In a profound sense, most U.S. citizens are insulated from the realties of the rest of the world. Even with worldwide communication technologies, the major U.S. media filters out much of what goes on beyond American borders, only focusing on major events. Here, a former overseas journalist and writer, Mark Hertsgaard, speaks of how others around the world see the United States.

Whistleblowers pay with their lives to save ours. When insiders like former NSA analyst Edward Snowden or ex-FBI agent Coleen Rowley or Big Tobacco truth-teller Jeffrey Wigand blow the whistle on high-level lying, lawbreaking or other wrongdoing-whether it's government spying, corporate murder or scientific scandal-the public benefits enormously. Wars are ended, deadly products are taken off the market, white-collar criminals are sent to jail. The whistleblowers themselves, however, genera...

Solutions, solutions, solutions. From the Global Green Deal, a comprehensive plan for restoring the Earth, to the inspiring programs and policies of one city that is going green. This program is full of practical strategies to turn eco-centered visions into living realities that deliver jobs and profits.

In 1991, Mark Hertsgaard began an odyssey that lasted six years and spanned nineteen countries. His was a journey into the gripping truth about the escalating environmental crisis. Here, in his remarkable account of his travels, he faces the hard realities of nuclear technology, overpopulation, excessive consumerism and greed, with heart and hope.

Today we are faced with the alarming possibility that as many as 50 percent of species alive will become extinct within this century. This statistic is so staggering that scientists have begun to refer to the twenty-first century as the sixth extinction.” But while this is alarming, all hope is not lost; conservation experts across the globe are working tirelessly to preserve our planet for future generations.In Wild Lives, twenty of these pioneers share their stories via...

The founder of LiveWellWithLess.com “promotes minimalism as a way to fend off ‘stuffocation’ and be happier and more productive” (Publishers Weekly).We simply have too much stuff in our lives. Burdened by our heavy consumerist culture to continually own and consume without purpose, we lose ourselves to debt, dissatisfaction, and despair. If having more, doing more, and being more does not allow us to live abundantly, what can?Minimalism can make al...

**Three meticulously researched works—including Pulitzer Prize winner Bearing the Cross—spanning the life of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.This collection from professor and historian David J. Garrow provides a multidimensional and fascinating portrait of Martin Luther King Jr., and his mission to upend deeply entrenched prejudices in society, and enact legal change that would achieve equality for African Americans one hundred years after their emancipati...

In this necessary memoir, a Florida attorney recounts nearly dying from a mystery illness borne in a high-rise office building.After years of prosecuting hard-core criminals, rising legal star Alan Bell took a private sector job in South Florida’s newest skyscraper. Suddenly, he suffered such bizarre medical symptoms, doctors suspected he’d been poisoned by the Mafia. Bell’s rapidly declining health forced him to flee his glamorous Miami life to a sterile “bubble” ...

Everybody has got to die, but I have always believed an exception would be made in my case.” William Saroyan, Pulitzer Prizewinning authorFamous authors, like everybody else, know that one day they will die. Final Chapters tells the fascinating stories of more than one hundred writers’ encounters with death-and their attitudes toward the Grim Reaper: fear, uncertainty, or acceptance.Francis Bacon wrote, It is as natural to die as to be born,” w...

For word nerds and grammar geeks, a witty guide to the most commonly mispronounced words, along with their correct pronunciations and pithy forays into their fascinating etymologies and histories of use and misuse.With wit and good humor, this handy little book not only saves us from sticky linguistic situations but also provides fascinating cocktail-party-ready anecdotes. Entries reveal how to pronounce boatswain like an old salt on the deck of a ship, trompe ...

"The Ostrich Paradox boldly addresses a key question of our time: Why are we humans so poor at dealing with disastrous risks, and what can we humans do about it? It is a must-read for everyone who cares about risk."—Daniel Kahneman, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics and author of Thinking, Fast and SlowWe fail to evacuate when advised. We rebuild in flood zones. We don't wear helmets. We fail to purchase insurance. We would rather ...

Chris Hedges on the most taboo topics in America, with David Talbot.The War on Terror is a profitable crusade against convenient enemies. Muslim rage” is an understandable response to US state terror. Rising oligarchy in America has made democracy a sham and turned the electoral process into an increasingly absurd circus. Police violence against minorities is part of a systematic effort to crush social discontent. Proliferating violence against women’s health clin...