MBR: The World History Shelf
Midwest Book Review
The Covert Enlightenment
Alfred J. Gabay
Swedenborg Foundation Publishers
320 North Church Street, West Chester, PA 19380
0877853142 $19.95 1-800-355-3222 www.swedenborg.com
The Covert Enlightenment: Eighteenth-Century Counterculture And Its
Aftermath by Professor Alfred J. Gabay (School of Arts and Education,
La Trobe University, Bendigo, Victoria, Australia) is an historical
survey tracing the influences of philosopher, theologian, and
iconoclast Emanuel Swedenborg, and Franz Anton Mesmer with his "Animal
Magnetism" hypnosis, upon European and American culture. These are two
disparate individuals who were to have a seminal affect on the creation
of modern psychology and represents the metaphysical influences of
occultism and mysticism upon the scientific and cultural forces that
would give rise to modern society. A unique and highly appreciated
contribution to the study of history, The Covert Enlightenment is also
represents an impressive body of original, meticulous, ground-breaking
scholarship.
India Untouched: The Forgotten Face of Rural Poverty
Abraham M. George
The Writers' Collective
c/o Gulotta Communications, Inc.
341 Lexington Street, Newton, MA 02466
1594111227 $26.95 www.booktours.com
Ably and informatively written by Abraham M. George (a businessman who
has undertaken numerous humanitarian projects in South India), India
Untouched: The Forgotten Face of Rural Poverty assesses how economic
liberalization measures have left much of rural India behind,
particularly those belonging to the lowest caste, called
"untouchables". Chapters address the reasons behind this disparity,
promises for hope, global perspectives, and offer solutions to more
equitably bring improved quality of life to all of India's people. A
manifesto to work against cruelty, disease, and illiteracy, India
Untouched is a cutting-edge political and social analysis of
far-reaching problems in dire need of solutions.
Historical Atlas Of The Celtic World
Angus Konstam
Mercury Books
c/o International Publishers Marketing
22841 Quicksilver Dr, Dulles, VA 20166
www.internationalpubmarket.com
1904668011 $25.00 www.amazon.com
Beautiful, full-color illustrations and photographs on every page
enhance the Historical Atlas Of The Celtic World, an in-depth history
of the Celtic culture in Europe from its earliest beginnings to its
highlights and exquisite artworks to the modern day. Museum
professional Angus Konstam applies his knowledge in history and
archaeology to seamlessly survey the course of Celtic history and
reveal the richness of Celtic heritage and legacy - "Although the last
true vestiges of Celtic culture died out in the medieval period,
elements of Celtic ways survived into the early modern era." A timeline
helps put events in sequence, in this captivating and absorbing study
of an ancient civilization.
Landscape Design In Eighteenth-Century Ireland
Finola O'Kane
Cork University Press
c/o Stylus Publishing, Inc.
22883 Quicksilver Drive, Sterling, VA 20166-2012
185918362X $75.00 1-800-232-0223
Landscape Design In Eighteenth-Century Ireland: Mixing Foreign Trees
With The Natives is a fascinating, in-depth study of the
eighteenth-century landscapes around Dublin and the gardens of the
region, as well as the political, monetary, and aesthetic appreciation
influences that led their owners to create them. Chapters focus
especially upon Robert Molesworth's lanscape of Breckdenston, the
landscape of Castletown House, Carton Demesne's work which introduced
foreign trees, and the school at Frescati. Part environmental history,
part narrative of the lives and decisions of wealthy individuals, part
studious assessment of the ambitious large-scale projects that changed
the nature of the countryside, Landscape Design In Eighteenth-Century
Ireland is an absorbing and detailed scrutiny. Illustrated throughout
with black-and-white as well as color images, paintings, diagrams and
photographs, Landscape Design in Eighteenth-Century Ireland is
virtually unique in its theme of discussion yet delves into its subject
matter with such depth as to eclipse rival attempts.
Cartographica Extraordinaire
David Rumsey and Edith M. Punt
ESRI Press
380 New York Street, Redlands, CA 92373-8100
www.davidrumsey.com
1589480449 $79.95 www.amazon.com
David Rumsey's historical map collection is strong on North and South
American images of the 18th and 19th centuries, and holds over 150,000
items, from maps and atlases to supporting documents. Parts of the
Rumsey Collection is available on the web - and now available in
Cartographica Extraordinaire: The Historical Map Transformed, an
oversized collection of selected maps which tell distinct stories of
how areas became civilized and how cartographic science has changed
perceptions of land value and land use. The color photos are juxtaposed
and displayed perfectly in a lovely survey of the historical map's
history and transformation, making Cartographic Extraordinaire simply a
'must' for any college-level collection.
Life, Myth, And Art In Ancient Rome
Tony Allan
Getty Publications
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 500, Los Angeles, CA 90049-1682
0892368217 $19.95 www.getty.edu
Author Tony Allan draws upon his experience and expertise as the editor
of Time-Life's "History of the World" and as the author of the
twenty-volume series "Myth and Mankind" to provide readers with Life,
Myth, And Art In Ancient Rome, a richly illustrated volume that
explores the unique dichotomy of Roman culture that creating crowning
achievements of Western civilization on the one hand, and their darker,
barbaric, bloody politics and pastimes on the other. The Roman culture
was one of just government and impartial legal institutions juxtaposed
with slavery, conspiracy, superstition, and savagery. Full-color
photographs of architectural sites, artifacts, mosaics, paintings,
statues, and art objects enhance an informed and informative text,
hallmarked with sidebars offering key information on specific sites or
topics within each thematically organized chapter. Life, Myth, And Art
In Ancient Rome is an especially recommended acquisition for school and
community library World History collections.
Ancient Rome
Christopher S. Mackay
Cambridge University Press
40 West 20th Street, NY, NY 10011-4211
www.cambridge.org
0521809185 $35.00 1-800-872-7423
Knowledgeably written by Christopher S. Mackay, an accomplished
associate professor of history who has published numerous articles on
all periods of Roman history, Ancient Rome: A Military And Political
History is a comprehensive political history ancient Rome from the
city's origins during the Italian Iron Age to the deposition of its
last emperor in A.D. 476. From Rome's growth and conquest to pressures
and invasion that eventually destroyed its empire, to how it came to
adopt Christianity as its state religion and the lasting influence of
that legacy, Ancient Rome is extraordinarily fascinating and compelling
reading. Written in terms as engaging to the lay reader as the
professional historian, Ancient Rome is a dynasty-by-dynasty account
that spreads out what history tells of feuds, assassinations, war,
enforced peace, and military transformations in the legendary Roman
Empire.
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