Literature / History

Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.A.: Belknap Press, 2005. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. The ink was barely dry on the Constitution when it was almost destroyed by the rise of political parties in the United States. As Bruce Ackerman shows, the Framers had not anticipated the two-party system, and when Republicans battled Federalists for the presidency in 1800, the rules laid down by the Constitution exacerbated the crisis. With Republican militias preparing to march on Washington, the House of Representatives deadlocked between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. Based on seven years of archival research, this book describes previously unknown aspects of the electoral college crisis. Ackerman shows how Thomas Jefferson counted his Federalist rivals out of the House runoff, and how the Federalists threated to place John Marshall in the presidential chair. Nevertheless, the Constitution managed to survive through acts of statesmanship and luck. The transformation of the presidency serves as the basis for a new look at Marbury v. Madison, the case that first asserted the Supreme Court's power of judicial review. Ackerman shows that Marbury is best seen in combination with another case, Stuart v. Laird, as part of a retreat by the Court in the face of the plebiscitarian presidency. This "switch in time" proved crucial to the Court's survival, allowing it to integrage Federalist and Republican themes into the living Constitution of the early republic. 384 pages, including documents, notes, and an extensive index. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.: William Morrow & Co, 2004. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. Photographs. She is the most famous, most complex, most loved/hated/admired/reviled woman - perhaps person - in America. And, whether she fulfills her life's ambition or not, she can already lay claim to being the first woman ever considered a serious contender for the presidency. Now a power in the senate, Hillary is at the right moment to make her own run for the White House. This book draws on important sources - many speaking here for the first time - to paint a startling portrait of America's most controversial woman. And there are some wonderful quotes from Hillary, such as "I want to run something." Will she get her chance? 292 pages including notes, bibliography, and index. 32 pages of photographs included. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Phoenix Mill, UK: Budding Books, 1997. Reprint. Hard Cover. New/New. Photographs, Drawings, Letters. 'Debt is the worst poverty' runs an old proverb. Whether by misfortune or mismanagement, debt has continually brought misery to the minority - just as much in previous centuries as in the credit society of the 1990s. In this fascinating and highly readable book, Hugh Barty-King provides a well-researched insight into the behaviour of the age-old principles involved: Buyer/debtor and selller/creditor, money-borrower and money-lender, banker, mortgager, pawnbroker - and those on the sidelines who set the rules and offer advice such as lawmakers, preachers, leader writers, tract writers, playwrights and authors. Chapter one is set in the Middle Ages when credit was based upon 'the exchange of two deferred promises'. As the story unfolds, chapter by chapter through the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, further intriguing facts about debt emerge. For some, debt was a way of lilfe; for others, like Lord Chesterfield and Samuel Smiles, a state to be avoided at all costs, and for Lady Hamilton, to be ignored until there were no ex-lovers to save her from the Sponging House. In more recent times overindebtedness has often become the only way out, with banks, building societies and high-street stores only too eager to provide 'easy' credit in an attempt to encourage the customer to spend, spend, spend. Illustrated informatively throughout. 214 pages including a bibliography and index. The binding is a glossy pictorial, same as the jacket. The jacket back has a few small wrinkles and a 4" diagonal wrinkle. 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall. more information

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Phoenix Mill, UK: Sutton Pub Ltd, 2003. First Printing. Hard Cover. New/New. The Lost City of Solomon & Sheba is a gripping story of discovery and detection set in one of the most mysterious ancient civilizations, the heart of south-central Africa. It is an ancient ruined civilization comprising several thousand stone structures - many as large as modern towns - and all surrounded by thousands of abandoned gold mines. The author grew up in this part of Africa and has devoted a lifetime to researching the origins of this lost culture, reaching a convincing and exotic conclusion. This book will appeal to all those interested in African history and archeology and to anyone fascinated by lost cities, ruined temples or abandoned gold mines. 256 pages with index, bibliography, photos and line drawings. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: Harry N Abrams Inc, 1996. No Edition. Soft Cover. New/No Jacket. Photographs and Drawings. This beautifully illustrated little book brings the wonders of weather to our fingertips. Sunny intervals and bands of showers and thunderstorms drift across our television screens accompanied by the voice of the meteorologist. Where does all this information come from? How to weather forecasters judge if it will rain tomorrow or not? From medieval soldiers shooting arrows into threatening clouds to modern scientists analyzing findings made possible through the use of satellites and computer models, this book reveals the story of our weather and - what's more - huminkinds ago-old quest to understand and manage the elements. 159 pages including documents, list of illustrations, further reading, and an index. 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. more information

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New York: Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1996. First American Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. From time immemorial, Mexico's legendary beauty - from its torrid tropical coasts and lush valleys to its high, dry plateaus and towering volcanoes - has been matched by intense historical drama. Mayans, Aztecs, Spanish conquistadors, Yankee and French invaders, dictators, and peasant revolutionaries are not only part of Mexico's past, but still vivid influences in its present. And now Mexico is facing a new time, even as it must stay true to its place in history. Mexicans are struggling to make the transition from authoritarian to democratic politics, writes Fuentes. His bold study discusses the origins and nature of the unforeseen, tumultuous events that have transformed Mexico's politics and society. Fuentes takes on his personal quest for human meaning of this new time; his urgent assessment is a major statement from one of Mexico's wisest, most influential commentators." 216 pages. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Indianapolis, IN: Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., 1968. First Softcover Edition. Soft Cover. Near Fine/No Jacket. Photographs. John Gerassi traveled 2,000 miles through Vietnam and has combined North Vietnamese documents, personal letters, journals and diaries, and interviews with many North Vietnamese (including Ho Chi Minh and Pham Van Dong). Included are many startling photographs and his own observations, all to produce this shocking, overwhelming portrait of a nation at total war. 200 pages, including 24 pages of black & white photographs, 5 appendices and an index. There is also a map in the front showing the areas discussed. The top front corner is slightly bent, and a price sticker remains on the back. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: Times Books, Random House, 1996. Second Printing. Hard Cover. As New/As New. David Harris was the most famous draft resister of the Vietnam War. A former student body president of Stanford University, he refused to accept induction and be sent to Vietnam. As a consequence, he spent nearly two years in a federal prison. With his marriage to Joan Baez, he emerged as the leading moral voice of his generation. For the past two decades he has largely remained silent as the antiwar movement he led stood accused by critics and politicians of everything from cowardice to stab-in-the-back betrayal to frivolity. Now, in Our War, he speaks out in defense of a generation torn by one of the most divisive wars in America's history. This book is a compelling, even fevered account of stalking the war's moral shadow through the decades since its ignominious end. It is a powerful rumination on the war, the protest movement, and America's need, even now, so many years later, for a reckoning. 191 pages. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Gordonsville, Virginia, U.S.A.: St Martins Press, 2002. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. Photographs. Using material newly obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, Fred Jerome weaves information from Einstein's almost two-thousand-page FBI file with the history of the period to create a spy-story-like narrative that also explores Einstein's political dimension. From the moment Albert Einstein arrived in the United States in 1933, until his death in 1955, J. Edgar Hoover's FBI, assisted by several other federal agencies, began feverishly collecting "derogatory information: in an effort to undermine the renowned physicist's influence and destroy his reputation. This book tells the story in depth of that anti-Einstein campaign, explains why and how the campaign originated, and provides the first detailed picture of Einstein's little-known political activism. 358 pages including an appendix, notes, sources, and an index. Additionally, sixteen pages of black & white photographs are included. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: American Heritage Publishing Company, Inc., 1959. Hard Cover. Very Good/Good. Various. This is an original work, none previously published. Four authors tell the story. Historian Allan Nevins sets the stage of each of the 11 chapters with an anecdote-filled history of the period. Others go on to examine the nature and achievement of extraordinary people who built our nation. Many more supplied factual background for the book. Among their finds is an assemblage of old diaries, journals, letters and other documents which are included in a 16-page portfolio. 396 pages with index. Over 480 pictures - 150 in full color. The jacket has a 2" tear at the top corner, a 1" tear at the bottom along the flap, several small folds along the top and bottom and a few chips. The spine ends are chipped with a small closed tear on the spine. The top back has a small tear and a bit of chipping, and the bottom has two small tears. There is an original vertical wrinkle on the back. Oversized. Prior owner's mailing label on inside front. 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall. more information

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Gordonsville, Virginia, U.S.A.: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. Rumors about the mysterious events of one October night would bring down one of Virginia's elite families. "Cynthia Kierner has her hands on a great story and I don't know anyone better equipped to tell it. The Bizarre scandal revealed the declining political and economic influence of the postrevolutionary Virginia gentry, as well as the divisions that emerged in this gentry as it slipped from its previous position of unchallenged authority. Kierner has uncovered a fascinating and long-neglected incident in Virginia's early history, one that can provide new insights in the changing nature of this society after the American Revolution." - Peter Bardaglio, Professor of History, Ithaca College. 246 pages, including a bibliography and index. The spine tail is lightly bumped. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.: Stackpole Books, 2000. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. The Civil War surgeon faced a unique challenge: to answer to two very different authorities. On one hand, he was bound to uphold the principles of medical tradition, while on the other required to obey the regularions of the army. Not every doctor was able to rise to the challenge of these dual responsibilities and many Civil War surgeons ended up facing official sanctions for their alleged medical and/or procedural failures. Undoubtedly, some of these surgeons were guilty of negligence, perhaps even worse. But the great majority did their duty. Even those who fell short raise the question: Could we, with the same challenges and the same limited knowledge, have done better? 258 pages with appendices and index. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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London: Amber Books, 2003. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/No Jacket. This book outlines changing ideas of law and punishment, from the ancient Babylonian Code of Hammurabi through Islamic Sharia Law to modern notions of rehabilitation and the continued practice of corporal and capital punishment. Discover strange and terrible methods of punishment amongs these pages, including the pillory, flogging, branding, hanging, drawing and quartering, the guillotine, the bastinado, death of a thousand cuts, the scavenger's daughter, crucifixion, lethal injections and the electric chair. 192 pages with bibliography and index; well illustrated in black & white. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: Weathervane Books, 1977. No Edition. Hard Cover. Near Fine/Good. Rackham, Arthur. This version, illustrated by Arthur Rackham, is abridged from Malory's Morte D'Arthur, by Alfred W. Pollard. It includes 16 full-color plates and 16 black and white illustrations. The characters are familiar: Lancelot and Guinevere, and Tristan and Isolde, for this is the definitive account of the Arthurian legends, and Pollards is the definitive abridgement. 507 pages with glossary. The pages have a 1 1/4" x 1/2" water stain at the bottom, and a small bump at the top. The corners are very lightly worn. The jacket has a 1" tear at the top front near the spine, and another 1" tear near the flap. There are small tears along the bottom and spine head, and a 1/2" tear at the bottom back. There is also a closed tear at the front gutter, and a water stain on the inside of the jacket that shows through very lightly to the outside, being at the front and spine. Tears are repaired and the jacket is in a protective cover. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: Oxford Univ Press, 2005. First Oxford Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. Photographs. Sea ice and midnight sun, flaming aurora and endless winter night - the arctic of traveler's tales and romantic novels is the unattainable dream of a vast and desolate world - the last imaginary place on Earth. In this fascinating book renowned archeologist Robert McGhee lifts the veil to reveal the true Arctic. Combining anthropology, history, and personal memoir, this book dispels romanticized notions of the Artic as a world apart, exotic and isolated, revealing a land more fascinating than we had imagined. We meet Viking farmers, whalers and ivory-hunters, and explorers racing to reach the North Pole. Most important, McGhee offers more coverage of the native peoples of the Arctic, societies that other histories usually neglect. The author follows the Inuit as they cross the Artic in search of metal, and reveals the dangers that native people face today from pollution and global warming. 296 pages with index and interesting reading; color and black&white photographs. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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College Station, Texas, U.S.A.: Texas A & M Univ Pr, 1994. Stated First Edition. Soft Cover. New/No Jacket. Photographs. This book is your ringside seat to the wildest, craziest, most unbelievable sequence of events in the history of boxing - a colossal clash of giant egos, pulpit-pounding preachers, grandstanding politicians, and indomitable lawmen that reverberated from the marble halls of Congress to the muddy banks of the Rio Grande. And its all absolutely true! The year was 1895, and Dallas gambler Dan Stuart had a modest idea: Promote a boxing carnival featuring a match for the heavyweight championship of the world. But before the final bell, Stuart's dream of the Fight of the Century threatened to become the Fiasco of the Century. This richly detailed true epic of a fight and the hardpunching political and religious turmoil surrounding it will entertain not only sports fans but all who appreciate a well-told tale that demonstrates once and for all that truth can be stranger than fiction - a lot stranger. 243 pages including notes, a bibliography, and an index. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Penguin Books Canada, Limited, 2002. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. Photographs. NEW - In August 1947 in the High Andes, one of the earliest long-haul passanger aircrafts, called the Star Dust, disappeared en route to Santiago, Chile. It left behind only questions: Was it sabotage? Was there a hoard of gold on board? What was the meaning of the radio operator's mysterious final message before the airwaves fell silent? Only with the discovery of the wreckage in January, 2000 could those questions at last begin to be answered. In this fascinating and compelling account, Jay Rayner recreates the events surrounding the loss of Star Dust and its discovery fifty years later, piecing together the lives of the characters involved. Combining the glamour of the early days of long-haul flight with solving one of aviations greatest mysteries, Star Dust Falling is an exhilirating and moving read. 261 pages including 8 pages of photographs. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: W W Norton & Co Inc., 1999. First Edition. Soft Cover. New/No Jacket. Drawings. This book contains many essays on literature, education, and the arts. It is written based on Shattuck's seminal "Nineteen Theses" and form the philosophical basis of this volume. A few of these theses are: Across millions of years we have evolved a fairly stable human nature, which contains an elusive element of freedom; Literature ranges from simple songs and saying to elaborate and extended tales of human deeds; Works that have survived for centuries cannot be dismissed out of hand; Nothing will survive unless it has been uttered; We teach what we hope to learn; In a free society, the primary role of education is the transmission of a heritage, not its primary subversion; There is no literary "canon." Tastes and curricula keep changing. It is our love of literature that remains constant. From these, three major sections unfold: Intellectual Craftsmanship, A Critic's Job of Work, and America, Africa, and Elsewhere, in which several essays address individual personalities, including O'Keefe and Stieglitz, Man Ray, Leopold Senghor, Octavio Paz, Arthur Miller, and others. 415 pages including credits, source of illustrations, and an index. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York: The Platt & Nourse Co.. Hard Cover. Very Good/No Jacket. Xenophon was a soldier, mercenary, and writer. This book, and the journey it narrates is his best known work. Xenophon accompanied the Ten Thousand, a large army of Greek mercenaries hired by Cyrus the Younger, who intended to seize the throne of Persia from his brother, Artaxerxes II. Though Cyrus's army was victorious at Cunaxa in Babylon (401 BC), Cyrus himself was killed in the battle, rendering the victory irrelevant and the expedition a failure. Xenophon played an instrumental role in encouraging the Greek army of 10,000 to march north to the Black Sea. Ultimately they managed to reach the shores, a destination they greeted with joyous exultation on the mountain of Madur in Surmene (from Wikipedia). Literally translated, with explanatory notes. 267 pages. Wear at the corners and spine ends; small spot on the front of cloth cover. 16mo - over 5¾" - 6¾" tall. more information

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New York: Disney Editions, 2001. First Edition. Soft Cover. New/No Jacket. Many questions are examined in The Mythical World of Atlantis, a comprehensive study of the legendary lost empire. Theories about Atlantis proposed by philosphers, historians, and mystics through the ages take their place alongside the evidence revealed in Disney's animated feature. From Plato to Disney, from Jules Verne to Madame Blavatsky, readers will trace the routes of myth and history to discover the truth about the earth's greatest culture: The lost empire of Atlantis. This volume is revised and updated from the original 1915 edition by Preston B. Whitmore, and includes notes and an introduction by noted historian Professor Kyle Van Mitchell, director of the Preston B. Whitemore Archives. 95 pages, illustrated throughout in color and black & white. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, 1994. First Printing. Hard Cover. Near Fine/Fine. The author examines the work of 6 antislavery writers from 19th century Cuba. Recognizing that these slave narratives represent the fledgling articulations of an emerging black voice, and also lay the foundation for 20th century Afro-Hispanic literary expression, she analyzes the authenticity of the slave protagonists' testimony - both in its content and mode of expression. Believing that a major discrepancy exists between the descriptions of slavery in works by writers of African descent and in works by others, the author argues that some antislavery writers were driven by their own personal agendas which often romanticized slavery, rather than by the realities of bondage. 220 pages with bibliography and index. The ffep has a bit of a sticker on it. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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New York, New York, U.S.A.: Da Capo Pr, 2005. First Edition. Hard Cover. New/New. Perhaps no trial changed the course of history so much as one that took place in London in 1772; the case of James Somerset, a black man rescued from a ship bound for the West Indies slave markets. At this landmark trial, two encompassing worldviews clashed in an event of passionate drama and far-reaching significance. Now noted legal historian Steven M. Wise recreates each exciting moment of the case that slave owners contended would do nothing less than bring the economy of the British Empire to a crashing halt. As the case finally drew to a close and defenders of slavery pleaded with Lord Mansfield to maintain the system, the judge spoke the words that continue to resound more than two centuries later: "Let Justice be done, though the Heavens may fall." 282 pages with notes, bibliography and index. Includes photos of relevant paintings. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. more information

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