This lively collection of essays by Ashutosh Varshney analyses the deepening of Indian democracy since 1947 and the challenges this has created. It examines concerns ranging from federalism and Hindu nationalism to caste conflict and civil society, the north–south economic divide, and politics of economic reforms. Accompanied by a substantial overview tracing the forging and consolidation of India’s improbable democracy, the book, full of original insights, portrays the successes and failures of our experience in a new comparative perspective, enriching our understanding of the idea of democracy.

Battles of the New Republic: A Contemporary History of Nepal is a story of Nepal's transformation from war to peace, monarchy to republic, a Hindu kingdom to a secular state, and a unitary to a potentially federal state. Part-reportage, part-history, part-analysis, part-memoir, and part-biography of the key characters, the book breaks new ground in political writing from the region. With access to the most powerful leaders in the country as well as diplomats, it gives an unprecedented glimpse into Kathmandu's high politics. But this is coupled with ground-level reportage on the lives of ordinary citizens of the hills and the plains, striving for a democratic, just and equitable society. It tracks the hard grind of political negotiations at the heart of the instability in Nepal. It traces the rise of a popular rebellion, its integration into the mainstream, and its steady decline. It investigates Nepal's status as a partly-sovereign country, and reveals India's overwhelming role. It examines the angst of having to prove one's loyalties to one's own country, and exposes the Hindu hill upper-caste dominated power structures. Battles of the New Republic is a story of the deepening of democracy, of the death of a dream, and of that fundamental political dilemma - who exercises power, to what end, and for whose benefit.

This historical account of humanity's 5000 year history of recorded conflict looks at ancient wars, modern conflict, and everything in-between.

The Fields of Normandy is an accessible, portable, solitaire "hex and counter" style wargame in a book. Instructions and colour game maps are included; you just need to bring a pencil, 2 standard six-sided dice and an eraser. Nothing else is needed to play. Your task is to order your rifle squads, machine gun teams, mortar teams and PIAT teams across the map to achieve your objectives, countering any enemy threat which is found along the way. The game rules reveal, position and attack with enemy units whilst you focus on your objectives. Clear rules, 15 missions across varied maps with varied enemies provides plenty of replayability as you re-create the Allied push into Normandy in World War II. Good luck, your troops await your orders... Complexity: 2/5 Players: 1 Time: 10 to 40 minutes per mission

Several scholars have written about how authoritarian or democratic political systems affect industrialization in the developing countries. There is no literature, however, on whether democracy makes a difference to the power and well-being of the countryside. Using India as a case where the longest-surviving democracy of the developing world exists, this book investigates how the countryside uses the political system to advance its interests. It is first argued that India's countryside has become quite powerful in the political system, exerting remarkable pressure on economic policy. The countryside is typically weak in the early stages of development, becoming powerful when the size of the rural sector defies this historical trend. But an important constraint on rural power stems from the inability of economic interests to overpower the abiding, ascriptive identities, and until an economic construction of politics completely overpowers identities and non-economic interests, farmers' power, though greater than ever before, will remain self-limited.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Your playbook to becoming who God created you to be: a man who knows how to fight for what's right. Pastor, bestselling author, husband, and father Craig Groeschel helps you uncover who you really are--a powerful man with the heart of a warrior. With God's help, you'll find strength to fight the battles you know you must win: the ones that determine the state of your heart, the quality of your marriage, and the spiritual health of those you love most. Groeschel examines the life of Samson--a strong man with glaring weaknesses. Like many men, Samson taunted his enemy and rationalized his sins. The good news is God's grace is greater than your worst sin. By looking at Samson's life, you will . . . Learn to defeat the demons that make strong men weak. Tap into a strength you never knew was possible. And become who God made you to be--a man who knows how to fight for what's right. Don't just fight like a man. Fight like a man of God. For God's sake . . . FIGHT! Spanish edition also available, as well as a video study and study guide.