Moving beyond the typical sentimentality, romanticism, or cynicism common to writing on boxing is a new book, The Bittersweet Science: Fifteen Writers in the Gym, in the Corner, and at Ringside (Univeristy of Chicago Press, 2017), co-edited by BC Professor of English Carlo Rotella and Michael Ezra. The Bittersweet Science is a collection of essays about boxing— written by journalists, fiction writers, fight people, and more—that explores the delusions and dreams of boxers, fans, and the cast of managers, trainers, promoters, and hangers-on who make up life in and around the ring. Rotella also contributes the essay, “Bernard Hopkins, Prefight and Postfight.” Rotella, who directs the American Studies program at BC, is the author of Cut Time: An Education at the Fights and Good with Their Hands: Boxers, Bluesmen, and Other Characters from the Rust Belt, among other works. Listen to an interview with Rotella and Ezra on New Books Network.
A ringside seat
Ambrose of Milan
Enchantment and Creed in the Hymns of Ambrose of Milan (Oxford University Press, 2016) by School of Theology and Ministry Assistant Professor Brian P. Dunkle, S.J., offers the first critical overview of the hymns of Ambrose of Milan in the context of fourth-century doctrinal song and Ambrose’s own catechetical preaching. Engaging the mass of literature on Ambrose, early Christian hymns and poetry, and doctrinal dispute in the fourth century, Fr. Dunkle’s volume makes scholarly contributions to deciphering Ambrose’s meaning, establishing Ambrosian authorship, and illuminating the expansion of popular hymns and learned Christian poetry in the early Latin church. Fr. Dunkle talked about his book in a video produced by BC Libraries.
Posted in Boston College Authors
Tagged BC Libraries, Catholic, School of Theology and Ministry
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Barking up the Wrong Tree
Advice about achievement is often logical, earnest…and downright wrong. In Barking Up the Wrong Tree (HarperOne, 2017), Boston College alumnus Eric Barker reveals the science behind what actually determines success and how anyone can achieve it. Barking Up the Wrong Tree draws on statistics and anecdotes to identify what works and what doesn’t, so readers can stop guessing and start leading a successful life. Barker earned an MBA at BC and is a former screenwriter who worked on projects for Walt Disney Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, and Revolution Studios.
Pomp and Circumstance
A newly published book of speeches by David McCullough, one of America’s most distinguished historians, includes his Commencement address to Boston College’s Class of 2008. The American Spirit: Who We Are and What We Stand For (Simon & Schuster, 2017) is a collection of talks given during the past 25 years by the two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and Presidential Medal of Honor recipient, author of books such as Truman, 1776, John Adams, and The Wright Brothers. According to the publisher, The American Spirit “reminds us of core American values to which we all subscribe.” McCullough’s speech at BC, titled “The Love of Learning,” included his memorable line “Read, read, read! Read the classics of American literature that you’ve never opened. Read your country’s history. How can we profess to love our country and take no interest in its history?” More from BC News.
A monster at bedtime
Michelle Williams-King, a member of the Woods College of Advancing Studies’ Class of 2017, has published a children’s book inspired by her son who had trouble sleeping when he was younger. There’s No Such Thing as People, aimed at children ages 4-8, is about a little monster who has trouble going to sleep because he’s afraid there is a person in his closet.
Book award for alumnus
Unfreedom: Slavery and Dependence in Eighteenth-Century Boston (New York University Press, 2016) by BC alumnus Jared Ross Hardesty has been named an Outstanding Academic Title by Choice, the premier review journal of new academic titles. Hardesty, a faculty member at Western Washington University, also has been featured on Ben Franklin’s World, a podcast about early American history.
The Universe Untangled
People are fascinated by the laws of the physical world, but many find the scientific concepts dense and complicated. To solve that dilemma, BC alumna Abigail Pillitteri has published The Universe Untangled – Modern Physics for Everyone (Morgan & Claypool Publishers, 2017), a book about physics for the general reader. She uses images, analogies, and comprehensible language to cover topics such as the evolution of the universe, fundamental forces, the nature of space and time, and the quest for knowing the unknown. Pillitteri is a science writer, poet, and visual artist.
Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory
The field of cognitive neuroscience has grown as technological advances make non-invasive measurement of human brain activity more accessible. In the new textbook, Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory (Cambridge University Press, 2017), Associate Professor of Psychology Scott D. Slotnick provides the first comprehensive and up-to-date treatment on the cognitive neuroscience of memory. Topics include cognitive neuroscience techniques and human brain mechanisms underlying long-term memory success, long-term memory failure, working memory, implicit memory, and memory and disease. In his analysis, Slotnick questions popular views, rather than simply assuming they are correct. Slotnick is also editor-in-chief of the journal Cognitive Neuroscience.
Welcome to Helltown
In 1974, the town of Boston Mills, Ohio was turned into a ghost town when the U.S. Department of Interior seized land and condemned homes and properties in order to expand the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. In the years since, mysterious tales and ghost stories have emerged from the area known as “Helltown.” In his novel Helltown Chronicles (Big Table Publishing, 2017), Phil Temples tells the story of newspaper reporters Jerry Wolanski and Susan Wong, who are dispatched to Ohio to write ‘fluff’ Halloween pieces about Helltown. Soon enough, Wolanski and Wong find themselves experiencing first-hand Helltown’s reputation for horror, intrigue, and the supernatural. Temples is a Systems Administrator in the Computer Science Department. He is also the author of The Winship Affair and Machine Feelings.
Posted in Boston College Authors
Tagged Computer Science Department, horror, novel, supernatural
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Rebel Power
Why do some national movements succeed while others do not? That question is at the heart of a new book by Assistant Professor of Political Science Peter Krause. In Rebel Power: Why National Movements Compete, Fight, and Win (Cornell University Press, 2017), Krause theorizes that the most powerful groups push to achieve states while they are in position to rule them, whereas weaker groups unlikely to gain the spoils of office are likely to become spoilers, employing risky, escalating violence to forestall victory while they improve their position in the movement hierarchy. Krause’s book is based on years of fieldwork as well as more than 150 interviews with participants in the Palestinian, Zionist, Algerian, and Irish national movements. Krause identifies new turning points in the history of these movements and provides fresh explanations for their use of violent and nonviolent strategies, as well as their numerous successes and failures. Krause was interviewed about his book on NECN’s “The Take.”
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