Book Description

Thomas Ashby (1874-1931), the first scholar and third Director of the British School at Rome died tragically when he tumbled from a train. His ‘The Roman Campagna in Classical Times' remains a classic work of topographic research. This book, written by another former Director, tells the story of his life as an academic, as the Director responsible for building the British School at Rome in the Valle Giulia, as an ambulance driver in the First World War, as an avid photographer and, in the author's view, as the victim of the British tendency towards dark moral judgement.

Richard Hodges is Professor of World Archaeology at the University of East Anglia. Previously he was Director of the British School at Rome. He is a world-renowned expert on the Late Antique Period in the Mediterranean and is currently excavating at the site of Butrint in Albanian. ... Read more

Book Description

An examination of changing representations of gender through an analysis of obituary texts. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

MUCH GIVEN? MUCH REQUIRED! (Luke 12:48)
Dave Burgess' commitment to social justice began in the American missionary culture of his childhood in China and continued through his student years at Oberlin College and Union Theological Seminary in the late thirties. He and his wife Alice lived and worked side by side with farm and factory workers in several states in the 1940's, combining community organizing with Dave's ministry as an ordained United Church of Christ clergyman. In the fifties Dave worked closely with the labor unions. In the sixties he was invited into high level agency leadership positions in India, Burma and Indonesia. His book has fascinating material on the Peace Corps, UNICEF, and the insatiable curiosity of the FBI. As a sixties India Peace Corps volunteer myself I read these chapters closely.

So now here is Dave, living in Benicia and still dedicated to justice, peace, and serving the poor. He is active in the local UCC congregation. He founded the Affordable Housing Affiliation, which has broken ground for a small low income housing complex, the first to be built in Benicia for two decades.

Dave celebrated his 83rd birthday recently. I have had the honor of meeting him; we live in the same small California city. You will find his memoirs inspirational. I pray that we can all take to heart the words of Jesus that Dave Burgess lives by: "From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required..." Deacon Susan M. Reeve, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Benicia, CA.

A PROPHET FOR OUR TIMES
"A generation's history would be incomplete without this story told by Dave Burgess. He and his wife Alice continue to draw from deep aquifers of faith 'to do justly, and love mercy, and to walk humbly with their God.' No pilgrim has left surer footprints of faith and service." Bill Moyers, from the Foreword.

"A fascinating story of a rank and file U.S. worker and strong family man, who projected U.S. democracy onto the grassroots of distant lands and foreign cultures. Its vibrant text and captivating personal photos will inspire all who open its pages." Victor Reuther, former Assistant to the late Walter Reuther, AFL-CIO Vice President.

"From his decades of unswerving dedication to justice and peace, David Burgess has distilled the highlights of service to the poor, and to his God. An extremely rich and rewarding autobiography of a remarkable man." James MacGregor Burns, historian and Professor Emeritus, Williams College.

"Burgess has given us a superbly worded, clearly organized, authentic personal account of his ethical and vigorous life of public service as first a sensitive student, then a political activist and labor organizer, a Christian, minister and USFS official, and as a versatile striver for a better life for all people." Alexander Heard, Chancellor Emeritus, Vanderbilt University.

"David Burgess represents the very best of Christian social activism in our time. In these days when some of us have so much and so many so little, David's honest and well told commitment to progressive social change is a source of inspiration and instruction. It deserves to be read by all those who desire an inside view of the history of vigorous social activism over seven decades, as well as by those committed to building a more just and caring society in the immediate years ahead." Paul Sherry, former President of the United Church of Christ.

"This book provides us with a new way to understand the history of social activism from the 1930s through the 1990s. Specifically, Burgess's story sheds light on American social gospel-inspired liberalism as it manifests itself in pacifism, labor union organizing, international humanitarianism, and inner city church work and development. The life story approach provides a personal perspective and insight into the ideas, motivations, and satisfactions associated with this work. More importantly for our historical understanding, by telling his own story, Burgess helps us to see the connections between what might seem on the surface to be very different movements. Fighting For Social Justice will help students, historians and the general reader to get a sense of the cohesiveness of American left-liberal reform in the mid-twentieth century." History Professor Tracy E. K'Meyer, University of Louisville. ... Read more

Book Description

This collection of essays focuses on Weber's political ideology as well as his political sociology. This interdisciplinary work draws upon the expertise of a number of writers and challenges major schools of thought on Weber. In the first section on ideology, scholars question whether Weber's political predictions were based on a realistic appraisal of social development or if his objectivity was compromised by events in Weimar Germany. They then address Weber's attitudes toward socialism in light of contemporary sociology and his early writings. Part two examines Weber's theory: the concept of rationalization; ideas about charisma; and the decline of charisma in light of the growing role of the media. A study of Weber's analysis of the 1917 events in Russia concludes the volume. ... Read more

Book Description

Sir Leon Radzinowicz is one of the key figures in the development of criminology in the twentieth century. This account of the development of criminology intertwines his personal narrative as a criminologist with the progression of criminology itself. ... Read more

Book Description

Howard W. Odum (1884-1954), the pioneering social scientist and founder of the University of North Carolina's department of sociology, played a leading--and well-documented--role in the modernization of the South. Until now, however, there has been no book-length study of Odum's contributions to southern folklore, which had important but largely unappreciated consequences for his legacy of social justice.

Lynn Moss Sanders shows how Odum, as a collector of African American blues and work songs, anticipated some important precepts of modern folklore. Notably, Odum perceived the benefits of a collaborative and nonhierarchical approach to folk studies. By putting himself in a position to learn from a more tolerant former student and from one of his black folk informants, Odum became receptive to changing his paternal, segregationist attitudes about race.

Comparing Odum's two song collections, The Negro and His Songs(1925) and Negro Workaday Songs (1926), Sanders links the growing influence of his coauthor, former student Guy Johnson, to a decrease in instances of racial condescension between the first and second book. Sanders's comparison of the three "folk" novels in Odum's Black Ulysses trilogy (completed in 1931) reveals a progressive refinement of Odum's racial views. Sanders attributes this to Odum's ability to see John Wesley "Left-Wing" Gordon, the black, working-class model for the trilogy's hero, as a friend and not simply as a representative of "the Negro."

Odum's journey took him from authorship of Social and Mental Traits of the Negro (1910), now a relic of scientific racism, to his final publication, Agenda for Integration. His life and career form a remarkable story of how folklore changed the folklorist--a change felt by a whole generation of southern liberals whose work Odum encouraged and shaped. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

this book got me into taxi driving
This is a true view behind the yellow curtain of the taxi staging lot at any major airport in the states. And how owners and drivers interact.

Very good book!
I've read this book in Russian (Russian version is called "Yellow Kings"), and now eager to read it in English. Book is very interesting and author's style is perfect. And, more important - book describes real life, with it humorous and sad moments. I'm Russian and when I first went to NYC - I saw the city the same "way" as the author did... ... Read more

Book Description

Richard "Dick" Downing (1915-1975) was an influential and intriguing figure in Australian public life. This biography examines his rich and complex contributions to public debate in Australia. Downing's interests ranged widely, from economics to the arts and education, and their expression reveals much about Australian politics and society. Included are many revealing insights into the discussion and formation of public policy during the post war decades and into a particular style of Australian liberalism. ... Read more

Book Description

Nicolás Córdoba has attempted the incredible--smuggling his way into the United States in a submerged airpocket above the rudder of an oil tanker. Read the extraordinary account of an ordinary man, his deprived background in Colombia, the hopes and dreams that led him to attempt so dangerous an entry into the land of plenty and how his dream turned into a nightmare of incarceration for drug smuggling--a crime for which he claims complete innocence. ... Read more

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Now a professor of ethnic studies in California, RoxanneDunbar-Ortiz turns her eye back to her own roots as a "Dust Bowl Baby"in rural Oklahoma. In telling the story of her family and their hardshipsin the Depression, Dunbar-Ortiz introduces the reader to somefascinating characters who are certainly not the "white trash" caricaturesof popular belief. Interspersed well with her own story are historicalfacts that give depth to the narrative and correct popular misconceptionsabout "Okies" (some of which were popularized by John Steinbeck inThe Grapes of Wrath). ... Read more

Reviews (7)

history and struggles of the frontier settler class
...
The best of autobiographical works are those that convey, in the telling of one life story, larger truths than those we experience as individuals. To accomplish this feat with seeming effortlessness, as Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz has done with Red Dirt, is to create not only a valuable historical record, but a literary work that is a pleasure to read. Employing the finest storytelling skills, Dunbar-Ortiz lovingly recollects her youth in Oklahoma and the family dynamics she experienced "growing up Okie" during the mid-20th-century. In the process, she touches upon a host of social issues--among them racism, sexism, and economic disparity--that have plagued the U.S. since its earliest days. Perhaps most importantly, she offers one resounding voice from among a vast population--namely, the white underclass--that consistently has been underrepresented in historical texts, and misrepresented in popular culture. Exploding the notion of 'poor white trash,' Dunbar-Ortiz offers three-dimensional alternative as she reconstructs through her personal memoir the history and struggles of the frontier settler class and its descendants. As we move into the next century, Red Dirt is a text of vital significance to our collective humanity

could not put down
if you like books about the old way of living,you will love this book. it brings back memories of my childhood...

A New Fan
I grew up in central Oklahoma and can identify with many of the themes Ms. Dunbar-Ortiz writes about in Red Dirt. I think anyone who is on a journey of self-discovery or is attempting to reconcile his or her past will enjoy this book as much as I did. I rarely read literature about Oklahoma that makes me proud to be an "Okie" - this book does just that.

A Must Read
I love this book. A book written about my home state with honesty and clarity of what it means to be Okie. Class struggles, hard working people, historic pain and abuse and the eventual dementia of a woman struggling with her suppressed indianess. Keep the spirit of the Wobblies alive!

Dunbar-Ortiz has produced an American classic in biography.
With the publication of Red Dirt Dunbar-Ortiz has made a major contribution to American biography. She has managed to write a Steinbeckian account of her childhood and youth in Oklahoma in the 1950s. The humanity and oppression of poor white people is writ large here. Red Dirt is informed by a feminist and class analysis but with great grace and touching honesty. like Meridel LeSueur's novels of 60 years ago, Dunbar-Ortiz shows the quotidian lives of working people who are ignored or riduculed by the outside world. The book is clear eyed and rich in detail. I used the book as a required text in a Sex and Gender course and it was a great hit among my students. ... Read more