One of our field reps, Bob Barnett, just informed me of some great news out of his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. Many thanks to Michael Boggs at Carmichael’s Bookstore in Louisville for bringing it to our attention.

The University of Louisville awards major prizes–the Grawemeyer Awards–every year in five different categories: Music Composition, Education, World Order, Psychology, and Religion.

This year’s World Order prize goes to Cambridge author Michael Johnston. Johnston’s book, Syndromes of Corruption: Wealth, Power, and Democracy seeks to understand corruption by looking at how it manifests in different countries, including bribes, cartels, and outright plunder. According Rodger Payne, a Louisville political science professor who directs the award:

Corruption is a pervasive global problem that undermines economic and political systems, Johnston’s approach is particularly useful because it puts forward a practical agenda for reform.

Johnston is Professor of Political Science at Colgate University. They recently interviewed him on their blog.

We have several busy authors speaking at events this week.

Will you be in NY or DC? Give your brain the attention it deserves and stop by!

Marci Hamilton - author of Justice Denied: What America Must Do to Protect its Children

Marci is the keynote speaker for the SNAP Press conference backing Statutes of Limitations reform

October 29, 4:00 PM
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
55 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10003

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Susan Pinkard - author of A Revolution in Taste: The Rise of French Cuisine

Susan Pinkard of Georgetown University will be speaking and signing copies of her new book, A Revolution in Taste, at Bridge Street Books on Thursday, October 30 at 7:00 PM. A Revolution in Taste traces the development of modern French habits of cooking, eating, and drinking. Pinkard examines the interplay of material culture, social developments, medical theory, and Enlightenment thought in the development of French cooking, which culminated in the creation of a distinct culture of food and drink.

Bridge Street Books
Thursday, October 30, 7:00 PM
2814 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20007
(202) 965-5200

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Ross Garnaut - author of The Garnaut Climate Change Review

Ross Garnaut will be speaking about his latest book, The Garnaut Climate Change Review, at the Brookings Institute at 3:00 PM on Thursday, October 30. As part of the Australian Government’s focus on climate change, Professor Garnaut led an investigation into the impact of climate change on the Australian economy. The Garnaut Climate Change Review, which has been very influential in Australia, identified policy recommendations that would maintain the country’s prosperity while mitigating the negative influences of global warming. Professor Garnaut’s final report, embodying proposals for domestic and international policy, was given to the Australian Prime Minister and State Premiers on September 30, and was published by Cambridge University Press on October 16.

Thursday, October 30, 2008
3:00 PM to 4:15 PM
The Brookings Institution
1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 797-6105

After Bush author Timothy Lynch will be here in the US soon. Come hear him speak, tune in to KQED on July 15, or catch the archive at the Forum link below!

[Update] Listen to the Forum broadcast here >>

Please check each link for specifics about each event.

July 15

KQED San Francisco
Forum - 10:00-10:30

World Affairs Council, San Francisco
6:30-7:30

July 22

The Hudson Institute, Washington DC
12:00-2:00

The World Affairs Council, Washington DC
6:30-8:00

And it’s about time. Colin Shindler is an historian at the University of London — a place where fliers for his talks have been tagged with swastikas.

He is one of our authors, and wrote the recently-published History of Modern Israel.

The Jerusalem Post ran an article about his appointment: Read more >>

This week — Sweden: the Colonial Power

Neil Kent’s Swedish History Smorgasboard brings us tidbits and snippets about a country that many Americans, myself included, sadly know little about. Here in New York, we have Dutch and English street names, and a flag adapted from the Netherlands’. I grew up in Pennsylvania, surrounded by the descendants of Germans and Poles. Neil Kent, author of A Concise History of Sweden informs us of some surprising colonial activity of the Swedish. They colonized “New England,” were heavily involved in the slave trade, and had their hand in the Caribbean, too.

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Sweden was a North American colonial power until the late nineteenth century. In 1637, it established the colony of New Sweden, with its capital at Fort Kristina, named after Sweden’s famous queen, popularised in the world famous Greta Garbo film of the same name. Later captured by the Dutch, it was ceded to the British and was one of the original thirteen colonies which became the United States: Delaware!

Sweden also had an important colony in the Caribbean: St Bartelemy. It acquired the island from France in 1785. During the Napoleonic Wars it was a very important entrepot for ships from the warring nations, trading with one another. It languished in the nineteenth century and was ceded to France in 1878. Today it is a thriving tourist destination for the seriously rich.

Read the rest of this entry »