Showing results by narrator "Jim D Johnston" in All Categories

Charlemagne, while subjugating the people he conquered, modernized education, currency, art, music, and leadership to bring stability back to Europe, setting it on the path to thrive for years to come. Europe had been in upheaval, with threats from every direction, when Charlemagne came to power in the eighth century. The barbarian king worked to unite Germanic people into one kingdom and to spread Catholicism.

The Olympics have long been the center of attention in the sports world, but perhaps no moment in the history of the games was as poignant as Jesse Owens' performance in Berlin in 1936. Owens would finish his career with four gold medals and become known as "perhaps the greatest and most famous athlete in track and field history" (as his obituary in The New York Times put it), but nearly 80 years later, it's the context that has made his performance so memorable.

Sherlock Holmes is one of those iconic characters who have become so embedded in our culture that he transcends space and time. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the currently popular series, Sherlock, have tried to kill off the famous character. So what is it about this colorful, egocentric, brilliant, conceited man that engages the imagination? Sherlock Holmes: Bird Dragging a Broken Wing explores one possible reason why Holmes can be "killed" over and over and still survive - along with his arch nemesis, Moriarty - to become the subject of yet another story.

From as early as the third century BCE, the Romans were prodigious monument builders, so much so that the memory of the great Roman Republic and the Roman Empire continues to exist within a cityscape of stone. Rome's public spaces were filled with statues, arches, temples, and many other varieties of monumental images, and each of these structures had its own civic or religious function.

The sudden rise and fall of Great Britain should not have come as a surprise to those few persons who study the increase and fall of empires, and they are acquainted with the lands which, in every single case, have caused their dissolution. No writer who controls a heart can, however, afford to go through the fall of Britain merely with all the eye with the moralist or perhaps the calm historian. I would, therefore, remind my listeners of the wealth which the British Empire enjoyed in her quest to conquer the world.

A series of mountain chains frame the Levantine coast, growing in height as they approach modern-day Lebanon. These provided a natural defense along the important coast, and the few passes through these mountain ranges were the focal points of movement and communication. For this reason, these locations were where many crusader castles were erected.

Joseph Stalin rose from humble roots to become the greatest madman of the 20th century. His disregard for human life dwarfs Hitler's, as does the scale of his crimes. This book by author Andrew Klein exposes "Uncle Joe" as the perpetrator of mass killings, mass incarcerations, and mass starvations across four decades. This book spares no detail and minces no words about the evil deeds of one of history's most brazen tyrants.

The Canaanites and Nubians received the most attention as Egypt's enemies and occasional trading partners, but it was the Libyans - the final third of Egypt's traditional enemies - who influenced later Egyptian culture most. The Ancient Libyans: The Mysterious History of Egypt's Neighbors to the West During Antiquity looks at the various groups and their impact on the region and subsequent cultures. You will learn about the ancient Libyans like never before.

Words of meditation to be comforted by.

Richard Nixon was the consummate politician. Growing up as a poor Quaker in California, Nixon decided early on to pursue a career in politics. Struggling from the bottom, Nixon worked his way through law school and eventually into politics. Richard Nixon embodied the American dream. He would also embody the American nightmare. Richard M. Nixon made it to the pinnacle of political power in the United States through effort and determination. Then, in the blink of an eye, he lost everything.

John Adams didn't cut a dashing figure like George Washington. He was not the darling of France, as was Benjamin Franklin. He was not a wealthy and statuesque plantation owner like Thomas Jefferson. Adams was highly opinionated, blunt, and often tactless in his social interactions. To top it off, he was short, fat, and awkward. This does not sound like the description of a Founding Father we should want to know any better - but that's where you're wrong.

Winner: Annual Competition/Honorable Mention: California State Poetry Society 2011. Archived in the UCLA Library of Special Collections.

Does your marketing work? This is a question asked by businesses and marketers around the globe, and with good reason. Billions of dollars are spent every year in marketing efforts, and unfortunately, there is not always a clear picture of the efficacy of those efforts. In his book Does My Marketing Work?, author Robert Thompson attempts to answer this question by using examples as experiences you are already familiar with. Instead of a "how to" approach, however, Mr. Thompson encourages personal idea generation for your unique situation.

In this deeply researched and yet still highly accessible book about the successor to Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II, Steinburg takes us through Pope Francis' early days as a parish priest in Argentina, his Jesuit education, his role in Argentina's infamous "Dirty War", and his time as a bishop and a cardinal at the seat of the Catholic church in Rome.

Buddhism is more than a religious concept! Buddhism is essentially hailed to be a "way of life" which aims at helping people gain a deeper understanding of how things are to be tackled and dealt with. In this book, we are going to talk about the different ideals of Buddhism and the key principles. Buddhism is becoming hugely popular even in most western countries because it seems to have answers to most of the materialistic problems which the world is facing.

They say a dog is a man's best friend. Well, while this may partly be true, the unfortunate part about our friendship with our dogs is really wanting. Let me ask you this simple question; how much do you know about dogs? If you really are someone's friend, you probably would do everything possible to know as much about them as is practically possible. If you've been a dog owner for some time, you can bet that your dog knows a lot about you than you probably may think.

The Revolutionary War: The Making of America retells the story of the American Revolution in a way that captures your attention and is as educational as it is entertaining. This book covers the events of the American Revolution, but also their cultural and historical significance. This book also overviews the most important players on both sides of the conflict, and pays special attention to the key figures who led this military and political struggle and went on to found the American republic.

China Bones is the story of a young American Marine in China through the Sino-Japanese War, World War II, and the ultimate fall of Shanghai, to the Communists in 1949. Zack Cameron finds love and fortune in Shanghai, loses his fortune, and survives a brutal Japanese prison camp, only to face even more danger. In a race against time, Zack is forced to put together a desperate treasure hunt amid the confusion of civil war and the Communist takeover of China.

Hackers have always been a closed, secretive circle, wary of infiltrators and keeping their secrets completely hidden from the public eye until now! This book blows the lid open on the dark side of the hacking world, bringing all of the shadowy secrets, tools of the trade, malicious methods, and high-stakes multi-millionaire lifestyles of hackers out into the open! Each chapter gives you unprecedented access to the cunning tricks, psychological manipulation, and malware that hackers could be using against you right now!

When it comes to scientists that have made their mark in the world, none are perhaps more famous than Albert Einstein. Students around the world are taught about his theories and equations, with E=mc2 undoubtedly being the most famous. However, there was more to this man than simply being a genius or the original prototype of the mad professor. Instead, this was a man that was dedicated to not only his profession, but also the concept of pacifism, something that most people are unaware of.