Lucifer and Icarus are the best-known figures in the ancestral gallery of the arrogant. Pride, the original sin, or hubris, also known as class conceit, arrogance, vanity, haughtiness and narcissism, is widespread in many facets. We find celebrities from the past and present, fiction and reality, in this Cabinet of Sinners.
“There is a sadness to McBride’s poetry that only a deep thinker can recreate, someone who has been inside the beautiful dark hollows of disappointment. It is encouraging to read the powerfully rendered thoughts of a vulnerable mind in a cynical time—here is a poet unafraid to be hurt; here is a poet bleeding in his own glass crop. Encouraging? Yes, because McBride understands that defensive poetry has no value.” — Larissa Szporluk“Somehow simultaneously metaphysical and down-to-earth, Matt McBride’s poems are a worthy read, reminding us of our hubris in assuming the rain ‘intends’ to hit us and how it’s okay to feel unromantic, even when surrounded by beauty. He’s a writer who uses his street smarts to tackle the ineffable. His work confirms why the Wick Poetry Series is so vital in finding new voices. Keep an eye on this guy.” — Kevin Griffith
Contrary to what the so-called history books tell you, Hermann Goering, Hitler's Deputy, Head of the Luftwaffe and second most powerful man in Nazi Germany, did not leave this world courtesy of a cyanide tablet secreted in the heel of his jackboot minutes before his appointment with the hangman. The truth is far more bizarre. THE UNSINKABLE HERR GOERING is a monumental debut novel by Ian Cassidy. It follows Goering, a man blindsided by hubris, on his attempted escape – from both Germany as well as from the Allies – and the inept men of mettle who put a stop to it. It is a hilariously depraved story of of villainous villains, slightly less villainous heroes, bad behavior (and even worse beer), and uncomfortable underwear. Not since A Confederacy of Dunces has a book brought to life such audaciously flawed characters. It gets so much wrong, yet so much right.
Londinyia: a Capital in Crisis. Gripped by a species of perversion without parallel in the long, sordid annals of the Alpha Male. As the Decency Tax extends across all districts and zones, the Emancipation Party declares war on the deviant insurgency. Amid the vast armoury of weapons employed, the Proctallator, irSpex and the notorious Schnuffler, stand primed to unleash an avalanche of moral fury. Meanwhile, the Spectre of Deceit looms over the Party HQ, the Pyramex, rocked by dysfunctional mandroids, a Steering Committee mired in scandal and mutiny among the D-Squad ranks. Only Corporal Lillian Scarpello and her loyal beta-adjutant, Sir Lucien Picene, it seems, stand between Londinyia – and the Abyss. The explanation: The Second Penis is a satire on the City of London and its assumptions about behaviour, and supposed patterns of normality, taken to an absurd level. The author: (location unknown) lives in a shed in Myrddin’s Precinct where he communes with drunken spirits and entities, and launches vitriolic assaults against the Satanic Inertias of the Capital, soon to be revisited in The Gnat. A series of endless night-shifts in the Ancient City of London drives him to the terrifying conclusion that its entire existence is a Hoax – a bankrupt Government, media and economy imprisoned in a Tower of Babble. But can a man certified as insane – twice – complete his mission to rescue the intellectual heritage of his Nation? Who knows. For now, he sleeps amid the empty quarts and flasks, waiting to spring forth from his chrysalis...
The Inquisition moves amongst mankind like an avenging shadow, striking down the enemies of humanity with uncompromising ruthlessness. When he finally corners an old foe, Inquisitor Gregor Eisenhorn is drawn into a sinister conspiracy. As events unfold and he gathers allies - and enemies - Eisenhorn faces a vast interstellar cabal and the dark power of daemons, all racing to recover an arcane text of abominable power: an ancient tome known as the Necroteuch.
What can the Trojan War tell us about women’s empowerment and immigration? What can the myth of Ulysses tell us about human agency when it is pitted against seemingly unsourmountable circumstances? And what about Orpheus? What can his figure teach us about humanity and its relationship with death? We tend to look at the Classics as dusty, as things from the past, something to study in a college course, but the truth is that they are far more modern than we think, and they can shed a marvellous light on what it means to be humans in the 21st century. Written with a charming levity that cleverly masks years of research, How to Think Like Ulysses is a heartfelt plea to rediscovers the literary wonders of the ancient world and to heed their lesson: life in our contemporary world may be very much different from Athens in the 5th century B.C., but perhaps we didn’t change as much.
To create a more sustainable transformation in the people you coach, you need to start with your own mindset. As a coach, you know you can’t change what you do, unless you alter what you believe first.
WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO SAVE TY? This is the question that haunts Claire and Shep Durant in the wake of their four-year-old’s disappearance. Until this moment, Port Blair’s British surgeon and his young wife, a promising anthropologist, have led a charmed life in the colonial backwaters of India’s Andaman Islands—thanks in part to Naila, a local girl who shares their mysteriously mute son’s silent language. But with the war closing in and mandatory evacuation underway, the Durants don’t realize until too late that Naila and Ty have vanished. While Claire sails for Calcutta, Shep stays to search for the children. Days later, the Japanese invade the Andamans, cutting off all communication. Fueled by guilt and anguish, Claire uses her unique knowledge of the islands’ tribes to make herself indispensable to an all-male reconnaissance team headed back behind enemy lines. Her secret plan: rescue Shep and Ty. Through the brutal odyssey that follows, she’ll discover truths about sacrifice that both shatter and transcend her understanding of devotion.
Glasgow band Del Amitri have sold more than six million albums. Their 1995 single Roll To Me cracked the Top 10 in the US, and five of their albums went Top 10 in the UK. But as yet there hasn t been anything substantial written about the band...until now! From ambition to success, this is the complete story of Del Amitri's rise from initial formation through six albums that took them to global recognition. From early Peel sessions, to touring with Morrissey; to appearing on Letterman and cracking the US, the book follows every up and down of the band s incredible career, as well as providing unique and original insights into their personalities and music.
Sinking Islands continues the story of Bronwyn Artair, a scientist who possesses the power to influence the natural forces of the Earth. After several successful interventions, including one in Siberia, she has gone into hiding, worried about unintended consequences of her actions, as well as about the ethics of operating solo. But circumstances call her to action again, and an idea takes shape: What if she could impart her skill to other people? Gathering a few kindred souls from climate-troubled places around the world—Felipe from São Paulo, where drought conditions are creating strains on day-to-day life; Analu and his daughter Penina from a sinking island in the South Pacific; and Patty from the tornado-ridden plains of Kansas—she takes them to the wilds of Northern New Hampshire where she tries to teach them her skill. The novel, realistic but for the single fantastical element, explores how we might become more attuned to the Earth and act more collaboratively to solve the enormity of our climate problem.
The Corporate Startup is a practical guide for established companies that aspire to develop and sustain their innovation capabilities.• The world around us is changing rapidly. There is now more pressure on established companies to innovate.• The challenge most companies face is how to develop new products for new markets, while managing their core business at the same time.• The principles and practices outlined in this book provide companies with a blueprint of how to manage innovation while they execute on their core business.• The Corporate Startup provides frameworks, visualizations, templates, tools and methods that can be easily applied to develop new products and business models.
BASED ON THE HORROR THAT WILL INSPIRE THE BOOK OF REVELATION In the dark days that follow the Roman devastation of Jerusalem,nineteen-year-old Shelamzion finds herself captured and awaitingexecution.Apparently, alone and forgotten, there seems little reason to go onliving, yet a strange friendship begins to grow between her and theaustere, Roman jailor, the historian, Fabius Grammaticus.Meanwhile, time is running out, and history is being rewritten by atraitor.
Crises are defining. Not only do they test our attitudes and attributes, they test the very systems that brought these to bear. They turn our structures and cultures upside down. Our responses to them define our future.But what makes a good leader at a time of crisis? Is it simply the willingness to ‘get things done’? Or to make the hard decisions that others won’t make? What skills does a leader need to use to lead effectively and what can we all learn as individuals from developing these same skills? Renowned leadership consultants Emmanuel Gobillot and Katherine Thomas, bestselling authors of Unleash Your Leader, have the answers. From being accurate and taking action to mastering rhetoric and simplicity via showing compassion and bringing hope, Crisis Leadership is your concise guide to being the best leader you can be when the situation most demands it. In a world that truly tests our ability to remain steady and decisive, Crisis Leadership shows you how to take positive action and the right steps not simply to preserve our past but to lead others to a brighter future.
