Middle Country


Book Description

"Since 2017, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has instituted a series of brutally repressive policies in its far-western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region - also known as East Turkistan. These sweeping policies of cultural genocide have targeted the region's Turkic ethnic groups, largely Muslim, the most prominent of which are the Uyghurs. The CCP has forcibly and systematically sterilized Uyghur women, constructed the most far-reaching and invasive surveillance state in human history, and sent upwards of one million Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples to be "re-educated" in concentration camps - characterized by one expert as "the largest incarceration of an ethno-religious minority since the Holocaust." In Middle Country, Grayson Slover recounts the personal story of his weeklong journey through East Turkistan during the summer of 2019. As he vividly describes his own experiences in East Turkistan, and the observations he made while he was there, Grayson weaves in historical context and political analysis to create a book that is both an engaging adventure story and an informative look at the contemporary situation in East Turkistan"--




The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom


Book Description

A remarkable history of the two-centuries-old relationship between the United States and China, from the Revolutionary War to the present day From the clipper ships that ventured to Canton hauling cargos of American ginseng to swap Chinese tea, to the US warships facing off against China's growing navy in the South China Sea, from the Yankee missionaries who brought Christianity and education to China, to the Chinese who built the American West, the United States and China have always been dramatically intertwined. For more than two centuries, American and Chinese statesmen, merchants, missionaries, and adventurers, men and women, have profoundly influenced the fate of these nations. While we tend to think of America's ties with China as starting in 1972 with the visit of President Richard Nixon to China, the patterns—rapturous enchantment followed by angry disillusionment—were set in motion hundreds of years earlier. Drawing on personal letters, diaries, memoirs, government documents, and contemporary news reports, John Pomfret reconstructs the surprising, tragic, and marvelous ways Americans and Chinese have engaged with one another through the centuries. A fascinating and thrilling account, The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom is also an indispensable book for understanding the most important—and often the most perplexing—relationship between any two countries in the world.




Centereach, Selden, and Lake Grove


Book Description

The hamlets of Centereach, Selden, and Lake Grove are steeped in history. Revolutionary War captain Daniel Roe foiled British attacks on the area, saving lives by evacuating citizens via whaleboat to Connecticut. In 1818, the New Village Congregational Church was built in the small community. Over 200 years later, it still stands as a nationally recognized landmark. Albert Norton's Wheelmen's Rest on Bicycle Path refreshed weary cyclists during the cycling craze of the 1890s, when hundreds of miles of dedicated side paths were constructed for enthusiasts. Modern hero Clarence Dare, state district fire ranger, guaranteed safety from the heights of Bald Hill's lookout tower during the 1920s and beyond. Brookhaven police officer Alvin Smith patrolled from Smithtown to the Riverhead border to protect his neighbors in the 1930s. Together, the residents of these hamlets built and maintained schools and community organizations that nurtured and supported their vibrant, growing population.




The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution


Book Description

In this original, provocative contribution to the debate over economic inequality, Ganesh Sitaraman argues that a strong and sizable middle class is a prerequisite for America’s constitutional system. A New York Times Notable Book of 2017 For most of Western history, Sitaraman argues, constitutional thinkers assumed economic inequality was inevitable and inescapable—and they designed governments to prevent class divisions from spilling over into class warfare. The American Constitution is different. Compared to Europe and the ancient world, America was a society of almost unprecedented economic equality, and the founding generation saw this equality as essential for the preservation of America’s republic. Over the next two centuries, generations of Americans fought to sustain the economic preconditions for our constitutional system. But today, with economic and political inequality on the rise, Sitaraman says Americans face a choice: Will we accept rising economic inequality and risk oligarchy or will we rebuild the middle class and reclaim our republic? The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution is a tour de force of history, philosophy, law, and politics. It makes a compelling case that inequality is more than just a moral or economic problem; it threatens the very core of our constitutional system.




Rural Economy and Country Life in the Medieval West


Book Description

"One of the most important, imaginative, solidly documented, well written books of medieval history that I have ever read. . . . It offers a unique combination of synthetic power and analytic perception, of bold judgment and Cartesian doubt, of hard economic facts and subtle psychological considerations."--




Hey Long Island... Do U Remember?


Book Description

Hey Long Island . . . Do U Remember? began in 2008 when two lifelong friends from Oceanside, New York started a Facebook group to share pictures and history of Long Island's iconic places, themes and landmarks. Hey Long Island . . . Do U Remember? is now one of the largest New York history groups on Facebook with more than 142,000 members sharing pictures and information about Long Island's colourful past. Hey Long Island . . . Do U Remember? offers us a window into the past, showing life as it was then, and stirring in us the emotions of wonder and curiosity about those who have gone before us and the lives they lived. With more than 130 photographs, many of them seen here for the first time, Hey Long Island... Do U Remember? offers a stunning portrait of this one-of-a-kind place.




Missing Middle Housing


Book Description

Today, there is a tremendous mismatch between the available housing stock in the US and the housing options that people want and need. The post-WWII, auto-centric, single-family-development model no longer meets the needs of residents. Urban areas in the US are experiencing dramatically shifting household and cultural demographics and a growing demand for walkable urban living. Missing Middle Housing, a term coined by Daniel Parolek, describes the walkable, desirable, yet attainable housing that many people across the country are struggling to find. Missing Middle Housing types—such as duplexes, fourplexes, and bungalow courts—can provide options along a spectrum of affordability. In Missing Middle Housing, Parolek, an architect and urban designer, illustrates the power of these housing types to meet today’s diverse housing needs. With the benefit of beautiful full-color graphics, Parolek goes into depth about the benefits and qualities of Missing Middle Housing. The book demonstrates why more developers should be building Missing Middle Housing and defines the barriers cities need to remove to enable it to be built. Case studies of built projects show what is possible, from the Prairie Queen Neighborhood in Omaha, Nebraska to the Sonoma Wildfire Cottages, in California. A chapter from urban scholar Arthur C. Nelson uses data analysis to highlight the urgency to deliver Missing Middle Housing. Parolek proves that density is too blunt of an instrument to effectively regulate for twenty-first-century housing needs. Complete industries and systems will have to be rethought to help deliver the broad range of Missing Middle Housing needed to meet the demand, as this book shows. Whether you are a planner, architect, builder, or city leader, Missing Middle Housing will help you think differently about how to address housing needs for today’s communities.




Bringing Out the Best in People


Book Description

Originally published in 1985, this bestselling, essential book about management and motivation has over 1 million copies in print and remains relevant for today. Alan Loy McGinnis, author of the award-winning, international bestseller The Friendship Factor, studied great leaders throughout history, the most effective organizations of modern times, and prominent psychologists to culminate a wealth of motivational tips and ideas. In this book are 12 practical principles to help anyone -- parent, manager, teacher, friend -- motivate, inspire, influence, and build enthusiasm. Mastering the art of motivation and improving relational habits isn't easy but McGinnis includes encouragement alongside real-life examples to relay life application for any scenario. Every chapter is a must-read with deeper revelations on specific topics and powerful ways to focus one's energy toward change and improvement. People management, team-building, individual assessment, goal setting, accountability, and dealing with trouble-makers are just a few of the topics covered in the highly accessible chapters. McGinnis' positive and strengths-based approach inspires momentous change, allowing individuality and input along the way. Bringing out the best starts with you, and then you can bring out the best in others.




The Old Country School


Book Description




The Story of Arthur Truluv


Book Description

“I dare you to read this novel and not fall in love with Arthur Truluv. His story will make you laugh and cry, and will show you a love that never ends, and what it means to be truly human.”—Fannie Flagg An emotionally powerful novel about three people who each lose the one they love most, only to find second chances where they least expect them “Fans of Meg Wolitzer, Emma Straub, or [Elizabeth] Berg’s previous novels will appreciate the richly complex characters and clear prose. Redemptive without being maudlin, this story of two misfits lucky to have found one another will tug at readers’ heartstrings.”—Booklist For the past six months, Arthur Moses’s days have looked the same: He tends to his rose garden and to Gordon, his cat, then rides the bus to the cemetery to visit his beloved late wife for lunch. The last thing Arthur would imagine is for one unlikely encounter to utterly transform his life. Eighteen-year-old Maddy Harris is an introspective girl who visits the cemetery to escape the other kids at school. One afternoon she joins Arthur—a gesture that begins a surprising friendship between two lonely souls. Moved by Arthur’s kindness and devotion, Maddy gives him the nickname “Truluv.” As Arthur’s neighbor Lucille moves into their orbit, the unlikely trio band together and, through heartache and hardships, help one another rediscover their own potential to start anew. Wonderfully written and full of profound observations about life, The Story of Arthur Truluv is a beautiful and moving novel of compassion in the face of loss, of the small acts that turn friends into family, and of the possibilities to achieve happiness at any age. Look for a sneak peek of Elizabeth Berg’s delightful new novel, Night of Miracles, in the back of the book. “For several days after [finishing The Story of Arthur Truluv], I felt lifted by it, and I found myself telling friends, also feeling overwhelmed by 2017, about the book. Read this, I said, it will offer some balance to all that has happened, and it is a welcome reminder we’re all neighbors here.”—Chicago Tribune “Not since Paul Zindel’s classic The Pigman have we seen such a unique bond between people who might not look twice at each other in real life. This small, mighty novel offers proof that they should.”—People, Book of the Week