The Sleeping Giant Awakens

The Sleeping Giant Awakens
Author: David B. MacDonald
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Total Pages: 253
Release: 2019-05-09
Genre: History
ISBN: 1487518056

Confronting the truths of Canada’s Indian residential school system has been likened to waking a sleeping giant. In The Sleeping Giant Awakens, David B. MacDonald uses genocide as an analytical tool to better understand Canada’s past and present relationships between settlers and Indigenous peoples. Starting with a discussion of how genocide is defined in domestic and international law, the book applies the concept to the forced transfer of Indigenous children to residential schools and the "Sixties Scoop," in which Indigenous children were taken from their communities and placed in foster homes or adopted. Based on archival research, extensive interviews with residential school Survivors, and officials at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, among others, The Sleeping Giant Awakens offers a unique and timely perspective on the prospects for conciliation after genocide, exploring the difficulties in moving forward in a context where many settlers know little of the residential schools and ongoing legacies of colonization and need to have a better conception of Indigenous rights. It provides a detailed analysis of how the TRC approached genocide in its deliberations and in its Final Report. Crucially, MacDonald engages critics who argue that the term genocide impedes understanding of the IRS system and imperils prospects for conciliation. By contrast, this book sees genocide recognition as an important basis for meaningful discussions of how to engage Indigenous-settler relations in respectful and proactive ways.

The Rise of China

The Rise of China
Author: Thomas Waites
Publisher:
Total Pages: 507
Release: 2018-09-10
Genre:
ISBN: 9781520700236

This science fiction novel uses historical antecedents to project a future scenario where China becomes the world's new superpower. In the years 2020 and 2021, they conquer most of Europe and they take over several U.S. Western States. They invent two terrible weapons that are used in their European campaign. The laser qiang is the world's first practical laser gun that proves devastating to the Austrian/German forces at the Bad Deutsch Altenburg Bridge. The shengbo, a weapon using infrasound, is even more horrible than the laser qiang. It is the decisive weapon enabling the Chinese forces to defeat the redoubtable Franco/Anglo forces defending France.The United States, in an attempt to free Europe from Chinese occupation, blockades China's entire eastern seaboard in hopes that her troops in Europe, without support from mainland China, will wither and die on the vine. In a fierce battle in the Yellow Sea, the U.S. Naval forces destroy the entire Chinese northern fleet. They also destroy China's eastern fleet. However, the Chinese manage to break free of the blockade in the South China Sea and they launch over 2,000 ultra large container ships, with millions of soldiers, to invade the western United States. Over seven million Chinese soldiers, split into three armies, begin their attack on the Western U.S. using Mexican territory for their bold and massive invasion. The U.S. fights back and there are terrible losses on both sides in the battles of Phoenix, El Paso and San Diego.Holed up in Mount Weather Virginia, the U.S. Government is in disarray. These terrible losses to the Chinese army have shaken U.S. confidence. The U.S. has always believed its armed forces are simply the best in the world, incapable of being defeated, especially on its own turf. During this crisis, the brave but seriously flawed General Johnson, orchestrates the first bloodless coup. President Mary Higgins, along with Admiral Nagamaza, Admiral Lemur and reporter Frank Weiss are locked up in the Mount Weather brigantine. Vice President Thomas is the new President but he is only a puppet of General Johnson who holds the real power. Six main characters are swept up in these epic events. Jack Lemur is a handsome and brash naval aviator. Having lived in China as a child, he is fluent in Mandarin. Akira Nagamaza, a third-generation Japanese-American is a brilliant scientist and Fleet Commander of U.S. Naval forces who destroys most of China's naval forces. He and Jack are favorites of President Higgins. Beautiful, intelligent and ambitious, Mary Higgins, despite great hardship in her youth, becomes the first woman President. She saves the U.S. from the brink of nuclear war. Frank Johnson is fearless and a patriotic American, but he is seriously flawed. This psychologically unstable army general leads the U.S. close to the brink of nuclear Armageddon. Wang Baoshan, the brave and heroic leader of China's naval forces, is the grandson of the famous naval aviator Wang Hai. Despite great losses, he goes toe-to-toe with the formidable American Navy. Zhao Tianhui, a brilliant strategist, follows the precepts of Sun Tzu to win startling victories over supposedly superior enemy forces. Zhao attended the National Defense University where he became proficient in English and mastered American military strategies.

Attack on Pearl Harbor

Attack on Pearl Harbor
Author: Bert Kinzey
Publisher:
Total Pages: 80
Release: 2010
Genre: Bombing, Aerial
ISBN: 9780984466504

An account of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

To Shake the Sleeping Self

To Shake the Sleeping Self
Author: Jedidiah Jenkins
Publisher: Convergent Books
Total Pages: 354
Release: 2018-10-02
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1524761397

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “With winning candor, Jedidiah Jenkins takes us with him as he bicycles across two continents and delves deeply into his own beautiful heart.”—Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild and Tiny Beautiful Things On the eve of turning thirty, terrified of being funneled into a life he didn’t choose, Jedidiah Jenkins quit his dream job and spent sixteen months cycling from Oregon to Patagonia. He chronicled the trip on Instagram, where his photos and reflections drew hundreds of thousands of followers, all gathered around the question: What makes a life worth living? In this unflinchingly honest memoir, Jed narrates his adventure—the people and places he encountered on his way to the bottom of the world—as well as the internal journey that started it all. As he traverses cities, mountains, and inner boundaries, Jenkins grapples with the question of what it means to be an adult, his struggle to reconcile his sexual identity with his conservative Christian upbringing, and his belief in travel as a way to wake us up to life back home. A soul-stirring read for the wanderer in each of us, To Shake the Sleeping Self is an unforgettable reflection on adventure, identity, and a life lived without regret. Praise for To Shake the Sleeping Self “[Jenkins is] a guy deeply connected to his personal truth and just so refreshingly present.”—Rich Roll, author of Finding Ultra “This is much more than a book about a bike ride. This is a deep soul deepening us. Jedidiah Jenkins is a mystic disguised as a millennial.”—Tom Shadyac, author of Life’s Operating Manual “Thought-provoking and inspirational . . . This uplifting memoir and travelogue will remind readers of the power of movement for the body and the soul.”—Publishers Weekly

Rip Van Winkle, and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Rip Van Winkle, and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Author: Washington Irving
Publisher: Orient Blackswan
Total Pages: 60
Release: 1963
Genre: Catskill Mountains (N.Y.)
ISBN: 9788125021766

A man who sleeps for twenty years in the Catskill Mountains wakes to a much-changed world.

A Knock on the Door

A Knock on the Door
Author: Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
Publisher: Univ. of Manitoba Press
Total Pages: 203
Release: 2015-12-15
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0887555381

“It can start with a knock on the door one morning. It is the local Indian agent, or the parish priest, or, perhaps, a Mounted Police officer.” So began the school experience of many Indigenous children in Canada for more than a hundred years, and so begins the history of residential schools prepared by the Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC). Between 2008 and 2015, the TRC provided opportunities for individuals, families, and communities to share their experiences of residential schools and released several reports based on 7000 survivor statements and five million documents from government, churches, and schools, as well as a solid grounding in secondary sources. A Knock on the Door, published in collaboration with the National Research Centre for Truth & Reconciliation, gathers material from the several reports the TRC has produced to present the essential history and legacy of residential schools in a concise and accessible package that includes new materials to help inform and contextualize the journey to reconciliation that Canadians are now embarked upon. Survivor and former National Chief of the Assembly First Nations, Phil Fontaine, provides a Foreword, and an Afterword introduces the holdings and opportunities of the National Centre for Truth & Reconciliation, home to the archive of recordings, and documents collected by the TRC. As Aimée Craft writes in the Afterword, knowing the historical backdrop of residential schooling and its legacy is essential to the work of reconciliation. In the past, agents of the Canadian state knocked on the doors of Indigenous families to take the children to school. Now, the Survivors have shared their truths and knocked back. It is time for Canadians to open the door to mutual understanding, respect, and reconciliation.

After the Holocaust

After the Holocaust
Author: Charlotte Schallié
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2020
Genre: Holocaust survivors
ISBN: 9780889777705

"Collected voices make clear why Holocaust, genocide, and human rights education are more crucial than ever. After the Holocaust brings together scholarship, activism, poetry, and personal narratives from some of the last living survivors of the Holocaust to tackle the changing face of genocide and human rights education in the 21st century. The collected voices draw on decades of research on the Holocaust and discuss how it can help us understand and educate about a range of human rights issues throughout history, and, in turn, that local histories of other human rights atrocities can shed light on the way the Holocaust is represented and taught. Advancing the dialogue between civic advocacy, public remembrance, and research, the contributors of this edited collection discuss Holocaust education's broad relevance in a human rights framework. 'The first- and second-generation survivor accounts are treasures--invaluable reflections that anchor this collection.'--David MacDonald, author of The Sleeping Giant Awakens: Genocide, Indian Residential Schools, and the Challenge of Conciliation"--

Waking Gods

Waking Gods
Author: Sylvain Neuvel
Publisher: Del Rey
Total Pages: 364
Release: 2017-04-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1101886730

In the gripping sequel to Sleeping Giants, Sylvain Neuvel’s innovative series about human-alien contact takes another giant step forward. “Sleeping Giants may have debuted his thrilling saga, but Waking Gods proves that Neuvel’s scope is more daring than readers could have imagined.”—Paste As a child, Rose Franklin made an astonishing discovery: a giant metallic hand, buried deep within the earth. As an adult, she’s dedicated her brilliant scientific career to solving the mystery that began that fateful day: Why was a titanic robot of unknown origin buried in pieces around the world? Years of investigation have produced intriguing answers—and even more perplexing questions. But the truth is closer than ever before when a second robot, more massive than the first, materializes and lashes out with deadly force. Now humankind faces a nightmare invasion scenario made real, as more colossal machines touch down across the globe. But Rose and her team at the Earth Defense Corps refuse to surrender. They can turn the tide if they can unlock the last secrets of an advanced alien technology. The greatest weapon humanity wields is knowledge in a do-or-die battle to inherit the Earth . . . and maybe even the stars. Praise for Waking Gods “Kick-ass, one-on-one robot action combines with mind-bending scientific and philosophical speculation. Series science-fiction fans will enjoy this follow-up filled with unexpected revelations and a surprise finale.”—Booklist “Pure, unadulterated literary escapism featuring giant killer robots and the looming end of mankind. In a word: unputdownable.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “Sheer escapist fun.”—Shelf Awareness Don’t miss any of The Themis Files by Sylvain Neuvel: SLEEPING GIANTS | WAKING GODS | ONLY HUMAN

The Moon Dragon (The Secrets of Droon #26)

The Moon Dragon (The Secrets of Droon #26)
Author: Tony Abbott
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Total Pages: 87
Release: 2016-02-23
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0545418399

A hidden door. A magical staircase. Discover the world of Droon! There's no place like home! Eric and his friends have finally restored the Rainbow Stairs, but that was the easy part. Now Gethwing is loose in the Upper World, and the Moon Dragon is causing big trouble. Eric, Julie, and Neal have to protect their town, but they're up against mysterious creatures, strangely-behaving parents, and powerful magic. Can the kids stop Gethwing before he destroys the Upper World -- for good?

Thirteen Ways Of Looking

Thirteen Ways Of Looking
Author: Colum McCann
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 145
Release: 2015-10-13
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1443446270

From the author of the award-winning novel Let the Great World Spin and TransAtlantic comes an eponymous novella and three stories that range fluidly across time, tenderly exploring the act of writing and the moment of creation when characters come alive on the page; the lifetime consequences that can come from a simple act; and the way our lives play across the world, marking language, image and each other. Thirteen Ways of Looking is framed by two author’s notes, each dealing with the brutal attack the author suffered last year and strikes at the heart of contemporary issues at home and in Ireland, the author’s birth place. Brilliant in its clarity and deftness, this collection reminds us, again, why Colum McCann is considered among the very best contemporary writers.