“Maybe Tomorrow”: The Beatles’ Climb to the Rooftop, January 1959-1969
Gordon Thompson looks at the Beatles in January 1959 and January 1969.
On Encyclopedias
Ammon looks at encyclopedias.
A Very Short History of Burns Suppers
Scotland: A Very Short Introduction author Rab Houston talks about the history of Burns Suppers.
Prokofiev’s Juliet’s Lives: Zora Šemberová
Simon Morrison shares the story of the premier of Prokofiev’s ballet “Romeo and Juliet,” in which Romeo and Juliet live happily ever after.
Islam and the Nobel Prize
A look at how Islamic culture views the Nobel Prize.
A History of Central Africa and the Rwandan Genocide
A glimpse into Gérard Prunier’s newest book on Congo and the Rwandan Genocide.
A Few Questions for Gérard Prunier
An interview with Gérard Prunier on his thoughts on the current struggles in Central Africa.
Women, Crime, and Character
Nicola Lacey compares images of female criminality.
Killers without Borders: The LRA in the Congo
A look at the history of the Lord’s Resistance Army and the resulting bloody Christmas.
Edward Zwick on Defiance
A look at Edward Zwick’s foreword from the new edition of Defiance, soon to be a major motion picture.
Giving to Change the World
Authors Christian Smith, Michael O. Emerson, and Patricia Snell look at how much American Christians really give.
The Puzzling Case of the Broken Arm
An excerpt from Patient, Heal Thyself.
New Year’s Eve
Although champagne has become as de rigueur as midnight strikes – no single food epitomizes contemporary New Year’s. The menu may be luxurious caviar, or sobering hoppin’ John on New Year’s Day. Celebrations marking the inexorable march of Father Time often involve foods imbued with symbolism.
Christmas: An Excerpt From The Book of the Year
An alternative look at Christmas!
“I Want to Hold Your Hand,” 26 December 1963
For many of us in the British Commonwealth, Boxing Day can bring back memories of visiting family and friends, even as modernity transforms the date from an opportunity to exchange gifts between one another into one on which you return gifts at shopping malls. For Americans, it’s an anachronism.
Favorite Books 2008
What OUP staffers read this year.