|
|
|
|
NEW IN PRINT
Books released during the week of June 8, 2009 |  | Chaotic Transitions in Deterministic and Stochastic Dynamical Systems Applications of Melnikov Processes in Engineering, Physics, and Neuroscience Emil Simiu "Highly readable, elegant, and concise. . . . Emil Simiu has succeeded in putting together a highly stimulating book that proposes a promising, unifying approach to various aspects of chaos theory. While encompassing a wide swath of topics, traditionally found only on scattered sources, the book is succinctly written, exhibiting a quality reserved to the best of review works."--Daniel ben-Avraham, Journal of Statistical Physics |
 | Concepts of Mass in Contemporary Physics and Philosophy Max Jammer "An interesting and stimulating mix of physics and philosophical issues. . .Jammer has produced a fascinating look into the nature of a quantity that most of us take for granted . . . and its also fun to read."--Barry R. Holstein, American Scientist |
 | Fantasies of Salvation Democracy, Nationalism, and Myth in Post-Communist Europe Vladimir Tismaneanu "Vladimir Tismanueanu is a prominent essayist and an expert on contemporary policy. He knows everything about Central and Eastern Europe. . .I warmly recommend this book--it is as controversial as it is inspiring."--Adam Michnik, author of Letters from Prison, editor of Wyborcza (Warsaw) |
 | Homecomings Returning POWs and the Legacies of Defeat in Postwar Germany Frank Biess "With Homecomings, Biess has enriched our understanding of the formative post-war years in both East and West Germany. It is a masterful piece of scholarship--and beautifully written."--Bill Niven, Institute of Historical Research |
 | Torture and Democracy Darius Rejali "Torture and Democracy immediately lays claim to be the most compendious and the most rigorous treatment of the subject yet written. Saul Bellow used to say that we are constantly looking for the book it is necessary to read next. On torture, this is it...Torture and Democracy is the anatomy of sneaky. Rejali regales us with tales of every technique of torture known to man...Rejali's analysis of efficacy is exemplary: at once prudent and trenchant, historically alert and morally sentient."--Alex Danchev, Times Higher Education |
Books released during the week of June 1, 2009 |  | Mathematicians An Outer View of the Inner World Mariana Cook With an introduction by R. C. Gunning "The startling contrast between lined faces and lively minds suggests that the passionate pursuit of mathematics is an ideal formula for aging gracefully, even joyfully."--Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind |
Books released during the week of May 25, 2009 |  | Citizens, Courts, and Confirmations Positivity Theory and the Judgments of the American People James L. Gibson & Gregory A. Caldeira "In this exceptionally well-crafted book, Gibson and Caldeira assess changes in the way the media can influence public support for the Supreme Court. This pathbreaking book is every bit as careful, rigorous, and important as we would expect work by these esteemed authors to be."--Jeffrey Segal, Stony Brook University, State University of New York |
 | Civilizations of Ancient Iraq Benjamin R. Foster & Karen Polinger Foster "Civilizations of Ancient Iraq is an elegantly engaging account of cultural and political history around the Tigris and Euphrates rivers from the first human settlements to the coming of Islam. Equally importantly the authors describe the rediscovery of Mesopotamia beginning in the mid-nineteenth century and highlight the dire state of Iraqi heritage today. They deftly interweave quotations from Babylonian and Sumerian literature with the latest archaeological and historical research to bring their narrative to life."--Eleanor Robson, author of Mathematics in Ancient Iraq: A Social History |
 | The Fifth Freedom Jobs, Politics, and Civil Rights in the United States, 1941-1972 Anthony S. Chen "The Fifth Freedom is a masterpiece--a brilliant new take on the history of equal opportunity in America. Chen combines the best traditions of history, sociology, and political science to explain the decades-long effort to bring equal protection to the workplace. This gripping account not only charts the long struggle against workplace discrimination, it explains the origins of our ineffectual system of enforcement."--Frank Dobbin, Harvard University |
 | Inventing Equal Opportunity Frank Dobbin "Inventing Equal Opportunity is the most important work of organizational sociology of the last quarter century. Challenging many of our basic assumptions about social movements and organizational change, this book is a must-read for sociologists concerned with inequality and those attempting to influence corporate responsibility activities in corporations."--David A. Thomas, coauthor of Breaking Through: The Making of Minority Executives in Corporate America |
Books released during the week of May 18, 2009 |  | The Next Justice Repairing the Supreme Court Appointments Process Christopher L. Eisgruber "What do we want in a Supreme Court Justice, and how should we get it? Eisgruber, a former Supreme Court clerk, argues that the first step is to do away with the idea that the process can or should be entirely divorced from politics...Eisgruber's practical recommendations for fixing the confirmation process boil down to having senators stand up for themselves during hearings, unafraid to say no, but his larger point is that, in pursuit of justice, moderation is the paramount virtue."--The New Yorker |
Books released during the week of May 11, 2009 |  | 428 AD An Ordinary Year at the End of the Roman Empire Giusto Traina With a preface by Averil Cameron
"This is one of those books for which one has longed for a very long time. Only by the decision to place one year on the map of an entire segment of Europe and the Middle East is it possible to seize the full dynamics of the history of the later Roman Empire. I have read nothing like it and I have benefitted from it on every page. It is the sense of different landscapes that lingers with the reader, and also the sense of a common imperial energy that pulses through the entire world as here described. It is a tour de force to have found, in this way, a new Archimedes point from which to move the great mass of the history of the fifth century and in such a way that it does not splinter. This is truly a book which opens a window on to the world of late antiquity."--Peter Brown, author of Augustine of Hippo: A Biography |
Books released during the week of April 27, 2009 |  | The Balance of Nature Ecology's Enduring Myth John Kricher
"John Kricher masterfully describes the ancient origins of the concept of a balance of nature and its unquestioned incorporation into the thinking of many ecologists and conservationists. This concept implies an overarching purpose or design in the natural world, making it inconsistent with our understanding of how evolution works. Kricher shows that we can understand and protect natural ecosystems better by rejecting the assumption that nature is a well-designed machine and accepting the true complexity created by numerous interacting species."--Robert Askins, Connecticut College |
 | Palms of Southern Asia Andrew Henderson
"This is a very well-organized field guide. It is clear in its presentation of the facts and the language is without unnecessary complications. The science behind this popular presentation is very sound. The descriptions in general are very concise."--Henrik Balslev, University of Aarhus, Denmark |
 | Philosophy of Mathematics and Natural Science Hermann Weyl With a new introduction by Frank Wilczek
In Philosophy of Mathematics and Natural Science, Weyl examines how advances in philosophy were led by scientific discoveries--the more humankind understood about the physical world, the more curious we became. This is a book that no one but Weyl could have written--and, indeed, no one has written anything quite like it since. |
 | The Politics of Global Regulation Edited by Walter Mattli & Ngaire Woods
"As the world seems poised to recalibrate significantly the respective roles of markets and authority, The Politics of Global Regulation offers timely analytical and experiential guidance about what works, what doesn't, and why. Combining keen general observations with informative cases drawn from international finance, human rights, corporate social responsibility, maritime safety, and international trade, this excellent volume should be required reading for anyone interested in the subject--and these days, that excludes few among us."--John Gerard Ruggie, Harvard University |
 | Resource Strategies of Wild Plants Joseph M. Craine
"This book provides an in-depth historical review and novel synthesis of resource strategies in wild plants. Craine identifies distinct strategies associated with high resource supply and limitations of nutrients, light, water, and carbon dioxide. This multiresource approach to plant strategies overcomes inconsistencies in earlier strategy frameworks and is well-grounded in ecological, biogeochemical, and evolutionary mechanisms that have shaped patterns of terrestrial plant diversity. This book will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in the functional diversity of the planet and its likely future changes."--F. Stuart Chapin III, University of Alaska, Fairbanks |
 | Schoolhouses, Courthouses, and Statehouses Solving the Funding-Achievement Puzzle in America's Public Schools Eric A. Hanushek & Alfred A. Lindseth
"Massive 'reforms' have poured billions of dollars into our schools, but we have yet to see results in terms of student achievement. It is time that we step back from the current bureaucratic policies that emphasize central control and regulation. We need to reward success not failure. This is exactly the message of this thoughtful book by Hanushek and Lindseth. It is a message that should be shouted from the rooftops of Washington and every state capital."--William J. Bennett, Claremont Institute, former U.S. Secretary of Education |
 | When Experiments Travel Clinical Trials and the Global Search for Human Subjects Adriana Petryna
"This thoughtful and reflective book offers us a sobering account of the spread of clinical research in a world without borders and often without norms. Based on careful comparative anthropological research, it both casts light on a gray zone where research, medicine, and capitalism merge, and provides a first-rate example of how an anthropology for the twenty-first century can contribute to our understanding and to the public good."--Paul Rabinow, author of Marking Time |
 | Will to Live AIDS Therapies and the Politics of Survival João Biehl Photographs by Torben Eskerod
"Biehl's powerful ethnography beautifully mixes visual and written portraits of those who lived and died as Brazil developed its public health and policy responses to AIDS. The author gives voice to those at the margins--the poor, the homeless, homosexuals, drug addicts, transvestites, prostitutes--who remained stigmatized and invisible as Brazil universalized access to AIDS therapies. . . . Biehl convincingly argues the importance of understanding the history and politics of AIDS pharmaceuticalization, the role of social mobilization, and the invisibility of the marginalized in official statistics and care in grasping the reality of AIDS in Brazil."--E.J. Schatz, Choice |
Books released during the week of April 20, 2009 |  | A Mathematical Nature Walk John A. Adam
"Finally a book that shows the general reader how mathematics can explain the natural phenomena that we continuously encounter but rarely understand. John Adam answers questions about nature's secrets--many of which we haven't even thought to ask. This is a delightful book."--Alfred S. Posamentier, coauthor of The Fabulous Fibonacci Numbers |
 | Pontius Pilate, Anti-Semitism, and the Passion in Medieval Art Colum Hourihane
"This textual and visual barometer of Pontius Pilate reveals a highly complex picture of a mysterious figure. The chronological span of the book is breathtaking."--Dorothy Verkerk, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill |
 | Portfolios of the Poor How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day Daryl Collins, Jonathan Morduch, Stuart Rutherford & Orlanda Ruthven
"Too often, conversations about the needs of the world's poor are based on assumptions and clichés. This important, carefully researched, and compelling book presents the facts about the poor and their relationship to finance."--Tim Harford, author of The Undercover Economist and The Logic of Life |
 | Pythagoras' Revenge A Mathematical Mystery Arturo Sangalli
"A fascinating thriller that weaves together historical fiction, mathematical intrigue, and mighty philosophical clashes, all with Pythagoras' teachings as a backdrop. It will keep you riveted from the first page to the last."--Eli Maor, author of The Pythagorean Theorem |
 | Remembering Scottsboro The Legacy of an Infamous Trial James A. Miller "Readers will find riveting new perspectives on one of the most important cases in our national history. I have read many books on Scottsboro, but until I read this one, I had no idea of the many and varied representations of this case."--Mary Helen Washington, University of Maryland |
Questions and comments to: webmaster@pupress.princeton.edu
Princeton University Press