Early Reviewers George Witte

A century after its underground beginnings, the Chinese Communist Party today exerts far-reaching control over every aspect of private life. Beyond its legendary control of the Internet within China's borders, even seemingly non-political domains are subject to its authority: routine business deals require party approval; university courses reflect party doctrine; and party families amass incredible wealth while other enterprises are squeezed out. Experts predicted that the Party leadership would mellow as the country’s economic fortunes soar, but the next generation of political heavyweights is keeping a tight grip on the reigns of power. Today's huge new class of young professionals, whether they believe in the Party’s ideology or not, are as focused as ever on strengthening the Party's role and silencing dissent. In The Party Forever, Rowan Callick goes behind the scenes to reveal the workings of China’s political elite, introduce us to its future leaders and explore how prepared it is to meet the challenges of its new role in the twenty-first century. This is an essential and eye-opening account of this poorly understood but hugely influential player in world politics.

After seven years of service as the president of Tulane University, Scott Cowen watched the devastation of his beloved New Orleans at the hands of Hurricane Katrina. When federal, state, and city officials couldn’t find their way to decisive action, Cowen, known for his gutsy leadership, quickly partnered with a coalition of civic, business, and nonprofit leaders looking to work around the old institutions to revitalize and transform New Orleans. This team led the charge to restore equilibrium and eventually to rebuild. For the past nine years, Cowen has continued this work, helping to bring the city of New Orleans back from the brink. The Inevitable City presents 10 principles that changed the game for this city, and, if adopted, can alter the curve for any business, endeavor, community—and perhaps even a nation. This is the story of the resurgence and reinvention of one of America’s greatest cities. Ordinary citizens, empowered to actively rescue their own city after politicians and government officials failed them, have succeeded in rebuilding their world. Cowen was at the leading edge of those who articulated, shaped, and implemented a vision of transformative change that has yielded surprising social progress and economic growth: a drowned city identified with the shocking images of devastation and breakdown has transformed itself into a mecca of growth, opportunity, and hope.

The foolproof guide to damage control from the “masters of disaster” Whether you're a politician caught with his pants down, a publicly traded company accused of accounting improprieties, a family-owned restaurant with a lousy Yelp review or just the guy in the corner cubicle who inadvertently pushed "reply all," a crisis doesn’t have to be the make-or-break moment of your career. For those of us that aren’t natural spin doctors, it’s hard to resist the impulse to cover your tracks, lie, or act like nothing happened. But resist you must! In Masters of Disaster, Christopher Lehane and Mark Fabiani, reveal the magic formula you need to take control when it’s your turn to be sucked into the vortex of the modern spin cycle. Covering the ten commandments of damage control, and based on their work for clients like Bill Clinton, Goldman Sachs and Hollywood studios, the authors outline the strategies that can make real time news alerts, Twitter trend lines and viral videos work for you rather against you. Full of both lively personal anecdotes and hard-knuckled straight talk, this is a must-read for anyone who wants to emerge with their reputation intact.

CEOs around the world rank creativity as the most desirable leadership quality of the future. US employers rate innovation and problem solving as in-demand skills for workers and report a shortage of job candidates that measure up. Yet, our schools are increasingly turning into educational environments that stymie creativity—leaving children cut off from their natural impulses and boxed in by expectations. In Swarm Intelligence, Rolling argues that we need to turn our classrooms—and workplaces—into crucibles for collective creativity. Drawing on cutting-edge research in the realms of biological swarm theory, systems theory, and complexity theory and writing in an accessible narrative style, Rolling shows why working in groups makes us both smarter and more creative, and how we can put these principles in practice at the earliest stages of life, to develop the next generation of capable leaders. He argues that this model, rather than the pursuit of individual achievement, promises the greatest potential for the next generation, both as learners and as a nation.

With Iran's nuclear program heating up, and rockets once again firing between Tel Aviv and Gaza, the whole world's eyes are once again on Israel's difficult relationship with their neighbors in the Middle East. At the heart of this conflict is Palestine, which many believe Israel keeps downtrodden as a barrier against its own enemies. In State of Failure, Palestinian-Israeli expert Jonathan Schanzer argues that the reasons behind Palestine's inertia are far more complex than its supporters believe, and that, despite recent rumblings, the dream of statehood may again be scuttled by internal corruption and incompetence. Drawing on exclusive sources within the Palestinian Authority, he shows how Mahmoud Abbas used President George W. Bush’s support to catapult himself into the presidency. Schanzer reveals how Abbas, now four years past the end of his legitimate term, may cost the Palestinians everything. This is a must-read for both pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian partisans at this critical juncture in Middle Eastern politics.