Now a major motion picture starring Alicia Vikander and Kit HaringtonMuch of what we know and feel about the First World War we owe to Vera Brittain’s elegiac yet unsparing book; which set a standard for memoirists from Martha Gellhorn to Lillian Hellman. Abandoning her studies at Oxford in 1915 to enlist as a nurse in the armed services; Brittain served in London; in Malta; and on the Western Front. By war’s end she had lost virtually everyone she loved. Testament of Youth is both a record of what she lived through and an elegy for a vanished generation. Hailed by the Times Literary Suplement as a book that helped "both form and define the mood of its time;" it speaks to any generation that has been irrevocably changed by war.This edition features a new introduction by Brittain's biographer examining her struggles to write about her experiences and the book's reception in England and America.For more than seventy years; Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1;700 titles; Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors; as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
#969236 in Books Kevin Phillips 2007-03-27 2007-03-27Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.40 x 1.10 x 5.60l; 1.01 #File Name: 0143038281512 pagesAmerican Theocracy The Peril and Politics of Radical Religion Oil and Borrowed Money in the 21st Century
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. This wonderful book treats a subject every American needs to know ...By Rick M.This wonderful book treats a subject every American needs to know think about; in a carefully researched informative way. Religion is being misused in our USA in ways not good for either religion or the nation. Here; you'll find enough on both how why to show you just why Religion Politics MUST be kept separate. Mix them at Your Own peril!4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Oh America!By Andrew DesmondOh America; what has become of you? This might well be the subtext of Kevin Phillips's "American Theocracy". How could such a previously enlightened nation conceived with such great hope fall to imperial over-reach; debt and uncompromising religion?Kevin Phillips has written a thorough book that broadly compares 21st century America with other historical examples of over-reach. He notices eerie similarities. In America today we see the prosecution of wars on several fronts; a nation falling into increasing private and public debt and the rise of religious intolerance. Indeed; although this book was published in 2006; he very presciently anticipates the rise of the tea party movement.So; can America fail? Well; possibly but not in the short run. A nation of such depth and entrepreneurial spirit will not collapse overnight. But; in the longer run? Well; the jury is still out. Afghanistan looks like a morass; debt will take decades to be repaid unless inflation helps out; and this creates problems of its own. And; as far as religion is concerned; America has made a clear turn to the unenlightened. No other nation in the developed world has such belief in a supernatural god; miracles and an eventual world ending clash between good and evil. The rest of the world is far more rational. Yet; it is not just the fact that Americans are religious. This is not a problem per se. Rather; it is that religion has become so intolerant. Never in living memory has America elected a non-believing President and there are no signs that this is about to change.Kevin Phillips has done an admirable job documenting modern America. It will not be well received. My fear is that it will be even less heeded.3 of 4 people found the following review helpful. American Theocracy: Political.Economic Pundit Keven Philllip's gloomy survey of America in the present dayBy C. M MillsViewers of C-Span and readers of his many books on politcs and economics have come to rely on the sober judgments of Kevin Phillips. The former White House strategist in the Nixon years has grown disillusioned with the politics of big oil; fundamentalistic religion and our nation's mad leap into the economic abyss of huge national and personal debt. Phillips deals with these three major problems with well argued prosed; statistics to back up his position and a thorough knowledge of the players involved from the Bushes to the Congress. A brief survey of what he says about:1. Oil-Phillips looks at former great powers whose empires declined. Specifically he focuses on Spain and the Dutch Republic relying on wind and water. Great Britain relied on coal and seapower to stay at the apex of power during her Victorian world hegemony. Phillips critically examnes the 21st century US with its heavy reliance on Middle Eastern oil. Phillips views our invasion of Iraq as a disaster. Bush and his team in the White House wanted Iraq to serve as a fueling station. The invasion cost thousands of lives; drove the nation deeper in debt and led to America being viewed with disfavor by our allies. Americans produce fewer cars which are less gas efficient than overseas products. Our heavy industries are running well behind such coming behemoths as China and India. We are a nation of gas guzzlers who have relied too much on the continuing abundance of black gold to fuel our SUV's and heavy pickups. 2. The American economy has led to massive spending and trillions of dollars in debt. Americans are worshippers of the plastic god known as the credit card. Few realize how the economy functions or what are the penalites for wild spending. The Bush adminstration has spent like a drunken sailor. Dire consequences will follow as the American dollar becomes edged out by euros and other foreign currency in the money market global economy. Phillips writes for the layman and presents this gloomy picture of corporate and personal greed.3.Radical Religion deals with the nexus between the far right and the Republican party. Many evangelicals believe in the world entering its final days due to premillenial rapture theology. Books like the Tim LeHaye bestsellers in the "Left Behind" series dealing with the coming rapture lead many political leaders to be blase about such concerns as world environment and global peace. They do so since they believe will sound end anyway in an apocalyptic day of judgment. Phillips vision is a grim one. Can we Americans turn it around at this late date? Perhaps our decline as a nation is not inevitable. The election of Barrack Obama is an indication to people waking up to the perils we face. Phillips style is dry and statistics fill his pages. We read him not for literary beauty but for the facts he presents with years of study of the American electorate and how and why they vote the way they do. The emergence of the Republican party married to big oil and fundamentalist religon is a story every thinking citizen needs to become familiar with.Kevin Phillips is always worth reading.
