http://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/3738

From acmeism to westerns, this book contains 101 discursive accounts of ideas and terms which have shaped literature, directed at students working on essays and assignments. Entries are presented in alphabetical order in simple language, filling the gap between dictionaries and textbooks.

In this book, Jay Nordlinger gives a history of what the subtitle calls “the most famous and controversial prize in the world.” The Nobel Peace Prize, like the other Nobel prizes, began in 1901. So we have a neat, sweeping history of the 20th century, and about a decade beyond. The Nobel prize involves a first world war, a second world war, a cold war, a terror war, and more. It contends with many of the key issues of modern times, and of life itself. It also presents a parade of interesting people—more than a hundred laureates, not a dullard in the bunch. Some of these laureates have been historic statesmen, such as Roosevelt (Teddy) and Mandela. Some have been heroes or saints, such as Martin Luther King and Mother Teresa. Some belong in other categories—where would you place Arafat? Controversies also swirl around the awards to Kissinger, Gorbachev, Gore, and Obama, to name just a handful. Probably no figure in this book is more interesting than a non-laureate: Alfred Nobel, the Swedish scientist and entrepreneur who started the prizes. The book also addresses “missing laureates,” people who did not win the peace prize but might have, or should have (Gandhi?). Peace, They Say is enlightening and enriching, and sometimes even fun. It has its opinions, but it also provides what is necessary for readers to form their own opinions. What is peace, anyway? All these people who have been crowned “champions of peace,” and the world’s foremost—should they have been? Such is the stuff this book is made on.

The Nobel Foundation presents information on Guatemalan writer Miguel Angel Asturias (1899-1974), who won the 1967 Nobel Prize in literature. Asturias received the Nobel prize for his literary achievement rooted in the national traditions of Indian peoples of Latin America. The foundation highlights a biographical sketch of Asturias, his acceptance speech, the prize presentation speech, and a Nobel lecture by Asturias.

The Nobel Prize, as founded in Alfred Nobel's will, was the first truly international prize. There is no other award with the same global scope and mission. The Nobel Prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, Peace, and the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences (from 1969) have not only captured the most significant contributions to the progress of mankind, they also constitute distinct markers of the major trends in their respective areas. The main reason for the prestige of the Prize today is, however, the lasting importance of the names on the list of Laureates and their contributions to human development. In celebration of the centennial of the Nobel Prize in 2001, this book offers a clear perspective on the development of human civilization over the past hundred years. The book serves to present the major trends and developments and also provide information about the life and philosophy of Alfred Nobel, the history of the Nobel Foundation, and the procedure for nominating and selecting Nobel Laureates. Contents:Introduction (M Sohlman)Life and Philosophy of Alfred Nobel (T Frängsmyr)The Nobel Foundation: A Century of Growth and Change (B Lemmel)Nomination and Selection of the Nobel Laureates (B Lemmel)The Nobel Prize in Physics (E B Karlsson)The Nobel Prize in Chemistry: The Development of Modern Chemistry (B G Malmström & B Andersson)The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (J Lindsten & N Ringertz)The Nobel Prize in Literature (K Espmark)The Nobel Peace Prize (G Lundestad)The Sveriges Riksbank (Bank of Sweden) Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 1969–2000 (A Lindbeck) Readership: General. Keywords:Reviews:“This wonderful book gives a comprehensive review of the Nobel prizes awarded since 1901 … Reading the book is like reading a compressed history of humankind in the twentieth century. It shows how by and large the Nobel prizes have indeed tracked the epoch-making events in this turbulent century.”M Veltman Nobel Laureate in Physics (1999), Emeritus Professor of Physics University of Michigan, Ann Arbor