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From calls to arms to demands for peace, and from cries of freedom to words of inspiration, this stirring anthology captures the voices of prophets and politicians, rebels and tyrants, soldiers and statesman, placing them in historical context.With over a million copies already sold, this completely revised and updated pocket edition includes speeches by those that have truly shaped the modern world: from Greta Thunberg to Donald Trump, and from Nadia Murad to Volodymyr Zelenskyy. A biography of each speaker reveals how they came to stand at the crossroads of history, and each speech is accompanied by an introduction explaining its historical context and how it influenced the momentous events of the day - as well as those that followed.By turns moving and thought-provoking, this new edition reveals a modern world in which freedom of speech remains a powerful agent of change - and gives unique perspectives on key turning points in history.Contents include: Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Martin Luther King, Jr, Queen Elizabeth I, Oliver Cromwell, George Washington, Napoleon Bonaparte, Abraham Lincoln, Emmeline Pankhurst, Mohandas K. Gandhi, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Charles de Gaulle, George S. Patton, Jr, Malcolm X, Vaclav Havel, Mikhail Gorbachev, Indira Gandhi and Winston Churchill to name a few.

The first essay collection from one of the most acclaimed writers of our time. ‘This trenchant, unrepentant collection reminds you that she’s a brilliant writer… Order a copy in case she’s cancelled by Christmas’ THE TIMES (Book of the Year) ‘You may disagree with Lionel Shriver’s bracing journalism, but her right to spark disquiet goes to the heart of the freedom of expression issue’ Rachel Cooke, OBSERVER ‘Mutinous essays about modern politics and culture… An independent mind and a sense of humour are dangerous things to possess. The spiky, politically incorrect novelist Lionel Shriver has them in abundance’ THE TIMES ‘Testament to the fierce intelligence of a writer who wants us to think more, probe more, challenge more — and who also makes it fun’ THE SUNDAY TIMES Novelist, cultural observer and social satirist Lionel Shriver is among the sharpest talents of our age. A writer who embraces ‘under-expressed, unpopular or downright dangerous’ points of view, she regularly deplores the conformity of thought and attitude that has overtaken society.Bringing together thirty-five works curated from her many columns, features, essays and op-eds for the likes of the Spectator and Guardian, speeches and reviews, and some unpublished pieces, Abominations reveals Shriver at her most iconoclastic and personal. Relentlessly sceptical, cutting and contrarian but also frequently moving and vulnerable, this collection showcases her piquant opinions on a wide range of topics, including religion, politics, illness, mortality, family and friends, tennis, gender, immigration, consumerism, health care and taxes.Though some of the more divisive essays in Abominations have ‘brought hell and damnation down on my head,’ as she cheerfully explains, she also offers insights on her novels and explores the perks and pitfalls of becoming a successful artist. Readers will find plenty to challenge them here, but they may also find many nuanced and considered insights with which they agree.Abominations was a Times Book of the Year in the Literature category on 26.11.2022

Romersk historia är ett väldigt ämne, oavsett om man utgår från arkeologiska eller skriftliga källor. Och vår kunskap har, naturligt nog, stora luckor eftersom tillfälligheter ofta har bestämt vad som har bevarats till vår tid. Men när det finns tillförlitliga källor kan vi ibland komma de gamla romarna överrumplande nära. Nära dem kommer man definitivt i Magnus Wistrands rikligt kommenterade antologi "Romare tar till orda" – som emellertid närmar sig den romerska historien från ett mindre vanligt håll och med hjälp av texter som i strikt mening inte är särskilt tillförlitliga alls. Boken rymmer ett urval av de tal som återges hos fyra romerska författare, Caesar, Sallustius, Livius och Tacitus. Antika historieskrivare låter gärna sina huvudpersoner hålla tal i avgörande situationer, det kan handla om en general som försöker ingjuta mod i sina soldater, en politiker som argumenterar för ett förslag eller en åtalad som försvarar sin heder. Men de 38 talen i "Romare tar till orda" kastar också ljus över sådant som kvinnornas manöverutrymme, slavarnas verklighet och den villkorade politiska mötesfriheten i Rom. Samtliga tal är sannolikt mer eller mindre fiktiva och i den meningen otillförlitliga som källor – romerska historieskrivare ägnade sig inte precis åt modern källkritik. Men talens mentalitetshistoriska rikedom är i gengäld påtaglig och de säger mycket om hur romarna uppfattade sin värld i historie­skrivarens samtid. De öppnar en sidodörr till den världen. Magnus Wistrand är professor emeritus i latin vid Göteborgs universitet och har i sin forskning bland annat fördjupat sig i romerskt underhållningsvåld. Han har för Daidalos översatt Seneca ("Om livets korthet" och "Breven till Lucilius") och Cicero ("Om plikterna" och "Om staten och Om lagarna").

"Idag är han väl mer eller mindre bortglömd, men under första halvan av 1900-talet var Ture Nerman en av Sveriges mest kända politiker och författare, eller 'poet och grälmakare' som Per Albin Hansson kallade honom. För med sin vassa penna och radikala diktning retade han inte bara upp den konservativa högern, utan också sina mer moderata kamrater inom arbetarrörelsen." Så inleder Per Leander förordet till detta urval av Ture Nermans tidigare opublicerade brandtal mot nazismen under 1930- och 1940-talet. Leander har sammanställt boken utifrån Nermans originalmanuskript som finns bevarade bland hans privata papper på Arbetarrörelsens arkiv och bibliotek. Under andra världskriget gav Nerman ut den antinazistiska tidningen "Trots allt!" vilket ledde till att han dömdes till fängelse 1940 och tidningen belades med transportförbund för att ha smädat främmande statsöverhuvud (Hitler!). Tidningen fortsatte dock att komma ut under hela kriget och smugglades även in i det naziockuperade Norge. Nerman var också under kriget medlem i Tisdagsklubben, en antinazistisk förening av kulturpersonligheter som ägnade sig åt opinionsbildning och förberedde sig för underjordisk verksamhet i händelse av tysk ockupation. Boken inleds med ett föredrag om fascismens väsen december 1933. Den innehåller första maj-tal, valtal, föredrag om inbördeskriget i Spanien (dit Nerman reste våren 1937 för att som journalist rapportera om kampen mot fascismen samt för att knyta kontakter med socialister). Den innehåller så skilda föredrag som en analys av Cervantes roman Don Quijote som "ger hopp i en hopplös tid" och en grundlig genomgång av Sveriges roll under andra världskriget. Det avslutande talet är ett jultal Nerman höll i radio 1949 då han berättade om sin julafton på Långholmens fängelse 1940.

Fidel Castro åtalades för anfallet på Moncadakasernen i Santiago de Cuba 26 juli 1953. Anfallet misslyckades. Många av de som deltog tillfångatogs, torterades grymt och mördades. Fidels försvarstal avslöjar obarmhärtigt regimens tyranni, tillståndet i Kuba och stakar ut programmet för ett nytt Kuba. Detta nya Kuba har sedan revolutionens seger 1959 förverkligats steg för steg. Det trots USA:s terroristattentat, propagandakampanjer och snart 60 år av ekonomisk krigföring och blockad. Försvarstalet fick namn efter sin sista mening; La Historia me Absolverá. Det smugglades ut ur fängelset, trycktes i hemlighet och spreds underjordiskt i hela Kuba. Detta blev programmet för upproret mot diktaturen. För att få kunskap om Batistadiktaturen, läget i Kuba på 1950-talet och revolutionens mål är det historiska talet ett måste!

‘Can one part of humanity learn from the bitter experience of another or can it not? Is it possible or impossible to warn someone of danger...to assess soberly the worldwide menace that threatens to swallow the whole world?I was swallowed myself. I have been in the dragon’s belly, in its red-hot innards. It was unable to digest me and threw me up. I have come to you as a witness to what it is like there, in the dragon’s belly’During 1975 and 1976, Nobel Prize-winner Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn embarked on a series of speeches across America and Britain that would shock and scandalise both countries. His message: the West was veering towards moral and spiritual bankruptcy, and with it the world’s one hope against tyranny and totalitarianism.From Solzhenitsyn’s warnings about the allure of communism, to his rebuke that the West should not abandon its age-old concepts of ‘good’ and ‘evil’, the speeches collected in Warning to the West provide insight into Solzhenitsyn’s uncompromising moral vision. Read today, their message remains as powerfully urgent as when Solzhenitsyn first delivered them.

A new collection of Albert Camus' most brilliant speeches and lectures'Freedom is dangerous, as hard to live as it is exalting...'This definitive new collection of Albert Camus' public speeches and lectures gives a compelling insight into one of the twentieth century's most enduring writers. From a pre-war speech on the politics of the Mediterranean - delivered when he was just twenty-two - to his impassioned Nobel Prize acceptance lectures and several pieces appearing in English for the first time, Speaking Out shows Camus' clarity and subtlety of thought, his 'stubborn humanism' and his unerring commitment to freedom and justice.Translated by Quintin Hoare

Seize the day in the name of art. This creative call to arms from the mind of Neil Gaiman combines his extraordinary words with deft and striking illustrations by Chris Riddell. 'Like a bedtime story for the rest of your life, this is a book to live by. At its core, it's about freeing ideas, shedding fear of failure, and learning that "things can be different" ' INSTITUTE OF IMAGINATIONBe bold. Be rebellious. Choose art. It matters.Neil Gaiman once said that 'the world always seems brighter when you've just made something that wasn't there before'. This little book is the embodiment of that vision. Drawn together from speeches, poems and creative manifestos, Art Matters explores how reading, imagining and creating can change the world, and will be inspirational to young and old.THIS PAPERBACK EDITION INCLUDES BEAUTIFUL NEW ILLUSTRATIONS OF 'GOING WODWO'.What readers are saying about ART MATTERS 'A rallying cry for all artists and creators' 'Just the injection of positive thinking I needed' 'What a gorgeous, sweet and very, very wise little book' 'You don't know it yet, but it's likely you need this book''I feel artistically charged up for the first time in ages'

A TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR ‘For all those who believe in the politics of principle and hope this a wonderful reminder that they do not always lose. For all those who despair that politics can ever be inspiring again this is a must-read to shake you out of your misery’ Paddy Ashdown ‘By the people, for the people’ ‘I have the heart and stomach of a king’ ‘We shall never surrender’ The right words at the right time can shape history. By analysing twenty-five of the greatest speeches ever given – delivered by iconic figures from Elizabeth I to John F. Kennedy to Barack Obama – Philip Collins tells the story of democracy. For it is through the finest words spoken in public that progress unfolds.When They Go Low, We Go High is a passionate defence of the power of public speaking, and an urgent – and timely – reminder of how words can change the world.‘For all those who believe in the politics of principle and hope, this is a wonderful reminder that they do not always lose. For all those who despair that politics can ever be inspiring again, this is a must read to shake you out of your miser’ Paddy Ashdown

In honor of the fiftieth anniversary of Robert Francis Kennedy’s death, an inspiring collection of his most famous speeches accompanied by commentary from notable historians and public figures.Twenty-five years after Bobby Kennedy was assassinated, RFK: His Words for Our Times, a celebration of Kennedy’s life and legacy, was published to enormous acclaim. Now, a quarter century later, this classic volume has been thoroughly edited and updated. Through his own words we get a direct and intimate perspective on Kennedy’s views on civil rights, social justice, the war in Vietnam, foreign policy, the desirability of peace, the need to eliminate poverty, and the role of hope in American politics.Here, too, is evidence of the impact of those he knew and worked with, including his brother John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Cesar Chavez, among others. The tightly curated collection also includes commentary about RFK’s legacy from major historians and public figures, among them Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Eric Garcetti, William Manchester, Elie Wiesel, and Desmond Tutu. Assembled with the full cooperation of the Kennedy family, RFK: His Words for Our Times is a potent reminder of Robert Kennedy’s ability to imagine a greater America—a faith and vision we could use today.

“The Gimmicks is a gorgeous epic that astounds with its scope and beauty. With empathy and humor, McCormick unravels the ties between brotherhood and betrayal, love and abandonment, and the fictions we create to live with the pain of the past. This novel will blow you away.” —Brit Bennett, New York Times bestselling author of The MothersSet in the waning years of the Cold War, a stunning debut novel about a trio of young Armenians that moves from the Soviet Union, across Europe, to Southern California, and at its center, one of the most tragic cataclysms in twentieth-century history—the Armenian Genocide—whose traumatic reverberations will have unexpected consequences on all three lives.This exuberant, wholly original novel begins in Kirovakan, Armenia, in 1971. Ruben Petrosian is a serious, solitary young man who cares about two things: mastering the game of backgammon to beat his archrival, Mina, and studying the history of his ancestors. Ruben grieves the victims of the 1915 Armenian Genocide, a crime still denied by the descendants of its perpetrators, and dreams of vengeance.When his orphaned cousin, Avo, comes to live with his family, Ruben’s life is transformed. Gregarious and physically enormous, with a distinct unibrow that becomes his signature, Avo is instantly beloved. He is everything Ruben is not, yet the two form a bond they swear never to break.But their paths diverge when Ruben vanishes—drafted into an extremist group that will stop at nothing to make Turkey acknowledge the genocide. Unmoored by Ruben’s disappearance, Avo and Mina grow close in his absence. But fate brings the cousins together once more, when Ruben secretly contacts Avo, convincing him to leave Mina and join the extremists—a choice that will dramatically alter the course of their lives.Left to unravel the threads of this story is Terry “Angel Hair” Krill, a veteran of both the US Navy and the funhouse world of professional wrestling, whose life intersects with Avo, Ruben, and Mina’s in surprising and devastating ways. Told through alternating perspectives, The Gimmicks is a masterpiece of storytelling. Chris McCormick brilliantly illuminates the impact of history and injustice on ordinary lives and challenges us to confront the spectacle of violence and the specter of its aftermath.

An critically-acclaimed Iranian author makes his American literary debut with this powerful and harrowing psychological portrait of modern Iran—an unprecedented and urgent work of fiction with echoes of The Stranger, 1984, and The Orphan Master’s Son—that exposes the oppressive and corrosive power of the state to bend individual lives. Yunus Turabi, a bus driver in Tehran, leads an unremarkable life. A solitary man since the unexpected deaths of his father and mother years ago, he is decidedly apolitical—even during the driver’s strike and its bloody end. But everyone has their breaking point, and Yunus has reached his.Handcuffed and blindfolded, he is taken to the infamous Evin prison for political dissidents. Inside this stark, strangely ordered world, his fate becomes entwined with Hajj Saeed, his personal interrogator. The two develop a disturbing yet interdependent relationship, with each playing his assigned role in a high stakes psychological game of cat and mouse, where Yunus endures a mind-bending cycle of solitary confinement and interrogation. In their startlingly intimate exchanges, Yunus’s life begins to unfold—from his childhood memories growing up in a freer Iran to his heartbreaking betrayal of his only friend. As Yunus struggles to hold on to his sanity and evade Saeed’s increasingly undeniable accusations, he must eventually make an impossible choice: continue fighting or submit to the system of lies upholding Iran’s power.Gripping, startling, and masterfully told, Then the Fish Swallowed Him is a haunting story of life under despotism.

“Full of heart and wisdom, Daughters of Latin America sheds a brilliant light on Latine and Caribbean women writers across time, space, languages, and genres.”—World Literature TodaySpanning time, styles, and traditions, a dazzling literary anthology of essential works from 140 Latine writers, scholars, and activists from across the world—from warrior poet Audre Lorde to novelist Edwidge Danticat and performer and author Elizabeth Acevedo and artist/poet Cecilia Vicuña—gathered in one magnificent volume.Daughters of Latin America collects the intergenerational literary voices of Latine women across time and space, capturing the power, strength, and creativity of these visionary writers in a landmark work of feminist literature—including 24 Indigenous voices. Several authors featured are translated into English for the first time. Grammy, National Book Award, Cervantes, and Pulitzer Prize winners as well as a Nobel Laureate and the next generation of literary voices are among the stars of this essential collection, women whose work inspires and transforms us.An eclectic and inclusive time capsule of world literature spanning centuries, genres, and geographical and linguistic diversity, Daughters of Latin America is divided into 13 sections representing the 13 holy moons, each cycle honoring a different theme. Within its pages are poems from U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón; lyric essays from New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Acevedo, Pulitzer prize-winning playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes, and Guggenheim Fellow Maryse Condé; rousing speeches from U.S. Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, and Lencan Indigenous land and water protector Berta Caceres; and a transcendent Mazatec chant from shaman and poet María Sabina testifying to the power of language as a cure, which opens the book.More than a collection of writings, this groundbreaking book of essays, poetry, and speeches is a resurrection of ancestral literary inheritance as well as a celebration of the rising voices encouraged and nurtured by those who came before them. In addition to those mentioned above, contributors include Elizabeth Acevedo, Julia Alvarez, Albalucia Angel, Marie Arana, Ruth Behar, Gioconda Belli, Miluska Benavides, Carmen Bouollosa, Giannina Braschi, Norma Cantú, Ana Castillo, Sandra Cisneros, Ingrid Rojas Contreras, Angie Cruz, Edwidge Danticat, Julia de Burgos, Lila Downs, Laura Esquivel, Conceição Evaristo, Mayra Santos Febres, Sara Gallardo, Cristina Rivera Garza, Reyna Grande, Sonia Guiñasaca, Georgina Herrera, María Hinojosa, Claudia Salazar Jimenez, Jamaica Kincaid, María Clara Sharupi Jua, Amada Libertad, Josefina López, Gabriela Mistral, Celeste Mohammed, Cherrié Moraga, Angela Morales, Nancy Morejón, Anaïs Nin, Achy Obejas, Alejandra Pizarnik, Yolanda Arroyo Pizarro, Elena Poniatowska, Laura Restrepo, Ivelisse Rodriguez, Mikeas Sánchez, Esmeralda Santiago, Rita Laura Segato, Ana María Shua, Natalia Toledo, Julia Wong, Elisabet Velasquez, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, Helena María Viramontes, and many more.