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Rental Person Who Does Nothing: A Memoir
by Shoji MorimotoNeed a rental person who does nothing?Shoji Morimoto provides a fascinating service to the lonely and socially anxious. After an old boss told him that he contributed nothing and that it made no difference whether he showed up to work or not, he wondered if a person who ‘does nothing’ could still have a place in the world. With a tweet, his Rental Person service was born.- Have a deep secret you desperately need to reveal, so deep that you can’t tell a friend or family member?- Have you spent a long time home alone, and want to know what it’s like to have somebody with you at your apartment?- Or for someone to simply think of you on a stressful day? Or wave to you as you leave the train station on a long journey?Morimoto is dependable, non-judgmental and committed to remaining a stranger throughout each request, and his encounters are revelatory about both Japanese society and human psychology.In Rental Person Who Does Nothing, Morimoto chronicles his extraordinary experiences in his unique line of work and reflects on how we consider relationships, jobs and family in our search for meaningful connection and purpose in life.
Masters of Death: A witty, spellbinding fantasy from the author of The Atlas Six
by Olivie BlakeFrom the internationally bestselling author of The Atlas Six, Masters of Death is a queer, page-turning fantasy bursting with Olivie Blake’s signature sharp wit, stunning prose and unforgettable characters.‘Olivie Blake is a mind-blowing talent’ – Chloe Gong, author of These Violent DelightsThis book is about an estate agent. Only she’s a vampire, the house on sale is haunted, and its ghost was murdered.When Viola Marek hires Fox D’Mora to deal with a ghost-infested mansion, she expects a competent medium. But unbeknownst to Viola, Fox is not a medium at all. He’s a fraud – and the godson of Death.As the mystery of the mansion unfolds, Viola and Fox are drawn into an unlikely quest that neither wants nor expects. They’ll need the help of a demonic personal trainer, a steadfast reaper, and an angel with her own secrets. It transpires that an inconvenient dead body and a lost love are intrinsically linked. Can this coalition of unwilling allies solve this conundrum and un-haunt a house – by winning a devious immortal game?This edition features beautiful interior illustrations from Little Chmura.‘If you enjoyed Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s Good Omens, you will adore this book’ – Starburst Magazine
Daughter of Calamity: A gripping, darkly seductive fantasy set in Jazz Age Shanghai
by Rosalie M. LinAn irresistibly dark, atmospheric reimagining of 1930s Shanghai filled with glamour, gods and gangsters. From Rosalie M. Lin, perfect for fans of S. A. Chakraborty and Fonda Lee.'I was utterly swept up . . . seductive, sprawling, full of malice' – Kendare Blake, New York Times bestselling author of Three Dark Crowns In Shanghai, danger wears many faces . . .1932, Shanghai. By day, Jingwen delivers bones for her grandmother, the exclusive surgeon to the most formidable gang in the city. By night, she dances at the Paramount, a lavish cabaret club, competing ruthlessly to charm the wealthy patrons.Then mysterious attackers start to target the club, stealing the faces of their victims – and selling them onto the powerful elite. Jingwen fears she could be next. To protect herself and her fellow performers, she has no choice but to delve deeper into the city’s glittering underworld.In this treacherous realm of cut-throat businessmen, silver-limbed gangsters and vengeful gods, Jingwen soon learns that she must become something far stranger and more dangerous than she ever imagined, if she hopes to survive . . .'Decadent, dangerous, and addictive' – A. Y. Chao, author of Shanghai Immortal
The World's Biggest Cash Machine: Manchester United, the Glazers, and the Struggle for Football's Soul
by Chris Blackhurst'Jaw-dropping revelations . . . The incredible story of [Man United] laid bare in new book' - Daily Mail'A gripping tale, full of insight. Blackhurst is an enormously talented writer' – City A.M.From Chris Blackhurst, the former Editor of the Independent, comes The World's Biggest Cash Machine, a gripping and tightly reported account of how the Glazers, owners of Manchester United, became the most maligned figures in the Premier League, and how they changed the beautiful game forever.Manchester United’s supporters span the globe and cross generations. But, with few exceptions, they are united in their anger with the American family who bought their club in 2005, plunging it into record levels of debt. The Glazers’ reign has become synonymous with the financialization of football, and has coincided with fan protests and a decline of Manchester United’s fortunes on the pitch . . . if not on the balance sheet.But what defines this secretive family, and do these astute businessmen deserve the opprobrium they receive? In this captivating account, informed by interviews with key figures behind the scenes, journalist and commentator Chris Blackhurst charts the gripping story of the world’s biggest football club – as well as exploring the wider transformation of the Premier League into a playground for billionaire owners.'Packed with insights and details that will both amaze and appal you . . . if it doesn't make you angry, you need to check your pulse' – Oliver Bullough, author of Moneyland, on Too Big to Jail
The Way of the Hermit: My 40 years in the Scottish wilderness
by Ken SmithWaterstones Scottish Book of the Month'A love story to the mountains in the mist, the pulsating northern lights and the red deer at dawn. And to independence.' - The Washington Post'A Thoreauvian account of solitary life in the Scottish Highlands . . . delightful' - Kirkus Reviews'Ken Smith’s advice for staying alive in inclement conditions could equally be applied to achieving hard-won dreams' – Geographical'Ken Smith comes across as a thoughtful, resourceful and above all humane man . . . inspiring' – BBC Countryfile Magazine*****Could you leave behind the bustle of modern society and spend your days immersed in nature? In The Way of the Hermit, seventy-four-year-old Ken Smith recounts a life he has chosen to spend alone with the wilderness.Ken Smith has spent the past four decades in the Scottish Highlands. He lives alone, with no electricity or running water. His home is a log cabin nestled near Loch Treig, known as 'the lonely loch', where he lives off the land: he fishes for his supper, chops his own wood, and even brews his own tipple. He is, in the truest sense of the word, a hermit.For the first time, Ken shares the story of his life. From his working-class origins in Derbyshire, to the formative years he spent travelling in the Yukon and finally how he came to be the Hermit of Loch Treig. Looking back through decades of diary entries, Ken reflects upon the reasons he turned his back on society, the vulnerability of old age and the awe and wonder of a life lived in nature. The Way of the Hermit is a humorous, transcendent and life-affirming memoir.
Wellness: A Novel
by Nathan Hill'American storytelling at its era-spanning best . . . An immersive, multi-layered portrait of a marriage, Nathan Hill’s follow-up to The Nix is a work of quiet genius.' – The Observer'The incredible scope of this dazzlingly detailed state-of-the-nation satire almost defies description . . . Brilliant doesn’t begin to describe it, but I’ll say it anyway.' – Daily Mail'I doubt I'll enjoy many books this year as much as Wellness.' – The Times/Sunday Times, 'Books of the Year (So Far)'An Oprah's Book Club Pick.A powerfully affecting novel about how we change, grow and age, Wellness is a story of marriage, middle age, our tech-obsessed health culture, and the bonds that keep people together.When Jack and Elizabeth meet as college students in the 90s, the two quickly join forces and hold on tight, each eager to claim a place in Chicago’s thriving underground art scene with an appreciative kindred spirit. Fast-forward twenty years to married life, and the no-longer-youthful dreamers are forced to face their demons, from unfulfilled career ambitions to painful childhood memories of their own dysfunctional families. In the process, Jack and Elizabeth must undertake separate, personal excavations, or risk losing the best thing in their lives: each other.Moving from the gritty 90s Chicago art scene to a suburbia of detox diets and home renovation hysteria, Wellness mines the absurdities of modern technology and modern love to reveal profound, startling truths about intimacy and connection. In this follow-up to Nathan Hill’s electric debut The Nix, Wellness reimagines the love story with healthy doses of insight, irony and heart.
Open Throat: 'An instant classic' - The Guardian
by Henry HokeShortlisted for the James Tait Black Prize for Fiction'An instant classic' - The GuardianI’ve never eaten a person but today I might . . .A queer and dangerously hungry mountain lion lives in the drought-devastated land under the Hollywood sign, overlooking the city that humans call ‘ellay’.Lonely and fascinated by humanity’s foibles, the lion spends their days grappling with the complexities of their own identity, and ultimately the question: Do they want to eat a person, or become one?'A bloody masterpiece.' - Melissa Broder, author of The Pisces'Witty, emotional and gripping, Open Throat is a short but savage thrill ride' - The Independent'Open Throat is Bret Easton Ellis meets mountain lion in the Hollywood Hills . . . it already has people talking' - The Sunday Times
Mapmatics: How We Navigate the World Through Numbers
by Paulina Rowinska'An expansive journey through time and place' - The Observer'An adventure' - Edward Brooke-Hitching, author of The Phantom AtlasHow does a delivery driver distribute hundreds of packages in a single working day?Why does remote Alaska have such a large airport?Where should we look for elusive serial killers?The answers lie in the crucial connection between maps and maths.In Mapmatics, Dr Paulina Rowinska embarks on a fascinating journey to discover the mathematical foundations of cartography and cartographical influences on mathematics.From a sixteenth-century map that remains an indispensable navigation tool despite emphasizing the North–South divide to public transport maps that both guide and mislead passengers, she reveals how maps and maths shape not only our sense of space and time but also our worldview.Through entertaining stories, surprising real-world examples and a cast of unforgettable characters, Mapmatics helps us to appreciate the mathematical methods and ideas behind maps. And, by illuminating how our world works, leaves us better equipped to understand and look after it.
The Women: The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller from the author of The Nightingale
by Kristin HannahAn instant Sunday Times bestseller and soon to be a major motion picture!'Astonishing. Compelling. Powerful' – Delia Owens, bestselling author of Where the Crawdads Sing'Stuns with sacrifice. Uplifts with heroism' – Bonnie Garmus, bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry‘Powerful’ – Matt Haig, bestselling author of The Midnight LibraryFrom the worldwide bestselling author of The Four Winds, The Nightingale and Firefly Lane (a Number One series on Netflix), The Women is a story of devastating loss and epic love. It would be the journey of a lifetime . . .‘Women can be heroes, too’. When twenty-year-old nursing student, Frances “Frankie” McGrath, hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Raised on California’s idyllic Coronado Island and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing, being a good girl. But in 1965 the world is changing, and she suddenly imagines a different path for her life. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she impulsively joins the Army Nurses Corps and follows his path.As green and inexperienced as the young men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war, as well as the unexpected trauma of coming home to a changed America. Frankie will also discover the true value of female friendship and the heartbreak that love can cause.Readers love The Women:'It honours ALL women: those who have fought for their rights and freedoms, those who have been overlooked and underappreciated, those who have been forgotten by families and society''I’ve been looking forward to this book’s release for months' 'Kristin Hannah has done it again'
Ravensong: The beloved werewolf shifter romance about love, loyalty and betrayal (Green Creek #2)
by TJ KluneSet in the dreamy backwoods of Oregon, Ravensong is a queer, paranormal romance of burning passion and pack loyalty. It continues the powerful saga started in Wolfsong.New for paperback: This paperback edition of Ravensong includes two heartfelt short stories set in the world of Green Creek.Gordo Livingstone never forgot the lessons carved into his skin. Hardened by the betrayal of the wolf pack who left him behind, he sought solace in work – running the garage in his mountain town. He vowed to steer clear of shape-shifters and their affairs. It should have been enough. Then the wolves returned – bringing Mark Bennett with them. Gordo found himself facing their mutual enemy together, and they won.Now, a year later, Gordo is once again witch of the Bennett pack. Yet, even as Gordo struggles to ignore Mark, he can’t avoid the strength of his feelings. But time is running out as a new danger approaches. This time, they’ll face the enemy within.Ravensong is the second book in TJ Klune’s beloved Green Creek series. Continue the journey with Heartsong . . .Praise for TJ Klune:‘Whimsical, warm-hearted fantasy’ – The Guardian‘A radiant treat’ – Locus Magazine‘These fantasy novels have it all: drama, romance, tragedy, and family’ – Cosmopolitan.com
Seminars in Forensic Psychiatry (College Seminars Series)
by Harry Kennedy Mary DavorenThis updated edition of Seminars in Forensic Psychiatry is an invaluable guide for consultants and specialist trainees working in forensic psychiatry. Written by leading international contributors, topics include models of care, the management of in-patient violence, forensic psychotherapy, and psychological treatments. The evolution of policy and mental health law is discussed, demonstrating how it has shaped the provision of forensic psychiatry services. Legal aspects include considerations of mentalistic defences in criminal law, mental health law, as well as the law on negligence. The book also includes sections on specialist areas of need, including cultural and gender specific needs, terrorism, stalkers, and sex offenders. Woven into the chapters are practical approaches, and 'how to' guides. The volume ends with advice for each of the transitions in the career of a forensic psychiatrist. A truly practical guide, this is a must-read for psychiatrists and mental health professionals working within a forensic setting.
The Evolution of Authoritarianism and Contentious Action in Russia (Elements in Contentious Politics)
by null Bogdan MamaevThis Element examines the evolution of authoritarianism in Russia from 2011 to 2023, focusing on its impact on contentious action. It argues that the primary determinant of contention, at both federal and regional levels, is authoritarian innovation characterized by reactive and proactive repression. Drawing on Russian legislation, reports from human rights organizations, media coverage, and a novel dataset of contentious events created from user-generated reports on Twitter using computational techniques, this Element contributes to the understanding of contentious politics in authoritarian regimes, underscoring the role of authoritarianism and its innovative responses in shaping contentious action.
Escaping Poverty Traps and Unlocking Prosperity in the Face of Climate Risk: Lessons from Index-Based Livestock Insurance (Elements in Development Economics)
by null Nathaniel D. Jensen null Francesco P. Fava null Andrew G. Mude null Christopher B. Barrett null Brenda Wandera-Gache null Anton Vrieling null Masresha Taye null Kazushi Takahashi null Felix Lung null Munenobu Ikegami null Polly Ericksen null Philemon Chelanga null Sommarat Chantarat null Michael Carter null Hassan Bashir null Rupsha BanerjeeThis Element outlines the origins and evolution of an international award-winning development intervention, index-based livestock insurance (IBLI), which scaled from a small pilot project in Kenya to a design that underpins drought risk management products and policies across Africa. General insights are provided on i) the economics of poverty, risk management, and drylands development; ii) the evolving use of modern remote sensing and data science tools in development; iii) the science of scaling; and iv) the value and challenges of integrating research with operational implementation to tackle development and humanitarian challenges in some of the world's poorest regions. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
Anticultism in France: Scientology, Religious Freedom, and the Future of New and Minority Religions (Elements in New Religious Movements)
by null Donald A. WestbrookThis Element introduces readers to the problem of anticultism and antireligious movements in France. The first section offers an overview of anticultism in France, including the paradoxical place of modern French secularism (laïcité) that has shaped a culture prejudiced against minority religions and new religions (sectes or 'cults') and impacted Europe more broadly. This includes state-sponsored expressions, in particular MIVILUDES, an organization funded by the French government to monitor cultic or sectarian deviances. The second section takes up the case of the American-born Church of Scientology, tracing its history in the country since the late 1950s and how it has become a major focus of anticultists in France. The Element concludes with reflections on the future of new and minority religions in France. A timeline provides major dates in the history of anticultism in modern French history, with a focus on items of relevance to Scientology in France.
Theatricality, Playtexts and Society (Elements in Contemporary Performance Texts)
by null David BarnettThis Element proposes a novel way of defining, understanding and approaching theatricality, a term that exists both in the theatre and, more broadly, in everyday life. It argues that four foundational, material processes of theatre-making manifest themselves in all playtexts in both overt and covert forms. Each of the four sections defines a different theatrical process, explores its functions in two chosen playtexts and examines its implications for the wider experience of the spectators outside the theatre. The Element concludes with a supplementary reflection on performance to show how even seemingly untheatrical playtexts can be analysed and staged to reveal their unspoken theatricality. It also argues that this new understanding of theatricality has a politics, that the artifice of any theatre and the constructedness of any society are analogous and that both, consequently, can be fundamentally changed. This Element is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
Contests: Theory and Applications
by null Carmen Beviá null Luis CorchónContest theory is an important part of game theory used to analyse different types of contests and conflicts. Traditional microeconomic models focus on situations where property rights are well defined, and agents voluntarily trade rights over goods or produce rights for new goods. However, much less focus has been given to other situations where agents do not trade property rights, but rather fight over them. Contests: Theory and Applications presents a state-of-the art discussion of the economics of contests from the perspective of both core theory and applications. It provides a new approach to standard topics in labour, education, welfare and development and introduces areas like voting, industrial organisation, mechanism design, sport, and military conflict. Using elementary mathematics, this book provides a versatile framework for navigating this growing area of study and serves as an essential resource for its wide variety of applications in economics and political science.
Costly Opportunities: Social Mobility in Segregated Societies (Elements in Politics and Society in Latin America)
by null María José Álvarez-RivadullaThis Element investigates entrenched inequality in Latin America through a unique case of class integration in Colombian higher education. Examining a forgivable loan program benefiting 40,000 high-achieving individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, the Element introduces 'gate opening' and 'diversified networks' as mechanisms countering traditional inequality reproduction. Utilizing a longitudinal, ethnographic approach, it explores the evolving process of social mobility within an elite school, emphasizing subjective experiences and challenges. Despite educational gaps and stark social differences, most students formed cross-class friendships, completed their education, and achieved higher socioeconomic positions. Yet, in so doing they had to face several costs of social mobility resourcing to strategies such as camouflaging or disclosing, sometimes becoming culturally omnivourous in the end. The significance of a prestigious degree varies based on the professional labor market, with first-generation students facing more challenges in low quality or elitist markets where cultural and social capital act as entry barriers.
Human Reasoning (Elements in Philosophy of Mind)
by null David E Over null Jonathan St EvansThis Element is on new developments in the psychology of reasoning that raise or address philosophical questions. In traditional studies in the psychology of reasoning, the focus was on inference from arbitrary assumptions and not at all from beliefs, and classical binary logic was presupposed as the only standard for human reasoning. But recently a new Bayesian paradigm has emerged in the discipline. This views ordinary human reasoning as mostly inferring probabilistic conclusions from degrees of beliefs, or from hypothetical premises relevant to a purpose at hand, and as often about revising or updating degrees of belief. This Element also covers new formulations of dual-process theories of the mind, stating that there are two types of mental processing, one rapid and intuitive and shared with other animals, and the other slow and reflective and more characteristic of human beings. The final topic covered is the new developments and rationality.
Cultural Burning (Elements in Current Archaeological Tools and Techniques)
by null Bruno David null Jean-Jacques Delannoy null Jessie Birkett-Rees null Michael-Shawn Fletcher null Simon Connor null Virginia Ruth Pullin null Michela Mariani null Anthony Romano null S. Yoshi MaezumiThis Element addresses a burning question – how can archaeologists best identify and interpret cultural burning, the controlled use of fire by people to shape and curate their physical and social landscapes? This Element describes what cultural burning is and presents current methods by which it can be identified in historical and archaeological records, applying internationally relevant methods to Australian landscapes. It clarifies how the transdisciplinary study of cultural burning by Quaternary scientists, historians, archaeologists and Indigenous community members is informing interpretations of cultural practices, ecological change, land use and the making of place. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
Questioning Leadership (Elements in Leadership)
by null Michael HarveyThis Element posits that questions are the heart of leadership. Leaders ask hard questions that spark creative solutions and new understandings. Asking by itself isn't enough - leaders must also help find answers and turn them into effective action. But the leader's work begins with questions. This Element surveys the main traditions of leadership thought; considers the nature of the group and its questions; explores how culture and bureaucracy serve to provide stable answers to the group's questions; and explores how leaders offers disruptive answers, especially in times of change and crisis. It uses the lens of questions to consider two parallel American lives, President Abraham Lincoln and General Robert E. Lee.
Artificial Intelligence: Economic Perspectives and Models
by null Wim Naudé null Thomas Gries null Nicola DimitriIs Artificial Intelligence a more significant invention than electricity? Will it result in explosive economic growth and unimaginable wealth for all, or will it cause the extinction of all humans? Artificial Intelligence: Economic Perspectives and Models provides a sober analysis of these questions from an economics perspective. It argues that to better understand the impact of AI on economic outcomes, we must fundamentally change the way we think about AI in relation to models of economic growth. It describes the progress that has been made so far and offers two ways in which current modelling can be improved: firstly, to incorporate the nature of AI as providing abilities that complement and/or substitute for labour, and secondly, to consider demand-side constraints. Outlining the decision-theory basis of both AI and economics, this book shows how this, and the incorporation of AI into economic models, can provide useful tools for safe, human-centered AI.
Greek Iron Age Pottery in the Mediterranean World: Tracing Provenance and Socioeconomic Ties
by Stefanos GimatzidisGreek pottery is the most visible archaeological evidence of social and economic relations between the Aegean and the Mediterranean during the Iron Age, a period of intense mobility. This book presents a holistic study of the earliest Greek pottery exchanged in Greek, Phoenician, and other Indigenous Mediterranean cultural contexts from multidisciplinary perspectives. It offers an examination of 362 Protogeometric and Geometric ceramic and clay samples, analysed by Neutron Activation, that Stefanos Gimatzidis obtained in twenty-four sites and regions in eight countries. Bringing a macro-historical approach to the topic through a systematic survey of early Greek pottery production, exchange, and consumption, the volume also provides a micro-history of selected ceramic assemblages analysed by a team of scholars who specialise in Classical, Near Eastern, and various prehistoric archaeologies. The results of their collaborative archaeological and archaeometric studies challenge previous reconstructions of intercultural relations between the Aegean and the Mediterranean and call into question established narratives about Greek and Phoenician migration.
Evolutionary Games and the Replicator Dynamics (Elements in Evolutionary Economics)
by null Saul Mendoza-Palacios null Onésimo Hernández-LermaThis Element introduces the replicator dynamics for symmetric and asymmetric games where the strategy sets are metric spaces. Under this hypothesis the replicator dynamics evolves in a Banach space of finite signed measures. The authors provide a general framework to study the stability of the replicator dynamics for evolutionary games in this Banach space. This allows them to establish a relation between Nash equilibria and the stability of the replicator for normal a form games applicable to oligopoly models, theory of international trade, public good models, the tragedy of commons, and War of attrition game among others. They also provide conditions to approximate the replicator dynamics on a space of measures by means of a finite-dimensional dynamical system and a sequence of measure-valued Markov processes.
Religious Humanitarianism during the World Wars, 1914–1945: Between Atheism and Messianism (Elements in Modern Wars)
by null Patrick J. HoulihanThe history of modern war has focused on destruction; however, practices of saving lives and rebuilding societies have received far less scrutiny. The world wars reconfigured geopolitics on a sacred-secular spectrum dominated by the USA and the USSR. In these events, the motivations of humanitarian actors are disputed as either secular or religious, evoking approval or censure. Although modern global humanitarianism emerged during the world wars, it is often studied in a Euro-centric framework that does not engage the conflicts' globality. The effects of humanitarianism during the Second World War look toward the post-1945 era with not enough reflection on the pre-1945 history of humanitarianism. Thus, what is needed is a critical history beyond moralizing, bringing synchronic and diachronic expansion to study questions of continuity and change. A global history of religious humanitarianism during both world wars places faith-based humanitarianism on a spectrum of belief and unbelief.
The Cambridge Companion to Australian Poetry (Cambridge Companions to Literature)
by Ann VickeryAn invaluable resource for staff and students in literary studies and Australian studies, this volume is the first major critical survey on Australian poetry. It investigates poetry's central role in engaging with issues of colonialism, nationalism, war and crisis, diaspora, gender and sexuality, and the environment. Individual chapters examine Aboriginal writing and the archive, poetry and activism, print culture, and practices of internationally renowned poets such as Lionel Fogarty, Gwen Harwood, John Kinsella, Les Murray, and Judith Wright. The Companion considers Australian leadership in the diversification of poetry in terms of performance, the verse novel, and digital poetries. It also considers Antipodean engagements with Romanticism and Modernism.