Helen Plum Library

"When we think of the Greeks, what comes to mind first is likely to be the artistic and scientific achievements of the group of city-states led by Athens and Sparta around two and a half thousand years ago-a civilization that laid foundation for much of the arts, science, politics, and law throughout the developed world today. But the story of the Greeks is far more than the story of this classical civilization alone. Greek is one of only three languages,...

"A place of spectacle and ruin, Mumbai exemplifies the cosmopolitan metropolis. It is not just a big city but also a soaring vision of modern urban life. Millions from India and beyond, of different ethnicities, languages, and religions, have washed up on its shores, bringing with them their desires and ambitions. Mumbai Fables explores the mythic inner life of this legendary city as seen by its inhabitants, journalists, planners, writers, artists,...

"From the beloved award-winning author of Native Speaker and The Surrendered, a highly provocative, deeply affecting story of one woman's legendary quest in a shocking, future America. On Such a Full Sea takes Chang-rae Lee's elegance of prose, his masterly storytelling, and his long-standing interests in identity, culture, work, and love, and lifts them to a new plane. Stepping from the realistic and historical territories of his previous work, Lee...

Introduces readers to the many incredible innovations from Africa that have changed the world forever

Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro argues that Western Civilization is in the midst of a crisis of purpose and ideas. Our freedoms are built upon the twin notions that every human being is made in God's image and that human beings were created with reason capable of exploring God's world. We can thank these values for the birth of science, the dream of progress, human rights, prosperity, peace, and artistic beauty. Jerusalem and Athens built America,...

"Despite its ferociously wet climate of monsoons and cyclones, Asia contains less usable freshwater than any continent except Antarctica. Nevertheless, more than half the world's population calls Asia home. The struggle for water has been a driving force in modern Asian history. In [this book], historian Sunil Amrith boldly reimagines Asia's history through the stories of its rains, rivers, coasts, and seas--and of the weather-watchers and engineers,...