Book picks similar to
Black & White World IV by John Cox
politics
humor
comics
violent
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason
Sam Harris - 2004
He offers a vivid, historical tour of our willingness to suspend reason in favor of religious beliefs—even when these beliefs inspire the worst human atrocities. While warning against the encroachment of organized religion into world politics, Harris draws on insights from neuroscience, philosophy, and Eastern mysticism to deliver a call for a truly modern foundation for ethics and spirituality that is both secular and humanistic.Winner of the 2005 PEN/Martha Albrand Award for Nonfiction.
The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State
Nadia Murad - 2017
A member of the Yazidi community, she and her brothers and sisters lived a quiet life. Nadia had dreams of becoming a history teacher or opening her own beauty salon.On August 15th, 2014, when Nadia was just twenty-one years old, this life ended. Islamic State militants massacred the people of her village, executing men who refused to convert to Islam and women too old to become sex slaves. Six of Nadia's brothers were killed, and her mother soon after, their bodies swept into mass graves. Nadia was taken to Mosul and forced, along with thousands of other Yazidi girls, into the ISIS slave trade.Nadia would be held captive by several militants and repeatedly raped and beaten. Finally, she managed a narrow escape through the streets of Mosul, finding shelter in the home of a Sunni Muslim family whose eldest son risked his life to smuggle her to safety.Today, Nadia's story - as a witness to the Islamic State's brutality, a survivor of rape, a refugee, a Yazidi - has forced the world to pay attention to an ongoing genocide. It is a call to action, a testament to the human will to survive, and a love letter to a lost country, a fragile community, and a family torn apart by war.
Prisoner of Tehran
Marina Nemat - 2007
After complaining to her teachers about lessons being replaced by Koran study, Marina was arrested late one evening. She was taken to the notorious prison, Evin, where she was interrogated and tortured. Aged sixteen, she was sentenced to death. Prisoner of Tehran is the astonishing account of one woman's remarkable courage in the face of terror and her quest for freedom.
The Triple Agent: The al-Qaeda Mole who Infiltrated the CIA
Joby Warrick - 2011
In December 2009, a group of the CIA’s top terrorist hunters gathered at a secret base in Khost, Afghanistan, to greet a rising superspy: Humam Khalil al-Balawi, a Jordanian double-agent who infiltrated the upper ranks of al-Qaeda. For months, he had sent shocking revelations from inside the terrorist network and now promised to help the CIA assassinate Osama bin Laden’s top deputy. Instead, as he stepped from his car, he detonated a thirty-pound bomb strapped to his chest, instantly killing seven CIA operatives, the agency’s worst loss of life in decades. In The Triple Agent, Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter Joby Warrick takes us deep inside the CIA’s secret war against al-Qaeda, a war that pits robotic planes and laser-guided missiles against a cunning enemy intent on unleashing carnage in American cities. Flitting precariously between the two sides was Balawi, a young man with extraordinary gifts who managed to win the confidence of hardened terrorists as well as veteran spymasters. With his breathtaking accounts from inside al-Qaeda’s lair, Balawi appeared poised to become America’s greatest double-agent in half a century—but he was not at all what he seemed. Combining the powerful momentum of Black Hawk Down with the institutional insight of Jane Mayer’s The Dark Side, Warrick takes the readers on a harrowing journey from the slums of Amman to the inner chambers of the White House in an untold true story of miscalculation, deception, and revenge.
Action Figure!: The Adventures of Doonesbury's Uncle Duke
G.B. Trudeau - 1992
A chronicle of the adventures and misadventures of the Doonesbury character, Uncle Duke, in trouble spots throughout the world, is accompanied by a five-inch action figure complete with cigarette holder, Uzi, martini glass, and bourbon bottle.
The Forever War
Dexter Filkins - 2008
We go into the homes of suicide bombers and into street-to-street fighting with a battalion of marines. We meet Iraqi insurgents, an American captain who loses a quarter of his men in eight days, and a young soldier from Georgia on a rooftop at midnight reminiscing about his girlfriend back home. A car bomb explodes, bullets fly, and a mother cradles her blinded son.Like no other book, The Forever War allows us a visceral understanding of today’s battlefields and of the experiences of the people on the ground, warriors and innocents alike. It is a brilliant, fearless work, not just about America’s wars after 9/11, but ultimately about the nature of war itself.
Terror and Liberalism
Paul Berman - 2003
Here he argues that, in the terror war, we are not facing a battle of the West against Islama clash of civilizations. We are facing, instead, the same battle that tore apart Europe during most of the twentieth century, only in a new version. It is the clash of liberalism and its enemiesthe battle between freedom and totalitarianism that arose in Europe many years ago and spread to the Muslim world.The author considers the wars against fascism and communism from the past, and draws cautionary lessons. But he also draws from those past experiences a liberal program for the presenta program that departs in fundamental respects from the policies of the Bush administration."A fluid and lucid essay by one of America's best exponents of recent intellectual history."The Economist
500 Days: Decisions and Deceptions in the Shadow of 9/11
Kurt Eichenwald - 2012
He reveals previously undisclosed information from the terror wars, including never-before-reported details about warrantless wiretapping, the anthrax attacks, and investigations and conflicts among Washington, D.C., and London.With his signature fast-paced narrative style, Eichenwald--whose book, "The Informant," ""was called "one of the best nonfiction books of the decade" by "The""New York Times Book Review--"exposes a world of secrets and lies that has remained hidden until now.
It IS About Islam: Exposing the Truth About ISIS, Al Qaeda, Iran, and the Caliphate
Glenn Beck - 2015
The conflict with them will not end until we face the truth about those who find their inspiration and justification in the religion itself.Drawing on quotes from the Koran and the hadith, as well as from leaders of ISIS, Al Qaeda, and the Muslim Brotherhood, Glenn Beck seeks to expose the true origins of Islamic extremism as well as the deadly theological motivations behind these agencies of destruction.Using the same unique no-holds-barred style from his bestselling books Control and Conform, Glenn Beck offers straight facts and history about the fundamental beliefs that inspire so many to kill.
Pearls Takes a Wrong Turn: A Pearls Before Swine Treasury
Stephan Pastis - 2018
Always together—and sometimes with their fellow funny-page characters—the regular Pearls clan weighs in on everything from modern technology to current events to human nature. All the members of the skewed gang are here as Zebra engages in a never-ending war of neighborly hate with the Crocs. As always, Goat offers a voice of reason amid the ongoing chaos that Pastis creates, either from behind the pen or as a character within the strip itself. Includes all cartoons from the collections I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream Because Puns Suck and Floundering Fathers.
Covering Islam: How the Media and the Experts Determine How We See the Rest of the World
Edward W. Said - 1981
In this classic work, now updated, the author of Culture and Imperialism reveals the hidden agendas and distortions of fact that underlie even the most "objective" coverage of the Islamic world.
Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror
Rohan Gunaratna - 2002
Based on over five years of research, Inside Al Qaeda provides the definitive story behind the rise of this small, mysterious group to the notorious organization making headlines today.
No God but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam
Reza Aslan - 2005
This updated edition addresses the events of the past decade, analyzing how they have influenced Islam’s position in modern culture. Aslan explores what the popular demonstrations pushing for democracy in the Middle East mean for the future of Islam in the region, how the Internet and social media have affected Islam’s evolution, and how the war on terror has altered the geopolitical balance of power in the Middle East. He also provides an update on the contemporary Muslim women’s movement, a discussion of the controversy over veiling in Europe, an in-depth history of Jihadism, and a look at how Muslims living in North America and Europe are changing the face of Islam. Timely and persuasive, No god but God is an elegantly written account that explains this magnificent yet misunderstood faith.
The Volunteer: The Incredible True Story of an Israeli Spy on the Trail of International Terrorists
Michael Ross - 2007
In Israel, out of money and alone, Ross began working on a Kibbutz—and fell in love with both the country and an Israeli woman. After converting to Judaism, Ross was recruited by the country's secret service—the Mossad—as an undercover agent. In the years that followed, he played a significant role in capturing al-Qaeda members responsible for the embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, and worked jointly with the FBI and CIA to uncover a senior Hezbollah terrorist living in the United States. His never before revealed story makes an action-packed biography.
Still Pickled After All These Years: A Pickles Collection
Brian Crane - 2004
The other one was to Hopalong Cassidy, when I had a great crush on him at about six years old. But I did want to let you know how very much both my husband and I have enjoyed Pickles from the very first strip. Would you please consider putting a collection together in book form?"—Lois F. in Nevada
As its loyal fans will gladly tell you, Pickles has been a zinger-filled, laugh-out-loud gem since its debut in 1990. Since then, it has steadily climbed in popularity, and today appears in over 400 newspapers worldwide.
Still Pickled After All These Years collects strips from this sweet intergenerational comic that alternates point of view between an older married couple, a 30-something married couple, and their son. The strip centers on Earl and Opal Pickles, who have been married over 50 years but inject plenty of spunk and insight into everything they do. Whether they're taking a wry but sympathetic glance at their divorced daughter, Sylvia, laughing at their faithful but feckless canine, Roscoe, marveling at their dictatorial feline, Muffin, or just commenting on the little things in life, Earl and Opal's good-natured wit and dry humor is brilliantly on target.
Pickles is about growing old and keeping your sense of humor but never forgetting what it's like to be a child. The strip's inaugural AMP collection, Still Pickled After All These Years, encapsulates the importance of staying close to those who bring you the most joy and reminds everyone about the incalculable value of the unconditional love of pets, family, and friends.