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It Never Goes Away: Gender Transition at a Mature Age
by Anne Lauren KochIf you are transgendered, the feeling of wanting your body to match the sex you feel you are never goes away. For some, though, especially those who grew up before trans people were widely out and advocating for equality, these feelings were often compartmentalized and rarely acted upon. Now that gender reassignment has become much more commonplace, many of these people may feel increasing pressure to finally undergo the procedures they have always secretly wanted. Ken Koch was one of those people. Married twice, a veteran, and a world traveler, a health scare when he was sixty-three prompted him to acknowledge the feelings that had plagued him since he was a small child. By undergoing a host of procedures, he radically changed his appearance and became Anne Koch. In the process though, Anne lost everything that Ken had accomplished. She had to remake herself from the ground up. Hoping to help other people in her age bracket who may be considering transitioning, Anne describes the step by step procedures that she underwent, and shares the cost to her personal life, in order to show seniors that although it is never too late to become the person you always knew you were, it is better to go into that new life prepared for some serious challenges. Both a fascinating memoir of a well-educated man growing up trans yet repressed in the mid-twentieth century, and a guidebook to navigating the tricky waters of gender reassignment as a senior, It Never Goes Away shows how what we see in the television world of Transparent translates in real life.
It Should Be Easy to Fix
by Bonnie RobichaudIn 1977, Bonnie Robichaud accepted a job at the Department of Defence military base in North Bay, Ontario. After a string of dead-end jobs, with five young children at home, Robichaud was ecstatic to have found a unionized job with steady pay, benefits, and vacation time. After her supervisor began to sexually harass and intimidate her, her story could have followed the same course as countless women before her: endure, stay silent, and eventually quit. Instead, Robichaud filed a complaint after her probation period was up. When a high-ranking officer said she was the only one who had ever complained, Robichaud said, “Good. Then it should be easy to fix.” This timely and revelatory memoir follows her gruelling eleven-year fight for justice, which was won in the Supreme Court of Canada. The unanimous decision set a historic legal precedent that employers are responsible for maintaining a respectful and harassment-free workplace. Robichaud’s story is a landmark piece of Canadian labour history—one that is more relevant today than ever.
It Started in Wisconsin
by Michael Moore John Nichols Paul Buhle Mari Jo Buhle Patrick BarrettIn the spring of 2011, Wisconsinites took to the streets in what became the largest and liveliest labor demonstrations in modern American history. Protesters in the Middle East sent greetings--and pizzas--to the thousands occupying the Capitol building in Madison, and 150,000 demonstrators converged on the city.In a year that has seen a revival of protest in America, here is a riveting account of the first great wave of grassroots resistance to the corporate restructuring of the Great Recession.It Started in Wisconsin includes eyewitness reports by striking teachers, students, and others (such as Wisconsin-born musician Tom Morello), as well as essays explaining Wisconsin's progressive legacy by acclaimed historians. The book lays bare the national corporate campaign that crafted Wisconsin's anti-union legislation and similar laws across the country, and it conveys the infectious esprit de corps that pervaded the protests with original pictures and comics.
It Starts with Us: the highly anticipated sequel to IT ENDS WITH US (It Ends With Us Ser. #3)
by Colleen HooverBefore It Ends with Us, it started with Atlas. Multi-million copy bestselling author Colleen Hoover tells fan favourite Atlas&’s side of the story and shares what comes next in this long-anticipated sequel to the #1 Sunday Times bestseller It Ends with Us Lily and her ex-husband, Ryle, have just settled into a civil co-parenting rhythm when she suddenly bumps into her first love, Atlas, again. After nearly two years separated, she is elated that for once, time is on their side, and she immediately says yes when Atlas asks her on a date. But her excitement is quickly hampered by the knowledge that, though they are no longer married, Ryle is still very much a part of her life—and Atlas Corrigan is the one man he will hate being in his ex-wife and daughter&’s life. Switching between the perspectives of Lily and Atlas, It Starts with Us picks up right where the epilogue for the bestselling phenomenon It Ends with Us left off. Experience the romantic and satisfying conclusion to Colleen Hoover's powerful global bestselling novel, It Ends with Us.
It Still Takes A Candidate
by Jennifer L. Lawless Richard L. FoxIt Still Takes a Candidate serves as the only systematic, nationwide empirical account of the manner in which gender affects political ambition. Based on data from the Citizen Political Ambition Panel Study, a national survey conducted of almost 3,800 "potential candidates" in 2001 and a second survey of more than 2,000 of these same individuals in 2008, Jennifer L. Lawless and Richard L. Fox find that women, even in the highest tiers of professional accomplishment, are substantially less likely than men to demonstrate ambition to seek elective office. Women are less likely than men to be recruited to run for office. They are less likely than men to think they are qualified to run for office. And they are less likely than men to express a willingness to run for office in the future. This gender gap in political ambition persists across generations and over time. Despite cultural evolution and society's changing attitudes toward women in politics, running for public office remains a much less attractive and feasible endeavor for women than men.
It Takes a Village: Picture Book (with Audio Recording)
by Hillary Rodham ClintonIn celebration of the tenth anniversary of It Takes a Village, this splendid edition includes photographs and a new Introduction by Hillary Rodham Clinton.A decade ago, then First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton chronicled her quest—both deeply personal and, in the truest sense, public—to help make our society into the kind of village that enables children to become smart, able, resilient adults. It Takes a Village is “a textbook for caring....Filled with truths that are worth a read, and a reread” (The Dallas Morning News). For more than thirty-five years, Senator Clinton has made children her passion and her cause. Her long experience—not only through her roles as mother, daughter, sister, and wife but also as advocate, legal expert, and public servant—has strengthened her conviction that how children develop and what they need to succeed are inextricably entwined with the society in which they live and how well it sustains and supports its families and individuals. In other words, it takes a village to raise a child. In her new Introduction, Senator Clinton reflects on how our village has changed over the last decade—from the impact of the Internet to new research in early child development and education. She discusses issues of increasing concern—security, the environment, the national debt—and looks at where we have made progress and where there is still work to be done. It Takes a Village has become a classic. As relevant as ever, this anniversary edition makes it abundantly clear that the choices we make today about how we raise our children and how we support families will determine how our nation will face the challenges of this century.
It Tolls For Thee: A guide to celebrating and reclaiming the end of life
by Tom MortonA funeral celebrant's story about how celebrating death, and creating personalised space for grief, can enrich lives and give meaning to death.After a close encounter with death, Tom Morton realised he needed a change of pace and perspective. He decided to become the only independent funeral celebrant on the remote Shetland Islands, an unusual new profession that would lead him on an extraordinary journey into the world of the dead. In a vivid narrative that reveals the fascinating realm of the unspoken - from extraordinary undertakers and death cafés, to pilgrimages and taboos - Tom quickly learns that death and speaking for the dead requires you to think on your feet and often take a magpie approach to faith and philosophy. From Humanism to hymns, Theravada Buddhism to Star Wars theology, he discovers the importance of ritual, humour, and the empowering act of trying to find words for something beyond language itself.This is an accessible and thought-provoking guide to celebrating mortality. When grief must be an inevitable part of life, Tom shows how we can mourn together in a way that feels appropriate to the life of the one who has passed on, and ultimately cultivate a healthy attitude to our own eventual demise.
It Was All a Dream: A New Generation Confronts the Broken Promise to Black America
by Reniqua AllenYoung Black Americans have been trying to realize the promise of the American Dream for centuries and coping with the reality of its limitations for just as long. Now, a new generation is pursuing success, happiness, and freedom -- on their own terms. In It Was All a Dream, Reniqua Allen tells the stories of Black millennials searching for a better future in spite of racist policies that have closed off traditional versions of success. Many watched their parents and grandparents play by the rules, only to sink deeper and deeper into debt. They witnessed their elders fight to escape cycles of oppression for more promising prospects, largely to no avail. Today, in this post-Obama era, they face a critical turning point.Interweaving her own experience with those of young Black Americans in cities and towns from New York to Los Angeles and Bluefield, West Virginia to Chicago, Allen shares surprising stories of hope and ingenuity. Instead of accepting downward mobility, Black millennials are flipping the script and rejecting White America's standards. Whether it means moving away from cities and heading South, hustling in the entertainment industry, challenging ideas about gender and sexuality, or building activist networks, they are determined to forge their own path. Compassionate and deeply reported, It Was All a Dream is a celebration of a generation's doggedness against all odds, as they fight for a country in which their dreams can become a reality.
It Was Always a Choice: Picking Up the Baton of Athlete Activism
by David SteeleThe recent flashpoint of Colin Kaepernick taking a knee renews a long tradition of athlete-activists speaking out against racism, injustice, and oppression. Like Kaepernick, Jackie Robinson, Paul Robeson, Muhammad Ali, Bill Russell, Tommie Smith, and John Carlos—among many others, of all races, male and female, pro and amateur—all made the choice to take a side to command public awareness and attention rather than “shut up and play,” as O. J. Simpson, Michael Jordan, and Tiger Woods did. Using their celebrity to demand change, these activists inspired fans but faced great personal and professional risks in doing so. It Was Always a Choice traces the history and impact of these decisive moments throughout the history of U.S. sports. David Steele identifies the resonances and antecedents throughout the twentieth century of the choices faced by athletes in the post-Kaepernick era, including the advance of athletes’ political organizing in the era of activism following the death of George Floyd. He shows which athletes chose silence instead of action—“dropping the baton,” as it were—in the movement to end racial inequities and violence against Black Americans. The examples of courageous athletes multiply as LeBron James, Megan Rapinoe and the activist-athletes of the NBA, WNBA, and NFL remain committed to fighting daily and vibrantly for social change.
It Was Vulgar and It Was Beautiful: How AIDS Activists Used Art to Fight a Pandemic
by Jack LoweryShortlisted for the J. Anthony Lukas PrizeThe story of art collective Gran Fury—which fought back during the AIDS crisis through direct action and community-made propaganda—offers lessons in love and grief. In the late 1980s, the AIDS pandemic was annihilating queer people, intravenous drug users, and communities of color in America, and disinformation about the disease ran rampant. Out of the activist group ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power), an art collective that called itself Gran Fury formed to campaign against corporate greed, government inaction, stigma, and public indifference to the epidemic. Writer Jack Lowery examines Gran Fury&’s art and activism from iconic images like the &“Kissing Doesn&’t Kill&” poster to the act of dropping piles of fake bills onto the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Lowery offers a complex, moving portrait of a collective and its members, who built essential solidarities with each other and whose lives evidenced the profound trauma of enduring the AIDS crisis. Gran Fury and ACT UP&’s strategies are still used frequently by the activists leading contemporary movements. In an era when structural violence and the devastation of COVID-19 continue to target the most vulnerable, this belief in the power of public art and action persists.
It Wasn't About Slavery: Exposing the Great Lie of the Civil War
by Samuel W. Mitcham Jr.The Great Lie of the Civil War If you think the Civil War was fought to end slavery, you&’ve been duped. In fact, as distinguished military historian Samuel Mitcham argues in his provocative new book, It Wasn&’t About Slavery, no political party advocated freeing the slaves in the presidential election of 1860. The Republican Party platform opposed the expansion of slavery to the western states, but it did not embrace abolition. The real cause of the war was a dispute over money and self-determination. Before the Civil War, the South financed most of the federal government—because the federal government was funded by tariffs, which were paid disproportionately by the agricultural South that imported manufactured goods. Yet, most federal government spending and subsidies benefited the North. The South wanted a more limited federal government and lower tariffs—the ideals of Thomas Jefferson—and when the South could not get that, it opted for independence. Lincoln was unprepared when the Southern states seceded, and force was the only way to bring them—and their tariff money—back. That was the real cause of the war. A well-documented and compelling read by a master historian, It Wasn&’t About Slavery will change the way you think about Abraham Lincoln, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the cause and legacy of America&’s momentous Civil War.
It Will Shock You How Much It Never Happened
by Chuck KlostermanOriginally collected in Eating the Dinosaur and now available both as a stand-alone essay and in the ebook collection Chuck Klosterman on Media and Culture, this essay is about advertising.
It Will Yet Be Heard: A Polish Rabbi's Witness of the Shoah and Survival
by Leon ThorneNobel laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer once described Dr. Leon Thorne’s memoir as a work of “bitter truth” that he compared favorably to the works of Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Proust. Out of print for over forty years, this lost classic of Holocaust literature now reappears in a revised, annotated edition, including both Thorne’s original 1961 memoir Out of the Ashes: The Story of a Survivor and his previously unpublished accounts of his arduous postwar experiences in Germany and Poland. Rabbi Thorne composed his memoir under extraordinary conditions, confined to a small underground bunker below a Polish peasant’s pigsty. But, It Will Yet Be Heard is remarkable not only for the story of its composition, but also for its moral clarity and complexity. A deeply religious man, Rabbi Thorne bore witness to forced labor camps, human degradation, and the murders of entire communities. And once he emerged from hiding, he grappled not only with survivor’s guilt, but also with the lingering antisemitism and anti-Jewish violence in Poland even after the war ended. Harrowing, moving, and deeply insightful, Rabbi Thorne’s firsthand account offers a rediscovered perspective on the twentieth century’s greatest tragedy.
It's (Almost) Always Sunny in Philadelphia: How Three Friends Spent $200 to Create the Longest-Running Live-Action Sitcom in History and Help Build a Network
by Kimberly PottsIn the bestselling traditions of Seinfeldia and Top of the Rock comes a fascinating deep dive into the longest-running live-action sitcom in television history, from its humble beginnings to its evolution as a critically acclaimed cult classic comedy.Charlie, Dennis, Mac, Sweet Dee, and Frank are deplorable characters. They will never mature, become more self-aware, or less self-involved. That is what the creators of It&’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are committed to—and that&’s why the show&’s millions of devoted fans have stuck with the cult comedy hit for over sixteen seasons and counting. Created in 2005 by stars Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, and Charlie Day, unemployed actors with a pair of Law & Order guest appearances as the highlights of their collective resume, the frustrated trio drafted a homemade TV pilot. A few months and $200 later (the cost of videotapes, pizza for their friends who volunteered as extras, and a broomstick to tape their boom mic to), It&’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia was ready for its network debut. All major parties either passed or were interested but wanted creative control. And then came FX looking to shake up cable TV. Willing to allow McElhenney, Howerton, and Day complete freedom to deconstruct the traditional sitcom, new president John Landgraf agreed to take a chance. No one had any idea how big of a success it would be. With FX&’s one creative note—the hiring of Danny DeVito—adding the final piece of the puzzle, It&’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has enjoyed a steady climb to high ratings, critical acclaim, and a place in the cultural zeitgeist. Now, how the show and its creators have accomplished this is revealed with this in-depth, behind-the-scenes celebration. As thoughtful, provocative, and engaging as the show itself, this book also explores how the show has pushed the envelope and used absurdist comedy to explore major societal issues, including the #MeToo movement, LGBTQ+ rights, racism, and more. It also asks, what does the future hold for The Gang? It certainly won&’t include the characters&’ personal growth, but the show itself continues to move forward, adding to its dynamic history with each season.
It's About Damn Time: How to Turn Being Underestimated into Your Greatest Advantage
by Arlan Hamilton"THIS BOOK IS A GIFT TO ANYONE WHO HAS EVER FELT UNDERESTIMATED." ELIZABETH UVIEBINENÉ, bestselling co-author of Slay in Your Lane and Loud Black Girls"IF YOU WANT TO FEEL INSPIRED, READ THIS NOW." JAMEELA JAMIL, actress, model, and writerFrom a black, gay woman who broke into the boys' club of Silicon Valley comes an empowering guide to finding your voice, working your way into any room you want to be in, and achieving your own dreams.In 2015, Arlan Hamilton was on food stamps and sleeping on the floor of the San Francisco airport, with nothing but an old laptop and a dream of breaking into the venture capital business. She couldn't understand why people starting companies all looked the same (white and male), and she wanted the chance to invest in the ideas and people who didn't conform to this image of how a founder is supposed to look. Hamilton had no contacts or network in Silicon Valley, no background in finance - not even a college degree. What she did have was fierce determination and the will to succeed.As much as we wish it weren't so, we still live in a world where being underrepresented often means being underestimated. But as someone who makes her living investing in high-potential founders who also happen to be female, LGBTQ, or people of color, Hamilton understands that being undervalued simply means that a big upside exists. Because even if you have to work twice as hard to get to the starting line, she says, once you are on a level playing field, you will sprint ahead. Despite what society would have you believe, Hamilton argues, a privileged background, an influential network, and a fancy college degree are not prerequisites for success. Here she shares the hard-won wisdom she's picked up on her remarkable journey from food-stamp recipient to venture capitalist, with lessons like "The Best Music Comes from the Worst Breakups," "Let Someone Shorter Stand in Front of You," "The Dangers of Hustle Porn," and "Don't Let Anyone Drink Your Diet Coke." Along the way, she inspires us all to defy other people's expectations and to become the role models we've been looking for.
It's About Damn Time: How to Turn Being Underestimated into Your Greatest Advantage
by Arlan Hamilton"IF YOU WANT TO FEEL INSPIRED, READ THIS NOW." JAMEELA JAMIL, actress, model, and writerFrom a black, gay woman who broke into the boys' club of Silicon Valley comes an empowering guide to finding your voice, working your way into any room you want to be in, and achieving your own dreams.In 2015, Arlan Hamilton was on food stamps and sleeping on the floor of the San Francisco airport, with nothing but an old laptop and a dream of breaking into the venture capital business. She couldn't understand why people starting companies all looked the same (white and male), and she wanted the chance to invest in the ideas and people who didn't conform to this image of how a founder is supposed to look. Hamilton had no contacts or network in Silicon Valley, no background in finance - not even a college degree. What she did have was fierce determination and the will to succeed.As much as we wish it weren't so, we still live in a world where being underrepresented often means being underestimated. But as someone who makes her living investing in high-potential founders who also happen to be female, LGBTQ, or people of color, Hamilton understands that being undervalued simply means that a big upside exists. Because even if you have to work twice as hard to get to the starting line, she says, once you are on a level playing field, you will sprint ahead. Despite what society would have you believe, Hamilton argues, a privileged background, an influential network, and a fancy college degree are not prerequisites for success. Here she shares the hard-won wisdom she's picked up on her remarkable journey from food-stamp recipient to venture capitalist, with lessons like "The Best Music Comes from the Worst Breakups," "Let Someone Shorter Stand in Front of You," "The Dangers of Hustle Porn," and "Don't Let Anyone Drink Your Diet Coke." Along the way, she inspires us all to defy other people's expectations and to become the role models we've been looking for.(P) 2020 Penguin Random House Audio
It's All Absolutely Fine: Life is complicated, so I've drawn it instead
by Ruby ElliotIT'S ALL ABSOLUTELY FINE is a darkly comic, honest and unapologetic account of daily struggles with mental health and what it's like trying to be a person when you feel like a potato. This book walks readers through the ups, downs and sideways of life, illuminating very real problems, all with Ruby's trademark originality and humour. It's an empowering book that will make you think, make you laugh, and make things that little bit more ok.
It's All Chinese to Me
by Pierre Ostrowski Gwen PennerReady to gain insight into China in a fascinating way? It's All Chinese to Me is a comprehensive overview of Chinese culture that allows you to peer into what makes the Chinese people tick.Firsthand tips, insights and fun cartoon-like illustrations give you graphic impressions of the real China, and allow you to get a feel not only for what it's like, but how to survive the cultural differences. Covering everything from major influences and historical events that guide Chinese behavior to social idiosyncrasies that surprise most Westerners, It's All Chinese to Me helps demystify Chinese culture for Westerners.
It's All Chinese to Me
by Pierre Ostrowski Gwen PennerReady to gain insight into China in a fascinating way? It's All Chinese to Me is a comprehensive overview of Chinese culture that allows you to peer into what makes the Chinese people tick.Firsthand tips, insights and fun cartoon-like illustrations give you graphic impressions of the real China, and allow you to get a feel not only for what it's like, but how to survive the cultural differences. Covering everything from major influences and historical events that guide Chinese behavior to social idiosyncrasies that surprise most Westerners, It's All Chinese to Me helps demystify Chinese culture for Westerners.
It's All Chinese to Me
by Pierre Ostrowski Gwen PennerPicture yourself in China with this fun, graphic-novel inspired introduction to China, its culture and people!Ready to gain insight into Chinese culture in a fascinating way? This comprehensive introduction to Chinese culture lets you peer into what makes China unique--its people. Firsthand tips, background info, and illustrations give you graphic impressions of the real China, and allow you to get a feel for not only what it's like, but how to survive the cultural differences. You'll find out about:Major influences and historical events that guide Chinese behaviorKey concepts crucial to interacting with Chinese peopleSocial idiosyncrasies that surprise most WesternersDealing with culture shock in ChinaPeculiarities of Chinese business cultureIn It's All Chinese to Me, you'll find the core insights to help demystify Chinese culture for Westerners."Offers a balanced view of China's cultural strengths and weaknesses and should be required reading for international travelers. Highly recommended."--Midwest Book Review"An excellent job of illustrating many of the common issues people may encounter while in China. Bravo!"--Mark Rowswell, AKA Dashan, performer and cultural ambassador <P><P> <i>Advisory: Bookshare has learned that this book offers only partial accessibility. We have kept it in the collection because it is useful for some of our members. Benetech is actively working on projects to improve accessibility issues such as these.</i>
It's All Greek To Me: From Homer to the Hippocratic Oath, How Ancient Greece Has Shaped Our World
by Charlotte HigginsA lively look at the influence of Ancient Greece on contemporary culture—“A primer, lavish lecture and love song” (Kirkus Reviews).Why is ancient Greece important? Because, quite simply, if we want to understand the modern Western world, we need to look back to the Greeks. Consider the way we think about ethics, about the nature of beauty and truth, about our place in the universe, about our mortality. All this we have learned from the ancient Greeks. They molded the basic disciplines and genres in which we still organize thought, from poetry to drama, from medicine to philosophy, from history to ethnography.Packed with useful facts, including a timeline, a “mythology for dummies,” a who’s who, a guide to Homer’s epics, and a handy map for those struggling to know their Lemnos from their Lesbos, It’s All Greek to Me is an entertaining and insightful tour through the world of the ancient Greeks. Why are some laws Draconian? What is an Achilles’ heel? Why were the Spartans spartan? Charlotte Higgins provides these answers and more, arming average readers with the knowledge they need to understand the Greeks and their tremendous contributions to our lives. This book aims to unlock the richness of a fascinating culture and place it where it should be—in the mainstream of life.
It's All In The Frijoles: 100 Famous Latinos Share Real Life Stories Time Tested Dichos Favorite Folkta
by Yolanda NavaCollected folktales, lullabies, poems, sayings, and dichos from well-known and beloved Latin figures, both past and present—from actor Edward James Olmos and author Isabel Allende to Nobel laureate Octavio Paz and Saint Teresa de Avila.Do you wish you could remember all the words to the childhood songs your grandmother taught you, so you could sing them to your children? Have you ever found yourself repeating the dichos, or proverbs, your parents used to lecture you with? If you are looking for a way to get back in touch with your culture, It's All in the Frijoles is the perfect start. A treasure trove of cherished folktales, lullabies, poems, and dichos, this rich collection of Latino wisdom includes inspiring recollections and anecdotes by well-known and beloved figures, both past and present -- from actor Edward James Olmos and author Isabel Allende to Nobel laureate Octavio Paz and Saint Teresa de Avila. It's All in the Frijoles is certain to evoke with fondness many a childhood memory of essential teachings learned from parents and grandparents, including: El hombre debe ser feo, fuerte, y formal. A man should be homely, hardy, and honorable. El consejo de la mujer es poco y él que no lo agarra es loco. The advice of a woman is very scarce and the person who does not heed it is crazy. Pueblo dividido, pueblo vencido. A people divided, a people conquered. It's All in the Frijoles captures and perpetuates the essence of Latino tradition and is destined to become a family treasure that is passed down from generation to generation. This legacy of wisdom provides food for thought not only for Latinos but also for people of all other ethnic backgrounds.
It's All a Game: The History of Board Games from Monopoly to Settlers of Catan
by Tristan Donovan“[A] timely book . . . a wonderfully entertaining trip around the board, through 4,000 years of game history.” —The Wall Street JournalBoard games have been with us even longer than the written word. But what is it about this pastime that continues to captivate us well into the age of smartphones and instant gratification?In It’s All a Game, Tristan Donovan, British journalist and author of Replay: The History of Video Games, opens the box on the incredible and often surprising history and psychology of board games. He traces the evolution of the game across cultures, time periods, and continents, from the paranoid Chicago toy genius behind classics like Operation and Mouse Trap, to the role of Monopoly in helping prisoners of war escape the Nazis, and even the scientific use of board games today to teach artificial intelligence how to reason and how to win. With these compelling stories and characters, Donovan ultimately reveals why board games—from chess to Monopoly to Risk and more—have captured hearts and minds all over the world for generations.“Splendid . . . A quick and breezy read, it doesn’t just tell the fascinating stories of the (often struggling) individuals who created our favorite games. It also manages to convey the entire sweep of board game history, from the earliest forms of checkers to modern-day surprise hits like Settlers of Catan.” —Mashable“Artfully weaves together culture, business, and ways games impact society.” —Booklist“A fascinating and insightful discussion not only of games past, but the socioeconomic and historical factors that contributed to their popularity.” —Chicago Review of Books
It's Always Been Ours: Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies
by Jessica Wilson MS, RDWE WILL REWRITE THE NARARTIVE OF BLACKNESS THAT CENTERS AND CELEBRATES OUR JOY. In It&’s Always Been Ours eating disorder specialist and storyteller Jessica Wilson challenges us to rethink what having a "good" body means in contemporary society. By centering the bodies of Black women in her cultural discussions of body image, food, health, and wellness, Wilson argues that we can interrogate white supremacy&’s hold on us and reimagine the ways we think about, discuss, and tend to our bodies. A narrative that spans the year of racial reckoning (that wasn't), It&’s Always Been Ours is an incisive blend of historical documents, contemporary writing, and narratives of clients, friends, and celebrities that examines the politics of body liberation. Wilson argues that our culture&’s fixation on thin, white women reinscribes racist ideas about Black women's bodies and ways of being in the world as "too much." For Wilson, this white supremacist, capitalist undergirding in wellness movements perpetuates a culture of respectability and restriction that force Black women to perform unhealthy forms of resilience and strength at the expense of their physical and psychological needs. With just the right mix of wit, levity, and wisdom, Wilson shows us how a radical reimagining of body narratives is a prerequisite to well-being. It&’s Always Been Ours is a love letter that celebrates Black women&’s bodies and shows us a radical and essential path forward to rediscovering their vulnerability and joy.
It's Been Beautiful: Soul! and Black Power Television
by Gayle WaldSoul! was where Stevie Wonder and Earth, Wind & Fire got funky, where Toni Morrison read from her debut novel, where James Baldwin and Nikki Giovanni discussed gender and power, and where Amiri Baraka and Stokely Carmichael enjoyed a sympathetic forum for their radical politics. Broadcast on public television between 1968 and 1973, Soul!, helmed by pioneering producer and frequent host Ellis Haizlip, connected an array of black performers and public figures with a black viewing audience. In It's Been Beautiful, Gayle Wald tells the story of Soul!, casting this influential but overlooked program as a bold and innovative use of television to represent and critically explore black identity, culture, and feeling during a transitional period in the black freedom struggle.