For Common Things

For Common Things
Author: Jedediah Purdy
Publisher: Vintage
Total Pages: 258
Release: 2010-11-24
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0307757277

Jedediah Purdy calls For Common Things his "letter of love for the world's possibilities." Indeed, these pages--which garnered a flurry of attention among readers and in the media--constitute a passionate and persuasive testament to the value of political, social, and community reengagement. Drawing on a wide range of literary and cultural influences--from the writings of Montaigne and Thoreau to the recent popularity of empty entertainment and breathless chroniclers of the technological age--Purdy raises potent questions about our stewardship of civic values. Most important, Purdy offers us an engaging, honest, and bracing reminder of what is crucial to the healing and betterment of society, and impels us to consider all that we hold in common.

Common People

Common People
Author: Kit de Waal
Publisher: Unbound Publishing
Total Pages: 278
Release: 2019-05-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1783527471

Working-class stories are not always tales of the underprivileged and dispossessed. Common People is a collection of essays, poems and memoir written in celebration, not apology: these are narratives rich in barbed humour, reflecting the depth and texture of working-class life, the joy and sorrow, the solidarity and the differences, the everyday wisdom and poetry of the woman at the bus stop, the waiter, the hairdresser. Here, Kit de Waal brings together thirty-three established and emerging writers who invite you to experience the world through their eyes, their voices loud and clear as they reclaim and redefine what it means to be working class. Features original pieces from Damian Barr, Malorie Blackman, Lisa Blower, Jill Dawson, Louise Doughty, Stuart Maconie, Chris McCrudden, Lisa McInerney, Paul McVeigh, Daljit Nagra, Dave O’Brien, Cathy Rentzenbrink, Anita Sethi, Tony Walsh, Alex Wheatle and more.

An Uncommon History of Common Things

An Uncommon History of Common Things
Author: Bethanne Patrick
Publisher: National Geographic Books
Total Pages: 308
Release: 2015-09-16
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 1426212275

Pop culture fans and trivia lovers will delight in National Geographic’s highly browsable, freewheeling compendium of customs, notions and inventions that reflect human ingenuity throughout history. Dip into any page and discover extraordinary hidden details in the everyday that will inform, amuse, astonish, and surprise. From hand tools to holidays to weapons to washing machines, this book features hundreds of colorful illustrations, timelines, sidebars, and more as it explores just about every subject under the sun. Who knew that indoor plumbing has been around for 4,600 years, but punctuation, capital letters, and the handy spaces between written words only date back to the Dark Ages? Or that ancient soldiers baked a kind of pizza on their shields— when they weren’t busy flying kites to frighten their foes?

Things We Have in Common

Things We Have in Common
Author: Tasha Kavanagh
Publisher: Canongate Books
Total Pages: 221
Release: 2015-05-07
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 178211596X

SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD 2015 'Unsettling, deeply moving and very, very readable. I loved it' NATHAN FILER, The Shock of the Fall 'A striking and highly enjoyable debut' SOPHIE HANNAH Yasmin would give anything to have a friend . . . And do anything to keep one. The first time I saw you, you were standing at the far end of the playing field. You were looking down at your brown straggly dog, but then you looked up, your mouth going slack as your eyes clocked her. Alice Taylor. I was no different. I used to catch myself gazing at the back of her head in class, at her silky fair hair swaying between her shoulder blades. If you'd glanced just once across the field you'd have seen me standing in the middle on my own, looking straight at you, and you'd have gone back through the trees to the path quick, tugging your dog after you. You'd have known you'd given yourself away, even if only to me. But you didn't. You only had eyes for Alice.

Top Five Regrets of the Dying

Top Five Regrets of the Dying
Author: Bronnie Ware
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
Total Pages: 322
Release: 2019-08-13
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 1401956009

Revised edition of the best-selling memoir that has been read by over a million people worldwide with translations in 29 languages. After too many years of unfulfilling work, Bronnie Ware began searching for a job with heart. Despite having no formal qualifications or previous experience in the field, she found herself working in palliative care. During the time she spent tending to those who were dying, Bronnie's life was transformed. Later, she wrote an Internet blog post, outlining the most common regrets that the people she had cared for had expressed. The post gained so much momentum that it was viewed by more than three million readers worldwide in its first year. At the request of many, Bronnie subsequently wrote a book, The Top Five Regrets of the Dying, to share her story. Bronnie has had a colourful and diverse life. By applying the lessons of those nearing their death to her own life, she developed an understanding that it is possible for everyone, if we make the right choices, to die with peace of mind. In this revised edition of the best-selling memoir that has been read by over a million people worldwide, with translations in 29 languages, Bronnie expresses how significant these regrets are and how we can positively address these issues while we still have the time. The Top Five Regrets of the Dying gives hope for a better world. It is a courageous, life-changing book that will leave you feeling more compassionate and inspired to live the life you are truly here to live.

Good People

Good People
Author: Anthony K. Tjan
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 306
Release: 2017
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 039956215X

"Based on the viral Harvard Business Review article, bestselling author Anthony Tjan argues that leaders have a new imperative: you must have competent people on your team--but more importantly, they must also be of high character. As a leader you need to help develop and mentor for character further. Until now, we have only had ways of assessing competency in business, but we must also have the tools to help us judge, develop, and lead good people. Author of the bestsellingHearts, Smarts, Guts and Luckand venture capitalist Anthony Tjan offers insight into and a methodology for developing character, first in yourself and in those around you. Good people are your organization's most important competitive advantage. We all know that finding good people is difficult, as being good on paper doesn't always translate to being good in practice. While competence is necessary, Tjan argues that "goodness" is just as crucial as what's on a resume--and that a fantastic resume can never compensate for mediocre character. Yet most people who are in the business of finding and developing good people still focus on the "what" more than the "who" of the individuals surrounding them. Tjan writes that character is a lifelong proactive commitment that, like any skill, can be exercised, honed, and developed. Only when leaders learn to develop these qualities in themselves and others will great and lasting change take place throughout an organization. Good Peopleestablishes a new understanding of goodness--a word we use frequently in business without always understanding what we mean. Tjan also profiles "good people" who are extraordinary leaders and motivators in their fields, providing insights from Tony Hsieh of Zappos, Beth Comstock of GE, Dominic Barton of McKinsey, author Deepak Chopra, M.D., Dean Nitin Nohria of Harvard Business School, Army General (ret.) Stanley McChrystal, jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, and a range of everyday unsung heroes. Packed with practical, often surprising advice, Good Peopleshows that the most transformative changes in business and life come down to the people we choose, and who choose us, and the values of goodness we have in common"--

All Things in Common

All Things in Common
Author: Ruth Compton Brouwer
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Total Pages: 234
Release: 2021
Genre: History
ISBN: 1487525567

All Things in Common explores the history of a Canadian utopian community, highlighting the roles of family, faith, and business pragmatism in its cohesion and longevity.

Everyday Objects

Everyday Objects
Author: Tara Hamling
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 357
Release: 2016-12-14
Genre: History
ISBN: 1351938118

This book is about the objects people owned and how they used them. Twenty-three specially written essays investigate the type of things that might have been considered 'everyday objects' in the medieval and early modern periods, and how they help us to understand the daily lives of those individuals for whom few other types of evidence survive - for instance people of lower status and women of all status groups. Everyday Objects presents new research by specialists from a range of disciplines to assess what the study of material culture can contribute to our understanding of medieval and early modern societies. Extending and developing key debates in the study of the everyday, the chapters provide analysis of such things as ceramics, illustrated manuscripts, pins, handbells, carved chimneypieces, clothing, drinking vessels, bagpipes, paintings, shoes, religious icons and the built fabric of domestic houses and guild halls. These things are examined in relation to central themes of pre-modern history; for instance gender, identity, space, morality, skill, value, ritual, use, belief, public and private behaviour, continental influence, materiality, emotion, technical innovation, status, competition and social mobility. This book offers both a collection of new research by a diverse range of specialists and a source book of current methodological approaches for the study of pre-modern material culture. The multi-disciplinary analysis of these 'everyday objects' by archaeologists, art historians, literary scholars, historians, conservators and museum practitioners provides a snapshot of current methodological approaches within the humanities. Although analysis of material culture has become an increasingly important aspect of the study of the past, previous research in this area has often remained confined to subject-specific boundaries. This book will therefore be an invaluable resource for researchers and students interested in learning about important new work which demonstrates the potential of material culture study to cut across traditional historiographies and disciplinary boundaries and access the lived experience of individuals in the past.