The Only Harmless Great Thing

Fission -- Cascade Reaction.

From the wondrous mind of Brooke Bolander, the author of The Only Harmless Great Thing, who "shares literary DNA with Le Guin" (John Scalzi). After the world's end, the last young human learns a final lesson from Earth's remaining animals. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Nicholas (U. of Melbourne, Australia) and Baloglou (State U. of New York, Oswego) have done an admirable job in creating a translation and commentary of this 15th-century Byzantine text that's accessible to specialist and non-specialist alike. The tales are of very human-like activities, banter, and scuffles between talking animals. In their lengthy (159- page) introduction to the side-by-side translation, Nicholas and Baloglou describe the political and cultural context of the work, emphasizing the political innuendo that might be gleaned from the tale's satirical tone. They describe the tales within the context of other texts, both Byzantine and foreign. Appendices provide the texts of some of these influences, as well as discussion of literary and historical issues raised in the animals' stories. Annotation (c)2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com).

Warning signs are all around us. In ancient Egypt, tombs were lavishly adorned with signs and symbols warning of the dire consequences that would befall any robbers and thieves. And yet these signs were often read as provocations and challenges. Why was this? And how could we more effectively communicate dangers from our world, such as toxic waste, to future civilizations? This book examines and evaluates the kinds of signs, symbols, narratives and other semiotic strategies humans have used across time to communicate the sense of danger. From paleolithic cave art and ancient monuments to the dangers of nuclear waste, carbon emissions and other pollution, Marcel Danesi explores how danger has been encoded in language, discourse, and symbolism. At the same time, the book puts forward a plan for a more effective 'semiotising' of risk and peril, calling on linguists, semioticians and agencies to face up our collective responsibilities, and work together to more clearly communicate vitally important warnings about the dangers we've left behind to civilizations beyond the semiotic gap.

365 inspiring quotes and prompts for anyone who aspires to be more politically active, environmentally friendly, or socially conscious--part of the bestselling Do One Thing Every Day series. "In a gentle way, you can shake the world." --Mahatma Gandhi Activism is on the rise. Consumers, shareholders, employees, students, and many other social groups want to get involved with political, environmental, and social issues. Do One Thing Every Day to Change the World is the ideal tool for turning those ambitions into positive change. This guided journal offers a quote and a prompt or activity for every day of the year, encouraging readers to do one thing each day that makes the world a better place. Daily doses of energizing inspiration from famous writers, athletes, musicians, entrepreneurs, and others invite readers to take a stand for what they believe in and work for change.