Joint Forces Command: 'Professor John Philip Jones breaks new ground as he brings into the light for the first time the private record of one rather special participant. Peter Pettit's personal and contemporaneous notes detail his journey from the first encounters with a determined enemy in Tunisia, through the difficult invasion of Sicily, and finally on to the outstanding events of Normandy in 1944 . . .. . . This story is made much more interesting and accessible for the general reader by the accompanying succinct historical overview of the events. . .. . . For anyone looking for a rare insight into the hard business of field soldiering in the crucible of war, these diaries paint a very colourful, accurate and illuminating picture.'
Battling Bella: The Protest Politics of Bella Abzug
by Leandra Ruth ZarnowLeandra Ruth Zarnow tells the inspiring and timely story of Bella Abzug, a New York politician who brought the passion and ideals of 1960s protest movements to Congress. Abzug promoted feminism, privacy protections, gay rights, and human rights. Her efforts shifted the political center, until more conservative forces won back the Democratic Party.
Battling Editor: The Albany Years (Excelsior Editions)
by Harry RosenfeldIn 1978, Harry Rosenfeld left the Washington Post, where he oversaw the paper's standard-setting coverage of Watergate, to take charge of two daily papers under co-ownership in Albany, New York: the morning Times Union and the evening Knickerbocker News. It was a particularly challenging moment in newspaper history. While new technologies were reducing labor costs on the production side and providing ever more sophisticated tools for journalists to practice their craft, those very same technologies would soon turn a comparatively short-lived boom into a grave threat, as ever more digitally distracted readers turned to sources other than print and other legacy media for their news. Between these boundaries, Rosenfeld set about to do his work.Picking up where his previous memoir, From Kristallnacht to Watergate, left off, Battling Editor tells the story of how Rosenfeld and his colleagues transformed two daily publications into alert and aggressive newspapers even in times of economic downturn. Bringing the investigative habits he had honed in his years at the New York Herald Tribune and the Washington Post, Rosenfeld's objective was to tell the fully rounded stories of the region's cities, suburbs, and rural towns, with awareness of both their achievements and their shortcomings. Furthermore, the misuse of power, whenever it happened, whether in city hall or the state capitol, in courtrooms or prisons, or in hospitals, corporations, community organizations, was to be exposed, and those accountable were to be held responsible.More importantly, however, Rosenfeld's account is enlisted in the growing call to arms for all who cover the news and all who consume it. Written at a time when the credibility of news organizations is under attack by those at the highest levels of government, Battling Editor is a full-throated defense of fact-based journalism and hard-hitting reporting at the local as well as national level.
Battling For Saipan
by Francis A. O'BrienWhen Lt. Gen. Holland M. "Howlin' Mad" Smith and his V Amphibious Corps were preparing for the invasion of the Marianas -- Guam, Tinian, and Saipan -- they were expecting an easy fight. The Japanese appeared to be on the run. As D day for Saipan, the first of the three islands scheduled for conquest, loomed, V Corps operational planners felt safe in allocating a single division to serve as reserve for all three invasions. The initial landings of the 2d and 4th Marine Divisions ran into fierce opposition, however, forcing General Smith to commit the army's 27th Infantry Division (the entire corps's reserve starting) that first night. Among the soldiers landing on Saipan was Lt. Col. William O'Brien. The exploits of O'Brien and his battalion were amazing, including the award of the Medal of Honor to battalion commander O'Brien.
Battling Jack Turpin: You Gotta Fight Back
by Jackie TurpinNow in his 80th year, 'Battling' Jack Turpin is the last surviving member of his generation of Britain's best-known and best-loved boxing family.Jack's father, Lionel Turpin, came from British Guiana to volunteer for the British Army during the Great War. He was wounded on the battlefields of France and invalided to Warwick, the first black man to settle in the area. Lionel married a local girl but his early death left her struggling to raise their three sons and two daughters in pre-Welfare State England.As young men, the excitement and gladiatorial glamour of the ring lured Jack and his brothers into professional boxing. From a home-made backstreet gymnasium, they punched their way into the record books and into the hearts of the British people.Battling Jack is a wonderfully narrated account of the life and times of a remarkable man who was once Britain's busiest featherweight. It is also the history of the beginnings of a black presence in British boxing. Turpin offers us a ringside seat at heroic battles and comic encounters. He takes us behind the scenes of a scandal that rocked the sporting world and into his confidence about the mystery that surrounds his younger brother's death. Jack Turpin has out-stared ignorance and prejudice, tasted triumph and celebrity, and endured hardship and tragedy. Heart-rending, raw, honest and funny, his is a story that had to be told.
Battling Nell: The Life of Southern Journalist Cornelia Battle Lewis, 1893--1956 (Southern Biography Series)
by Alexander S. LeidholdtA longtime columnist for the Raleigh News and Observer, Cornelia Battle Lewis earned a national reputation in the 1920s and 1930s for her courageous advocacy on behalf of women's rights, African Americans, children, and labor unions. Late in her life, however, after fighting mental illness, Lewis reversed many of her stances and railed against the liberalism she had spent her life advancing. In Battling Nell, Alexander S. Leidholdt tells the compelling and ultimately tragic life story of this groundbreaking journalist against the backdrop of the turbulent post-Reconstruction Jim Crow South and speculates about the cause of her extraordinary transformation.The daughter of North Carolina's most prominent public health official, Lewis grew up in Raleigh, but her experiences at Smith College in Massachusetts, and later in France during World War I, led her to question the prevailing racial attitudes and gender roles of her native region. In 1920, Lewis began her storied career with the News and Observer. Inspired by H. L. Mencken's scathing criticism of the South, she soon established herself as the region's leading female liberal journalist. Her column, "Incidentally," attacked the Ku Klux Klan, lobbied against the exploitation of mill workers, defended strikers during the notorious communist-organized Gastonia labor violence, mocked religious fundamentalists who fought the teaching of evolution, and decried lynch law. A suffragist and a feminist who saw women's rights as inextricably linked to human rights, Lewis ran for state legislature in 1928 and was one of the first women in North Carolina to be admitted to the bar.In the 1930s, however, Lewis faced repeated institutionalizations for a debilitating bout of mental illness and sought treatment from Christian Science practitioners, spiritualists, and psychotherapists. As she aged, her views grew increasingly reactionary, and she insisted that she had served as a communist dupe during the Gastonia strike and trials, that communists had infiltrated the University of North Carolina, and that many of her former progressive allies had ties to communism. Finally, many of her opinions completely reversed, and in the wake of the 1954 Brown v. Board decision, she served as an influential spokesperson for the South's massive resistance to public school desegregation. She continued to espouse these conservative beliefs until her death in 1956.In his detailed retelling of Lewis's fascinating life, Leidholdt chronicles the turbulent history of North Carolina from the 1920s through the 1950s, as industrialization and racial integration began to tear at the region's conservative fabric. He vividly explains the background and ramifications of Lewis's many controversial stances and explores the possible reasons for her ideological about-face. Through the extraordinary story of "Battling Nell," Leidholdt reveals how the complex issues of gender, labor, and race intertwined to influence the convulsive events that shaped the course of early twentieth-century southern history.
Battling the Blues
by Darius Boyd'A legend of the game' - Anthony Seibold'He's a player that never lets his team down' - Billy SlaterDarius Boyd broke into the Brisbane Broncos NRL team in 2006 straight out of high school and was part of the premiership-winning team in his debut season. He'd go on to win another premiership with the Dragons in 2010, claiming the Clive Churchill Medal for man of the match and forever stamping his name as an elite champion of the game. He has played 28 State of Origins for Queensland and taken the field in 23 Tests for Australia - never playing in a losing Australian team. In 15 seasons at the top level, Darius has won nearly every honour the sport can award and is undeniably an NRL great. But listing statistics, awards and premierships doesn't reveal the battles that Darius Boyd has faced off the field. A teenager with a troubled background, he started his career with innate footy talent but also the emotional baggage of an unknown father, the devastating loss of loved ones, and a mother who was walking a mental health tightrope herself, which as a kid he didn't understand. As his talent shone on the field and his profile increased, Darius struggled. Hiding years of depression and unhappiness, playing footy was his escape. But no one can run from themselves forever. The horrific spinal injury to good mate and Newcastle Knights teammate Alex McKinnon was the catalyst that finally broke Darius. Realising he needed help for his anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts, he turned his back on football, checked into a mental health facility and began to mend his life and himself. Now, as he heads into retirement, Darius Boyd is sharing his story, to celebrate his triumphs on the field but, more importantly for him, revealing how to deal with depression, overcome adversity and live with mental illness. He reflects on excerpts from his private journal which charted his journey from the depths of despair to a life of gratitude. It is a heartfelt message he now takes across the NRL and into boardrooms, schools and footy clubs in a quest to keep our young men alive. BATTLING THE BLUES is a raw, honest and inspiring memoir that takes us into the heart of an NRL champion and his fight to conquer his demons and live a better life.
Battling the Prince: A Woman Fights for Democracy
by Claire Snyder-HallWhat happens when a democratic theory professor gets involved with the Democratic Party? In this political memoir, Claire Snyder-Hall shares lessons learned from eight years in party politics. She tells the story of organizing a grassroots campaign for state senate in a district dominated by good ole boys, of a political milieu in which a letter to the editor results in a smear campaign and broken friendships, and of battling a party establishment more concerned about shoring up its own power than engaging everyday people or fighting for their needs. Using an intersectional understanding of identity, Snyder-Hall unpacks the ways in which gender, class, and sexuality affect political campaigns, and offers advice for progressives. She also draws on insights from Machiavelli, Rousseau, Marx, and Gramsci to argue that a democratic republic requires a politically engaged populace, a democratic culture, and economic justice, and this can only be achieved when people defend democratic values in the face of rising authoritarianism, stand up to bullies, transform their political consciousness, and create a party willing to fight for the 99%.
Batuta rebelde: Jorge Peña Hen. Una biografía
by Patricia PolitzerLa biografía íntima de uno de los músicos trascendentales de chile, asesinado por la caravana de la muerte. Jorge Peña Hen luchó años para que jóvenes y niños tuvieran la posibilidad de cambiar sus destinos a través de la música. Fue el creador de las orquestas juveniles y también el gran agitador cultural que convirtió la ciudad de La Serena en un polo musical durante los años cincuenta. Pero pocos años después vendría el golpe de estado: acusado sin prueba alguna de esconder armas en los estuches de los instrumentos, fue fusilado por la Caravana de la Muerte en octubre de 1973. Con una gran investigación y material inédito, correspondencia incluida, Patricia Politzer reconstruye en Batuta rebelde la vida y obra de un personaje que dejó una huella imborrable no solo en la música chilena, también en la latinoamericana. Se narran aquí sus batallas sociales y personales, las luces y conflictos de su matrimonio, la escuela de música que fundó y cómo fueron imbricándose los relatos que lo llevaron al paredón en uno de los periodos más oscuros de nuestra historia.
Baudelaire in Chains: A Portrait of the Artist as a Drug Addict
by Frank HiltonAn acclaimed and most unusual biography of Baudelaire, showing him ensnared by his passions for poetry, prostitutes, and drugs.A crucial link between romanticism and modernism, Charles Baudelaire is a pivotal figure in European literature and thought. His influence on modern poetry is immense. In the English language, where his literary reputation is less well known, it is his link with drug culture that gives him contemporary resonance. It is commonly known that Baudelaire used opium. Many writers have described him as being addicted to the drug, but none of his biographers, Frank Hilton argues, has fully understood the effect of opiate addiction on the personality and, in the case of Baudelaire, the extent to which it damaged his life and work. In this original contribution to Baudelaire studies Hilton contends that the drug is at the root of all Baudelaire's problems and in particular--something that constantly tormented him--his chronic inability to apply himself to any prolonged creative work. Unquestionably, there is significantly more to Baudelaire than his opium addiction. But a proper awareness of what it did to the poet helps to illuminate those puzzling aspects of his life and behavior that were not previously understood. Written with the general reader in mind, Baudelaire in Chains will give those who know little or nothing about him a comprehensive picture of his life. To those who know a great deal it will present him in an unexpected light.
Baudelaire: Juego de triunfos
by Mario CampañaLa biografía de Charles Baudelaire, el poeta maldito por excelencia. La leyenda y el mito se han apoderado del autor de Las flores del mal. Convertido en uno de los iconos de la cultura moderna, en el poeta maldito por excelencia, la figura de Charles Baudelaire ha sufrido todo tipo de manipulaciones, que han pretendido convertirlo en dandi frívolo o en mártir y héroe inmaculado, en audaz parricida o en contumaz consumidor de drogas, simplificando así la verdadera magnitud de su figura, su vida y su trabajo. Ateniéndose a la ingente documentación existente y sorteando los peligros de la hagiografía y el anecdotario, esta biografía, escrita con rigor y fluidez, es la obra de un poeta que prefiere ceñirse a los hechos y a la complejidad de la vida del que fuera el fundador de la poesía contemporánea, reconociéndolo en sus grandezas y miserias, su arrojo, sus contradicciones y sus dobleces hasta llenar un inexplicable vacío en la bibliografía en lengua castellana. Con un profundo conocimiento de la sociedad francesa y los avances del mercantilismo en la época, Mario Campaña sitúa a Baudelaire en su contexto social y político, al tiempo que destaca cómo influyó esta convulsa situación en su vida y obra. Siendo revolucionario en 1848, el poeta terminó repudiando toda la civilización occidental y proponiendo fórmulas políticas que lo situaron en el espectro más conservador de su época. Reseña:«No hay momento pertinente de la vida de Baudelaire del que esta biografía no se ocupe sin una interpretación muy ajustada, repartiendo juego sin recabar méritos propios. De ahí su valor.»Leer
Bay Area Iron Master Al Zampa: A Life Building Bridges
by John V. Robinson Isabelle MaynardAlfred Zampa didn't know what he was getting into when he took a construction job in 1925 on the Carquinez Bridge, one of the first to cross San Francisco Bay. Despite the risk, Zampa relished the challenge and embarked on an illustrious career that made him a local legend. His impressive feats of iron craft are evident in numerous spans, including the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate, as well as others across the country. He was one of the first to survive a fall from the Golden Gate Bridge, making him a founding member of the Halfway to Hell Club in 1936. The Alfred Zampa Memorial Bridge, named to honor the man after his death, replaced the first bridge he had worked on nearly eighty years earlier. This remarkable story of skill, grit and enduring spirit is told through oral histories collected by John Robinson and Isabelle Maynard.
Bay and Her Boys: Unexpected Lessons I Learned as a (Single) Mom
by Bay BuchananTwenty-three years ago, Bay Buchanan was thrown--or as she says, dumped--into the world of single parenting. It wasn't a popular time to be raising kids solo, especially as a rising star in the conservative movement. But she quickly realized she needed to overcome the hurt and confusion and focus on giving her all to her children.Bay and Her Boys is a compelling story that takes the reader on a candid trip into the world of single working motherhood. For the first time, Buchanan writes of her experiences--mistakes she made and rules that worked--in the hopes of encouraging mothers to make success at home their first priority in life.Buchanan also wants to change the national dialogue about single moms with a shot across the bow of both conservatives and liberals. This book is the first step by a prominent conservative to be there for all mothers: standing with them, inspiring them, and arming them with tools that will help their kids succeed in life.