The idea of "community" is increasingly vital to our individual and social well-being. Yet at the same time, our ordinary communal relations are being eroded by increased social and geographical mobility, lost traditions, and the growing pluralism of society. Examining this renewed desire for community, Coming Together/Coming Apart locates the current problems of society in the conditions of modern capitalism. Arising out of a common matrix of a world in crisis, contemporary religious, social and feminist discussions of community compose an ideological struggle over the reformation of society.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A fascinating explanation for why white America has become fractured and divided in education and class, from the acclaimed author of Human Diversity. “I’ll be shocked if there’s another book that so compellingly describes the most important trends in American society.”—David Brooks, New York Times In Coming Apart, Charles Murray explores the formation of American classes that are different in kind from anything we have ever known, focusing on whites as a way of driving home the fact that the trends he describes do not break along lines of race or ethnicity. Drawing on five decades of statistics and research, Coming Apart demonstrates that a new upper class and a new lower class have diverged so far in core behaviors and values that they barely recognize their underlying American kinship—divergence that has nothing to do with income inequality and that has grown during good economic times and bad. The top and bottom of white America increasingly live in different cultures, Murray argues, with the powerful upper class living in enclaves surrounded by their own kind, ignorant about life in mainstream America, and the lower class suffering from erosions of family and community life that strike at the heart of the pursuit of happiness. That divergence puts the success of the American project at risk. The evidence in Coming Apart is about white America. Its message is about all of America.

Reading level: 5 ; Ages: 9 and up.

Diplomacy does not take place simply between states but wherever people live in different groups. Paul Sharp argues that the demand for diplomacy, and the need for the insights of diplomatic theory, are on the rise. In contrast to conventional texts which use international relations theories to make sense of what diplomacy and diplomats do, this book explores what diplomacy and diplomats can contribute to the big theoretical and practical debates in international relations today. Sharp identifies a diplomatic tradition of international thought premised on the way people live in groups, the differences between intra- and inter-group relations, and the perspectives which those who handle inter-group relations develop about the sorts of international disputes which occur. He argues that the lessons of diplomacy are that we should be reluctant to judge, ready to appease, and alert to the partial grounds on which most universal claims about human beings are made.

Coming out of the Closet without Coming Apart at the Seams is a witty yet stirring testimony of one lesbians struggles in and out of the closet. As a teenager, Gail peeked out of her closest from time to time. But, her fear of being ridiculed and misunderstood kept her from taking any chances. During Bible College, the closet became her home. After years of warped counseling in ex-gay ministries, she grew tired of trying to change. So, eventually, she took a risk. She risked losing her family, her friends and her faith. She risked it all . . . for the chance to be herself. Coming out of the Closet … is more than a memoir. It is an ideal read for anyone seeking to reconcile homosexuality and faith. Combining her Bible College background with unique story-telling abilities, Gail created a practical and powerful defense against religious and political agendas. Gails story is definitely out of the ordinary. Shes come completely out of her shell. Some will think shes out of her mind Others will think shes out of this world. But, no matter what, Gail has successfully come out of the closet without coming apart at the seams.