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A Town Called Fury: Judgment Day (A Town Called Fury #1)
by William W. Johnstone J.A. JohnstoneA reluctant wagon train leader must defend a team of settlers and the woman he loves in the dangerous Arizona Territory in this action-packed Western.From legendary William W. Johnstone comes an exciting new saga of the American frontier town called Fury, built smack dab in the middle of the untamed Arizona Territory...and the only man who can give Fury a fighting chance . . .The last thing Jason Fury wants is to lead this wagon train west to California. Hell, he just wants to head back east, where a smart young man like himself has a real shot at a better life. But halfway across Oklahoma the wagon train is attacked by bloodthirsty Commanche, and Jedediah Fury—the leader of the settlers, and Jason's father—is counted among the dead. Before he knows it, Jason's leading the wagons into Arizona Territory, where the squabbling settlers decide to stop for good and start a town they'll name Fury in honor of Jedediah. It's going to be a hardscrabble life, what with the ruthless Apaches always on the attack and the harsh country they've chosen. Jason knows he can't just leave these defenseless pioneers to be slaughtered—among them a certain young lady he's taken a real shine to . . .A Town Called FuryOne man. One town. One destiny.
A Town In-Between: Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and the Early Mid-Atlantic Interior (Early American Studies)
by Judith RidnerIn A Town In-Between, Judith Ridner reveals the influential, turbulent past of a modest, quiet American community. Today Carlisle, Pennsylvania, nestled in the Susquehanna Valley, is far from the nation's political and financial centers. In the eighteenth century, however, Carlisle and its residents stood not only at a geographical crossroads but also at the fulcrum of early American controversies. Located between East Coast settlement and the western frontier, Carlisle quickly became a mid-Atlantic hub, serving as a migration gateway to the southern and western interiors, a commercial way station in the colonial fur trade, a military staging and supply ground during the Seven Years' War, American Revolution, and Whiskey Rebellion, and home to one of the first colleges in the United States, Dickinson.A Town In-Between reconsiders the role early American towns and townspeople played in the development of the country's interior. Focusing on the lives of the ambitious group of Scots-Irish colonists who built Carlisle, Judith Ridner reasserts that the early American west was won by traders, merchants, artisans, and laborers—many of them Irish immigrants—and not just farmers. Founded by proprietor Thomas Penn, the rapidly growing town was the site of repeated uprisings, jailbreaks, and one of the most publicized Anti-Federalist riots during constitutional ratification. These conflicts had dramatic consequences for many Scots-Irish Presbyterian residents who found themselves a people in-between, mediating among the competing ethnoreligious, cultural, class, and political interests that separated them from their fellow Quaker and Anglican colonists of the Delaware Valley and their myriad Native American trading partners of the Ohio country.In this thoroughly researched and highly readable study, Ridner argues that interior towns were not so much spearheads of a progressive and westward-moving Euro-American civilization, but volatile places situated in the middle of a culturally diverse, economically dynamic, and politically evolving early America.
A Trace of Deceit: A Novel
by Karen OddenA Paperback OriginalFrom the author of A Dangerous Duet comes the next book in her Victorian mystery series, this time following a daring female painter and the Scotland Yard detective who is investigating her brother’s suspicious death.A young painter digs beneath the veneer of Victorian London’s art world to learn the truth behind her brother’s murder... Edwin is dead. That’s what Inspector Matthew Hallam of Scotland Yard tells Annabel Rowe when she discovers him searching her brother’s flat for clues. While the news is shocking, Annabel can’t say it’s wholly unexpected, given Edwin’s past as a dissolute risk-taker and art forger, although he swore he’d reformed. After years spent blaming his reckless behavior for their parents’ deaths, Annabel is now faced with the question of who murdered him—because Edwin’s death was both violent and deliberate. A valuable French painting he’d been restoring for an auction house is missing from his studio: find the painting, find the murderer. But the owner of the artwork claims it was destroyed in a warehouse fire years ago.As a painter at the prestigious Slade School of Art and as Edwin’s closest relative, Annabel makes the case that she is crucial to Matthew’s investigation. But in their search for the painting, Matthew and Annabel trace a path of deceit and viciousness that reaches far beyond the elegant rooms of the auction house, into an underworld of politics, corruption, and secrets someone will kill to keep.
A Trace of Memory
by Elizabeth BaileyWhen a bedraggled woman accosts Charles Clevedon, Earl of Wytham, in his woods, claiming to have lost her memory, his first cynical thought is that it's yet another ingenious matrimonial ploy. While he remains suspicious of her, he is safe. But her beauty and her vulnerability are a heady mix. Yet how can they be ruled by their desire when each unfolding memory seems to suggest that she could belong to another man?
A Trace of Poison: A Riveting Historical Mystery Set in the Home of Agatha Christie (A Phyllida Bright Mystery #2)
by Colleen Cambridge&“Balances Downton Abbey–style period charm with a tight plot that twists and turns right until the end… a plot that would satisfy Poirot.&” —Library Journal &“Dame Agatha would be proud.&” —Publishers Weekly In this captivating English murder mystery from an acclaimed author, Agatha Christie&’s housekeeper must uncover the killer amongst a throng of crime writers. In England&’s stately manor houses, murder is not generally a topic for polite conversation. Mallowan Hall, home to Agatha Christie and her husband, Max, is the exception. And housekeeper Phyllida Bright delights in discussing gory plot details with her friend and employer . . . The neighboring village of Listleigh has also become a hub of grisly goings-on, thanks to a Murder Fête organized to benefit a local orphanage. Members of The Detection Club—a group of celebrated authors such as G.K. Chesterton, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Agatha herself—will congregate for charitable events, including a writing contest for aspiring authors. The winner gets an international publishing contract, and entrants have gathered for a cocktail party—managed by the inimitable Phyllida—when murder strikes too close even for her comfort. It seems the victim imbibed a poisoned cocktail intended for Alastair Whittlesby, president of the local writers&’ club. The insufferable Whittlesby is thought to be a shoo-in for the prize, and ambition is certainly a worthy motive. But narrowing down these suspects could leave even Phyllida&’s favorite fictional detective, M. Poirot, twirling his mustache in frustration. It&’s a mystery too intriguing for Phyllida to resist, but one fraught with duplicity and danger, for every guest is an expert in murder—and how to get away with it . . .
A Tractate on Japanese Aesthetics
by Donald RichieThis provocative book is a tractate--a treatise--on beauty in Japanese art, written in the manner of a zuihitsu, a free-ranging assortment of ideas that "follow the brush" wherever it leads. Donald Richie looks at how perceptual values in Japan were drawn from raw nature and then modified by elegant expressions of class and taste. He explains aesthetic concepts like wabi, sabi, aware, and yugen, and ponders their relevance in art and cinema today.
A Tradition of Pride - Mississippi (Americana #24)
by Janet DaileyThe honeymoon was over long, long ago. . . . Lara Cochran had once been a happy bride. Then Trevor, her charming husband, had turned to other women. Divorce was unheard-of in Lara's family, but she didn't want one anyway. One disastrous marriage was enough; she was now safely immune from men -- all men. Or so she thought -- until she met Rans McQuade, the rugged and virile manager of her father's Mississippi plantation. But she knew she couldn't let herself get carried away. For that would mean making some dramatic, unwanted changes in her life. . . .
A Tragedy Revealed
by Konrad Eisenbichler Arrigo PetaccoAs the Second World War drew to a close, European borders were being redrawn. The regions of Istria, Dalmatia, and Venezia Giulia, nominally Italian but at various times also belonging to Austria and Germany, fell under the rule of Yugoslavia and its dictator Marshal Tito. The ensuing removal and genocide of Italians from these regions had been little explored or even discussed until 1999, when the esteemed Italian journalist Arrigo Petacco wrote L'esodo: La tragedia negata degli italiani d'Istria, Dalmazia e Venezia Giulia. Now this story is available in English as A Tragedy Revealed.Petacco explains the history of the regions and how they were shifted between empires for centuries. The greater part of the story however details the genocidal program of the Yugoslav Communist government toward the native Italians in the regions. Based on previously unavailable archival documents and oral accounts from people who were there, Petacco reveals the events and exposes the Italian government's mishandling - and then official silence on - the situation. This is a riveting work on a little-known, tragic event written by one of Italy's most highly regarded journalists.
A Tragedy of Democracy: Japanese Confinement in North America
by Greg RobinsonThe confinement of some 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II, often called the Japanese American internment, has been described as the worst official civil rights violation of modern U. S. history. Greg Robinson not only offers a bold new understanding of these events but also studies them within a larger time frame and from a transnational perspective. Drawing on newly discovered material, Robinson provides a backstory of confinement that reveals for the first time the extent of the American government's surveillance of Japanese communities in the years leading up to war and the construction of what officials termed "concentration camps" for enemy aliens. He also considers the aftermath of confinement, including the place of Japanese Americans in postwar civil rights struggles, the long movement by former camp inmates for redress, and the continuing role of the camps as touchstones for nationwide commemoration and debate. Most remarkably, A Tragedy of Democracy is the first book to analyze official policy toward West Coast Japanese Americans within a North American context. Robinson studies confinement on the mainland alongside events in wartime Hawaii, where fears of Japanese Americans justified Army dictatorship, suspension of the Constitution, and the imposition of military tribunals. He similarly reads the treatment of Japanese Americans against Canada's confinement of 22,000 citizens and residents of Japanese ancestry from British Columbia. A Tragedy of Democracy recounts the expulsion of almost 5,000 Japanese from Mexico's Pacific Coast and the poignant story of the Japanese Latin Americans who were kidnapped from their homes and interned in the United States. Approaching Japanese confinement as a continental and international phenomenon, Robinson offers a truly kaleidoscopic understanding of its genesis and outcomes. The confinement of some 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II, often called the Japanese American internment, has been described as the worst official civil rights violation of modern U. S. history. Greg Robinson not only offers a bold new understanding of these events but also studies them within a larger time frame and from a transnational perspective. Drawing on newly discovered material, Robinson provides a backstory of confinement that reveals for the first time the extent of the American government's surveillance of Japanese communities in the years leading up to war and the construction of what officials termed "concentration camps" for enemy aliens. He also considers the aftermath of confinement, including the place of Japanese Americans in postwar civil rights struggles, the long movement by former camp inmates for redress, and the continuing role of the camps as touchstones for nationwide commemoration and debate. Most remarkably, A Tragedy of Democracy is the first book to analyze official policy toward West Coast Japanese Americans within a North American context. Robinson studies confinement on the mainland alongside events in wartime Hawaii, where fears of Japanese Americans justified Army dictatorship, suspension of the Constitution, and the imposition of military tribunals. He similarly reads the treatment of Japanese Americans against Canada's confinement of 22,000 citizens and residents of Japanese ancestry from British Columbia. A Tragedy of Democracy recounts the expulsion of almost 5,000 Japanese from Mexico's Pacific Coast and the poignant story of the Japanese Latin Americans who were kidnapped from their homes and interned in the United States. Approaching Japanese confinement as a continental and international phenomenon, Robinson offers a truly kaleidoscopic understanding of its genesis and outcomes.
A Tragic Legacy: How a Good vs. Evil Mentality Destroyed the Bush Presidency
by Glenn GreenwaldWhat will be the legacy of President George Walker Bush? In this fascinating, timely book, Glenn Greenwald examines the Bush presidency and its long-term effect on the nation. What began on shaky, uncertain ground and was bolstered and propelled by tragedy, has ultimately faltered and failed on the back of the dichotomous worldview--good versus evil--that once served it so well. In A Tragic Legacy, Greenwald charts the rise and steep fall of the current administration, dissecting the rhetoric and revealing the faulty ideals upon which George W. Bush built his policies. On September 12, 2001, President Bush addressed the nation and presented a very clear view of what was to come--a view that can be said to define his entire presidency: "This will be a monumental struggle of good versus evil. " Based on his own Christian faith and backed by biblical allusions, Bush's worldview was basic and binary--and everyone was forced to choose a side. Riding high on public support, Bush sailed through the early "War on Terror," easily defining our enemies and clearly setting an agenda for defeating them. But once the war became murkier--its target unclear, its combatants no longer seen in black-and-white--support for Bush and his policies dropped precipitously. Glenn Greenwald brilliantly reveals the reasons behind the collapse of Bush's power and approval, and argues that his greatest weakness is the same rhetoric that once propelled him so far forward. Facing issues that could not be turned into simple good versus evil choices--the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, his plans for Social Security "reform," and, most ironic, the failed Dubai ports deal--Bush faltered and fell. Now, Greenwald argues, Bush is trapped by his own choices, unable to break out of the mold that once served him so well, and indifferent to the consequences. A Tragic Legacy is the first true character study of one of the most controversial men ever to hold the office of president. Enlightening, powerful, and eye-opening, this is an in-depth look at the man whose incapability and cowboy logic have left America at risk. From the Hardcover edition.
A Trail Through Time (Chronicles of St. Mary's #4)
by Jodi TaylorThe fourth book in the bestselling Chronicles of St Mary's series which follows a group of tea-soaked disaster magnets as they hurtle their way around History. Sometimes, surviving is all you have left.Max and Leon are safe at last. Or so they think.Snatched from her own world and dumped into a new one, Max is soon running for her life. Again.From a 17th century Frost Fair to Ancient Egypt; from Pompeii to 8th century Scandinavia; Max and Leon are pursued up and down the timeline, playing a dangerous game of hide-and-seek, until finally they're forced to take refuge at St Mary's where a new danger awaits them.Max's happily ever after is going to have to wait a while...If you love Jasper Fforde or Ben Aaronovitch, you won't be able to resist Jodi Taylor. Readers love Jodi Taylor: 'Once in a while, I discover an author who changes everything... Jodi Taylor and her protagonista Madeleine "Max" Maxwell have seduced me' 'A great mix of British proper-ness and humour with a large dollop of historical fun' 'Addictive. I wish St Mary's was real and I was a part of it' 'Jodi Taylor has an imagination that gets me completely hooked' 'A tour de force'(P) 2014 Audible Studios
A Trail Through Time (Chronicles of St. Mary's #4)
by Jodi TaylorThe fourth book in the bestselling Chronicles of St Mary's series which follows a group of tea-soaked disaster magnets as they hurtle their way around History. If you love Jasper Fforde or Ben Aaronovitch, you won't be able to resist Jodi Taylor.Sometimes, surviving is all you have left.Max and Leon are safe at last. Or so they think.Snatched from her own world and dumped into a new one, Max is soon running for her life. Again.From a 17th century Frost Fair to Ancient Egypt; from Pompeii to 8th century Scandinavia; Max and Leon are pursued up and down the timeline, playing a dangerous game of hide-and-seek, until finally they're forced to take refuge at St Mary's where a new danger awaits them.Max's happily ever after is going to have to wait a while... Readers love Jodi Taylor: 'Once in a while, I discover an author who changes everything... Jodi Taylor and her protagonista Madeleine "Max" Maxwell have seduced me' 'A great mix of British proper-ness and humour with a large dollop of historical fun' 'Addictive. I wish St Mary's was real and I was a part of it' 'Jodi Taylor has an imagination that gets me completely hooked' 'A tour de force'
A Trail Through Time (Chronicles of St. Mary's #4)
by Jodi TaylorThe fourth book in the bestselling Chronicles of St Mary's series which follows a group of tea-soaked disaster magnets as they hurtle their way around History. If you love Jasper Fforde or Ben Aaronovitch, you won't be able to resist Jodi Taylor.Sometimes, surviving is all you have left.Max and Leon are safe at last. Or so they think.Snatched from her own world and dumped into a new one, Max is soon running for her life. Again.From a 17th century Frost Fair to Ancient Egypt; from Pompeii to 8th century Scandinavia; Max and Leon are pursued up and down the timeline, playing a dangerous game of hide-and-seek, until finally they're forced to take refuge at St Mary's where a new danger awaits them.Max's happily ever after is going to have to wait a while... Readers love Jodi Taylor: 'Once in a while, I discover an author who changes everything... Jodi Taylor and her protagonista Madeleine "Max" Maxwell have seduced me' 'A great mix of British proper-ness and humour with a large dollop of historical fun' 'Addictive. I wish St Mary's was real and I was a part of it' 'Jodi Taylor has an imagination that gets me completely hooked' 'A tour de force'
A Trail Through Time (The Chronicles of St. Mary's #4)
by Jodi TaylorSt Mary's is back and is facing a battle to survive in this, the fourth instalment of the Chronicles. Max and Leon are re-united and looking forward to a peaceful lifetime together. But, sadly, they don't even make it to lunchtime. The action races from 17th century London to Ancient Egypt and from Pompeii to 14th century Southwark as they're pursued up and down the timeline, playing a perilous game of hide and seek until they're finally forced to take refuge at St Mary's - where new dangers await them. As usual, there are plenty of moments of humour, but the final, desperate, Battle of St Mary's is in grim earnest. Overwhelmed and outnumbered and with the building crashing down around them, how can St Mary's possibly survive? So, make sure the tea's good and strong...
A Trail of Crumbs: A Novel of the Great Depression
by Susie Finkbeiner"I believed it would have been a sin to stay inside when God had sent us such fine weather. According to Pastor Ezra Anderson, sin was the reason we'd got in the dusty mess we were in. The way I saw it, that day was God's way of letting us know He wasn't mad at us anymore. Just maybe He'd seen fit to forgive us."Pearl Spence has been through more in her young life than most folks could handle. But through it all, her family has been by her side. They may not be perfect, but they love her and they all love each other, come what may. That's one thing Pearl no longer questions.But the end of her beautiful day signals the beginning of the end of her secure life.Now her family is fleeing their Oklahoma wasteland. Pearl isn't sure she'll ever see home or happiness again. Are there any crumbs powerful enough to guide her back to the dependable life she once knew?The strong narrative voice of Finkbeiner's young protagonist from A Cup of Dust returns in this gritty yet hopeful sequel, sure to please her many fans.
A Trail of Ink: The Third Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon
by Mel StarrSome valuable books have been stolen from Master John Wyclif, the well known scholar and Bible translator. He calls upon his friend and former pupil, Hugh de Singleton, to investigate. Hugh's investigation leads him to Oxford where he again encounters Kate, the only woman who has tempted him to leave bachelor life behind, but Kate has another serious suitor. As Hugh's pursuit of Kate becomes more successful, mysterious accidents begin to occur. Are these accidents tied to the missing books, or to his pursuit of Kate? One of the stolen books turns up alongside the drowned body of a poor Oxford scholar. Another accident? Hugh certainly doesn't think so, but it will take all of his surgeon's skills to prove.
A Train in Winter
by Caroline MooreheadThey were teachers, students, chemists, writers, and housewives; a singer at the Paris Opera, a midwife, a dental surgeon. They distributed anti-Nazi leaflets, printed subversive newspapers, hid resisters, secreted Jews to safety, transported weapons, and conveyed clandestine messages. The youngest was a schoolgirl of fifteen who scrawled "V" for victory on the walls of her lycÉe; the eldest, a farmer's wife in her sixties who harbored escaped Allied airmen. Strangers to each other, hailing from villages and cities from across France, these brave women were united in hatred and defiance of their Nazi occupiers. Eventually, the Gestapo hunted down 230 of these women and imprisoned them in a fort outside Paris. Separated from home and loved ones, these disparate individuals turned to one another, their common experience conquering divisions of age, education, profession, and class, as they found solace and strength in their deep affection and camaraderie. In January 1943, they were sent to their final destination: Auschwitz. Only forty-nine would return to France. A Train in Winter draws on interviews with these women and their families; German, French, and Polish archives; and documents held by World War II resistance organizations to uncover a dark chapter of history that offers an inspiring portrait of ordinary people, of bravery and survival-and of the remarkable, enduring power of female friendship.
A Train of Powder
by Rebecca WestA New York Times bestseller, this riveting account of the Nuremberg trials by a legendary journalist is simply &“astonishing&” (Francine Prose). Sent to cover the war crimes trials at Nuremberg for the New Yorker, Rebecca West brought along her inimitable skills for understanding a place and its people. In these accomplished articles, West captures the world that sprung up to process the Nazi leaders; from the city&’s war-torn structures to the courtroom security measures, no detail is left out. West&’s unparalleled grasp on human motivations and character offers particular insight into the judges, prosecutors, and of course the defendants themselves. This remarkable narrative captures the social and political ramifications of a world recovering from the divisions of war. As engaging as it is informative, this collection represents West&’s finest hour as a reporter.
A Traitor Among Us
by Elizabeth Van SteenwykIn occupied Holland in 1944, thirteen-year-old Pieter becomes increasingly involved in the work of the Dutch Resistance even though he knows the risk of being discovered by the Nazi informer who lives in his village.
A Traitor in Whitehall: A Mystery (Evelyne Redfern #1)
by Julia KellyFrom Julia Kelly, internationally bestselling author of The Last Dance of the Debutante, comes the first in the mysterious and immersive Evelyne Redfern series, A Traitor in Whitehall."Kelly spins an Agatha Christie-esque mystery . . . thoroughly delightful and well-researched."—Susan Elia MacNeal1940, England: Evelyne Redfern, known as “The Parisian Orphan” as a child, is working on the line at a munitions factory in wartime London. When Mr. Fletcher, one of her father’s old friends, spots Evelyne on a night out, Evelyne finds herself plunged into the world of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet war rooms.However, shortly after she settles into her new role as a secretary, one of the girls at work is murdered, and Evelyne must use all of her amateur sleuthing expertise to find the killer. But doing so puts her right in the path of David Poole, a cagey minister’s aide who seems determined to thwart her investigations. That is, until Evelyne finds out David’s real mission is to root out a mole selling government secrets to Britain’s enemies, and the pair begrudgingly team up.With her quick wit, sharp eyes, and determination, will Evelyne be able to find out who’s been selling England’s secrets and catch a killer, all while battling her growing attraction to David?
A Traitor to His Species: Henry Bergh and the Birth of the Animal Rights Movement
by Ernest FreebergFrom an award-winning historian, the outlandish story of the man who gave rights to animals.In Gilded Age America, people and animals lived cheek-by-jowl in environments that were dirty and dangerous to man and beast alike. The industrial city brought suffering, but it also inspired a compassion for animals that fueled a controversial anti-cruelty movement. From the center of these debates, Henry Bergh launched a shocking campaign to grant rights to animals.A Traitor to His Species is revelatory social history, awash with colorful characters. Cheered on by thousands of men and women who joined his cause, Bergh fought with robber barons, Five Points gangs, and legendary impresario P.T. Barnum, as they pushed for new laws to protect trolley horses, livestock, stray dogs, and other animals. Raucous and entertaining, A Traitor to His Species tells the story of a remarkable man who gave voice to the voiceless and shaped our modern relationship with animals.
A Traitor's Touch: Unwed And Unrepentant Return Of The Prodigal Gilvry A Traitor's Touch
by Helen DicksonAWAKENING A FORBIDDEN DESIRE After a lifetime spent hating the cause, loving a Jacobite is out of the question for Henrietta Brody. But with Scotland ready for battle, her only chance for survival is to journey with her enemy, the dangerously handsome Lord Simon Tremain. His protection awakens a forbidden desire in Henrietta. But torn between her past and her future, the Jacobite and the man, reason and passion, she must fight to resist this traitor's touch. "A fun, entertaining read." -RT Book Reviews on Beauty in Breeches
A Traitorous Heart
by Erin CotterA noblewoman in the scandalous French court finds herself under the dangerous and watchful eye of the Parisian royalty when she falls in love with the handsome king who is betrothed to her former lover in this bisexual The Three Musketeers by way of Bridgerton and F.T. Lukens.Paris, 1572. Seventeen-year-old Jacqueline &“Jac&” d&’Argenson-Aunis is lady-in-waiting to her best friend and former lover, the French Princess Marguerite &“Margot&” de Valois, but she dreams of more. If Jac plays her cards right, one day, she&’ll become a full member of the Societas Solis, a secret society of spies—just like her uncle and guardian, Viscount Gabriel d&’Argenson-Aunis. But it&’s hard to think about her own ambitions while France is on the brink of war, and the only thing that might save the country is an alliance—a marriage between the Catholic Princess Margot and Henry, the awful son of the Huguenot queen. Who would be the perfect person to play matchmaker? Jac, of course. Jac resents lying to her best friend almost as much as she resents the brazen and arrogant King Henry, but it&’s her one chance to prove to the Societas Solis that she belongs among their ranks before her uncle can marry her off or worse. The more time Jac spends in the French Court&’s clandestine corners, though, the more she starts to wonder if Henry is…not as terrible as she once believed. And the Societas Solis may not be what they seem. Politics. Spies. Chaos in the French court. Perhaps even witchcraft? Everything&’s more dangerous when love is involved.
A Tramp Abroad
by Mark Twain Hamlin Hill Robert Gray BruceCast in the form of a walking tour through Germany, Switzerland, France, and Italy, A Tramp Abroad sparkles with the author's shrewd observations and highly opinionated comments on Old World culture, and showcases his unparalleled ability to integrate humorous sketches, autobiographical tidbit, and historical anecdotes in consistently entertaining narrative.
A Transatlantic History of Haitian Vodou: Rasin Figuier, Rasin Bwa Kayiman, and the Rada and Gede Rites
by Benjamin HebblethwaiteConnecting four centuries of political, social, and religious history with fieldwork and language documentation, A Transatlantic History of Haitian Vodou analyzes Haitian Vodou’s African origins, transmission to Saint-Domingue, and promulgation through song in contemporary Haiti.Split into two sections, the African chapters focus on history, economics, and culture in Dahomey, Allada, and Hueda while scrutinizing the role of Europeans in fomenting tensions. The political, military, and slave trading histories of the kingdoms in the Bight of Benin reveal the circumstances of enslavement, including the geographies, ethnicities, languages, and cultures of enslavers and enslaved. The study of the spirits, rituals, structure, and music of the region’s religions sheds light on important sources for Haitian Vodou. Having royal, public, and private expressions, Vodun spirit-based traditions served as cultural systems that supported or contested power and enslavement. At once suppliers and victims of the European slave trade, the people of Dahomey, Allada, and Hueda deeply shaped the emergence of Haiti’s creolized culture. The Haitian chapters focus on Vodou’s Rada Rite (from Allada) and Gede Rite (from Abomey) through the songs of Rasin Figuier’s Vodou Lakay and Rasin Bwa Kayiman’s Guede, legendary rasin compact discs released on Jean Altidor’s Miami label, Mass Konpa Records. All the Vodou songs on the discs are analyzed with a method dubbed “Vodou hermeneutics” that harnesses history, religious studies, linguistics, literary criticism, and ethnomusicology in order to advance a scholarly approach to Vodou songs.