Leonard examines conspicuous consumption and its human and environmental costs in an expansion of her short documentary of the same name. The analysis is accessible, and Leonard is skilled at breaking down large and abstruse concepts for the listeners. She's less winning as a reader, however: her bubbly voice and predilection for overemphasis are grating—and occasionally, her explanations and prescriptions veer into condescension. These failings aside, here is a wealth of very important information.

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Julia Angwin - Stealing MySpace, The Battle to Con trol the Most Popular Website in America (2009).jpg

A few years ago, MySpace.com was just an idea kicking around a Southern California spam mill. Scroll down to the present day and MySpace is one of the most visited Internet destinations in America, displaying more than 40 billion webpage views per month and generating nearly $1 billion annually for Rupert Murdoch’s online empire. Even by the standards of the Internet age, the MySpace saga is an astounding growth story, which climaxed with the site’s acquisition by Murdoch’s News Corporation in 2005 for a sum approaching one billion dollars. But more than that, it may be the defining drama of the digital era.

In Stealing MySpace, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Julia Angwin chronicles the rise of this Internet powerhouse. With an unerring eye, Angwin details how MySpace took the Internet by storm by grabbing the best ideas from around the Web, encouraging pinup stars such as Tila Tequila to make their home on its pages and giving everyone freedom to experiment with online identities–including using somebody else’s identity.

Stealing MySpace introduces us to the site’s founders, Chris DeWolfe and Tom Anderson, who dabbled in computer hacking, online pornography, spam, and spyware before starting MySpace. Although their street savvy, doggedness, and clubbing skills far eclipsed their tech prowess, they stumbled their way to success and soon found themselves at ground zero of a high-stakes war that pitted Rupert Murdoch against his frequent nemesis, the combative Viacom CEO Sumner Redstone. Angwin sheds light on the dizzying backroom deals that allowed Murdoch to snatch MySpace from Viacom’s grasp even as the MySpace founders remained in the dark about their own fate. Then she takes us inside the Murdoch empire as DeWolfe and Anderson lobby furiously to regain control of their creation.

Venturing beyond the business aspects of the story, Angwin also explores the Internet culture, a voyeuristic world in which MySpace must stay one step ahead of amateur pornographers, sexual predators, and “spoofers” who set up fake profiles (Rupert Murdoch himself tolerates dozens of phony “Ruperts” on the site) and cope with the general excesses and sometimes illegal acts of a community of account holders equal in number to the population of Japan.

In Stealing MySpace, Julia Angwin dishes on the epic real-world battle for control of a virtual empire. In a savvy, smart, fast-paced narrative reminiscent of Bryan Burrough and John Helyar’s Barbarians at the Gate and Michael Lewis’s The New New Thing, Stealing MySpace tells is the whole gripping story behind a breakout cultural phenomenon.

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Robert A. Dahl - How Democratic is the American Co nstitution (2001).jpg

In this provocative book, one of our most eminent political scientists poses the question, "Why should we uphold our constitution?" The vast majority of Americans venerate the American Constitution and the principles it embodies, but many also worry that the United States has fallen behind other nations on crucial democratic issues, including economic equality, racial integration, and women's rights. Robert Dahl explores this vital tension between the Americans' belief in the legitimacy of their constitution and their belief in the principles of democracy. Dahl starts with the assumption that the legitimacy of the American Constitution derives solely from its utility as an instrument of democratic governance. Dahl demonstrates that, due to the context in which it was conceived, our constitution came to incorporate significant antidemocratic elements. Because the Framers of the Constitution had no relevant example of a democratic political system on which to model the American government, many defining aspects of our political system were implemented as a result of short-sightedness or last-minute compromise. Dahl highlights those elements of the American system that are most unusual and potentially antidemocratic: the federal system, the bicameral legislature, judicial review, presidentialism, and the electoral college system. The political system that emerged from the world's first great democratic experiment is unique-no other well-established democracy has copied it. How does the American constitutional system function in comparison to other democratic systems? How could our political system be altered to achieve more democratic ends? To what extent did the Framers of the Constitution build features into our political system that militate against significant democratic reform? Refusing to accept the status of the American Constitution as a sacred text, Dahl challenges us all to think critically about the origins of our political system and to consider the opportunities for creating a more democratic society.

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Robert A. Dahl - How Democratic is the American Co nstitution (2001).pdf

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Matt Taibbi - Griftopia, Bubble Machines, Vampire Squids, and the Long Con That Is Breaking America (2010).jpg

USA Books1 - Matt Taibbi - Griftopia, Bubble Machines, Vampire Squi...quids, and the Long Con That Is Breaking America 2010.jpg

Taibbi eviscerates Wall Street for what he considers frauds perpetrated on the American people over the last ten years. Deftly delving deeply into complicated financial history and lingo, Taibbi deftly lays the subject bare, rendering heretofore-dense subject matter simple without being simplistic. Blame for the recent mortgage collapse, commodities bubble, and tech bubble are laid at the feet of a relatively small number of bankers and traders who, in the author's opinion, act without fear of reciprocity from a U.S. government no longer representative of the American people. He begins by awarding the title "Biggest Asshole In The Universe" to former-Fed Chief Alan Greenspan, taking him to task for willfully or stupidly disemboweling what little regulation the financial markets may have had before his tenure. This theme resounds throughout, and Taibbi asserts that the collusion between Wall Street and the White House has effectively turned the United States into a massive casino, in which working Americans are regularly bilked out of their savings and homes while the wealthy are repeatedly rewarded for their graft. It's an important and worthy read, but not for the Randian disciple or Goldman-Sachs alum.

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Colin Dueck - Hard Line, The Republican Party and U.S. Foreign Policy since World War II (2010).jpg

Hard Line traces the history of Republican Party foreign policy since World War II by focusing on the conservative leaders who shaped it. Colin Dueck closely examines the political careers and foreign-policy legacies of Robert Taft, Dwight Eisenhower, Barry Goldwater, Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush. He shows how Republicans shifted away from isolationism in the years leading up to World War II and oscillated between realism and idealism during and after the cold war. Yet despite these changes, Dueck argues, conservative foreign policy has been characterized by a hawkish and intense American nationalism, and presidential leadership has been the driving force behind it.

What does the future hold for Republican foreign policy? Hard Line demonstrates that the answer depends on who becomes the next Republican president. Dueck challenges the popular notion that Republican foreign policy today is beholden to economic interests or neoconservative intellectuals. He shows how Republican presidents have been granted remarkably wide leeway to define their party's foreign policy in the past, and how the future of conservative foreign policy will depend on whether the next Republican president exercises the prudence, pragmatism, and care needed to implement hawkish foreign policies skillfully and successfully. Hard Line reveals how most Republican presidents since World War II have done just that, and how their accomplishments can help guide future conservative presidents.

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Colin Dueck - Hard Line, The Republican Party and U.S. Foreign Policy since World War II (2010).pdf

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John Vile - Great American Judges, An Encyclopedia (2003).jpg

Inspiring and instructive biographies of the 100 most influential judges from state and federal courts in one easy to access volume. Judge Roy Bean's courtroom was a saloon. Judge Learned Hand defended free speech. Judge John J. Sirica presided over Watergate. Judge Joseph Story freed the Amistad captives. Judge Sarah T. Hughes reformed juvenile justice in Dallas. From all levels of the justice system come judges whose public service has impacted American lives, and laws. Great American Judges profiles 100 outstanding judges and justices in a full sweep of U.S. history. Chosen by lawyers, historians, and political scientists for inclusion in this inspiring work, these men and women laid the foundation of U.S. law. A complement to Great American Lawyers, together these two volumes create a complete picture of our nation's top legal minds from colonial times to today. Following an introduction on the role of judges in American history are A-Z biographical entries portraying this diverse group from extraordinarily different backgrounds. Students and history enthusiasts will appreciate the accomplishments of these role models and the connections between their inspiring lives and their far-reaching legal decisions. William Rehnquist, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., and 12 other Supreme Court justices are found alongside federal judges like Skelly Wright, who ordered school desegregation in 1960. Influential state judges such as Rose Elizabeth Bird, California's first woman Supreme Court Chief Justice, are also featured.

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John Vile - Great American Judges, An Encyclopedia (2003).pdf

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Peter Chamberlain, Chris Ellis - British and Ameri can Tanks of World War Two, The Complete Illustrat ed History of British, American and Commonwealth T anks, 1939-45 (2002).jpg

USA Books1 - Peter Chamberlain, Chris Ellis - British and American ...ritish, American and Commonwealth Tanks, 1939-45 2002.jpg

This is the complete illustrated history of British, American and Commonwealth tanks, gun motor carriages and special purpose vehicles 1939-45, and has not been bettered since first publication in 1969. It gives a detailed history of each type, plus full pictorial coverage of the many variants, sometimes running into dozens, which were produced on each chassis. Every tank type produced in Britain, the united States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand is included and described in full – more than 2,000 vehicles in all. Concise specifications, comparative scale drawings and over 500 photographs, along with appendices detailing with guns, engines and suspension systems make this book an indispensable source of authoritative reference.

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Peter Chamberlain, Chris Ellis - British and Ameri can Tanks of World War Two, The Complete Illustrat ed History of British, American and Commonwealth T anks, 1939-45 (2002).pdf

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Bloom's Modern Critical Views - Harold Bloom - Asi an-American Writers (2009).jpg

Identity and belonging are just two of the many themes Asian-American writers have explored. This new edition in the "Bloom's Modern Critical Views" series offers fresh critical evaluations of this important body of American literature. Canonical writers such as Maxine Hong Kingston and Amy Tan are discussed in addition to the voices and traditions that have emerged from the United States' diverse South and East Asian communities. This volume is complemented by a chronology, a bibliography, notes on the contributors, and an introductory essay from master scholar Harold Bloom.

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Bloom's Modern Critical Views - Harold Bloom - Asi an-American Writers (2009).pdf

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Burton W. Peretti - Lift Every Voice, The History of African American Music (2008).jpg

Lift Every Voicei traces the roots of black music in Africa and slavery and its evolution in the United States from the end of slavery to the present day. The music's creators, consumers, and distributors are all part of the story. Musical genres such as spirituals, ragtime, the blues, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, rock, soul, and hip-hop-as well as black contributions to classical, country, and other American music forms-depict the continuities and innovations that mark both the music and the history of African Americans. A rich selection of documents help to define the place of music within African American communities and the nation as a whole.

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Burton W. Peretti - Lift Every Voice, The History of African American Music (2008).PDF

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Adrienne Fried Block - Amy Beach, Passionate Victo rian, The Life and Work of an American Composer, 1 867-1944 (1998).jpg

USA Books1 - Adrienne Fried Block - Amy Beach, Passionate Victoria...Life and Work of an American Composer, 1867-1944 1998.jpg

Amy Marcy Cheney Beach (1867-1944), the most widely performed composer of her generation, was the first American woman to succeed as a creator of large-scale art music. Her "Gaelic" Symphony, given its premiere by the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1896, was the first work of its kind by an American woman to be performed by an American orchestra. Almost all of her more than 300 works were published soon after they were composed and performed, and today her music is finding new advocates and audiences for its energy, intensity, and sheer beauty. Yet, until now, no full-length critical biography of Beach's life or comprehensive critical overview of her music existed. This biography admirably fills that gap, fully examining the connections between Beach's life and work in light of social currents and dominant ideologies.

Born into a musical family in Victorian times, Amy Beach started composing as a child of four and was equally gifted as a pianist. Her talent was recognized early by Boston's leading musicians, who gave her unqualified support. Although Beach believed that the life of a professional musician was the only life for her, her parents had raised her for marriage and a career of amateur music-making. Her response to this parental (and later spousal) opposition was to find creative ways of reaching her goal without direct confrontation. Discouraged from a full-scale concert career, she instead found her metier in composition.

Success as a composer of art songs came early for Beach: indeed, her songs outsold those of her contemporaries. Nevertheless, she was determined to separate her work from the genteel parlor music women were writing in her day by creating large-scale works--a Mass, a symphony, and chamber music--that challenged the accepted notion that women were incapable of creating high art. She won the respect of colleagues and the allegiance of audiences. Many who praised her work, however, considered her an exception among women. Beach's reaction to this was to join with other women composers of serious music by promoting their works along with her own.

Adrienne Fried Block has written a biography that takes full account of issues of gender and musical modernism, considering Beach in the contexts of her time and of her composer contemporaries, both male and female. Amy Beach, Passionate Victorian will be of great interest to students and scholars of American music, and to music lovers in general.

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Adrienne Fried Block - Amy Beach, Passionate Victo rian, The Life and Work of an American Composer, 1 867-1944 (1998).pdf

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Merrill Schleier - Skyscraper Cinema, Architecture and Gender in American Film (2009).jpg

Whether tall office buildings, high-rise apartments, or lofty hotels, skyscrapers have been stars in American cinema since the silent era. Cinema’s tall buildings have been variously represented as unbridled aspiration, dens of iniquity and eroticism, beacons of democracy, and well-oiled corporate machines. Considering their intriguing diversity, Merrill Schleier establishes and explains the impact of actual skyscrapers on America’s ideologies about work, leisure, romance, sexual identity, and politics as seen in Hollywood movies.
Schleier analyzes cinematic works in which skyscrapers are an integral component, interpreting the iconography and spatial practices in these often fictional modern buildings, especially on concepts of gender. Organized chronologically and thematically, she offers close readings of films including Safety Last, Skyscraper Souls, Wife vs. Secretary, Baby Face, The Fountainhead, and Desk Set. Opening with the humorous antics of Harold Lloyd, the premier skyscraper filmmaker of the silent era, the book moves through the disillusionment of the Depression era, in which skyscrapers are employed as players in moralistic, class-conscious stories, to post–World War II and its reimagining of American political and economic values and ends with the complicated prosperity of the 1950s and the lives of white-collar workers and their spouses.

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Merrill Schleier - Skyscraper Cinema, Architecture and Gender in American Film (2009).pdf

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Christian G. Fritz - American Sovereigns, The Peop le and America's Constitutional Tradition Before t he Civil War (2007).jpg

USA Books1 - Christian G. Fritz - American Sovereigns, The People a...as Constitutional Tradition Before the Civil War 2007.jpg

American Sovereigns is a path-breaking interpretation of America's political history and constitutionalism that explores how Americans struggled over the idea that the people would rule as the sovereign after the American Revolution. National and state debates about government action, law, and the people's political powers reveal how Americans sought to understand how a collective sovereign-the people-could both play the role as the ruler and yet be ruled by governments of their own choosing.

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Jack Hoza - It's Not What You Sign, It's How You S ign It, Politeness in American Sign Language (2007 ).jpg

The general stereotype regarding interaction between American Sign Language and English is a model of oversimplification: ASL signers are direct and English speakers are indirect. Jack Hoza’s study It’s Not What You Sign, It’s How You Sign It: Politeness in American Sign Language upends this common impression through an in-depth comparison of the communication styles between these two language communities. Hoza investigates relevant social variables in specific contexts and explores the particular linguistic strategies ASL signers and English speakers employ when they interact in these contexts.

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Jack Hoza - It's Not What You Sign, It's How You S ign It, Politeness in American Sign Language (2007 ).pdf

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Jack P. Greene - Pursuits of happiness, the social development of early modern British colonies and the formation of American culture (1988).jpg

USA Books1 - Jack P. Greene - Pursuits of happiness, the social dev...h colonies and the formation of American culture 1988.jpg

Building on the literature of the new social history produced over the past two decades, this book has four complementary goals. First, and most important, it seeks to use that literature as a basis for evaluating the central assumptions that have informed the analysis of colonial British American history over the past two generations, assumptions that, to one degree or another, have emphasized the preeminence or normative character of the experience of the orthodox puritan colonies of New E n g l ~ din the process of early modern British colonial socialdevelopment and the formation of American culture. Second, through a close evaluation of the experiences of the settler societies in each of the major regions of settlement in the early modern British Empire- Ireland, theChesapeake, New England, the Atlantic island colonies of Bermuda and the Bahamas, the West Indian colonies, the Middle Colonies, and the Lower South-and a comparison between those experiences and the social history of metropolitan England or, after 1707, Britain, the volume attempts in Chapters I through 7 to formulate a model of colonial social development that may be more broadly applicable than the declension model around which much British colonial history has been organized.

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Jack P. Greene - Pursuits of happiness, the social development of early modern British colonies and the formation of American culture (1988).pdf

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Mark Crawford - Encyclopedia of the Mexican-Americ an War (1999).jpeg

At first glance, it would seem that Mexico and the United States should have been good neighbors in the nineteenth century—they were both relatively young countries that had rebelled against a mother nation to establish republics. As they grew, they both had to deal with states with populations that believed that their needs were not being met by the federal government.

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Mark Crawford - Encyclopedia of the Mexican-Americ an War (1999).chm

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Patricia Riley - Growing Up Native American (2008).jpg

Stories of oppression and survival, of heritage denied and reclaimed -- twenty-two American writers recall childhood in their native land.

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Patricia Riley - Growing Up Native American (2008).pdf

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Raymond Schroth - The American Jesuits. A History (2007).jpg

With infectious energy and a genuine gift for storytelling, Raymond A. Schroth recounts the history of Jesuits in the United States. The American Jesuits isn’t simply a book for Catholics; it’s for anyone who loves a well-told historical tale. For more than 450 years, Jesuit priests have traveled the globe out of a religious commitment to serve others. Their order, the Society of Jesus, is the largest religious order of men in the Catholic Church, with more than 20,000 members around the world and almost 3,000 in the United States. It is one of the more liberal orders in the Church, taking very public stands in the U.S. on behalf of social justice causes such as the promotion of immigrants’ rights and humanitarian aid, including assistance to Africa’s poor, and against American involvement in “unjust wars.” Jesuits have played an important part in Americanizing the Catholic Church and in preparing Catholic immigrants for inclusion into American society.

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