From Headlines To Hard Times

A sharp, comedic send-up of punk and hardcore culture, from the creators of the popular and critically-lauded satire site The Hard Times.net.

In his heyday as a top television news broadcaster, Ed Mitchell interviewed high-profile politicians such as Margaret Thatcher, John Major and Tony Blair. He commanded a six-figure salary, travelled the world and had a seemingly perfect family life. But, behind the scenes, Ed was battling the demons of alcohol and debt which led ultimately to his homelessness. This is the astonishing true story of the newscaster who became known as the white-collar tramp. After he was sacked from his job at CNBC, his life began to spiral. Ed's marriage collapsed and he was eventually declared bankrupt. With nowhere to live, no job and not a penny to his name, he was forced to sleep rough on a bench in Brighton. Ed's story became headline news when a local reporter came across the astonishing tale of his dramatic fall from grace and within days, Ed was booked into Europe's most famous rehab centre, The Priory. In this stunningly candid book, Ed finally tells his whole, true story. He recalls hilarious anecdotes from his days as a news reporter, and with searing honesty says, 'I don't have any regrets, I don't blame and I don't sit around whinging.' His story gives an honest insight into the kind of problems that affect so many people and ultimately offers hope.

In his heyday, Ed Mitchell interviewed Prime Ministers, Presidents, and international business leaders over a thirty-year career. He climbed to the top of his profession working first as a Reuters trainee in Fleet Street, then for the BBC and ITN News at Ten. Ed enjoyed a six-figure salary and had a seemingly perfect family life. But, inside, he was battling demons that would eventually take control of his life. He struggled with a growing addiction to alcohol, as well as credit card debts that were spiraling out of control. After 25 years, Ed's marriage collapsed and he declared bankruptcy. His last resort was sleeping rough on Hove seafront. This shocking tale of Ed's fall from grace became headline news and sparked a media frenzy. Eventually, Ed was able to book into Europe's most famous rehab center, The Priory, thanks to a benefactor who had read of his story. He is now two years into recovery. This stunningly candid book provides hope and shows that anyone has the power to change from a similar life of destitution.

Vasily Sleptsov was a Russian social activist and writer during the politically charged 1860s, known as the “era of great reforms,” and marked by Alexander II’s emancipation of the serfs and the relaxation lifting of censorship. Popular in his day, Sleptsov’s contemporaries Leo Tolstoy and Anton Chekhov praised his writing:, with Chekhov once remarkeding, “Sleptsov taught me, better than most, to understand the Russian intelligent, and my own self as well.” The novella Hard Times is considered Sleptsov’s most important work. It focused popular attention on the radical and liberal movements through its fictional setting, where the characters contend with constantly evolving political and social dilemmas. Hard Times was immediately recognized as a vibrant and compelling depiction of prerevolutionary Russian intellectual society, full of lively debates about the possibilities of liberal reform or radical revolution that questioned the viability of a political system facing massive social problems. This is the first English-language version of Hard Times, expertly and fluidly translated by Michael Katz. Highly readable, it provides important historical insights on the political and social climate of a volatile and transformative period in Russia history.

Heaven knows, we need never be ashamed of our wolfish cravings. . . . Bristly, sensitive, and meat-hungry Pip is a robust young whelp, an orphan born under a full moon. Between hunting escaped convicts alongside zombified soldiers, trying not to become one of the hunted himself, and hiding his hairy hands from the supernaturally beautiful and haughty Estella, whose devilish moods keep him chomping at the bit, Pip is sure he will die penniless or a convict like the rest of his commonly uncommon kind. But then a mysterious benefactor sends him to London for the finest werewolf education money can buy. In the company of other furry young gentlemen, Pip tempers his violent transformations and devours the secrets of his dark world. When he discovers that his beloved Estella is a slayer of supernatural creatures, trained by the corpse-like vampire Miss Havisham, Pip’s desire for her grows stronger than his midnight hunger for rare fresh beef. But can he risk his hide for a truth that will make Estella his forever—or will she drive one last silver stake through his heart?

From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Good War: A masterpiece of modern journalism and “a huge anthem in praise of the American spirit” (Saturday Review). In this “invaluable record” of one of the most dramatic periods in modern American history, Studs Terkel recaptures the Great Depression of the 1930s in all its complexity. Featuring a mosaic of memories from politicians, businessmen, artists, striking workers, and Okies, from those who were just kids to those who remember losing a fortune, Hard Times is not only a gold mine of information but a fascinating interplay of memory and fact, revealing how the 1929 stock market crash and its repercussions radically changed the lives of a generation. The voices that speak from the pages of this unique book are as timeless as the lessons they impart (The New York Times). “Hard Times doesn’t ‘render’ the time of the depression—it is that time, its lingo, mood, its tragic and hilarious stories.” —Arthur Miller “Wonderful! The American memory, the American way, the American voice. It will resurrect your faith in all of us to read this book.” —Newsweek “Open Studs Terkel’s book to almost any page and rich memories spill out . . . Read a page, any page. Then try to stop.” —The National Observer

The winners of the Nobel Prize show how economics, when done right, can help us solve the thorniest social and political problems of our day. Figuring out how to deal with today's critical economic problems is perhaps the great challenge of our time. Much greater than space travel or perhaps even the next revolutionary medical breakthrough, what is at stake is the whole idea of the good life as we have known it. Immigration and inequality, globalization and technological disruption, slowing growth and accelerating climate change--these are sources of great anxiety across the world, from New Delhi and Dakar to Paris and Washington, DC. The resources to address these challenges are there--what we lack are ideas that will help us jump the wall of disagreement and distrust that divides us. If we succeed, history will remember our era with gratitude; if we fail, the potential losses are incalculable. In this revolutionary book, renowned MIT economists Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo take on this challenge, building on cutting-edge research in economics explained with lucidity and grace. Original, provocative, and urgent, Good Economics for Hard Times makes a persuasive case for an intelligent interventionism and a society built on compassion and respect. It is an extraordinary achievement, one that shines a light to help us appreciate and understand our precariously balanced world.