A moving portrait of school reform in New Orleans through the eyes of the students and educators living it.

There are probably no two men of such stature who can speak to the Holocaust as Christian theologian Johann Baptist Metz, author of A Passion for God and Jewish writer, Nobel laureate and human rights activist, Elie Wiesel, author of Night. One was drafted into the German army at the age of fifteen; the other was interned at Auschwitz. Both came from upbringings of deep faith, only to have their lives broken by the horrors they witnessed during the war. Both share the sense that the Holocaust is a rift in history itself, after which nothing could ever be seen in the same way as before. Yet for both, there is hope ... "nonetheless."

A former US Secretary of Education addresses the crisis in public schooling and the role teachers’ unions have played in its decline. Something is terribly wrong with America’s public-school system. For decades, we have seen test scores slide or stagnate—today, fewer than twenty percent of our nation’s twelfth graders are proficient in math, and our students rank near the bottom in science and math among the industrialized nations of the world—and achievement gaps persist or widen. So who’s responsible for the ongoing failure of our education system? In The War Against Hope, former Secretary of Education Rod Paige pulls no punches in his critical analysis of America’s crisis in the classroom. Without question, the greatest impediment to meaningful school reform is the enormous, self-aggrandizing power wielded by the teachers’ unions. In this vital, well-documented book, Paige takes an unflinching look at the power-hungry union leaders who have consistently placed their ambitions ahead of the needs of the teachers and the students whom they claim to serve. He also traces the history of the National Education Association (NEA) from its humble beginnings as an advocate of education excellence to its early radicalization by left-wing ideology. The War Against Hope is a disturbing account of the corruption, greed, and skewed values that have assaulted our schools, betrayed our teachers, and forsaken our children for far too long.

Climate disaster is here. Capitalism can't fix it, not even with a Green New Deal. Our only hope against hope is disaster communism.

Vietnam War veteran Timothy Patrick O'Rourke discovers the great paradox of war upon his return to the US in 1973: he has left the war, but the war has not left him. He carries with him a profound sense of unfinished business, and struggles to find meaning amid days packed with the responsibilities of a life he no longer understands. Even with the patient, loving support of his girlfriend, Cheryl, Timothy cannot escape the shadow of war. Then he meets the mysterious Hoffen. A voice of tragedy, wisdom and hope, Hoffen has traveled through the darkness and emerged on the other side. Maybe, just maybe, Timothy can do the same. Timothy's odyssey is every veteran's story to some degree, with alienation, hyper-vigilance, substance abuse, relationship problems, guilt, flashbacks, nightmares, and depression as his constant companions. Hope in the Shadows of War confronts the stark realization that a wound that never closes can't heal, and it proves that while trauma casts a long shadow for survivors, hope is a powerful antidote.

Zainab Salbi's media profile soared with her first book, a memoir of growing up in Saddam Hussein's inner circle. Her foundation, Women for Women International, plays a vital role in helping to heal war-torn nations. Here, with images by award-winning photographers, Salbi presents a collection of letters and first-person narratives by amazing women who survived war's devastation and now must find the strength to rebuild families and communities. Overviews by the author explain how each nation's history led to violent conflict; then the women tell their stories--of horror, cruelty, and suffering, but also of profound inspiration, as they work toward renewal and toward the day their fierce determination is rewarded with productivity, prosperity, and lasting joy.--From publisher description.

Gripping True Story of War and Romance, Hope and Miracles When the odds are impossible, love goes to work. In this thrilling true-life story, readers follow the path of friendship that grows into a romance that spans continents and survives devastating hardship. Craig Keener, a respected white scholar, was cautious after a broken relationship. Médine, a well-educated African woman, met Craig through a campus ministry and the two became friends. Long after they parted for their respective worlds, Craig realized his love for her and began the arduous--and often supernatural--journey to be reunited. Médine faced terror and disease as a refugee in the war-torn Congo; Craig did not know most days if she was alive or dead. Their tender story of love beating the odds inspires readers to believe that God's own great love for each of us will always overcome.