Ein bemerkenswertes Buch über Sizilien, das die antike Kultur der Insel erkundet, die mit ihren eindrucksvollen Landschaften, herrlichen Küsten und außergewöhnlichen Schätzen der Kunst und Archäologie seit Jahrhunderten Reisende verzaubert. Doch im Herzen dieser seltenen Schönheit liegt ein Netzwerk von Gewalt und Korruption, das in jede Ecke des sizilianischen Lebens eindringt: Cosa Nostra, die Mafia. Peter Robb lebte über vierzehn Jahre in Süditalien und schildert die sinnlichen Freuden, die Literatur, die Politik, die Kunst und die Verbrechen der Region.
Combining travel, history, culture, and personal memories from two decades in Brazil, the author explores a country that captivates the imagination. From his near-murder in Rio twenty years ago to the recent assassination of a former president's associate who embezzled over a billion dollars, violent death is a persistent threat in this vivid travelogue. Yet, it is the vibrant life force of Brazil and its people that leaves a lasting impression. The author seeks to understand how extreme danger and passion coexist in a nation with a complex history, traveling from the cobalt blue shores of southern Brazil to the arid northeast. He recounts four centuries of Brazilian history, from slavery to the election of the first working-class president. More than just a historical journey, the narrative vividly captures the intoxicating pleasures of Brazil's food, music, and climate, while referencing the works of its greatest writers to illustrate a unique culture. With stunning prose and an inquisitive intellect, the author weaves together layers of history, culture, and personal reflection, creating a deeply personal and impressionistic portrait of the nation. Readers come away not only with knowledge but with a profound sense of Brazil's turbulent soul.
A New York Times Notable Book of the YearAs vividly and unflinchingly presented herein with "blood and bone and sinew" (Times Literary Supplement) by Peter Robb, Caravaggio's wild and tempestuous life was a provocation to a culture in a state of siege. The end of the sixteenth century was marked by the Inquisition and Counter-Reformation, a background of ideological war against which, despite all odds, brilliant feats of art and science were achieved. No artist captured the dark, violent spirit of the time better than Caravaggio, variously known as Marisi, Moriggia, Merigi, and sometimes, simply M. As art critic Robert Hughes has said, "There was art before him and art after him, and they were not the same." Robb's masterful biography "re-creates the mirror Cravaggio held up to nature," as Hilary Spurling wrote in The New York Times Book Review, "with singular delicacy as well as passion and panache."
Focusing on the period between 1870 and 1920, the book examines the intricate relationship between agriculture, development, and poverty under British rule in India's Patna Division, Bihar. It analyzes how British policies shaped the economy and explores the effects of legal, administrative, and scientific interventions on rural life and societal norms, providing a comprehensive understanding of colonial influence on local conditions.
