For over thirty years, Stephen Braude has studied the paranormal in everyday life, from extrasensory perception and psychokinesis to mediumship and materialization. The Gold Leaf Lady and Other Parapsychological Investigations is a highly readable and often amusing account of his most memorable encounters with such phenomena. Here Braude recounts in fascinating detail five particular cases?some that challenge our most fundamental scientific beliefs...

"Mining a broad cross-section of diverse folklore journals and books that demonstrates notable legendary monster research and encourages future scholarly monster pursuits. Focusing on ostensibly living creatures strongly tied to specific geographic areas, the volume offers nineteen folkloristic case studies from the last half-century of specific monsters in native habitats"--

"Chances are, you've already met the Son of Sam in movies, documentaries, books, etc. May I introduce you to David, a fellow human being with familiar vulnerabilities? The monster you met in print collides with the man I met in person. Irrefutably, the precious lives he ended scream from the graves about his barbarism. Yet, my 100 hours, 34 sessions with him will open your eyes to a guy who resembles your brother or friend. Here's David, a lifer at...

"Why do leaders sometimes get it so wrong when making major policy decisions despite all the resources in terms of expertise and experience they can call on? We debate debacles such as the American involvement in Vietnam, seeking to understand why leaders pursued disastrous policies. In Prisoners of their Premises George Edwards argues that the failure of leaders to examine their premises, the assumptions they make about the world and situation they...

"This study is the first to systematically assemble an original dataset of all American regime change operations during the Cold War. The United States attempted more than 10 times more covert than overt regime changes. The author asks three questions: What motivates states to attempt foreign regime changes? Why do states prefer to conduct these operations covertly, as opposed to overtly? How successful are these missions in achieving their foreign...

On February 25, 1938, in the early days of the welfare system, the reviled poormaster Harry Barck—wielding power over who would receive public aid—died from a paper spike thrust into his heart. Barck was murdered, the prosecution would assert, by an unemployed mason named Joe Scutellaro. In denying Scutellaro money, Barck had suggested the man's wife prostitute herself on the streets rather than ask the city of Hoboken, New Jersey, for aid.

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This inspiring and moving story, told from the heart of an extraordinary family, recounts the emotional and uplifting journey of raising a transgender son. Janna Barkin's family has come a long way since their child, Amaya, first told them he was a boy and not a girl and this captivating memoir charts the family's experiences of raising Amaya, from birth through to adulthood. With powerful chapters written by Amaya's family and friends, Janna shares...

"This book shares the story of one library's attempt to stand up for the core values that all libraries share while fundamentally changing the way it achieves those values. It offers encouragement and practical advice for libraries and librarians on how to strengthen their skills and make a positive impact on the communities they serve."--

It is comfortable to believe that incest and child sexual abuse need not concern us because we have institutions to deal with these problems. This book disallows that complacency and shows that the systems has failed, and worse - that it has generated a dangerous atmosphere of denial and cover-up. Focusing on five case studies, Rosen and Etlin expose a systemic breakdown so fundamental, so irrational, and so shocking that the necessity of radical...