In Twilight of the Belle Epoque, Mary McAuliffe portrays Paris in full flower at the turn of the twentieth century, where creative dynamos such as Picasso, Matisse, Stravinsky, Debussy, Ravel, Proust, Marie Curie, Gertrude Stein, Jean Cocteau, and Isadora Duncan set their respective circles on fire with their revolutionary visions and discoveries. But all was not well in this world, remembered in hindsight as a golden age, and wrenching struggles between Church and state as well as between haves and have-nots shadowed these years, underscored by the ever-more-ominous drumbeat of the approaching Great War—a cataclysm that would brutally bring the Belle Epoque to its close. Through rich illustrations and evocative narrative, McAuliffe brings this remarkable era from 1900 through World War I to vibrant life.

When people get sick from their food, headlines rage. More and more, people are getting sick from food that is supposedly safe. And as the price of food continues to rise, consumers are forced to make decisions about what to eat, how to eat, and what to buy. Eating Dangerously illustrates the problems with current food safety standards and shows readers how they can make informed decisions about what they eat.

Discover what is left of the Golden Age of Hollywood with noted archaeologist and old Hollywood buff, Paul G. Bahn, as he unearths and documents forgotten movie-related treasures.

This provocative book asks whether or not the Native Populations of North America experienced genocide. Drawing on examples such as the Sand Creek Massacre and the Long Walk of the Navajo, the author shows the diversity of Native American experiences post-contact and uncovers the complex realities of this difficult period in the American history.

This deeply informed book introduces the basic teachings and practices of Buddhism and their spread across Asia. Peter D. Hershock explores the history of the enduring Japanese tradition of Zen—from its beginnings as a form of Buddhist thought and practice imported from China to its reinvention in medieval Japan as a force for religious, political, and cultural change to its role in Japan’s embrace of modernity. He deftly blends historical detail with the felt experiences of Zen practitioners grappling with the meanings of human suffering, personal freedom, and the integration of social and spiritual progress.