Daniel O'Brien – författare

Make no mistake: Our founding fathers were more bandanas-and-muscles than powdered-wigs-and-tea.  As a prisoner of war, Andrew Jackson walked several miles barefoot across state lines while suffering from smallpox and a serious head wound received when he refused to polish the boots of the soldiers who had taken him captive. He was thirteen years old. A few decades later, he became the first popularly elected president and served the nation, pausing briefly only to beat a would-be assassin with a cane to within an inch of his life. Theodore Roosevelt had asthma, was blind in one eye, survived multiple gunshot wounds, had only one regret (that there were no wars to fight under his presidency), and was the first U.S. president to win the Medal of Honor, which he did after he died. Faced with the choice, George Washington actually preferred the sound of bullets whizzing by his head in battle over the sound of silence.  And now these men—these hallowed leaders of the free world—want to kick your ass. Plenty of historians can tell you which president had the most effective economic strategies, and which president helped shape our current political parties, but can any of them tell you what to do if you encounter Chester A. Arthur in a bare-knuckled boxing fight? This book will teach you how to be better, stronger, faster, and more deadly than the most powerful (and craziest) men in history. You’re welcome.

Fans of How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous and Kid Presidents can draft their own presidential fantasy team, based on these hilarious-but-true profiles of our past leaders.   What if a zombie apocalypse or a robot uprising threatened the nation and you had the power to recruit some of the nation’s finest presidents to help save the day?   By studying the most successful squads in history, Daniel O’Brien has identified the perfect ingredients for a victorious team.   Which president would you choose for: the Brain, the Brawn, the Moral Compass, the Loose Cannon, and the Roosevelt?   Choose wisely—the fate of the world is in your hands!"Aiming squarely at a sports-obsessed, statistics-mad and gross-out friendly audience, the madcap, utterly irreverent Your Presidential Fantasy Dream Team may be on to something." —New York Times"O''Brien takes a non-holds-barred approach to describing each man''s strengths, weaknesses, and reputation . . . Rowntree''s over-the-top illustrations picture ratchet up the humor even more." —PW"A warts-and-all look at two centuries of presidential leadership and politics." —Kirkus ReviewsFrom the Trade Paperback edition.

This book provides wide-ranging commentary on depictions of the black male in mainstream cinema. O’Brien explores the extent to which counter-representations of black masculinity have been achieved within a predominately white industry, with an emphasis on agency, the negotiation and malleability of racial status, and the inherent instability of imposed racial categories. Focusing on American and European cinema, the chapters  highlight actors (Woody Strode, Noble Johnson, Eddie Anderson, Will Smith), genres (jungle pictures, westerns, science fiction) and franchises (Tarzan, James Bond) underrepresented in previous critical and scholarly commentary in the field. The author argues that although the characters and performances generated in these areas invoke popular genre types, they display complexity, diversity and ambiguity, exhibiting aspects that are positive, progressive and subversive. This book will appeal to both the academic and the general reader interested in film, race, gender and colonial issues.

This book provides wide-ranging commentary on depictions of the black male in mainstream cinema. O’Brien explores the extent to which counter-representations of black masculinity have been achieved within a predominately white industry, with an emphasis on agency, the negotiation and malleability of racial status, and the inherent instability of imposed racial categories. Focusing on American and European cinema, the chapters  highlight actors (Woody Strode, Noble Johnson, Eddie Anderson, Will Smith), genres (jungle pictures, westerns, science fiction) and franchises (Tarzan, James Bond) underrepresented in previous critical and scholarly commentary in the field. The author argues that although the characters and performances generated in these areas invoke popular genre types, they display complexity, diversity and ambiguity, exhibiting aspects that are positive, progressive and subversive. This book will appeal to both the academic and the general reader interested in film, race, gender and colonial issues.

If films drawing on Middle East tropes often highlight white Westerners, figures such as Sinbad and the Thief of Bagdad embody a counter-tradition of protagonists, derived from Islamic folklore and history, who are portrayed as ‘Other’ to Western audiences. In Muslim Heroes on Screen, Daniel O’Brien explores the depiction of these characters in Euro-American cinema from the silent era to the present day. Far from being mere racial masquerade, these screen portrayals are more complex and nuanced than is generally allowed, not least in terms of the shifting concepts and assumptions that inform their Muslim identity. Using films ranging from Douglas Fairbanks’ The Thief of Bagdad, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, El Cid, Kingdom of Heaven and The Message to The Wind and the Lion, O’Brien considers how the representational strategies of Western filmmakers may transcend such Muslim stereotypes as fanatic antagonists or passive victims. These figures possess a cultural significance which cannot be fully appreciated by Euro-American audiences without reference to their distinction as Muslim heroes and the implications and resonances of an Islamicized protagonist.

If films drawing on Middle East tropes often highlight white Westerners, figures such as Sinbad and the Thief of Bagdad embody a counter-tradition of protagonists, derived from Islamic folklore and history, who are portrayed as ‘Other’ to Western audiences. In Muslim Heroes on Screen, Daniel O’Brien explores the depiction of these characters in Euro-American cinema from the silent era to the present day. Far from being mere racial masquerade, these screen portrayals are more complex and nuanced than is generally allowed, not least in terms of the shifting concepts and assumptions that inform their Muslim identity. Using films ranging from Douglas Fairbanks’ The Thief of Bagdad, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, El Cid, Kingdom of Heaven and The Message to The Wind and the Lion, O’Brien considers how the representational strategies of Western filmmakers may transcend such Muslim stereotypes as fanatic antagonists or passive victims. These figures possess a cultural significance which cannot be fully appreciated by Euro-American audiences without reference to their distinction as Muslim heroes and the implications and resonances of an Islamicized protagonist.

If films drawing on Middle East tropes often highlight white Westerners, figures such as Sinbad and the Thief of Bagdad embody a counter-tradition of protagonists, derived from Islamic folklore and history, who are portrayed as ‘Other’ to Western audiences. In Muslim Heroes on Screen, Daniel O’Brien explores the depiction of these characters in Euro-American cinema from the silent era to the present day. Far from being mere racial masquerade, these screen portrayals are more complex and nuanced than is generally allowed, not least in terms of the shifting concepts and assumptions that inform their Muslim identity. Using films ranging from Douglas Fairbanks’ The Thief of Bagdad, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, El Cid, Kingdom of Heaven and The Message to The Wind and the Lion, O’Brien considers how the representational strategies of Western filmmakers may transcend such Muslim stereotypes as fanatic antagonists or passive victims. These figures possess a cultural significance which cannot be fully appreciated by Euro-American audiences without reference to their distinction as Muslim heroes and the implications and resonances of an Islamicized protagonist.

The fourth edition of this well received book provides an authoritative and up-to-date resource to support good practice in travel medicine, a field that has evolved substantially in recent years. Concretely, there has been intensified monitoring of health problems among travelers, as well as extensive research efforts, which have led to the development of evidence-based approaches to the field.The book includes expert recommendations regarding e.g. immunizations, malaria prophylaxis, travelers’ diarrhea, altitude sickness, emerging infections, and non-infectious health issues encountered by travelers. It provides a practical approach to the pre-travel consultation and management of most issues that arise in medical care for travelers. In addition, it provides expert advice for high-risk travelers, e.g. those with immunosuppression, the elderly, pregnant women and young children.The text offers a user-friendly, practical handbook for healthcare practitioners during their clinical consultations, as well as nurses and pharmacists.

The fourth edition of this well received book provides an authoritative and up-to-date resource to support good practice in travel medicine, a field that has evolved substantially in recent years. Concretely, there has been intensified monitoring of health problems among travelers, as well as extensive research efforts, which have led to the development of evidence-based approaches to the field.

The book includes expert recommendations regarding e.g. immunizations, malaria prophylaxis, travelers’ diarrhea, altitude sickness, emerging infections, and non-infectious health issues encountered by travelers. It provides a practical approach to the pre-travel consultation and management of most issues that arise in medical care for travelers. In addition, it provides expert advice for high-risk travelers, e.g. those with immunosuppression, the elderly, pregnant women and young children.

The text offers a user-friendly, practical handbook for healthcare practitioners during their clinical consultations, as well as nurses and pharmacists.

The fourth edition of this well received book provides an authoritative and up-to-date resource to support good practice in travel medicine, a field that has evolved substantially in recent years. Concretely, there has been intensified monitoring of health problems among travelers, as well as extensive research efforts, which have led to the development of evidence-based approaches to the field.The book includes expert recommendations regarding e.g. immunizations, malaria prophylaxis, travelers’ diarrhea, altitude sickness, emerging infections, and non-infectious health issues encountered by travelers. It provides a practical approach to the pre-travel consultation and management of most issues that arise in medical care for travelers. In addition, it provides expert advice for high-risk travelers, e.g. those with immunosuppression, the elderly, pregnant women and young children.The text offers a user-friendly, practical handbook for healthcare practitioners during their clinical consultations, as well as nurses and pharmacists.