In my last blog I told of our special offer as we promoted On the Move, the speech that rock star Bono gave to the National Prayer Breakfast. As you can see by browsing the comment section, it created some discussion, and some links were offered for those who want a dissenting opinion of Bono's policy proposals to "make poverty history." Thanks for those that ordered the books from us. The offer for the free one, and another free book, too, to go with it, is still on.
We really have appreciated his many books (The Age of Missing Information was fabulous, and The End of Nature highly, highly regarded. And his one on Job is back out again, too.) Some have likened him to Wendell Berry. Michael Pollan, author of Omnivore's Dilemma (did you see our note about it as a Year's Best in our end of the year list at the website?) has written,
Two new books came in the other day, and given this bit of discourse, I thought I'd note them. (We stock more books on international justice and globalization and third world poverty and wholistic Christian missions than most bookstores.) These both look very, very good and I think would be helpful for many of our readers.
First, let me mention the new hardback by Benjamin R. Barber, Consumed: How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole (Norton; $26.95.)
Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future is the new book by the excellent writer, hiker, reporter and enviromental activist, Bill McKibben (Times Books; $25.00.)
In this powerful and disturbing critique, Benjamin Barber takes dead aim at a fudamental fallacy of our time: the equation of capitalism and democracy. Perceptively exploring the puerility of market culture, Consumed insists on the crucial distinction between consumers and citizens. No one who cares about the future of our public life can afford to ignore this book.
Jackson Lears
editor in chief Raritan
We really have appreciated his many books (The Age of Missing Information was fabulous, and The End of Nature highly, highly regarded. And his one on Job is back out again, too.) Some have likened him to Wendell Berry. Michael Pollan, author of Omnivore's Dilemma (did you see our note about it as a Year's Best in our end of the year list at the website?) has written,
The cult of growth and globalization has seldom been so effectively challanged as by Bill McKibben in Deep Economy. But this bracing tonic of a book also throws the bright light of McKibben's matchless journalism on the vibrant local economies now springing up like mushrooms in the shadow of globalization. Deep Economy fills you with hope and a sense of fresh possibility.BLOG SPECIAL BUY EITHER OF THESE TWO GET ONE FREE copy of On the Move (Bono) $12 savings. read@heartsandmindsbooks OR 717.246.3333
ahhh - now you're just baiting me with my favorite subjects: "international justice and globalization."seems I may need to find myself in Dallastown again - soon!Patrick
Good stuff, and a Jackson Lears blurb to boot! ... excellent.Lest I appear too curmudgenly, I have to say that you really do run the best bookshop around.Thanks!
Due to odd technical difficulties with the comment section, here, my good friend Dick Cleary couldn't get his input posted. (See his Viewpoint blog, and my critical comments there from time to time at http://www.wscleary.com/pov/home.)You may recall that Caleb S. suggested that Bono is wrong in his claim, in "On the Move", that justice is a higher calling than charity. Caleb opined that it is the other way around. I rebutted saying that they are two different norms, and ought not be played "over and against" each other. Dick attempted to add to that conversation, but got oppressed by the Man at Blogger. Or something dumb like that. Sorry, Dick.So,charitable guy that I am, here is what he wrote, which I post now, because, seriously, it is worth considering, any day.***From Dick Cleary:I'm afraid this might come too late in the discussion, but perhaps the distinction made a while back between justice and charity, with one being elevated in importance over the other, should be reconsidered. It seems to me that justice is the means by which we "do" charity in the world. Charity, or love, is a coin with two sides: Justice and compassion (or mercy). We love others by treating them justly and we love them by treating them with compassion. Neither, it seems to me, is more important than the other.Dick Cleary