Winner of the 1993 PWA/St. Martin's Press Best First Private Eye Novel contest, The Heaven Stone introduces a fresh voice in author David Daniel and a likable new protagonist in Alex Rasmussen, ex-cop turned private investigator, who is drawn into the world Lowell, Massachusetts's, Cambodian refugee community. The only member of his family to escape the killing fields of Cambodia, Bhuntan Tran wound up in the decaying factory town of Lowell. Working two menial jobs (although he held a Ph.D), Tran was well on his way to achieving the American dream when he was shot, execution-style, in his own home. The police are convinced the killing was drug-related and aren't too concerned with a solution. An attractive Chinese-American social worker refuses to accept so easy an answer and commissions Rasmussen to dig out the real story. Against the background of an industrial town where new immigrants are clashing with the long-settled Yankee population, Rasmussen's investigation opens up not only dark links to the victim's past but old wounds of the detective's own.

There is a widespread belief, among both political scientists and government policymakers, that "democracies don't fight each other." Here Joanne Gowa challenges that belief. In a thorough, systematic critique, she shows that, while democracies were less likely than other states to engage each other in armed conflicts between 1945 and 1980, they were just as likely to do so as were other states before 1914. Thus, no reason exists to believe that a democratic peace will survive the end of the Cold War. Since U.S. foreign policy is currently directed toward promoting democracy abroad, Gowa's findings are especially timely and worrisome. Those who assert that a democratic peace exists typically examine the 1815-1980 period as a whole. In doing so, they conflate two very different historical periods: the pre-World War I and post-World War II years. Examining these periods separately, Gowa shows that a democratic peace prevailed only during the later period. Given the collapse of the Cold War world, her research calls into question both the conclusions of previous researchers and the wisdom of present U.S. foreign policy initiatives. By re-examining the arguments and data that have been used to support beliefs about a democratic peace, Joanne Gowa has produced a thought-provoking book that is sure to be controversial.

In July of 1999, Brax Bragg was on the brink of something big. After being published twice in the Mercer University literary review, he gleaned his lyrical poetry and set out to be the next Bob Dylan. Many nights of paying his dues while singing across the Southeast soon paid off for Bragg. He quickly went from a one-man minstrel to recording a CD with his new band. Shows were booked, and Bragg left for a short vacation before setting out on the road. All this was tragically cut short by a car accident which claimed the life of Bragg as well as his younger brother. Brax Bragg's unique creative gifts have not been lost. Bullet Proof Bible, a collection of Bragg's work, contains over 450 pieces of poetry, song lyrics, and essays as taken from his journals, notebooks, and personal writings. The selections are arranged in alphabetical order, and a detailed Appendix provides chronological information as well as other historical notes. Bullet Proof Bible reflects what Brax Bragg will always be--an innovative wordsmith and a keen perceiver of human behavior, blessed with the ability to make it sound unique.

A number of ill-meaning residents of North Central Illinois tried to iron out their problems with questionable solutions in the years before World War II. The Golden Age of Crime if you will. Read of more than 40 cases of mayhem from a kinder, gentler time in rural America. A time so law abiding, you could walk for blocks in some towns and never leave a crime scene.

An award-winning barbecue cook serves up generous helpings of culinary history and lore, along with authentic recipes for this famous Southern dish. With roots in Native American, African and European cooking traditions, Brunswick stew developed in colonial- and Federal-era Virginia, when squirrel was a necessary ingredient. By the nineteenth century, the mouthwatering delicacy had become an important part of politicking, celebrating and family gatherings. At the same time, it spread beyond Virginia, following barbecue culture into the Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky. Drawing on historical and contemporary sources, author and Brunswick stew expert Joe Haynes entertains with barbecue stew history, legend and lore, complete with authentic recipes.

DESCRIPTION OF CONTENT: This is the story of everything that happens to -- and a lot that runs through the mind of -- John Galen, M. D., as he darts from patient to patient in the office, ER, operating room, home, and kidney dialysis suite during his day and night on duty. Patients come and go, but two special cases dominate the narrative drive. Written in the first person and present tense, it is derived from the 40-year experience of the author, William Waters, M. D., who is also the son of - and father of - doctors.